Although the Nokia Lumia 530, Lumia 520, and even Lumia 630 are making waves in the emerging and budget-phone markets, there are increasingly more players on the field thanks to Microsoft's loosening of hardware restrictions back in March. The latest to hit the streets is the Win JR from BLU, a popular Android budget phone manufacturer.
Amazon.com is now selling the brand new Win JR device in white for a single-cost of $89. This price is no contract, no commitments, unlocked, and the entire cost. So what do you get for less than $100?
BLU Win JR Windows Phone
- 4GB Internal Storage 512MB RAM with Micro SD Slot up to 32GB
- 4.0-inch WVGA display
- Windows Phone 8.1
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 200, 1.2 GHz Quad-Core
- 5MP Autofocus Camera with LED Flash, HD recording (720p), with VGA frontal camera
- 4G HSPA+ up to 42 Mbps 850/1900: Nationwide AT&T: Cricket Wireless, Trachoma, Straight Talk, Net10, H20 Wireless, 420 Wireless, Black Wireless, Consumer Cellular, Pure Talk USA, Red Pocket, Telcel America.
- T-Mobile: MetroPCS, Lyca, Speedtalk, Go Smart, Simple Mobile, Net10, Straight Talk, Solavei, Ultra Mobile, Telcel America, Walmart Family Mobile supported in most areas; check with your service provider; dual SIM
The only thing above that may raise concerns is the 32 GB limit on the micro SD. We bet BLU is just playing it safe as the phone likely can handle much more with the Snapdragon 200 on board (the same CPU as found in the Lumia 530, which can take up to 128 GB).
Indeed, the BLU Win JR does have a leg up in some areas over the similarly priced Lumia 530. For instance, it has a front-facing camera and a rear camera with autofocus and flash. The phone lists dual SIM support, another benefit over the Lumia 530. Both phones lack 4G LTE with only max HSPA+ for the 3G data connection.
The BLU Win JR is carrier unlocked however, it does not ship beyond the 50 states for the US. BLU is based out of Miami, Florida.
Additionally, a more interesting 5-inch (480 x 854) model with a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, 512MB of RAM, dual-SIM support that comes in a variety of bright colors should also be coming soon.
How does the BLU Win JR stack up to the Lumia 530 in terms of quality? It is too early to tell, but we did order one up for an unboxing and hands on come Tuesday. We will, of course, do a deep dive into comparing it to other Windows Phone to see just how well BLU compares.
Anyone in the US looking to pick up the BLU Win JR?
Source: Amazon; via Windows Phone Apps.es
