Nokia Lumia 630

The Nokia Lumia 630 is an economical alternative to an equivalent Android smartphone. Windows Phone 8.1 is easy to use but is handicapped by the number of applications available, fewer than on other platforms.

 

 

 

 

If you are looking for a slightly different smartphone, but without breaking the bank, then the Nokia Lumia 630 may be interested. It is equipped with a screen of 4.5 inches diagonally, features a quad-core 1.2 GHz processor, a camera with a 5 megapixel sensor and the latest version of the mobile operating system from Microsoft: Windows Phone 8.1. Windows Phone brand manufactures include the simplified interface consists of tiles. It is proposed in rather bright colors to stand out at first glance. The Nokia Lumia 630 is available around 170 euros naked. Its price aggressively positions the face Moto G Android smartphone from Motorola.
While Motorola has added to 4G Moto G, the Lumia 630 is content to 3G. For 4G, Microsoft (new owner of the Nokia smartphones) offers the Lumia 635. This is the same technical basis as the Lumia 630, the dual SIM slot less.
Like most Nokia Lumia phones, one feature of the 630 is still the bright colors that allow it to stand out from the crowd. The back shell consists of a single plastic piece that curves away front glass screen. The color palette includes a bright yellow, green or orange. Black is also proposed. The shells are removable, so you can customize the color to your mood of the day. "The plastic is rather robust enough to withstand some shocks. As for the screen Gorilla Glass 3, it must resist scratching.
The facade is made of a solid black glass slab. A unit that only the speaker comes to break on top. It measures 12.9 cm long and 6.7 cm wide. It is easy to use with one hand, unlike its big brother the Lumia 1520. On the sides are the power button and volume. The top hosts a 3.5 mm audio jack, while the Micro-USB port for data transfer and charging are on the bottom of the terminal.
Under the back cover, hide the battery, double space for two micro SIM cards and one for the microSD memory card. This last point is an important addition because the Lumia 630 comes with only 8GB of storage space by default. If that's enough for some applications and some pictures, it is too little for storing videos or heavy applications, such as games.
The screen
The 4.5-inch screen offers a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels, which gives a density of 218 dpi (dots per inch). This is the same size as the screen of the Moto G, but the latter offers a higher definition, with a density of 326 dpi much more impressive. When placed side by side, the Moto G is much clearer, especially when watching a small text characters. Nevertheless, the Lumia 630's screen is fairly wide net for essential tasks. The color rendering is more correct as well.
Windows Phone 8.1
The Lumia 630 runs on the latest version of Microsoft's mobile OS, Windows Phone 8.1. This latest version brings are lot of new features, like Cortana, the voice assistant Siri competitor Apple iOS. However, the Lumia 630 does not use all the new features of Windows Phone 8.1 or Cortana which is, for now, available in the United States. However, two new products are immediately noticeable: the ability to set images as wallpaper and the new drop down notification panel. If the screen adding photos as background helps a bit to customize their device. The picture does not change the black background, but changes the transparency of some icons (email, contacts and telephone applications, for example), allowing a glimpse behind the photo. If third party applications have not been updated to be proposed in transparent mode, the pictures do not appear.
The notifications panel is much more useful. The principle is the same one found on Android or iOS. Sliding down from the top of the screen shows a panel with all notifications (text, messages, missed calls, etc.) and provides quick access to essential settings such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth , adjusting the brightness of the screen ... This very useful addition have been proposed for some time.
The rest of the interface does not change much: the tiles adorn the home screen with a list of applications visible by a swipe to the left. It's easy to become familiar with this system, and features like contacts hub that combines all your social networks and email contacts in one place, are very useful. As with the previous Lumia, Microsoft put for now on Nokia software, such as Maps Here, Here and Here Drive Transit. Nokia's mapping software is rather effective. It lets you download large areas, like the whole of France on your phone for use without connection. Here Drive provides a satellite navigation with voice guidance, and replaces a GPS. Here Transit tells you, meanwhile, departure times for local public transport (buses, trains and subways in several cities in France).
Additional integrated applications include Mix Radio allows you to listen to playlists for free and without advertising. Nokia is right to equip its Lumia default of a range of applications. The catalog of applications for the Microsoft OS is much less than that provided for iOS and Android. If the big names like Spotify, WhatsApp and Instagram are present, many others are missing.
Power and performance
The Nokia Lumia 630 is a quad-core processor operates at 1.2 GHz. The same as that which equips the Moto G, but it operates 1GB of RAM, 512 MB for against the Lumia 630. Microsoft explains that the Windows Phone environment is not as greedy as Android to operate fluidly. From this point of view, the Nokia Lumia 630 was perfectly satisfactory. Navigate using the tile system is quick, no noticeable slowdown. Applications open and launch quickly. The smartphone supports heavy tasks without difficulty. Thus, the racing game Asphalt 8 is perfectly playable with great fluidity. The Nokia Lumia 630 has perhaps not the most powerful processor, but it proves largely up to the tasks assigned to him.
The camera
The back of the Nokia Lumia 630, there is a 5 megapixel sensor. Again, it shows the same resolution as the Moto G. The tests give correct results for a entry level phone. The development is effective, but the noise is quickly felt in the shadows. In general, the Lumia 630 has a tendency to underexposure. The application of Nokia Photo allows access to manual settings on elements such as exposure, shutter speed and white balance. Do not hesitate to use it if the automatic mode is not satisfactory.
The camera is certainly not really impressive, but is far from catastrophic. It surprises nor disappoints. It fits perfectly in its price range. Keep in mind that there is no flash as the Moto therefore also E. Say goodbye to the flashlight function ...
Battery
The Nokia Lumia 630 is powered by a battery of 1830 mAh. According to the manufacturer, autonomy reaches 13 hours 3G talk. This is a correct number. In normal use "mixed" (some web browsing, photo, address, social networks ...), the smartphone rather well hold a charge for the day. Loop in video playback, the battery fell to 73% after two hours and 32% after five hours. Not too much trouble to watch a movie while traveling by train. The battery is removable. So it is always possible to have a spare for long trip or in an emergency.
If you take your first steps into the world of smartphones, the Nokia Lumia 630 is not a bad option. Affordable, Microsoft's smartphone has enough power for almost all uses. The Windows Phone 8.1 OS is simple to begin with and very complete with its suite of integrated software. This poses serious alternative to Moto G which recently introduced 4G, but is now more expensive (200 dollars).