Nokia | Fone Arena

World’s smallest dual axis OIS gyroscope for smartphones introduced by InvenSense

If the Nokia Lumia 920 and the HTC One are anything to go by then optical image stabilization are all set to become standard features in smartphones over the next year or two. The deterrent so far has been the size of the MEMS gyroscopes which don’t allow ultra slim phones. InvenSense intends to change by introducing the world’s smallest dual axis gyroscope for optical image stabilization in smartphones

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Controversial HDR microphone removed from HTC One’s spec sheet

We’d previously reported on Nokia having tried to get a ban on HTC One sales in the Netherlands due to the use of their proprietary HAAC microphone technology. The high amplitude microphone allows the user to get a clear recording without any clipping in case of extremely loud audio.The blame has been placed on ST Microelectronics who did not have the permission to license out the microphones till February of 2014. HTC has however removed the dual membrane microphone from its spec sheets and is working on their own technology to integrate it into the One.

The company maintains that all current devices are equipped with the mic and this will not affect sales. In addition, HTC will continue to integrate STM microphones in the One until it exhausts the supplies in its warehouse. HTC has issues a statement on the matter and we’ve included it below for your perusal. Continue reading “Controversial HDR microphone removed from HTC One’s spec sheet”

Pelican Imaging , Lytro-like camera technology coming to Smartphones in 2014

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If you follow the tech scene closely , you must have heard about these slightly expensive cameras sold in the name of Lytro. The main highlight of Lytro cameras is the ability to focus objects in the picture after you have clicked the picture. One company Pelican Imaging based in Mountain View, California ( yes the same town as Google) is working on array camera technology for mobile devices.And we might see one of the first devices with such technology debut in 2014 which is not that far away. Users always struggle to get the focus right on both cameras and mobile devices and a technology which promises Click now , focus later will be a a great solution and a feature to boast on your mobile phone. Continue reading “Pelican Imaging , Lytro-like camera technology coming to Smartphones in 2014”

Smartphones outship Feature phones for the first time ever – IDC

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International Data Corporation(IDC), the market research firm that usually outs numbers for the mobile phone market every quarter has something new to say this quarter. According to them, the first quarter of 2013 has been the first time ever in the history of the mobile phone market that the Smartphones have outshipped feature phones. The whole worldwide mobile phone market seems to have grown 4% this quarter. Samsung still remains the leader in the mobile phone market dominating sales in both smartphones as well as feature phones.

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Nokia teases new Asha devices, to be launched on April 24th

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It has been a while since Nokia launched new devices in its Asha range of low to mid range priced mobile phones. Last time we saw cheap phones from Nokia was at the Mobile World Congress in which they announced the Nokia 301 and the Nokia 105, which were surprisingly not part of the Asha range. It was not surprising to think that may be Nokia is going for full touch for its Asha brand exclusively, especially with the success for devices like the Asha 311. With Android devices completely eroding Nokia’s marketshare at the low end, they desperately need a refresh, and the above image suggests that Nokia will be gearing up for a new wave of Asha devices starting April 24th.

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Nokia ships 5.6 million Lumia smartphones in Q1 2013

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As part of its quarterly earnings report, Nokia has revealed its device shipments for the 1st quarter of 2013. Reporting an operating loss of $150 million, the Finnish smartphone manufacturer has declared 30% lower shipments. This can be attributed to increasing competition and sales in upper segments of smartphones. Continue reading “Nokia ships 5.6 million Lumia smartphones in Q1 2013”

Nokia Lumia 520 Review

For users looking at smartphones in the budget segment, clunky and underpowered Android phones have been the only option till now. Sure, Nokia had a few Windows Phone 7 devices too but the OS was half baked and it was pretty hard to recommend them to users.

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While Nokia has primarily pushed its Asha range or the older Lumia 510 in the budget segment, the launch of the Lumia 520 at Mobile World Congress means that they now have a solid smartphone contender in the category. Great hardware and an OS that is finally worthy of being called a smartphone OS means that the Nokia Lumia 520 is a solid contender in the budget segment. Does it stand a chance against the barrage of cheap Chinese rebranded smartphones ? Read on to find out. Continue reading “Nokia Lumia 520 Review”

Nokia Lumia 520 Unboxing

Nokia announced its new entry level smartphone, the Lumia 520, at Mobile World Congress where we spent some time with it. We’ve finally got our hands on a review unit of the same. While we put it through its paces, here’s a quick unboxing and hardware walkthrough for your perusal.

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Zinio to launch on Windows Phone as a Lumia exclusive

Zinio, the popular magazine reading application, has announced its intentions to launch on the Windows Phone 8 platform. The company declared that the application will be made available exclusively to Nokia’s Lumia range of Windows Phone handsets at launch.

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D Shivkumar, Nokia India and MEA MD, resigns

D Shivakumar, MD at Nokia India, has quit the Finnish smartphone manufacturer after an 8 year stint that began in 2006. Based out of Dubai, Shivakumar over saw operations in 90 countries including Africa, West Asia and India. Shivakumar has no intentions of being associated with mobility, telecom and FMCG once he returns to India in June.

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Wireless charging: The future or a passing fad?

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Wireless charging, much like many other technologies that find their ways into the hands of the everyday consumer has a long and unspectacular past. First attempted, at least in the public sphere, in the early 1900’s by one Nikolas Tesla, whose many brilliant ideas and even more spectacular failures (this being one of them) coloured a rather interesting period in innovation and developments for consumer-facing products. The idea was revived in the mid-2000’s by a number of independent individuals working out of MIT, Jeff Lieberman and Marin Soljacic and team. Wireless power transmission is a bit of a misnomer as wires are almost certainly involved in nearly every step of the way with the sole exception being the wire usually linking the power supply to the “sink” which is the device using the power in the first place.

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Video: Downhill Action with the Nokia Lumia 920 GoPro Chest Harness

A week ago I have received a package with something very cool inside. In the package I have a found a custom-built Nokia Lumia 920 case, made of Plexiglass, built on a GoPro chest harness. It’s probably no secret that I’m the unsportiest person in Austria, so I’ve contacted my friend Gernot Lambeck, a huge downhill biking fan. He agreed to give this a try, and so we met last weekend for some action in a nearby forest. With the OIS (Optical Image Stabiliser) built inside the Lumia 920, Nokia promises a great video experience even in difficult situations. Blasting through a forest on a bike would probably be “difficult”, and I was looking forward to see how the 920 handled the abuse.

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Nokia registers 23% drop in revenues in India

As part of its rather tumultuous transition period, Nokia has reported a decline in annual revenue from its India business for the second consecutive year. A drop of 23% has been reported resulting in annual revenues of €2,227 million. Nokia accounts this to increasing competition and currency fluctuation

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Nokia 105 Hands On

The Nokia 105 is possibly one of the most affordable phones out there in the market. Priced at just 15 Euros, it is meant for the budget conscious and first time phone buyers.

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Nokia Lumia 520 Hands On

We brought you the Nokia Lumia 520 photo gallery and having spent a bit more time with the handset, here’s our first hands on impressions of the phone. The Lumia 520 packs in 1Ghz Dual Core Qualcomm processor combined with 512MB RAM which delivers decent performance.

We didn’t face much if any lag at all though the limited amount of RAM means that you’ll be locked out of some of the high performance demanding applications on the Windows Phone app store. Continue reading “Nokia Lumia 520 Hands On”