Looks like there’s a tough competition between the new Nokia Lumia 900 and the pride of Apple, the iPhone 4S! Yes, it can’t be denied that the iPhone 4S can be dubbed as the most amazing iPhone yet. Even so, will there be a possibility for it to be defeated by the celebrity-endorsed Nokia Windows Phone handset? If you judge the two smartphones according to their unique appearances, you might pick that you think would fit best to your pocket. Apparently, the Lumia 900 is bigger than the iPhone 4S but it’s also cheaper and its price won’t be ripping your precious wallet.
Thus, we certainly think that we need to compare these two glamorous smartphones in terms of features, performance and other important specifications. Moreover, we will determine the affordability of these two smartphones. So if you’re currently thinking of getting a new smartphone, you might as well postpone your plan until you make a firm conclusion. Just a few tips though. Before you decide to buy a particular mobile device, make sure that you have a clear understanding of the specs and features that you are willing to pay for. You can either make a list of the features that you want to have or you should at least make a research before heading to your local retail store. But for now, better keep your focus on this comparison.
APPEARANCE
At first glance, we find the Nokia Lumia 900 more attractive than the iPhone 4S. That’s because the phone flaunts its striking unibody polycarbonate design with edgy corners. Apparently, the said handset looks cleaner than the polished look of the iPhone 4S. You might not appreciate that fact now but you will eventually notice that the latter’s casing is more likely prone to fingerprints and smudges. Even so, we do appreciate the soft and gentle appearance of the iPhone 4S as it is wrapped with smooth edges and rounded corners. Also, we can say that we prefer the tactile buttons of the iPhone 4S. It’s more prominent than the flat buttons of the Nokia Lumia 900.
When it comes to body size and form factor dimensions, the Lumia 900 is obviously larger than the iPhone 4S. But that makes it thicker and heavier. It has a depth of 11.5mm and it weighs 160 grams whereas the latter has a depth of 9.3mm and weighs 140 grams.
If you are quite fond of large handsets, you might as well take the Lumia 900. The phone is currently being offered in black, white and cyan. But if you prefer a smaller phone, the iPhone 4S is currently being offered in black and white colors.
DISPLAY QUALITY
In relation to its larger body size, the Nokia Lumia 900 also flaunts its large 4.3 inch AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with 16M colors and 480 x 800 pixels of full screen resolution. To protect its screen from dusts and scratches, Nokia made sure that its new flagship will be coated with Corning Gorilla Glass that goes alongside with Nokia ClearBlack Display. Meanwhile, the Apple iPhone 4S flaunts its smaller 3.5 inch LED-backlit IPS TFT capacitive touchscreen with 16M colors and 640 x 960 pixels of full screen resolution. Just like the Lumia 900, the iPhone 4S makes use of Gorilla Glass.
In terms of display quality, these two smartphone would appear to be the same especially when being viewed from a certain distance. But if you take a close look, you will eventually notice that the images and texts of the Retina display of the iPhone 4S are clearer than the oversaturated images of the Nokia Lumia 900. Come to think of it, the display size of the latter may be smaller than the former but it provides a better viewing quality that will help lessen your eye strains.
OPERATING SYSTEM
The Nokia Lumia 900 is being powered by Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7.5 Mango OS. Sure, there’s no doubt that the Live Tiles in the phone’s Metro UI are very attractive and easy to use. You have social integrations and you have IE9 as your native web browser. But unlike the iOS 5 of the iPhone 4S, you will only have access to a limited number of apps at the Windows Phone app store. There’s no way for you to play Angry Birds and you won’t be able to join the fast-growing community of Instagram to share your optimized photos. Also, there’s no Siri. You won’t be able to talk to that virtual assistant that responds to your commands and questions.
