Nokia Rolling Thunder: the Finnish company tries to conquer the USA
For all of its past successes, Nokia hasn't played an important role in the US cellphone market for a mighty long time. Having failed to make an impact on American consumers for the last few years, the company is now making the US a key target for its new Windows Phone push, and it's putting a name on the project: Rolling Thunder. The metaphor is one of a gradual progression and buildup toward a crescendo of awesome smartphones. Follow along here as we track Nokia's progress in this bold new venture.
Nokia's North American phone shipments fall flat in Q2, just 600,000 phones sold
Nokia's Rolling Thunder strategy for reconquering the US smartphone market continues to struggle after only six months. In its bleak earnings report today, Nokia revealed it shipped just 600,000 handsets in North America during its latest Q2 2012, down from 1.5 million in the same period last year. The 60 percent drop year-on-year, coupled with an identical ship rate in Q1 2012, shows that the company's risky bet on Windows Phone is still a slow starter.
Nokia's 600,000 figure encapsulates...
Nokia posts $1 billion operating loss for Q2 2012, net cash up $125 million
Nokia has just posted its Q2 2012 financial report, revealing a total operating loss of €826 million (around $1 billion). The loss was offset by large licensing royalties and a regular quarterly cheque from Microsoft, resulting in a net cash rise of €102 million (around $125 million). The Finnish company previously warned investors that its Q2 results were likely to be "similar to or below" its enormous €1.3 billion (around $1.6 billion) operating loss in the first quarter, but...
Nokia Lumia 900 drops to $49.99 on AT&T
AT&T has slashed the price of the Nokia Lumia 900 in half. From this weekend onward you'll be able to pick up the flagship Windows Phone for an upfront price of $49.99 on top of the two year contract. AT&T.com is still displaying the old price of $99.99, but it should be updated any time now. The price will also immediately apply in AT&T stores.
While the carrier has continued to support the device with new color variants and (admittedly late) firmware updates, we can't wholeheartedly...
Microsoft
Nokia's Operation Rolling Thunder starts with a whimper
Nokia's US President Chris Weber called the launch of the Lumia 710 "day one" of the company's Rolling Thunder strategy for reconquering the US smartphone market. That day came in the middle of December and has since been followed by a big showing by the Finnish phone maker at CES 2012 in early January, the launch of the Lumia 800 as a contract-free phone in February, and the recent release of the Lumia 900 as an AT&T flagship phone.
In light of all that activity, you'd hope things would be...
Lumia 900 data connectivity fix now available for download
Earlier this week Nokia admitted that AT&T's Lumia 900 was suffering from data dropouts apparently brought out by memory management issues, promising a firmware update by next Monday — but they've beat their goal, it seems, pushing the update out to Zune (for Windows) and Windows Phone Connector (for Mac) today. After the update, you should theoretically be able to connect consistently on HSPA, LTE, and Wi-FI, but don't worry: you'll still be getting your $100 bill credit for your trouble...
Mobile
Nokia confirms Lumia 900 data problem, offering exchanges and $100 credit; firmware update around April 16th
Nokia has just confirmed the data connection problems that some early buyers (and reviewers like ourselves) have seen on the Lumia 900, describing it as a "memory management" issue. That's the bad news; the good news, however, is that the company claims that it's strictly a software bug, not a hardware issue or a problem with AT&T's LTE network. New phones with updated software are apparently already on their way to stores — Nokia expects them to arrive within a couple days — and if you...
Microsoft
AT&T spending up to $150 million to make the Lumia 900 another exclusive hit?
We knew AT&T was going big for the Lumia 900 launch, but now we may know just how big. While we had previously heard something in the neighborhood of $100 million, Ad Age is reporting the company will spend as much as $150 million to promote the new handset, even more than it spent on the launch of Apple's iPhone 4. The reason for dropping so much cash on the Windows Phone device is simple — having the hugely in-demand iPhone as an exclusive offering was a massive coup for the company, and...
Mobile
Competition is king: why Nokia and Microsoft are the perfect match
Stop. Rewind 15 months. Play.
Stephen Elop sits in a Nokia boardroom, surrounded by a multinational group of execs sweating beads of anxiety. It's not exactly Downfall, but it's close. The freshman Canadian CEO is looking for answers, but all around him he finds sternly vacant faces and overdue roadmaps. Can we evolve Symbian quickly enough to make it appealing for the midrange? No. Can we build MeeGo and the Qt ecosystem up to take on the iPhone? Oh shit. No. Having already conducted...
