Lumia 550 slows down. How to get rid of slowdowns in your smartphone on Windows Phone. Increased battery life
Against the backdrop of the new flagships Lumia 950 and 950 XL, many might not have noticed the appearance of another device running Windows 10 Mobile. It's about Microsoft Lumia 550 LTE, the first budget smartphone to run the new operating system. And we are sure that he will become much more popular than his older brothers. Why? Yes, because it costs almost 5 times less than the 950 and 950 XL models, and lately It is the price that is the decisive criterion when choosing a phone.
We bring to your attention a review of the Lumia 550, in which we will look at the strengths and weaknesses of the smartphone and draw a conclusion about the advisability of purchasing it.
Design
In our opinion, the Lumia 550 is the most beautiful budget smartphone among all the devices in the line. Smooth lines and the absence of unnecessary details make appearance the body is harmonious, but discreet. If you like minimal design, you will share our opinion.
The body is made of polycarbonate, a traditional material for budget models. You won't find any metal inserts here.
The white version of the smartphone comes with a glossy back cover, while the black version comes with a matte back cover. The cover is removable, so you can order a new bright panel in the company store or from third-party manufacturers.
Taking off back cover, you will have access to the battery as well as nano SIM and card slots MicroSD memory. The smartphone supports cards with a capacity of up to 128 GB, and given that the built-in memory is only 8 GB, you will certainly take advantage of this opportunity. By the way, unlike Android, in Windows 10 you can throw any applications, games, music, photos and videos onto the card.
Dimensions and weight
The Lumia 550 measures 136.1 x 67.8 x 9.9mm and weighs just 142g.
Since the smartphone is quite small, it is very convenient to operate it with one hand. Thanks to the one-handed control mode in Windows 10 Mobile, you can easily access any icons on your desktop.
All buttons are located on the right side of the case. You'll find a 3.5mm headphone jack on the top and a Micro USB jack on the bottom. Left side phone is traditionally empty.
It is worth noting that there is no physical camera shutter button, but this is a common occurrence for devices in the lower price range.
Display
Lumia 550 is equipped with a 4.7-inch display with a resolution of 1280 × 720 and a pixel density of 315 ppi.
Honestly, this good quality We did not expect images from this state employee. The colors are bright, the picture is clear, the viewing angles are quite wide, and small text is easy to read. Perhaps this is the best display among all models entry level Lumiya line.
Among the minuses, it is worth noting the very easily soiled surface of the screen, on which fingerprints will always be visible.
Performance and battery
Considering that this budget model, there is nothing surprising in the fact that it is equipped with an entry-level Snapdragon 210 processor and 1 GB RAM.
Do you think it's slow? Not at all. Microsoft did their best and well optimized Windows 10 Mobile for weak hardware.
Of course, the smartphone does not work at lightning speed and will slow down in heavy games and resource-intensive applications, but it copes with light tasks very well.
If you want a powerful filling, you will have to pay much more than 10,000 rubles. And for top models, such as these, you will have to pay from 45,000 to 50,000 rubles.
As for the battery, the capacity of 2100 mAh is enough for a whole day of active use of the device. On personal experience We can say that after charging the smartphone 100% in the morning, we actively used it all day: listening to music, playing games, surfing the Internet, turning on navigation. In the evening the charge level was 11%. We can conclude that with moderate use, the battery should last for two days without recharging.
We think this is a good result!
Communication quality
One of the main advantages of the Microsoft Lumia 550 LTE lies in its name and lies in its support for 4G networks. Internet access in 3G and 4G networks is very significant, in favor of the latter. To experience this, you need to try to download a large file or video on each of the networks. We tried it and liked it. In 4G networks, Internet pages load very quickly, and you can watch videos without waiting for them to load. The main thing is that the tariff is suitable, with a large amount of free traffic.
Based on the quality of calls, we can say the following: we hear our interlocutors perfectly, and they hear us perfectly. And nothing else is required when making calls.
Camera
The 5-megapixel camera is nothing special, but given the price of the smartphone, this is not surprising. It takes good pictures and, thanks to the LED flash, allows you to take pictures in the dark. You won’t get masterpieces, but in order to capture interesting moments or important information it will do.
