Old meets new: Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL vs Nokia Lumia 930 and Lumia 1520 (specs comparison)

posted by Florin T. / Oct 10, 2015, 9:44 PM

Old meets new: Microsoft Lumia 950 and 950 XL vs Nokia Lumia 930 and Lumia 1520 (specs comparison)

Microsoft this week announced the first high-end Lumia smartphones since the Lumia 930 - which, as you may know, was launched in mid-2014 as a Nokia-branded device. The new smartphones are the Microsoft Lumia 950 and Microsoft Lumia 950 XL, both running Windows 10 out of the box. While the two new handsets have a lot in common, they can be seen as successors to different devices: the Lumia 950 succeeds the aforementioned Lumia 930, and the Lumia 950 XL could pass as a successor to the Nokia Lumia 1520 - the very first extra-large, high-end Lumia smartphone, which was released back in November 2013.

Let's see how things have evolved for the Lumia brand under Microsoft by comparing the specs of the 950 and 950 XL to those of the Nokia Lumia 930 and Lumia 1520, respectively. Of course, for a proper look at the 950 and 950 XL we have to wait until November, when Microsoft will stat selling them. But, for a preliminary look, you can check out the comparisons below. It's worth mentioning that both the Lumia 930 and Lumia 1520 will be updated to Windows 10, so, at least from the software point of view, they will be able to stand next to the newer and more advanced 950 and 950 XL.

Microsoft Lumia 950 vs Nokia Lumia 930

Display

Display size

5.2 inches

5.0 inches

Resolution

1440 x 2560 pixels

1080 x 1920 pixels

Pixel density

565 ppi

441 ppi

Technology

AMOLED

Screen-to-body ratio

69.77 %

70.78 %

Camera

Rear

Single camera

Main camera

20 megapixels

Hardware Features

Optical image stabilization, Autofocus, Back-illuminated sensor (BSI)

Specifications

Aperture size: F1.9; Focal length: 26 mm; Sensor size: 1/2.4"; Pixel size: 1.12 μm

Aperture size: F2.4; Focal length: 26 mm; Sensor size: 1/2.5"

Video recording

3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (60 fps)

3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (30 fps)

Recording format

MPEG4, H.264

MPEG4, H.263, H.264, WMV

Features

Optical image stabilization, Continuous autofocus, Video light, Video calling, Video sharing

Front

5 megapixels

1.2 megapixels

Video capture

1920x1080 (Full HD)

1280x720 (HD)

Design

Dimensions

5.71 x 2.88 x 0.32 inches (145 x 73.2 x 8.2 mm)

5.39 x 2.80 x 0.39 inches (137 x 71 x 9.8 mm)

Weight

5.29 oz (150 g)

5.89 oz (167 g)

Materials

Back: Plastic

Biometrics

Iris scanner

Features

Touch sensitive control keys

Hardware & Performance

System chip

Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 MSM8992

Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 8974-AA

Processor

Hexa-core, 1800 MHz, ARM Cortex-A57 and ARM Cortex-A53, 64-bit

Quad-core, 2200 MHz, Krait 400

GPU

Adreno 418

Adreno 330

RAM

3 GB LPDDR3

2 GB LPDDR3

OS

Windows (10 Mobile)

Windows Phone, 8.1

Battery

Capacity

3000 mAh

2420 mAh

Charging

Yes

Talk time

23.00 hours

11.50 hours

Stand-by time

12.0 days (288 hours)

23.0 days (552 hours)

Talk time (3G)

18.00 hours

15.50 hours

Music playback

67.00 hours

86.00 hours

Video playback

10.00 hours

7.50 hours

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL vs Nokia Lumia 1520

Display

Display size

5.7 inches

6.0 inches

Resolution

1440 x 2560 pixels

1080 x 1920 pixels

Pixel density

515 ppi

368 ppi

Technology

AMOLED

IPS LCD

Screen-to-body ratio

74.15 %

70.95 %

Peak brightness

600 cd/m2 (nit)

Camera

Rear

Single camera

Main camera

20 megapixels

Hardware Features

Optical image stabilization, Autofocus, Back-illuminated sensor (BSI)

Specifications

Aperture size: F1.9; Focal length: 26 mm; Sensor size: 1/2.4"; Pixel size: 1.12 μm

Aperture size: F2.4; Focal length: 26 mm; Sensor size: 1/2.5"; Pixel size: 1.12 μm

