Nokia has unveiled the much-rumored Lumia 2520 tablet today. The device comes in a range of matte and glossy colors, and offers about what you might expect from a tablet in the Lumia range. The most prominent feature here is easily the cameras, which are more akin to what you might find on a mid-range smart phone than your average tablet.
Nokia's tablet runs on a 2.2 GHz Snapdragon 800 CPU and features built-in LTE connectivity, 2 GB RAM and 32 GB expandable storage. The display clocks in at a full 1920 x 1080 with 650 nit brightness and “almost” 180-degree viewing angles.
Unlike most tablets on the market, Nokia's device features some fairly capable optics, with a 6.7-megapixel shooter on the back, an F1.9 aperture and Zeiss optics. There's also a 2-megapixel offering on the tablet's front face.
The device comes with an optional wrap-around cover that features a Surface-like keyboard and trackpad. Known as the Nokia Power Keyboard, the peripheral provides users with two USB ports and an additional five hours of battery life.
The tablet ships with Windows RT 8.1, augmented with some Nokia-exclusive software. This includes the Storyteller app, which automatically pulls photos from numerous sources including Facebook, Picasa, SkyDrive and Flicker, creating a single image timeline. Also on board are Nokia Music, HERE Maps and the company's Video Director editing app.
Nokia's decision to base the 2520 on the much-lamented Windows RT OS may prove the tablet's biggest obstacle to success. Sales of Windows RT tablets have been less than impressive since its launch alongside the full-blown Windows 8 OS last year and, for a lot of people, the limited functionality of the platform (due to a comparable insufficiency in quality RT apps and inability to run full Windows apps) will be enough to turn their attention to other devices.
That said, the Lumia 2520 is set to offer something a little different from the competition, but nothing truly unique. The device's strongest selling points are its comparatively impressive optics and battery-extending cover.
The Lumia 2520 is scheduled for release in Q4 2013 with a slightly steep recommended price of US$499. Like Microsoft's own Surface keyboard accessories, the Nokia Power Keyboard is an optional extra and will set users back an additional US$149.
Source: Nokia
"Nokia's tablet runs on a 2.2 GHz Snapdragon 800 CPU and features built-in LTE connectivity, 2 GB RAM and 32 GB expandable storage. "
Nice. And should RT bottom out, there is always the option of moving the next model to Haswell.
"features a Surface-like keyboard and trackpad. Known as the Nokia Power Keyboard, the peripheral provides users with two USB ports and an additional five hours of battery life."
This is an awesome accessory.
Since Microsoft recently bought Nokia, I would be exceptionally surprised if they put any OS other than Windows on there....