BlackBerry Q10 vs Nokia Lumia 620

The BlackBerry Q10 is one of the first smartphones based on the BlackBerry 10 operating system. It’s a premium model and uses the traditional BlackBerry form factor with a physical Qwerty keyboard and a smaller 3.1-inch display.

Nokia’s Lumia 620 is the company’s latest budget smartphone and the first lower cost handset using Microsoft’s most recent Windows Phone 8 platform build.

BlackBerry Q10: Key specs and what's hot

While we haven’t had hands-on time with the BlackBerry Q10 at time of writing, one thing which really looks fantastic is the build quality.

We have had time with the touch-only BlackBerry Z10, which is very well made indeed, but the Q10 has an Ace up its sleeve in the form of a unique ‘glass weave’ textured back panel which is allegedly stronger and lighter than plastic.

At the very least it looks pretty cool.

Naturally, the BlackBerry 10 operating system is a key component, offering what would appear to be an entirely new take on smartphone interaction and a very competent one at that.

Multitasking and notifications are at the centre, it includes video chat inside BlackBerry Messenger, effective communications aggregation and a treasure trove of apps. None of these things can be said of Windows Phone 8.

More onboard memory is always a plus and the BlackBerry Q10 has a decent amount at 16GB, twice as much as its opponent. It also has 2GB of RAM, the processor is 500MHz faster and battery has a higher capacity at 1800mAh.

If you’re into your phone photography the BlackBerry Q10 has more going for it thanks to an 8-megapixel primary camera with LED flash, continuous autofocus, stabilisation, face detection, 1080p video capture and a 2-megapixel front-facing secondary.

It’s also worth mentioning BlackBerry 10’s software support which includes a built-in picture editor, Story Maker and the ability to pick a ‘best face’ for shots of people.

The BlackBerry Q10’s LCD touch display has a higher pixel density than its opponent at 328 pixels-per-inch, resulting in sharper image quality. With the display measuring 3.1-inches, however, this is a double-edged sword – more on that later.

Nokia Lumia 620: Key specs and what's hot

It’s difficult to think of ways in which the Lumia 620 breaks out in front in this two-horse race as, being a budget model so much of its spec is inferior to the premium BlackBerry Q10.

In fairness, despite being a budget phone and using quite obviously non-premium materials the build quality of the Lumia 620 is actually pretty decent. The back panel fits flush and there’s little in the way of flexing, creaking or give to worry about.

You can also switch the cover with various colour options and these come in bright, eye-popping shades. The matte finish panels are certainly the nicer variants, in our view.

Processing power and the camera are both also quite impressive for such a low-cost phone and it has good card support for high-capacity cards up to 64GB.

Direct Spec Comparison: Shootout