Nokia Unveils N97 3G HSDPA Mobile Phone

Nokia unveiled the Nokia N97, the world's most advanced mobile computer, which will transform the way people connect to the Internet and to each other.

After the iPhone shakened up the cellphone market, celllphone manufacturers are desperately trying to create an iPhone killer.

Nokia too announced the Nokia N97 to compete in this space and here are the features:

* 3.5″ Wide Screen (16:9)
* Symbian
* WiFi and HSDPA
* A-GPS
* 3.5 mm standard headphone jack.
* MicroSD slot.
* 5 Megapixel Camera with Carl Zeiss lens.
* 32GB onboard memory, expandable to 48 MB.

Unlike the iPhone, Nokia is following a lot of standards, which is plus. Read more!

Nokia Going for Linux Instead of Android

After unveiling the very impressive N97, Nokia Vice President of markets units, Ukko Lappalainen, made several comments that brought to our attention the fact that the Finnish manufacturer was thinking of using the Linux OS for its more expensive, upcoming smartphones.

“In the longer perspective, Linux will become a serious alternative for our high-end phones,” said Lappalainen in what can only be deemed his most relevant statement in this sense.

Such a development may become a reality also because of the fact that Google has now developed a Linux-based Android platform. This may be one of the solutions that Nokia will be employing, although more realistic is the theory that the world's biggest mobile phone maker could be developing its own Linux system for its smartphones. This theory rings true mainly because the potential clients of this kind of smartphones are very demanding, their needs being a bit special, so it’s understandable if Nokia didn't want to take too many risks in this respect.

Also, the Linux maemo operating system found on the niche line of Internet tablets has been performing quite well, and is seemingly in conformity with the demands of Nokia's presidents in all aspects. As Lappalinen stated, “I don’t see anything in Android which would make it better than Linux maemo.”

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Nokia Launches Mobile Wallet Phone

Handset giant Nokia introduced the Nokia 6212 classic, a new 3G handset featuring integrated Near Field Communication (NFC) technologies enabling users to share content and access services as well as conduct payments and ticketing transactions.

According to Nokia, travel tickets may be charged over the air, eliminating waits at service counters--users can securely store their credit card info on the 6212 classic and access accounts directly from the handset. A single tap on an NFC-enabled tag also enables users to receive new content like weblinks, audio files or contact data--they may also activate profiles and open applications including FM radio or web browsing. Photos and videos may be easily shared by tapping another NFC-capable phone and pairing with a Bluetooth NFC-enabled device. The Nokia 6212 classic is expected to start shipping in the third quarter in selected European and Asian markets. Read more!

WiBree Forum Merges With Bluetooth SIG

Bluetooth SIG, the consortium behind the Bluetooth wireless standard announced Tuesday that the Wibree Forum, the group specifying the Nokia developed ultra low power wireless technology, will be merged with the Bluetooth SIG.

The technology, called Wibree, opens up the possibility of a host of small wearable gadgets, like watches, heart rate monitors, pedometers and pill boxes that communicate with Bluetooth-equipped cell phones or computers. A watch could display the user's incoming text messages, for instance, or an action figure toy could sense the presence of other toys.

“By including or referencing other wireless technologies like ultra wideband for high speed applications, near field communication (NFC) for association and now Wibree for ultra low power applications under the well-established Bluetooth profiles, we are opening up a host of new applications and functionality while keeping the user experience consistent,” said Michael Foley, Ph.D., executive director, Bluetooth SIG. “Our members have been asking for an ultra low power Bluetooth solution. With Nokia’s innovative development and contribution to the Bluetooth specification with Wibree, we will be able to deliver this in approximately one year.”

Wibree has a lower data rate and much lower power consumption than Bluetooth, which is in widespread use as the interface between cell phones and wireless headsets. That means smaller batteries that don't have to be charged often, unlike Bluetooth headsets.

“The development work for Wibree began when we discovered a series of interesting new use scenarios that no current local connectivity solution was addressing. Now we are happy new market opportunities and space to innovate for the industry,” said Jarkko Sairanen, Vice President of Corporate Strategy for Nokia. “Including Wibree within an existing forum will ensure interoperability and its wide and fast adoption. The Bluetooth SIG is the optimal new home for Wibree.”

The decision by the Bluetooth SIG to embrace Wibree validates Nokia's technology, but it also means the Finnish company is giving away the results of a multiyear development effort as Wibree will now be licensed royalty-free.
Certainly this sounds like a good move for the gadget users, lets wait for a while and see how it goes further.
Leave a comment about your opinion..
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Nokia Introduces S60 Widgets

Nokia announced that it will include widget support in S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2, which means that users will be able to further personalize their mobile Internet experience and customize which content appears on their handsets, such as live weather updates.