PERFORMANCE, MEMORY & STORAGE
The Nokia Lumia 900 relies on its single core 1.4GHz Scorpion Qualcomm Snapdragon processor while the Apple iPhone 4S flaunts its dual core Cortex A9 A5 processor. Both are really powerful especially when it comes to multi-tasking and hefty applications. It is very unlikely for you to experience some lags and you will eventually like the responsiveness of these two smartphones. But when it comes to storage, the capacity of the Lumia 900 has been limited to 16GB with no micro SD card support. Same goes for the iPhone 4S, it lacks the needed slot for external storage but you will eventually have the chance to choose among its 16GB, 32GB and 64GB of storage options. Even so, we do not think that 16GB of storage isn’t enough to handle your files and applications. Both smartphones are equipped with 512MB of RAM.
CAMERA QUALITY
This aspect is very essential for photo enthusiasts. As a matter of fact, you can set your point and shoot snapper aside as you will be able to take advantage of the 8 mega pixel rear facing camera of the Nokia Lumia 900 with Carl Zeiss optics, auto focus, geo-tagging and dual LED flash. Same goes for the Apple iPhone 4S, you will be getting a very decent rear facing camera with 8 mega pixel sensor, touch focus, auto focus, LED flash, geo-tagging and face detection. Plus, you will be able to record your videos in full 1080p HD resolution.
But if you’re looking for a phone with a reliable front facing camera that you can use for video calls, the 1.3 mega pixel secondary snapper of the Nokia Lumia 900 is way better than the front facing VGA camera of the iPhone 4S.
CONNECTIVITY
Connectivity wise, the Nokia Lumia 900 comes with LTE support. That’s a plus considering that the Apple iPhone 4S can only connect via HSPA+ and you won’t really get the most out of your carrier’s blazing fast data network. On the lighter side, both are capable to connecting to the internet via Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and 3G. Furthermore, iPhone 4S comes with a built-in Wi-Fi hotspot functionality.
For file transfers, the Nokia Lumia 900 appears to have a Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP that goes alongside with its port for micro USB 2.0. On the other hand, the iPhone flaunts its high speed Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP that’s been paired with its full 30-pin dock port.
PRICING & AVAILABILITY
As of now, both smartphones can be availed in the US via AT&T Wireless. The 4G LTE enabled 16GB Nokia Lumia 900 is currently being offered for a very affordable price of $99.99. That of course, comes with a new two year network subscription. On the other hand, the 4G HSPA+ 16GB model of the iPhone 4S can be yours for $199.99. If you dislike paying for a monthly subscription, you can get the unlocked version of the Nokia Lumia 900 at Negri Electronics for $498.50 while the contract-free version of the iPhone 4S is currently being sold at the Apple Store for $649.
Price wise, the Nokia Lumia 900 is more affordable and pocket-friendly than the Apple iPhone 4S.
CONCLUSION
In terms of overall design and appearance, we can say that both smartphones look solid, premium and elegant. You won’t get that ‘plasticky’ feel that you have previously encountered on some mobile devices. But if we speak of performance, the iPhone 4S gets the advantage over the Nokia Lumia 900 because of established iOS community and wide range of storage options. It may be a bit more expensive than the Lumia 900 but that comes with value-added features such as Siri, iCloud and Twitter integration. Plus, you will be able to browse through its wide selection of user-friendly applications.
What we can say is this – both are packed with features and specs that we wish would be present on the other. Those who are living in 4G LTE supported locations will greatly benefit from the LTE support that they can get from the Nokia Lumia 900 whereas those who don’t really have the opportunity to avail such service as well as those who are already contented with Wi-Fi can definitely choose the iPhone 4S.
To give you a better understanding of this comparison, here are the pros and cons:
Nokia Lumia 900
The Pros: Nice and elegant design, larger display, high-quality front and rear facing cameras, 4G LTE support, cheaper price, comes with a variety of colors
The Cons: Windows Phone 7.5 Mango OS needs more apps, fixed 16GB storage, no micro SD card slot
Apple iPhone 4S
The Pros: Tactile buttons with premium design, vivid screen with images in life-like colors, three storage options, wide range of iOS applications
The Cons: No micro SD card slot support, no 4G LTE support, VGA front camera, costs higher than the Nokia Lumia 900
Now, it’s up to you to consider these factors as you tend to make your final decision.
