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New Nokia smartphone an outstanding bargain

Nokia Lumia 920 smartphone, by Nokia Corp.

$99.99 with two-year service contract from AT&T

Desperate times call for desperate bargains. That's the only explanation for AT&T's aggressively low price on Nokia's flagship smartphone. This remarkable handset, which runs Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Phone 8 software, has got to be the best $100 phone you can buy, with an excellent camera, a big, beautiful video screen, and snappy 4G LTE data downloads.

Nokia, once the leading wireless phonemaker, is getting clobbered by Apple Inc.'s iPhone and by Android­ smartphones. And while Windows Phone software is outstanding, consumers are still reluctant to embrace it. But this phone could be good enough, and cheap enough, to change some minds.

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The Lumia 920's screen isn't as sharp as that of the iPhone 5, but it's a good deal bigger, for more comfortable video viewing. The 8-megapixel camera shoots good still photos and even more impressive 1080p high-resolution movies. As for Windows Phone 8, it's a snappy, elegant operating system full of smart features that efficiently integrate phone, ­e-mail, and social-networking services.

If Microsoft had brought this software to market a couple of years sooner, they'd have 50 percent of the smartphone market by now, instead of less than 5 percent.

The Lumia 920 would be well worth buying at $199,99, the usual upfront price for high-end smartphones. At $99.99, it ought to be nearly irresistable.

JBL PowerUp Bluetooth speaker and charging station for Nokia Lumia phones

$299.99 from AT&T

I guess JBL isn't feeling especially desperate. That's the only way I can make sense of the hefty price tag on this product, a combination Bluetooth loudspeaker and phone recharger that's three times the upfront price of the Lumia 920.

For that, you get a pair of so-so speakers mounted in brightly colored plastic that echoes the look of the Lumia product line. These phones can be recharged by simply dropping them onto a wireless charging station that uses a magnetic field to fire up the battery. Such a charging station is built into the top of the JBL speakers.

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So you connect the phone to the speakers via Bluetooth and start cranking out your favorite tunes or the latest podcast. Then place the phone atop the PowerUp and the battery­ gets charged.

The system works just fine, but I've heard better Bluetooth speakers. And while wireless charging is cool, it's hardly worth so much cash, especially when AT&T is throwing in a free wireless charger when you buy a Lumia 920. The PowerUp, alas, is a decent product that's way too costly for its own good.

Nikon 1 J2 camera

$549.99 at BestBuy.com

If you're bored with your inexpensive point-and-shoot digital camera but aren't quite ready for a big, bulky digital single-lens reflex camera, here's something that falls right in the middle. The Nikon 1 features a light, compact form, along with the ability to choose from multiple lenses.

The one I tested came with a good midrange lens, with a focal length of 10 to 30 millimeters. Just the thing for family snapshots and other casual work. But Nikon offers five other compatible lenses, from a $190 lens for tight closeups to one intended for serious video shooting and priced at $750.

The Nikon 1 delivered good, crisp images. But I was disappointed by its relative lack of fancy features I've found on less-expensive cameras. There's no Wi-Fi wireless networking, for instant transfer of photos to a home computer or an online service like Facebook. Also, the video screen on the back, which acts as a viewfinder, is firmly bolted to the back of the camera. Other cameras let you rotate the screen, so you can hold the camera any which way and still compose your shots accurately.

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Still, Nikon's come up with a well-made, high-quality camera that should appeal to the amateur who's ready for an upgrade.


Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com.