Nokia XL Review – An Android™ Dual SIM Phone with One Experience

This is going to be a rather straight to the point review. The XL is a larger Microsoft Android™ phone with a better camera than its smaller brother X.

Does it succeed? Has Microsoft/Nokia made an Android phone that delivers what many have asked from the company for years: the customization of Android with the durability of Nokia. Find out the answer in our detailed Nokia XL review…

Quick Tech Specs:
– 5-inch 800 x 480p LCD display
– 1 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor
– 768 MB RAM
– 4GB internal memory, microSD up to 32GB
– 5MP rear camera with auto-focus + 2MP front camera
– Dual-microSIM (GSM + GSM)
– 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth
– 2000 mAh battery
– Android-based Nokia X software platform

In the box:

• User Manual
• Wall Charger with non-detachable USB cable
• Headset
• 2000 mAh battery

Price: N27,800 at Jumia | N27,500 at Konga | N30,000 at SLOT

What we like:
– Attractive body build
– Runs the main interface fairly smoothly
– Good battery life but depends on daily usage
– Perfect for working with office documents
– Large and vivid 5 inches display
– The camera is above average for it’s class
– An affordable phone
– Good call quality

What we don’t like:
– Most popular 3rd-party apps not pre-installed
– Lack of adequate internal storage space
– Camera tends to lag
– No Google Play Store
– The design layout is quiet a mess
– Low-resolution screen

Design:
The design is exactly the same as the Nokia X, or the Nokia Asha series. Vibrant colours that now symbolise the company’s devices, a single back button on front with power and volume buttons on the right side. The camera has no bump on the rear, but has a small LED flash on top of the lens.

The rear flap is hard to open like with other Nokia phones in this range, so this might not be a good choice for people who keep swapping their second SIM. It might be a good idea to bring the hot-swappable slot to these phones.

Screen:
The phone has a WVGA 480p screen that might put off some buyers as there are quite a few models out there offering qHD or even HD at the same price point. However, the screen is quite good and has decent viewing angles though you get the feeling that this there is too much gap between the display and the outer screen protecting it. Plus, the tile format of Microsoft’s Android OS does not feel as crisp as stock Android. But play a YouTube video and you will see that the display quality is actually good for this price range.

Performance:
The performance is pretty smooth with hardly any lag. Yes, Fastlane does make life easy, but it does take some getting used to. A long press on the back button stalls any running app and takes you to the home page. A stalled app can then be resumed from the recent apps in Fastlane. Yes, it is multi-tasking, though with a twist.

Was unable to download Whatsapp onto the phone. Got the Error message “Sorry, your device is not supported” each time I tried to install the app.

Memory:
At this price point I would have expected the XL to have at least 8GB of internal storage, especially since many low end Android™ phones are now shipping with 4GB. Also, Microsoft could have given 1GB RAM which will be of use when multiple apps are open.

Connectivity: There are no issues with reception and call quality.

Software:
Hmmm. The Nokia X software platform tries its best to be an Android™ with a difference, but there are free launchers on Google Play that appear much more sophisticated. There is nothing wrong with the OS, but it seems like something that has been resurrected from the Symbian era. Fastlane is a good addition, but the tile format does not work well for me.

Camera:
Compared to the Nokia X, the XL has a pretty decent camera. For one, this comes with auto-focus and works well in all conditions. Nokia XL packs a 5MP camera with LED flash on the back. The camera offers accurate colour rendition and good contrast level, but lacking details. One good thing about photos taken from this camera is that dark areas did not show any grains. You can use Nokia XL to take a selfie with its 2MP front camera. Here the images appear grainy, as they do in most low-end phones.

Battery: The battery life of the XL is really good. I could stretch it to about 13 hours with regular use.

Verdict: I will recommend the Nokia XL to those people that are looking for a good mid-range handset. The Nokia X was not all that confusing, but if you can spend up to N30,000 and want a screen this large then XL is for you.

Overall Rating: 7/10