Microsoft Lumia 950

Microsoft Lumia 950

Microsoft Lumia 950

Microsoft Lumia 950
Brand Microsoft
Manufacturer Microsoft Mobile
Slogan "The phone that works like your PC"
Series Lumia
Compatible networks GSM, HSPA, LTE
Predecessor Lumia 930, Lumia Icon
Type Smartphone
Form factor Slate
Dimensions 145 mm (5.7 in) H
73.2 mm (2.88 in) W
8.2 mm (0.32 in) D
Weight 150 g (5.29 oz)
Operating system Windows 10 Mobile
System on chip Qualcomm Snapdragon 808
CPU 1.82 GHz dual-core Cortex-A57 + 1.44 GHz quad-core Cortex-A53
GPU Adreno 418
Memory 3 GB LPDDR3
Storage 32 GB
Removable storage microSD up to 200 GB
Battery User replaceable 3000 mAh Li-Ion battery
Qi wireless charging
Data inputs Multi-touch capacitive touchscreen
Display 5.2 in (130 mm) WQHD (1440x2560) AMOLED, 564 ppi, Gorilla Glass 3
Rear camera 20 MP PureView
1/2.4 in PureView sensor
Zeiss optics with f/1.9 aperture
triple RGB LED flash
optical image stabilization
4K video (2160p) at 30 fps
Front camera 5 MP
f/2.4 aperture
1080p video
Connectivity HSDPA (850, 900, 1700, 1900, 2100 MHz), GSM (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac), Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou
LTE (Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 20, 28, 38, 40: 2100, 1900, 1800, 1700/2100, 850, 2600, 900, 700, 700, 800, 700, 2600, 2300)
Other Iris scanner (near infrared) for Windows Hello
Continuum for Phone via Microsoft Display Dock
Website Microsoft Lumia 950
Microsoft Lumia 950 Dual SIM

The Microsoft Lumia 950 is a smartphone developed by Microsoft, officially revealed on October 6, 2015[1] and released on November 20, 2015 alongside the larger Lumia 950 XL.[2] The Lumia 950 is the successor to the 2014 Nokia Lumia 930 and is among the first phones to natively run Windows 10 Mobile. The phone is primarily aimed at users desiring a flagship device, in contrast to Microsoft's previously dominant strategy of targeting developing markets with low-end hardware.

Hardware

The Lumia 950 has a polycarbonate frame with a removable back shell, allowing access to the battery as well as SIM and microSD card slots. The phone is available in two colors, black and white, although third-party replacement shells are available in different colors and materials.[3][4]

Internals

The Lumia 950 uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 MSM8992 SoC which combines two 1.82 GHz Cortex-A57 and four 1.44 GHz Cortex-A53 cores in a big.LITTLE architecture, allowing more computationally intensive workloads to run on the faster "big" cores while threads with less priority run on the slower "LITTLE" cores. The SoC also includes an Adreno 418 GPU and is paired with 3 GB of LPDDR3 RAM. The phone has 32 GB of internal storage which can be expanded with microSD cards up to 200 GB in size.

Display

The Lumia 950 has a 5.2 in (130 mm) AMOLED display with a resolution of 2560x1440 (WQHD) and a 16:9 aspect ratio. Pixel density is 564 ppi. The display is protected by Gorilla Glass 3 and features ClearBlack technology for improved sunlight visibility, but unlike earlier Lumia flagships it does not support some features like double tap to wake[5] or Super Sensitive touch.[6]

Camera

The Lumia 950 has a 20 MP PureView-branded rear-facing camera, containing a 1/2.4 in BSI sensor with 1.12 μm pixels and phase-detection autofocus, a 6-element Carl Zeiss lens with a f/1.9 aperture and 5th-gen optical image stabilization, and a triple-LED RGB flash that can adjust to match the color of ambient light.[7][8] Maximum image resolution is 4992x3744 pixels (18.7 MP) in 4:3 aspect ratio and 5344x3008 pixels (16.1 MP) in 16:9 aspect ratio. The camera can also capture oversampled 8 MP images, optionally with a full-resolution DNG file that enables more post-processing possibilities.[9] The camera supports video capture at up to 4K (3840x2160) resolution, as well as slow-motion video at 120 fps, albeit at a reduced resolution of 720p.

