Microsoft Lumia 950 XL vs Lumia 950: Which is the better buy?

Microsoft recently announced two flagship devices, the Lumia 950 XL and the Lumia 950, both of which run its Windows 10 Mobile operating system and share many features: same screen resolution, same amount of onboard storage and system memory.

The 950 XL is certainly the better purchase out of the two models. Yes, it is bigger than the 950 and more expensive, but there’s three key features that will win businesses and individuals alike.

It has a bigger battery -- 3,340mah vs 3,000mah -- which, according to Microsoft’s own numbers, should allow users to squeeze that all-important extra hour when making calls or browsing the web.

The system-on-chip used by the 950 XL (the Snapdragon 810) runs about 10 percent faster compared to the one on the 950 (the Snapdragon 808) and has two extra cores, which should come handy in tackling demanding tasks.

Perhaps the most important point is that Microsoft is giving away a free Display Dock when one pre-orders a Lumia 950 XL. Microsoft has yet to give pricing details for this gadget but it is likely that it retails for far more than £50 (i.e. the price difference between the 950 XL and the 950).

And for any business users, this may well be the perfect accessory to match their new Lumia handset. The offer is valid for the purchase of the 950 XL and offer registration between November 20 2015 and January 31 2016.

Just connect your devices, keyboard, mouse and your monitor to it and it transforms into a fully-fledged desktop; your phone will automatically detect these and switch to Continuum mode, which brings up the familiar Windows 10 desktop.

More details about the Microsoft Display Dock offer can be found here.

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