Hardware
The Lumia 928 deviates a bit from the design we’re used to seeing
from Nokia as of late — it’s like the Lumia 928 cut the proverbial
crusts off the softer parts of its anatomy, particularly the edges.
There’s a lot less of a “bloated” feel to the Lumia 928 compared to the
Lumia 920, but there’s still a rounded back to help make it feel more
comfortable in-hand.
The glossy, white polycarbonate body does a nice job masking
fingerprints, dings, and other accidents, but we do miss the color
options the AT&T variant has (the Lumia 928 only comes in black and
white). There’s one thing we don’t miss much on the Lumia 928, and
that’s the Lumia 920’s IPS LCD screen. The Lumia 928 has a 4.5-inch
AMOLED display, and it is gorgeous. The blacks are deep and true,
there’s almost no separation, and at 332 ppi, puts it on par with the
iPhone 5’s retina display. It’s still an AMOLED, though, so keep in mind
that while the Lumia 928’s screen looks incredible indoors, it’s close
to unreadable on a bright, sunny day.
Lastly, Nokia chose to flip the location of the microUSB port from the bottom to the top. This is a personal preference, but it absolutely made me bonkers while using it as my daily driver. Headphone jack location I’m pretty open about, but having an upside-down phone while it’s charging on my desk or nightstand was extremely annoying. I guess it’s a good way to encourage buyers to also pick up the wireless charging plate?
Lastly, Nokia chose to flip the location of the microUSB port from the bottom to the top. This is a personal preference, but it absolutely made me bonkers while using it as my daily driver. Headphone jack location I’m pretty open about, but having an upside-down phone while it’s charging on my desk or nightstand was extremely annoying. I guess it’s a good way to encourage buyers to also pick up the wireless charging plate?
In terms of specs, the Lumia 928 has the same DNA as the Lumia 920,
with some changes sprinkled in to differentiate between the two. Both
offer a dual core 1.5 GHz processor, 1GB RAM, 8.7-megapixel rear
cameras, 4.5-inch screens, and a 2000 mAh battery. The Lumia 928 adds a
Xenon flash to its rear camera, and changes the IPS LCD to AMOLED.
Software
There’s not much here that’s different from the Lumia 920 in terms of
Windows Phone 8’s software, but we’re happy to report that any and all
bloatware from Verizon can be easily uninstalled if it’s not your cup of
tea. That’s a welcome change from a lot of Android devices, which often
find themselves bogged down with carrier-imposed — and branded — apps.
Even VZ Navigator can be dumped in favor of Nokia’s preinstalled Drive+
Beta app, which is a welcome option for anyone who prefers to eschew
carrier apps entirely (trust me, you’ll want to get rid of VZ
Navigator).
Windows Phone 8 is still the sleek, responsive OS it’s been since the
Lumia 920 was released, and I’m a huge fan of the new, sizable Live
Tiles. It brings an air of customizability Windows Phone desperately
needed, and it’s also much more convenient for a user to shrink an app
they don’t use as often, while expanding the ones they want the most
information from. It’s very easy to set up all your accounts on the
Lumia 928, and no matter how many times I’ve seen it, I still smile when
I see my Xbox Live avatar fly into the tiny tile on my home screen.
There’s nothing quite like live tiles, and no one can say Microsoft
isn’t marching to the beat of its own drum with its OS.
WP8 is still lagging behind in app selection compared to the Android
and iOS ecosystems, but generally speaking, it’s a decent selection. If
you’re looking for something specific, you might not find it here, but
if you don’t mind substituting new apps here and there for different
services (Instance for Instagram is a good example), you might actually
come to love what WP8 can offer, particularly if you’re entrenched in
the MSN/Windows/Bing ecosystems. If you’re in Google’s camp, you’ll
almost definitely feel the stinging, empty void from the lack of native
Google Apps for WP8. Sorry, Microsoft and Google, but the Web experience
just isn’t the same, and you both know it.
Performance
We found the Lumia 928 to be lag-free in almost every respect,
offering a responsive and smooth experience overall. It’s a testament to
WP8’s optimization, and even a large amount of live tiles didn’t slow
the Lumia 928 down. Even though it’s a dual-core processor, it easily
fits into the pack of current flagship phones in terms of speed as
perceived by the human eye.
The Lumia 928 also handled gaming nicely, with titles like Jetpack Joyride and N.O.V.A. 3 running without lag or other problems. We’re dying to find out how Halo: Spartan Assault will play on the Lumia 928, but we’ll have to wait until July to see how it performs. If the game is great, and the Lumia 928 can play it with ease, the phone might prove to be a compelling buy for Halo fans.
The Lumia 928 also handled gaming nicely, with titles like Jetpack Joyride and N.O.V.A. 3 running without lag or other problems. We’re dying to find out how Halo: Spartan Assault will play on the Lumia 928, but we’ll have to wait until July to see how it performs. If the game is great, and the Lumia 928 can play it with ease, the phone might prove to be a compelling buy for Halo fans.
Camera
The Lumia 928 camera has the same 8.7MP camera, Carl Zeiss lens, and
PureView software as the Lumia 920, but a Xenon flash has been added to
the 928. The Lumia 920’s low light performance is one of the best in
terms of smartphones, and the Lumia 928 is no different. That Xenon
flash is an interesting addition, but honestly, it doesn’t do much for
you in broad daylight, and in low light situations, it actually gets in
the way of great shots. There’s also an odd white balancing issue when
the flash goes off, possibly from the brightness of the pre-photo flash
causing the AWB to go a little crazy. You’ll see what I mean when you
take a look at some of the samples.
Nokia has some fun and easy to use post-processing software via Creative Studio. There are all kinds of options, from action blurs to standard adjustments, and it’s obvious Nokia has a lot of pride in its camera apps. The robot on my desk will be making many appearances in my camera tests, and I had a lot of fun tweaking photos of him for various looks.
Nokia has some fun and easy to use post-processing software via Creative Studio. There are all kinds of options, from action blurs to standard adjustments, and it’s obvious Nokia has a lot of pride in its camera apps. The robot on my desk will be making many appearances in my camera tests, and I had a lot of fun tweaking photos of him for various looks.
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