My Nokia Blog |
- Update Available for Lumia 900
- HTC Claims to be “The New Face of WP”; Nokia Calls it a Pointless “Tactical Re-Branding”
- Poll: Will you be buying the Nokia Lumia 920? (And why I will be…)
- PureView sensor size comparison (808 vs 920 vs N93 vs average phone)
- Nokia Lumia 920 and 820 pass BT4.0 certification.
- Nokia filming new Nokia Lumia 920/820 ads in London – UK launch ‘just around the corner’.
- Nokia Lumia 920 possibly coming sooner than end of the year…October 21st any good?
| Update Available for Lumia 900 Posted: 19 Sep 2012 01:23 PM PDT
I’m not sure what this update brings, or what it’s called; but Zune is currently updating my Stormtrooper to the latest version of Windows Phone. As much as I’d like it to be I doubt this is WP 7.8 seeing as how it’s classified as a “Nokia Update” and not a Windows Phone Update, it’s most probably small bug fixes and what not. Stay tuned for more details (around ten minutes left on the update). *note: this is NOT the tango update which we received a couple months back, check out the video here Have you gotten the update on your 900 (or other WP device?) let us know. Edit: As I suspected it’s a minor change confirmed by twitter user “
Update: My StormTrooper finished updating, as much as I’d love to imagine that it’s a lot smoother (not that it wasn’t smooth) I honestly can’t feel a difference, the version is as seen above 8779.12301 which appears to be an tiny change in number from the previous Tango version: 8779.12201 (I’d like to take this moment to once again curse WPs Update naming system). Has anyone else noticed any improvements? If so do let us know.
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| HTC Claims to be “The New Face of WP”; Nokia Calls it a Pointless “Tactical Re-Branding” Posted: 19 Sep 2012 11:43 AM PDT
Earlier today HTC unveiled its own line of Windows Phone 8 devices (I didn’t even know there was an event happening); announcing two new phones the HTC Windows Phone 8 X & S. Apparently Microsoft dictated that the words “Windows Phone” should be in the name of the devices, leading HTC to claim that they are now the new “ signature device” of Windows Phone 8:
I find the use of the word almost in the sentence quite peculiar, how can they claim to be the new signature device, but only “almost” the new face? aren’t those two basically the same meaning? The Verge asked Nokia about this supposed “new face”, they replied that they were happy for the Windows Phone Ecosystem, but also took a minute to remind us why the Lumias are amazing:
HTC claim that the design of the devices was “inspired by the live tiles themselves” I like to think they meant “Inspired by the Lumia phones displaying the Live tiles”, since the above devices (8 X more so) are almost a dead ringer for the Lumia 820. And it seems that we weren’t the only people to notice this, Chris Weber (head of Nokia USA) slyly pointed it out on his twitter account:
And once you take a look at the new HTC devices it becomes pretty obvious that they’re “inspired” by the Lumias colors (at the very least), it’s also worth pointing out that both devices use the same Unibody Poly-carbonate slab that has become strongly associated with the lumias (after launching on the N9).
If you’re interested in the specs of the competition, the larger of the two devices, the 8X carries a 4.3″ screen (same size as the Lumia 900, but smaller than the 4.5″ of the Lumia 920) with a 1280*720 display, which although has a lesser resolution than that of the 920 it does have a higher PPI (341 vs. 332) due to the smaller screen size, but keep in mind that the 920 still has the upper hand in the screen due to the PureMotion HD+ which offers a faster refresh rate than any other screen out there, and can be used with any in-animate object. The 8X has a 8Mp camera in the back which like the 8.7Mp shooter of the 920 can capture 1080p videos, the FFC is also (impressively) capable of 1080p video capture. Below is a useful table the guys from pocket-now put together: (Updated: the 8X DOES NOT have expandable memory)
It would seem that the only true advantages the 8X has over the 920 is better Front facing camera, and the lighter weight; besides that they’re pretty much matched up with the occasional advantage to the 920. This is truly the first time that the competition in WP8 heats up, it seems that other OEMs will no longer recycle their old android designs for WP (even if it means stealing the Lumias design). Personally I think this is were Nokia’s heavy investment in WP7 will pay-out; the Lumia name and Nokia are VERY heavily associated with WP, and no amount of “tactical re-branding” changes the fact that Nokia were pushing out beautiful devices last year while HTC, Samsung and all the others were sitting back and throwing table scraps to the WP ecosystem. Unfortunately HTC one-upped Nokia when it came to availability by announcing the carriers that will carry their new devices (Verizon I believe?)
