Verizon added the Lumia 735 Windows smartphone to its line-up, and put it up for sale online today. The Lumia 735 was announced at the end of 2014, alongside the Lumia 830; two phones which provide strong features for a modest cost — a little under $200 without a contract, in the Lumia 735’s case.
It’s sensibly sized with a 4.7-inch AMOLED screen, that shows a 720p resolution image, enhanced by Microsoft’s ClearBlack technology. We say it’s Microsoft’s tech, but the Lumia 735 is one of the final devices to come from Nokia’s camp, prior to Microsoft taking control of the firm — and ClearBlack screens were a fixture on Nokia-branded smartphones before this.
The Lumia 735 runs Windows Phone 8.1 at the moment — with the Lumia Denim update and its various new features already installed — plus it will be upgraded to Windows 10 for Mobile when it becomes available later this year. Verizon is also pushing a year’s free access to Office 365 Personal and 1TB of cloud storage through OneDrive with each Lumia 735 sold until the end of July.
A 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor with 1GB of RAM powers the phone, and there’s 16GB of internal storage space. However, there is a MicroSD card slot that accepts cards up to 128GB in size, plus the 2,200mAh battery is removable, and the phone has wireless charging built in.
There is a 6.7-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics on the rear, and a 5-megapixel camera above the screen. It that’s not enough megapixels to take selfies that meet your expectations, the Lumia Selfie app is onboard and can cleverly use the rear camera to take them, then enhance the end result too. Finally, the Lumia 735 connects to Verizon’s 4G LTE network, and supports HD Voice for great call quality.
Verizon charges $192 for a contract-free Lumia 735, and $80 if you’re happy with a contract, or alternatively you can sign-up for Verizon Edge and pay $8 per month for two years. If you’re already with another carrier and feel tempted by the Lumia 735, Verizon’s offering a $100 bill credit if you transfer your number to one of its Edge plans. The phone is online now, and will be in stores from July.
