Apple iPhone 5 vs Nokia Lumia 900

Introduction:

After having taken some of the formidable competitors in the Android sphere and pitted them against the new kid on the block, the iPhone 5, it seems right to now focus our attention on another rival mobile platform – Windows Mobile. Generally speaking, Windows Phones are undoubtedly rare commodities right now, so as we look around the camp, the Nokia Lumia 900 would seem like the fitting candidate to face the iPhone 5 next. Certainly, its age might prove to be a factor, but nevertheless, it’s still packing a wallop to stand tall amongst the crowd.


Design:

When looks can have such a profound effect on people, it’s comforting to know that these two boast designs that are soundly iconic, and at the same time, meticulously thought out from top to bottom. On one hand, the Nokia Lumia 900 has this stylized edge that accentuates every hard straight line it’s boasting – while its variety of color options complements its stature. Oppositely, the iPhone 5 is without question, the more premium looking and feeling smartphone between the two, as its brushed aluminum casing combined with its svelte looks, enables it to exude a polished figure in all angles. When it comes to sturdiness, they’re both solidly constructed to withstand most things, but there’s something about the unibody polycarbonate body of the Lumia 900, that makes us believe it’ll handle a drop better than its rival will.

As usual, accidental presses are almost non-existent with the iPhone 5’s recessed and tactile home button, but equally as so, we don’t experience many accidents pressing on the Lumia 900’s trio of capacitive Windows buttons.

	Buttons on the front	Front cameras
The Apple iPhone 5 (left) and the Nokia Lumia 900 (right)

Along the trim of both devices, we presented with common items such as their 3.5mm headset jacks, power buttons, volume controls, microphones, and speakers. However, the Nokia Lumia 900 packs a standard microUSB port for charging/data connectivity and a dedicated shutter key – while the iPhone 5 carries along a mute switch and Apple’s new proprietary Lightning dock port. Worth mentioning, there’s no memory expandability with either device, or access to their batteries.

Bottom	Right	Top
	Volume rockers	Left edges
The Apple iPhone 5 (top, left) and the Nokia Lumia 900 (bottom, right)

Well known for their cameras, these two chic looking handsets bring along 8-megapixel rear auto-focus camera with LED flashes – though, the iPhone 5 features an F2.4 lens, while there’s an F2.2 lens on the Lumia 900. Additionally, it’s a front-facing 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera on Apple’s beauty, while a slightly higher 1.3-megapixel one is on Nokia’s offering.

The backs of the Apple iPhone 5 (left) and the Nokia Lumia 900 (right)

Display:

There’s no arguing about this one folks, but the iPhone 5 is undoubtedly packing along the more attractive display between the two. Sure, it’s three-tenths of an inch smaller than its rival, but its 4-inch Retina Display with a resolution of 640 x 1136 is considerably more detailed looking up close and personal. As for the Lumia 900’s 4.3-inch WVGA (480 x 800) ClearBlack AMOLED display, we like it for its saturated color production – albeit, it’s nowhere close to being as accurate as the iPhone 5. And lastly, the IPS-LCD display of the iPhone 5 is more visible under the gaze of the sun.

Viewing angles
The Apple iPhone 5 (left) and the Nokia Lumia 900 (right)

Apple iPhone 5 View:

Drag the picture or use the keyboard arrows to rotate the phone. Double click or press keyboard Space to zoom in/out

Nokia Lumia 900 View:

Interface and Functionality:

Now this is where things get bit interesting, since the iPhone 5 is flaunting iOS 6, which as we know, brings forth some new features – whereas with the Lumia 900, it’s still running the almost year old Windows Phone 7.5 Mango experience. Well, for starters, we like that the interface of both smartphone are very intuitive, but as we dive deeper, there’s more simplicity found with the iOS 6 experience. Although there’s still a good level of simplicity attached to the Lumia 900’s Windows Phone Mango experience, it’s ahead of its rival in terms of personalization, as the various live tiles on its homescreen makes for one dynamic look – as opposed to the stale and static layout of iOS. Regardless of that, Apple has tweaked enough elements to make the iOS somewhat more productive than its competitor now – like its better notifications panel.

The interface of the Apple iPhone 5

The interface of the Nokia Lumia 900

Diving deeper with each handsets’ core organizer apps, they both feature the same level of functionality with them, but surprisingly, the iPhone 5’s set of apps seem more polished with its visual attractions. Furthermore, the iPhone comes preloaded with a native stocks and weather app – while with the Lumia 900, you’ll need to download third party ones. When it comes to emailing though, we don’t necessarily find one more beneficial than the other.

Some of the core organizer apps of the Apple iPhone 5

Organizer apps of the Nokia Lumia 900

Sporting the more spacious layout with its on-screen keyboards, attributed to its larger screen, we actually don’t find the Nokia Lumia 900 to be particularly better than the iPhone 5, mainly because they’re super responsive and offer great auto-correct features to keep up with our speedy nature.

