Nokia Lumia 520
Nokia Lumia 520
BrandNokia
ManufacturerNokia
Slogan"The more fun smartphone"
SeriesLumia
Compatible networksGSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
HSPA 1900/2100
Availability by region22 April 2013
Discontinued2015
PredecessorNokia Lumia 510
SuccessorNokia Lumia 525[1]
Nokia Lumia 530
RelatedNokia Lumia 620
Nokia Lumia 720
Nokia Lumia 820
Nokia Lumia 920
TypeSmartphone
Form factorSlate
Dimensions119.9 mm (4.72 in) H
64 mm (2.5 in) W
9.9 mm (0.39 in) D
Mass124 g (4.4 oz)
Operating systemWindows Phone 8, upgradeable to 8.1
Windows 10 Mobile insider beta, later discontinued[2][3]
Unofficial Android 6.0.1 port from XDA-developers[4]
System-on-chipQualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8227
CPU1.0 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Krait
GPUQualcomm Adreno 305
Memory512 MB RAM
Storage8 GB Internal
Removable storage64 GB, microSD
Battery1430 mAh (stand-by time 4 days)
Display4-inch IPS LCD, 480x800 resolution
Rear camera5 MP autofocus, f/2.4, autofocus 720p video
ConnectivityBluetooth 4.0 + LE (after Lumia Amber update)
Assisted GPS
GPS/GLONASS
Micro-USB 2.0
Wi-Fi :802.11b/g/n, WiFi Hotspot
Wi-Fi-based positioning system (WPS)
FM radio, Internet radio
Data inputsMulti-touch capacitive touchscreen, ambient light sensor, proximity sensor
OtherTalk time (2G): up to 14.8 hours
Talk time (3G): 9.6 h
Stand-by time: up to 360 hours (15 days)
Maximum cellular network browsing time: 6.7 h
Music playback time: 61 h (2.5 days)

The Nokia Lumia 520 is an entry-level Windows Phone 8 smartphone[5] announced by Nokia at the 2013 Mobile World Congress.[when?]

In September 2013, the Lumia 520 became the best-selling Windows device in the world, selling more units than any other model of Windows phone, PC or tablet.[6][7] By July 2014, the Lumia 520 has had 12 million activations, and has played a key part for Nokia and Microsoft.[8]

A minor successor, the Nokia Lumia 525, was later released.

Hardware

The Lumia 520 comes in a slate shape with 4-inch SuperSensitive touchscreen. The viewing angles are slightly reduced compared to other phones in the Lumia line.[9] The Lumia 520 shares the same screen resolution of 800x480 as the more expensive Lumia 620, 720 and 820, and actually has a higher pixel density than the 720.[10] The touchscreen is designed to be sensitive enough that one can use it while wearing gloves or with fingernails.

Aside from the screen, the front of the phone contains the Windows Phone 8 standard Back, Start and Search buttons, along with a speaker. The back houses a sole 5 MP camera sensor with autofocus and two-stage capture, but no LED. The sides of the phone also have standard Windows Phone features, as required by Microsoft – volume keys, camera key, power/lock key, 3.5 mm headphone jack and micro-USB connector, which is also used for charging purposes. The phone does not have a front-facing camera or a digital compass. The Lumia 520 ships with 8 GB (8 × 230 bytes) of internal storage with about 3 GB of the storage taken up by the operating system.[citation needed]

The Lumia 520 has a 1430 mAh battery, which is larger than the 1300 mAh battery in the Lumia 620. The 520 is also slimmer and lighter than the 620, but at the same time longer and wider due to its bigger screen. To reduce the production costs, the 520 lacks Nokia ClearBlack display, a front-facing camera, NFC, camera flash and a compass.[11]

Nokia Lumia 525

The Nokia Lumia 525 launched as the successor to the Nokia Lumia 520 with nearly the same specifications and appearance. The Lumia 525 doubles the RAM from 512 MB to 1 GB, therefore making it compatible with more demanding games and apps. The back shell is also now glossy instead of matte.[12][13] It is offered in black, white, orange, and yellow colors which can be swapped via removable shells.[14][15]

This phone was first launched in Singapore on December 14, 2013, followed by an India launch in the first week of January 2014.[16][17][18][19][20]

Software

The Lumia 520 ships with Microsoft Windows Phone 8, as well as exclusive software like Nokia Mix Radio and HERE Maps (featuring turn-by-turn directions, offline maps and navigation, and transit info). The phone received the Lumia Amber software update in mid-2013, which brought numerous bug fixes and improvements, including the ability to capture steadier images, and the Lumia Black update in late 2013.

The Lumia 520 can be upgraded to Windows Phone 8.1 as part of the Lumia Cyan update.[21] Although a port was initially released as an insider preview, the phone will not receive the upgrade to Windows 10 Mobile, which has been attributed to being due to having only 512 MB of RAM.[22]

An Android Marshmallow 6.0.1 port to the phone is underway at XDA Developers, after developers became able to replace the UEFI bootloader used for Windows with the Qualcomm Little Kernel bootloader used to boot Android and other Linux-based operating systems.[23]

Reception

CNET called the Lumia 520 "tremendous value on an easy-to-use device";[24] and said of its variant, the Lumia 521, "Though it lacks 4G LTE support, the $150 Nokia Lumia 521 still gives you quite a bit for your money. Pricing is absolutely this phone's primary value proposition, but the essentials all seem to work, the hardware is sturdy, and the camera is better than average."[25]

The price of the Lumia 520 was halved to $50 in the United States and £70 in the UK for Christmas 2013 season.[26][27][28]

Limitation

Similar to other budget phones like the Lumia 620 and Lumia 720, it only has 512 MB of RAM, half the RAM of the first Windows Phone 8 devices, causing certain applications and features to not run.[29] On 27 November 2013, the Nokia Lumia 525 was announced in Singapore.[1] It increases the RAM to 1 GB to allow all Windows Phone features and applications to run.

