device

Samsung’s Windows Phone 8 strategy: take on Nokia – with recycled Android devices?

May 6, 2012 | By Liwen Guo

Samsung is apparently looking to switch up their Windows Phone game later this year by introducing several Windows Phone 8-based smartphones and Windows 8-based tablets, reports Australian website Smarthouse, adding to previous rumors that have indicated a Samsung Windows Phone 8 device based on the Galaxy S III.

The new report, which quotes a senior executive from Samsung, suggests that the company is specifically aiming at Nokia with a “very clear” strategy that includes two Windows 8 tablets with screen sizes of 11″ and 14″, and, alongside the aforementioned Galaxy S III variant, a Galaxy Note equivalent as well. At 5.3 inches and with support for a custom stylus, it’s not known yet inhowfar Windows Phone 8 is going to support these features natively or being opened for customization by OEMs.

The new Samsung Windows smartphone offering will be branded Focus and will sit alongside the Samsung Galaxy offering.

SmartHouse has been told the Company will also launch two Windows tablets and a Windows based Note offering.

Even though the report is quite bullish about Samsung’s strategy, we can’t see how recycled Galaxy Android devices, as good as they may be, can compete with Nokia’s arguably higher-quality offerings. Just looking at the current Windows Phone landscape, the Focus S, which is based on the Galaxy S II, has been virtually forgotten with all the buzz surrounding the Lumia 800, 900 and even HTC’s Titan and Radar devices.

If Samsung is really trying to make a splash with Windows Phone, they’ll have to do better than that – at least getting the “Focus” brand out of the US, as the rest-of-the-world is still stuck with the Omnia brand name. What do our readers think?

Source: Smarthouse

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Great Deal: Get an Xbox 360 with an LG Optimus 7 for only 269 Euro in Sweden

April 19, 2012 | By Surur

No, this is not an article dredged up from the archives. Swedish retailer El Giganten is getting rid of some old stock of LG Optimus 7 handsets by offering a great deal.

They are offering a free Xbox 360 Slim when you purchase a fully unlocked LG Optimus 7 for 2390 Swedish kronor, which is about 269 Euro.

The LG Optimus 7 is of course a fairly competent first generation Windows Phone with the Mango update, 16 GB of storage and a reasonable 5 megapixel camera, so this may be a good deal if you are planning to get an Xbox 360 in any case and want to dabble in Windows Phone.

See the deal here.

Via Wingadget.se

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Verizon beats Premier Partner AT&T to 8107 update roll-out

April 12, 2012 | By Surur

Verizon, who is not what one could call a friend to Windows Phone 7, has beat AT&T, Microsoft’s Windows Phone Premier Partner, to the punch in rolling out a post-Mango update.

Of course, to be fair, Verizon only had one phone to test the software on, the HTC Trophy, while AT&T has had about 8 Windows Phones on their network so far.

Either way, Verizon has finally delivered update 7740, 8107 and also a firmware update to the HTC Trophy, with users receiving toast notifications that the software is available.

Each update is being delivered as a separate Zune download, so expect to spend at least an hour in front of your PC.

Have any of our readers received the prompt? Let us know below.

Via WPCentral.com

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Verizon HTC Trophy getting the 8107 update

April 10, 2012 | By Surur

Verizon has indicated that it will be providing a software update for the venerable HTC Trophy, the only Windows Phone on their network. The device has been suffering the disappearing keyboard bug since the Mango update many months ago, and has not had any updates since.

According to Verizon’s PDF the update will:

Improved Voice Mail notifications when traveling outside the U.S.
Enhanced Cellebrite contact transfer performance.
Improvements in keyboard performance prevent keyboard from disappearing while typing.
Device is enabled with the Wireless Alerting System.
Improved device performance when downloading large software update files.
Original messages will be included when replying or forwarding an email via an Exchange 2003 server.
Improvements in text messaging performance.

All of course very welcome improvements, especially since the lone handset is expected to hold the Windows phone 7 flame high all the way until Apollo handsets hit the market later this year.

No date for the roll out has been announced yet.

Via WindowsPhoneDaily.com

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Nokia Lumia 900 – Call and Music Quality

April 7, 2012 | By andrewbares

If there’s one thing Nokia is great at, it is making a great sounding phone!

The speakers on the Lumia 900 are unparalleled. You can blast music louder than any phone I’ve used before! And the speaker doesn’t even distort when you’re at the max 30/30 volume. You’ll have no problem enjoying your music or watching a video on your phone without headphones thanks to the great speaker.

In terms of call quality, the Lumia 900 is excellent thanks to the similarly loud earpiece. The Lumia 900 is the first phone I’ve used with an earpiece speaker sufficiently loud enough so that you don’t ever struggle to hear what the other person is saying! The HTC HD7 was miserable, and the HTC Radar was a little better, but the Lumia 900 pounds out a high volume of sound at 10/10 when on a phone call.

