Pros:
Excellent design; Sturdy construction; Fluid user experience; Stunning 10 megapixel camera; Offline maps and navigation; Excellent sound output; In-bult wireless (induction) charging support, Great photos in low light
Excellent design; Sturdy construction; Fluid user experience; Stunning 10 megapixel camera; Offline maps and navigation; Excellent sound output; In-bult wireless (induction) charging support, Great photos in low light
Slim and stylish design
Bright and accurate screen
Cons:
Not for hardcore gamers; Comes with trashy earphones ,No HDR mode,
Not for hardcore gamers; Comes with trashy earphones ,No HDR mode,
Strong rivals at this price.
The Lumia 830 is the kind of phone you should consider if you want a 'flagship' style phone but can't afford an iPhone 6, Galaxy S5 or a Lumia 930. There are compromises to fit its £320 SIM-free price (from £22 a month on contract), but it looks and feels the part.
Key to its appeal is the camera, a 10-megapixel effort with built-in optical image stabilisation (OIS). OIS helps counteract camera shake and should help produce brighter, sharper photos in gloomy light. Many far more expensive phones don't have OIS, and the hugely expensive iPhone 6 Plus is the only one of the two new iPhones to feature it. Is this enough to elevate it above similar price phones like the LG G3 and Nexus 5? Read on to find out.
Nokia Lumia 830: Design & Features
There are two things that earn the Lumia 830 its ‘affordable flagship’ tag, the camera and the design. Like the Lumia 930, which sits above the 830 in the Windows Phone lineup, the Lumia 830 has a 5-inch screen and it shares the same basic design. Well, it’s the same, only better. It shares the metal trim, colourful plastic rear and black glass front, but it’s thinner, lighter and easier to hold.The differences sound small, the Lumia 830 is 150g and 8.5mm thick against the 167g and 9.8mm of the 930, but the difference is palpable. The Lumia 930 felt chunky, unwieldy and cumbersome, the Lumia 830 doesn’t. In a blind test you would assume the Lumia 830 was the more expensive of the two.
Although this phone is a successor of the 820, its design is inspired by the Lumia 925. The 830 features an aluminium frame that hold the all glass front and polycarbonate back-panel. Much like the iPhone 5s, here the metallic frame has sharp lines save for the slightly curved corners. The frame is slanted where the curved screen meets the metal to make the material transitions seamless. The attention to detail is amazing. Actually, no handset in its price-bracket matches the build precision and styling of the 830.
That’s a good start and the plus points keep coming. That rear cover is removable, so you can access and replace the battery and add a microSD card. The Lumia 930 had neither option. Moreover, the Lumia 830 doesn’t lose many features in return — it still has a dedicated camera shutter button, it still supports wireless charging and it includes NFC as well. It’s a well-featured phone.
So what gives to keep the Lumia cheaper? The main difference is a much slower processor; in fact the Lumia 830 carries the same Snapdragon 400 chip as the sub-£200 Lumia 735. It also has a smaller battery and, unsurprisingly, a lower resolution 720p screen. You don’t get 802.11ac Wi-Fi either, though we doubt many people will miss that.
All told, it sounds like an impressive package and it’s a good-looking one, too. It shares the same orange, green, white and black options as its brethren, and the build quality can’t be faulted. Putting the plastic cover back on is a bit fiddly, as is removing a microSD card (we needed a paperclip to prise it out), but these aren’t things you’ll do often.
Our most serious complaint is that the Lumia 830 is useless as an in-car sat nav. Why? One, because the three buttons on the right edge leave no space to clamp the phone with a holder; two, because the mini USB charging port is at the top and the phone won’t auto rotate to show the display upside down. Switching to landscape view would fix the first problem, but the second is hard to solve. It’s a shame given Nokia’s Here Drive app is so good, but this only matters if you use your phone for navigation often.
One final trivial concern is we found it too easy to jog the volume controls by accident, particularly when putting the phone back in a pocket. The 930 appears to have tougher, harder to press buttons in comparison.
That’s a good start and the plus points keep coming. That rear cover is removable, so you can access and replace the battery and add a microSD card. The Lumia 930 had neither option. Moreover, the Lumia 830 doesn’t lose many features in return — it still has a dedicated camera shutter button, it still supports wireless charging and it includes NFC as well. It’s a well-featured phone.
So what gives to keep the Lumia cheaper? The main difference is a much slower processor; in fact the Lumia 830 carries the same Snapdragon 400 chip as the sub-£200 Lumia 735. It also has a smaller battery and, unsurprisingly, a lower resolution 720p screen. You don’t get 802.11ac Wi-Fi either, though we doubt many people will miss that.
All told, it sounds like an impressive package and it’s a good-looking one, too. It shares the same orange, green, white and black options as its brethren, and the build quality can’t be faulted. Putting the plastic cover back on is a bit fiddly, as is removing a microSD card (we needed a paperclip to prise it out), but these aren’t things you’ll do often.
Our most serious complaint is that the Lumia 830 is useless as an in-car sat nav. Why? One, because the three buttons on the right edge leave no space to clamp the phone with a holder; two, because the mini USB charging port is at the top and the phone won’t auto rotate to show the display upside down. Switching to landscape view would fix the first problem, but the second is hard to solve. It’s a shame given Nokia’s Here Drive app is so good, but this only matters if you use your phone for navigation often.
