Microsoft Lumia 950 XL review

A year ago, I gave up on Windows Phone. Frustrated by a lack of quality apps, poor hardware offerings, and a feeling of missing out, I bought an iPhone like millions of others. I haven’t regretted switching away from Windows Phone at all.

But I have been waiting for a true flagship Windows phone to come along and tempt me back. Microsoft’s Lumia 950 XL is supposed to be that phone: it’s the latest and greatest hardware, powered by the new Windows 10 Mobile operating system. Like many other Android and iPhone handsets, it has a fast processor, high-resolution display, and impressive camera. Those are table stakes for any modern, high-end smartphone, but what makes the 950 XL (and its smaller sibling, the Lumia 950) unique is its software.

Windows Phone first debuted five years ago, and it has been a constant waiting game for basic features and apps to appear. Windows 10 Mobile is Microsoft’s latest attempt to reinvent its mobile efforts. The Lumia 950 XL should be designed to make people ditch their iPhones, but most, including myself, won’t.

There’s no easy way to say this, but like the smaller Lumia 950, the Lumia 950 XL design is simply boring. It’s uninspired, plasticky, and looks like any other low-end Lumia that Microsoft has been churning out over the past year. If you’re someone that believes Windows Phone is dead, this is the casket you’d bury it in. It looks like a developer device, and feels like whatever talent was left at Microsoft from Nokia just gave up on designing anything pretty.

IF YOU’RE SOMEONE THAT BELIEVES WINDOWS PHONE IS DEAD, THIS IS THE CASKET YOU’D BURY IT IN

This isn’t the design a $650 smartphone that is supposed to relaunch a software giant’s mobile offering should have. It’s just bland. It doesn’t tempt me to ditch my iPhone, but the basic design has some positives. The only positive here is that it's lighter than Nokia's older polycarbonate designs.

Underneath the dull exterior, Microsoft has included some good specs. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 810 processor powers the 950 XL, alongside plenty of RAM (3GB) and enough storage (32GB). It even has a big battery (3,300mAh) that can be swapped thanks to a removable cover, charged quickly with a USB Type-C cable, or charged wirelessly. The 5.7-inch display looks great thanks to its Quad HD resolution, and it has good viewing angles.

The real star of Microsoft’s mobile show has always been its Lumia cameras. The Lumia 950 XL doesn’t disappoint here, but it’s not perfect. I’ve taken some great photos with it, but I’ve also taken some really bad ones. Microsoft still hasn’t perfected the software algorithms to comfortably take a photo with automatic processing to the point where I trust I can point and shoot.

The Rich Capture mode is probably the most impressive part of the camera. I’ve used it a lot, and it’s a great way to get good low-light images. Unfortunately, if you have a moving subject, such as a person or pet, it produces a lot of blurry images. Still, between Rich Capture and the extensive controls Microsoft offers in the camera app, you can get some really great results if you’re willing to put the time and effort into setting it all up.

RICH CAPTURE IS AN IMPRESSIVE LUMIA CAMERA FEATURE

Most of us don’t use smartphone cameras like that, though. I usually snap a photo and instantly want to share it with a friend or on Twitter or Facebook. I just want my phone to take a good photo every single time. The Lumia 950 XL does that most of the time, but then occasionally it will just take a really bad one and disappoint me. Autofocus is still a little too slow for my liking, and Rich Capture images still take a while to process. I just wish that the automatic processing worked a little more reliably. The camera and its software is probably one of the only things that would tempt me back to Windows Phone, but it’s not enough on its own.

Along with the Lumia 950, the 950 XL is one of the first devices to run Windows 10, and it’s designed to show off the new features of Microsoft’s mobile operating system. Most apps have been overhauled since Windows Phone 8.1, but they’re all fairly familiar. Disappointingly, everything feels like a work in progress. I’ve run into weird bugs where I’ve had to reboot the device, and I can’t even add my Google Apps work calendar to the device because of a weird Windows 10 bug that messes up all of our meetings.

