Nokia Lumia 520 is actually one of the best-selling handsets for the Windows Phone 8 platform. Leaked just a few days ago, the Lumia 525, the 520's successor, is now official. It will be available in Singapore on December 14 for S$249, the same date as its larger, more expensive cousin, the Lumia 1520.
Design and colors
The Lumia 525 shares the same design aesthetic as other Lumia handsets. If you like how the Lumia 1020 looks, the 525 is a smaller version, with the same bright yellow rear. Unlike the 1020, though, the 525's rear cover and 1,430mAh battery are replaceable. If you do not like yellow, there's a choice of four other cover colors you can swap in: blue, red, white, and black.
Display and camera
It has 4-inch IPS display with a resolution of 800x480 pixels. The display appeared sunken in, and not as vibrant. That said, you can use the display with your nails or when wearing gloves. The volume rocker, power, and camera buttons are located on the left side; the Micro-USB jack is located at the bottom. It packs a 5-megapixel camera, but take note that the budget handset lacks a flash. Do not expect the stellar imaging prowess of the higher-end Lumia handsets, but the 5-megapixel camera of the 525 should be able to do well in bright daylight. As mentioned earlier, there is no flash, so if you need to light up your subject, you are out of luck.
Features
While the Lumia 525 has the same specs as the Lumia 520, Nokia has upgraded it with twice the RAM. It now has 1GB, which should help with multitasking. The smartphone comes with 8GB of onboard storage, and has a microSD card slot for expandability. The Lumia 525 is powered by a 1GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, and will launch with the Nokia Lumia Black update package, which includes the latest version of Windows Phone 8.
Other Applications
Other free apps include Here Maps, Here Drive, and Here Transit; Nokia says Transit now works for public transportation in Singapore, though real-time bus times are still being worked on.
Outlook
Priced at a really affordable $249, the Lumia 525 should sell as well as the 520. One can not be too convinced if this is the best way to experience the Windows Phone platform, however, but it looks likely to be wrong about this given how well the 520 has been doing. Besides Singapore, the Lumia 525 will be available in Asia Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East.