Handset manufacturer Nokia held a press event in London this morning where it showed off the Lumia 925 smartphone, a thinner, lighter update of its Lumia 920 handset that is expected to reach consumers in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain and China in June, followed by the United States and a number of other markets.
The Lumia 925 Windows Phone 8 device introduces metal for the first time to the Lumia family, which increases durability, and Nokia also announced Hipstamatic will arrive on Lumia smartphones, allowing users to share their pictures with like-minded enthusiasts on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Instagram.
Those higher-quality build materials have resulted in a lighter weight when compared with the Lumia 920, though the smartphone sports the same dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 1GB of RAM and 8.7-megapixel OIS camera of the 920. The device will retail for 469 euros—roughly $609—but there were no specific details as to when the Lumia 925 will reach U.S. shores.
The polycarbonate back comes in white, gray or black, and a wireless charging cover can be clipped onto the back of the phone to take advantage of Nokia’s wireless charging accessories and ecosystem. Covers, sold separately, come in white, black, yellow and red. On the front, the Lumia 925 boasts a 4.5-inch Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode (AMOLED) screen with Gorilla Glass technology for added durability, along with ClearBlack technology and a high-brightness mode to improve visibility outside.
The handset showcases the latest PureView camera technology and also introduces Nokia Smart Camera mode, coming as an update to all Lumia Windows Phone 8 smartphones. Nokia Smart Camera enables users to capture 10 images at once and edit the pictures with options such as Best Shot, Action Shot and Motion Focus to create high-quality images.
“We keep innovating,” Jo Harlow, executive vice president of Nokia Smart Devices, said in a statement. “We’re advancing experiences on the Nokia Lumia portfolio whether that means great new benefits for an existing Lumia owner, or bringing new showcase devices like the Nokia Lumia 925.”
Over the weekend, Nokia announced the impending launch of the Lumia 928 smartphone, the latest installment in the company’s Windows Phone 8 lineup, which will be an exclusive to Verizon Wireless and will debut in the United States May 16.
The Lumia 928 is available in white or black at Verizon Wireless stores and online beginning May 16 for $99 after a $50 mail-in rebate, with a new two-year customer agreement. For a limited time, users will also get a $25 credit for Windows Phone apps and games with the purchase of a Lumia 928.