Nokia Lumia 1020 annihilates the competition with its huge 41MP camera

Home / News / Nokia Lumia 1020 annihilates the competition with its huge 41MP camera

The long-rumoured and repeatedly leaked Nokia Lumia 1020 has been officially revealed at last, and it’s packing enough photographic muscle to tempt all smartphone shutterbugs.

Its huge 41MP sensor allows for a 3x lossless zoom function, as seen on the Nokia 808 PureView. That means you can shoot first and zoom later without losing out on quality, and you can even zoom out of shots after you’ve taken them. Not only that, but Nokia’s also managed to cram in optical image stabilisation, a backside-illuminated sensor, six-lens optics and 1080p video recording.

Flash! Ah-aaah!

Nokia Lumia 1020 annihilates the competition with its huge 41MP camera

The Nokia Lumia 1020 also features both a Xenon flash (for photos) and an LED light for low-light video shooting and the whole affair is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. Nokia’s Rich recording tech also means you can record loud sounds at gigs/space shuttle launches without any ear-bleeding distortion.

A 2,000mAH battery will hopefully keep its bright 1280×728 4.5in PureMotion HD+ screen lit up for an entire day, but an optional camera grip accessory with a built-in battery pack should squeeze more life into the 1020 for lengthy photo sessions. It’ll also let you mount the 1020 to a tripod and has a two-stage camera button to push it more into compact camera territory.

At 10.4mm thick and weighing in at 158g, it’s certainly not the thinnest or lightest handset around, but given all the delicious camera components that Nokia has managed to cram into it, we’re hardly complaining. It would have been even thicker had wireless charging been built in, but that’s instead available with the addition of a separate wireless charging case.

The Nokia Lumia 1020 will be available in black, yellow and white for US$300 on a two year AT&T contract in the states from July 26th, though there’s no UK or EU pricing information available at this time. Boo.

We’re getting hands-on with the Lumia 1020 at the Nokia launch event in New York – check back to find out how the 41MP camera holds up.

About

Esat has been a gadget fan ever since his tiny four-year-old brain was captivated by a sound-activated dancing sunflower. From there it was a natural progression to a Sega Mega Drive, a brief obsession with hedgehogs, and a love for all things tech. After 7 years as a writer and deputy editor for Stuff, Esat ventured out into the corporate world, spending three years as Editor of Microsoft's European News Centre. Now a freelance writer, his appetite for shiny gadgets has no bounds. Oh, and like all good human beings, he's very fond of cats.