Nokia Lumia 1020's camera is being used to help medical research

Nokia Lumia 1020
Nokia Lumia 1020 (Image credit: Windows Central)

The Nokia Lumia 1020's biggest feature is its 41 megapixel camera and that impressive piece of hardware is being used to help medical research in tandem with microscopes, according to a new post on the Nokia Conversations blog.

The post has a Q&A with Dr. John Paul Graff and Dr. Mark Li-cheng Wu, who have used the Lumia 1020 to take pictures of the intestinal spirochetosis, which is just a few microns long. However, Dr. Graff states:

Nevertheless, we were able to take a photo with the Lumia 1020 on a low magnification and then zoom in significantly to identify the bacteria so it could be properly treated. You can then continue to enhance this image to see subtle features such as the shapes of cells, the colours of cells, how big or small they might be and if there's any smaller parasitic infections lying within it.

In addition to the fact that the Lumia 1020 has 41 megapixels, the camera's optical image stabilisation features allow for the phone to be held by hand through the barrel of the microscope and still come up with solid images. Finally, the pixel size on the Lumia 1020's camera sensor allows for lossless zoom when taking microscopic images.

Lumia 1020 Microscope Sample

Not only does the Lumia 1020 allow for the fast capture of these kinds of images, Dr. Graff stated the photos can quickly be uploaded to Microsoft's OneDrive cloud storage service since most hospitals use Windows.

However, the doctors did have some friendly suggestions for improving the camera in the Lumia 1020 to help them in their medical research, such as a lens cover built into the device along with increasing the capture rate and resolution of images. Dr. Graff, naturally, adds, "Oh, and running with Cortana would be cool!"

What do you think of a consumer product like the Lumia 1020 being used for this kind of medical work?

