Nokia To Bring Tethering To Lumia 800 Windows Phone

Nokia recently announced its first Windows Phone devices, the Nokia Lumia 710 and the Nokia Lumia 800, the Lumia 800 will go on sale in Europe later this month, and it looks like Nokia will be releasing a software update to add new features to their flagship Windows Phone.

According to the guys over at Win Rumors the update for the Nokia Lumia 800 will ad the ability for WiFi tethering, and you will be able to connect other devices to it, a feature which is available in other Windows 7.5 devices. “Microsoft takes very seriously meeting (and exceeding) the requirements outlined by agencies such as the FCC in the USA. They felt it was really important to fully address the concerns raised by recent FCC regulations before enabling this feature and are optimistic they can deliver on these requirements though a software update and are working diligently on that now. There are no details as yet.

More information's:
http://www.winrumors.com/nokia-working-on-lumia-800-software-update-to-enable-internet-sharing/

Nokia Lumia 800 - first hands-on video:

Nokia N9 dissection reveals what makes MeeGo tick

The MeeGo-running Nokia N9 is a unique device – even without a viable ecosystem, it managed to get a very warm welcome by the tech community and deservedly so. The MeeGo interface is a breath of fresh air in a mobile space overcrowded with me-too devices. But the Nokia N9 captivates not only with software, but with hardware as well. The polycarbonate body nests a gorgeous 3.9-inch Super AMOLED display, but underneath it is where all the magic happens.

But what if something goes wrong and you need a repair? The Nokia N9 isn't the easiest device to disassemble, but it's not the hardest either. The video below details the process showing you the steps one by one. Now, even with this kind of instruction it's easy to overlook something, so we'd definitely recommend you going to a repair center if you're not completely confident in your skills.

If you are, though, the teardown video is an excellent helper. It's in Russian, but that shouldn't stop you from looking as everything here is pretty visual, so take a look below to see for yourselves.

Nokia axes plans for the 600

Nokia has abruptly decided to cancel all plans for the unreleased Symbian Belle powered 600 saying that they have decided not to ship it to markets after careful consideration.

The Nokia 600 appeared to be a mid-range offering set to launch as an alternative to the Finnish manufacturers upcoming Windows Phone devices. The 600 features a 3.2-inch capacitive display and is powered by a single-core 1GHz processor and 512MB of RAM. Around the back of the smartphone is a 5 megapixel camera that can record video in 720p HD. However, now that it has been cancelled even before it’s never seen the light of day that camera will never be put to use.

In a statement issued by Nokia in regards to the cancellation of the 600 this is what they had to say:

After careful consideration we have decided not to ship the Nokia 600 to markets, we are constantly continuing to refine our portfolio to bring consumers the best possible range of devices to meet their diverse needs.

The axing of the Nokia 600 comes only a week after they pulled the covers off of the Lumia 710 and Lumia 800 Windows Phone handsets. Nokia wasn’t clear if the overall response of the two new devices led to the 600’s unfortunate demise. Nokia appears ready to go all in with Windows Phone and might even make Symbian a thing of the past. Tell us what you think.

Mystery solved - Nokia Maps will appear for other Windows Phones, but without free voice navigation

That mysterious Nokia Maps app that appeared on the Windows Phone Marketplace not long ago? It turns out that it will indeed be available for download on other Windows Phones than Nokia's Lumia line, and in the coming weeks to boot. Thus Nokia is making good on its promise to make the fruits of its multibillion NAVTEQ acquisition for free to other WP manufacturers in order to help boost the ecosystem.

The catch? It won't feature the free voice-guided offline navigation that Nokia is keeping exclusively for its Lumia line, like the 800 and 710 phones, in the form of a preinstalled app called Drive. Nokia Maps for Windows Phone will feature local POI details (address, phone number, reviews, and photos of up to 25 locations in your vicinity), deep link support, where you can pin destinations to the Start screen, and detailed maps in satellite, 2D, and 3D views (where available).

