Hands on: Nokia Lumia 810 review

Here at MobileCon 2012, we got to put our hands on T-Mobile's exclusive Windows phone, the upcoming Nokia Lumia 810. Unfortunately, holding this handsome new handset was about all we were allowed to do. The smartphone version of the Windows 8 OS is still very hush-hush, and demo units we saw wouldn't even turn on.

Still, there was a lot to be gleaned from playing with the device, and we know it will launch ready for T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42 network. While T-Mobile wouldn't talk price or release date, we'd be surprised if didn't show up in time for the holiday rush.

While we couldn't mess with the OS, we did learn the specs. Internally, the Lumia 810 packs a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor and 1GB of RAM. There's 8GB of onboard storage, with room for an additional 32GB via MicroSD. The antenna is a quad-band 3G UMTS/HSPA, and the battery is an 1800 mAh Lithium ion.

Holding the Lumia 810, its 5 ounce (145 gram) weight was pleasing in the hand. The phone's design felt a little boxy, at least compared with the sleeker Lumia 920.

Lets talk dimensions, the Lumia 810 measures 17.8 x 68.4 x 11.2 mm, with an OLED screen providing 4.3 inches of visual real estate, and a resolution of 800x480. When Windows 8 is actually loaded on the device, it will features the customizable Live Tiles that have come to represent Microsoft's new mobile OS.

The most distinct aspect of the Lumia 810 is that colorful plastic backing, which can be removed and swapped out. There were two colors on display at MobileCon 2012, a bright cyan blue and a plain black. Removing the back casing was a little tough, not as easy as pulling a rubber casing off an iPhone 5.

We were left wondering if there would be more colors eventually available, perhaps by third-parties. We've really enjoyed the colorfulness of devices like the Windows Phone 8X and Windows Phone 8S. We'd like to see more than just two colors.

The Lumia 810 is very photography-friendly. Like all Windows phones, it has a dedicated hardware camera button which brings you right into picture taking mode. That camera takes 8-megapixel snaps, and can also shoot 1080p video. In the front there's a 1.2-megapixel chat cam. Nokia is calling it Skype-certified. We're not sure what that means, but 1.2-Mp should make for good quality video calling.

Finally, as both a Windows and Nokia device, the Lumia 810 will come packed with apps from both companies. From Microsoft there will be tie-ins with Xbox Live, and Nokia will provide its two navigation services, the turn-by-turn Nokia Drive and the augmented reality app Nokia City Lens. Media suites will include an ESPN app and music streamer Slacker Radio. T-Mobile is getting in on it too, offering T-Mobile TV, its app for streaming all kinds of TV to your phone. Music fans will be happy to know the phones supports MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, WMA, MPEG4 and WAV.

Early Verdict

Even more so than usual with a hands-on assessment, it's way too early to call it with the Nokia Lumia 810. We didn't get to play with the OS, and that's half the battle with a Windows 8 device.

After seeing the bright and attractive Windows Phone 8X and 8S lineup, as well as the Lumia 920, we were disappointed to see only two color options for the Lumia 810. However, this could change before the phone's release, either by Nokia itself or from third-party accessory intervention.

We also weren't in love with the phone's boxy design, but it was pleasant to hold, and with its reasonable size, we think it will be easy to operate one-handed, something we're losing as smartphones grow larger.

Ultimately, we have greater anticipation for the Windows 8 smartphone OS than we do for any single Windows phone. Still, we think T-Mobile customers and Microsoft fans could have a lot to look forward to with the Nokia Lumia 810.