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Nokia made some design decisions, such as utilizing a relatively large 1/1.2" sensor, to improve performance. Also, it's exploiting the high megapixel count to do interesting things such as oversampling to reduce noise, and creating one of the first usable "digital zoom" features to grace a compact camera.

The Nokia 1020 is a smartphone for those who prize great photos above all else-that is, above size and some popular apps, like Instagram. The phone is fast, the display is gorgeous, and on board are Nokia's free music service and other excellent location-based apps-which in addition to maps that even work offline offer users lists of nearby restaurants, stores and events. But the focus, again, is on the cameras-one with a talent for low-light situations and another that excels at capturing detail-rich photographs that can be zoomed into without losing clarity. Between the two, the possibilities seem endless-which is a blessing and a frustration, perhaps depending on your disposition. Downsides are that the cameras are slow; it's hard to catch a fleeting moment. It's also not intuitive to know which camera or feature to fire up. I had the gnawing feeling of always wondering whether I was using the not-optimum tool from a world-class toolbox. The upsides, though, are everything else-you can take gorgeous video and photos, and the Lumia 1020 makes them easy to share. Those willing to dedicate themselves to some study of the 1020 will be richly rewarded.

Product designers can use their iPads and Occipital's anodized aluminum add-on to scan objects and create 3-D models suitable for a MakerBot. Realtors can take advantage of its depth sensors to capture the dimensions of a room and create a 360-degree panoramic photo that can be embedded in a listing.