It doesn't come as a huge surprise that Nokia wants to keep its main differentiator in the Windows Phone world for itself, but Nokia Maps is also a pretty useful piece of software, which will benefit others for free, so no complaints. The best part is that it covers most countries worldwide, so it can fill the huge blank spots that Bing Maps leaves behind.

Nokia's Lumia Windows Phones – was it worth the wait?

No, it wasn't! Okay, okay, we're just kidding here. It's been quite a bit of a wait since Nokia announced that it's adopting Windows Phone as its main platform back in February, but we've finally been treated to the very first fruits of this new partnership. At Nokia World 2011 this week, the still largest cell phone manufacturer by volume in the world introduced its first Windows Phone-based smartphones, namely the Nokia Lumia 800 and Lumia 710. Thankfully, the more interesting of the two, the Lumia 800, will start shipping as soon as next month, but after all the waiting to see an actual device, we can't help but wonder – are the Lumia Windows Phones good enough to help Nokia reestablish its brand as a premium phone manufacturer in today's landscape?

First of all, we should note that the announcement event was very interesting, one of the most impressive ones we've seen recently. It's obvious that the people in charge of preparations have given it a lot of thought – all speakers were flawless, while a number of surprises managed to really excite the spirits in the hall – like, for example, the unexpected video link with a Finnish Nokia factory, where they showed how they package a Nokia Lumia 800 and ready it for shipment. And it seems all of this fuss wasn't in vain, as the new Nokia handsets do look pretty nice, especially the Lumia 800 and its fancy design. However, now that the dust has settled, we want to think about how relevant the new products are, and whether or not the wait was worth it.

To know more click here.

Nokia Drive demonstration on the Nokia Lumia 800

Not surprisingly, one of the beautiful things about owning an Android powered smartphone is that handset owners are treated to free turn-by-turn navigation with Google Maps – and it helps that the experience has been refined with each update. On the other hand, Windows Phone users have been starving for something similar on their end to perfectly round out the experience.

Thankfully, Nokia’s upcoming beauties in the Lumia 710 and 800, have something called Nokia Drive, which essentially brings that deep navigational experience that Windows Phone users desperately desire. Specific only to Nokia’s Windows Phone smartphones, the application is a full-fledged navigational app that offers free voice guidance instructions to get you to your destination. Indeed, it offers all of the essentials we typically find with other similar apps, like satellite and night views, but what’s nice is that it also combines 3D maps as well – but it’s only limited to major cities and landmarks.

Nevertheless, it’s shaping up to be a tasteful offering for Windows Phone users since you can even download maps by country or region – thus, enabling you to still get directions offline. So yeah, rather than living with the Bing Maps experience, Nokia Drive fully satisfies those navigational desires that longtime users have been demanding. Check out the demonstration of Nokia Drive we managed to see running on the recently announced Nokia Lumia 800.

A sneak peek at a Nokia factory reveals the making of the Nokia N9

The Nokia N9 is the underdog, the abandoned MeeGo kid and that alone gives it a special place in our minds, but it’s also brilliant in terms of hardware design with its solid polycarbonate body coming in a variety of colors, its convex, pillow-like screen and no buttons on the front whatsoever. How did Nokia achieve this?

Espoo has posted a video dedicated to the manufacturing process for the Nokia N9 from what looks like its Salo factory in Finland and it’s amazing to see the attention to detail and careful execution of the process. Of course, it’s robotized for the most part, but assemblying the chips is done by people as well as fitting the screen. Interestingly, it seems that Nokia phones destined for Europe are made in Finland, while those shipping to the rest of the world are assembled in China.

For a look at all those curious little details about the manufacturing of the handset, check out the video below, but feel free to also visit our in-depth review of the Nokia N9.

Good news! Your cell phone (might) not give you cancer!

Good news, everyone! A study in Denmark has shown that whether you use a cell phone or not, you're equally as likely to develop cancer. Wait a minute, let's brighten that up so as not to depress our readership. A study in Denmark has shown that using a cell phone won't give you cancer!

