30 April 2013

My Nokia Blog

My Nokia Blog

Lumiapps: Lytro Camera App “Refocus” lets you choose focus points AFTER taking the picture!

Posted: 29 Apr 2013 07:40 PM PDT

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Do you remember when we talked about Lytro, a camera that would allow you to choose your focus points as and when you needed it AFTER you took the shot? It wasn’t something I’d expect coming to a camera phone anytime soon, so colour me surprised when someone made it into an app that actually does work.

You hold the camera still and it ‘records’ several focus points. You can then tap to where you want the focus to be and it will (or should) refocus. You can also press the buttons on the side to change focus points frame by frame. This works as a camera lens app too. I’ve only tested this briefly as I woke up at an inappropriate time this morning (bit ill/feverish) I’ll try and test it out again in the morning. The first image is a stock one.

It’s very quick, taking about a second to take a picture (asking you to hold steady)

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This is my hand and the clock. Tap focus sometimes works well, sometimes you have to rely on the buttons.MNBwp_ss_20130430_0006 MNBwp_ss_20130430_0007

 

The images are maxed at 1280×720.  OK for social sharing I guess.

Basically, I think it uses the fast AF on my 920 to capture several frames at different focus points.

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Give it a go for free or you can purchase it for just £0.79/$0.99. I’m really liking this app :) .

Name: Refocus

Link: http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/store/app/refocus/93dddc3e-e895-47bf-bcb2-ff19d7df6533?signin=true

qrcode.13384118

 

Via: WMPU

Cheers Derrek for the tip

Video: IllumiRoom – For Next Gen Xbox – Extended Demo

Posted: 29 Apr 2013 01:02 PM PDT

Screen Shot 2013-04-29 at 20.53.41I wasn’t too sure myself about the practicalities or applications IllumiRoom would have for me based on their first demo, but this latest demo really intrigues me as it does appear to enhance the gaming experience that would otherwise stay on the screen only.

I love the Radial Wobble, whereby pulsewaves are visible in your living room. You can also see how objects from the screen fall onto the floor. There’s even the option to have extended visuals that don’t necessarily connect with what’s seen in the video but still brings something better for the game play. I advise you to watch the video (which is live footage and not CGI)

This uses a kinect and a projector. I was wondering how would this work if your screen (TV) was already a projection?

In addition to games, there’s the option to watch panoramic videos (this one I’m not sold on. It looks too distracting). It’s a bit like TV/Monitor set ups with LED strip lighting on the edges but more confusing.

I wonder how tablets/phones will interact with this.

Via: TheVerge

 

Video: Humorous Nokia Lumia 920 ad from Microsoft stars fighting smartphone users in wedding #iSheep #Copybots

Posted: 29 Apr 2013 09:40 AM PDT

Screen Shot 2013-04-29 at 17.33.33Check out this ad from Microsoft for the Nokia Lumia 920, with the tag theme: Don’t Fight, Switch.

It starts off with someone dissing the large galaxy phone (hey, we’ll be going phablet soon by the end of the year too no :P ) . iPhone users taunt galaxy users, whilst Android owners retaliate. Fighting ensues.The insults are funny as they’re done through a perceived third part, “iSheep” and “Copybots”.

Interestingly enough (as I do like to critique) although this is an ad about WP/Nokia Lumia 920, what precisely are you learning about it? Like what can it do? The end helps, when they mention it’s Engadget’s smartphone of the year.

Screen Shot 2013-04-29 at 17.32.56

Cheers Ady for the tip!

 

Kantar: Proof that Nokia and WP is NOT failing in the USA market, it improved the most from Q1 2012 figures.

Posted: 29 Apr 2013 09:30 AM PDT

Screen Shot 2013-04-29 at 17.12.50

 

Some figures from Kantar World Panel indicate that WP continues to grow in the US. In fact, in terms of percentage increases, it has gained the most.

 

http://www.kantar.com/media/mobile/290413-smartphone-sales-data-us/

Q1 2013 changes in USA market share compared to Q1 2012.

iOS -0.9%
android 1.4%
rim -1.7%
WP 1.9%

Parmy Olsen from Forbes analysed the stats saying that Windows Phone is strengthening their third position against iPhone and Android, a difficult task against such strong established competition.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/parmyolson/2013/04/26/windows-phone-strengthens-third-place-position-against-iphone-android/  Via Reddit

Cheers ms.nokia for the tip!

Raaaaiiiiiidddddddd!!!!!!!!

Posted: 29 Apr 2013 08:04 AM PDT

 

Raid

Raid kills bugs dead. Seems like Accenture emptied an entire CAN of Raid on the VERY REAL HSPA+ bug that terrorized Nokia 808 PureView users worldwide. Here is a little back story via a true and emotional comment that I wrote over at AllAboutSymbian: Pardon my openness, I was at my wit’s end with no hope of a solution and no guaranteed help from Nokia.

Last Week:

Steve, thank you for linking and posting the article. I appreciate it and thank you all for the comments.

Since that post, I have received a second 808, this time purchased directly from Amazon And I verified the U.S. warranty. Unfortunately, the 3.5G hardware issue persists with this new device and is even worse as the device now restarts when I am using it. I have had restarts mid call, playing music, showing people pictures and browsing the web.

