So how would you like to attend a “Party” in a “special” location Cologne, Germany? Well PPCG’s has got a hunch that such invitations are being sent out – and it has to do with Microsoft and Nokia. Details were vary sprace but our own JasonFieldz has some in site to what this “party” will be about.

So Nokia has yet to officially unveil it’s Windows Phone 7 line up; but in the past month or so we have seen leaks of Nokia’s Sting Ray – which will be it’s first Windows Phone 7 Mango device. The Sting Ray has gorilla glass, polycarbonate body and a basic N9 feel to it. We always expected Nokia to release a device before 2012 so this is the first Nokia Flagship…

Nokia will more than likely try to regain confidence with it’s buyers, stockholders and general public that the move to Microsoft is the right thing to do. We have seen Nokia slip into 3rd place globally with Samsung and Apple taking the first two spots. This would be Nokia’s way of telling the World – We are Back to Play Hard Ball.

Things that we have seen about Nokia Sting Ray point that it will be a good device, solid build and yet just as fast and fluid as the previous generation phones. What do you think about this Nokia/Microsoft “special” party? I will be watching all the news channels come August 17th to give you WP7 lovers the goodies! Stay here at PPCG for your news!

Source: Mobileda

The leaked video footage shows that Nokia CEO Steven Elop revealed the company’s first Windows Phone 7 handset. Essentially a Nokia N9 looking phone bearing the code-name ‘Sea Ray’, (possibly the W8-00).

A lot of mobile news comes in the form of leaks, crafty and often blurry taken photos of upcoming devices, tweets, whispered exclusives from disgruntled employees, forum discussion, and those who just can’t resist the temptation to spread new news. It would seem as though Nokia wants us to believe that this revealing of the first Nokia Windows Phone 7 handset is also a leak. We don’t know if Stephen Elop is really so naive as to believe that no one would take a shot of one of the most highly anticipated devices of the year, at least for Windows devices. Well, we have our doubts about that. Was this just another clever way to gain some extra publicity?

Check out the leaked footage and photos below:

“This is something that’s super-confidential and we do not want to see it out in the blogosphere, wherever that is,” Elop said very seriously.

If the Sea Ray looks familiar, it’s because Nokia introduced a similar phone, the Nokia N9, earlier this week. Some differences include a dedicated hardware camera key, different LED placement and as you know, it is running Windows Phone 7 with the yet to be released Mango update. But while the N9 is based on Nokia’s MeeGo operating system, a platform that Nokia will treat as a “learning experience”. Sea Ray however, represents Nokia’s future as the company adopts Windows Phone for its’ main smartphone platform.

Nokia didn’t reveal many specs for Sea Ray, except for:

• the same 8-megapixel Carl Zeiss lens that the N9 sports
• an added side camera shutter button

We can guess Sea Ray to have, (based on N9 specs):

• processor – (more about this below)
• 3.9″ AMOLED display with 854×480 pixel resolution
• scratch-resistant curved glass
• a polycarbonate body
• 16 GB or 64 GB of storage

That last point would be a big one it seems. As so far, all Windows Phones come with either 8 GB or 16 GB of storage, which can be a deal-breaker if you listen to lots of music or watch lots of movies. It’s still unclear if Sea Ray will bring Dual Core to Windows Phones, but that is something that will come. As we do have some details from conversation with CEO of ST-Ericsson(semiconductor supplier) and Forbes late last month, stating that Nokia’s Windows Phone 7 devices will be powered by the U8500 dual-core CPU and its successors will go on to power Windows Phone 8 phones too. Windows Phone 7 devices have been exclusively powered by Qualcomm chipsets (due to Microsoft’s limiting guidelines, which were revised recently). ST-Ericsson’s CEO however says that they will be one of two chip suppliers for Nokia’s WP7 phones (he didn’t mention who the other one was). The first Nokia devices may well use the dual-core U8500 chipset, which has been seen running at 1.2GHz. Things might change by the time these devices actually come out, but they could well be the first dual-core Windows Phone 7 handsets.

The CEO also said that over the course of 2012 Nokia will release 12 Windows Phone 7 devices that will be based on future versions of the U8500 chipset. He also believes that ST-Ericsson will be a key supplier for Windows Phone 8, yep that’s 8.

So wait a minute you say. I don’t understand why Nokia chose Windows Phone as their new focus as a main platform. What happened to cause this, you ask. Many of you know, but here is a slight breakdown of some main points, just as a little refresher.
Nokia worked on a ‘hobby’ OS on the side, called Maemo. Originally it was built for Nokia’s ‘internet tablet’ line. The only phone that Maemo ever made it onto was the N900 (in late 2009), which was a device created for developers featuring top of the line specs and a shell enabled right out of the box. Maemo was a true desktop-class Linux OS originally created in 2005 and was clearly what Nokia should have been focusing on to replace Symbian all along. It wasn’t until early 2010 however that they realized this and partnered with Intel to create the MeeGo project, a fully open-source Linux-based post-PC (smartphone, tablet, TV, in-vehicle) platform for ARM and x86, essentially the successor to Maemo.