This opens up exciting possibilities for Web developers to create innovative applications and services for mobile devices. Web technologies help and promote the rapid development of applications for mobile. Developers can now leverage the same skills, technologies, and tools used for creating Web pages to develop widgets for mobile devices.

S60 on Symbian OS, will be complemented with Web Run-Time, a Web application development environment, enabling the development of widgets and integrated Web applications for mobile devices with familiar standards-based Web technologies, such as Ajax, JavaScript, CSS and HTML.

S60, the popular smartphone platform is the first to add the full HTML browsing experience to millions of S60 mobile devices is now also the first mobile phone platform to give a this functionality which allows the developers to create new innovative widgets and also migrate existing widgets from the desktop to S60 with minimal effort.

"Mobility will change the Internet as people are able to access and create information specific to place, time and context," said Tero Ojanperä, Chief Technology Officer, Nokia. "Widgets are an important milestone in this development. Introducing widget support for S60, much of the innovation seen on the Internet today is being brought to the mobile space for the benefit of the millions of S60 mobile device users".

Press Release

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Nokia, Samsung to Cooperate on For Mobile TV Interoperability

Handset makers Samsung and Nokia announced their plans to collaborate on mobile TV interoperability among their respective DVB-H-enabled devices and the open standards-based Nokia network services system. Samsung and Nokia will work together to develop open OMA BCAST standard-based solutions targeted for operators deploying multi-vendor mobile TV services and trials.
The deployment of mobile TV services will offer new business opportunities for companies across the value chain, including content and broadcast companies, mobile service providers, infrastructure and handset manufacturers, and technology providers. The availability of interoperable DVB-H enabled devices and services is a key factor in further opening up the market.

Nokia warmly welcomes the collaboration in accelerating the adoption of DVB-H based mobile TV services to the market. We see that the OMA BCAST standard is essential in launching mobile TV services on a global scale," says Harri Mannisto, Director, Multimedia, Nokia. "Further, the well-defined service and content protection profiles within the OMA BCAST standard such as the already now available OMA DRM, provides the ideal path towards standardized solutions enabling a coherent and open market for successful worldwide mobile TV deployments."

Within DVB-H technology, Samsung has already commercialized handsets based on the CBMS OSF standard, and will develop the OMA BCAST standard-based mobile TV handset," said Samsung senior VP Kwang Suk Hyun in a prepared statement. "Its inclusion in our product portfolios will enhance our customers' flexibility in choosing suitable standards based on their business models."

DVB-H is an effective technology for deploying broadcast mobile TV among the many digital technologies available to deliver mobile TV services. DVB-H technology offers high service level quality, low battery consumption and offers the end-user the ability to simultaneously receive broadcasts while using other mobile services such as telephony and internet access on their device.

In parallel to supporting mobile operators launching mobile TV services based on existing technologies in their networks, Samsung and Nokia are both active in ongoing standardization and technology development to optimize the broadcast mobile TV experience. The companies will work on interoperability efforts using the open OMA standard while continuing to participate in industry-wide interoperability efforts within the related standardization bodies.

Source

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Nokia announces platforms to connect advertisers and media publishers with mobile

Nokia announced two mobile advertising services. Nokia Ad Service is a fully managed service for advertisers to conduct targeted advertising on mobile services and applications. Nokia Ad Service consists of a group of mobile publishers forming a mobile ad network and a platform to deploy, manage and optimize mobile advertising campaigns. Nokia also introduced Nokia Advertising Connector, a private label service for third party Publishers and Advertising Aggregators that want to extend to relevant mobile advertising.
According to Nokia, Nokia Advertising Connector operates as an intelligent switch, selecting between text, visual, audio and video ads - depending on the user's context - and feeding the ad to the device.
The Nokia Ad Service is designed to support and manage the complete ad campaign lifecycle, including planning, deploying and reporting. According to Nokia, the service targets advertisers launching global mobile campaigns, agencies expanding into mobile advertising alongside traditional media initiatives, and publishers exploring new business models and larger consumer audiences.
Nokia Ad Service is now available in Europe and will roll out globally in the second half of 2007. "Mobile advertising is becoming an increasingly attractive channel for brands," said director of Nokia Ad Service Tom Henriksson in a prepared statement. "We have completed a number of pilot campaigns with advertisers and mobile publishers for testing the Nokia ad serving technology and consumer experience. The feedback has been very positive from all parties."

For more info read the release Read more!