I’m also disappointed with the design direction for Windows 10 Mobile here. Hamburger menus and inconsistency across each built-in app makes it feels incoherent at times. Mixed with the fact it has felt buggy and unfinished through its testing period, the final result isn’t as impressive as I’d hoped for. The overall user experience feels like a weird mix of Android and Windows Phone instead of something wholly belonging to Microsoft. None of the uniqueness of Windows Phone remains apart from the Live Tiles. Everything else feels like it has been ripped apart and moved around, and that Microsoft is still tweaking and figuring out what to update next.

WINDOWS 10 MOBILE FEELS LIKE A WEIRD MIX

Performance isn’t terrible across the OS, though. Most of the speed of Windows Phone remains, and the fact Windows 10 is running on the handset doesn’t appear to drain the battery. I’ve consistently got a solid day of battery life, although standby seems to strangely vary.

Aesthetics aside, Microsoft has done a good job of marrying Windows 10’s mobile equivalent to the desktop. Microsoft Edge acts as the browser, like the desktop, and there are mobile versions of Mail and Calendar that feel familiar. If you use Windows 10 on the desktop, then this is simply a smaller version as the apps adapted for the smaller screen size. It’s all part of Microsoft’s universal apps promise so you can run the same applications across phone, desktop, and Xbox One. We’re at the very early stages of this big promise, but it looks encouraging.

Windows 10 Mobile also offers two new tricks for the Lumia 950 XL: Windows Hello and Continuum. Like the desktop version of Windows 10, you can log into the 950 XL with just your face. A special camera at the front of the 950 XL will look for your eyes and log you in automatically. It sounds like the future, but I find it slightly irritating. Most of the time I have to bring the phone unnaturally to my face, which feels awkward and slow. After using Touch ID on the iPhone 6 for the past year, I would have preferred Microsoft added a good fingerprint reader.

Continuum is really the star of the show, however. It lets the phone transform into a low-powered PC, with a few catches. In addition to the phone, you’ll need Microsoft’s $99 Display Dock (or a Miracast adapter), a mouse and keyboard (Bluetooth or USB), and a monitor or TV. You plug the Lumia 950 XL into the dock or connect wirelessly, and the phone simply beams itself to the display. It looks very similar to a Windows 10 desktop PC, minus a few features like app snapping and full multitasking.

Microsoft designed this with universal apps in mind, but most of them don’t support Continuum yet. Microsoft’s own apps all work fine, but third-party ones need to be updated to support the feature, and the vast majority haven’t yet.

Continuum feels like a glimpse into the future, though. Every app developer is focusing their efforts on smartphones right now, not tablets or desktop PCs. If we arrive at a future where phones can be a single computing device, then Microsoft is well positioned to offer this. If Microsoft builds an Intel-powered phone with true desktop apps, Continuum could get very interesting. But that’s not where the 950 XL is at, and it’s little more than a parlor trick in its current state.

THE APP GAP PROBLEM STILL EXISTS

What’s not encouraging is the state of apps for the Lumia 950 XL. I wanted to switch back to using this as my daily device over the past two weeks, but I simply couldn’t hack it. It stayed in my pocket while I used my iPhone 6S Plus, simply because so many apps are still missing or inadequate on Windows Phone. I’ve been to a lot of events recently and need Periscope to stream from the Verge account, or to use Snapchat. I simply can’t do this with the Lumia 950 XL, and I can’t even access our Trello work app. If I can’t get my work done on the move, it’s really difficult to switch back to a Windows phone.

Microsoft’s original plan was to support Android apps on Windows 10 Mobile, but that seems very unlikely now. Most of the third-party apps are just poor ports from iOS and Android, and lack key new features. The Twitter and Instagram apps are still depressing examples of the state of Windows, and I don’t feel like much has changed over the past year. Microsoft’s mobile store needs some serious love, but it’s running out of time.

The Lumia 950 XL simply isn’t for me or the vast majority of smartphone users out there. I use Windows 10 on a daily basis on a PC, but the experience on mobile is just lacking. Microsoft has done an excellent job on its apps for other platforms, and my iPhone home screen is full of them. The Lumia 950 XL needed something exciting and unique to convince me to switch back, but it failed.

