Lumia Camera Beta App Provides Early Access to New Features

Picking up a tradition from Nokia, Microsoft has released a Beta version of its Lumia Camera app for Lumia handsets, offering users an early peek at features that will make their way into the core app over time. There’s just one hitch: it works only with certain Lumia handsets.

I learned about this release from the good folks at Windows Central. (And lets not confuse Lumia Camera and Lumia Camera Beta with Lumia Camera Classic. Seriously, don’t get me started.)

So the story is that Lumia Camera Beta only works on those Lumia handsets that are already running Lumia Camera 5.0. This is the version of Lumia Camera—previously called Nokia Camera—that comes with the Lumia Denim software update and Windows Phone 8.1.1. More specifically, you can only install this app on the Lumia 1520, Icon, 930, 640 and 640 XL. Since I have a Lumia 930, I’ve installed it to see how it differs from the non-beta version.

So far I only see minor differences between the two app versions, most of the fit and finish variety. Certainly, no major new features, though I suppose that could come in the future. Some are reporting that this app brings back some minor things from pre-Lumia Camera 5.0 versions of the app that had gone missing.

You can download Lumia Camera Beta from the Windows Phone Store … assuming you have a compatible Lumia handset.