My Lumia 535 Review

Hello there! It's time to write about something about my Lumia 535. After 4 months of use I can say that I'm really satisfied with this device. So far so good so let's have a talk about it shall we?

Nokia's signature design of colorful phones is still here. I think it's still a Nokia Phone tho, BUT with a Microsoft logo hehehe. I was shocked when I saw the specs tho, I mean the specs are great for a budget phone unlike other brands there. I remember the first time I saw the Lumia 535 displayed at the mall I was like jumping all around because the 535 has finally arrived here in our country.

The Lumia 535 is big and solid to use. Although it slighty squeaks when I used the phone for the first time but now those squeaks are gone and I wonder why? It looks like a bigger Lumia 530 but only better in terms of specs. You have a:

- 5 mp Front facing camera, 

- 1Gb RAM, 

- 5 mp Rear Camera with Focus, 

- 5 inch screen, 

- Corning Gorilla Glass display

- Ambient light sensor

- 8Gb Internal storage

All in all for a price of Php 5,990 or equivalent to $132 Dollars. This is really a bang for your back. 

And the Lumia 535 also looks like a premium phone so which is a nice factor for me.

The Nokia X is similarly priced the same as the Lumia 535 . I bought the Nokia X for Php 5,990 also but the Nokia X is weak and less powerful. Maybe because it's an Android device that's why it seems slower with lots of lags. So for those of you people who are buying a Budget smartphone go for Lumia 535 instead of this Abomination made by Nokia. Nokia made a huge mistake of making this phone and good thing Microsoft killed this project. 

Le Homescreen

Windows Phone 8.1 looks great and I salute Microsoft for the lots of improvements they have made in this OS. I'm really lovin' the Live Tiles and it's fast and fluid UI because it feels like you're using a flagship phone but in reality it's only a budget phone. This is why I love Windows Phone OS. It's fast, smooth, lovely to look at and well organized thanks to it's tile icons.

Live Folders

LUMIA DENIM update is really good and thanks to this update we finally have LIVE FOLDERS on Windows Phone 8.1 which is good thing to keep our files organized so we don't get lost looking for that specific app or something.

Lumia Camera Interface

Lumia Camera is your default camera on your Lumia 535 and the Microsoft Camera is nowhere to be found. It's not on the app list and I wonder why they removed it but it's present on older Lumia devices like the Lumia 530.

Front Camera is really perfect when you take pics outdoors thanks to it's 5 megapixel shooter it really creates nice photos and even better it is a WIDE ANGLE 5megapixel camera so you can take photos without your friends struggling to squeeze in so they can be included in the pic. Really convinient for a budget phone like this. Well done Microsoft ^_^

Front Camera Pic 1

Front Camera Pic 2

Although the front camera looks nice outdoors it doesn't do well indoors. Indoor pics using the front camera is fuzzy and has that annoying greenish tone that makes you look like hulk.

indoor pic taken with the Front Camera

indoor pic 2 taken with the front camera

Let's see what the Rear Camera can do. So the rear camera takes awesome pics also and yeah if you're outdoors but there are times when the colors are not so natural and you got this faded look. For example I'm taking a picture of something black the result is it looks like semi black.

Rear Camera Pic1: My Cats are more colorful than that

Rear Camera Pic2: The Skies look more orange than this

Rear Camera Pic3: No problems here

The Rear camera works ok on indoors tho. It doesn't have that greenish tone you get on the front camera even if it's low light. And the flash is a really big help here for capturing those low light moments. The Flash can also act as a flashlight if you download a flashlight app from the store.

Rear Camera low light: Cinema

Rear Camera Low light: Inside our church

Gaming on Lumia 535 is awesome and really great. To be honest it lags on heavy games like ASPHALT 8 or LARA CROFT: RELIC RUN . Lumia 535 may have a Quad Core processor but it is a 1.2 GHz quad core processor only so yeah it's ok for a budget phone like Lumia 535 and those big games are still playable tho even it lags a little. Small games like Candy Crush, One More Line, Crossy Road and Temple Run and any other small games run perfectly on Lumia 535 as these games does not have heavy graphics and visuals . It's good to see that the Lumia 535 also has 1Gb RAM so you can download those Bigger heavy games on the store which is not available for 512mb RAM Windows Phone devices.

