Microsoft's new smartphones may be its nicest yet

By Lisa Eadicicco

Microsoft just announced two new smartphones, the Lumia 950 and 950X. The phones both come with a 20-megapixel camera and support Microsoft's Windows Hello technology.
I had a chance to play with the new phones at Microsoft's event on Tuesday, and the biggest factor that immediately stood out was the phone's new design.

The new Lumia is slick and smooth - it seems as if Microsoft has done away with the sharp pointy edges we've seen on Lumia phones in the past.

The corners are a bit softer, and the device in general looks more like a high end Android phone or an iPhone. It's extremely lightweight, too, and it felt a bit lighter than most other phones of the same size.

Most of Microsoft's demo focused on how powerful the phones are and how advanced their cameras are. My limited demo wasn't long enough to get a feel for how well these phones perform, but the devices seemed smooth overall.

The main problem with Windows Phone has always been that its app selection is limited compared to that of Android and iOS. The biggest draw here, however, seems to be that you can use the new Lumias as a PC, since Microsoft is claiming the phones are powerful enough to function as a full-fledged Windows computer once you plug them into a monitor and keyboard.

If you don't necessarily care about apps and love Windows, it seems like the Lumia 950 or 950X would be your best bet. The smaller version starts at $549 while the larger one starts at $649.