Mobile
Nokia's Lumia 900 Times Square event with Nicki Minaj (update: it's over)
Nokia's Times Square event in New York for the launch of the Lumia 900 has begun and the surprise musical guest is Nicki Minaj. It looks like there's quite a large crowd there, possibly bigger than Nokia's London event for the Lumia 800. You can see a live feed of the concert at EarthCam right now, but we can't vouch for the sound quality (at all). In any case, given that Nokia's marketing campaign is dubbed "Rolling Thunder," we suppose it's only fitting that "Super Bass" provides the...
Mobile
Lumia 900 review
It occurred to me that the Lumia 900 review would be one of the more important critiques of a product that I write this year. For those of you who don't know the backstory here, the new LTE-equipped, AT&T-bound smartphone represents what could be the beginning of a new era for both Microsoft and its partner Nokia in the mobile race — at least in the US. The 900 is a culmination of all of Microsoft's work with Windows Phone 7 (now 7.5), and Nokia's hardware design and execution, packaged in...
Microsoft
Nokia Lumia 900 launch event in Times Square this Friday evening
Nokia's having a party for its Lumia 900 launch, and you're invited... so long as you can be in New York City's Times Square this Friday evening. Awaiting you at 7:00PM on the dot will be a "live performance with special guest," and that's about all we know for now. Still, Nokia didn't exactly hold back for its Lumia 800 launch event in London last year, and all indications are that the Lumia 900 will get even more attention — we've started to see bullish viral campaigns pop up online, and...
Mobile
Nokia uses 'Smartphone beta' website to take shots at mobile competitors
We've been expecting something big from Nokia for the American launch of the Lumia 900, and now we're seeing the beginnings of a bold strategy in the form of the Smartphone Beta Test site. At the top of the page sits a video of Saturday Night Live alum Chris Parnell waiting impatiently for a clock to tick down to April 6th, underscored by a trio of "behind the scenes" videos poking fun at the fragility and antenna issues associated with Apple's iPhone 4, and the lack of brightness on the...
Microsoft
Lumia 900 pre-orders begin at AT&T for $99.99, free for new customers
AT&T says it's going big for the launch of the Lumia 900, and if you're so inclined, you can pre-order it right now for $99.99 on a two-year contract — or, if you don't mind ordering the cyan version online only, you can grab it at WalMart for $49.99 on a two-year contract. But if you're a new customer to AT&T, you can skip out on paying for the phone completely with an online-only $100 discount. AT&T's website says that the phones will ship on April 5th, and orders placed in time will...
Microsoft
AT&T on Nokia Lumia 900 launch: 'we're going big'
AT&T's had some huge product launches in the past — the first few generations of the iPhone among them — but it looks like the April 8th release of the Nokia Lumia 900 will be its biggest yet. AT&T's Jeff Bradley told CNET that "at all levels, this is a notch above anything we've ever done." The Lumia's hype doesn't seem to be at the level of the iPhone, but both AT&T and Microsoft are bent on changing that — the $99 phone will apparently be front-and-center in AT&T stores, and most...
Nokia Lumia 900 available again for pre-order at Microsoft's retail stores with $25 downpayment
Microsoft's pre-order offer for the Nokia Lumia 900 handset has returned to its retail stores across the US. The company started pre-orders for Nokia's latest Windows Phone in early February, but pulled the offer after just a week. Like last time, $25 will secure a Lumia 900 handset ahead of its launch next month.
AT&T confirmed this week that the LTE-capable Lumia 900 will be made available on April 8th for just $99.99, a low price to pay for what is billed as a flagship device. We are...
Nokia Lumia 900 coming to AT&T on April 8th for $99.99
AT&T has confirmed that Nokia's LTE-capable Lumia 900 will be available on April 8th for $99.99, an extremely aggressive launch price for a device billed as a flagship in AT&T's line — and arguably, a flagship for Windows Phone as a whole. The date lines up with rumors late last week and puts to rest some earlier fears that the launch may be pushed out to the latter half of the month. Pre-orders kick off online and in stores this Friday, March 30th, and both colors announced back at CES —...
Mobile
Nokia Lumia 800 bundle now at Amazon for $899
Nokia's $899 Lumia 800 bundle has been available at Microsoft's brick-and-mortar stores for a month now, but it's venturing into pastures new this week. Amazon.com and Amazonwireless.com both stock Nokia's Lumia 800 "Entertainment Bundle," offering an unlocked Lumia 800, Nokia Play 360 speaker, Purity HD headset, and a Nokia Luna Bluetooth Headset for $899. The bundles are available in black or magneta (with a white speaker).
Nokia isn't officially supporting any carriers for the Lumia 800 in...