Call quality for the person receiving the call was great…. as long as I didn’t use the speakerphone. It is decently noticeable when someone is using the Lumia 900′s speakerphone. The HTC Radar does a better job with speakerphone conversations.

Nevertheless, as long as you don’t use the speakerphone much, the Lumia 900 is the BEST phone I’ve used for call and music quality!

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Nokia Lumia 900 – Software and Battery Life Review

April 6, 2012 | By andrewbares

The highlight of Nokia devices is their exclusive apps. Are they enough to make the Lumia 900 worth it compared to the other Windows Phones?

In terms of exclusive apps, Nokia Drive is by far the main highlight. Nokia Drive is a 100% free turn-by-turn navigation app, and it works perfectly! It is nearly as accurate as a standalone GPS unit, which is incredible. Watch our hands-on with the older version of Nokia Drive if you don’t believe me. Instructions are crisp, turning prompts are well placed, and the app now supports full offline mode!

In addition, Nokia also gives you Nokia Maps (great if you’re not in the United States, because Bing Maps is apparently terrible in other countries), and Nokia Transit (a public transportation app that only works for certain cities).

Windows Phone is also an excellent operating system for most smartphone users. It’s easy to learn and does a good job of linking all your social accounts into one. If you’re new to smartphones, you should either buy a Windows Phone or an iPhone (Android would be far too complicated in my opinion). Windows Phone provides a seamlessly smooth experience without many glitches or issues.

However, not everything about Windows Phone is perfect. (Edit) Don’t get me wrong, I love WP7, but nothing is perfect! Notifications are magically gone if you don’t respond to them within a few seconds, leaving you completely in the dark never knowing what you missed. Live Tiles can be hit-and-miss, due to some of the developer restrictions (Tiles can only be updated every 30 minutes for example, so the weather won’t actually be “live”). And finally, Windows Phone is missing a number of major applications which some users may find a disappointment.

You can’t play Draw Something with your friends, despite the fact that everyone else is playing it. You can’t do transactions via Wells Fargo since they don’t have an app on WP7. And you have to actually call Dominos instead of using an app to order your pizza (an app would be easier since you can actually see everything on their menu compared to a phone call where you can’t).

Microsoft could also help to improve third-party apps, since many apps are slow to load. This could be partially due to Sliverlight (managed code) vs native code on the iPhone, but even Android apps (Java, managed) load faster! Something needs to be fixed here so that WP7 apps aren’t at a disadvantaged.

Also, the scrolling on the touchscreen is oddly slower than what it should be. ~~is sort of clunky.~~ While scrolling through the homescreen, your scroll flicks don’t register correctly and the movements feel slower than normal. The Lumia 800, 710, HTC Radar, Titan, and Samsung Focus S don’t have these issues, so I’m not sure what went wrong with the Lumia 900. It’s not as bad as the Samsung Focus Flash (that one’s scrolling was so terrible it was unusable), but the scrolling makes the Lumia 900 feel less fluid and responsive. Reader Mab664 confirmed that “the scrolling is at least 2x as slow” as his Focus.

Battery Life
It’s great! For a large phone with LTE support, the battery can last you through the day.

Overall, Nokia did a great job (minus the touchscreen) on the Lumia 900 with the excellent navigation app they created. Microsoft definitely could improve WP7, but the Lumia 900 is still a great device for most smartphone users!

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Nokia Lumia 900 – Hardware Review

April 4, 2012 | By andrewbares

The Nokia Lumia 900 is Nokia’s flagship smartphone in North America. In the United States, it runs on AT&T’s 4G LTE network and has a 1.4 GHz single core processor.

In terms of specs, the Lumia 900 isn’t any different from what we’ve seen before. It is still limited to 16 GB of storage space, and has the typical Snapdragon 1.4 GHz processor, 8 MP rear camera (Titan 2 has a 16 MP camera), and a front facing camera.

Nevertheless, Nokia differentiates themselves through stellar build quality and a gorgeous display. The ClearBlack AMOLED display looks fantastic indoors. Colors truly pop and pictures look more vibrant. However, Nokia’s claim of superior sunlight viewing falls short, with my HTC Radar being brighter and more readable outdoors.

Also, the phone is quite heavy and thick when compared to its competitors. Both the Samsung Focus S and HTC Titan are thinner, and the Samsung Focus S is quite lighter (3.9 ounces vs 5.6 ounces). It is true that the Lumia feels more durable, but it feels too large for my tastes. I must not be a true American, since I don’t believe bigger is better

The Lumia 900 also lacks the beautiful curved display that the Lumia 800 featured. The 800 was the perfect device in my opinion, and the curved display felt oh-so-wonderful when typing! The 900 is flat and boring compared to the 800. Nevertheless, the hardware build quality is just as excellent as the 800, and the Lumia 900 is still a great choice for someone looking for a larger device.