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| Poll: Will you be buying the Nokia Lumia 920? (And why I will be…) Posted: 19 Sep 2012 08:02 AM PDT A lot of consumers may be picking up a new phone around this time. Are you in line to get the new Nokia Lumia 920? Perhaps you’ll be getting a different Lumia? (820) or a different Nokia altogether. In a recent Poll of Wired readers, 28,900+ have voted that they’ll be buying the new Nokia Lumia 920 vs 9500 for the iPhone. Attraction to the other side I had been swaying back and forth earlier in the year. I said to myself that if I was disappointed in the new Lumia, I would go for the Galaxy Note (II) or new iPhone 5. I was thinking I would be getting an iPhone to match my Uni iPad and mac. Rekindling interest Also getting an iPhone would have been interesting as something to learn and do comparisons with future Nokias. After a couple of weeks with my iPad, I’m already a bit bored of iOS. I miss my WP keyboard. Large screen Also I want a larger screen. I can’t go back to a smaller screen after having the 4.3″ on the Lumia 900. I desperately wanted a phablet. 4.8-5.5″. Something ridiculous. But 4.5″ will do, especially given the next few things that are really interesting me Design The design is different to anything that’s out there. It’s not iPhoney. It’s a different kind of beautiful. Streamlined curved screen like that on the N9 and 800. It makes it look like things are floating on top of the display. Also, I want the polycarbonate Electric-Pikachu-Yellow Nokia Lumia 920. I’ve always wanted a bright yellow phone. My previous phone cases have always had a yellow variant for that bright, “hello you won’t lose me” appeal. It’s a nice splash of bright vivid colour to what is otherwise a dull black/white/silver world of tech things. Super Sensitive Screen I think it’s great that the whole ‘capacitive is not good for gloves/fingernails, thus you must use resistive’ has been solved. We still have a super sensitive capacitive display for feather light finger swiping. But if you have longer nails or are wearing gloves for the cold (or because you just wear gloves, e.g. at the hospital wards) you can still use the Lumia 920. Sometimes electrons can still pass through thin latex gloves and so might work on other capacitive screens, like the 900. That’s not really ‘super sensitive’ in the way it works on the 920. A concern has been: how thick the gloves I can use can be? In the demoes, Kevin Shields used huge mittens, so I think winter gloves would be totally fine. PureView Phase 2 Whilst Nokias, like the N90, N73, N93i, N95, N82, N86, N8, 808 continued the long tradition of excellent imaging in Nokias, I have been left somewhat disappointed by the generation 1 Lumia range. They were ok for a phone but not what I had been growing to expect from a Nokia. We haven’t seen images and video samples (original) yet but early indications look promising that PureView 2, with floating lens technology to provide optical image stabilisation, really works. This means great low light images sans flash (and possibly with) as well as very steady video. Other images taken in day time should be better too than previous Lumias (that wouldn’t take much though). If it takes good low light shots of people with flash, then I’d be very happy. That’s why I’ve been crying out over and over again for Xenon and a standard N8 like camera. The 920 however has a different implementation for low light (optically stabilising the camera to let more light in). I wonder what audio recording will be like. It may not be 808 grade with stereo rich recording but it’ll still top the competition. PureMotion HD+ with 1280×768 IPS LCD (higher resolution than new iPhone, better retina display i.e. higher pixel density than new iphone), improvement on Clear Black display. The new screen on the Nokia Lumia 920 is said to be one of the best on the market. Early reviews by bloggers have been agreeing with Nokia’s claims. In comparisons, T3 said it was better than the HTC One X (known for having a great screen, one of the only areas that Android users say One X beats the SGSIII on). PureMotion HD+ means pixels are apparently move energetic, more responsive, more fluid so less ghosting and overall a more pleasant experience. This extra responsiveness apparently will NOT be detrimental to battery life. High resolution displays – you can see more things at once without needing to zoom in to read small text. However, some consumers may not really notice much difference (possibly due to eye sight limitations). For me, I would like that higher resolution display. And also nice to know that it is of higher pixel density than iPhone. Not that it actually matters to my use, but just for those who say to me ‘but it’s not Retina’ to which I’ll reply, ‘Exactly. It’s even better’. I’m not sure about IPS LCD vs AMOLED. It might not be as vibrant but the colours will look more natural perhaps, as well as allowing you to use lighter themes (AMOLED better with black). The viewing angles seem and are reported to be very good. Also, non pentile. (I