Lumia 640 Smart Phone Review

One of the many reasons why I love having a blog, is that I get to be a part of some amazing things and try out brilliant new products; the latest of which being a Microsoft Lumia 640 LTE phone. I am constantly learning about technology in the blogging world and just how essential having a phone that lets me do all that I want it to, and easily, is so important.

I have been an android girl for most of my smartphone life but I have my first ever iPhone at the moment, that I got a few months ago. I had a Windows phone a few years ago and I did really like it on the whole (I only got a different one after dropping it and smashing the screen). Small things like not being able to have the ‘proper’ Instagram annoyed me a little bit about it, but now you can on these phones, I was excited to put it through its paces.

Phone Features

First Impresssions

~ I was impressed at how light the phone is. It is a larger phone than I’m use (5 inch touchscreen) to so it was especially impressive that it was so light, weighing less than my iPhone. A definite plus for me. If it is larger in size, I don’t want to feel like I’m lugging around a huge, heavy phone. It didn’t feel like that at all.

~ I thought the design and colour scheme were really striking. I think it looks great. I’m all for a brightly coloured phone and it has the added bonus of being able to have interchangeable back covers. The orange might look a little garish to some but there are other colour options available and it does have a premium feel to it.

~ I like the tiled look of the homescreen. You can change the colour schemes and make the tiles different sizes. Maybe it is the OCD in me but I love how organised it looks and probably quite sadly, enjoyed arranging the tiles for the apps I would use! My iPhone just doesn’t look the same now…

~ The clarity of the screen is great. Really clear and sharp. I thought the same about the camera too – important for a blogger to have a good phone camera when my ‘big’ camera isn’t to hand.

Putting it to the Test

As a blogger, I need to be happy with my phone and be able to easily use it for all that I need it for – social media, getting online easily and using blogging apps to quickly write my posts. I was easily able to search and get a WordPress app so that I could draft posts on the go. I tend to blog quite a bit using my phone now as it is much less bulky than having to get the laptop out, so this really impressed me. The screen is larger than my current phone screen which helped to type on too.

The camera is so important for a blogger so of course these had to be tested out 😉 The 8 mega-pixel main camera is really impressive, particularly for the phone’s price range. It is really easy to use. There are settings on the phone too, that really help you to get the most out of the pictures. Selfie cameras are usually not as sharp but I thought this was still of good quality, nothing super amazing though. But huzzah, there is now an Instagram app on these phones!

I’m not sure if it is because I have had a phone like this before, but I found it really easy to use and set everything up and to navigate. I like that you can scroll along the ‘headings’ when in a certain app or programme to move to the other things, like in the camera, scrolling across to the gallery and settings etc. The battery life was really good, it seemed to last for ages – much better than my current iPhone on battery life.

The Verdict

Overall, I am impressed by the Lumia. Easy to use and navigate and has all the essentials that I would need in a phone. A definate good choice for bloggers. At around £110 (or contracts from £14 a month), I think it is great value for money. I don’t like paying a lot per month for my phones so this is a very attractive option for me. I think it is just as good as phones I have had in the past.

You obviously need a Microsoft account to connect everything but that is like needing an Apple ID for an iPhone – not a real issue, takes a few minutes to sign up. It is a bit larger than I ideally want, feels too large to have in my back pocket which is handy to do when I’m out and about with the children.  Other than that though, I’m pleased with it and would recommend.

Rebecca x

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*thank you to Microsoft for the loan of the phone. All opinions are my own.