lumia900
Latest
Lumia 900 owner vents Windows Phone 8 frustrations, Stephen Elop responds
If you've been following our Windows Phone 8 coverage today, you know that anybody who buys a Windows Phone today will not be able to upgrade to WP8 when it ships this fall. If you were an early adopter that's not such a bad deal, but if you bought a Lumia 900 oh, say, three weeks ago you might be upset -- and rightly so. And rightfully angry is Luke, who sent us an email he fired off to Nokia's Stephen Elop and AT&T's Ralph de la Vega in which he asks why he shouldn't, right now, turn around and return his phone. I just watched the Windows Phone 8 announcement and learned that the Lumia will not be upgradeable to WP8, it will more or less get a skin with the new live tiles and a few other features... at the end of the day unless one of you responds and convinces me to stay with Microsoft Windows Phone, Nokia Lumia or Att wireless I will just wash my hands of all three companies and move over to Verizon. Surprise surprise, Elop responded very promptly, stating: We have a lot of exciting capabilities coming as part of a pattern of updates for the existing Lumia products. This includes some of the most significant visual elements of WP8 – for example, the new start screen. As we have always been, Nokia is committed to delivering a long term experience to any purchasers of our products. Granted, Nokia is bringing some nice updates to current Lumias, like some Scalado-augmented photo magic, but Elop's mention of "significant visual elements" leaves us wanting. We're waiting to hear what Luke's going to do, but here's your chance to weigh in. What do you think he should do? Full emails are after the break.%Poll-75904%
Visualized: Nokia Lumia 900 running Windows Phone 7.8 (update: full eyes-on!)
It may not be the mysterious prototype Joe Belfiore showed off at today's Windows Phone Developer Summit keynote, but it's a nice treat nonetheless: we had the opportunity to sneak a peek at an AT&T-branded Nokia Lumia 900 running Windows Phone 7.8, complete with the brand new Start screen. Because it's at such early stages in the development game, we weren't able to get our own grubby hands on the device and play around with any of the highlighted features, but it was still great to see it working on a real, honest-to-goodness device. What other secrets this software holds will remain that way for now, but we can certainly look forward to an action-packed summer full of interesting revelations. Update: We were able to snap a few extra images of this very same Lumia 900, but we weren't allowed to touch the screen or interact with the software in any way, since the build we saw of Windows Phone 7.8 is just a special version highlighting the Start screen and is nowhere near final production quality. For what it's worth, we had the opportunity to view a demo of the tiles being resized, and we couldn't detect any flaws in its execution. Check out the full gallery of precious pics below! %Gallery-158769% Myriam Joire contributed to this post.
Nokia ships Lumia 900 and Reaction Bluetooth Headset in China
Based on the amount of effort poured into iOS 6 in order to tailor it for users in China, one thing's obvious: it's a nation grasping for smartphones. Apple's seeing huge, huge upticks in spending from Chinese customers, and Nokia's sure hoping it sees similar. In the midst of untold turmoil, Nokia is sprinkling in a bit of positive news this morning -- news that the Lumia 900 is now shipping in China. The 900 marks the fifth Lumia smartphone to ship in the nation of 900 million mobile phone users, with white, black and cyan versions to choose from. Outside of the basic specifications, the Chinese 900 will also come preloaded with nation-specific apps such as Sina Weibo, QQ IM, Baidu Search and Alipay. Oh, and if a phone wasn't enough, the Nokia Reaction Bluetooth Headset is also launching there today, enabling you to finally make use of that NFC module. The Lumia 900 hardware will sell for RMB 4599 ($721) in Nokia's flagship store, Nokia brand stores and the nation's "top electronics chain stores."
Go to school, get a Lumia 900: all incoming Seton Hall University freshmen to receive a Windows Phone
Granted, this'll be just one more way for upperclassmen to quickly identify the newbies, but all incoming freshmen to New Jersey's Seton Hall University will be given a Nokia Lumia 900 upon orientation, as a means to integrate technology with the school's curriculum -- quite similar to previous efforts that we've seen for the iPad and iPhone. Not to stop there, university officials hope to make the smartphone a key component of student life with the SHUmobile app and its Freshman Experience hub. Here, freshmen may interact with each other via social media and direct messaging, find peer academic advisors, learn about their future housing situation and get to know their roommates. As for mobile service, it's said that students will receive pre-paid access to AT&T through the fall semester. After that, it seems that freshman will need to pick up the bill or leverage WiFi networks to remain connected. To learn more of how SHU is thinking very differently, just hop the break for the PR.
