Nokia Lumia 2520 review

The Lumia 2520 has 32GB of internal storage, but only 25GB is visible to the operating system and a paltry 16GB is available to the user. Thankfully, there’s a microSD card slot next to the SIM card slot, so you can add extra capacity later if you run low on storage space.

A keyboard dock with a built-in battery is to be released as an optional extra. It’ll also provide extra USB ports. However, you won’t probably won’t need the extra battery power of the keyboard dock, as the Lumia 2520 lasted an impeccable 14 hours 53 minutes in our video rundown test. Expect lower battery life between charges if you use 4G regularly. It’s still the best battery score we’ve seen from a 10in tablet, though, outlasting Apple’s iPad Air by more than two hours.

Our major concern is the 2520’s operating system. Windows RT has improved significantly following the recently launched Windows 8.1 update, but it still lacks many of the apps we take for granted on a tablet device. In particular, multimedia apps such as LoveFilm, ITV Player and Twitch TV were missing at the time of writing.

Considering Microsoft’s heavy focus on gaming with the excellent Smartglass app, there’s little other support for gaming apps such as Battlefield Battlelog or Call of Duty Elite. It’s also worth noting that you can’t install desktop Windows apps, which means you’re completely reliant on the Windows Store.

You do get Microsoft Office RT, though, which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook and is great if you’re looking for an inexpensive work machine. Office RT has far more features than you’d find on QuickOffice for Android or the host of iOS productivity apps, but Office hasn’t been redesigned to suit a touchscreen. The high-resolution display makes it tricky to tap on icons and select menus accurately.

If you’re looking for a portable device purely for web browsing and Microsoft Office, the Nokia Lumia 2520 is a good buy. The Microsoft Surface 2 is cheaper, but we think the extra cost is justified given the Lumia 2520’s integrated 4G, faster processor and better battery life.

Windows RT is still an awkward middle ground between desktop and mobile operating systems, but if you’re willing to give Windows RT a chance there’s no doubt the Lumia 2520 is the best device to try it on.