One of the highlights of the current crop of budget Lumia devices is that they offer Windows Phone experience consistent with the more expensive and flagship Windows Phone devices. Of course, they differ in the internals and hardware capabilities, but the platform experience is pretty much the same.
I used a Lumia 532, the latest budget smartphone from Microsoft, for a few weeks as my daily driver and in the following video, I see how it fares against the Lumia 830 I've been using since a while.
Let's look at the Windows Phone experience right away. Whether you use the budget Lumia 532, a flagship Lumia like the 930, or the mid-range Lumia 830, the OS experience is consistent across the board. You have the same apps, almost the same capabilities, and the user experience is pretty much the same.
The email and messaging experience is the same. There's of course Skype and Office built right in, out of the box on all Lumia devices, free and with full functionality across the range of devices. The personal digital assistant, Cortana, is available on Lumia 532 just as it is on the 830 or other Windows Phone devices.
Let's look at gaming. While casual games are a breeze, the Lumia 532 also allows you to play a graphic-intensive game like the Asphalt 8 without any frame drops or lags. It's surprising really. Of course, the graphics aren't too great, but then, you get what you pay for.
Two of my favorite signature Lumia features are the Glance screen and double tap to wake up. These might seem trivial on paper, but are nifty features in everyday usage. Surprisingly for a budget device, the Lumia 532 features these two. There's also the proximity sensor and the ambient sensor, allowing you the same experience as with a more expensive phone.
It goes without saying that even the budget Lumia devices feature solid build quality and feel great in the hand. Microsoft pretty much carries the Nokia's design tradition and employs it in the affordable smartphone category as well.
The Lumia 532 is one of the most affordable Windows Phone device in the market right now. All in all, if you're buying one, you're not compromising on features broadly. Of course, there are compromises in camera, internals, display, but that's a fair bargain against the price that you're paying. And remember, the Lumia 532 and other budget Lumia devices are also Windows 10 ready!