That might change if a rumored Surface Phone arrives next year, but right now it’s the same old waiting game for Windows on phones. A year ago I was tired of waiting, and today nothing feels like it has changed. Windows 10 papers over the cracks, but unless developers buy into Microsoft’s vision of universal apps then it won’t change much. More and more high-profile apps are disappearing from Windows Phone, and the Lumia 950 XL won’t help bring them back.

THE LUMIA 950 XL ISN'T GOING TO HELP WINDOWS PHONE

At this stage, the Lumia 950 and 950 XL really should be the standout phones that reboot Microsoft’s mobile efforts, but it feels like the company has read the writing on the wall and already given up.

Microsoft Lumia 950 review

It’s probably been a long time since a Microsoft smartphone has crossed your mind. The last time Microsoft had a high-end Windows smartphone in the US, it was nearly two years ago and the phone came wearing a Nokia logo and ran Windows Phone 8.

Now the company is releasing two new phones that it hopes will change all that. The new Lumia 950 (and its larger sibling, the 950XL) is going head on against the best Androids and iPhones with a modern processor, high-resolution screen, capable camera, and many other features found on popular smartphones. It’s also the first phone to run Windows 10, Microsoft’s answer to not only desktop platforms, but also mobile operating systems like Android and iOS.

Windows 10 is Microsoft’s latest Hail Mary for its mobile efforts — it’s the thing the company hopes will finally get developers to pay attention to its platform and enables some truly unique things that Apple’s and Google’s options don’t provide. The new Lumiasaren’t likely to be massive sellers, but they are the messengers that carry the idea of Windows on a phone to the people. If Microsoft doesn’t succeed in getting people to understand why they might want that, the future of its phone business may well be in jeopardy.

Of course, whether or not anyone will care about Windows on a phone and those unique things it provides depends heavily on how well Microsoft executes them. After using the Lumia 950 this past week, I’m not convinced.

The Lumia 950’s hardware is clearly not the main story here, but since this is a review of a phone that you hold in your hand and use to do a lot of phone things, let’s talk about the hardware. The Lumia 950 is not an inspired phone — it’s bland, plasticky, and feels tacky. It lacks any defining design characteristics, making it a generic-looking rectangular slab. Worse, it’s virtually indistinguishable from the low-price Lumias Microsoft has been selling for the past couple of years in both feel and appearance1. At best, it looks like a reference design; at worst it just looks cheap. But the 950 isn’t cheap: at roughly $600 (and exclusive to AT&T here in the US), it’s more expensive than Google’s much nicer Nexus 6P and within spitting distance of Apple’s impeccable iPhone 6S. Up against those devices, the 950 is the clear odd one out.

Things are better on the spec sheet: the 950 has a modern processor (Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 808); lots of RAM (3GB); plenty of storage (32GB) along with a microSD slot if you want to expand it; a big battery (3,000mAh) that can be swapped; and wireless and quick charging features. The 5.2-inch display has lots of pixels (Quad HD resolution) and is plenty sharp, though it can look a bit washed out. All of this adds up to a well-performing device that gets me through an average day of use without any major performance issues. Basically, it’s what you’d expect from a mid-to-high-end phone in late 2015.

PERFORMANCE AND BATTERY LIFE ARE WHAT YOU'D EXPECT FROM A 2015 SMARTPHONE

The Lumia 950’s camera has a dense 20 megapixels of resolution and takes fine photos. They aren’t breathtaking, but there aren’t any glaring issues with them, either. Most people will be perfectly happy with the images captured by the 950, though it can be a bit slow to take a photo and display it, which left me frustrated on more than one occasion. The one thing that the 950’s camera isn’t is groundbreaking: unlike the Lumia phones of the past, there’s no breakthrough technology or jaw dropping features here that make its images better than what you can get with an iPhone or Samsung. That’s fine — again, the camera takes pictures that are perfectly acceptable — but it doesn’t make the 950 stand out in any way. Likewise, the 5-megapixel wide-angle front camera is fine for taking the occasional selfie, but like its rear counterpart, won’t blow anyone away.

