6 Survival Tips for Nokia and Microsoft

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announce their companies' partnership. Photo courtesy Nokia.

Nokia on Friday announced it was putting the decade-old Symbian operating system to rest, and future Nokia phones will ship with Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 software.
The decision will be famously remembered as the time Nokia jumped off what its CEO called a “burning platform” to reverse the company’s downward spiral in the phone market.

Nokia’s Top Smartphones

Nokia dominates the world of feature phones: the cheap, basic, low-end handsets used around the world. In fact, the Nokia 1100 is the world’s most popular phone ever, with 250 million sold since its launch in 2003.
But the company is no slouch when it comes to their smartphones, which often have stunning design and a rich complement of features. With the right OS, these phones would rock.
Nokia N8
The N8 delivers most of what we’ve come to expect from a flagship smartphone: a bright touchscreen, 12-megapixel camera, video recording, sleek design and a host of ports. Too bad no U.S. carrier offers it.
Nokia E73
For those who prefer their phones with QWERTY keyboards and tiny screens, the E73 offers plenty: Wi-Fi, GPS, 5-megapixel camera, and Adobe Flash support. (Take that, Apple fanboys!)
Nokia N97
The N97 exemplifies Nokia’s ability to cram everything you might want into a single device: 3.2-inch touchscreen, slide-out keyboard, GPS and even an FM transmitter.
Nokia 5230 Nuron
Nokia’s Nuron is available in the U.S. from T-Mobile, which pitches it as a smartphone with multimedia, gaming and GPS chops. You can get it for free with a 2-year contract.
Nokia N900
More “mobile computer” than smartphone, the N900 has a small but devoted following. It runs Maemo, Nokia’s first attempt to create a brand-new OS. The company now plans to make the next version, MeeGo, totally open source. But maybe the N900’s successor, the N9, will use Windows Phone 7 instead. We can hope.
–Dylan Tweney

It was a radical but necessary move for Nokia. Although the company is still the world’s top seller of phones, its market share is rapidly declining in the wake of more modern handsets offered by Google and Apple, which are iterating and expanding their mobile platforms at blazing speeds.
“Nokia and Microsoft will combine our strengths to deliver an ecosystem with unrivaled global reach and scale,” said Stephen Elop, Nokia’s CEO. “It’s now a three-horse race.”
The benefits are obvious: Nokia gets brand-new phone software to replace the broken, outdated Symbian OS. And Microsoft, which has seen only tepid Windows Phone 7 sales so far, gets the huge springboard offered by Nokia and its enormous customer base.
But if executed poorly, the new partnership will be a fruitless effort to catch up: a failure for both companies.
“Out of the fire and into the water,” said Michael Gartenberg, a Gartner analyst. “Now what? Next step is to get out of the frigid waters before the sharks eat you.”
Both Nokia and Microsoft have their work cut out for them. Here’s what they have to do if they ever hope to stand a chance.

Ship a Product, Fast

Nokia said 2011 and 2012 would be “transition” years, in which Symbian will gradually be phased out, and it won’t be until 2012 that a large number of Nokia Windows phones will ship.
That seems too late. By 2012, Apple and Google will probably be shipping devices with substantially more powerful processors and features than the phones we’re familiar with today.
If Nokia and Microsoft hope to catch up, they have to ship sooner.
“They have to ship,” Gartenberg said. “That’s what it’s all going to come down to. The market is moving at such a rate and pace that they’ve got to execute against this very, very quickly.”

Differentiate

Not only do Microsoft and Nokia have to ship fast, they have to ship a compelling product that stands out from the rest of the phones licensing Windows Phone 7, along with the huge crop of Android devices, not to mention Apple’s iPhone.
Manufacturers shipping Android devices continue to make their hardware stand out with muscular features such as dual-core processors and even dual screens. What will Microsoft and Nokia do to compete? They’ll probably have to offer several hardware variations — something Nokia’s pretty good at — and Windows Phone 7 needs some exclusive killer apps.

