[HeyCori]

I'm not seeing any support for 1700 MHz

http://storage.afterdawn.net/nokia-lumia-1020.pdf

[rhamblet]

1.5GHz Dual-core Snapdragon S4......
S4!!!!!.....

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE INFORM NOKIA THAT THEY SHOULDNT BE USING 2+ YEAR OLD SOC's IN THEIR FLAGSHIP DEVICES

and if I hear 1 more ***** proclaim "well windows phone doesn't need 4 cores" YES IT FREAKING DOES, the adreno 320/330 is SO much better than the 225 and its pointless to throw away the extra power when they both use the same amount. WP8 browsing need more pep in its step and a faster CPU would handle that.

I really, really wanted this phone, but it looks like I'll save my contract upgrades for something like a 930. BUT SO HELP ME GOD IF THEY PUT IN AN S4 I WILL LOSE MY MIND.

/rant

[mafu6]

1.5GHz Dual-core Snapdragon S4......
S4!!!!!.....

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE INFORM NOKIA THAT THEY SHOULDNT BE USING 2+ YEAR OLD SOC's IN THEIR FLAGSHIP DEVICES

and if I hear 1 more ***** proclaim "well windows phone doesn't need 4 cores" YES IT FREAKING DOES, the adreno 320/330 is SO much better than the 225 and its pointless to throw away the extra power when they both use the same amount. WP8 browsing need more pep in its step and a faster CPU would handle that.

I really, really wanted this phone, but it looks like I'll save my contract upgrades for something like a 930. BUT SO HELP ME GOD IF THEY PUT IN AN S4 I WILL LOSE MY MIND.

/rant

And the spec wars continue......

[rhamblet]

I've been hearing a lot of Nokia defenders cite the whole "spec war" argument.

But really, is there a single good reason for why it SHOULDN'T be a more recent CPU? Even a dual core 400 would be more efficient and offer similar performance. For all the benefits (major to some, minor to some) there is not a single good reason why they shouldn't have a recent CPU on board. They are just cutting corners, WP8 does in fact support multi-core CPU's, last year at the press conference for WP8 they announced it could have up to 98 or whatever it was.

[MAkhdar]

Yeah there really isn't any reason to not put a more modern CPU. Either Nokia really just wants to make this a niche device or this isn't going to be their new flagship. I have a feeling they have something else coming up.

[explosive0]

And the spec wars continue......

That's like arguing that's it's ok to have an engine with a carburetor instead of a fuel injector because it provides the same amount of torque. Nonetheless, it's sheepish (winSheep?) and annoying. There's no reason whatsoever to not include an updated CPU.

[tmccaghren]

I've been hearing a lot of Nokia defenders cite the whole "spec war" argument.

But really, is there a single good reason for why it SHOULDN'T be a more recent CPU? Even a dual core 400 would be more efficient and offer similar performance. For all the benefits (major to some, minor to some) there is not a single good reason why they shouldn't have a recent CPU on board. They are just cutting corners, WP8 does in fact support multi-core CPU's, last year at the press conference for WP8 they announced it could have up to 98 or whatever it was.

It seems like the 1020 is a niche device, rather than the traditional flagship. That said, if the OS runs fine on the processor it has, why SHOULD the device have to have a newer (and more expensive) processor?

I feel that one of Nokia"s strengths has been that it provides a high quality experience for a lower price than is given for phones with comparable capabilities. Apple does the same thing--its hardware is lower spec (technically) than flagship Android phones, and yet is hailed as the best/one of the best due to customer experience.

EDIT--TO CLARIFY--not saying apple provides its experience at a lower price, just that it uses lower-grade hardware to deliver a flagship experience (due to good optimization). I have always felt Apple charges too much...but they maximize the profits, which any business strives to do.

[Vinky H]

Imo, the reason is because nokia need to keep the price competitive with other android phone. Android is free while wp8 need a license.

[bigkevbosky]

This thing is going to sell like a steaming turd on a hot August afternoon.

So for $299, plus taxes, plus $36 upgrade fee (so probably near $375 total), you can get this device ON CONTRACT.

Phft. I've been on Windows Phone for a long time and I've defended it as much as possible, but this is just inexcusable. Nobody is going to buy this thing. It's going to be the HTC First part 2. Dead in 6 weeks.

[rhamblet]

It seems like the 1020 is a niche device, rather than the traditional flagship. That said, if the OS runs fine on the processor it has, why SHOULD the device have to have a newer (and more expensive) processor?