So if the hardware isn’t interesting, it’s obvious that Microsoft’s success or failure rests entirely on the software. Windows 10 is the culmination of Microsoft’s years-long effort to bridge the gaps between smartphones, tablets, and PCs, and it lets the company run the same underlying code on a phone as it does on a $1,500 Surface Book2.

But while Windows 10 might have the same code base on the Lumia 950 as it does everywhere else, the interface is tailored to the phone, and it really isn’t much different than Windows Phone 8.1. There are a few tweaks and minor interface changes (such as the hamburger-style menus popular in Android), but it’s far from a complete overhaul. The Live Tile grid is present, the alphabetical list of apps is still here, and the fun, but often tedious animations remain. If you didn’t like Windows Phone 8.1’s aesthetic, you’re probably not going to like Windows 10’s.

WINDOWS 10 ON THE PHONE STILL FEELS LIKE A WORK IN PROGRESS

Like Windows 10 on the desktop, Windows 10 on the phone still feels like a work in progress, and there’s an overall lack of polish that I don’t get from more mature mobile operating systems. Don’t get me wrong, it all "works," but I get the feeling that everything’s going to fall apart as I use it. (It hasn’t, yet, but that’s still not a fun feeling to have.)

A lot of the Windows 10 things you might enjoy on the desktop are here, however. There’s Microsoft’s fun and personable virtual assistant Cortana, the new Edge browser, and mobile versions of Windows 10’s Mail and Calendar apps (though oddly, they are called Outlook on the phone, even though they are indeed the same apps). It’s meant to appeal to people that are big fans of Windows on a desktop and might want that exact same experience on their phone.

The Lumia 950 even has Windows 10’s new Hello feature, which lets me log into the phone by just looking at it, no PIN or password required. It’s cool, and definitely works, but it’s a bit slow and requires that I hold the phone awkwardly close to my face. I’m often faster at entering my PIN code than using Hello (and if the Lumia 950 had a fingerprint scanner, that’d be even faster yet).

What really sets the Lumia 950 and Windows 10 apart from the Androids and iPhones of the world is its Continuum feature, which is an attempt to turn your diminutive phone into a full-fledged PC. To do that, you need Microsoft’s $99 Display Dock (or a Miracast dongle), a mouse and keyboard (Bluetooth or USB), and an external display, such as a monitor or TV. Plug your phone into the dock, plug in or pair your peripherals, and plug in your display, and boom, all of your phone’s content is now on the big screen. And it’s not just a blown up version of your phone’s display: Continuum recognizes that the monitor has a different screen size and resolution from your phone and presents something like a desktop, complete with Start menu and Action Center. It really looks just like Windows 10 on a PC. You can use your phone as a trackpad if you don’t have a mouse handy, or you can use it completely independently of what you’re doing on the big screen. You could, for instance, play a movie on the big screen to entertain the kids and then go back to your phone to work on email.

Open an app in Continuum, such as Outlook Mail or the Edge Browser, and it will adjust itself to fit the larger screen. There’s no windowing here, but you can do basic multitasking and switch between apps with Alt-Tab. I enjoyed using it to blast through my inbox, compose Word documents, and even do some light web browsing. Most of the time it performs really well, though the web browser is where Continuum really shows its limits, as it’s now trying to load full desktop pages, complete with all of their ads and media, as opposed to mobile-optimized versions. Open up a couple of tabs and you’ll be in a world of hurt with slow scrolling, page reloads, and all of the other problems that were solved on the desktop years ago but are still very real on our mobile devices.

CONTINUUM ONLY WORKS WITH A HANDFUL OF APPS

But the larger problem with Continuum is that it only works with a handful of apps, the vast majority of which are, unsurprisingly, made by Microsoft. Sure, it’s great for going through my email in Outlook or writing a document in Word, but I can’t put Slack on the big screen, seriously cramping my productivity. Nor can I blast Netflix up there when I want to sit back and watch Master of None for the thousandth time. Microsoft’s promise of Windows 10 was that it would enable "universal" apps that work across your phone and desktop, but that reality is still not here, and it’s the thing that keeps Continuum from fulfilling the dream of replacing your laptop with your phone.