Fast forward a year, and MeeGo still is just not ready. It’s absolutely filled with worlds of potential, but it’s still a good six months to a year away from being shippable on a consumer’s device.

However, one of the biggest reasons that lead Nokia to dump Symbian in favor of Windows Phone 7 from Microsoft is to really try to win back some market share and mindshare in the U.S. But it looks like it will try out its first WP7 devices in markets where it is already strong. In the last quarter, Europe remained Nokia’s biggest market, with revenues of $2.9 billion out of a total $10 billion. Greater China was second with less than $2 billion. Currently 65 percent of all smartphone users in Europe have Nokia devices, with overall smartphone adoption at a hefty 40 percent of total mobile subscribers. In a speech at a conference in Amsterdam, a Nokia executive leaked out the fact that the first countries to see their new Windows Phone devices will be France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK.

In this latest sneak peak at the first Nokia WP7 handset, Elop also told his employees that Nokia has other Windows Phone devices in working condition, so Sea Ray may not be the only handset we’ll see from the company this year. But for Windows Phone 7 fans and users who saw the N9 and hoped for a Windows Phone version, Nokia has granted your wish.

We gotta admit, the device looks impressive.
What are your thoughts on this leak? Intentional or no?
Do you think this device will be the first dual-core Windows Phone?
Will this fresh breath of Windows Phone on Nokia handsets save this long time manufacturer?
Are you looking to get yourself one of these when they arrive stateside?

source: technet

Today Nokia announced that its annual Nokia World Conference would be held on October 26-27 in London…Leading many to the conclusion that this will be when they “kick-off” their Windows Phone 7 devices. However, there is nothing that gives us 100% truthfulness to the agenda. Right now we don’t even know who the keynote speakers will be for the 2 day event.

What is known is that Nokia World Conference has historically been where the Finnish phone maker makes big announcments. At Nokia’s N9 today Communiasia in China, CEO Stephen Elop also lent credence to earlier rumblings that WP7 devices would arrive Q4 this year. If this is in deed true then this conference in October would fit nicely for the announcement, and showing of these Windows Phone 7 devices. Plus lets not forget that Mango (Windows 7.1/7.5) is due out this same time frame. So what a better time than not for releasing something new and fruitful.

Tell me PPCGeeks – does this partnership with Microsoft + Nokia have you wondering what to come? Is a Nokia device calling your name, but the current OS is holding you back? How about a N9 with WP7 on it? Tell us below what your dream Nokia Wp7 device would be like…

Source: WPcentral

Apple delayed the launch of the Iphone for fear of it killing their iPod sales.

 When Apple was originally founded it was built to sell computers. Computers remained the company focus for over thirty years, but no longer is this the case. Apple computers have taken a backseat to the companies sales of mobile devices.

Microsoft has struggled to keep up with the changing market. And with its main competitor Apple. The new windows phone is definitely better than many of the older windows mobile devices but there is still room for improvement as I’m sure many of you that have the device would agree.

There are strong rumors that Microsoft is looking into purchasing Nokia for the nice round number of about $19 billion. While we don’t have an announcement from either Microsoft or Nokia, there is some strong evidence to back up this rumor.

The ex-Nokia chief’s vision for the company did not follow the path of being a device company but rather a transition to becoming a software  company. They did launch their own software, but it was overblown by Android and similar iOS devices. The new CEO of Nokia shares the same vision of making the switch from devices to software. Some believe that the new CEO was put into his office to assure the change would happen. When Nokia agreed in February that it would adopt the Windows Phone as its future smartphone those rumors appeared to be true.

But where will Microsoft go from here is the question on all our minds. For so long they have been the forefront runners in the PC business, can they make the switch over to focusing on being a mobile company? It will be interesting to watch this unfold. For so long Microsoft has paved the way with  their breakthroughs in technology, when it comes to computers, but their technology in the mobile area is a bit behind.

Apple broke from tradition in 2007 when they launch their series of mobile devices (the iPhone, the iPad, the iPod Touch, etc.) Now Microsoft is having to play catch up.

Will Microsoft be able to make up for their somewhat lost time and recapture their spot in leading technology? Only time will tell…

Source: BGR

The technology group Ovum is predicting that by 2016 Android will drive the smartphone market growth by double. The predictions see Android owning 38% of the market, Apple owning 17.5 and Blackberry holding 16.5%.

