Lumia 950 & Lumia 950 XL Release Date, Rumors, Specs & Features: Iris Scanning Coming to the New Windows 10 Flagships
The rumor mill has started churning for Microsoft's latest post-Nokia smartphones, and after recent leaks, it seems two handsets, the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL, are right on the horizon. Here's what's been going around.
The Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 XL have been tipped by recent reports to be launched in early September at IFA in Berlin, Germany. It's a common time and place for the introduction of late-year smartphones from companies that don't have the clout for their own launch events. According to NDTV, the Lumia 950 and its upsized cousin will go on sale shortly after IFA, in October or early November.
What comes with the latest Lumias from the post-Nokia era? Perhaps a good number of new features unusual for the smartphone industry, including biometric authentication through an infrared iris scanner, according to the latest rumors.
But what else? WindowsCentral has been keeping tabs on the leaks about the Lumia 950, codenamed "Talkman," and the Lumia 950 XL, codenamed "Cityman," and the result is a decent spread of probable hardware specs. The Microsoft-centric tech blog says it has "the highest confidence" in the accuracy of these specs, which have purportedly been "confirmed with multiple sources," but we advise taking all rumor reports with a healthy grain of salt.
Lumia 950 "Talkman"
This Windows 10 Phone flagship will reportedly come in matte white or black, with the chassis made of polycarbonate, as opposed to the "premium" materials that have become so trendy in Android circles (and of course originally, the iPhone).
Its OLED display will sport a 1440x2570p resolution on a 5.2-inch screen. The phone will run a Snapdragon 808 at an unknown clock speed, but with 3GB of RAM. The minimum internal storage is 32GB, but it will reportedly come with a microSD slot for expansion.
The Lumia 950 is expected (unsurprisingly) to come with a 20-megapixel PureView camera, along with a 5-megapixel wide-angle front-facing camera for selfies -- or teleconferencing, since this is Windows. Its all run on a 3000 mAh battery that is purportedly removable, a rarity among flagship smartphones these days. Also rare right now, but slated to become more increasingly common, is the Type-C USB connection supposedly coming with the Lumia 950, along with Qi wireless charging capabilities.
Lumia 950 XL "Cityman"
The Lumia 950 XL is going to be exactly that: a bit more real estate on the screen, but not much else. Coming in the same color options and build, the Lumia 950 XL is expected to come with a 5.7-inch OLED display with the same 2K resolution.
Instead of the Snapdragon 808, the Lumia 950 XL will supposedly be powered by the octa-core (and often overheating) Snapdragon 810 with 3GB of RAM. The front and back cameras are the same, as is the minimum base internal storage option and microSD expansion, and the connectivity and wireless charging will be there too, though the Lumia 950 XL will purportedly have Qi integrated rather than through a flip-cover, like the Lumia 950.
The battery will unsurprisingly be larger, but only at 3300 mAh, and it's expected to be removable as well. Windows Central has the Lumia 950 XL being the only device with the infrared iris scanner, mentioned above, for use in the Windows Hello biometric authentication software coming in Windows 10.
But we wouldn't be surprised to see both devices carrying that unique feature that lies on the strength of the Windows 10 ecosystem, since leaving it out of the flagship would be a bit of a strategic mistake.
Both phones might have an accessory codenamed "Munchkin," which is a docking station that can connect via USB Type-C to project the phones' active apps onto the computer display for use with a mouse and keyboard, via Microsoft's Continuum feature.
These rumors are solidifying, and will continue to do so in the next month if the unveiling at IFA is a solid projection. Keep with Latin Post Tech for more updates as they come along!
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