I’m also not convinced that toting around all of the necessary accessories to make Continuum work is any better than just carrying around a small laptop, which is guaranteed to be far more powerful and capable. There might be some enterprises out there that see this as the perfect "thin client" solution, where a user only has to have a phone to get their work done, but the practical applications for the rest of us just aren’t here.

Continuum also magnifies Windows 10’s biggest issue, which is the same problem Microsoft has contended with for years. It won’t come as a surprise to anyone, but the platform still doesn’t have many of the apps that are hugely popular on Android and iOS. When I’m using the 950, I can’t manage my email with Gmail or Inbox, I can’t check in on my friend’s Snapchat accounts, I can’t pair any of the cool new smartwatches to it, and I can’t pay for my lunch with a tap of my phone. Worse yet, the apps that are here are woefully inferior to their iOS or Android counterparts. (I’m looking directly at you, Instagram and Twitter.) These might not be dealbreakers for someone that is buying a $150 smartphone, but the 950 is meant to be the best that Microsoft has to offer, and I guarantee these things will be problems for those looking for a high-end device.

In the mobile world, Microsoft is way behind Google and Apple, and has what many would say is an insurmountable deficit to make up. It could have pulled out all of the stops and produced a phone that was visually impactful, wildly innovative, and truly riveting compared to anything else to make up lost ground.

The Lumia 950 is, unfortunately, none of those things. Sure, Microsoft put some newer guts in it, and Windows 10 has some interesting features, but there’s nothing really here that would drive anyone but the most die hard Windows fan to buy it.

Microsoft also isn’t making a compelling pitch for why you’d want Windows 10 on a phone at all, whether it’s the Lumia 950 or some other future device. The unique features that set Windows 10 apart aren’t fully baked, and frankly, aren’t enough to make up for the deficiencies elsewhere. The best experiences available on the platform — the mail and calendar apps and Cortana — are also available on Android and iOS, giving you even less of a reason to consider a Windows 10 phone.

BlackBerry DTEK50 preview: Hands-on with the Alcatel Idol 4 lookalike

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BlackBerry has a long tradition of building its own hardware and software, but having fallen on harder times of late, the company was forced to outsource hardware building and designing to another company. With the DTEKT50, its first mid-range Android phone, it partnered with TCL Communication and added its own subtle tweaks to a pre-existing reference design. 

The result is an all-touch device running a clean-looking version of Android, but with BlackBerry's own useful software on top. Specifications are decent, and for a phone that costs less than £300, you get good value for money.

In a market this saturated though, BlackBerry's going to have a tough task convincing consumers that the added element of security is a big enough distinction.

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BlackBerry DTEK50: Design

To describe it in the shortest, crudest way possible, the BlackBerry DTEK50 is essentially an Alcatel Idol 4 with a plastic back. But that's not necessarily a bad thing.

The lightweight, slim aluminium frame construction - combined with the textured plastic on the back - makes a device that's both grippy and light. From an aesthetic perspective, it doesn't look quite as premium as devices covered in glass on both sides. But unlike those, it won't slide off furniture or slip out of your hand.

A dark grey anodised finish on the frame contrasts really nicely with the polished, chamfered edges to give a result that is both elegant and subtle. Sadly, it is slightly hampered by the black plastic antenna gaps on the top and bottom which don't sit exactly flush with the edges.

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The slim volume rocker switch on the right edge is coloured to match the frame, and is joined by a round "Convenience" key. This can be programmed to launch an app, or used as a shortcut to a specific function. As an example, you could press it to compose an email or a message, add an event to a calendar, set an alarm or use one of many other shortcuts available.

Above and below the screen on the front are two rows of machined holes which act as the grilles for the 3.6W stereo speakers. These are mirrored on the rear as well, so whether the phone is face up or facedown, you can hear your music and notifications clearly.

The micro USB port lives on the bottom edge, the 3.5mm jack is on the top edge, while the power button is - confusingly - on the left edge, opposite the volume rocker.