Video recording

3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (60 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (120 fps)

3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (30 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (30 fps)

Recording format

MPEG4, H.264

Features

Optical image stabilization, Continuous autofocus, Video light, Video calling, Video sharing

Optical image stabilization, Video light

Front

5 megapixels

1.2 megapixels

Video capture

1920x1080 (Full HD)

1280x720 (HD) (30 fps)

Design

Dimensions

5.98 x 3.09 x 0.32 inches (151.9 x 78.4 x 8.1 mm)

6.41 x 3.36 x 0.34 inches (162.8 x 85.4 x 8.7 mm)

Weight

5.82 oz (165 g)

7.37 oz (209 g)

Materials

Back: Plastic

Biometrics

Iris scanner

Features

Touch sensitive control keys

Hardware & Performance

System chip

Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 MSM8994

Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974

Processor

Octa-core, 2000 MHz, ARM Cortex-A57 and ARM Cortex-A53, 64-bit

Quad-core, 2200 MHz, Krait 400

GPU

Adreno 430

Adreno 330

RAM

3 GB LPDDR4

2 GB LPDDR3

OS

Windows (10 Mobile)

Windows Phone, 8.1, 8

Battery

Capacity

3340 mAh

3400 mAh

Charging

Yes

Talk time

25.00 hours

27.40 hours

Stand-by time

12.0 days (288 hours)

32.0 days (768 hours)

Talk time (3G)

19.00 hours

25.10 hours

Music playback

75.00 hours

124.00 hours

Video playback

11.00 hours

10.80 hours

Shopping information

MSRP price

$ 749

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35 Comments

1. zeeBomb

Posts: 2318; Member since: Aug 14, 2014

Sucks you can only get this phone on the last month of the year...

posted on Oct 10, 2015, 10:06 PM 0

30. Taters

Posts: 6474; Member since: Jan 28, 2013

I played with it at the store today and the lady said its coming out October 26th, same day as the pro 4 and book. Although they haven't gotten in a demo for the book yet for some reason.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 7:44 PM 0

2. ArtSim98

Posts: 3535; Member since: Dec 21, 2012

Nokia had so much better design..

posted on Oct 10, 2015, 10:39 PM 10

4. Cheezwiz

Posts: 500; Member since: Dec 29, 2014

couldn't disagree more. I hated those sharp corners of the 1520

posted on Oct 10, 2015, 11:44 PM 5

5. Johnnokia

Posts: 1158; Member since: May 27, 2012

950 and 950 XL don't have any Nokia's design magic touch. They look like very ordinary plastic phones. Check the design differences between 950 and (930, 1520, 925, 1020). Nothing great left for the new windows smartphones after that fateful acquisition!

posted on Oct 10, 2015, 11:51 PM 8

6. Cheezwiz

Posts: 500; Member since: Dec 29, 2014

950/XL are fine. It's a slab, it's going in a case. I'm only ever going to see the screen. What's to be upset about?

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 12:06 AM 3

8. iushnt

Posts: 3122; Member since: Feb 06, 2013

its personal preference, I am liking the new design over the older one

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 12:08 AM 2

9. Gemmol

Posts: 793; Member since: Nov 09, 2011

I like the new design bro, it look even sexier in person

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 12:45 AM 1

17. Plutonium239

Posts: 1232; Member since: Mar 17, 2015

It's not cheap plastic, its high end polycarbonate, none of that cheap plastic that samsung used for the old Galaxys...

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 7:25 AM 2

26. rsiders

Posts: 1976; Member since: Nov 17, 2011

I just went to the Microsoft kiosk yesterday to play with the Lumia 950XL. Don't be fooled by the pictures. These flagships feel every bit of cheap plastic even if they aren't. From the front it looks exactly like the 640 and 640XL. The only thing special about these flagships are the hardware features and the camera. The 950XL is utterly boring unless you're looking at the back of it which is nicer. Microsoft will bring out the big guns for their next generation and first phones with Panay's team's direct handprints on. These are merely midrange designs that Microsoft used for their high end phones and they just threw all the hardware goodies in. The cancelled McLaren was much better designed than these along with every other Lumia flagship before this year.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 4:35 PM 0

18. thepurplewalrus

Posts: 13; Member since: May 14, 2015

The Lumia 830 had the best design by far in my opinion.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 8:15 AM 0