One final trivial concern is we found it too easy to jog the volume controls by accident, particularly when putting the phone back in a pocket. The 930 appears to have tougher, harder to press buttons in comparison.
Screen
The 830 sports a 5" IPS screen with ClearBlack tech that involves sequence of polarising layers to eliminate reflections. In addition to that, Nokia has integrated a 'sunlight readability' mode that changes the contrast in real time to make sure the screen remains visible even under the bright light. The screen offers better contrast ratio than most IPS panels. With HD (720p) resolution, the screen is sharp.
The 830 sports a 5" IPS screen with ClearBlack tech that involves sequence of polarising layers to eliminate reflections. In addition to that, Nokia has integrated a 'sunlight readability' mode that changes the contrast in real time to make sure the screen remains visible even under the bright light. The screen offers better contrast ratio than most IPS panels. With HD (720p) resolution, the screen is sharp.
The screen is protected by the scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass. Like any Lumia, the 830 comes with a Super Sensitive screen that you can operate even with gloves on. Another noteworthy addition is the software setting to calibrate colour and brightness profile. Since Microsoft's OS features bold colours, I prefer to set the colour profile to Vivid.
Key Specs
On paper, the 830 won't impress you at all. It packs in a quad-core Snapdragon 400 chip and 1 GB RAM, which you get on the Redmi 1S that costs only Rs 6000. The internal storage in 16 GB, which is also offered by the Moto G that costs 10k less than the Lumia 830. The phone supports microSD cards up to 128 GB. The thing that might excite you is the 10 megapixel camera with OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation). A 0.9 megapixel is fine for me since I only it for Skyping. However, that's going to be a big turn-off for the selfie kings and queens. Other features include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, GPS, FM radio, and 2200 mAh battery.
On paper, the 830 won't impress you at all. It packs in a quad-core Snapdragon 400 chip and 1 GB RAM, which you get on the Redmi 1S that costs only Rs 6000. The internal storage in 16 GB, which is also offered by the Moto G that costs 10k less than the Lumia 830. The phone supports microSD cards up to 128 GB. The thing that might excite you is the 10 megapixel camera with OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation). A 0.9 megapixel is fine for me since I only it for Skyping. However, that's going to be a big turn-off for the selfie kings and queens. Other features include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, GPS, FM radio, and 2200 mAh battery.
Camera
The Lumia 830 has a 10 megapixel PureView camera with OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation). Here the entire assembly of optics shift its position to compensate for the shaky hands. The results are stunning. The Lumia 830 offers excellent low-light performance - even better than the 925. In comparison, the Nexus 5 and even Moto X (2nd gen that costs Rs 32,000) falter in such situations.
The Lumia 830 has a 10 megapixel PureView camera with OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation). Here the entire assembly of optics shift its position to compensate for the shaky hands. The results are stunning. The Lumia 830 offers excellent low-light performance - even better than the 925. In comparison, the Nexus 5 and even Moto X (2nd gen that costs Rs 32,000) falter in such situations.
Vehicle light-trails captured with slow-shutter.
In daylight, the images contain plenty of detail. The colours are accurate, and the visual noise in well under control. The Lumia Camera app (earlier known as Nokia Camera) lets you tinker with parameters such as shutter speed, exposure, focus, ISO with ease. With a newer processor in tow, the camera is snappier than the one on the previous gen Lumia devices such as the 925.
Apart from producing quality photos, the Lumia 830 makes watching those images fun. The StoryTeller app displays Live Images, which mimic the photographs from the Harry Potter movies.Videos are smooth and there's hardly any jitter while panning. With 3 mic HAAC (High Amplitude Audio Capture) setup, the videos contain rich stereo sound. To put things in perspective, even the top of the line, iPhone 6 is still stuck with mono audio.
Battery
The 2200 mAh battery lasts for a day and half with normal usage. In our video playback test, with brightness set to medium, it ran out of battery after 9 hours. The phone supports Qi- inductive charging standard. Wireless charging is more convenient, but slower than using the conventional charger. If you want to give it a try, the starting price for Nokia's charging plates is Rs 2900.
The 2200 mAh battery lasts for a day and half with normal usage. In our video playback test, with brightness set to medium, it ran out of battery after 9 hours. The phone supports Qi- inductive charging standard. Wireless charging is more convenient, but slower than using the conventional charger. If you want to give it a try, the starting price for Nokia's charging plates is Rs 2900.
Verdict
The Lumia 830 is the most stylish handset in its class. Made of premium materials, this phone is build to last. For Rs 26,300, it offers a stunning camera and fluid smartphone experience. On the other hand, the 830 is not for the specs junkies. This phone won't impress you with the processor score or ppi number, but will win you over with its unique features and real life usefulness (if given a chance).
The Lumia 830 is the most stylish handset in its class. Made of premium materials, this phone is build to last. For Rs 26,300, it offers a stunning camera and fluid smartphone experience. On the other hand, the 830 is not for the specs junkies. This phone won't impress you with the processor score or ppi number, but will win you over with its unique features and real life usefulness (if given a chance).
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