We invite you to look at examples of photographs.
In daylight (click on thumbnail to enlarge)
At night without flash
At night with flash
In addition to photos, the Lumia 550 camera shoots video at 720p resolution at 30 frames per second.
Bottom line
Microsoft Lumia 550 is good opportunity join the world of Windows 10 Mobile for little money. In general, for its price the smartphone has good technical characteristics and allows the operating system to run smoothly and without brakes. All applications included in the kit work without any complaints.
In addition, the Lumia 550 is the most affordable smartphone from Microsoft with 4G support, so if high Internet speed is very important to you, then be sure to consider purchasing this model.
However, when buying this phone, remember that it is a budget phone, so don't expect high performance and great features from it.
Look first review of the real "sale" Microsoft Lumia 550 . This is not a prototype like the Lumia 950 XL ( And overview of user recognition by iris of Windows Hello with Iris), shown in Microsoft Lumia 550 review - this is the final version of the hardware, only with Windows 10 Mobile not updated before release. But the experience of using it for a week leaves the most pleasant impressions.Microsoft Lumia 550 is a budget model of the Lumia line of smartphones , which will cost about 140 euros and its sales will begin in December 2015. For those who need a bug-free, lag-free smartphone with long lasting performance battery life and convenient and easy to use Windows OS -Microsoft Lumia 550 is a great solution . Trust me, Microsoft Lumia 550 is worth the money.
What can we say -testing the touch screen for sensitivity to touches and finger movements of the Microsoft Lumia 550 passes with a bang 😉
This review/test of Microsoft Lumia 550 - proof of the normal operation of the touchscreen in the Microsoft Lumia 550. So - there’s no need to remember about the problematic screen of the Lumia 535 and transfer the problems of the 535 to the “successor” - the Lumia 550 has no problems with the touchscreen 😉
In this series - - with the most popular representatives on Windows Phone - how Asphalt 8 Airborne, GT Racing 2, 4x4 Offroad Rally, Beach Buggy Racing work on Lumia 550 .
According to subjective feelingsAfalo26 all tested games on the Lumia 550 work perfectly, no lags were noticed, the screen is sensitive and no glitches were noticed 😉
According to subjective feelingsAfalo26 All these tested games on Lumia 550 show excellent speed, the screen is sensitive and no glitches were noticed 😉 we especially appreciated the heating of the phone during the game - we didn’t notice any particularly hot zones, the phone was just warm 😉 Except that Brother in Arms 3 crashed at the end, but this is no longer a problem with the Microsoft Lumia 550 or The OS is Windows 10 Mobile, and the well-known “bugs” of Brother in Arms 3 itself, for which everyone mercilessly criticizes it...
According to subjective feelingsAfalo26 All These RPG games work great on Lumia 550 , the screen is sensitive and no glitches were noticed 😉 we especially appreciated the heating of the phone during the game - we didn’t notice any particularly hot zones, the phone was just warm...
And speaking of conclusions aftertesting Minecraft Pocket Edition on Lumia 550 - according to subjective feelingsAfalo26 - just like in the conclusions with previous toys -Minecraft works great on Microsoft Lumia 550 , the screen is sensitive and no glitches or lags were noticed, especially according toAfalo26 - in comparison with his previous phone, everything “flies” Specially appreciatedMicrosoft Lumia 550 heating up while playing Minecraft - we didn’t notice any particularly hot zones; the Lumia 550 was still just warm during the game, as in previous tests.
How such a video was filmed in practice -you can see it in this photo - (don’t forget to log in to FB), and for those who write in the comments to such videos like “why are you filming handheld? So you can’t see all the quality!” - I repeat once again - I shoot video in such conditions in which 99% of users will use these phones when shooting - i.e. - they will shoot handheld, and not from a tripod or, especially, a stabilizer 😉
And don't forget to include a comparison video from all 4 phones - Microsoft Lumia 550, Microsoft Lumia 640 / 640XL, Nokia Lumia 730 - to 1440p mode - you will see the video almost “as is”. The sound in this video is taken from the track Microsoft records Lumia 550.
