Lumia 535 vs Lumia 520: Battle of the budget Microsoft Lumias

Microsoft's Lumia 535 not only holds the distinction of being the first non-Nokia Lumia smartphone, but has also earned the sobriquet of being the first-ever Microsoft-exclusive handset in history.

Now that the Lumia 535 has been launched in multiple countries of the world, and the device is also apparently catering to the budget smartphone buyers in these countries, the device could lead to a division in loyalties among users preferring to purchase other popular Lumia smartphones.

One such popular budget Lumia device is the Lumia 520 that has found acceptance among people preferring to buy smartphones on shoestring budgets.

Both the Lumia 535 and Lumia 520 are released keeping in mind the interests of budget smartphone buyers, therefore let's take a look at how both these handsets stack up against each other on various technical parameters.

Microsoft Lumia 535 vs Lumia 520

Display

Microsoft's Lumia 535 has a 5in display with resolution of 540 x 960 and pixel density of 220 ppi. The smartphone's touchscreen is protected by Gorilla Glass 3.

On the other hand, the Microsoft Lumia 520 incorporates a much smaller 4in display that has a comparatively inferior resolution of 480 x 800 and pixel density of 223 ppi. The device's touchscreen is enclosed within a conventional scratch-resistant glass (not the Gorilla Glass).

Both smartphones boast multi-touch support and 16 million colours.

From the above, it is evident that the Lumia 535 has the better display in spite of having a slightly lower pixel density in comparison to the Lumia 520.

Lumia 535 also wins due to its better display resolution which should lead to clearer images forming on the device's screen.

Hardware

Lumia 535 is driven by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 SoC clocked at 1.2GHz and supported by 1GB RAM on board.

On the other hand, the Lumia 520 offers a dual-core Qualcomm MSM8227 processor clocked at 1GHz. A 512 MB RAM supports the SoC.

In terms of connectivity, both the handsets offer 3G, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi and microUSB connectivity options.

The newer Lumia 535 emerges the clear winner as far as providing a decent system of performance is concerned.

Memory

To buyers, Microsoft's Lumia 535 offers 8GB of internal storage as standard, but features a microSD card slot for expansion of internal storage area up to 128 GB. This aspect should serve as a boon for users preferring to view multimedia content/watch movies within their smartphones, rather than on a bigger screen.

The Microsoft Lumia 520 also offers an identical 8GB internal storage, but allows users to use only a 64GB microSD card to expand its internal storage.

The battle for memory is even-stevens considering the fact that both the budget Lumia models allow users to store a decent amount of content within.

Camera

Lumia 535 features a 5MP autofocus rear camera that comes with LED flash and supports geo-tagging of images. The camera supports shooting 480p videos at 30 frames per second (fps). The handset also features an identical 5MP front camera.

On the other hand, people preferring to buy Lumia 520, get to use only a rear 5MP camera having features like Geo tagging, white balance presets, Touch to focus, autofocus and CMOS image sensor. The smartphone does not feature dual cameras.

Lumia 535 wins due to its 5MP front camera which should prove to be a unique feature among the selfie-generation.

Battery

Microsoft Lumia 535 pips the Lumia 520 with its 1905 mAh Li-Ion battery, whereas the latter comes with a comparatively inferior Li-Ion 1430 mAh battery.

So, it is clear as to who the winner is as far as providing a decent battery backup time is concerned.

Software

Lumia 535 runs Microsoft's Windows Phone 8.1 operating platform (Also read how Windows Phone 8.1 performed in December 2014), out of the box, and incorporates Lumia Denim. Buyers of Lumia 535 should also get to observe Nokia-specific native applications viz MixRadio and Here Maps (both online and offline).

Microsoft's (formerly Nokia's) Lumia 520 runs the Windows Phone 8 out of the box, but the smartphone is eligible to receive Microsoft's latest Windows Phone 8.1 OS update which should add those extra notches of functionality to the device.

Release date and price

Both the Lumia 535 and Lumia 520 are available for purchase in the United Kingdom, India and the United States of America.

Lumia 535 is available in the UK at £99.82 and the Lumia 520 at £107.37.

In India, Lumia 535 can be owned by paying Rs 9,199 whereas the Lumia 520 can be bought for an identical Rs 9,100.

In the US, Lumia 535 has a price tag of $175, and the Lumia 520 is priced at $78.

In summary, both the Lumia 535 and Lumia 520 make for decent budget smartphones, but the Lumia 535 beats the Lumia 520 as far as value for money is concerned, by virtue of superior technical aspects.