nokia

Any fans of DC Comic superhero Green Arrow watching the TV series Arrow? It started up last October on the CW here in the United States and later went to international broadcasting in late 2012. It’s getting favorable reviews with critics and fans alike. Either way, they’ve recently had some in-show advertisement from Microsoft, highlight a few products from the Redmond company.

Microsoft's not the only company pushing out updates for Windows Phones, Nokia will also be introducing new software for the Lumia 920 and Lumia 820. The new version (reported as 1232.5957.1308.00xx) includes further performance and stability improvements for supported hardware, as well as enhancements to the display during a call and with automatic brightness adjustment. The Lumia 620 is also receiving some love too.

Today here in New York, Samsung finally pulled the sheet off of the Galaxy S4, their next big flagship Android phone for 2013. Due at the end of April, the phone looks almost exactly like the S3 save a few minor differences, but it’s the guts and software that make this a killer device. It will launch on a massive 327 operators in 155 countries for complete global reach.

We’ll spare you all the details of the S4, though it does feature 2GB of RAM, an eight-core Samsung Exynos 5410 running at 1.8GHz, a triple-core PowerVR SGX 544 graphics chip with a massive 2600mAh battery. Oh yeah, it also has a swanky 5” 1080P Super AMOLED display at 440 PPI and various sensors, including Infrared gesture, temperature and humidity sensors, which while gimmicky is still really neat. Finally, it sports a 13MP rear and 2MP front camera, with some new "innovations" like two-way shot.

We briefly put it up against our Nokia Lumia 920 in a video and while this is far from a controlled “versus” battle, you can at least get an idea of how Samsung’s beast looks against Nokia’s.

Trivial Pursuit is a Nokia exclusive Xbox title for Windows Phone 7 devices but was slow to make the move to Windows Phone 8. For those waiting to test their trivia skills on their Nokia Lumia 920, 820 or other Lumia Windows Phone 8 device the wait is over.

Nokia has flipped the switch and Trivial Pursuit is now available for your Windows Phone 8 Lumia device.

Pricing for the Nokia Lumia 720 has surfaced for the Russian market. The 4.3" WVGA screened Windows Phone will run 14,990 rubles. Which comes out to be about $487 U.S.

The mid-range Windows Phone 8 device will sport a 1GHz dual-core processor, 512MB RAM and 8GB of storage. You'll also find microSD support, super sensitive display technology (like on the Lumia 920) and 1.3MP front facing camera and 6.7MP rear camera.

Nokia may be set to hop onto the train to join both Apple and Microsoft in signing patent deals with Android manufacturers. Nokia has put forward two patent infringement claims against ViewSonic and it's been confirmed that both parties are willing to strike a deal. This will prove to be yet another blow to Google with a hardware partner validating Nokia's claims that its platform has IP infringement issues.

Things are starting to heat for Verizon users as more and more information is coming out about the ‘Laser’ Lumia 928, an updated version of the Lumia 920. In our forums, an employee of Verizon (‘Honestabebread’) posted that “Easter time” was the release window for this phone, and now the Verge is claiming that the phone is coming in April.

The phone will reportedly feature an aluminum body (versus the current polycarbonate) and as a result be thinner and lighter than the current 920. In addition, the flash will be upgrade to a xenon-LED flash combo. Other features include a 4.5-inch OLED display and support for simultaneous voice and LTE (SVLTE) with a look more resembling a Lumia 720 (squared) than the current 920.

The Lumia 928 passed through the FCC way back in February, meaning the device should be cleared for release soon.

George Monbiot of The Guardian has crafted an interesting piece on smartphones (and general electronics) that are constructed in the blood of people from the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Gold, tantalum, tin and tungsten have been fought over by rival armies and militias for years. The war has killed millions through displacement, disease and malnutrition.

But which of the smartphone companies today are making sure their hardware is built using minerals that are gathered through legit and conflict-free? It's believed that Nokia has done more than most manufacturers with its Windows Phone and Asha line of products, but there's still room for improvement across the board, according to Monboit's report.