For those who want to enjoy comparisons in more detail and “mix” individual episodes themselves, original fragments from all cameras are also on the channel, here are direct links:
test video with Microsoft Lumia 550:
test video with Microsoft Lumia 640:
test video with Microsoft Lumia 640 XL:
test video from Nokia Lumia 730:
So the test includes available paid and free video players for Windows Phone 8.1/Windows 10 Mobile - these are MoliPlayer Pro, VLC, Best Player, MKV Viewer, xVideo Player, Video Explorer, CCPlayer. You will be able to evaluate their ability to “digest” certain video formats, and, most importantly, to support hardware H.264 decoding, which is now found in the weakest processor in the Snapdragon series - Snapdragon 210, installed in the Microsoft Lumia 550.
Personally, I use MoliPlayer Pro on my Windows Phone 8.1 and Windows 10 Mobile phones - this is how it happened historically, plus it has network playback capabilities and work with the DLNA protocol. For those who want to play videos at home from any device to any device using DLNA, I highly recommend watching my other videos with a story, .
But I somehow unexpectedly also liked MVK Viewer , which I accidentally found while searching for "something new for MKV". He is in free and paid versions for Windows Phone and “regular” Windows 8.1/10.
To understand whether the Microsoft Lumia 550 has become more productive compared to its predecessors, seesimilar tests of working with video from other Windows phones and short instructions for working with video in Windows Phone - how to convert, how to upload video to your phone.
Watch, draw conclusions - choose Microsoft Lumia 550 (or other Lumia phones - what and how to choose from - see the video “which Windows phone Lumia series to choose ” and comparison of video cameras of different Lumia -https://youtu.be/_7UfNaFBiZU?list=PLB5YmwQw0Jl-zubRvXm3Yi0lOMDzxvMna ), choose the video player that suits you.
I used Microsoft Lumia 550 all these 3 weeks as one of my main phones (together with Nokia Lumia 730 ). Why TOGETHER and not INSTEAD? Because the Microsoft Lumia 550 has only one slot for a SIM card, which, as for me, can be called its only drawback (for those who need these 2 cards). Personally I use dual SIM only on business trips outside the European Union - in this case, I had one “native” O2 SIM card and a card in my Lumia 730 Ukrainian operator(for local calls and Internet). The rest of the time, one SIM card is enough for me, but I know a lot of people who “save” by calling from different cards 😉 Although, as for me, you just need to earn more so as not to count pennies 😉
But let's get back to Microsoft Lumia 550 review - all these 3 weeks of use (and periodic load tests and games) the phone behaved perfectly. No freezes or OS bugs were noticed on the Lumia 550, no “missed” calls, “lost” SMS, etc. - everything on the Lumia 550 worked like clockwork.
And it worked on battery power for quite a long time - in “normal” use mode - calls for an hour and a half a day, constantly checking email via WiFi or 3G (I never turn off WiFi), reading mail upon arrival (and I receive up to 200 letters a day ) and reading documents/websites that were sent by mail - with all this, the Microsoft Lumia 550 works on a single charge from the morning of one day until the evening of the next day.
The performance of the OS and interface is also at the level, as shown by numerous tests - both synthetic and load gaming - you can also get acquainted with them in . At the same time, the vexed issue of heating the phone did not go beyond the concept of “warm”. Of course, maybe I should have played games on the Microsoft Lumia 550 for hours - but this didn’t seem to be part of my plans - I still work and in general - if you want to play “on the go” - buy yourself a portable one game console- For example, this JXD S5800 or this NVIDIA Shield . Anyway -Microsoft Lumia 550 shows excellent performance for its hardware and its price.
WMPoweruser portal journalist Michael Ellison has already tried out Microsoft's first budget smartphone running Windows 10 Mobile.
Michael admits that the first impressions of working with the device can hardly be called positive. After switching on operating system immediately asks to download a large number of updates for programs, and during the update the smartphone literally became red-hot, began to “slow down” and consume battery power very quickly. The Lumia 550 was allowed to rest overnight, and in the morning the device was more or less fine.