Cultivate Developers

In the past week, many Symbian programmers and fans have expressed outrage over the switch to Windows. It’s like their world has fallen apart, and they feel betrayed.
“That’s it! After 15 years using Nokia, it’s time to move on,” a commenter posted on The Nokia Blog. “I will go for Android. Sorry Nokia, it is my long- and short-term strategy from now on. I don’t believe one single word of what Nokia says anymore.”
That’s not good: the Nokia developer community was instrumental to Nokia’s early success. Nokia and Microsoft will have to exert every effort to retain and recruit programmers to make apps for the Nokia Windows Phone platform. They need to treat programmers like gods.
It’s a good sign already that Microsoft has been extremely amicable with Windows Phone 7 developers, handing them free phones and even t-shirts whenever they get involved. They should extend that effort to Symbian and Nokia developers.

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Android Apps Soon to be Available on BlackBerry PlayBook

You like the look of the BlackBerry PlayBook, but the obvious lack of apps concerns you? Worry no longer as reports suggest that the QNX platform tablet could be compatible with several hundreds of Android apps.
A Bloomberg report states, Research In Motion will offer an Android app experience on its 9.7-inch screen, but without the implementation of Google’s Java software, Dalvik.
In order to get Android apps working on the QNX system, there will need to be an alternative Java virtual machine on board. Should this happen, then the appeal of the PlayBook will increase ten-folds.
If Android apps are thrown into the PlayBook equation, then it will resolve the user’s concerns of  BlackBerry’s App World that fails to compete with the likes of the Apple App Store or Google’s Android Market.
It will be interesting to see what Google has to say about this. 

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With Gingerbread-Powered Neo and Pro, Sony Ericsson Expands Xperia Brand

The days where the Nexus S was the sole Android 2.3 smartphone are over, as Sony Ericsson has announced two new Xperia devices: the Neo and the Pro. Both pack 3.7-inch WVGA (854×480) displays, 1GHz Snapdragon processors, 2MP front-facing cameras, 8MP rear counterparts, Bravia graphics engines, and Android 3.0 aka Gingerbread-based software, with the Pro adding a slide-out QWERTY keyboard to the mix. Additionally, the pair of smartphones will feature HDMI ports and Exmor R technology, which improves photo quality.
Sound good, eh? The Neo will be available “globally in selected markets” starting at the end of Q1, while the Pro will launch at the end of Q2.

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Motorola Droid X2 Leaked: Packing Tegra 2, Still With MOTOBLUR

Just as with the original Droid, Motorola is planning to follow up the Droid X with an even more powerful device, a superphone on the same level as the Bionic. Although it looks virtually the same as its predecessor, there are a few noteworthy changes:

• 1 GHz dual core Tegra 2 processor
• 4.3″ qHD (960 x 540) display
• 8-megapixel rear camera
• Android 2.2 (Froyo) with new version of MOTOBLUR
• 1 GB RAM

Unfortunately, not everything is upgraded: the bootloader is still locked, which makes the possibility of a more open Atrix/Droid Bionic a little less likely. The phone will also be lacking 4G LTE connectivity.
It is expected to launch in Q2 of 2011, so hopefully Motorola will have it running on Gingerbread by then, even if buried under that updated version of MOTOBLUR.

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Plixi Releases Official Android App

Heard of Plixi (TweetPhoto ) – picture-sharing service heavily aimed at social networking users? Acccording to Alexa, it’s the 372^nd most popular site in the world. Even though its popularity remains undisputed, but millions of users shared their media to Plixi via 3rd party apps, until recently.
The company announced the official Plixi Android app, dedicated 100% to uploading photos from your Android devices and sharing them with your social graph. Geo-tagging is built-in, so you wouldn’t have to wonder exactly where you are headed.
The app is quite simple and won’t blow anyone’s mind, but if you are a fan of Plixi, give it a try.

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Microsoft Kinect hacked for Android compatibility

The details are scant on this hack with the geek behind the deed not offering up any details on how he managed to get the Kinect working on the Android platform. Still the feat is impressive and it’s turning out that the Kinect is a very hackable device indeed.


The video below shows the guy running the Kinect on the Android device he is using featuring the Armadillo brand and the Kinect is reading depth information. The Kinect doesn’t appear to do anything at this point other than read the data and show the video it is seeing on the screen of the tablet.

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Motorola Pro Android smartphone breaks cover at MWC 2011

Motorola is making some announcements at MWC 2011 already and the first new device that the company is trotting out at the show is the Motorola Pro. The smartphone is aimed at the business user, but I would image that some consumers will find the Android offering appealing as well.