Asphalt 8

Lara Croft: Relic Run

Music playback on Lumia 535 is superb. The Music App can be a bit confusing at times but you can get used to it. The Music UI is great but the slider bar needs to be improved a bit because it's a bit too small and I think it should be extended but good thing the music app is now improved in the latest build of Windows 10 mobile Technical Preview. Voice recording is great but to be honest the microphone in the Lumia 535 prodcues low quality recordings so I suggest if you record your voice use the microphone on the HEADSET that is bundled with the Lumia 535 for better quality.

Music UI 

GPS is working fine on Lumia 535 and it really detected my exact location right now. I'm using HERE Maps at the moment and it worked without Wifi thanks to OFFLINE MAPS so you don't need the hassle to go online especially if you're on places without Wifi or if you don't have a data plan.

HERE Maps

The STORE has been improved these days and you can now see popular apps from Android and iOS unlike the early days of Windows Phone where it doesn't have enough apps so it's good to see developers are now paying attention to Windows Phone Os. What more if Windows 10 mobile would come now that would be really a good game changer for Microsoft and it's a good thing that Microoft is doing something to fill in the app gap of our Windows Phones. Hoping that developers would cooperate tho.
You can also get exclusive apps on Windows Phone like Microsoft games like "Tentacles: Enter the mind" or Xbox Games like "Halo: Spartan Assualt" and also other exclusive games from other developers like the World Of Rabbit series.

 

       

MICROSOFT APPS and services are ok even though it's android versions is far more superior but I hope Microsoft pay attention to their own apps on their own OS. Good thing they keep updatng Onedrive tho but their office and onenote apps need some serious update. Good thing the Windows 10 mobile version of these apps are now more superior and has a lot of new features so i guess we will have to wait. And oh yeah check out how these Microsoft apps made my life easier on my other post. :)

Microsoft Apps to suit your office needs.. Except that Adobe Reader, that isn't a Microsoft App hehe

LUMIA 535 is a great budget phone for the masses. It was a great phone for everyday use and really helps you do more on the device. Thanks to its fast UI and OS experience of WINDOWS PHONE and also with a 1Gb RAM and a Quad Core processor it feels like a flagship phone in your hands. If you want to upgrade from a Lumia 530 you might as well upgrade to Lumia 535 as this is the best choice if you are tight on budget. So far so good for 4 months of usage of my Lumia 535 I can really say that this is the best choice for a budget smartphone. Microsoft has really done well on their first Lumia phone. So that's all for today and thanks for reading my review. Bye for now. :)

How Microsoft Apps make my life easier in my LUMIA

One Thing I really like about my LUMIA because it is a Windows Phone. And being it a Windows Phone that means I can enjoy the benefits of Microsoft services built-in . Microsoft Apps like OneDrive, Office, OneNote is really useful for me especially in school. It makes me more productive than ever.

My Notes on my OneNote

ONENOTE is very useful for me. There was a time when i lost my ballpen and I coudn't find it. I just grabbed my Lumia and Open OneNote. There it is i can now write what was written on the blackboard, very useful for me in times of need because i don't have to open my notebook anymore to study, i just grab my phone and go to OneNote and all my notes are there in one place; unless if you're studying MATH .. That subject really needs a lot of notebook. To be honest I have 3 Math Notebooks for the whole 2 semesters last year because that subject needs some serious attention.

Microsoft Office saved my life.

OFFICE. Very useful for me if i have last minute edits for my word or powerpoint documents. There was a time when I forgot to add something in my Personal Case Study document but good thing I saved it to my phone, So i just opened Office and searched for my file and there I go putting that last detail for my Personal Case Study before i printed it; very useful for me indeed. 

There goes my files.