The device works quite quickly, Windows 10 Mobile looks beautiful (if, of course, you set smaller fonts in the settings; the “default” version from Microsoft seems very large on almost all W10M smartphones).
The Lumia 550 is much smaller than Michael's current smartphones - the Nokia Lumia 1520 and Motorola's Google Nexus 6. The latter two devices have giant 6-inch screens, and the 550, with its 4.7 inches, looks like a much more compact smartphone compared to them.
The characteristics of the Lumia 550, of course, do not amaze the imagination: 2 megapixel front camera, 5 MP main camera, processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 210, 1 GB of RAM... However, in the story with the 550, this is not even important.
“What I really don't understand is the point of creating this smartphone. Why was Microsoft Lumia 550 released?
Michael reminds that Microsoft already has a similar device - the Lumia 540, released six months ago. In many respects, it is better than the new smartphone - a larger screen (5 inches versus 4.7), a better main camera (8 MP versus 5 MP), better battery(2,200 mAh vs. 2,100 mAh). Ellison wonders: wouldn’t it have been easier to just release the 540th model with an updated processor and devote more time to Windows 10 Mobile and the top-end Lumia 950 and 950 XL smartphones? Are all Lumia 540 owners on their knees begging Microsoft to release a version of their smartphone with a smaller screen, worse camera and battery? Is there a shortage of budget smartphones on Windows Phone?
My relationship with smartphones Windows based Phone are quite strange. My first acquaintance with Lumia phones was . After a couple of days of use, cursing everything in the world, I gave this phone to our author Alexander Tobolin with the words: “I can’t use this.”
However, after some time I used it for quite a long time (about a month and a half), this smartphone left a positive impression. Great camera, a decent screen and good battery life made me very happy then. As they say, God loves trinities, and this time I got my hands on the Lumia 550. Read on to see what came of it further in the review.
Microsoft Lumia 550 Specifications
Equipment
Here Microsoft is in its repertoire, in addition to a smartphone, pieces of paper and charger there is nothing. Many may say “yes, this is a budget smartphone, that’s normal.” I don’t argue that you can do without the same headphones, because many people don’t even open them after purchase, but a USB cable costs a penny, why not put it in the kit?
Design and ergonomics
The Lumia 550 looks like a typical representative of this line. A simple, yet quite stylish phone. The body is made of polycarbonate plastic and there are only two cover colors to choose from: black and white. Yes, my dears, you can forget about colored lids in this model.
There's a peephole looking at us in front front camera, and in the upper right corner there are proximity and light sensors. The microphone and speaker are under metal mesh, which is embedded between the glass and the plastic frame.
Hardware buttons have found their place on the right side. Just above is the smartphone unlock button, and directly below it is a paired volume key.
On the bottom there is a microUSB port, and on the top there is a 3.5 mm audio jack.
On the back you can find the logo, the main camera lens, LED flash and speaker grid.
The back cover is quite easy to remove and gives access to the battery and connectors for SIM and memory cards.
Display
Microsoft Lumia 550 is equipped with a 4.7-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels. The density is 315 ppi. As for me, for a smartphone based on Windows Phone, 720p resolution is ideal - for the tiled interface of the system you don’t need more.
I was really pleased with the screen. The viewing angles are decent, the minimum brightness is also at the proper level.
The maximum brightness was disappointing - in bright sunshine it will clearly not be enough. Another disadvantage is the lack of an oleophobic coating on the screen; fingerprints immediately remain on the display. This is quite forgivable for a budget smartphone, and this problem can be solved by gluing a matte film or additional glass; fortunately, buying them is not a big problem.
Performance and Software
One of the mysteries shrouded in darkness for me is this: why did Qualcomm release the 200 series of Snapdragon processors? But if the answer to this question is not very exciting, then the question “why did Microsoft engineers shove this processor into the Lumia 550” tormented me all the time I was using this smartphone. No, for example, in Moto E with a screen resolution of 540x960, Snapdragon 200 will still stretch the system. But installing a screen with HD resolution in the Lumia 550 practically ruined the performance.
