Nokia

The ho-hum era of smartphones has begun

commentary Smartphones are great. But it's time to lower your expectations, because the smartphone industry has moved from an era of revolutionary improvement to a much more bland era of incremental refinement.

Progress will continue, to be sure: screens will get better, networks will get faster, prices will come down. But these days, it's just a lot harder to come up with a smartphone that makes last year's model look like an outdated relic.

This week, we'll see what Apple has in store for the next-gen iPhone. I have no doubt it will be technically impressive … Read more

Oh, no, Nokia: Another oopsie?

There are days when I want to bawl out loud. And then there are days when it's just a need for simpering tears to course slowly down my face, rolling in time to a little Enya.

This morning is a time for the latter, as a company for which I have considerable affection -- Nokia -- has admitted to further dissimulation.

You may remember that last week, as it launched its canary yellow Lumia 920 phone, the company showed a rather nice video to accompany it. It heralded the new PureView technology, which makes images just so pristine.

Sadly, … Read more

Why Nokia nixed an SD card slot for the Lumia 920

Nokia's new Lumia 920 smartphone is missing an SD card slot, but that was intentional.

Speaking with tech news site PC Pro, Nokia executive VP Kevin Shields said that a memory card slot would have ruined the clean design of the phone.

"We started with the premise that we wanted an uncompromised physical form," Shields told PC Pro. "To put an SD card slot in it would have defiled it."

The Lumia 820 comes with only 8GB of internal storage but includes a microSD card slot that can handle up to 32GB worth of data. … Read more

Nokia admits it 'simulated' Lumia camera demonstration

Nokia took the wraps off its new line of Windows Phone 8 smartphones today, along with what one would assume to be a carefully crafted media campaign to demonstrate their strengths.

One of the key features Nokia was touting was the PureView camera, which the handset maker said boosted optical image stabilization (OIS), the function that counteracts hand shake by moving the lens. Nokia even went so far as to claim its OIS was 50 percent more effective than systems in some high-end digital cameras.

But it turns out that Nokia's campaign to attract consumers was the most shaky. … Read more

Nokia gets a big Wall Street dis after latest Lumia debut

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop and his opposite number at Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, were all smiles at today's debut of new Lumia smartphones. But Wall Street's first impression was less upbeat. Investors pushed down Nokia shares more than 13 percent amid questions about the company's ability to ship the new smartphones in volume duing the all-important fourth quarter.

Ambiguous comments by Elop during his keynote at the New York announcement suggested that Nokia may miss the holiday season in a lot of markets. Elop said the new Lumias would be sold in some select markets, but didn't … Read more

Wirelessly charge your new Nokia phone via Qi technology

Look, no wires. Nokia's new Lumia 920 smartphone can be charged wirelessly thanks to its own built-in technology.

Known as Qi (pronounced chee), the wireless charging standard lets you place your phone on any compatible charger whenever it needs a boost in power. Designed in cooperation with Wireless Power Consortium co-founder ConvenientPower, Energizer unveiled the first-generation Qi Inductive Charger in 2010.

The Qi standard is now supported by a collection of carriers, service providers, and other companies striving to use the same technology to charge any supported device no matter where you are. Any phone with the right built-in … Read more

Nokia's new smartphones offer more sensitive touch screens

Ever struggled to use your smartphone's touch screen with gloves or long fingernails? A new feature in Nokia's Windows 8 smartphones should provide some relief.

Developed by touch-pad designer Synaptics, the new "Super Sensitive Touch" technology will better detect and respond to your individual touch. As such, those of you wearing gloves or sporting long fingernails will be able to tap and swipe your way through your Nokia phone touch screens without running into the usual challenges.

Nokia's new Lumia 920 and 820 will be the first recipients of Synaptics' new ClearPad Series 3 feature. … Read more

Microsoft beefs up Windows Phone 8 camera phone features

NEW YORK--At its Windows Phone 8 press event today, Nokia and Microsoft gave us more than just the Lumia 920. Microsoft Corporate Vice President Joe Belfiore also announced new camera features for Windows Phone 8 devices.

The new features aim to integrate the camera deeper into the smartphone user experience and with the operating system's social features.

Screenshots: User will now be able to snap screenshots and share them via Twitter. That's a big boost for a phone reviewer.

Flash: New flash controls for the camera will be easily accessible in the viewfinder interface.

Bing Vision: Part of … Read more

Nokia bringing wireless charging to Virgin, Coffee Bean

Nokia is taking wireless charging one step further.

Its new Lumia 920 comes with wireless charging using the Qi (pronounced "chee") standard, which is found in other products like some BlackBerry devices and third-party inductive chargers.

Nokia knows it isn't enough to integrate Qi, but that it also has to provide the ecosystem for people to use it. To that end, Nokia has partnered with Virgin Atlantic and the coffee chain Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf to begin seeding wireless charging stations in airport lounges (London's executive lounge at first) and coffee shops.

In addition, Nokia … Read more