What is really interesting about this report is Microsoft’s very own Windows Phone 7 holding 17.2%. Way better than RIM?! Ovum is claiming that Windows Phone 7 will be the third place winner in the cell phone wars. Mostly due to the partnership that has been established with Nokia.

However, Ovum points out some potential rewards to the Nokia/Microsoft deal but also some risks. Ovum principal analyst Adam Leach states in the research release: “For Microsoft the deal provides a committed handset partner that has the potential to make Windows Phone a mainstream smartphone platform. The risk to Microsoft is that other handset makers may choose not to compete with Nokia and may turn their backs on Windows Phone.”

While we share all the small frustrations of Windows Phone 7, this report is a friendly reminder to some of the potential that it has in store for users. Who knows, if Microsoft and the carriers can get the update process down pat but if they can this looks to be something good for Microsoft! Then again, if you’re still in the not-so-smart-iverse, you can always get a T-Mobile prepaid cell phone to satisfy your woes.

Tell us PPCGeeks does this surprise you? What do you think of the idea of Windows Phone 7 being third? Is this really a shocking news fact for you, and who knows maybe they will surpass Apple and be in a number 2 spot. Really only time will tell. Tell us your opinion below keep it nice and clean though guys.

Source: wpcentral.com

Nokia has promised low-cost Windows Phone 7 smartphones “very quickly”, addressing concerns that the Microsoft OS would drive up prices of the Finnish company’s smartphone range. Nokia CEO Stephen Elop confirmed that “we have become convinced that we can do that very quickly” having revealed that one of Microsoft’s key messages throughout negotiations was that Windows Phone could readily hit “a very low price point.” Only thing is what is “Very low Cost”?

The initial response to Nokia’s decision to drop Symbian and adopt Microsoft Windows Phone has been mixed. The Finnish company’s stock dropped more than 20% and many Finnish employees unhappy with the decision took a voluntary day off when the deal was announced earlier this month.

Mobile World Congress 2011 this past week proved something of a flop for Windows Phone, with the new Android devices dominating the line-ups of most manufacturers. Nokia itself has said that the first smartphones running the platform aren’t expected until later in the year, and SlashGear is hearing that carriers are responding negatively to increasing pressure from Microsoft to promote devices.

One of the current issues is pricing, with Microsoft’s stringent minimum specifications and inflexibility on modifications leading to an expensive range of functionally very similar headsets. Broader support for chipsets other than Qualcomm’s will be one important step in that process, earlier this week, ST-Ericsson confirmed it was focusing strong on the Windows Phone platform.

So PPCGeeks, what do you think of lower costing smartphones by Nokia? What about Nokia in general? Is this move smart for both Microsoft and Nokia – that is to leverage on each other strengths? Let me know below in the comment section, who knows maybe a Microsoft Rep will stumble across this post and make wind of our feelings.

Source: SlashGear.com

Our geeks asked for it, well some of them, and now they’ve gotten what they asked for. Nokia announced this morning they have a new partnership that will make Windows Phone 7 become Nokia’s primary platform for higher end devices.  Nokia is very successful already so with these plans in store, who knows, maybe they will be the next to pass Apple.

Take a look at the quote stated this morning from Nokia’s Chief Executive below:

“Nokia and Microsoft will combine our strengths to deliver an ecosystem with unrivaled global reach and scale. Nokia is at a critical juncture, where significant change is necessary and inevitable in our journey forward.”

Basically, what they are doing is combining the biggest smartphone maker in the world (Nokia) with a software maker (Windows Phone 7) and hoping that together they can only improve from here on out. Apple is a hardware and software producer by themselves, stable and also they have enough developers for their applications. However, Windows Phone 7 is falling short for application developers so maybe by joining with Nokia they will have more luck and be able to compete with Apple. Only time will tell what improvements or failures will happen from here on out.

Was this what you wanted? Let us know what you think in the comments box below.

Source: WSJ & Gigaom

Looks Like everyone is posting their Q3 reports this week. First it was Microsoft, now HTC is reporting gigantic numbers this morning, including 3.3 BILLION in revenue. This is doubling the amount of phones shipped in 2009 to bring them to about 25 million total phones on the market! Not too bad for company who just 3 years ago went public.

On top of the news, HTC expects Android to keep going strong and yes, those huge numbers do seem to be Android related. They also seem to think WP7 will be doing well, although they had nothing significant to say on that matter. Launching five new design phones on a new OS shows their commitment though.  HTC is in position to continue to explode! They now rival Samsung for #4 maker in the world, falling behind Nokia, RIM and Apple.

HTC Says in the report:

“We believe the overall pie is still big enough to have at least three to four tier-1 players enjoy the growth momentum,” it said, adding that it saw “tremendous opportunities” for customers to be able to integrate other Microsoft services into Windows Phone 7 devices.