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BlackBerry DTEK50: Display

Underneath a flat sheet of scratch-resistant glass on the front, there's a 5.2-inch full HD display.

It's fully laminated, which means there's no gap between the glass and the actual display panel. This has a few benefits, most importantly, it means colours and brightness are better than if there was an air gap. Also, it enables manufacturers to build the slim phones we've become accustomed to.

On first impressions, the screen seems really clear and text is nice and sharp. Colours are accurate, but there's not the vividness or high contrast levels you might get from an AMOLED-based screen. Still, the IPS panel offers great viewing angles and is generally pleasing to the eye.

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BlackBerry DTEK50: Camera

The main camera on the back features a 13-megapixel sensor and f/2.0 lens and supports full HD video capture. As a bonus, the built-in BlackBerry camera app has a full manual control mode so that you can fine-tune your shots.

The manual control mode lets you adjust the shutter speed, white balance, focus and brightness. Those of you who like to play with long exposures for effects like light-painting and light trails will be disappointed to know that the longest shutter speed available is 1/2 second. Still, the addition of manual changes to other important settings should help you get the results you want. 

The front camera has an 8-megapixel sensor and also supports 1080p video recording, it also has a front LED light which - as well as being used as a notification alert - can function as a flash for well-lit selfies. 

BlackBerry DTEK50: Hardware

Inside, powering the DTEK50, is a mid-range Snapdragon 617 with eight cores. It's paired with 3GB RAM to make sure that you get as smooth a performance as possible from a mid-tier phone, but sadly comes with just 16GB internal storage.

The upside is there's a microSD card slot which supports cards up to a massive 2TB, ensuring that it's future proof. What's more, BlackBerry's latest device supports Android Marshmallow's adoptable storage feature, so you can adopt a microSD card and use it as if it was internal storage for saving apps and app data as well as media.

There's a 2,610mAh battery which BlackBerry says will get you through a day, and even if it doesn't, it supports Quick Charge 2.0 technology for fast charging. It can half-fill the battery in just 50mins.

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BlackBerry DTEK50: Software

With the Android marketplace being so saturated nowadays it can be hard for companies to put their own unique spin on devices. With BlackBerry, the most obvious way to do it was with software. It was something that worked well on the PRIV, and has yet again been implemented in to the DTEK50.

Starting with the most obvious - and where the phone gets its name from - the DTEK app is a very simple tool for checking up on your phone's security. It'll tell you your device's current security status and, more importantly, gives you access to more granular controls for choosing which permissions are allowed for individual apps.

If an app that shouldn't get access to your location or microphone has been getting permission to access those things, you can switch the permissions off. You can also see how many times a specific feature or function has been accessed by any app.

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Like the PRIV, it has the Productivity Tab, which slides in from the right and gives you quick access to your upcoming events and tasks, as well as favourite contacts and messages. BlackBerry has also implemented its great predictive software keyboard for easy typing and the Hub which collects notifications, messages and events from across the device and collates them in to one, easy-to-use inbox. 

As well as that, there's the useful pop-up widgets from the home screen. Any app that has white dots under its icon has widgets available, and you can access them by just swiping up from the icon. This saves lots of space on your home screen, and ensures you don't have any potentially confidential information always on display.

All these software tweaks are joined by a handful of BlackBerry apps like the calendar app, BBM, Device Search, Password Keeper, Notes and Tasks. While many might class these as bloatware, the company has been careful about including only the software which improves the experience and makes it more BlackBerry-like. 

On top of all this, BlackBerry is committed to delivering prompt security updates. So when Google releases its monthly security patches on Android, BlackBerry is usually one of the first to follow in updating its own devices. 

First Impressions

As first impressions go, it's impossible to ignore the phone's similarity to the Idol 4, but that's because it uses the same TCL Communication reference design.

Once you move past that observation you're left realising that this is a pretty solid mid-ranger. And for those who love the BlackBerry Hub for managing notifications and want the extra piece of mind that their information is secure, this is an ideal device, especially if their budget is under £300.