The on-screen keyboard of the Apple iPhone 5

On-screen keyboard of the Nokia Lumia 900

Processor and Memory:

Seriously, it doesn’t require souped-up processors to make these handsets so enjoyable to use, primarily because they perform effortlessly with their humbling offerings. Specifically, it’s a 1.4GHz single-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S2 processor with 512MB of RAM with the Lumia 900 – whereas, the iPhone 5 packs a mightier 1GHz dual-core Apple A6 processor with 1GB of RAM on paper. Obviously, there’s already a disproportion here, but in all honesty, they’re both frankly exceptionally quick with their performance in all aspects.

At the minimum, the two handsets are available in 16GB capacities – with no expandability whatsoever. However, the iPhone 5 is also available in higher 32GB and 64GB capacities, which some will appreciate.


Internet and Connectivity:

Taking into consideration that the two are packing 4G LTE connectivity for super-fast data speeds and buttery smooth navigational controls that are spot-on instant, you can’t go wrong with either smartphone when it comes to the web browsing experience. Still, the only worthwhile distinction pointing out between the two, is that the iPhone 5’s higher resolution makes for some more fine details in a zoomed out view. Besides that, they’re identical to one another.

Browsing the net with the iPhone 5

Web browsing with the Nokia Lumia 900

With the Nokia Lumia 900, it’s ready to work on a variety of GSM networks throughout the world – though, LTE is only obtained through AT&T’s network. On the other hand, the iPhone 5 is available in GSM and CDMA varieties with support for LTE as well. Furthermore, they feature other connectivity features such as aGPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and mobile hotspot.

Camera:

Numbers on a piece of paper is one thing, but real-world performance is entirely another. Despite sharing the same sized 8-megapixel cameras, the iPhone 5 supremely shows its worth over its admirable competitor, since as a whole, it produces the sharper looking shots. Although their qualities are identical with shots taken with adequate lighting present, the iPhone 5 shows its worth indoors under artificial lighting and in low lighting situations. Simply, there’s a fair amount of noise and purple fringing going on with the Nokia Lumia 900’s results – while its extremely dull colors fail to highlight anything. Meanwhile, the iPhone 5 maintains its strong performance with its sharp visuals, accurate colors, and balanced exposure.

The camera interface of the Apple iPhone 5

Camera interface of the Nokia Lumia 900

Apple iPhone 5
Nokia Lumia 900
Apple iPhone 5
Nokia Lumia 900 Camera samples

Strong	Medium	Low light
Apple iPhone 5
Nokia Lumia 900

3ft	5ft	7ft
Apple iPhone 5
Nokia Lumia 900 Darkness with flash Indoor samples

Interestingly enough, even despite the one-sided performance with still shots, the 720p video recording quality of the Nokia Lumia 900 appears to be on par to the iPhone 5’s 1080p quality. Remarkably, the two exhibit a lot of detail, gradual exposure, clear audio recording, and smooth capture rates to really capture the moment perfectly – and with few blemishes!

Apple iPhone 5 Sample Video:

Nokia Lumia 900 Sample Video:

Multimedia:

When it comes to music players, there’s no kidding that these two know how to make them great with their astounding visual presentations and functionality. In fact, cover flow on the iPhone 5 continues to be a standout in this day and age – while the Zune experience follows accordingly to keep us engrossed. Meanwhile, as for the audio quality of their respective speakers, we have to admit that they’re similar with their strong and distortion-free output.

Apple’s music player

The Zune experience on the Nokia Lumia 900

For some, the saturated color production seen with the ClearBlack AMOLED display of the Nokia Lumia 900 might be a solid winner when it comes to watching high-definition videos, but the iPhone’s snazzy Retina Display also manages to enthrall equally as well. Therefore, they’re more than effective in providing us that tantalizing experience watching videos on the go.


Call Quality:

Fortunately, engaging conversations are prevalent with these two beauties, as clear and audible voices are heard on both ends of the line – plus, it helps that their earpieces are strong in tone as well. Then again, the iPhone 5 has the single advantage of offering better noise-cancellation.


Battery:

Edging out its imposing rival, the Nokia Lumia 900 seems to have a slight edge in the battery life department, as we’re able to get close to 1 ½ days of normal usage with a full charge – whereas, the iPhone 5 delivers a solid day only. Indeed, it’s nice to see these two being more than capable of getting us through a work day, being connected via LTE will no doubt drain them faster.


Conclusion:

Pricing is always a major deciding factor for many things, as it can sprinkle the needed value for the dollar for each smartphone. Even though it’s been around for quite some time now, the $49.99 on-contract price of the Nokia Lumia 900 is without question an easier sell than the $200 on-contract starting cost of the iPhone 5. Therefore, if you’re limited by a budget, the Lumia 900 will be able to get you by – for now, that is. However, if you truly desire the more premium and overall better performer, the iPhone 5 is the way to go, despite its higher price point. Considering that it just became available very recently, there’s naturally going to be a premium attached to owning the iPhone 5, but surely, it’s worth every single penny earned.