Microsoft Lumia 540 : A Bad Budget Smartphone

Well, Microsoft launched the new Lumia 540 today. But, it’s a huge disappointment being a budget-friendly smartphone. In this article, you will get to know what the Lumia 540 features and why we consider it as a “Bad” budget smartphone.  As you read on, you will get to know the overall specifications of Lumia 540, and at the same time, try to realize whether the device is worthy of a price tag of 10,199 INR / 160$(nearly) or not.

Overall Specifications

It’s, of course, a Dual-SIM enabled device. It features a 5 inch HD screen (720×1280). However, there is no screen protection available. The 294 PPI density is good enough if we look at the older devices at this price tag. Chipset features a Snapdragon 200 1.2 GHz Quad-Core processor along with 1 Gig of RAM. Adreno 302 as the GPU. It sports an 8MP rear camera with 480p quality video recording support, and also a 5 MP front camera for rich video call experience through Skype. It comes loaded with the Windows Phone 8.1 Lumia denim. And, that’s upgradable to Windows 10. Powered by 2200 mAh battery.

Why is it a “Bad” budget smartphone?

Well, if you are not aware of the different devices with various combinations of specifications, then you may feel, that the phone is worthy enough to buy. But, the truth is bitter. If you don’t want Microsoft to rob you indirectly, then you should avoid the device.

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Here’s why we think – 

A smartphone is considered as a Bad smartphone when something better already exists at the same price or even lower. Remember the Nokia Lumia 630? Well, you can still find it in the stores which comes with a price tag of 7,500 INR or 118$. The Lumia 630 has a Snapdragon 400 processor 1.2 GHz Quad-Core. So, here we get the first reason:

“ At a less price tag you get a better performance on Lumia 630, why should you choose Lumia 540?  “

Now, moving on to the display. The Lumia 630 features a 4.5-inch display while the Lumia 540 has got an edge over the 630 with a bigger 5.0 inch HD screen. But here’s the secret, Lumia 630 offers a Gorilla glass protection to the screen, whereas the Lumia 540 doesn’t offer any screen protection. Oh! That’s bad!

“ Having a smaller screen with Gorilla Glass protection is better than having a bigger screen without any protection. ”

Well, some may like a bigger screen, but having no Corning Gorilla Glass protection on a device priced at 10,199 INR is itself a bad picture.

Along with a bad chipset on Lumia 540, it offers a low GPU i.e Andreno 302, whereas you can find an Adreno 305 on Lumia 630, which is better.

“ It’s better to have a good GPU at a low price than to pay high for a low GPU integrated device. “

Wait! There’s the camera! Lumia 540 comes with an 8 MP rear camera which is better in figures than the Lumia 630, but the Lumia 540 supports only 480p video recording quality. That makes it worse than 5 MP camera in terms of recording a Video. And, 480p quality cannot give a rich media experience.

“ 5 MP camera which supports 720p video quality is better than an 8 MP rear camera “

 

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Another Thought 

You may be thinking that the Lumia 540 has a greater RAM ( 1GB ), then why didn’t I mention it as a good thing? There’s a reason for all things happening around you. And here the reason is being teamed up with an outdated player. The Snapdragon 200 is an out-dated chipset for the given price tag. So, even with a 512 MB RAM, Snapdragon 400 performs far better than the Snapdragon 200.

Wait ! It has two advantages too! – Does it Matter?

It has a front camera for video calls which the older device at this price range lacked. And, also it has got more 400 mAh battery power. Well, that can be ignored because Snapdragon is more efficient.
If these two factors are the only ones you follow to buy a smartphone, then its a good deal. But, out there in the market, you can easily get a smartphone at this price with 2x times the specifications. In other words, it would be Android phones.

What Microsoft Could have done Alternatively?

Microsoft is desperate to come back to the mid-range smartphone market. But, that doesn’t seem to happen in the near future if Microsoft keeps on launching such devices with mere advantages but more disadvantages.

It can easily get to the competition if it launches a device powered up by MediaTek chipset. As we know, Snapdragon 400 is better than Snapdragon 200. So, the MediaTek MT6582 chipset could have been embedded in the Lumia 540 which is better than the Snapdragon 400 as well as cheaper.

So, if Microsoft will consider better alternatives then it may stand a chance in the smartphone market. However, looking at the present situation, it feels that it is not likely to happen.

Let us know in the comments section below about your thoughts on the new Lumia 540.