Pocketables

T-Mobile to launch Nokia 710 soon?

The above picture shows off two very attractive things: Goldfrapp, one of my favorite music artists, and T-Mobile's variant of the Nokia Lumia 710. 

According to a leak, T-Mobile has been pushing its sales representatives to get customers to buy accessories for the Lumia 710, along with the device itself. This push from corporate has been ramping up the past few days, as T-Mobile recently announced a special event in New York to announce the new Windows Phone from Nokia. 

There's a possibility that there will be more than one Nokia handset introduced at that event; however, even if this is the only device to show up, it certainly will give T-Mobile a chance to gain more subscribers as the Lumia 710 would most likely be an exclusive for the carrier for quite some time. 

Past the break is a picture of some of those accessories, neatly listed out in a brochure that will be handed out to potential customers on launch day. But who cares about the accessories? This will be the first Nokia handset to come to the States since the partnership with Microsoft! I'm excited to see what else Nokia will be bringing to the table, and it looks like I won't have to wait very much longer. 

Amazon USA gets Nokia N9, is selling it for $650

Contrary to what we had heard earlier from Nokia, US citizens can now pick up a non-tariffed, USA version of the Nokia N9 for $650 from Amazon. 

Although MeeGo is basically dead, reviews for the N9 have been generally positive. Plus, $650 for an unlocked smartphone is a good deal, especially when the phone that you are buying is a good one. 

If you want to take advantage of the deal, I'd suggest that you head on over to Amazon and place your order. If you're also an Amazon Prime member, you can get it shipped to you as early as tomorrow for just $3.99. 

Then again, there are plenty of cheaper alternative smartphones that run operating systems that are still supported. Even off-contract, there are plenty of deals to be had from online retailers such as Negri Electronics. But if you're a fan of Nokia hardware and software, this is probably a deal you won't want to pass up. 

[Amazon via GottaBeMobile]

Nokia 900 Windows Phone shown off before it's officially shown off

Nokia has definitely been making use of its partnership with Microsoft lately, releasing its first two Windows Phone 7 phones, the Nokia Lumia 710 and Lumia 800. Then again, the argument could be made that Nokia isn't pushing out enough WP7 devices, being Microsoft's best friend and all. 

Thankfully, it seems that Nokia has taken a hint . . . just not officially. What you see above is, most likely, the Nokia 900. It's actually a screenshot from a video that detailed this phone, but it was subsequently set as a private video for obvious reasons. 

Since this is very similar in design to the Lumia 800, and since it has a higher number, you can expect the Lumia 900 to carry a bigger screen and possibly a better camera system. The internals won't differ much from the exisiting Nokia Windows Phones, though, since Microsoft has the internal hardware specifications locked down really tightly. 

Just like the other Nokia WP7 hardware, the Lumia 900 looks absolutely stunning. I hope that this (and Nokia's other phones) will hit US shores sometime soon. 

[My Nokia Blog]

Nokia Lumia 800 coming to AT&T with 4G LTE?

We know that Nokia is eventually going to bring its line of Windows Phones to the US, but we just didn't know when that was going to happen, or why they didn't launch here first, too. 

According to a new report from today, though, the reason for Nokia's US delay might be because Nokia wants the launch device for our market, the Lumia 800, to come equipped with AT&T's LTE 4G connectivity. 

As of right now, Windows Phone 7.5 Mango doesn't support LTE chipsets, which is why we've yet to see one on the market. Of course, Nokia does get special treatment from Microsoft and the thought here is that Nokia may choose one of two options: 1) Wait for Tango, the next release of WP7, or 2) throw in some code to make LTE chipsets compatible. 

Either way, Nokia is waiting for its stunning hardware to reach our stores for a seemingly good reason. I'm really starting to wish that I had waited for the Lumia 800 (or any other Nokia WP7 phone) because they are such incredible feats of engineering. 

I can only assume that the next generation of Windows Phones from Nokia will be even better. 

[The Verge]

 

Nokia's concept "kinetic device" bends to your every whim

Although Nokia's London event going on this week will likely not yield any stateside fruits in the form of devices, the faltering gadget maker did demonstrate a really neat prototype that may just be the future of smartphones. What was this innovation? It was what Nokia called a "kinetic device," which is flexible and can respond to bending.

You may remember that we looked at a similar prototype a few months ago, an e-ink display that could bend along with an Android version that responded to those actions. Nokia has built on and improved this concept quite significantly, as its prototype boasted not only a full color OLED display, but also a modern-looking bit of software.

This software, much like the modified Android we saw, already had a number of gestures or actions built in based on the flexible phone. For example, twisting scrolls through lists of music and contacts, bending outward or inward would zoom or zoom out, and tapping on the corners moves through fullscreen photos. 

Nokia employees at the show noted a few potential advantages of the interface, like being able to operate your phone without actually looking at it, which means you could pause your music without taking your phone out of your pocket. It could also provide more tactical feedback than standard touch interfaces, and also be used while wearing gloves. 

While the prototype is nowhere near production (Nokia made this fact clear), it is great to see flexible device technology advancing so rapidly. Just a little while ago, we had a black and white display hooked up to a circuit board that could hardly be called a device. Now we have what looks like a smartphone in someone's hand actually being used somewhat normally. At this rate, we may even see a production device in the near future.