The smartphone is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 210 processor with an operating clock frequency of 1.1 GHz. The Adreno 304 accelerator is responsible for the graphics part. The RAM in the Lumia 550 is 1 GB, although in devices based on Windows 10 Mobile you can generally forget about RAM, which we will discuss below. The permanent memory is 8 GB and can be easily expanded with a microSD card.
As a person who is usually far from the Windows Phone ecosystem, I constantly heard rumors that Windows 10 Mobile would be radically changed, and that it would also revolutionize the entire technology world with its Continium feature. I can’t say anything about the latter, since the Microsoft Lumia 550 simply doesn’t have it - this is a budget smartphone, don’t forget. As for the changes... there are a minimum of them, but there are several times more bugs.
"Why is it worth scolding new Windows 10 Mobile:
- damp and glitchy in places
- There are still few USEFUL and CONVENIENT applications
- Twitter client hasn't been updated for 3 years
- most other apps are the same
- few passionate developers due to lack of demand (consumers)
- few consumers due to lack of normal applications and sustainable ecosystem
- There are not so many changes compared to version 8.1, but there are significantly more glitches
- this unfortunate beta version was rolled out as a ready-made solution for consumers"
In fact, if you use only basic functions in the Lumia 550 like calling, writing SMS, taking a photo of something, then this is enough good smartphone. But it’s worth installing at least a couple of applications and doing something in them - optimal and fast work Don't expect anything from this smartphone. A trivial example - when typing a message in the VKontakte application, the symbols appeared about 2 seconds after I pressed the buttons on the keyboard. Or, for example, the phone simply did not want to download applications from the Store - neither rebooting nor canceling-confirming the download helped.
Regarding my words that RAM can be neglected - so it is. Whether you have 3 GB of RAM, as in the Lumia 950, or 1 GB, as in our case, Windows 10 Mobile still unloads applications from the system. During my time using the Lumia 550, I simply hated the "Resume" message.
“I took a few pictures, looked at the results in the gallery, turned on the player to listen to music, remembered that I wanted to send one photo to a friend, I try to return to the gallery through the multitasking menu - it opens again and crashes. This kind of devilry happens with enviable consistency, so nothing There can be no multitasking when working with Microsoft Lumia 950. Re-opening browser tabs, restarting applications and the “Resume” message will become your eternal companions.”
Camera
A 5 megapixel camera is already standard for budget Lumia smartphones, as well as for budget smartphones from other manufacturers. In addition, the Lumia 550 has a camera equipped with a flash, which the Lumia 630 did not have.
The photographs come out quite decent, as for budget smartphone, if there is good daylight, you can get good pictures. And, of course, in its absence, strong noises begin to appear.
The maximum resolution for shooting video with the main camera is 720p at 30 frames per second.
The 2 MP front camera is quite suitable for photographing yourself and talking on Skype (if the system allows it).
Autonomy
Everything is very sad with her. The Microsoft Lumia 550 has a removable battery with a capacity of 2100 mAh and in the operating mode “always on 3G, sometimes checking social networks, a couple of pictures and surfing the Internet via Wi-Fi,” the smartphone will last a daylight hours, or even less. Personally, PowerBank has become an indispensable companion for me when using this device.
Conclusions
Would I buy this smartphone for myself? To be honest, no. I wouldn’t buy a smartphone based on Windows 10 Mobile at all, since the system is still completely raw. Okay, to be honest and love Windows on smartphones, then for almost the same money (about $140) you can buy a Microsoft Lumia 640, which more powerful processor, more battery and less glitches.
Prices in online stores
It is possible to display similar models if this one is not in the catalog for your region.
Pros:
Windows 10. Despite the problems with the number of applications in the store (I found everything I needed, but Win10 objectively has fewer applications than on other platforms), I liked the system - fast, convenient, beautiful. (However, only after updating, see comment). The desktop customization options are the greatest I've ever seen.
- Free office (Outlook, Excel, Word, OneNote, PowerPoint). Works well, didn't notice any brakes. Combined with the ability to connect a wireless display, it should be a good option for showing presentations).
