Nokia Lumia 525 Review

Introduction

You don’t mess with a winning formula, people say, and there’s no device out there that seems to follow that mantra as ardently as the Nokia Lumia 525. The successor to the wildly popular Lumia 520 has some big shoes to fill, as its inheriting quite the responsibility. There’s no dancing around the fact that it was the Lumia 520 that gave Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 the push it needed to latch onto the honorary third place in the world of mobile. Thanks to its extremely affordable price tag, it drew consumers over to the platform in droves. It falls on the Lumia 525 to extend that streak, and Nokia isn't about to mess this one up. To that end, the two devices are virtually identical on the outside, with some very minor changes under the hood. Will these tweaks to the original recipe prove enough to continue winning smartphone buyers over? Let’s see.

In the box:

• Wall charger
• microUSB to USB cable
• In-ear headphones

Design

Signature Lumia, miniaturized

If we were to put the Nokia Lumia 520 and Lumia 525 side by side, you’d have a truly impossible time telling the two apart. A true twin to its predecessor, the Lumia 525 is, on the outside, a complete copy. The same petite proportions are at play here, and there’s still quite some space wasted in plastic. The playful exterior of the Lumia 525 communicates no high-end ambitions, but it looks sturdy and reliable. Unfortunately, we can't say we're happy with Nokia's decision to go back to glossy polycarbonate, as pertains to the rear shell – we much preferred the matte finish of the previous model.

Now, this is a one-handed device through and through. It sits comfortably in the hand, thanks to its conservative dimensions and rounded sides. Its angular frame digs into the palm, but we found the presence reassuring rather than unpleasant. The well-placed volume rocker, and power and camera shutter buttons also aid in the overall ergonomics of the phone. They are all confidently edging out from the right side of the Lumia 525, and provide a pronounced feedback on impact.

Display

No 'wow' factor here. Practicality scored a landslide victory

The display is another area that remains firmly unchanged with the Lumia 525. We're still privy to the same highly-sensitive 4-inch, 480x800 resolution IPS LCD panel. This configuration works out to a rather low pixel density of 235 pixels per inch. It's also worth pointing out that the scratch-resistant glass on top, unfortunately, appears to lack an oleophobic treatment, resulting in a shower of greasy smudges. But hey, at least you can use it with gloves on!

Color reproduction with Nokia's screen of choice is not perfect, but doesn't leave too much to desire. Sure, colors are less saturated than the best out there, and there's a noticeable pinkish hue to whites, but it's leaps and bounds ahead compared to the average panel in this class. But one area – peak brightness – the display concedes to even inferior solutions out there, and that's just unfortunate. Our bright yellow unit, ironically, is not at all suited for play in the sun.

Interface and functionality

Offline turn-by-turn navigation in a cheap package

If you're coming from a platform different than Windows Phone, you're likely to feel lost with the Lumia 525. At least at first. Microsoft, as many of you already know, has taken its own approach to designing the system, and though its a little disorganized at a first glance, there's no telling whether you won't end up liking it. And there's a lot to like with the Lumia 525. It comes preloaded with stuff like HERE Maps and HERE Drive, which support offline navigation – still a rarity on rival platforms. You also get access to Zinio – a magazine digest app – along with Nokia Beamer and Nokia Cinemagraph, which allows you to create animated shorts from pictures.

Processor and memory

This hardware configuration gets the job done, no questions asked

Nothing fancy's going on under the compact hood of the Lumia 525. The device relies on a 1GHz, dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 to do the heavy lifting, which makes use of two Krait 300 cores and an Adreno 305 GPU in turn. Thanks to the light nature of Windows Phone 8, this otherwise unimpressive combo does away just fine – lag is non-existent while operating the UI, and it runs smoothly as it should. Moreover, the relatively low pixel count on the display allows the configuration to run even gaming titles as exacting as Asphalt 8 without too much fuss.

Multitasking has been improved with the Lumia 525, as the amount of RAM has been bumped up to 1GB from the 512MB of the Lumia 520. This is pretty much the only noteworthy change between the two handsets. Built-in storage, at 8GB, is typical for this class, though it's a big plus that you can expand it via a microSD card with up to 64GB more.

Internet and connectivity

Browsing on the Lumia 525 is akin to a smooth smailing

To test out the browsing capabilities of the Lumia 525, we had the built-in Internet Explorer (IE) app jump through hoops until we arrived at a verdict. With years of background behind it, IE once again showed what it's made of – common commands, such as panning and zooming were performed well, no questions asked. Of course, this is an area that is profoundly impacted by how well the processor itself handles the web, and we're happy to report that the Snapdragon 400 did just fine. Load times could use some work, but once the wait is over, it's a smooth sailing.