Source: Nokia blog

John Callaham
72 Comments
  • Seems faster XD
  • Really Dude...?!
  • Seems mega faster.
  • I kinda just want this to stop, because ppl are being corny now with it
  • Lame
  • My 1020 rattles more than before...is that normal?
  • IDK, I'd make sure a rattlesnake didn't crawl in it...
  • lol
  • seems legit.
  • As in, yes it's normal yeah? Because the booklet does say that a rattle is normal if you shake it. However, it seems to rattle when I just pick it up etc. :/
  • The camera fixture does have loose parts inside, so yeah, it is normal to hear some rattleing. Don't be too alarmed, and if you are, go to your local store, pick one of theirs up and shake it a bit and hear the difference, if there is any. :)
  • That's great advice. The Nokia Care Point in Edinburgh is very good here. Although they have also now become the official Samsung equivalent...business was too slow as a stand alone Nokia shop :'(
  • My 1020 rattles only when the camera is open, exactly as said in the booklet. Otherwise it doesn't rattle.
  • Ohh...
  • So your phone rattles even when the camera is closed?
  • Yeah
  • This might be an issue... Have you dropped your phone several times? You might want to take your phone to Nokia Care Centre to fix this issue.
  • Yeah...dropped it a few times. It's barely got a scratch but the rattle has only just become more prominent recently
  • I've dropped it a couple of times but mine doesn't rattle as you described. There may be some genuine issue with your hardware.
  • My L1020 also rattles a bit, but I think think it might be the optical stabilization, one of the lenses inside the optical system is actually loose and it is moved when you focus to stabilize the image, so it may rattle when you shake the phone.
  • My 1020 will also rattle when picked up shaken, at any time. This also seems to be a relatively new thing. Since I had to factory reset a couple weeks ago, or maybe since 8.1?
  • I did do a factory reset recently...but how could a software issue directly affect the mechanics of the hardware?
  • My phone also runs on WP 8.1... No change in the rattle before or after the update.
  • Do a factory reset, see if it rattles after that.
  • I am not in a position of re-installing my 15 GB of apps after the reset...
  • Understood. I was mostly kidding. It took almost a full day to fully restore my phone and then I lost game saves, etc... Definitely a pain, even with the cloud backups
  • IDK, but if the expected case is that it should only rattle when the camera is "on" that would somehow mean that it is being controlled by software, no?
  • Running with Cortana would be cool... Fun doctor...
  • Why not?
  • I think it's great! It's cool taking pics of cells with my 1020 through the microscope :)
  • I'd like to see the camera Geiger counter come into play eventually!
  • I'd like to have a Lumia 1020 but with a 6 inch screen.
  • Or a slimmer version
  • and lighter..
  • Cortana?  What kind of STD is this?
  • It's the STD you get when you do it with 8.1. But it doesn't have any serious side effects or life threatening effects.
  • Like no longer having all the social integration?  Yup, exactly like an STD.
  • Well you can't get an STD without some negatives.lol Wrap it up.
  • I would think they would have a better way of doing this? He probably has a million dollar piece of equipment in his office that is supposed to be used for this lol
  • I'm sure this is for quick analysis. On the go examination and sharing. The removal of large hardware and replaced with great software. In my opinion at least.
  • Well, I can tell you that keeping lab equipment state of the at is an expensive proposition. Even in modern labs, you may have older microscopes that didn't have powerful image capturing accessories. Using your phone is nice because you can use it on practically any scope with an eyepiece. I do this a lot with our low mag scopes instead of stitching together images from a very high power microscope..
  • This is one of the most innovative stories I have seen with tech made for personal use. You know, most of the time there is an app or some type of manufacturer/OS support for this kind of stuff. They just said, "hey, bet this will work"
  • Very very cool news I have seen already the heart video catalog by lumia 1020 Nokia you are wonderful <3
  • Dr Lumia 1020
  • In the Ozarks, a 1020 is used for colonoscopy. The whole phone.
  • How?...
  • Very slowly
  • not something you ask for details on...
  • rewards for patience to be named later.
  • When I finish my MBBS,I'll buy a 1030 :)
  • That's cool and all, but I'm wondering... why? I mean in terms of a phone camera the 1020 is like no other, but I would think when compared to medical equipment the 1020 has to fall considerably short of a dedicate medical camera.
  • Several of my clients are physicians. And when we had our children we saw several medical cameras. With the exception of research facilities (if at all), you're not going to see much in the way of high-quality digital imaging in the medical field.
  • Cost most likely... Research cameras can cost £1000 - £10,000 and have resolutions 2mp - 12mp... This setup is significantly cheaper and so long as the results are as good as (or better) then why not! The 41mp oversampling sensor also has the added bonus of lossless digital zoom on top of the capabilities of the microscope!
  • Since 8.1 my 1020 seems vastly improved. I can't pinpoint it. But I'm happy. Is there a successor coming out?
  • Do you think that 1020 has best camera?? 520 has even better!!
  • My 520 sure has a great speaker though!
  • Agree on that completely. My L925 has a feeble speaker in comparison to the L520's.
  • Another reason to be a proud owner of a Nokia Lumia 1020!
  • Would be nice to be able to get the 1020 on more than just AT&T.
  • Not sure if its just me or not but today I was using my Lumia to record video but all of a sudden the exposure seemed to be completely over exposed and I had to reboot to fix it twice
  • I now feel ashamed of my lumia 1020 photos. The´'re taking photos of bacteria and I'm taking photosof bees and old trucks haha.
  • I do this with my Lumia 520 in my Histology classes. So much faster than drawing them! (but we still have to draw them anyway)
    http://1drv.ms/1p1SHDG
  • Be cool to see an optical mount to attach the 1020 to the eyepiece of my telescope or microscope. Very tricky to get the focal point of the scope into the camera lens freehand
  • I am thinking about getting some sort of mount designed that wraps the ocular of my slit lamp (microscope for looking at my patients eyes).  Slit lamp cameras usually cost a pretty penny but I think using a 1020 would be better quality and way cheaper. I know there are companies that can print 3D plastic stuff if you send them design for it, I just need to figure out the design.
  • Seems just propaganda.
  • May be? But many doctors are tech-savvy these day... so this cat thought lets do something different; instead doing this with run-of-the-mill iOS/Android, lets support WP for a change! Hey BTW L1020 HAS KICKASS camera. Better when compared to any mobile phone till date! Why can't people just admit the fact?
  • This isn't new and it has been done before - http://internetmedicine.com/2012/12/14/top-ten-medical-uses-of-the-iphone/
    But of course, 1020's sensor does make a difference. Main point here is: a relatively cheap and small imaging technology (yet powerful enough) when compared to the often expensive and proprietary hardware made specially for the area. I'm not dissing the 1020... spent a fair ammount of money to get one for myself after all.
  • Even after all this time I still lust for the Lumia 1020!  Pretty cool what they're doing with it.
  • Lumia 1020 being used to take pictures of  Microscopic views, that's great. Did you know that were using the Lumia 925 in order to document surgeries. Really good pictures! Its now replacing the digital cameras we user to keep in the OR (Operating Room).
  • Wow. Really.. Nice
  • Very cool and awesome.
  • Remember when they used Nokia N95 on medical research?