520 Variants

A special variant, the Nokia Lumia 521, was created for T-Mobile US. The 521 is slightly longer than the 520 at 124.0 mm[30] (vs. 119.9 mm[31]), so accessories such as cases and screen protectors manufactured for the 520 do not fit the 521. The Nokia Lumia 521's first retail release was on 27 April 2013.[32]

Model RM-913 RM-914 RM-915 RM-917
Countries China International United States United States
Carriers/Providers China Mobile n/a AT&T T-Mobile US, MetroPCS
2G Quad band GSM/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
3G TD-SCDMA 1900/2000 MHz 900/2100 MHz 850/1900/2100 MHz 850/AWS/1900
Max network speed HSPA+: 21 Mbit/s

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Warren, Tom (27 November 2013). "Nokia Lumia 525 unveiled as successor to the most popular Windows Phone". The Verge. Vox Media. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  2. ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.
  3. ^ "Windows 10 mobile - Redstone builds on Lumia 520".
  4. ^ "[VIDEO] Android 6.0.1 CM13 on Lumia 525". 18 August 2016.
  5. ^ Warren, Tom (25 February 2013). "Lumia 520: Nokia hits the low end with its cheapest Windows Phone 8 yet". The Verge. Vox Media. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  6. ^ F., Alan (28 September 2013). "Nokia Lumia 520 is the top selling Windows device in the world". PhoneArena. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  7. ^ Thurrott, Paul (27 September 2013). "Short Takes: September 27, 2013". Windows IT Pro. Penton. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 2013-09-29.
  8. ^ "Nokia Lumia 520 activations exceed 12 million, Windows Phone ecosystem grows". 15 July 2014.
  9. ^ Bhutani, Dhruv (16 April 2013). "Nokia Lumia 520 Review". Fone Arena. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  10. ^ Hoyle, Andrew (15 April 2013). "Nokia Lumia 520 review". CNET UK. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 2013-04-18. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  11. ^ Rogerson, James; Parsons, Jeff (4 April 2013). "Nokia Lumia 520 review". TechRadar. Future. Retrieved 2013-08-23.
  12. ^ Rubino, Daniel. (2014-01-13) Nokia Lumia 525 – Unboxing and hands on with the low-cost 1 GB Windows Phone | Windows Phone Central. Wpcentral.com. Retrieved on 2014-04-03.
  13. ^ Nokia Lumia 525 unveiled as successor to the most popular Windows Phone. The Verge (2013-09-30). Retrieved on 2013-11-27.
  14. ^ Lawler, Richard. (2013-04-26) Nokia's Lumia 525 upgrades its bestselling Windows Phone with more memory. Engadget.com. Retrieved on 2013-11-27.
  15. ^ Nokia Lumia 525 is a 1GB RAM WP8 smartphone on the cheap - GSMArena.com news. Gsmarena.com. Retrieved on 2013-11-27.
  16. ^ Nokia launches 1GB RAM Lumia 525, but it won't come to the UK or US. ZDNet. Retrieved on 2013-11-27.
  17. ^ Nokia expands low-end push with Lumia 525. PCWorld. Retrieved on 2013-11-28.
  18. ^ Hands-on: Nokia Lumia 525 - Mobile Phones - CNET Asia. Asia.cnet.com. Retrieved on 2013-11-28.
  19. ^ Nokia Lumia 525 - Smartphones - CNET Reviews. Reviews.cnet.com. Retrieved on 2013-11-28.
  20. ^ Russell, Jon. (2013-07-15) Nokia announces the Lumia 525, an upgraded successor to the top-selling Lumia 520. The Next Web. Retrieved on 2013-11-28.
  21. ^ R, Rahul (7 August 2014). "Microsoft Bringing Lumia Cyan and Windows Phone 8.1 to Lumia 520 Users in India". International Business Times. Retrieved 2014-11-19.
  22. ^ Edmonds, Rich (18 March 2016). "Smartphones with 512MB of RAM will not be upgraded to Windows 10 Mobile". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 2016-03-19.
  23. ^ "[VIDEO] Android 6.0.1 CM13 on Lumia 525". 18 August 2016.
  24. ^ Dolcourt, Jessica (15 April 2013). "Nokia Lumia 520 review: One of the best budget phones around". CNET. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  25. ^ Dolcourt, Jessica (24 May 2013). "Nokia Lumia 521 review". CNET. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  26. ^ Whitney, Lance (17 December 2013). "Best Buy lops half off Nokia Lumia 520 price". CNET. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  27. ^ H., Victor (28 November 2013). "AT&T to sell Nokia Lumia 520 for $49.99 off contract". PhoneArena. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  28. ^ Svetlik, Joe (27 December 2013). "Nokia Lumia 520 drops to just £70 SIM-free". CNET. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  29. ^ Schiesser, Tim (30 October 2012). "Here are the Windows Phone 8 hardware requirements". Neowin. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  30. ^ "Detailed specifications for the Nokia Lumia 521". Nokia. Archived from the original on 2013-06-08. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
  31. ^ "Detailed specifications for the Nokia Lumia 520". Nokia. Archived from the original on 2013-03-02. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
  32. ^ Dolcourt, Jessica (25 April 2013). "Nokia's budget Lumia 521 phone starts selling April 27 for $150". CNET. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2013-07-08.

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