The front-facing camera has a 5 MP sensor and a wide-angle f/2.4 lens, supporting video capture at up to 1080p resolution. The camera also supports Windows Hello through iris recognition with the help of an infrared LED.[10]

Connectivity

The Lumia 950 supports 4G LTE technology with maximum transfer speeds of 300 Mbit/s (150 Mbit/s for the dual-SIM version). Other wireless connectivity options include dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi hotspot, NFC, Bluetooth 4.1, and wireless screen projection via Miracast. Physical connectors include a 3.5 mm audio jack, as well as a USB Type-C connector for charging and data transfer. The latter supports USB OTG, enabling the use of peripherals like mice, flash drives or external microphones,[11] and Qualcomm's Quick Charge 2.0 technology.[12]

Other

The Lumia 950 supports wireless inductive charging using the Qi standard. The AT&T version also supports the PMA standard.[13]

With either the addition of a Microsoft Display Dock or by connecting to a Miracast receiver, the Lumia 950 is compatible with Windows Continuum, a technology that allows users to connect their devices to an external monitor for a desktop-like experience.[14]

Known issues

The phone has issues with AT&T's LTE network when users do not first insert a SIM card before going through the phone's setup procedure,[15][16] Cortana can cause echoes during voice calls,[17] and the phone has been reported to have Wi-Fi issues.[18]

Australian carrier Telstra has claimed the Lumia 950 has connectivity issues on their network.[19]

Reception

The Lumia 950 was generally well-received, with most reviewers commending the high-end specifications and camera performance, but finding the design to be less "premium" than competing flagships, and the app ecosystem to be less comprehensive than Android or iOS.

Daniel Rubino of Windows Central described the phone as packing "all the bells and whistles that Windows Phone fans have been clamoring for all in one device". The review particularly praised the camera, including image quality as well as features like Rich Capture and Living Images; overall verdict for the camera was "quite phenomenal". The phone's design was called "practical, but not beautiful", and features like Windows Hello and Continuum were reported to be working well, albeit with some issues. The Windows 10 Mobile operating system and its app selection were pointed out as the biggest weaknesses.[20]

GSMArena rated the Lumia 950 very highly, saying that the phone "lives up to the hype and delivers on all advertised promises". The review highlighted the specifications, display and camera as being "top-notch" and found both Windows Hello and Continuum to be working "as advertised". While some faults were found with the design, battery life and price, the review concluded with: "Microsoft has done an amazing job with the Lumia 950... It's an eagerly anticipated phone and ... it deserves every bit of praise it gets."[21]

PhoneArena gave the Lumia 950 a score of 7/10, describing it as "a phone ideal for the Windows fan", praising the display as well as features like Windows Hello, Continuum and Office integration. The main downsides were seen to be the design and app selection, while battery performance was determined to be average.[22]

Edward C. Baig of USA Today commended the camera and replaceable battery, while describing the hardware specifications as "robust". However, new features like Windows Hello and Continuum were considered not to be "fully baked", and the design was described as less premium than competing flagships. The reviewer concluded by saying: "When it comes to phones however, [Microsoft] still has plenty of work to do."[23]

Matthew Miller of ZDNet described the design as "an uninspiring, simple rectangular form factor", but acknowledged the practical advantages of plastic over materials like glass or aluminum. The Windows app ecosystem was seen as lacking in both quantity and quality compared to Android and iOS, and the reviewer expressed concern over the performance of the OS itself, although commending a number of features like "the Action Center, the awesome keyboard and predictive text engine, and reader mode in the browser".[24]