[CNET]

Nokia may not release Windows Phones to US before 2012

Although it's quite a bummer, this move isn't completely unexpected. Nokia probably won't be bringing its new Windows Phones, like the Sea Ray and the Sabre (that you see to your right,) to the US before 2012, if a new report is to be believed.

Nokia is set to launch some new WP7 devices this week at its Nokia World conference in London, but that's the problem: it's in London. The Finnish phone mega-manufacturer has been advertising across the pond about what's coming from its partnership with Microsoft, but is allegedly still looking for a PR and advertising firm here.

Because of that, it seems that the US won't be seeing any Mango-flavored Nokia devices before year's end. What's worse is the fact that by the time Nokia's gotten around to releasing anything here, those devices will be somewhat outdated as they start arriving stateside.

Still, it's better late for beautiful hardware from one of the best phone makers in the world, right? And if what Nokia announces this week is absolutely stunning, there's still the option to import it here before the rest of us get the chance to own one.

Are you excited about what's coming from Finland?

[Neowin]

Nokia Sabre caught on camera, eating up some Mango

Given my infatuation with white devices and my relatively passionate love affair with Windows Phone 7, you can probably surmise that the Nokia Sabre, the phone you see to your left, completely blew my mind. 

Nokia World is next week. Since Nokia's partnership with Microsoft took place, the tech world (including myself) have been wondering what Espoo will push out with their newfound mobile operating system. Most of us thought that it would be the Sea Ray first, followed by countless other devices, as Nokia seems to love doing. However, a recent leak from Pocketnow seems to state otherwise, and it might just be the Sabre. 

Even with all of Nokia's troubles, it's still one of my favorite hardware companies. Its device, like the N9, are absolutely breathtaking pieces of industrial design, only held back by the lackluster software. 

Hopefully, a more modern operating system will help to make Nokia a household name once again.

[Pocketnow]

Intel resuscitates MeeGo, claims they are committed to the platform

When Nokia announced that they would be using Windows Phone 7 as their primary smartphone operating system, many wondered about the fate of their other OS, MeeGo, which they were developing in a partnership with Intel. Based on the silence of Intel and the content of Nokia's announcement, many figured the open-source OS project was dead.

Apparently, Intel has now decided that they won't let MeeGo go down without a fight. The company stated today that they "remain committed to MeeGo and open source, and will continue to work with the community to help develop and meet the needs of customers and end users." This doesn't sound like they will be putting too much effort into it, but anything is better than them letting MeeGo die. 

Before the Nokia/Windows Phone 7 deal, MeeGo was shaping up to be a very good OS. Combined with Nokia's hardware, many thought it had the potential to threaten Android and iOS. As such, many people (including me) were saddened when Nokia announced they would no longer be working on MeeGo. Even if it doesn't work out, I am glad to see that Intel is at least giving MeeGo a little bit of a chance.

[OS News]

Rumored Nokia Series 900 gives Windows Phone 7 a hardware upgrade

Windows Phone 7 is a surprisingly good modern OS, but it has been slightly hampered by average hardware. The devices have been decent, but there hasn't been any hardware that made me stop and consider a Windows Phone. Well, thanks to a leaked Nokia smartphone, that just changed.

According to the leaks, Nokia is building a device called the Nokia Series 900, also codenamed the Hydra. The S900 is purported to have a 4-inch 1280 x 720 AMOLED display, 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, 12 MP Carl Zeiss camera with shutter button, and a front facing camera. It would be released in Q1 of next year, probably with Windows Phone 7 Mango on board.

Regrettably, the only source of this information is a forum post made by an unknown member. Different people have either backed him or tried to disprove him, but it is up to you to decide if this leak is plausible. Clearly, the image to the right is a very rough draft anyone could have made, but the specifications seem to line up with other devices that will be released in the next couple quarters.

I've never been a fan of Windows Phone 7, but if this device does turn out to be real, I may have to pick it up based on hardware alone. Do you think stellar hardware is enough to bring Windows Phone 7 back to the forefront?

[GottaBeMobile]

Nokia N9 will not be coming to US

I hate to be the bearer of horrible news, but it looks like I'm here and stuck with that responsibility. Today, Nokia announced that the N9, the first and probably last smartphone from the manufacturer to run MeeGo, will not be coming to the US after all. Says Nokia itself,

"After the very positive reception to the launch of the Nokia N9, the product is now being rolled out in countries around the world. At this time we will not be making it available in the US. Nokia takes a market by market approach to product rollout, and each country makes its own decisions about which products to introduce from those available. Decisions are based on an assessment of existing and upcoming products that make up Nokia's extensive product portfolio and the best way in which to address local market opportunities."

There you have it. But unlike the other sites who just report on that quote, I want to go into depth a bit on why this might be. Remember that whole Microsoft and Nokia partnership? I think that might have something to do with existing and future Nokia hardware that isn't running Windows Phone 7. I mean, after all, Microsoft is saving Nokia's rear end with the partnership, so I think the latter company would do everything in its power to keep that partnership afloat. 

[Engadget]