Bluetooth 4.0, A-GPS with GLONASS support, HSDPA+ speeds of up to 21.1Mbit/s – these are the contents of the Lumia 525's connectivity cache. An adequate inventory for a device of this class.

Camera

Stripped down to the bare essentials, but highly effective

The camera part of the equation has always carried a great deal of importance to Nokia, but we found ourselves questioning that notion when it came to the Lumia 525. A relatively frugal, 5-megapixel camera with 28mm lens and f/2.4 aperture is what you'll find on the rear of the Lumia 525 – and it's the only one, no front cam available. There's no LED flash, either, so night photography is a hazy affair.

Despite these rather essential omissions, we were actually struck by how well the Lumia 525 handles itself in the presence of a light source. Stills, always a notch darker than in reality, are nevertheless faithfully rendered by the sensor on the device with just a hint of a yellowish hue. The level of detail is pretty great for a 5MP unit, even at 100% zoom, and digital noise is tolerable, even under low light scenarios. Video is captured at 720p at best, and it's obviously the weaker link – the camera tweaks the exposure very well, but detail is on the low side.

The typical Windows Phone camera UI is a testament to simplicity, but that also means that you won't find anything but the essentials in it. Still, you can tweak the exposure level, ISO, white balance, aspect ratio, and you also have a choice of several scene modes, including close-up, night, sports, and backlight. You're also getting Nokia Smart Cam, a proprietary app equipped with some noteworthy wizardry, including modes such as Best Shot, Remove Objects, Change Faces, and Motion and Action Focus. All of these allow you to work stills after they've been taken, and, in some cases, improve them profoundly.

Multimedia

The Nokia Lumia 525 is a decent all-rounder when it comes to multimedia

The usual Windows Phone multimedia portfolio is loaded on the Lumia 525. The powerful Photos app is still among our favorites for its overall design, ease-of-use, and functionality. Edits, like cropping and rotating, are easy to carry out. The Music+Videos app is a tad less to our taste, but it's still a perfectly capable solution.

Video playback is stellar, though you're obviously limited by the conservative, 4-inch display. The same goes for audio, and we've got to say that we were initially shocked to hear just how loud the speaker on the back of the Lumia 525 is. Obviously, loudness and quality usually have an inverse relationship, and Nokia's device is no exception to that rule, but we were still quite happy with what we were treated to.

Call quality

Top marks: the Lumia 525 blazed a trail during our call quality tests

Talking on the Lumia 525 is nothing short of an absolute pleasure. The earpiece is extremely loud at the max setting, and we were impressed by the fact that this involved no trade-off in the sound quality department. The otherwise tiny speaker transmits voice tonality splendidly, and it actually feels as if you're talking to somebody in person. There are no distortions, and no nasty background sounds. The other side of the equation – the microphone – is as equally potent. Raise your voice a few decibels, and you just might deafen the person on the other side, and he'll know it's you without a shadow of a doubt all the while. This is some really good stuff.

Battery

The small, 1430mAh battery gets us through two days of usage

A tiny-looking, 1430 mAh cell is what you'll find underneath the exterior shell of the 525. It's of the removable type, which is great if you're looking to maximize the longevity of the phone. Nokia rates the Lumia 525 as good for up to 1014 minutes of talk time on 2G (636 minutes on 3G), and 14 days of stand-by – a moderate increase from the Lumia 520. In our experience, the phone handled a rather focused attention for up to two days, so it's unlikely that you'll have to charge daily.

Conclusion

Unpretentious, effective. Two words that are at the very core of the Nokia Lumia 525's DNA. With a price tag of about $180, and the possibility of another sales frenzy à la Lumia 520, this is Nokia's new device to watch.

But success is hardly ever built on just past laurels, and Nokia likely knows that better than most. The Lumia 520 is now in the past, and it's a different world out there, with devices like the Motorola Moto G launching a serious offensive. For the same price, the Moto G gets you a bigger, more-detailed screen, a quad-core processor, a better all-around camera, and a matured operating system. Thankfully for Nokia, the Lumia 525 is as out-classed by pretty much none other, but mainstream devices like the LG L7 II and the Sony Xperia M are also worth a consideration before you commit. In other words, if the Nokia/Microsoft duo is as intent on getting a win with the Lumia 525, it might have to consider going down the path of crazy sales promotions once more.