lumia

Things have changed at Three UK, as it was only a few months ago that we ran the story of the carrier making the decision as to whether or not the company should continue to stock Windows Phones. The carrier was on the wagon back in 2010 with the Samsung Omnia 7, but has now been effectively pushing the Nokia Lumia 800 since its release. Should you be waiting for the Lumia 710 and be on Three, then you'll be happy to learn that the carrier is bringing Lumia 710 back.

Be sure to head on over and register your interest for updates.

Source: ThreeUK, thanks TheWeeBear for the tip!

In what has to be a great sign for Nokia (and Windows Phone), the Lumia 800 is the top selling phone at the Australian site in the last week.  And the popular Windows Phone has some stiff competition to boot, beating out the Amazon Kindle Fire, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and the iPad 2. The black, 16GB version is selling for a very reasonable $578, which is helping sales.

While reports of the Lumia 800 selling well have been coming in, they're mostly anecdotal. This information from Expansys seems to be the first, really solid evidence from a reseller that Nokia's marketing efforts are paying off and resonating with the public.

Still, the UK version of the site has the Lumia 800 at #7, which isn't too bad but obviously it can stand to gain some ground.

Source: Expansys AU; Thanks, rxsoob, for the tip!

We've witnessed the marketing power of the Nokia "The Amazing Everyday" campaign throughout Europe, and the public in New York and Paris have had the opportunity to stand in awe at the sight of a giant Windows Phone. Now it seems Nokia wishes to push its way through India, launching the Lumia 710 and 800 today, with a planned marketing campaign - and it's big.

To give an idea as to how massive this campaign will be, check out the list below:

• Impromptu dance performance in Mumbai with free food and drink.
• Luxury helicopter ride for consumers in Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Chennai.
• Exclusive premiere for pre-bookers with tennis star Sania Mirza at the Ambience Mall in Gurgaon.
• Musical event, and artificial snow zones recreated at certain PVR outlets, in Delhi.
• Toll exemption for more than 15,000 vehicles on the DND freeway, connecting Delhi and Noida.
• Salt Lake will feature a "winter wonderland" created with artificial snow in Kolkata.

As well as the above list, we'll be excited to see an "aggressive" promotion and advertising strategy being put into effect. We've already had a flash mob performance at malls in five cities, so it'll be interesting to see how the manufacturer expands on this throughout the country. The Lumia 710 and 800 can be picked up for Rs 18,999 ($360) and Rs 29,999 ($570) respectively. 

Source: India Times, Think Digit, thanks Rohit for the tip!

Nokia and T-Mobile U.S. are in full swing with their announced launch party of the Lumia 710, but what's coming up next for the Finnish Windows Phone manufacturer? Operation "Rolling Thunder", as it's internally referred to, is Nokia's plan for rolling out a number of handsets next year and aiming for multiple price points. Chris Weber, head of U.S. operations at Nokia, explained that the company will be at CES in January making a noise as they have been doing in Europe.

"We will be launching a portfolio of devices in the U.S. across a range of price points, user experience and operators. The rollouts are referred to internally as "Operation Rolling Thunder". We’ll have a very large presence [at CES] and it’ll be clear that Nokia is back in a quite strong way in the U.S."

We'll be sure to check out CES in Las Vegas to see what Nokia will be bringing to the event. The Nokia Lumia 900 is still on the list, a more powerful option for U.S. consumers, and is set to hit the states early 2012 if rumours are to be valid. Nokia has the daunting task of getting carriers on side to stock their Windows Phones. Battling hard against the iPhone and a plethora of Android handsets will make a successful and effective marketing campaign all that more important.

Source: Bloomberg, thanks to Baljinder for the heads up!

MonWindowsPhone has interviewed Olivier Lagréou, Product Marketing Manager at Nokia France, for some insightful answers into how the company is performing with their newly adopted platform - Windows Phone. Questions included why the Finnish manufacturer went with Microsoft's OS as opposed to the more established (and dominating) Android. Lagréou goes into explain that Android would have been almost suicidal for Nokia, who needs to push forward the brand and not be lost at sea in an ocean of OEMs and handsets. Windows Phone was the perfect match for the DNA of the manufacturer with simplicity among other strong features.

