Of course, much of this comes from Nokia’s Finnish heritage. The Nordic countries industrialized a lot later than most of Western Europe and so were better able to integrate traditions of craftsmanship into mass production. The result has been called industrial art.
A work of industrial art
The Nokia Lumia 920′s a classic example. You only have to hold it to see that it’s a thing of beauty. And we’re not alone in drooling over its sleek form. Some of the world’s most admired designers have given it a big thumbs up, too. But if you’re one of life’s actions heroes, the sort of guy or girl who loves jumping off things or climbing things or riding things, you want more than a smartphone that looks great. You want one that’s hard as nails and works in extreme conditions as well.
Hard as nails
You’ve probably already seen various people give the Lumia 920 a right old battering to see just how tough it is. The guys at Phone Buff knifed it, hammered it, drove over it, smashed it with a slab of wood. While other, more trigger happy tech bloggers, shot it with an AK47 proving, even with a Nokia, there’s a limit to indestructibility. Nonetheless, it’s pretty clear that the Nokia Lumia 920 can take a lot of abuse. But how about working in extreme conditions?
Out of this world
Well it doesn’t get much for extreme than space. Back in November, Finnish retailer Verkkokauppa.com tied a couple of Lumia 920’s to a weather balloon and sent them into orbit. Using the phone’s own camera, the ascent – to 30kms above the earth’s surface – was recorded for posterity and, despite half an hour in the sub-zero temperatures of the edge of space, they returned to earth unscathed.
The way of the warrior
Now, its action hero cred has been given another boost thanks to an American quad-bike rider, Allen Balkema, who decided to take his Lumia 920 out for a spin in the snow, mounted to the front of his Yamaha Warrior 350. Held in place with a coat hanger, not only does the Lumia 920 survive the cross country trip, but it’s optical stabilization shows why its such a great smartphone for mobile movies. Check the video out in HD to see for yourself.
Clearly, we need to see the Lumia 920 in more action hero scenarios before we can categorically claim it’s the perfect companion for extreme adventures. Alas, we’re mainly hunched in front of our laptops and don’t have many opportunities for dare deviling. However, if you’ve done any heart-pounding adventures with your the Lumia 920 as your trusty side kick, we’d love to hear how it, and you, fared.
Image credit: Paul Bennett Photos
