First Impressions of the new Microsoft Lumia 950 XL – Microsoft did not compromise

For the past year I was using the Nokia Lumia 930 and the Lumia 1520 and I was really waiting for a new Windows Phone flagship. Microsoft finally released the Lumia 950 and the Lumia 950 XL last week in several countries including Switzerland. I am one of the lucky few, who got one last Friday and had the chance to test it over the weekend.

First of all I was using Windows 10 Mobile for a while on my Lumia 930 and the Lumia 1520, so there are not a lot of surprise for me here. I a really like Windows 10 Mobile, it still looks a lot like the first Windows Phone 7 and 8 versions but it looks a little bit cleaner and more mature. Especially the built-in apps like Mail, Calendar, People, Office and the MSN apps go a total redesign and a lot of new features.

So here are some of my first impressions of the device:

First thing you notice the device feels and looks, like a lot of the recent Microsoft devices, a like a high quality premium device, and Microsoft did not compromise on features. You basically get everything you ever wanted in a device.

• You get a amazing 5,7-Zoll-Quad-HD AMOLED ClearBlack Display (2560 x 1440 Pixel and 518 ppi) which just looks gorgeous.
• You get one of the fastest mobile processors out there: the Snapdragon 810 Octa-Core 2,0 GHz. With that Windows 10 Mobile
• One of the greatest thing about the Lumia Smartphones always were the cameras. Especially since the Lumia 1020 you always had a great camera. And with the Lumia 950 and the Lumia 950 XL you definitely get a perfect mobile phone camera. For me the camera of my mobile phone is very important since I take my mobile everywhere and take pictures with it. The camera of the Lumia 950 XL is just amazing, especially in difficult low light situations. If you are looking for a phone with an absolutely great camera you should definitely have a look at the latest Lumias. The main camera is a 20.0 MP, Auto focus with two-stage capture key, 6-lens optics, aperture: f/1.9, Backside-illuminated image sensor, PureView, True 16:9 sensor, Fast Focus, High resolution zoom and 4K Video support. For the front-facing camera you get a Full HD 5 MP wide angle camera with a aperture: f/2.4, perfect for selfies.
• You get also the following features:
  • Glance Screen
  • Wireless charging
  • Fast charging
  • Replaceable battery (3340 mAh)
  • 32GB internal Memory
  • Micro-SD card support
  • 3GB of RAM
  • USB-C 3.1 connector
  • Great antenna technology
  • Dual SIM option
  • Ambient light sensor, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor, Barometer, Gyroscope, Magnetometer, SensorCore
  • Corning Gorilla Glass 4
  • Super sensitive touch display
  • Bluetooth 4.1
  • NFC: Pairing, Secure NFC for payment, Sharing, Tagging
  • WLAN IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, MIMO, Wi-Fi call
  • Wi-Fi hotspot: Up to 8 Wi-Fi-enabled devices
  • AV connectors: 3.5 mm stereo headset connector, DisplayPort over USB-C
  • and a lot more…
• You also get the full Microsoft Office suite with OneNote, Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Which is great especially if you are using it to edit your documents or present it to other on the go.

• Windows 10 Continuum: One of the biggest new features of Windows 10 Mobile. Windows 10 Continuum let’s you connect your phone to a bigger screen and use it as a light Windows 10 desktop together with a keyboard and mouse. You can use Continuum using the Continuum dock or wireless. Unfortunately I don’t have Display Dock right now, so I could only test Continuum using the wireless connection using my Xbox One which worked great. You can also use the Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter to connect your phone and use it with Windows 10 Continuum. Right now Windows 10 Continuum only Windows 10 Universal apps, like Mail, Calendar, Photos, Office and others. If you think about this feature, this is something Windows 10 can really be unique and may replace a computer for some people and employees out there.

• Another very cool Windows 10 feature is Windows Hello. This is also included in the desktop version of the OS and it allows you to login using fingerprints, face recognition or in the case of the Lumia 950 or Lumia 950 XL Iris face recognition. You just have to press your the power on button and the camera try to recognize your iris, and if it can, it will log you in, without the need of a PIN or password.

I think, with the Lumia 950 XL, Microsoft didn’t compromise on anything here. Microsoft just built a phone with all the features people requested. I really like the phone, the new Windows 10 features like Continuum and especially the camera.

Here a picture of the Lumia 930, Lumia 950 and the Lumia 1520:

I also got the Microsoft Universal Foldable Keyboard which is a perfect companion to your Microsoft Lumia 950 with Windows 10 Continuum :