MWC 2012: Nokia Lumia 900 Hands-On Preview (Pictures)

Minus its LTE connectivity, Nokia's flagship Lumia 900 Windows Phone has finally been confirmed in the UK, below are our opening impressions.

Tech Spec

While not boasting LTE connectivity - to those that don't know, the UK remains 4G free - the Lumia 900 will run on DC-HSPA tech. According to Nokia this will deliver speeds up to 42 Mbps, which if true is insanely fast.

Behind its connectivity, like its predecessor the 800, the Lumia 900 remains a single-core affair, toting a 1.4 GHz processor. In our time with the 900 the only thing to really set the 900 apart from the 800 was the devices's physical dimensions and screen size.

The 900 comes equipped with a 4.3-inch AMOLED display, this compares to the 800's much smaller 3.7-inch equivalent. Another added perk, the 900's battery is larger than the 800's, with the new Lumia housing a 1,830mAh battery - by comparison the 800 packed a 1,450mAh unit - but be warned, the increased screen size will be an added drain on the battery.

In terms of camera the Lumia 900 has an 8 mega-pixel, Carl Zeiss-branded lens. The component is the same used by the Lumia 800 - meaning it will likely suffer the same greyed out, blurry issues as its predecessor.

That said the 900 does have one key addition; a front facing 1-megapixel camera for video calling. The addition may prove a blessing considering Microsoft has just launched the beta of Skype on the Windows Phone market.

Look and Feel

Despite its increased screen size, the Lumia 900 doesn't feel overtly bigger than its predecessor. This is in no small part thanks to the fact that even with the increased screen size, the 900 is actually thinner than its predecessor, measuring in at 11.5mm thick - the 800 was a slightly larger 12.1mm. Past this though the 900 is bigger, weighing 160g - the 800 weighed 142g.

In our time with it, the device didn't feel overtly large in hand. In fact, to those more more akin to Android's Samsung, HTC and LG-born plus-sized smartphones, the 900 will feel even more comfortable.

Operating System and Apps

The Lumia 900 packs the same Windows Phone 7.5 OS as seen on the 800. However don't let this fool you, Nokia has added several new apps and features to the device.

As was the case with the 610, one of the 900's key selling points will be its new apps. The 900 will come loaded with both a revamped version of Nokia's maps and the company's new Library app.

Adding a host of new maps and an offline mode the maps update did seem minor compared to the Library app's addition. Another feature we didn't get a proper play with but did get a nice demo of, was the 900's new Library app, which promises to let users download and read books and magazines. It also houses a nice build-your-own magazine feature, letting users create their own news feed by listing the news pieces they're interested in. This can then be added as a dynamic tile to the phone's UI that updates as new pieces come in.

Additionally the 900 will come loaded with Microsoft's cloud storage service SkyDrive - a handy feature considering the 900 only packs 16GB of internal memory and doesn't have a microSD card slot to expand its storage.

Price and Release Date

Price wise, the Lumia 900 is set to retail for around €480 and will launch by the end of Q2, 2012 - it's confirmed in Canada in April. Check back at the International Business Times UK later in the year for a full review.