The Lumia 730, known internally as "Superman," is a forthcoming successor to the mid-range Lumia 720 from early 2013. Yesterday, the first photos of the device came forward, along with the new firmware, codenamed 'Debian Red.' At the time, the one piece of the puzzle missing came down to specifications. Luckily, we now have some more information to connect the dots.
According to our source of the original photos the Lumia 730 looks to be the ideal mid-range Windows Phone 8.1 device, as the specifications (if accurate) should please most at this price range.
We should caution that these specifications are unofficial and therefore could change.
Lumia 73x "Superman"
- 4.7-inch (likely FWVGA at 854 x 480, but possibly 720P)
- 1 GB of RAM
- Quad-core processor (unknown speed)
- 8GB internal storage
- Micro SD expansion up to 128 GB
- 6.1 MP rear camera
- 5MP front-facing camera
- Dual SIM
- No dedicated camera button
- Weight, unknown (described as "super light")
Although the processor speed is unknown, it is likely Snapdragon 400 with a 1.6 or 1.7 GHz CPU. It seems unlikely that Microsoft would opt for the higher-end Snapdragon 800 in this series due to pricing constraints. Notwithstanding, a user report claims it feels "really smooth" when compared to the Lumia 920.
The 1 GB of RAM, if proven accurate, could make this phone a sleeper hit if it is priced right. In the past, Nokia has preferred 512 MB of RAM for their lower tier phones. As the original Lumia 720 came with 512 MB of RAM, the chances the Lumia 730 would arrive with the same was a distinct possibility. With 1 GB of RAM and a beefier processor, the Lumia 730 could install any app or game on the Windows Phone store, something that 512 MB phones could not.
Adding a dual SIM to this line also gives it a lead for emerging markets, especially in India and China, where dual SIMs are the norm. It is unknown if there is a Lumia 730 (single SIM) and a Lumia 735 (dual SIM), paralleling the Lumia 630 and Lumia 635 series.
When it comes to the camera, Tom Warren at the Verge reports that the Lumia 730 comes with a 5 MP front-facing camera, which is ideal for the growing 'selfie' trend. Indeed, photos can be saved at 4 MP, suggesting that it is in the 4.1 to 5 MP range for the actual camera. As to the rear camera, Nokia appears to be sticking with 6.1 MP as photos save at 5 MP (16:9) and 6 MP (4:3). The original Lumia 720 had one of the best lower-tier cameras we have used, often taking super sharp photos that were better than the Lumia 820. Nokia later went on to use the same camera module in their Lumia 2520 tablet.
Finally, micro SD expansion and 8 GB of internal storage matches the Lumia 720's specifications, so it makes sense to mirror that with the Lumia 730. Combined with Windows Phone 8.1's ability to have apps and games installed to the micro SD card, users can get up to 136 GB of total storage.
The Lumia 73x is expected to launch sometime this fall, possibly with Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 or even Update 2, which is expected by November.