The study, by the Danish Center for Cancer and Epidemiology, was conducted over the course of 18 years, using a group of 358,403 mobile phone users. It found 356 gliomas (a type of brain cancer) and 846 cancers of the central nervous system, which lands in the same incidence rate as those who didn't use mobile phones. Even in the group of super users (those with a mobile for 13+ years) the rate was no higher for cancer.

Despite this and other studies which have come to similar conclusions, the World Health Organization has categorized cell phones along with coffee in the category of items with which a link to cancer could neither be proved or disproved. So, we can rest a little easier knowing that it's looking less likely that cell phones will give us cancer, though it's still probably best to use a hands-free device when driving.

source: BBC

Nokia Sabre pictured for posterity, could appear at Nokia World

While the Nokia SeaRay will be displayed next week at Nokia World, it looks like it won't be the only Windows Phone Mango flavored smartphone that the Finnish based manufacturer will show off at the conference. A leaked photo of a prototype of the Nokia Sabre has been obtained by Pocketnow.

The device is expected to have a 1.4GHz processor under the hood, along with 1GB of RAM. The WVGA display measures 3.5 inches and there is a 5MP camera on back. Pocketnow's source says to expect the device to sell for $410-$480. Oh, if you're concerned that the device doesn't show the three typical buttons for Windows Phone devices, well you can chalk that up to the person taking the picture who apparently has been taking lessons from Mr. Blurrycam.

While it would seem that Nokia will possibly have a pair of Windows Phone Mango devices to display at Nokia World, there actually could be more. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says that Nokia will show off a "bunch" of phones at the conference using Microsoft's mobile OS while Andy Lees, president of Microsoft's Windows Phone Division, says to expect a "wide range" of handsets from Nokia.

Nokia Sea Ray was once a MeeGo device for Verizon

If you aren’t yet over Nokia’s abrupt decision to put an end to the MeeGo project then you might not like knowing that the smartphone codenamed the Sea Ray was once a CDMA device bound for Verizon with MeeGo on-board.

The Nokia Sea Ray is a device rumored to be heading to AT&T and will be one of the Finnish manufacturer’s first handsets to feature the Windows Phone operating system. Recently some press photos surfaced of the Sea Ray which is also known as the Nokia 800. The hardware looks very similar to the MeeGo powered N9 that unfortunately won’t see the light of day in most countries.

It is unclear if the Sea Ray for Verizon was a variation of the N9 or not. It is possible that it was an entirely different device from the N9 and the Windows Phone version of the Sea Ray. If in fact it was the same Sea Ray that will likely be announced at the Nokia World event, then it would have featured a 3-7-inch or a 3.9-inch display and could have possibly been powered by a single-core 1.4GHz processor. The processor in the N9 was clocked at 1GHz.

Knowing that there were plans for MeeGo devices in the states is kind of depressing. There was a lot of potential with MeeGo that most of us will never get to see. Sure, it is getting replaced by Tizen which is backed by both Samsung and Intel, but it just isn’t the same. Had a MeeGo device arrived on Verizon would any of you considered picking one up instead of the iPhone 4S or one of the many worthy Android smartphones? Tell us what you think.

Nokia seeks to market its new Windows Phone powered handsets to the youth of the world

With a brand name that no longer has the cache in cell phones that it used to have, Nokia says it plans on focusing the marketing of its new Windows Phone powered smartphones, at the youth of the world. John Nichols, head of Nokia's marketing in the U.K. and Ireland said that while the Finnish based firm already has a huge following among the young, it needs to make sure it has the partnerships and content that would appeal to teenagers.

Nichols hints that Nokia is going to go all out to force its way into the teen market. The executive said, "As a teenager, the brands I loved had an opinion and told me whether to engage with them or not. The trick is to remember to not just wade in; otherwise our personality could look like the drunken uncle dancing at the wedding." And with an 80 million GBP ($126 million USD) budget to work with in the U.K. and Ireland, it certainly sounds like Nokia is going all in to reach what Nichols calls the next generation of mobile phone buyers.

