Nokia's next Lumia handset to have an aluminium body

Nokia may introduce a fresh line of Lumia smartphones this year, and is said to be planning to encase one of the high-end models— codenamed ‘Catwalk’—in an aluminium body, according to a report by The Verge. If this is true, the Catwalk would be thinner and lighter than the Nokia Lumia 920, which is enclosed in a polycarbonate unibody shell.

The new phone, according to The Verge is designed to be the successor to the Lumia 920. “The phone itself will be a replacement to the company’s existing Windows Phone 8 flagship and will boast of similar internal hardware specifications,” the report reads. Nokia will also debut two other Lumia handsets as part of its new line-up for this year. 

Nokia Lumia Catwalk to succeed the Lumia 920

The Lumia 920 is being called Nokia’s big ticket item, which the company hopes will finally turn its fortunes around and Nokia seems to have left no stone unturned to this end. While the Windows Phone 8 store is steadily growing, Nokia has made sure that it delivers the best it can from the hardware standpoint, as the software gradually matures over time.

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For the Lumia 920, Nokia hasn’t deviated too much from the first-gen Lumias. The basic form factor remains pretty much the same: the 920 is carved out of a single block of polycarbonate. This unibody approach makes it durable as there are low chances of anything snapping off if it falls. It is extremely well-built and sturdy in your hands, albeit a bit chunky. This extra bit of heft could be attributed to the image stabilisation used in the camera, so we guess there was no avoiding it. At 185g, it’s very much manageable in your hands, although it might get uncomfortable in your pocket. The size is not a big deal either.

The 4.5-inch IPS display is nothing short of amazing. Due to the high pixel per inch count (332ppi), the display is ‘Retina-grade’ and images and text look sharp and vivid. The touch sensors are more sensitive than usual, so even the lightest of gestures are easily picked up. 

The phone is powered by a 1.5GHz Qualcomm SoC (MSM8960), which doesn’t do much for the UI, but helps in image and video processing. The interface is smooth for the most part, but the stutter bug will occasionally pay you a visit. The 920 does not have expandable storage, so you’ll have to make do with the 32GB on board memory.