Nokia Lumia 900 rumored for release on April 8th at AT&T
Nokia's latest Lumia Windows Phone may arrive on April 8th at US AT&T stores. Announced at CES in January, Nokia had been widely expected to launch its Lumia 900 on March 18th at a $99 price point. Not SoTechy, from our forums, says the new tentative date is April 8th, claiming they work at an AT&T store in California as an assistant manager. While we can't immediately verify the claims, we have been informed separately that Microsoft Stores are expecting shipments of Lumia 900 handsets ready...
Microsoft
Microsoft withdraws Nokia Lumia 900 pre-order offer, launching soon?
Microsoft has withdrawn a pre-order offer for the Nokia Lumia 900 handset at its retail stores in the US. The company started pre-orders for Nokia's latest Windows Phone last week, but confirmed to us today that its Microsoft Store pre-order offer has now closed, offering no reason for the withdrawal.
One source, who wishes to remain anonymous, has revealed that Nokia plans to announce a launch date and pricing "shortly," although it's not clear if this is related to Microsoft's pre-order...
Microsoft
Nokia Lumia 900 now available for pre-order at Microsoft's retail stores with $25 downpayment
We're still not sure when we'll see Nokia's Lumia 900 (signs currently point to March), but if you want to ensure you'll be among the first to have it, you can pre-order the handset now at Microsoft's retail stores. We reached out to Microsoft, and it confirmed that $25 will secure Nokia's latest Windows Phone handset for you, but there wasn't any new info on how much the phone will cost in full when launch day comes around. We'll see if the rumored $99 price point and March 18th launch date...
Nokia Lumia 900 to sell for $99.99 on AT&T?
BGR is citing a "trusted source" today as saying that AT&T and Nokia plan to retail the upcoming Lumia 900 for $99.99 on contract, a number that puts it right in the thick of the carrier's typical midrange lineup. It's an aggressive price, and we might have expected $150 or even $200 on day one — granted, many of Windows Phone's specs now lag the best that Android and Apple have to offer (processor performance and screen resolution, to name a couple), but the Lumia 900 is clearly Nokia's...
Lumia 900 to be released in March, says Nokia developer newsletter
When Microsoft and Nokia announced that the Lumia 900 is coming to AT&T, the best either company would give us for a release date was in "the coming months." However, apparently the message that they need to keep things vague didn't make it to the people behind the Nokia Developer Newsletter, whose most recent edition may have pegged a March release date:
The Nokia Lumia 900 phone runs Microsoft Windows Phone 7.5. It is the biggest and fastest smartphone yet. And it will become available...
Mobile
Nokia's Lumia 710, its first Windows Phone for the US, is on sale now
It's been a long time coming, but you can finally buy a Nokia Windows Phone in the US. T-Mobile launched the Lumia 710 today in black and white for $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and with the requisite 2-year contract. We still think it's a fair price, despite the few qualms we had with the device when we reviewed it, but the forthcoming Lumia 900 puts a damper on our enthusiasm for this device a bit. However, it's not for us; it's for first-time smartphone buyers, and still seems like a...
Nokia Lumia 900 video preview
We simply can't get enough of Nokia's Lumia 900 here at CES 2012. After having a quick play with it at Digital Experience last night, we returned to Nokia's booth today for another hands-on session. Its design is unmistakably that of the N9 / Lumia 800: softly rounded sides, sternly flat top and bottom, and a single plane of glass covering the front. Nokia has moved to a 4.3-inch form factor with the Lumia 900, so it's appreciably larger than the Lumia 800, however its top and bottom bezels...
Nokia Lumia 800 coming unlocked to USA in next few months
At its final CES keynote, Microsoft has announced that the Nokia Lumia 800 is finally heading to the US. There's no carrier support — you'll be buying an unlocked handset — but it'll be available from Microsoft's stores in the coming months. This word comes straight from CEO Steve Ballmer, who also noted that the Lumia 800 and Lumia 710 will be heading to Canada with Rogers.
CES 2012
Nokia Lumia 900 LTE Windows Phone, exclusive for AT&T
Nokia's Lumia 900 LTE Windows Phone is official. We've witnessed speculation and leaks over the past few weeks, but Nokia CEO Stephen Elop unveiled the device on stage at CES 2012 today. Nokia's latest and greatest handset includes a 1.4GHz CPU, 512MB RAM, an 8-megapixel Carl Zeiss f2.2/28mm rear camera, and a 4.3-inch AMOLED display — an improvement over the Lumia 800 screen. Nokia has also added a 1-megapixel front-facing camera with an f2.4 lens, to enable video conferencing with the...
