Microsoft Lumia 650, a low end smartphone with some excellent features is all set to hit the Australian market towards the end of May 2016.
Announced way back in February, the gadget has already places in some other parts of the globe such as India. The device is currently available for pre-order, and will be available through third-party and Microsoft stores very soon. While there are some features that make the handset stand out better than costlier or flashier Microsoft Lumia 950/950XL, the device does not support certain other features that have appealed to the public. Targeting people on a shoestring budget, the dual SIM Lumia 650 is truly a good choice for those looking forward to using their first Windows smartphone.
Size, Weight and Body Material
The good news is that the Microsoft Lumia 650 bears a compact size and is not very heavy. With dimensions of 142 x 70.9 x 6.9 mm, the handset has a weight of 122g. Even as costlier Lumia gadgets have an all plastic body that tend to give them a cheap look, the Lumia 650 sports a premium flashy look with its solid metallic band that serves as a frame for the handset.In short, the classy look makes the smartphone looks quite elegant in your hand although the back panel is still made of plastic. At the same time, the right size ensures that it fits comfortably in your pocket and also helps you getting a firm grip when you hold it.
Screen Display, Pixel Resolution and Pixel Density
The Lumia 650 sports an AMOLED display screen with Corning Gorilla Glass 3. The device has 5” ClearBlack screen with 1280 x 720 pixel resolution and 297ppi pixel density. While the numbers are not all that great, the results are pretty good taking the screen size and display technology used into consideration. It is also considered to be at the same level with the Lumia 950 as far as the contrast ratio is taken into account. Because of this, you can be assured of good daylight readability. A noteworthy point is that the Microsoft Lumia 650 has done away with the standard RGB LED matrix. It integrates a PenTile RGGB matrix into the display, which is capable of producing brighter whites and deeper blacks. In addition, the AMOLED display supports the extremely useful glance screen functionality. This means that you will not have to turn on the screen every time you receive an email or check your missed calls log. You will receive such notifications and more on your locked screen.
Primary and Secondary Cameras
Although they do not boast of strikingly high values, theLumia 650 cameras are pretty reasonable.They offer the maximum clarity possible for your videos and audios with an 8MP rear primary snapper and a 5MP front secondary shooter. The rear camera has a 0.25” sensor and supports LED flash, while depicting interesting features like 2X digital zoom, face recognition, landscape orientation, manual and auto exposure and focus, automatic upload of photos to web services, geo-tagging, and full screen view finder. The front camera does a neat job with taking selfies and when you use the smartphone for video calls with apps like Skype. Both cameras also record 720p videos @ 30fps.
On the downside, the handset does not support Windows Hello that works using the front camera. This feature unlocks your device by a simple scan of your eyes. However, eliminating this function is one reason the company has been able to cut down on the cost of the Microsoft Lumia 650.
Hardware and Software Configuration
For the price that you pay, the configuration is quite promising and does not let you down. The device is powered by a quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 212 processor that clocks at 1.3GHz frequency. Offering 1GB RAM and 16GB storage under its hood, you can avail more memory up to 200GB with compatible memory cards. The best thing of the Lumia 650 is the use of the latest Windows 10 operating system designed for mobiles whilst several of the earlier smartphones are still stuck with Windows 8.1.
Battery and Color Options
Although not very powerful, there are two points worth noting about the 2,000 mAh battery. Firstly, it renders 55 hours endurance that is it offers almost two days use once the battery is fully charged. Secondly, it is possible to remove the battery from the handset when not in use. Most present day smartphones do not incorporate this.
As for color options, only black and white color choices are available for the back panel, which is removable. So, you can buy a device of one color and a separate panel of the other color and exchange them when you wish to do so.