Nokia Lumia 625 (Photo credit: vernieman)
The Nokia Lumia 625 Windows Phone is an interesting handset. It sits squarely in the budget range, alongside the Lumia 520 and 620 (and mirrors much of the hardware specifications), but it pushes the boat out with a large 4.7 inch screen and 4G LTE connectivity. Can this budget monster really deliver?
While it is available in the first world markets, I do feel that the Lumia 625 is aimed more towards the BRIC countries, where the combination of the lower price and larger screen should prove to be an attractive lure. High end capabilities without high end pricing is always attractive.
This is where Windows Phone 8 comes in especially useful. There is very little difference in terms of speed, look, and feel, between the OS running on a Lumia 1020 and the Lumia 625. In contrast to the wide range of performance issues on Android, Windows Phone 8 is a remarkably consistent platform.
With a 1.2 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Krait CPU, and the Adreno 305 GPU, the Lumia 625 is a well specced budget device, and it includes MicroSD support to expand the storage. Probably the only point in the specs worth noting is the RAM and the Lumia 625 sports the lowest possible configuration for Windows Phone 8, just 512 MB. This is similar to the best selling Lumia 520, and while it does mean some of the larger games available in the Windows Store (mostly the 3D driving and FPS titles) will not run, but the vast majority of applications are available. In terms of compatibility with the rest of the ecosystem, there are very few issues with the Lumia 625.
The biggest compromise is the biggest element. The 4.7 inch screen is an IPS LCD unit, and it features a number of compromises to bring the Lumia 625 into the lower price range. First of all it's still the lower resolution WVGA screen. At 800×480 pixels, this gives the Lumia 625 one of the lowest pixel per inch numbers of a smartphone in a long time, just 201ppi.
It is the biggest screened Windows Phone device outside of the high-end, and to achieve that the resolution remains at a lower level, and the screen does not have the full range of Nokia technology. There is no polarising layer that is used in the ClearBlack Display technology to enhance the colours and effectiveness in sunlight. The IPS screen also feels to be a lower quality, so the colours on the handset are muted, overall the display is not as bright as others, and the colours suffer washout away from the 'looking directly at the screen' angle.
Right here is the decision that you need to make if you are interested in the Lumia 625. Do you want better colour reproduction and quality in your display, or is the larger screen size a deal breaker?
Slightly complicating the decision is the inclusion of 4G LTE connectivity in the handset as well as HD voice if it is supported on the network. This is the first 'low cost' Windows Phone handset to support the faster data transmission of 4G, and as such it is very much future proofed for users, and also allows carriers to have a budget handset for pay as you go and contract free handsets at a low price.
The size of the Lumia 625 also allows for a larger batter than a normal budget model would carry. The sealed 2000 mAh battery can be stretched to last two days on a single charge, although most people will still charge nightly, this gives the Lumia 625 a lot of stamina. If your network allows it, or you have a SIM free unit, this extra capacity makes the Lumia 625 a very good ad-hoc wi-fi hotspot using 4G for data.
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