Nokia recently shook hands with U.K. X-Factor boy band One Direction to create a phone personalized by the group with added screensavers and ringtones. And instead of using the usual media to advertise, Nokia plans on making use of social media which it considers as a great way to reach the youth market. Nokia's new marketing strategy will be revealed on October 26th at Nokia World. In the U.K., Nokia trails only Apple in smartphone marketshare with an 18.6% slice of the market compared to Apple's 26.2%.

Besides trying to gain marketshare, Nokia needs to rid itself of the red ink that it spilled in the second quarter, the last period for which earnings are available. During that period, Nokia had a net loss of $521 USD as the company relied too much on sales of lower priced featurephones which carry a lower margin than smartphones.

Nokia N800 Windows Phone leaked in ads

Details are still thin on the ground, but promotional materials for the first Nokia Windows phone, going by the name of the Nokia N800, suggest a launch is imminent.

Pocket Now has the first ads for the phone, presumed to be the handset once known as Sea Ray and leaked as far back as June. With Nokia World just a few weeks away, general opinion is that the N800 will be the headline act when it comes to new product.

Sadly, the ads, aside from a name change and a nice colour shot, don't tell us a great deal. They seems to be pushing the handset as some kind of everyday companion. The second advert, however, does give details of the camera, which is said to be an 8-megapixel model. It also claims that the phone will have a button on the side so that photos can be 'easily tagged, shared with your groups or social networks and sorted into an album in seconds'. We suspect this is one of a series of ads, showing how complex-sounding mobile tasks can be undertaken with the minimum of effort.

If that sounds like your kind of thing, there shouldn't be long to wait for the launch. When it actually hits the shelves is another thing altogether. Nokia does have a track record of long delays between the two.

Nokia launches NFC Hub microsite

Nokia has announced the launch of its new NFC (near field communications) microsite as part of its drive to help the mass adoption of the contactless technology.

The manufacturer hopes that the new NFC Hub will enable businesses to develop NFC campaigns that help ‘drive engagement with customers’.

Nokia will offer NFC enabled marketing materials in an attempt to persuade consumers to interact with their brand or business in a more innovative way.

Businesses can also use the NFC Hub back office tools to re-programme and update web links whenever necessary to support multiple campaigns.

The firm hopes to benefit from brand tie ups by running out-of-home campaigns, giving away NFC-enabled smart business cards, stickers, posters. It will also provide full back-end management capability and statistics on overall usage, cost free.

Nokia UK and Ireland head of services sales and marketing Rupert Englander said: ‘Nokia is making it quick and easy for businesses to adopt NFC, helping them develop consumer experiences that allow them to get ahead of the curve. NFC Hub makes it simple for companies of any size to bring NFC into their business without the need for any technical knowledge.’

The service has already been adopted by Huddlebuy, which offers group deals for small businesses. Huddlebuy.co.uk co-founder Chieu Cao said: ‘We want to provide our community of small businesses and start-ups with great products and services to help them save money and grow. The NFC stickers from Nokia and Fuelmywebsite have been really popular. Our users can see the value in connecting with their customers in this new way.’

Nokia's Afforable cellphone X2-05

Experience the elegance in a simple look and sober performance with the current Nokia X2-05. Nokia X2-05 carries simple but sober qualities with a view of meeting the demands of average community with a modern touch. Nokia X2-05 delivers 64MB internal memory that is expandable by a Micro SD card slot, VGA card slot

The Nokia X2-05 is a music-centered bar, packing a really powerful speaker. According to Nokia the perceived loudness of that one is 106 phons. An FM radio with a support for recording and a VGA camera are the other multimedia features of the phone.

At 87.8g, the Nokia X2-05 87.8g is even lighter than the C2-05, despite the larger screen. Much like its sibling though, the X2-05 packs a MicroSD card slot, dual-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, Bluetooth and microUSB port.

Available in Black, Silver, White and Bright Red, the Nokia X2-05 will also ship in Q4 and is expected to cost around €46 before taxes.