Nokia Lumia 800 wins Phone of The Year award

By Rich Edmonds
last updated

Nokia has launched the Lumia 800 with a storm across not just the UK, but Europe as well. We've witnessed the manufacturer spending more on the advertising campaign than ever before, the launch yesterday proved to be relatively successful across stores nationwide, and now the handset has been named the Mobile of the Year at the What Mobile Awards 2011 at London’s Whisky Mist.

Thousands of readers voted in the magazine's award, choosing their favourite mobile phones. Editor Richard Melville had the following to say about the Lumia 800.

"It's no secret that Nokia make great phones but with a new Windows Phone Mango operating system, great design and a competitive price, the Lumia 800 feels like real innovation for smartphones and, importantly, one that’s cool enough to attract everyone from gadget geeks to casual, fashion conscious phone users."

Looks like the manufacturer is on the up with their first Windows Phone being awarded such a title. Check out our full review of the Lumia 800 for more insight into what it's all about.

Source: Nokia Conversations, What Mobile

Rich Edmonds
Rich Edmonds
Senior Editor, PC Build

Rich Edmonds is Senior Editor of PC hardware at Windows Central, covering everything related to PC components and NAS. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a PC chassis. You can follow him over on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.

36 Comments
  • not saying its not a GREAT phone , but i find it unlikely that a phone with our current WP specs limitation can possibly win PHONE OF THE YEAR.... 
    but il take it!!!!
  • It's easy to churn out the most expensive hardware with an impressive spec sheet, but that doesn't guarantee the user experience.  A great example is the video game industry.  A mid/high end PC nowadays beats out a PS3 and Xbox 360 in specs easily, but that doesn't mean the consoles are not great for gaming.  In fact, they are optimized for gaming without too much overhead in hardware.
     
    Same argument could be made for Windows Phone, such as the Lumia 800.  Sure, it's not dual core, but at the same time, is a dual core phone really needed for the apps you regularly use?  WP is optimized for a smooth user experience, and I think you and I both can agree that WP delivers in that regard with the specs it has currently.
     
    I'm not saying better hardware is a bad thing.  But I think the user experience and developer ingenuity are what really count in the end.
     
    -Bei337
    http://wpwallpaper.com
     
  • Sorry, but specs are only a part of what makes a phone good. I am new to Windows 7 phones. In the past three years I have had an EVO 4G, iPhone 4, and Blackberry 9930, 9810, and now a Samsung Focus Flash. First I never really like Android, to much work to get it right. iPhone is great user experience but honestly the UI needs a serious refresh which is why I left. Blackberry 9810 and 9930 have very similar specs to many Windows 7 phones, no dual-cores.
    We as phone owners especially Windows 7 phone owners should brag that our phones work very well (and in some ways better) than the dual-core battery eating Android phones. Its not about the processor numbers and/or cores, but overall performance.
    I am much happier with my single-core Windows 7 Focus Flash than a dual-core Android. The UI is nicer, the OS for its stage of development is good, battery life is very acceptable, and I have the one thing that I don't have on my Blackberry but had on the others, apps and a nice choice. Yes, Blackberry has apps but Microsoft has really done a good job of encouraging (i.e. pay) developers to write and/or port popular apps to Windows 7.
    It's all good, when we need dual or quad cores they will be there. They will be cheaper more energy efficient, and more developed and we will need them because the OS, apps, and games require them. Don't let the Android and iOS boys get down on us because they are dual-cores, we don't need no stinkin dual-cores, well at least not yet.
  • what would be the phone of the year for you? windows phones dont need quad cores with 2gb of ram to perform perfectly. So i dont see any "limitations". The device has a beautiful design, its light, fast, has great screen and camera, the perfect OS and still its cheaper than most smartphones around.
  • as great as it is ,
    its not the fastes , not the smothes , it doesnt have the best screen  and doesnt have the best reception  ( i could go on ) .......
    the GS2 beats it in all of does .. i knwo the OS doesnt need duel-core and all that blah blah talala  ...
    and the OS is nice...
    but we are talkigna bout PHONE OF THE YEAR..
    NOT OS of the year..
    the  800 doesnt really bring anything new to the table.  the only thing i would say this phone WINs at , would be its camera...MAYBE...  Maybe phone of the year VS other WP.....
  • The GS2 is not smooth. i agree that it is smoothER than other androids, but it is not nearly as smooth as any windows phone out there, providing the windows phone uses NAND storage. The Lumia 800 is buttery smooth, alike other windows phones, and I'm guessing it has amazing reception given the huge deal Nokia made about the polycarbonate shell preserving reception, not to mention a much better build quality and design than the GS2. In an age where phones have become fashion accessories, this is very important. The GS2 looks and feels like a Fisher Price toy, only built out of cheap plastics. I agree that the Lumia 800 is not the most impressive phone of the year in terms of specs, but it is beautiful, runs a beautiful OS, is easy to use,... and that is what counts, not just the specs, which the average consumer just doesn't care about.
  • how am i on troll mode , you guys are the once trolling my comment.... LMAo
    nothing on the 800 is special........... im sorry .. but my freaking FOCUS rev1.3 stacks up to it .... 1 year older.... lol... and it sad...
     PHONE ENGENERING DESINGS is what it should be based on  , NOT the OS ,  not the APPS
    phone specs mean EVERY thing to 99% of the population cause they all think bigger is better....  99% of the threads on this site at the start of WP was about how the specs sucks.. and i was one of the dudes that help the community relies it wasn’t all about the specs when you have such a well programmed OS.
    again this is phone of the year!!!! not OS of the year.... so specs should have been everything....
    NOT to mention i can post over 20links of Threads of people complain about NOKIA phones being a disappointment and underwhelming!!! 
    atlases i dont contradict myself like half the people here!!
    And saying that he NOKIA metal frame or stronger build is better ,, I have the focus with the * FISHER PRICE FEEL * and I would NEVER trade it for a metal framed .  I like the  light elegance feel to it…..  I don’t build houses . my phone doesn’t need to be able to handle a  JACKHAMMER…
  • The point is this is good news for WP and you need to accept that rather than making such ignorant statements, you also need to learn how to spell.
  • Troll feeding is illigal, dont feed this poor troll anything.
  • Do you research the devices or spew nonsense at random. There is nothing external that's metal on the lumia 800 aside from the framing of the camera. Its a polycarbojate akin to what skateboard wheels are made of. This prevents scratches from showing and provides a solid feel without metals. This is another reason why it is phone of the year.
  • You're right, this wasn't OS of the year - but nor was it "hardware specs of the year", as you seem to think it is. It's phone of the year, which incorporates the whole package. If WP7 can perform at least as well on a certain CPU spec than another OS on an increased spec, then the phone should be lauded for that, not downmarked.
     