Refresh Roundup: week of June 4th, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Mobile Miscellany: week of June 4th, 2012
Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, the LG Optimus L7 and Sony Xperia U both arrived at Fido, and Verizon Wireless unleashed some wicked LTE expansion across the US. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of June 4th, 2012.
IDC: Nokia moved just 2.2 million Lumias this winter, but stay tuned
Although we know that Nokia had a wince-inducing first quarter, the company was hush hush on how many of its Windows Phone-packing Lumias had shipped out. We still don't have official word, but IDC estimates that Nokia delivered 2.2 million of the devices to shops (not necessarily to customers) between January and March. If the total is accurate, Lumias would represent less than a fifth of the 11.9 million smartphones shipped by Espoo over the season and wouldn't have Apple or Samsung quaking in their boots just yet. The research team is careful to warn that the spring and summer will be the real litmus tests: a healthy Lumia 900 launch in the US could easily spike that number. Our one certainty is that Nokia will still have to sell a lot of 808 PureViews if it wants to keep its smartphone sales humming in the short term.
Windows RT on Snapdragon S4 hands-on and Rob Chandhok interview (update: video)
We just got a hands-on demo of Microsoft Windows RT running on Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 development tablet here at Computex 2012 in Taipei. The verdict? It's smooth as silk on a 1.5GHz dual-core APQ8060A with 2GB of RAM, which means it's likely to be even more impressive on the company's quad-core offering. We got to see SkyDrive photo sharing between a Nokia Lumia 900 and the Windows RT device, showing that both WiFi and 3G connectivity are fully supported. Ditto GPS -- with Bing Maps purring along nicely. Most interesting, however, was a demo of Vendetta Online which ran without hiccups even when multitasking along with other apps. We asked about battery life and benchmarks -- especially when comparing Windows RT to Android -- but sadly Qualcomm doesn't have any numbers to share. The company's focus is clearly on working with Microsoft to streamline the new OS for the Snapdragon platform, and from what we saw today, things are making great progress. Take a look at our gallery below and hit the break for our hands-on video and interview with Rob Chandhok, President of Qualcomm Internet Services.
Engadget's summer gear guide 2012: smartphones
In the interest of keeping cool this summer, we've put together a list of the hottest products out right now. From smartphones to e-readers and everything in between, there's no time like the present to re-up that post-spring-cleaning stash. So grab a popsicle or a cold one and dive in -- the water's just right. As you prepare for adventures with friends and fun in the sun, just remember that a great smartphone should be at the top of your gear list. Whether you're looking for travel tips, a new place to hang or even directions to get there, your smartphone will have you covered. It can help you check-in for flights, rent a car and even get great deals on places to stay. Go ahead and leave your point-and-shoot camera at home, because many of today's best smartphones excel at photography and allow you to immediately share your memories as they're captured. If you plan to travel abroad, be sure to spring for an unlocked handset to avoid those nasty roaming fees. Whatever your particular needs, our smartphone selection is geared to make your decision as painless as possible - and more importantly, ensure that you have a fun and rewarding summer. Dive in on the other side of the break.
Batman Nokia Lumia 900 priced at £600, throws in some free movie tickets
We said it was coming soon, and the Dark Knight-themed WinPho hasn't disappointed. Phones 4u has just announced that pre-ordered laser-etched Lumia 900s will be delivered on June 1st; that's this Friday. Off-contract pricing is pegged at £600, although multiple contracts are also available from the UK retailer. There doesn't appear to be any extra functionality on the special edition, although bragging rights do count for a lot. The phone will arrive in limited numbers, but neither Nokia nor Phones 4u is spilling the beans on precise unit numbers. The retailer is also throwing in free tickets to see the Dark Knight Rises at UK cinemas (or theaters) this summer, plus the chance to hit up the premiere. Pre-ordering heroes can zip-wire their way to the source link below. Update: SlashGear's been told by Phones 4u that there will be 900 of the special edition phones.
Batman-themed Nokia Lumia 900 coming soon, utility belt clip not included
A befuddled Joker once pondered "Where does he get all those wonderful toys?" Soon you'll have a chance to inspire the same sort of wonderment amongst your friends -- at least the more eagle-eyed ones. Nokia has announced it's launching a Batman-themed Nokia Lumia 900, with the minimalist logo of (spoiler alert) Bruce Wayne's alter-ego laser-etched onto the back. It's the same treatment that was given to a special edition Lumia 800 earlier and, no surprise, it'll be available exclusively in Batman's favorite color. It's also exclusive to Europe, at least initially, where it's said to be going on sale in a few weeks. Act fast and you might have yours in time to listen to Christian Bale grumble his way through the conclusion of the Dark Knight Trilogy.