As well as talking about the company and its partnership with Microsoft, Lagréou also provided some details for when we can expect to see the magenta flavour of the Lumia 800. 

"We should be able to provide Lumia 800 in magenta (pink) for Christmas. The color is also expected soon from Orange, available online only. As for the color cyan (blue), you can already find at The Phone House."

Good news for those who are excited to match the pink handset with other valuables and accessories from your dress code. We might not be stuck with just three colours, though. The Nokia employee went on to explain that should demand and projected sale figures for more colours be strong, the company will look to produce more accents. He mentioned yellow, green, and white as examples (check the above image for more "potential" colours). Should any new colours be decided on, 2012 will be the year where the Lumia 800 gets a nice refresh.

The big question is, as always, how is the handset selling?

Responding to an inquiry via Twitter, Nokia Italy said that the Lumia 710 will be available in Italy in early 2012.  It is expected that the handset will go for around 350€ with VAT.  A recent advertising blitz in Milan coincides with the announcement, as the 710's joins its sibling, the Lumia 800, which is already available in Italy for 499€.

The Nokia Lumia 710, which has also just passed Anatel in Brazil, is a playful phone with interchangeable colored backplates.  It also sports:

• 3.7-inch TFT LCD display at 800x480 resolution
• Windows Phone 7.5 Mango
• 8GB internal storage, 512MB RAM
• Quad-band EDGE (850/900/1800/1900); quad-band 3G (850/900/1900/2100); 14.4Mbps
• 1.4 GHz Qualcomm MSM 8255 processor
• 1300 mAh battery
• 5MP rear camera with autofocus and LED flash
• Dimensions: 119 x 62.4 x 12.5 mm
• Weight: 125.5 grams
• WIfi 802.11 b/g/n
• Bluetooth 2.1
• aGPS

Source: Nokia italy; Via: Plaffo (Thanks for the tip, Antonino!)

We know next week T-Mobile and Nokia have a little shindig here in NYC going on--we'll be there for that one, so don't fret. But in the meantime, you can rest assured that yes, it is indeed for the Nokia Lumia 710.

As it turns out, the actual manual for the device that comes with the phone is now online via the FCC. Scrolling through it reveals fairly standard information, but for one, it is obvious we're dealing with the 710, due to the diagrams for the phone. More revealing though is the picture above from that manual, which clearly shows a Nokia Windows Phone with T-Mobile branding on board. Doesn't get much more definitive than that, does it?

We know everyone wants the Lumia 800 (and we don't blame you). But having played with a 710 before, combined with T-Mos network, we'll definitely be picking this guy up for daily use. But which will be better? Radar 4G or the 710?

Source: FCC; Thanks, Stephen M., for the tip!

RegHardware is hosting a poll where the first vote is for "Mobile of the Year", and the Nokia Lumia 800 (our review) is the Windows Phone entrant. The handset is up against the likes of the iPhone 4S, Blackberry Bold 9900, and Samsung Galaxy S II. So be sure to head on over and vote for the Lumia 800 along with Windows Phone for "Smartphone OS of the Year". There are also a few more questions in the poll including carrier of the year and most useful app.

Source: RegHardware, thanks Eoin for the heads up!

Dan Lyons, known across the bloggersphere for "Fake Steve Jobs", was comparing the "two best phones on the market" - the iPhone 4S and Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Lyons took both handsets for a spin, but turned out to fall for the underdog. The Nokia Lumia 800, powered by Windows Phone Mango, took the fake Steve Jobs by surprise with how great the device looks and feels, as well as the Metro UI.

"Recently I had a Nokia Lumia 800 running Windows Phone in the mix — and every time the phones rang, the Nokia was the one I picked up. The design is just really nice, and it feels great in your hand. I’m doing an interview with the head of design at Nokia next week, and I’m anxious to talk to him about the Lumia 800. It really is a gorgeous device, and the Windows interface is really fresh and different."

Not a huge deal, but interesting to see a look at two competitor handsets (and platforms) turns out to bring Microsoft on top. Head on over to Dan Lyon's blog for the full read through.

Source: RealDanLyons, via: WPSauce