Nokia Enters the Tablet Market with Lumia 2520

Nokia has been the primary Windows Phone handset manufacturer for the last couple of years, but apparently small phones just weren’t enough to keep the Finnish country busy. Today at their Nokia World developer conference they announced a slew of new devices, including their first foray in the world of Windows tablets. The tablet is the Nokia Lumia 2520 and it’s running Windows RT 8.1. That makes it a direct competitor to the Microsoft Surface 2 as they may be the only Windows RT 8.1 tablets released this season.

In terms of specs the main features that set the Lumia 2520 apart are the screen and camera. The display is a 10.1″ 1080p IPS screen. If you’ve seen the first generation Surface Pro’s beautiful display, this would be similar to that, but it’s even better. They’ve cranked up the brightness so that it’s even usable in direct sunlight, and they say that it has 180° viewing angles. In Windows Phone Central’s hands-on video the display looked amazing. The rear camera is also a step up from many tablet cameras. It features a 6.7MP Zeiss lens with a 1.9 aperture.

Nokia has also taken note of what Microsoft has done with their Surface line of accessories in that they are offering a keyboard accessory that offers physical keys, a trackpad, an integrated battery that adds up to five hours of extended use, and two full-size USB ports. That additional power could keep using the tablet for up to 16 hours as they claim 11 hours from the tablet alone. The keyboard cover also has a unique wrap-around design that essentially allows it to function as a kickstand.

With the Lumia 2520 Nokia has done one other thing that Microsoft hasn’t done with the Surface line: integrated an LTE radio. The Lumia 2520 will offer support for Verizon and AT&T’s LTE network, and it seems as though the LTE chip is included in the expected $499 price tag when it ships later this year. So if you’ve been considering a Windows RT tablet, would you pick this over the Surface 2? The amazing screen, improved camera, and creative keyboard cover will certainly give potential buyers a lot to consider.

Specifications

• Windows RT 8.1
• 10.1″ 1080P IPS Display
• 2.2GHz Quad-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800
• 6.7MP Zeiss Rear Camera and 2MP Wide-Angle Front Camera
• Integrated LTE (Verizon and AT&T)
• 32GB Storage
• 2GB RAM
• MicroSD
• NFC
• USB 3.0
• 802.11 a/b/g/n Wireless
• Bluetooth 4.0
• Microsoft Office Included
• 8000 mAh Battery
• Glossy Red, Glossy White, Matte Cyan, and Matte Black
• $499

Press Release