The smartphone will land in Europe to start with. It runs Android 2.2 and has a 1GHz processor with 2GB of internal memory. The memory can be expanded with SD cards up to 32GB. The smartphone can also act as a 3G mobile hotspot with support for five other devices via WiFi. The Pro also has a dedicated QWERTY keyboard and ships with QuickOffice pre-loaded and has full email support.
The screen is 3.1-inches and is multi-touch with support for Flash player 10.1. The camera on the phone is a 5MP unit with auto focus and dual LED flash. The phone can be integrated into corporate VPN networks with security add ons like AuthenTec IPSec multi-threaded VPN integrated, remote wipe of the CD card and device, and complex password support along with encryption of the SD card. Check out the video of the Pro below for more detail.

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Motorola Xoom heads to Europe

Motorola has announced at MWC 2011 that the Xoom tablet that has been anticipated in the US will be heading to Europe as well. The tablet will hit Europe starting in Q2 2011 and will run Android 3.0 Honeycomb. The tablet was first spied at CES 2011. The Xoom is packed with features that should add up to a very powerful tablet.


The machine uses a 1GHz dual-core processor and has a 10.1-inch screen. That screen has HD resolution of 1280 x 800. The Xoom also has HDMI output and has a 5MP rear camera for 720p video recording, a 2MP front camera, and a lot more.
The tablet has up to 10 hours of video playback per charge and has integrated speakers for listening to music and video. The tablet also has an integrated gyroscope, barometer, e-compass, accelerometer, and adaptive lighting. European pricing is unknown at this time.

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YouTube 3D On LG Optimus 3D Provides 3D Content Gateway

Hours before their official Mobile World Congress Press Conference, LG issued a press release teasing their Optimus 3D and Optimus Pad (G-Slate) with a content partnership between themselves and Google. According to LG, their 3D consumer devices solve two huge problems with the 3D experience: limited mobility and the need for special glasses.

I’d argue that the lack of 3D content is an equally large problem and the Optimus 3D seems to solve that as well since it can both record and play 3D videos directly from the device. As with any Android smartphone, you can upload your 3D videos directly to YouTube to share with others and allow them to enjoy.
It was unclear how LG and Google customized YouTube 3D to fit the needs of the device. On the most basic level, I’m sure there is a quick filter button that allows you to browse through all content or only 3D content. I’d be excited to see a higher level of customization and integration, with quality 3D content from sponsors included and highlighted.
We won’t have to wait too long to find out as LG’s press conference is at 11am today (Monday), Barcelona time. Below find the full press release, make sure you check back for further details and hands on the device!

LG AND YOUTUBE PARTNER TO BRING THE
FULL 3D EXPERIENCE TO MOBILE DEVICES
LG and YouTube Are Bringing A New Era of True 3D Mobile Experience
Barcelona, Feb. 14, 2011 — LG Electronics (LG) and YouTube are taking a major step forward today by announcing a partnership to provide a unique 3D mobile experience to users. LG’s upcoming Android-powered premium smartphones will enable users not only to capture and view 3D videos without glasses, but also to upload and share them instantly with others via YouTube.
"The Optimus 3D is LG’s newest flagship smartphone. It is our answer to two major pain points of the current 3D experience – limited mobility and specialized glasses. Furthermore, our partnership with YouTube will ensure that our customers can easily generate and access ample 3D content," said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company.
The new partnership is part of a broader push into 3D entertainment by LG and the world’s largest online video community. YouTube and LG collaborated to enable the delivery and sharing of 3D video onto mobile devices in a way that makes it simple and easy for consumers.
"3D technology has traditionally been reserved for the major Hollywood movie studios," said Francsico Varela, Head of YouTube Platform Partnerships"With the new LG Optimus 3D anyone anywhere in the world can shoot 3D videos, upload them to YouTube and share them with their friends. We’re excited to see the creative videos our community captures and shares with this new technology."
Powered by a unique "Tri-Dual" Configuration — dual-core, simultaneous dual-channel and dual-memory, LG’s advanced Optimus 3D will be unveiled at the 2011 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and will be the first mobile device capable of providing the YouTube 3D experience. The Android-powered Optimus 3D will be available globally starting in Europe early in the second quarter of 2011.
For more information, visit the LG stand at 8B178 in Hall 8 at Mobile World Congress in Fira de Barcelona from February 14 to 17 or go to the online newsroom at www.lgnewsroom.com/MWC2011.

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