Nokia Lumia 930 Review
by Brett Howse on September 8, 2014 3:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Microsoft
- Nokia
- Mobile
- windows phone
- Lumia
Wi-Fi
The Snapdragon 800 SoC supports 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac wireless, and the Lumia 930 implements all of them, which means it supports 5 GHz as well as 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. There is only single band Wi-Fi though, so on the typical N network you would be limited to a maximum connection speed of 150 Mbps. If you own an 802.11ac router, connection speeds will get bumped to the maximum of 433 Mbps.
I was able to achieve peak transfer rates of around 55 Mpbs with the Lumia 930 on a Wireless N router with just the 930 attached. Due to only having 802.11n available, the maximum transfer speed is going to be reduced compared to 802.11ac.
Cellular
Cellular connectivity on the Lumia 930 supports category 4 LTE for maximum download speeds of 150 Mbps, with 50 Mbps upload. LTE bands on the 930 that I was sampled were 1, 3, 7, 8, and 20, which prevented me from testing LTE at my location. DC-HSPA is also supported for up to 42.2 Mpbs downloads if available in your area.
Speedtest.net did not give me great numbers on the days I tested it, but that can be typical of HSPA depending on cell tower usage.
GNSS
Again, with the Qualcomm silicon at the heart of this device, we’re working with well known, and well tested parts such as the GNSS. The Lumia 930 supports Cellular and Wi-Fi assist and supports GPS, GLONASS, and BeiDou for location, and it locks quickly. Hopefully the days of poor location tracking are over.
Speaker
The 930 has just a single rear-facing speaker. Both volume and sound quality are surprisingly good with this speaker, but there is certainly no sense of stereo sound. For notifications, this speaker is adequate for the task but if you are going to watch a movie, you would be happier with a set of headphones.
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ritwik - Tuesday, October 14, 2014 - link
I don't prefer windows phone, I personally feel android platform is goo enough for device. and I am pretty much happy with the way my Honor 6 is performing. It's just an amazing phone. http://goo.gl/4wojuWnuna12 - Tuesday, October 14, 2014 - link
I Lumia 930 with Windows Phone may be best seen, with a beautiful screen, great camera and video performance easily compete with the best Android phones out there. However, I wanted more from the application of the material, and the compatibility of its files is limited.Boogaloo - Wednesday, November 12, 2014 - link
I couldn't help but notice that you included a result of 55 Mbps in your UDP wifi performance table for the Lumia 930. The reviewer that recorded that value (Brett Howse) was called out several times in the comments section of his review for his incompetence for testing wireless performance using a router that only supported 802.11n when benchmarking a device that supports 802.11ac, and even worse placing that result into a graph with phones that WERE benchmarked against an 802.11ac capable router. He then "corrected" the issue by adding a note to the graph (http://images.anandtech.com/graphs/graph8441/67571... that doesn't really fix anything. I don't understand how you can be in a position to write technical articles and reviews without understanding why this is fundamentally wrong.Anyway, apparently his erroneous metrics made it into the database of test results that you pull from despite the fact that it's completely unrepresentative of reality. Please either re-test the performance or just remove the result from your recorded metrics. I know nobody really cares about Windows Phone, but I honestly just expect better from anandtech.
chrisouth - Tuesday, December 2, 2014 - link
I purchased a brand new Nokia Lumia 930 from Singtel Singapore on a contract. The phone would heat up during normal use (making phone calls, checking email, browsing internet, etc..) after two weeks the screen starting showing signs of heat damage.I would have expected a nokia phone to have lasted longer than two weeks!?
On the recommendation from the Singtel retail store I handed my phone into Nokia Singapore (Harbourfront) to be repaired under warranty. Although I would have really expected a replacement handset given that the phone was only 3 weeks old at this point. Apple seem to provide this service all through their warranty period.
After three weeks and I was still waiting for my phone to be repaired. I tried calling the service center over 20 times, yes over 20 times and with no reply. I also tried calling Nokia support and it is so automated that there is no option to talk to a person regarding my service request or just in general (it has now been changed). I also tried re-visiting the service center where I dropped off the phone and it had closed down! With a note to call Nokia AKA the same I tried before which is (was) useless to a human being.
When I did finally got hold of a Nokia rep over virtual chat, they were helpful in answering my questions and providing an update but with no real result. I was told that the service center are waiting on an important part to arrive but without a date when it might arrive.
Well it's now been over six weeks that Nokia Singapore has had my phone. Apparently the parts are still on their way and the delay is due to bulk shipping them... really? from where the moon???!
The Nokia rep was pretty much useless (again). In that he couldn't provide a timeframe or even escalate my call other than add a priority to the repair once the part(s) arrive, whenever that might be.
According to Nokia's own Limited Warranty, "During the warranty period, Manufacturer will, in a reasonable time, remedy the Defect free of charge by either repairing or replacing the defective Product or the defective part of it at its option provided that you have informed Manufacturer of the Defect before the warranty period expires." Anyone with an iodate of common sense would determine that 6 weeks for a phone repair is beyond a "reasonable time".
Surely it must be cheaper to just provide a replacement phone than ship parts over to Singapore??
I purchased this phone from Singtel and its just money wasted as far I'm concerned as what is the point on owning a phone without being able to use it?
Nokia Service in Singapore is absolutely atrocious and non-functioning, compounded with an unannounced service center closure I don't see a future for Nokia here.
Also given my recent experience this will be the last Nokia phone I'll be getting, back to HTC or even Samsung for me.
The whole experience has been utterly frustrating.
Shame on you Nokia.