eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.
AT&T will begin selling the Nokia Lumia 1520 on Nov. 22 for $199 with a new two-year contract.
The news was first reported as a flub by the Microsoft Store, but AT&T has since come out with the news itself.
“The Lumia 1520 is the first Windows Phone on the market with a 6-inch 1080p full-HD screen,” Jeff Bradley, AT&T’s senior vice president of devices, said in a Nov. 8 statement.
“The large screen and extra real estate not only accommodate more Live Tiles, but also give you more room to view photos and videos on leading social networking apps or presentations on PowerPoint,” Bradley continued, adding that the 1520 is “natural fit” on AT&T’s “blazing fast” network.
Nokia introduced the 1520 at its 2013 Nokia World event in Abu Dhabi Oct. 22. Alongside it, the company showed off its first Windows-running tablet, the Lumia 2520, and two Asha devices for emerging markets.
The 1520’s 6-inch display adds a third row of tiles to the phone’s home screen. The phone additionally features a 20-megapixel PureView camera with new sensor technology and optical image stabilization, for crisper photos in low light. It also has “over-sampling” technology, which adds more detail to each image.
Importantly, the 1520 also includes an application called Nokia Camera, which combines the Smart and Pro camera apps that are separate offers (and confusingly so) in the earlier Lumia 1020. Also new is Nokia Storyteller, an app that integrates pictures and videos with location-based information to create what Nokia calls a “chronological journey of your story—no more files, folders and complex file names.”
Complementing the video component, Nokia also included four microphones in the 1520. (Adding microphones seems to be a trend: The BlackBerry Z30 has six microphones encircling the device).
At the Abu Dhabi event, Nokia also shared that Windows Phone users will, for the first time, soon be able to share videos on Twitter.
“I am also excited to share that later this year you can post these same great images to Instagram,” added Stephen Elop. “We and the team at Microsoft have been working very closely with the Instagram team to bring their application to the Windows Phone ecosystem. Instagram will be available on Windows Phone in the coming weeks.”
On Sept. 3, Microsoft announced plans to buy Nokia’s Devices & Services business, and Elop stepped aside as CEO to become executive vice president of Devices & Services.
The Lumia 1520 has 16GB of on-device storage, plus a microSD card that supports 64GB. The smartphone comes in matte black, matte white, matte yellow and glossy red.
Customers who purchase the 1520 between Nov. 22 and Jan. 9 will receive a $20 app voucher for the Windows Phone store.
It’s rumored that the Lumia 2025 tablet will also make a Nov. 22 debut, on the AT&T and Verizon Wireless networks, for $499. Windows Phone Central adds that Verizon reportedly plans to hang a Black Friday deal on the tablet, lowering the price to $399.
The Lumia 2025 features a 10.1-inch display, a 6.7-megapixel rear camera, built-in Long Term Evolution (LTE) capability and easy readability in very bright conditions.