White Nokia Lumia 900 Stormtrooper phone is set for stun

Last week I wrote about the issues I had with a MVNO and how their very limited plan won't work for me so this last weekend I headed over to an AT&T store and picked up a white Nokia Lumia 900 and signed up for an AT&T account. Even though I also have the fantastic HTC One X in hand I can't seem to take my SIM out of the Lumia and guess I am just too impressed with Windows Phone at this time.

It appears that white is my new color preference

The white Lumia 900 looks fantastic and as a major Star Wars fan I find it to be symbolic of a Stormtrooper with the glassy white shell, open dark ports, and black front panel. I am trying to find a Stormtrooper sticker to put on the back and already have my device named LumiaTrooper to reflect the appearance of the device.

In addition to the Windows Phone OS that I enjoy using, the Lumia 900 also has the extra Nokia software elements only found on their devices. Nokia also just announced several other unique & exclusive software titles for Lumia devices at CTIA 2012. Another bonus with using a Nokia Windows Phone is that you get the chance to try out new apps and utilities being tested over on Nokia Beta Labs. For example, I just downloaded Nokia City Lens for Windows Phone that serves as an augmented reality application in conjunction with your camera to help you find out about places as you travel.

The Verge posted an article this morning where some scientific testing revealed that the Lumia 900 has a better outdoor display than the iPhone 4S and Galaxy S, thanks in large part to its ClearBlack display technology. I used it in direct sunlight yesterday, yes we do get sun here in the Puget Sound area from time to time, and the display was perfectly visible and usable on the Lumia 900. It doesn't have the highest resolution on the market today, but I still don't see every pixel and Windows Phone looks great at this resolution.

While I am enjoying the Windows Phone OS, all the apps, and the device in general, I do have the purple screen low brightness issue and was going to return it before reading that Nokia has identified a fix and will issue a software update to fix it. WPCentral has a poll of some other minor issues that appear to be affecting some others. Other than the purple screen, I haven't noticed the other issues with the exception of an occasional lag in the camera button turning on the camera (I find that having it in landscape seems to eliminate this).

Unfortunately, I don't live or work in an AT&T LTE area so I cannot yet enjoy LTE speeds, but HSPA+ has been plenty fast for me. I haven't been super impressed with the camera and am working on a short comparison article that shows photos from several newer devices. The Lumia 900 is a great device and I enjoy using it and Windows Phone. It may not get the update to Apollo, but we haven't seen any confirmation either way yet so I am still holding out hope.

Related ZDNet coverage

• The Nokia Lumia 900 will be a hot seller on AT&T (review and gallery)
• Reviewers overwhelmingly like the Nokia Lumia 900, consumers will too
• Apple could learn from Nokia as they take immediate action with Lumia 900 connectivity issues
• AT&T and Amazon out of stock of Lumia 900; Nokia succeeding in the U.S. so far
• Windows Phone is great, so why aren't more people buying them
• What makes Nokia Windows Phone devices unique?