Nokia

Windows Phone 7.8 rumored to launch this week

Microsoft will be launching its Windows Phone 7.8 upgrade on Wednesday, if rumors reported by Tonis Tech Blog today are correct.

The blog cited unnamed sources "near the subject." Meanwhile, WPCentral found some Finnish promotional materials that revealed there will be another update after the 7.8 update.

The materials also appear to shed some light on new features. The operating system will have a new start screen and more color themes to chose from, according to the translation posted to WPCentral.

CNET has contacted Microsoft for a comment and will update when we hear back, but … Read more

Nokia unwraps $62 Asha cell phones -- but not in the U.S.

Nokia has announced two new phones designed for budget-conscious and socially-networked users, although they won't be available in the United States.

Unveiled today, the Asha 205 and 206 feature phones each sell for $62. They also offer quick access to Facebook and the ability to share photos and files with users of any other mobile phone.

Both phones are slated to reach consumers by year's end. But they'll only be up for grabs in certain markets, and users in the U.S. are out of luck. Asha phones are not compatible with Microsoft's Windows Phone OS, … Read more

Nokia's soon-to-be-ex camera chief heading to car company

How does one switch from developing smartphone cameras to working on cars? Maybe it's that they both have to do with going mobile?

Damian Dinning, head of imaging and photography for Nokia for almost a decade, told mobile-photography blog PureView Club (which is, of course, focused on Nokia's PureView technology) that he's leaving the phone maker and heading to Jaguar Land Rover. Dinning said staying on at Nokia would've required a move to Finland, which wouldn't have jibed with his family situation.

PureView, you may recall, is the technology involved with Nokia's 808 PureView phone, … Read more

Nokia's Here Maps finds its way to Apple's App Store

Nokia is going all in on mapping services for iOS.

The company yesterday launched Here Maps, a free application that provides a host of features for travelers. The mapping application is powered by Navteq data, the same information used in the majority of in-car navigation systems. Users are able to view maps and get real-time traffic data on a particular area. Here Maps also includes a satellite view and the ability to save map areas for later.

To add a social flavor, Here Maps lets users create and save maps that can be accessed by others. Users can also share … Read more

Smartphone sales up 47 percent as Android increases its lead

While worldwide phone sales fell slightly during the third quarter, sales of smartphones are continuing to rise, according to new figures from Gartner.

More than 427 million phones were sold in total during the third quarter, 3 percent down on the same quarter a year ago, Gartner said, but up slightly on the 419 million devices shipped in the second quarter.

Meanwhile, smartphone sales are continuing their upward trajectory compared to feature phones -- 169 million smartphones were sold during the quarter, an increase of 47 percent year-on-year.

Samsung, Nokia and Apple remain the top three vendors by sales for … Read more

Nokia navigates new map strategy with launch of 'Here'

SAN FRANCISCO -- Nokia has put its mapping unit front and center with the introduction of its Here cloud-based location brand and platform, which was unveiled during a media event here this morning.

"Maps and location experiences should inspire us to sense our world," said Nokia president and CEO Stephen Elop, adding that the Helsinki-based corporation is now working on "creating more personal maps that change how we navigate our lives."Elop said that the "quality and quantity" of data available will enable Nokia to "transform mapping in ways we haven't even … Read more

HTC's Windows Phone 8X, Nokia Lumia 822 ship November 13

Verizon Wireless is launching not one, but two Windows Phone 8-based devices next week.

The company announced on its site today that the HTC Windows Phone 8X and the Nokia Lumia 822 will both ship on November 13.

The HTC Windows Phone 8X comes with a 4.3-inch display and 8-megapixel rear-facing camera. The device comes in the customer's choice of blue, red, or black. The handset can connect to Verizon's LTE network and comes with 16GB of onboard storage. It will retail for $199.99 with a two-year contract.

The Nokia Lumia 822 is a bit cheaper … Read more

Samsung remains No. 1 handset maker, Apple closes in on LG

Samsung and the Android operating system continued to dominate the U.S. mobile market in the third quarter, according to a study by ComScore, but Apple posted the biggest quarter-over-quarter gains.

ComScore, which surveyed more than 30,000 U.S. mobile subscribers, found Samsung to be the top handset maker (both smartphones and non-smartphones) with 26 percent market share in the September period, up a bit from the June quarter's 25.6 percent.

Apple closed in on becoming the second-biggest handset maker, lagging LG by only 0.2 percentage points. LG's hold on the market slipped 1.1 … Read more

Nokia not blocking multiple users on Android phones

Nokia says it's not preventing Google from rolling out multiuser features for phones despite a report suggesting it was playing spoiler for the latest version of Android.

Earlier this week, TechCrunch speculated that Google isn't including multiple account functionality on Android for phones because Nokia already owns the patent for that capability. Nokia has told CNET that wasn't the case.

Nokia had filed for such a patent, but it abandoned its efforts several years ago.

"Though we did indeed file the patent application which has been cited in some of the coverage, we determined some time … Read more