Thinking about picking up a smartphone with Microsoft’s mobile operating system, but don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars?
You could pick up an older model like a $49Â contract-free Nokia Lumia 520 for AT&T, or you could buy a brand new phone that’s not locked to any wireless carrier for as little as $89.
Earlier this year Microsoft announced a number of new companies would be producing inexpensive Windows Phone devices, and now the first two models from budget phone maker BLU are available in the United States.
The BLU Win Jr is an $89 phone with a 4 inch screen and the BLU Win HD is a 5 inch model which sells for $179.
Both are unlocked and contract-free GSM phones which can work with AT&T, T-Mobile, and MVNOs in the US including Straight Talk, Cricket, and Net10.
This model has a 1280 x 720 pixel display, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB of storage. While those aren’t exactly high-end specs, they’re pretty respectable for phone that’s almost too cheap to call a mid-range device.
There’s a microSD card slot for up to 32GB of removable storage and the phone has an 8MP rear camera with autofocus and LED flash as well as a 2MP front-facing camera. The phone can shoot 1080p video.
BLU’s 5 inch phone has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 quad-core processor and dual SIM card slots. It supports HSPA+ data networks but it does not feature LTE.
The phone has a 2200mAh battery.
While this phone is about $100 more expensive than its the Win Jr, it has a better screen, more RAM and storage, and better cameras.
BLU’s smaller, cheaper phone has a 4 inch, 800 x 480 pixel TFT display with a capacitive touch panel, 512MB of RAM, and 4GB of storage plus a microSD card.
It has the same processor as its big brother and supports the same HSPA+ data networks.
This model has a 5MP rear camera with LED flash and autofocus and a 0.3MP front-facing camera. Video recording tops out at a resolution of 720p.
This model has a 1950mAh battery.
There’s no shortage of inexpensive Android phones on the market. But BLU’s new phones are some of the first Windows Phone models that look poised to challenge them.
via WinSuperSite
The Win HD looks like an iPhone 5C mixed with the HTC One M8
I have the blu win jr. Nice little phone. Better than the nokia 520 in my opinion. Better build quality. It is dual sim too which is great!