don’t have issues myself with pentile screens but I see rage in some comments by those totally against it). Finally, with all that, there’s improved visibility outdoors with that improvement over Clear Black display. I’m not sure it is CBD, but Nokia mentioned improving on it. On early demoes you can see the 920 screen also cutting down reflection. The 900 was crowned as having the best screen for outdoor visibility. This meant that whilst my friends would shade their screen with their hands to read their text/mails, I just had to hold my 900 normally. If the 920 could maintain that, I’d be happy. Wireless charging. I am a big fan of the wireless charging. I’ve been using a similar set up on my HP Touchpad and touchstone (and before that, I reviewed an accessory for the n97 that allowed you to achieve something similar). It’s very convenient. Just pop the device on, no need to fiddle with a wire and it’s charging. It might seem a lazy move, but then again, a lot of the improvements we’re getting are just that. Saving a second or two here or there but that certainly adds up. I’ll be interested to know how far Nokia takes wireless connectivity. e.g. NFC connection to initiate WiFi wireless transfer? 900 and Zune already have a great set up with automatic WiFi transfer or images/videos when set to charge. It wouldn’t be too much of an evolution to initiate transfers directly this way. WP8 As a WP7.5 user, I can’t wait for WP8. First and foremost, set up will be incredibly easy as Windows Phone remembers all my contacts and can sync calendars very effortlessly just by signing in. I was surprised by how much more straightforward the majority of apps I have that are on both my iPad and Lumia on my Lumia. I like the consistency of the back button and do get a little flustered every time that changes position on iOS. The keyboard on WP is much more straightforward than iOS I think. Autocorrect is less annoying. I’m interested in the new live tiles format. I also appreciate how smooth and reliable everything is. Things just work. Not saying it doesn’t on others, but I’m comfortable with that reliability which I hope stays in the 920. With Snapdragon s4 Dual Core at 1.5GHz, I think this will run as buttery if not more than what the likes of the 900 can do already. Perhaps when W8 tablets are out, WP8 would be more desirable. As it is, this probably isn’t the main selling point for me. Well, I guess I don’t know the full consumer features yet because Microsoft has not officially released WP8 yet. It’s definitely making itself a more attractive option. Having Nokia Drive is a big plus. So many times this has saved me and family/friends. Office built in and integrated is pretty cool as well as XboxLive stuff (but I hope they do more with this). Integrated apps is cool, like how I can control spotify’s music controls from anywhere with volume button or even at the lock screen, I can skip tracks. I’ve not been able to manage this on other platforms yet. Also, reading out my messages. An odd feature but something I’ve found so useful on numerous occasions when I can’t get to my phone or use my hands (even with super sensitive screen, I’d rather not dirty the phone). NFC Sadly no NFC in new iPhone. NFC is pretty wicked on the 808 and N9. Tap at the precise place and instantly connect over bluetooth. Great stuff for those Nokia original accessories, or possibly in future for games/shopping/picture transfer/promos or whatever else they have planned for NFC (mobile wallers, taxi ordering etc etc). It’s a crowd wower when ever they see this happen. It seems to be a geek feature but it’s actually something a technophobe would appreciate dearly as it’s a very natural gesture to bring something close together to connect. It’s a Nokia Always a good reason. Especially being a Nokia fan and having a Nokia blog. It’s good to learn about other platforms mind, but this year, the Nokia is too appealing for me. It’ll also quiet down the angry comments from the super zealous Nokia fans who say I am only allowed to own Nokia products/Windows Doubts The appeal of owning an iPhone is still there, though less so than before. Why? I don’t know, I guess I’m falling for those adverts. App appeal – whilst WP apps are growing, the natural app place is iOS. Especially in the realm of games. The attraction is so much more less now that I have the iPad and significantly less free time to play games in the first place. The only thing that really interested me in the Galaxy Note was a bigger screen. Oh and possibly expandable memory but I think 32GB is a nice sweet spot. I also have SkyDrive anyway for additional 25GB (and drop box and box) What is an even better Lumia is out soon, one that has a larger screen again and combines PureView 1 AND 2? But waiting around for something better gets me stuck on that spiral and you never get anything. For others, I guess the size and weight might be an issue. I have the Lumia 920 shell in my room and it’s just as big as the 900 which I am comfortable with. WP8 might also be an issue for some but I’m a WP user and I like it.