Microsoft
Nokia, Microsoft and AT&T expected to spend $100m on marketing 'Ace' Windows Phone
Nokia's high-end US Windows Phone, expected to be named next week as the Lumia 900, will reportedly launch as an AT&T hero device. We've heard rumors that the "Ace" handset will land at AT&T on March 18th, but now BetaNews claims the US operator has big plans for the Nokia Windows Phone. A $100 million marketing effort, put together by Nokia, AT&T and Microsoft, will see AT&T give prominent billing for the device across its retail store chain — something Microsoft and Windows Phone fans...
CES 2012
Nokia Lumia 900 'Ace' LTE Windows Phone details leak
Less than a week after images of Nokia's unannounced Ace LTE Windows Phone turned up in a holiday video card, new details have emerged. PocketNow reports that the new phone — codenamed Eloko — is in fact the Lumia 900, and will be sold globally as Nokia's premiere Windows Phone device. It is expected to hit AT&T on US shores in March. It will reportedly come with 512MB of RAM, an 8-megapixel camera, a 1830mAh battery, and an approximately 4.3-inch WVGA display — a substantitve upgrade...
Microsoft
Nokia Ace LTE Windows Phone potentially revealed in holiday video card
We knew Nokia was readying an LTE Windows Phone for AT&T called the Ace, and now we may have our first look at the device — thanks to a holiday video greeting. According to PocketNow, one of Microsoft's partners sent out the video, which features an image of a Nokia phone with Lumia 800 design cues, a relocated earpiece, 4G logo, and a front-facing camera. Given the presence of the camera and some changes in the bezel, it's not clear if this is the LTE variant of the 800 we first heard...
Mobile
Nokia Ace LTE Windows Phone expected to launch on AT&T in March
Paul Thurrott, a man with his finger on the Microsoft pulse, has today confirmed our intel about the HTC Radiant and Samsung Mandel LTE Windows Phones coming next year, while also adding some details about a Nokia Ace. This already rumored codename is said to represent an LTE-capable Windows Phone from Nokia that should hit the market on March 18th. Paul's information relates only to the US, but the very specific timing he cites would suggest that plans are already at an advanced stage for N...
CES 2012
Nokia eyes CES for 'Rolling Thunder' relaunch into the US
Although the Lumia 710 just launched on T-Mobile yesterday, Nokia's big push into the US market won't begin until CES kicks off in January. Chris Weber, President of Nokia North America, calls the 710 launch "Day 1 of Rolling Thunder," in reference to Nokia's internal name for its Windows Phone rollout in the US. "We will be launching a portfolio of devices in the U.S. across a range of price points, user experience and operators," says the former Microsoft employee brought into Nokia in...
Mobile
Nokia Lumia 710 for T-Mobile hands-on photos and impressions
T-Mobile couldn't keep the Nokia Lumia 710 under wraps, but it doesn't have to any longer: today, the carrier announces that Nokia's first Windows Phone for the United States will arrive on January 11th for $49.99 on contract and after a mail-in rebate. It's no Lumia 800, but does seem like a fair price for what you're getting: a 3.7-inch display, a speedy 1.4GHz processor, 512MB of RAM and 8GB of flash storage in a comfortable-to-hold frame with grippy matte surfaces. As leaked earlier today,...
Mobile
T-Mobile's Nokia Lumia 710 is official, $49.99 on January 11th
Ahead of an event taking place later today in New York City, Nokia's press site has released a full data sheet and images for T-Mobile's upcoming Lumia 710. The device is largely stock — seeing how it's Windows Phone — but there's a T-Mobile logo silkscreened toward the bottom of the front and it'll come preloaded with Nokia Drive, The Weather Channel, ESPN, Netflix, App Highlights, T-Mobile TV, My Account, Slacker Radio, and TeleNav GPS. Color choices appear to be all white and all...
Microsoft
Verizon and AT&T testing Nokia Lumia 800 with LTE, says CNET
We'd reported back on November 10th that AT&T was actively working with Nokia on a version of its well-received Lumia 800 with LTE built-in, and now CNET's hearing the same thing — along with Verizon, too, which would cover the two big up-and-coming national LTE networks the US has right now. The site points out that simply because a carrier tests a device certainly doesn't mean they're going to release it, but the rumor dovetails nicely with Verizon's previous language that LTE support...
Microsoft
Exclusive: Nokia, AT&T collaborating on Lumia 800 with LTE
We've learned from people familiar with the matter that Nokia's delayed entry into the US is partly due to the fact that it wants to attack with LTE — and that's a feature that Windows Phone 7.5 doesn't presently support. Our understanding is that Nokia might either launch with Tango — the code name for Windows Phone's next release — or with specific Mango-based code drops that include LTE functionality, but either way, AT&T figures prominently into the equation with a variant of the L...