  • Completely agree. Most of the people here who complain often think that it´s all about the specs and their special geeky needs. The average consumer do not give a damn. Trust me. All they care about is: if the phone is beautiful, if it can take nice pictures (they don´t even care about the megapixels), if it access the Internet and that kind of stuff. They don´t care about the processor, some do not even know that phones HAVE processors.
  • Se1fcr3ation now in troll mode
  • Yeah, 
     if you guys actually spent time on the Forum instead of TROLLIGN the news section, you would know im not a troll...
    http://forums.wpcentral.com/general-discussion/181501.htm
    other people insulting my spelling then calling ME the troll?  LOL
    do your selfs a fav and go back to TIPB...
    PS English int even my second language, so  if i make a phew spelling mistake... im really not bothered.
     
     
     
     
  • I find this poster funny, an 8 year old would be embarrassed by the grammar 
  • My colleague at work bought Lumia 800 (OK, so I practically brainwashed him with my WP7 propaganda, but he likes the phone!).
  • What was it compared against? hard to say it is the phone of the year shouldnt that go at least some what by how well it sells or how well reviews and customer satisfaction are?
  • Since the article says that readers of the magazine voted on it, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it was by popular vote...
  • How could a phone that just came out win phone of the year? Sure its great and could win the award but not coming out in November of the year it came out. How aboot new phone hype of the year.
  • Obama won the Nobel peace prize in his first year in office.  People have great hopes for things.  :P
  • Well, that was a sham also, but doesnt matter here.
  • Amazing, a positive thing for WP7 and people can only see the negative. Seem to forget that its not just about the go-faster stripes (specs), there's design, added value (Nokia apps, included case), options (3 different colours), support, screen quality. Dont think the plastic Samsungs really compare to the overall package. And wasnt the iphone crushing all before it a few years back with inferior specs? Just accept the good news for the PLATFORM and enjoy it, Nokia is only getting started.
  • That's a really good point.  I never thought of all of those extras (except apps...I love the Nokia apps) when comparing Nokia phones to others.
  • i agree u only give all that extra stuff ie: dual core and 2 gigs of ram if something on the software is lacking and its used to compensate for lag and whatever its gorgeous superficial stuff doesnt and shouldnt interest those who dont use it.... ffc? really? thats why most people give phones bad reviews nowadays? thats retarded
  • @theefman...+100.
  • Good for Nokia! I hope they bring something to the US
  • Nokia fans outnumber any phone manufacturer fans...including Apple.
  • GO NOKIA
  • This is great news for us Windows Phone users. I can't wait to see what Nokia brings to the U.S. The best flip phones I ever had back in the day were Nokia, it looks like they still make a great phone and I want one! http://www.squidoo.com/my-1-year-experience-with-windows-phone-7
  • I'm in doubt how it achieve the title in just couple of days after going on sale,but it could be both the hardware and the OS that contributed.
  • I guess it's because the award reviewers didn't have to wait until they could get one on the high street before evaluating it. They've probably had a few units for at least a month.
  • The upside is this will Nokia AND WP7 a lot of recognition, which it needs for it to succeed.
  • Its a war b/w android and ios but it seems this beutiful functional os from windows is gonna rock the charts!!!!...... HTC windows phone 7 and Nokia Windows phone 7 are looking awesomely gr8. Also one of the nokia concept device  NOKIA 888 is also getting popular !!!!
  • while I feel awards like this are useless and Nokia/MS probably had a hand in it, any good PR for WP7 is all good IMO.
  • "Mobile Phone of the Year
    Samsung Galaxy S2
    Editor’s Choice Award
    Nokia Lumia 800"
     
    So it did not win phone of the year? So this article needs to change!
  • Yeap it didnt win Phone of the Year! Must admit, as much as I love WP7 and the Nokia Lumia 800, was curious how it won an award where consumers vote for it when it was only available for a day...
    However, winning Editor's choice Award is a great start, and in many ways thats the more important one to win. Joe Public consumer wants to feel they make informed decisions (even if they do base their devices primarily on looks, camerra and apps). I am sure many people will now walk into a store and ask to see the Nokia as they have read it was the Editors choice.
    I think when we talk of phones we have to make sure its clear that we are talking about the entire package. In this thread many are talking about the OS specifically, or hardware specs specifically. Thats pointless when you come to use the phone, the hardware and the OS deliver the experience of using the phone.
    I have to say that I strongly believe the best phone experience is on a WP7 device, and thats good news for Microsoft. I think Nokia have the design and the capabilities to make it popular amongst the masses and just as importantly with business users (though they may need to release a device similar in size to the Titan to really make it irresistable to power / business users)
    Great news Nokia and WP7