“HTC said that it also expects its fourth quarter gross profit margin to be around 30 percent”.

What do you think of HTC phones, knowing that HTC is primarily a Hardware developer and not into the OS themselves to much? Is there a phone that you like better that you wish HTC would learn from?   Do you think the overal pie is big enough for 4 major players or do you think something is going to come crashing down on any of them? Let us know your thoughts on best phone manufacturer and why you think that!

Source WPCentral.com and Reuters.com

ComScore, a leader in measuring the digital world, has released their latest study yesterday, which shows common trends in the US Wireless Market for the first three months of this year. According to the study, Verizon holds the most market share at 31.1%, while At&t is second with 25.2% and Sprint and T-Mobile both had around 12% each. For device manufacturers, Motorola and Samsung took the top spot with 21.9% each, then LG with 21.8, and finally RIM and Nokia with 8.3%.

They also did a study to compare how people use their phones. While actually talking on the phone wasn’t measured, the other results seemed pretty standard. 63.7% of users use SMS/MMS, 30.1% surf the web, 28.6% downloaded apps, 21.8% played games, 18.7% accessed blogs and social networking sites, and 13.2% of users used their phones to listen to music.

How do you think this compares to the latest satisfaction surveys by ChangeWave that we reported on yesterday? At&t is clearly in 2nd place for market share, and yet, according to the ChangeWave study, they have some of the most dissatisfied customers and the highest dropped call rates. Some of these results seemed to be skewed a little, as we talked about on the Podcast last night. I’ve been an At&t user for almost 2 years now, and I previously had Sprint. My customer satisfaction has been about equal for both companies and my dropped call rates have been about the same. What’s been your experience?

Source: ComScore via DSLReports

While we don’t have a big Nokia following here, the specs of this phone might amaze you. Nokia’s new flagship phone, and the first Symbian^3 device has some of the highest specs of any phone on the market today. First of all it has a 3.5″ capacitive touchscreen, which is a bit on the small side compared to most newer Windows Mobile and Android phones. The impressive specs are the 12MP wide-angle camera (with Carl Zeiss optics and a Xenon flash), HDMI outpout, 720P video capture and decoding, and Dolby Digital Plus decoding. The price is €370 without a contract.

Update: It also features 5-band WCDMA 3G support that we have not yet seen on ANY other smartphone to date. This means you can buy it and use it with either AT&T or T-Mobile here in the US and get 3G data speeds.

• 3.5 inch 640×360 capacitive touchscreen display
• Symbian^3 OS with Qt 4.6.2 support
• Bluetooth 3.0
• 802.11 b/g/n WiFi
• HDMI port
• Internal 16GB memory and microSD card for up to 32GB more memory
• 12 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and Xenon flash and 720p capture capability
• Both a FM transmitter and a FM radio
• Integrated GPS with free Ovi Maps navigation
• 1200 mAh NON-REPLACEABLE battery (seems a bit low for this device)
• 5 colors in aluminum casing
• Dimensions: 4.47 x 2.32 x 0.51 inches and 4.76 ounces

Source: MobileTechWorld

Apps, apps, apps! With Google’s recent announcement that the Android Market has reached 38,000 applications, I decided to find out how many applications are in each of the major smartphone app stores. Remember that these figures are only for the number of applications in the official application store and do not include the total number of applications for a platform.

With no surprise, Apple leads the count with just shy of 160,000 applications at last count, while the aforementioned Android Market has 38,000. Claming a distant third in this size-only contest is Blackberry’s App World, which has 6531. Symbian is fourth with just over 3400 apps while following behind in fifth is the Palm App Catalog with 2169 applications. Falling dead last is Windows Marketplace For Mobile, with only 840 approved applications. For posterity sakes, the morbid Palm OS App Store has 2393 applications.

If the non-approved applications were to be included, my best estimate is that Apple would still be leading, with Android, Windows Mobile and Symbian vying for second place, and the rest of the field falling well back. It will be interesting to see if Apple can maintain this gargantuan lead as Android’s growth has been absolutely torrid. Also, will the paltry number of 840 increase to several thousand with the looming Windows Phone 7 launch later this year? Only time will tell!

Please note that for the Microsoft, Blackberry and Palm OS figures, I used a calculator to add up the total as they each give a break down of how many applications are in each genre, but not the total amount of approved applications. Also, as these stats are not officially given by the various companies, they are what I have found to be the most reliable count.

Special thanks to Mr. X, Mikee4fun, and psycho_maniac for helping with this post. Image from thewebsquad.com.

By making the OS open source, they’re hoping it can compete further with the iPhone and Android, which is also open source. The source code should be available later today on the Symbian Foundation’s website. They hope this move will also help increase the production of 3rd party apps and improve security of the OS.

Source: GSMArena