I feel that one of Nokia"s strengths has been that it provides a high quality experience for a lower price than is given for phones with comparable capabilities. Apple does the same thing--its hardware is lower spec (technically) than flagship Android phones, and yet is hailed as the best/one of the best due to customer experience.

EDIT--TO CLARIFY--not saying apple provides its experience at a lower price, just that it uses lower-grade hardware to deliver a flagship experience (due to good optimization). I have always felt Apple charges too much...but they maximize the profits, which any business strives to do.

The bin price for an ARM cpu is almost non-existant, so it isn't cutting costs on hardware, its that they didn't want to spend time optimizing the software. Apple uses a completely different SOC design that they hand picked.

iOS on its "slow" hardware (when compared to Android) still shreds it in browsing benchmarks and gaming benchmarks for months. Windows Phone simply does not, so it certainly needs the hardware more than iOS does.

But I agree with you, the 1020 looks more like a niche than a flagship, so the name confuses me, 909 makes more sense to me. 1020 makes it sound like the king but in fact, 9 months into the WP8 product cycle and the "high end" devices have the same freaking specs that they did in the beginning. That is unacceptable.

[Coreldan]

Any idea if the OS is actually capable of 4 cores or higher? Yes, I know the kernel supports up to 64 cores, but whether or not the OS actually at this time is capable of running on any of the 4 core SoCs is different.

[HeyCori]

1.5GHz Dual-core Snapdragon S4......
S4!!!!!.....

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE INFORM NOKIA THAT THEY SHOULDNT BE USING 2+ YEAR OLD SOC's IN THEIR FLAGSHIP DEVICES

/rant

Nokia is only operating with a fraction of the money they used to have, therefore it's important that Nokia watches its profit margins. The Nokia 808 is their first 41MP phone and it still isn't "cheap" to buy new, with many places still selling it for anywhere between $350 - $450 a full year after release. An improved 41MP lens, OIS and licensing WP8 all adds to the cost. That added cost has to be balanced with sacrifices from somewhere else. In short, reusing SOCs keeps the costs down so that Nokia doesn't go broke if the 1020 isn't a runaway success.

The other reason is likely because Microsoft hasn't written drivers for new chips.

[tmccaghren]

The bin price for an ARM cpu is almost non-existant, so it isn't cutting costs on hardware, its that they didn't want to spend time optimizing the software. Apple uses a completely different SOC design that they hand picked.

iOS on its "slow" hardware (when compared to Android) still shreds it in browsing benchmarks and gaming benchmarks for months. Windows Phone simply does not, so it certainly needs the hardware more than iOS does.

But I agree with you, the 1020 looks more like a niche than a flagship, so the name confuses me, 909 makes more sense to me. 1020 makes it sound like the king but in fact, 9 months into the WP8 product cycle and the "high end" devices have the same freaking specs that they did in the beginning. That is unacceptable.

perhaps you are right about the individual processor cost, but wouldn't they have to change the socket and chipset? If so, the money for development/manufacture of new pcb's has to come from somewhere.

Add to that the cost of further software development, and it becomes a lot more clear why a smaller company like Nokia would stick with the tried and true design until the software no longer supports it.

[JerseySal]

When did all the sissy mary crybabies join WPC, and when did everyone become a market analyist?

[tmccaghren]

Lol, I'm not a market analyst, but my wife is a project engineer who designs electronic hardware. That, and my own work in IT, is where my viewpoint is coming from.

[acimars]

All of you must to know that the decision nokia use snapdragon s4 because Windows Phone 8 until now just support Snapdragon S4 Plus...
It means just having Dual core + andreno 225/305 SoC
Hardware limitation comes from microsoft not nokia

[falconeight]

1.5GHz Dual-core Snapdragon S4......
S4!!!!!.....

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE INFORM NOKIA THAT THEY SHOULDNT BE USING 2+ YEAR OLD SOC's IN THEIR FLAGSHIP DEVICES

and if I hear 1 more ***** proclaim "well windows phone doesn't need 4 cores" YES IT FREAKING DOES, the adreno 320/330 is SO much better than the 225 and its pointless to throw away the extra power when they both use the same amount. WP8 browsing need more pep in its step and a faster CPU would handle that.

I really, really wanted this phone, but it looks like I'll save my contract upgrades for something like a 930. BUT SO HELP ME GOD IF THEY PUT IN AN S4 I WILL LOSE MY MIND.

/rant

Spec wars are for andrites. Its not like someone with a better processor can play PS4 games and smaller cores are stuck with PS3 games.

[TechAbstract]

Lumia 920T (Chinese model) has Snapdragon Pro (Adreno 320). I doubt this phone has that.