There was this time that my Memory Card reader stopped working and I can't transfer files from my Lumia to my PC anymore because the Memory card was damaged. Good thing there's ONEDRIVE, I have loads of pictures i want to upload to my Facebook and since I can't transfer my files using a Card reader i just uploaded my pics to OneDrive on my Phone and then opened my PC and go to the OneDrive website and there it is! I finally have the pics transferred to my PC. So the next thing I do is download those pics and saved it to my PC and uploaded it to Facebook. Really neat and useful for me for transferring files.

So there it is. This is how Microsoft Apps made my life easier. Less Hassle and more productive. How about you readers? you've got something to share? Share it via comment below. Thanks for reading, Bye For now ^_^

The Benefits of a LUMIA and Windows Phone

Lumia, Lumia ,LUMIA! There are so many reasons why I love my LUMIA. You can get many benefits from it than Android or iOS. Let's see what are these benefits of LUMIA and Windows Phone shall we? :)

1. It Stands out from the rest 

Beautiful

One of the signature looks of Lumia is the colorful build of it. Lumia's these days have removable back covers which you can swap in for different colors depending on your mood. It really stands out from the rest and you can really tell if that person is using a Lumia in public because of it's colorful look. Other Windows Phone's also has a unique look on their phones but one thing i like about the build of Lumia Phones is because the back cover can be easily removed.

2. Microsoft Services FTW!

Don't mind the Adobe Reader hahaha

If you are a heavy Microsoft fan and uses their services, then a LUMIA or any other Windows Phone phone is for you. Especially if you're using a Windows 8 laptop you can easily sync your Onedrive, OneNote, Office EASILY to your windows 8 laptop if you have a Lumia or other Windows phone's because it's Microsoft services was built in into the phone so you can access it easily and easier.

3. Live Tiles for instant info

Live Tiiilllees <3

Live Tiles, The Heart and soul of a Windows Phone. With Live Tiles you can view instant info from your apps and from the people you care the most. As you can see in my homescreen i can see my friend messaged me on Messenger, my Weather app tells me the weather of this day and for tomorrow, My Instagram tile tells me how many likes I've got in my photo, My Messaging App tells me there's a new message all in all I can see all of this AT A GLANCE So you don't have to bother opening the app. 

4. XBOX integration at it's best

Are you an Xbox player? Then a LUMIA or any other windows phone is what you need. You can view your Points, change your avatar, Message friends, Accept friend requests, see what's new, view your achievements, compare your achievements from your friends directly from your phone so it's less hassle for you.

5. Camera Quality is Superb if you have a LUMIA

Front Camera

Rear Camera

In a LUMIA you get better looking photos. I tried a budget Cherry Mobile once and i can really see the difference of the Camera Quality. It's a budget Cherry Mobile Windows phone with a 5 megapixel camera so I compared it with my Lumia 535 and I was shocked because both of the phones had 5 megapixel Camera's but the pics taken with my Lumia 535 is better than Cherry's budget Windows phone. and thanks to LUMIA CAMERA you can take pics on your Lumia like a Pro especially for those expert photographers.

Lumia Camera basic interface

Lumia Camera advanced interface

6. Exclusive LUMIA Apps from Microsoft

Lumia Exclusives <3

With a Lumia, You can get exclusive apps from Microsoft like Lumia Selfie, Lumia Refocus, Lumia Camera, Lumia Cinemagraph and more. If you try to install these on a Non Lumia Windows Phone it will say it is not available because you can only get these apps if you have a LUMIA windows phone. So if you have a Samsung or HTC or Cherry Mobile windows phone you can't get these apps. BUT don't worry because HTC and SAMSUNG and Cherry Mobile also has exclusive apps for their Windows Phone that you can still enjoy.


7. Move APPS directly to the SD CARD!!

Oh Yeah!

Now THIS is the most advantage if you own a Windows Phone. You can move an APP and ALL OF IT'S DATA on the SD CARD easily without all of those complicated rooting stuff you can see on Android. Because in Android you have to do some complicated things before you can move an app to the SD card which is a hassle. But not on Windows Phone, moving an app is just a piece of cake.

