nokia

Nokia Lumia 900 gets a Windows Phone 7.8 boost

At long last, Nokia Lumia 900 owners will receive an update that can make its interface look like modern Windows Phone 8 handsets -- cosmetically, anyhow.

Although the Lumia 900 and other Windows phones of its generation hit something of a dead end in software development, Microsoft's Windows Phone 7.8 update gives them the appearance, at least, of being Windows 8 phones.

OS 7.8 installs resizable widgets that let you cram or expand more-dynamic live tiles onto the home screen at will. You'll also find an expanded color palette at your disposal, and the ability to … Read more

Nokia teases global event for Thursday

Nokia has something "colorful" up its sleeve for Thursday, though the company is mum on the details.

The Finnish phone maker said Wednesday that an event is taking place in New Delhi, India, and teased it by asking if you're "ready to add some color to your week?"

A live global Webcast of the event will kick off at noon local time in New Delhi, 9:30 a.m. in Helsinki, and 7:30 a.m. in London. Nokia didn't specifically list the U.S., but the overseas times would put the Webcast at … Read more

Nokia takes on iPhone 5, Galaxy S3 in latest Lumia video

Nokia is taking the fight to Samsung and Apple in a new video posted to YouTube.

Dubbed "The Hurricane," the video follows a roller coaster going around its track as it's being filmed by Nokia's new Lumia handset, the Lumia 928, as well as by Apple's iPhone 5 and Samsung's Galaxy S3. Thanks to the handset's 8.7-megapixel PureView camera, Nokia argues, Lumia's visuals will be much better than those of its rivals when recording video.

After showing the roller coaster moving around the track, Nokia's video compares frames to those … Read more

Nokia Lumia 928 outed in Vanity Fair ad

The long-rumored Nokia Lumia 928 Windows Phone-based handset is real, and it's heading to Verizon.

Engadget on Tuesday posted an image of an ad for the Lumia 928 in the latest issue of Vanity Fair magazine. The ad shows a device being held in a person's hand as he or she captures a photo or video of a family at the beach. Verizon's logo, along with the Nokia logo, sit just above the screen.

The ad copy isn't completely legible in the Engadget photo, but clearly is promoting Nokia's PureView camera technology, the camera's … Read more

Smartphones banned? Not in this primary-school class

It's not unusual for schools to ban mobile devices during class, but it's a different story at Nan Chiau Primary School in Singapore. Here, 350 third-graders gaze and poke at Windows phones while their science teacher elaborates on their assignments for the day. The students are free to shoot photos and videos using their Nokia Lumia 710 smartphones to help them remember what they've learned.

Using an app called myDesk -- developed by undergraduates at the University of Michigan -- the students make diagrams and concept maps, as well as append text and photos to their assignments. Teachers are also able to use the app to review the work submitted and leave feedback. … Read more

Nokia to invest in array camera start-up Pelican Imaging

Nokia's VC arm, Nokia Growth Partners, is set to invest in an imaging start-up.

According to Bloomberg, Nokia Growth Partners plans to put funds into array camera company Pelican Imaging. Based in Mountain View, Calif., Pelican Imaging created its first array camera for smartphones in 2011. Rather than using a single lens, array cameras are made up of a series of lenses and build up a picture from the images taken by each. As well as being thinner than a traditional smartphone camera, arrays open up the possibility of post-capture focusing -- similar to what Lytro does with traditional … Read more

New Windows Phone ad has a laugh at Apple-Samsung fight

If you've never been to a wedding that ended in a punch-up, you really haven't lived.

There's always something so bracing in seeing people devolve to their true, animal state, drunk and flailing their fists.

Someone at Microsoft clearly has recent experience with such a thing, as the company Monday released a new ad that describes the constant spat between fanpersons of Apple and Samsung as a battle between two tribes of the insane.

We are at a wedding. Everything seems fine, until someone with a very large Galaxy phone gets in the way of someone with … Read more

Apple, Samsung's next critical play: Affordable smartphones

If Apple and Samsung want to see their stock prices rise higher, their smartphone prices will have to fall lower.

Both companies have established a dominant position in the wireless industry thanks to their buzzworthy, feature-packed, and polished flagship smartphones. The iPhone 5 and the Galaxy S3 (soon to be displaced by the Galaxy S4) reign atop the sales charts, allowing the two to control more than half the smartphone market and virtually all of the profits.

But a look at both of their most recent financial results show that dominating the high-end smartphone market is no longer enough to … Read more

Nokia schedules London Lumia event for May 14

Nokia's Lumia 920 may not be its top flagship smartphone for long. The Windows Phone handset maker announced on Thursday that it will hold a May 14 event to show off the next device in its growing Lumia line.

Nokia introduced a pair of budget Lumia phones in February at Mobile World Congress -- the Lumia 720 and Lumia 520. This time, the Finnish company stays closer to home by planning its big reveal for London.

We don't know much more about the event or the smartphone that Nokia plans to trot out, but the most popular (and … Read more

Nokia's budget Lumia 521 phone starts selling April 27 for $150

This Saturday, T-Mobile, and Nokia will start selling the Nokia Lumia 521 on the Home Shopping Network for just $150 off-contract.

April 27 buyers watching on the Home Shopping Network stations or mobile site can pick up the Windows Phone 8 device with a car charger and a screen protector.

A few weeks later on May 11, the Lumia 521 will land at Walmart and Microsoft retail stores. The Lumia 521 will also come to T-Mobile stores and the carrier's online channel, though T-Mobile hasn't shared those dates or details.

The Nokia Lumia 521 supports 4G (but not … Read more