Also, I experienced what would normally be a deal breaker, silent lost connection error. I was home this weekend with my family out-of-town. A day went by and l noticed that I had not gotten any message or phone calls. Looking at the phone, it wasn’t frozen, I had full 3.5G bars and all seemed well. I noticed that a text I sent the night before was listed as having failed so tried to resend it about 4 times and it wouldn’t send. As a last resort,  I restarted the phone and immediately, 8 messages came in, an important one, that my family arrived safely. I had not gotten any calls or messages for a whole day!!!!

I say silent as there was no notification that I was not connected to the network. For this to be an important communication device, it really is devastating, scary and potentially unsafe in unfortunate circumstances. No one could reach me. Am I supposed to make random calls and test and see if I have a connection since every normal UI piece shows as being connected?

Honestly, with my experience with 2 808s and other people’s experiences around the world, I would return my 808 and never look back IF it wasn’t for the factual marvel that is the 41MP sensor, Carl Zeiss, Xenon flash combination.

You know, just being honest, it feels crazy to put up with it all. I liken it to that unreliable friend that some of us may have, that frustrates us sometimes but you won’t get rid of her because with all of the issues, there is a redeeming quality, that you can’t find anywhere else, that draws you back, that makes you take her back one more time…and then several one more times until you realize that there is no going back (Ed. to a lesser friendship).

In my Hulk inspired rages, after 5 resets a day, in my despair of living in the U.S. without a Nokia Care center or a guarantee that my issue will be resolved, even with a valid U.S. warranty, as I gaze at the 808 and my fingers are inches away from requesting a refund and parting ways…..I remember the pictures I took of me pouring sugar and being able to see individual grains of sugar, frozen in 38MP of Xenon lit glory, I remember being able to check the price of gas from a block away by zooming in, I remember being able to hunt for noise and not find it where I normally would, I remember listening to audio recorded from seminars and it sounding just like I was there all over again and I look at my 808, cycling through the 4 or so “I just reset myself” dots and I sigh, wipe the screen, check for missed calls and messages, sigh again and move on with life. There isn’t a better mobile camera, I am stuck in a photo quality vacuum where the only way out is to go back to lesser photos, video and sound that will fill my captured moments with noise, grain, limited distance and missing audible tones.

It may sound dramatic but that is honestly how I feel. I can’t go back to the N8 and until Nokia releases an equally or better equipped camera phone, I am stuck.

To ease the pain, yes, I could limit it to 2G but that is just another sad tale within itself.

At the end of the day, my flaky, 808 is capturing incredible pictures and making dull moments look simply amazing. So much so that all that I have said has become routine and accepted, whether I would, like to or not.

Does all that I have said sound crazy? Maybe. Is it true? Definitely so. What I get from the events from the past 3-4 weeks is that Nokia has truly crafted a mobile camera marvel that is so amazing and flexible that even the worst user experience cannot prevent some users, some photo buffs from departing from their devices. If it was any other phone with regular camera, I honestly believe those of us with this issue and other issues would have returned the phone and got a refund and never looked back.

Thanks goes to Nokia’s imaging team for delivering on their camera promises and I look forward to seeing what the future of mobile imaging holds for us all. Pardon me while I check my 808 to see if I am still connected to the outside world.

Steve and all, have a great day and enjoy your devices and keep up the great work in all that you do.

 

fix1 fix2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today:

After installing the 3G Network Compatibility Fix, I have been using 3.5G exclusively for the last 3 days and have not had ANY resets, reboots, freezes, crashes or any other 3.5G related issues!!!! NO MORE HSPA+/3.5G BUG!!!!!!!!!!!!!  No more 2G, no more unreliability, no more moments of despair, frustration, disappointment, Hulk smashing, feelings of $500 worth of crashes, no more missing calls from family, friends and business partners!!!. Words cannot express the gratitude that I have towards whomever is responsible for fixing the issue, hardware or software related or not, all I know is that my 808 has been transformed to a stable device just like my previous Nokia’s, just like a phone should be.

I’m ecstatic! Anyone who has had an issue, please download the update as soon as possible and I hope it eliminates your HSPA+ bug issues as it has done for my 808. This update is available for other FP1 and FP2 devices so it is NOT exclusive to the 808. Let us know if you have the update and if it has eliminated the HSPA+ bug on your device. If you do not get the update on your device or via Nokia Suite, there are alternative methods online where you can download the sis file and install it.

Thank you Accenture, random developer, unsung hero, team equipped with 3kb can of Raid! You have changed a miserable experience into one that is so refreshing, so relieving that it makes all the past frustrations seem like a dream or a distant memory.

Sincerely,

Deaconclgi

 

Images and original article: Published by at 15:09 UTC, April 24th 2013 AAS

 

 

Video: PureView OIS in Nokia Lumia 920 vs UltraPixel HTC One

Posted: 28 Apr 2013 11:38 PM PDT

Screen Shot 2013-04-29 at 03.32.08Quick heads up on another but quite thorough comparison between the O.I.S. found on Nokia Lumia 920 and HTC One.

I’m really surprised how smooth the video is when switching from the One to the 920.

Something interesting as you might have seen before from older Nokias is how low light video is initiated by reducing the frames per second. Should that be an option for Lumias.

The conclusion is that the 920 is the best performer for auto – whip it out and you’re good to go. The reviewer is just happy that an Android is finally ‘catching up’ to Nokia (well maybe this particular one, not the 808)

The One might be better for those who like to tweak settings (like the 808 users).  You know my feelings about the UI of the camera. It’s good for point and shoot and it has improved over 7.5 BUT it still doesn’t take advantage of the screen space (it hides options in menus, like photo settings/video settings. Stupid MS. Stupid!)

JuanBagnell

Source: Reddit

 
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