Todd Haselton of TechnoBuffalo commended the inclusion of a dedicated camera key and overall imaging capabilities, but criticized the design and said the user interface of Windows 10 Mobile "feels unfinished". The reviewer gave the phone a "Don't Buy" rating, recommending readers to wait for an improved successor.[25]

References

  1. ↑ Callaham, John (October 6, 2015). "Microsoft Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL smartphones officially announced". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  2. ↑ Rubino, Daniel (November 9, 2015). "Sources say AT&T is set to release the Lumia 950 on Friday, November 20". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  3. ↑ "Genuine leather backs for Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL from Mozo". GSMArena.com. October 7, 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  4. ↑ Rubino, Daniel (January 20, 2016). "Review of the Orange and Blue replacement shells for the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  5. ↑ "Does my Lumia support double tap to wake up?". Microsoft. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  6. ↑ K., Paul (January 19, 2016). "The Microsoft Lumia 950's Super sensitive touch screen – neither super, nor that sensitive?". PhoneArena.com. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  7. ↑ Caldwell, Jonathan (October 27, 2015). "Microsoft Lumia 950 XL’s 20MP camera is quite impressive". WinBeta. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  8. ↑ Alakarhu, Juha (October 15, 2015). "Camera magic on Microsoft Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL". Microsoft Devices Blog. Microsoft. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  9. ↑ "What is the DNG format in Lumia Camera in my Lumia?". Microsoft. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  10. ↑ Smith, Russell (January 20, 2016). "Windows 10 Tip: Using the Lumia 950 with Windows Hello". Petri. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  11. ↑ Rubino, Daniel (November 20, 2015). "The Lumia 950 and USB OTG: Thumb drives, microphones and keyboards". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  12. ↑ Tung, Liam (November 19, 2015). "Here's how Microsoft souped up Windows 10 Lumia 950, 950 XL batteries". ZDNet. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  13. ↑ Guim, Mark (November 17, 2015). "Prep for Lumia 950 & 950 XL: Wireless charging & what charger to get". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  14. ↑ Huculak, Mauro (October 8, 2015). "How Continuum for Windows 10 Mobile works on Lumia 950 & Lumia 950 XL". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  15. ↑ "Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL Having Problems with AT&T's LTE". Venture Capital Post. November 28, 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  16. ↑ Calpito, Dave (November 29, 2015). "Some Microsoft Lumia 950 XL Users Having Trouble Getting AT&T 4G LTE Signal". Tech Times. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  17. ↑ Rubino, Daniel (December 7, 2015). "Hey Cortana causing echoes for Lumia 950 during phone calls". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  18. ↑ Popa, Bogdan (December 10, 2015). "Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL Suffering from Wi-Fi Connectivity Issues". Softpedia News. Softpedia. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  19. ↑ Popa, Bogdan (January 24, 2016). "Australian Carrier Says Lumia 950 Failed Its Testing Due to Connectivity Issues". Softpedia. Retrieved 2016-01-29.
  20. ↑ Rubino, Daniel (November 20, 2015). "The Microsoft Lumia 950 review". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  21. ↑ "Microsoft Lumia 950 review". GSMArena.com. December 2, 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  22. ↑ V., John (November 24, 2015). "Microsoft Lumia 950 Review". PhoneArena.com. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  23. ↑ Baig, Edward C. (December 2, 2015). "Microsoft's Windows 10 phone is no world beater: review". USA Today. Gannett Satellite Information Network. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  24. ↑ Miller, Matthew (December 3, 2015). "A week with the Microsoft Lumia 950: Not yet ready for enterprise customers". ZDNet. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2016-01-18.
  25. ↑ Haselton, Todd (December 4, 2015). "Lumia 950 review: Right path, but not out of the woods yet". TechnoBuffalo. Retrieved 2016-01-18.

External links

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