Stay tuned for our upcoming software, camera, and music/battery life reviews!

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Nokia Lumia 900 Unboxing Video

April 4, 2012 | By andrewbares

If you were wondering what it’s like to open up a brand new Lumia 900 from AT&T, watch the video embedded above! Stay tuned for our hardware review of the Lumia 900, coming very soon.

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Greek LG Optimus 7 gets firmware update with hidden WIFI and Internet Sharing

March 27, 2012 | By Surur

It seems not everyone have forgotten the first generation Windows Phones.

While AT&T has refused to update their first generation Windows Phones to bring new features such as WIFI tethering, the unlocked LG Optimus 7 has been having the update roll out for some time now.

Andreas tells us his unlocked Greek LG Optimus has just had such a firmware update, called "LG windows Phone update", which brings new radio and firmware versions.

Included in the update is the ability to access hidden WIFI networks and the ability to use WIFI internet Sharing.

Have any of our readers received this update recently, and are any more waiting for the software? Let us know below.

Thanks Andreas for the tip.

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Microsoft offering Verizon HTC Trophy free with $35 cash back

March 25, 2012 | By Surur

We expect Verizon users will be stuck with the HTC Trophy for at least the next 6 months, but this does not mean Microsoft cant help push the now venerable device.

The Microsoft store is now offering the Windows Phone 7 handset for free with free shipped both to the buyer and back if they are not satisfied, and with a $35 Visa Gift card as cash back.

This does of course come in exchange for signing up for a $59.99 contract, but then nothing is truly free these days.

Having said that, the HTC Trophy is still a great device – I use mine every day and it has helped me so far resist any urge to upgrade to a newer handset. On Verizon’s store the handset still has a 4 1/2 star rating from close to 1000 reviews, just behind the iPhone.

Read more about the deal at the Microsoft Store here.

Thanks Jeremy for the tip.

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Telus to launch Lumia 800 in Canada on March 2

February 27, 2012 | By Liwen Guo

Telus has confirmed that it is launching the Nokia Lumia 800 on March 2nd. You’ll be able to choose between black, cyan and magenta versions, though no prices are given yet. With the Lumia 900 slated to be released on Rogers sometime in Q2, Canadians will soon be able to choose between two great Nokia Windows Phones.

Source: Telus, via and image credit: MobileSyrup

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Lumia 900 gets glossy white version as well [photos]

February 27, 2012 | By Liwen Guo

The Nokia Lumia 900 is not only expanding into international markets, with one LTE-enabled version headed to Rogers in Canada and another HSPA+ version for other countries, but it is also getting the same color treatment as the Lumia 800 before: a glossy white version.

Sadly, I wasn’t able to get a reliable internet connection during the conference, but then I did at least take some nice photos and was able to handle the device. To be honest, I personally didn’t like the gloss all that much – it feels cheap, compared to the matte version, which also has more grip. Still, if you’re into that kind of thing, two more shots after the break. Continue reading →

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Nokia Lumia 805 render leaked, but is it real? (UPDATE: no, it’s fake)

February 19, 2012 | By Liwen Guo

Update: Chinese reader ?? claims in the comments that this is a fake – he says that he came up with the idea, and then someone else created this image in Photoshop. So, nothing to see here, folks!

A new image showing the Nokia Lumia 805 has leaked in a Chinese forum. The original poster there claims that the Lumia 805, which shares much of its design with the Symbian-powered Nokia X7, comes with a 3.9″ ClearBlack AMOLED display, 16 GB of internal storage, the same 1450 mAh battery as the Lumia 800, and a 12 megapixel camera with dual-LED flash.

While we can only speculate at this point, this new device, if indeed real, would most probably be introduced at the upcoming Mobile World Congress. Earlier rumors have suggested that Nokia might launch two new Windows Phones there – we can be fairly certain that an international version of the Nokia Lumia 900 is going to make the cut, which still leaves room for one other device. Another Chinese site reported the existence of a Lumia 730 last week, which is clearly positioned between the 710 and 800. However, if this 805 had a 12 megapixel camera, it would make sense for the international 900, being the flagship device, to receive one as well – which may or may not be the case.

Furthermore, even though this design doesn’t look bad and would continue the trend of recycling old Symbian models as Windows Phones (which is definitely a reasonable strategy for now), it doesn’t fit in with the design direction Nokia has been taking since the N9, Lumia 800, and 900.

What do our readers think? Is the Nokia Lumia 805 real or fake?

Source: Baidu Forums, via Pocketnow

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