21. miketer

Posts: 527; Member since: Apr 02, 2015

Relax, this model is just a fill in, for the real thing in the future

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 10:03 AM 0

33. Spedez

Posts: 542; Member since: Aug 29, 2014

All the good ex-Nokia employees are already gone. I know since I'm also ex-Nokia employee still sitting in ex-Nokia HQ as a subcontractor.

posted on Oct 12, 2015, 2:26 AM 0

14. HR_19

Posts: 103; Member since: Aug 09, 2014

Sharp corners were my only complaint, I lived everything else, including general design of the 1520 when I had mine. But to keep even remotely similar design, they'd have to make the back non-removable, and the battery built-in, so I don't mind a lesser design, if it means removable battery and such.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 1:42 AM 0

15. Fellwalker

Posts: 538; Member since: Apr 04, 2014

That was why I didn't get one. Tried it, but hurt my hands holding it.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 3:29 AM 0

7. lalalaman

Posts: 638; Member since: Aug 19, 2013

i like how the 3rd party back cover(which have metal frame) makes L950 look like a L930

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 12:07 AM 3

23. miketer

Posts: 527; Member since: Apr 02, 2015

Can I know the web addy for this cover?

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 10:07 AM 0

20. 7thspaceman

Posts: 1597; Member since: Feb 14, 2011

Folks the 950 and 950XL has removable backs and Microsoft has new 3rd party Venders selling FANCY backs for the 950/950XL made of Leather, Wood, and designer patterns on them so these smart phones at least now have some other way of looking better other than a person having to buy a Fancy case

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 8:55 AM 0

24. XperiaFanZone

Posts: 2279; Member since: Sep 21, 2012

The people who designed the 950 are ex-Nokia emplyees. JohnMicrosoftMobiles will burn if he finds out.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 11:10 AM 0

27. akki20892

Posts: 3902; Member since: Feb 04, 2013

dude, it was nokia class.......!!!

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 4:35 PM 1

3. gazmatic

Posts: 818; Member since: Sep 06, 2012

maaan. I want the 950xl so bad it's not even funny. I cant wait. Luckily everybody has already released their phones so I already know which to choose. Now it's a waiting game.

posted on Oct 10, 2015, 11:21 PM 1

22. miketer

Posts: 527; Member since: Apr 02, 2015

Except the Priv

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 10:04 AM 0

10. Gemmol

Posts: 793; Member since: Nov 09, 2011

I'm upset AT&T not planning to take the XL, but I have no problems with the regular edition, since it be cheaper on at&t next, meaning you pay much less a month, for example iphone 6s 16gb cost 649.00 off contract on AT&T, if you take at&t next and pick only the 1 year plan so next year in November you can upgrade to the Surface phone the price you would pay is 32.50 a month for 12 months and then you can upgrade again, but the thing is the 950 is cheaper than the iphone 6s 16gb it cost 549 off contract, so that means the price you pay every month would be cheaper if you could bear with it.....but if they had the 950 xl which cost 649 off contract it would be same price each month as iphone 6s 16gb

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 12:57 AM 0

34. elitewolverine

Posts: 5192; Member since: Oct 28, 2013

At this point, might as well just fork over the cash. My family gets all my trickle downs anyway.

posted on Oct 12, 2015, 6:56 AM 0

11. Switch00

Posts: 536; Member since: Sep 04, 2013

Comparing 1520 to 950xl makes as much sense as comparing 1520 to 950. There's still strong market above bezel-less 6''. But since Apple don't make it, others pretty much - at least in flagship section - ignore it. Very stupid policy, may I say...

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 1:06 AM 1

13. 99nights

Posts: 1152; Member since: Mar 10, 2015

Specs comparison lol?

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 1:24 AM 0

16. AeroPrime

Posts: 175; Member since: Feb 21, 2011

Wait a minute the battery is removable.

posted on Oct 11, 2015, 3:40 AM 1

19. 7thspaceman

Posts: 1597; Member since: Feb 14, 2011

A commenter wrote that A T & T wont carry the 950XL if that is true then Microsoft if it is wise will offer it to T-Mobile, Verizon or Sprint. Microsoft has to learn to be like it's OEM partners and sell the same models to multiple carriers. Elop is gone he used to have different smart phones for each USA carrier. this is not cost effective. since Windows 10 Continuum is a great feature; I still believe that Microsoft has a lower cost Mobile Continuum capable Windows 10 smart phone in pre preproduction so lower income folks can have a Powerful smart phone.