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| PureView sensor size comparison (808 vs 920 vs N93 vs average phone) Posted: 19 Sep 2012 06:39 AM PDT
In the following pictures, you’ll see how the PureView sensors stack up against the competition. The sensor in the 808 is the largest ever put in a mobile phone, as is larger than those found in the top end compact point and shoot cameras. The previous king of the sensor was another Nokia, the N8. In the picture above, you can see how big this sensor is in comparison to a generic camera phone. Below, the 808 sensor next to the whole camera module of the 920.
This one brings back a few memories. The N93 has a long and large camera module due to the optical zoom (and also, sensor sizes had been gradually becoming more compact). The long barrel is inserted horizontally on the phone so that the width is used and not the thickness of the phone, thus allowing more space. Sensor size is very important in image quality. More pixels on a tiny sensor means not a lot of light per pixel. 808 uses both a large sensor, but also excess pixels (41mp sensor) for over sampling. PureView phase 2, found in the Nokia Lumia 920, focuses on the floating lens PureView phase 2 optical image stabilisation. Both are excellent compared to the competition, each with their own strengths. Eventually, the expectation is for both PureView 1 and 2 to be combined into some SuperPureView Avengers mash up.
Source: MobilePort.hu Cheers ‘Z.” for the tip!
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| Nokia Lumia 920 and 820 pass BT4.0 certification. Posted: 19 Sep 2012 06:17 AM PDT
In early August, the new Lumias were rumoured to come with BT4.0. Today both the Nokia Lumia 920 and 820 are said to have passed BT4.0 certification. BT 4.0 was “a very optimised low energy bluetooth which will become very useful for small devices that need to transfer information over BT (e.g. small health/fitness sensors).” Source: BT Via WMPU Cheers rishabh for the tip!
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| Nokia filming new Nokia Lumia 920/820 ads in London – UK launch ‘just around the corner’. Posted: 19 Sep 2012 06:09 AM PDT
I just received an email asking that as a Lumia fan and the new launch of the 820/920 “just around the corner”, if I was interested in being part of an advert. Not sure what the dates are as they’re not mentioned but I’m probably going to be on wards when this takes place (unless it’s on a weekend which is unlikely). Those going will have their faces across national TV.
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| Nokia Lumia 920 possibly coming sooner than end of the year…October 21st any good? Posted: 18 Sep 2012 11:20 PM PDT
WPCentral are marking this rumour as a STRONG possibility. At least for AT&T. This date has appeared before but it wasn’t that trusted. However, WPCentral say they’ve come across new information which says the launch date as the 21st October for AT&T. The source and its contents cannot be shared but WPCentral insists on accuracy of this information. The level of trust is based on the previous source apparently being correct on WP Mango update dates. The source material is said to be in a quite senior level at AT&T Source: WPCentral Cheers x3nom0rph for the tip!
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