Lumia 520 impressions

[untitled1]

I picked up a Lumia 520 as a backup/wifi device. I haven't spent a ton of time with it, but I've got some quick impressions:

• I'm glad that the camera on the 1020 was what convinced me to go with that device, because almost anything else it can do, the 520 is close enough. It runs apps pretty well and moving around in the OS is quick and snappy. This is a lot of smartphone for $100.

• I think I might've got a lemon, though, because it reboots frequently, especially if I'm pushing any of the buttons. I suspect the battery is losing its connection when I depress the hardware keys. One of these reboots must've happened during a key process, because the phone got stuck in a boot loop. I had to do a hard reset to get the device to be usable again. If this was anything other than a toy for me, I'd be sending it back to get a new one.

• For myself, I have to have top-of-the-line for daily use. If I was introducing an adult family member to their first smartphone, I'd probably still go with a higher-specced Lumia like the 920 or the 820. I might get this for a kid that I don't trust to treat a phone right. But this phone is perfect as an emergency backup – say someone swipes or smashes my phone at a time when I'm not able to easily get a new one. It'll do enough of what I'm used to that I'll be able to get by for a while.

[Joe F.]

Yeah, sounds like a defective unit. My 521 (which is essentially the same phone) has never rebooted on me. Otherwise you are right, it's a solid device. Display and camera kinda suck, but you get what you pay for.

[untitled1]

Oddly enough, I haven't had a single reboot since I wrote that post.