Mobile Miscellany: week of May 21st, 2012
Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, it was revealed that the HTC EVO 4G LTE likely supports simultaneous voice and data connections on Sprint's network, Samsung's Galaxy Ace 2 landed at Three in the UK and Vertu revealed a refresh to its Constellation series of luxury phones. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of May 21st, 2012.
Nokia Lumia 900 Camera Extension app previewed in Hong Kong (video)
You're looking at Camera Extension: a new app for the Lumia 900 that, er, extends the phone's camera function by adding burst, timer and panorama modes plus, most notably, a smart group shot feature. The latter takes five pictures in five seconds, then cuts out the heads and lets you swap 'em out in the same way that BB 10's Timeline Lens (amongst others) works. Will the app bring you out in goofy smiles? Find out in the video after the break, where WeLoveWindowsPhone.hk gives it a go.
Nokia uses Lumia 900 as a hammer in a torture test, makes us wince (video)
As much as we're familiar with mobile device torture tests, they're normally inflicted by us or otherwise not-so-voluntary. Nokia, however, has stepped up to the plate and doled out the abuse to the Lumia 900 itself with a hammer and nail, all based on a wager that the Windows Phone's use of Gorilla Glass would hold up to Sonim-level punishment. The company's Chris Ruble and Mike Meyers (not that Mike Myers) used a Lumia 710 as a dry run before an on-camera demo that not only saw the 900 assaulted with the hammer, but used as a blunt instrument itself -- all without a crack or scratch. We imagine that other toughened-glass phones would survive the hit, and there's every possibility that smacking the polycarbonate plastic would leave more than a scuff mark. Nokia's test still proves that its pride and joy can withstand more than just a casual roughing up, and you can see the slightly cringe-inducing test in the video below.
Refresh Roundup: week of May 7th, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
It's not your imagination: Nokia promises fix for purple hue problem seen on some Lumia 900 screens
We didn't notice any purple screen niggles during our Lumia 900 review. For some users, however, the purple hue issue is real and not so spectacular. If you're one of those hapless souls seeing purple on your Lumia phone, Nokia recently tweeted that it will release a software fix for the issue -- though it declined to provide details on when the update will drop. For the uninitiated, the purple screen problem reportedly occurs when automatic brightness is turned off and the display is set to "low." The good news for Nokia is that the issue apparently hasn't prevented folks from gobbling up the Lumia 900. "What if I'm seeing blue instead of purple," you ask? Uh, you might wanna see a doctor for that, buddy.
Nokia City Lens augmented reality browser hands-on (video)
It warms the heart to see Nokia's Beta-Labs delivering goods we actually want on our handsets -- and even more so when we really want the handsets themselves. Espoo's revered Lumia line has been treated to a new toy and it costs not one red cent: Nokia City Lens. Using an augmented reality browser, the user is offered a virtual view through walls and buildings of various points near you that can be browsed by categories such as food, nearby, sights or searched for with text. Better still, searching for AT&T WiFi will find access points nearby and all you then need to do is hoof it in the direction shown by the small icon on the display. Sound neat? We agree. Follow the break to see a video of it all in action, then take your Lumia-owning self on over to Beta-Labs to grab a copy.
Samsung Galaxy S III vs. rival flagships: iPhone 4S, HTC One X, Lumia 900
Oh yes, it's a good time to go shopping for a smartphone, particularly if you've acquired a taste for an abundance of pixels and silicon cores. But which phones ought to be considered flagships worthy of comparison with the shiny new GS III? Yes, we're including the Lumia 900 in this context, for the sake of platform neutrality and also in recognition of the fact that raw specs don't count for everything -- but we can't overlook that this handset is sorely lacking in terms of ppi and some other areas. The next two choices are more obvious: the eternal (or infernal) iPhone 4S and AT&T's version of the HTC One X. So here it is: one table to rule them all, right after the break.
Refresh Roundup: week of April 23rd, 2012
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Mobile Miscellany: week of April 23rd, 2012
Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, we learned that ZTE intends to release a phablet of its own, and Samsung unseated Nokia as the world's largest supplier of mobile phones. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of April 23rd, 2012.