8. FAST and FLUID experience

One of the factors Windows Phone was known because of it's FAST and FLUID user experience. In a Windows Phone there is less lags unlike Android which suffer from lagginess. In android it lags when you start an app, lags when you close an app, and of course this lag occurs if you have too many open apps and background apps running. But not on Windows Phone, In Windows Phone no matter how many apps you're opening or opened background apps it still runs so smooth even if some windows phones only have 512mb of RAM it runs like you have 2Gb of RAM on it. What more if your Windows Phone has 1Gb RAM it will run even much smoother like you have 3Gb of RAM on it. This is probably the best benefit of a Windows Phone.

So there you have it. These are some of the benefits if you own a LUMIA or any Windows Phone. Hope you enjoy reading, bye for now. :)

App and Game Reality

Apps, Apps, APPS!! Many people these days are obsessed with APPS. Most of these people are iOS and Android users. We can't blame the truth that most of them gets the latest apps and the like. But one thing that really grinds my gears is that they say Windows Phone has NO APPS and GAMES. And I was like WHAT THE HELL? Windows Phone has the APPS and GAMES! All you need is a bit of exploring and there you have it. Here are some of the popular apps and games that are also on Windows Phone.

 

There it is! it's the APPS and GAMES! Well some of them are a bit late like "One More Line" which is released last week and "Candy Crush" which came out December 2014 but anyway it's better late than never, right guys?
Well it depends on the developers anyway if they want to create APPS for our beloved OS. Some apps are very outdated anyway like for example "INSTAGRAM" which is updated last year and been abandoned ever since but good thing there is an alternative made by Rudy Hyun which is "6tag" and it's much better than the official instagram in the store.
I have to admit some apps takes months before a new update comes for example Facebook but some of these apps also gets updates every week like the game Snake Rewind. And the most awaited Voice calling of WhatsApp has finally arrived last week via an update so you can see that it's catching up on it's Android and iOS counterpart.

I also like the Lumia exclusive apps that Microsoft made. I wonder if these apps can be installed on non-Lumia Windows Phone devices.

Wohoooo Lumia Exclusives.

What I really don't like is people bitching about Windows Phone having no apps and say their Androids are superior because it has many apps. But the question is "Do they really use all of those apps everyday?" Some of those apps are just for eyes only for example install this app and use it one time and you don't like it so just leave it there so that friends can see i have APPS but in reality I'm not using it. Yes! this is true because I have friends like these. No wonder their Android devices lag like hell, maybe some of those apps are running in the background you know. It's like they only use it for bragging. 

Good thing Windows 10 mobile will change our Windows Phone forever. Thanks to their code for easy porting of apps and I hope DEVELOPERS will really port their apps.

I really salute GAMELOFT and DISNEY for the continued support for putting their games on Windows Phone and the good thing is these games are UPDATED unlike other Games or Apps out there.

 

  


And also, I praise GAME TROOPERS for porting and publishing some Android games with XBOX support.

Look at all of these delicious Games. 

One of the big missing app in Windows Phone Store is a proper YOUTUBE APP but did you know that Microsoft actually made a very good YOUTUBE APP until GOOGLE took it down from the Store. BUT Microsoft put it back but it's now a WEB WRAPPER. Google? Why do you have to mess things up?

It's supposed to look like this

But because of google we got this "direct to the browser" version instead

Although there are so many alternatives you can find in the Store which is actually pretty good like Metro Tube or Tubecast and more so you don't have to worry. :)


APPS are very important to a smartphone and good thing some developers are still developing for Windows Phone and now that Windows 10 mobile is fast approaching more developers are now creating apps for Windows Phone thanks to Project Astoria for android and Project Islandwood for iOS. Android and iOS users need to realize this and stop bashing Windows Phone for having no Apps because to be honest the Windows Phone Store is growing everyday. And there are great alternatives for apps that isn't on WP but there are in Android. Plus, there are also Windows Phone exclusive apps  and games that you can try. So all I can say is try a Windows Phone and see the difference. :)

And by the way take a look at this video Nokia made a year ago.. :)