- Screensaver. When you turn off the display, a clock appears and an indication of missed calls, unread messages (SMS, mail, WhatsApp, etc.) and calendar events. Very convenient, hardly eats up the battery. It goes out over time and appears again if you bring your hand to the screen.
- When holding the button Windows working the screen area “moves” down half the display. Considering the size of the display (4.7") and the small size of my hands, this is very convenient.
- Display. For a 4.7 diagonal there are not many offers with a resolution of 1280x720. For comparable money, of course (<10 тысяч рублей).
- Battery. Big, lasts a long time. For several days the regime was like this: from 6 am, after the alarm went off, the phone was disconnected from charging, then during the day there was about 2.5 hours of music via Internet radio in the metro (WiFi on), two or three short-lived (~3-5 minutes) of conversation, 30-odd minutes of digging in the browser/Duolingo/similar program, evening Wi-Fi session from 8-9 hours until midnight + periodic messages in all sorts of Telegrams. On average, by midnight there was always 50-40 percent charge left without turning on the power saving mode. Brightness in automatic mode, 4G Internet. Geodata included. An important point: a culture of communication with multitasking systems was observed - unused applications were turned off.
- Price. 10 thousand rubles is quite inexpensive for such a phone.
A whole mess after turning on the phone for the first time and installing system and application updates. It really spoils the first impression. (see comment).
- Camera. The camera in this phone allows you to take good pictures only in good daylight and when the subject is almost completely still. Image processing loves to blur images until details are completely indistinguishable. However, it is possible to play around with the shooting modes. Helps from time to time. The built-in photo processing application has only one “make it beautiful” button and no possibility for finer adjustments. By the way, the button never made a “beautiful” button.
- Frame. It looks cheap (which is logical), 1-2 brighter details would be nice. The Microsoft inscription on the front and the “squares” on the back cover help, but not much :). Quite thick.
- It's getting warm. With normal use, it’s not too much, but once you start putting a lot of load on the processor, your hands will feel warmer in winter.
- Speaker. Although it is very loud and clear, if you place the phone with the lid down on a table (or even more so a soft surface), the sounds fade out very much. It is quite possible not to hear the alarm clock. It is worth adding a slightly protruding grille or jumper (an example from a personally visible one is the back cover of the Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini). There will still be problems on a soft surface, but at least not on a flat table.
- No official cases. At all. No lids, no books, nothing. Apparently they should add it a little later, now it has only just come out (January 2016), but at least one book should have been offered for sale from the start.
My overall impression is that I liked the phone and would recommend it. It doesn't look "premium", it isn't and shouldn't be. The Windows 10 system completely ruined the first impression, but then completely rehabilitated itself. One of the downsides of the system is perhaps only the number of available applications.
About games: I only launched one game on it (Nivalov’s Prime World: Defenders), and only a couple of times. There were no glitches or freezes, it started to heat up more, I didn’t measure the battery consumption, but I think it has become more.
About the weight: I liked it, it’s such a pleasant weight. Slightly heavier than Samsung S5 Mini.
Another plus is that the battery is removable, which will make replacement easier.
Now about the glitch, about which a lot has already been written - when you first boot the phone, it refuses to install and update applications, it looks like an “eternal update” in the store.
The numerous “hard resets” that everyone recommends didn’t help me. Updating the system to the latest patch helped. The procedure for fixing it is as follows:
1) Immediately after turning on the phone for the first time, having connected to WiFi (you will have to download a lot), go to “Settings” -> “Update and Security” -> “Phone Update”
2) Update, if it’s stuck at 0%, go to the store and stop downloading/updating applications, come back, wait ~15 minutes, if it’s still 0%, then do that very “hard reset” (all data will be reset to zero). To do this, go to “Settings” -> “System” -> “About the system”, press the reset button. Repeat from point 1)
3) After the update has started, it may reach a certain percentage and stop, giving error 0x80246002. Just start again. My update was cut off three times before it was downloaded and installed, so don’t despair. If you wish, you can reboot it by very long pressing the power button (this is not a hard reset, the data will not be lost).