Microsoft at MWC 2015: Lumia 640 and 640 XL Announced, 4K 120Hz Surface Hub Demoed
by Ian Cutress & Andrei Frumusanu on March 2, 2015 4:13 AM ESTMobile World Congress is in full swing today and Microsoft woke the press up early to discuss new features coming to their smartphone and tablet space. Top of the bill, presented by Stephen Elop, are the new Lumia 640 and Lumia 640XL devices. The regular 640, with it 5-inch HD display comes as the upgrade from the 630, whereas the 5.7-inch XL version sits as the move up from the large Lumia 1320.
Both devices will be available in 3G and LTE versions, with single and dual SIM in both of those depending on the market. The 640 uses a Snapdragon 400-series quad core processor at 1.2 GHz featuring Gorilla Glass 3, 1 GB of DRAM and 8 GB of storage. One might expect SD card support to come as standard, although a short hands on with the device failed to find one. The rear 8MP camera was described as a wide angle lens (although no numbers were given), with auto-HDR and dynamic LED flash. The battery weighs in at 2500 mAh also. Pricing for the 3G model starts at 139€ with the LTE version at 159€.
The 640 XL was described as ‘a slim 9mm’ with similar specifications to the smaller model but at 5.7 inches, namely a 1280x720 screen but the battery is pushed up to 3000 mAh. Internal specifications were not discussed, but the rear 13MP camera features Zeiss optics. Pricing starts at 189€ for the 3G model with LTE at 219€.
Both devices will ship with Windows 8.1 but will be upgraded to Windows 10, with Microsoft going all out to encourage Windows 10 across all of its future devices when available. The 640 and 640XL will also come with one year of Office 365, allowing installation on one PC and one other device as part of the deal. It also comes with 1TB of One Drive storage and 60 Skype World minutes.
An interesting element to the launch, especially with the ‘seemless feel’ push of Office across all different sizes of devices, was the Microsoft Universal Portable Keyboard. Barely bigger than a wallet, it is designed to fit into an office bag and be able to connect seamlessly via Bluetooth. No pricing or date was announced, but the focus was more on the office environment.
One demonstration that took me (Ian) by surprise was that of the Microsoft Surface Hub. This was an 84-inch display, normally the size used by large scale demonstrations, but this featured 4K resolution at 120 Hz as well as touch screen functionality. Naturally my thoughts drifted towards a TN type panel using MST, although taking the typical wide-angle test for TN panels was confusing as color consistency remained the same – it seems like they are using some kind of IPS display, which seems odd at 120 Hz.
The combination of 4K and 120 Hz and possibly IPS is mind boggling, which pointed me more towards an MST arrangement – either two panels or four. We managed to ask one of the product managers for the Surface Hub about this, but he was unable to give that information until launch. One of the demonstrations of the device featured a white-board scenario, as well as writing on office presentations. Anything written on the screen was recreated back to the controlling Surface tablet, and the tablet user could write as well, or what Microsoft calls ‘ink-back’. In a similar vein, ‘swipe-back’ to allow both users to change slides was demonstrated. The Surface Hub is linked to Windows 10, and we were told to expect more details at Windows 10 launch, along with another version at 55-inches but with 1080p resolution.
The final announcement of the presentation was for the Microsoft Build Conference, which will be on April 29th.
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edzieba - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
Most TVs are *VA technology panels, and it appears to have the characteristic *VA off-axis contrast shift. Eizo have the DuraVision FDF2405W and Foris FG2421 with a 120Hz *VA panel.whocarez_pt - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
AUO has a technology equivalent to IPS, AHVA and has large size panel with 120Hzmore info at:
http://www.auo.com/?sn=1282&lang=en-US
http://www.auo.com/?sn=107&lang=en-US&c=9&...
mobutu - Tuesday, March 3, 2015 - link
In fact this panel is featured in the new gaming monitor king, with availability from middle of april:2560/1440+IPS+144Hz+5ms(noError)+noLag+Gsync+ULMB+FlickerFree
http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/reviews/acer_xb270hu.h...
Gunbuster - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
Hell yes, a mobile Bluetooth keyboard at Mobile World Congress oh wait. ***Coming Soon™ ****Does not work with Windows Phone.BMNify - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
Both 640 and 640XL are good value for money along with Dual-Sim LTE option which is in good demand in many countries. Hope you guys review both the phones.The foldable keyboard sounds nice, it will work with windows 10 on phones and all lumia are getting windows 10, so no issues there.
MrSpadge - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
I'd prefer the 120€ Lumia 530 as a value phone - as far as I can tell pretty much the same thing, with a slightly lower resolution display (so what) and lower resolution camera. If the 640 has a significantly better camera this would be a significant advantage for some people, though.Alexvrb - Tuesday, March 3, 2015 - link
Just like, as far as I can tell, an i7-powered 17" gaming notebook has identical performance to a same-generation Celeron-equipped 13" model, because both machines have USB 3.0 ports. :P No, the difference isn't that dramatic, but it's a lot more substantial than you claim.http://www.windowscentral.com/lumia-530-vs-lumia-5...
Look at the specs on those devices, compared to the 640 models. The 530 in particular is well behind in all categories, but both it and the 532 are 4" models and therefore are not even in the same class as the 640. Even the outgoing 630 is quite a bit smaller and less well equipped.
The larger 535 is a better comparison than the aforementioned models but it is still outclassed. Does that make them bad devices? No, I think the 535 is a good budget device if the price is right. But the 640 is quite a large step up if you can afford it. A lot of people would be drawn to the (much) higher DPI display or the faster processor, but those things don't sway me as much as the increased battery capacity or GG3.
zodiacfml - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
Oh, this should mean a review of the Acer's 144Hz IPS display.DCide - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
Microsoft keeps putting the '6' key on the wrong side of the keyboard!This is perhaps the first time they have an excuse, since I have trouble seeing how the 6 key could fit in this design without making the whole thing wider.
Bob Todd - Monday, March 2, 2015 - link
I want that keyboard in my backpack post-haste.