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FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia has served up its second Windows Phone device and the handset is almost a carbon copy of the Lumia 800 in terms of specifications.

The Lumia 710 features a 3.7in Clearblack display, a 1.4GHz single-core Qualcomm processor, 512MB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage.

The Windows Phone operating system is loaded on the handset and the mid-range price tag – free on a £20 contract – might make it an attractive buy. µ

FINNISH PHONE FIRM Nokia has announced it has sold 1.5 billion of its Series 40 mobile phones.

The company said it is one of the most important milestones in its history. The landmark phone in question is an Asha 303, purchased by Mayara Rodrigues in Brazil.

Mary McDowell, EVP for mobile phones at Nokia said, “We are incredibly proud to reach this milestone. Having 1.5 billion Series 40 devices sold is a hard-to-reach mark, let alone one attainable in a single line of products.”

The first phone to run the Basic Series 40 operating system was the Nokia 7110 way back in 1999. The firm has stuck with it ever since, despite going down the route of Symbian, Meego and Windows Phone.

Nokia claims its development over the years means that it now blurs the line between feature phones and smartphones. Phones like the Asha 303 can do smartphone type things like play Angry Birds, browse the web, and use social networks.

Nokia has sold an estimated 1.3 million units of its most recent handset, the Windows Phone 7.5 Lumia 800, since last November.

“At a time when we are maintaining our commitment to connecting the next billion customers around the world – it is gratifying to consider how Series 40 devices have made mobile technology accessible and help continue to change people’s lives for the better,” added McDowell. µ

MOBILE PHONE RETAILER The Carphone Warehouse has mistakenly announced the Lumia 900 launch date of June in the UK.

A coming soon page for Nokia’s upcoming handset was put online by the firm for customers to register their interest and tell them that it will arrive in June. It has since been taken down, presumably because Nokia wasn’t so happy about it.

We have spoken with The Carphone Warehouse, which simply told us, “The page was put online in error and has now been taken down.”

Nokia announced the Lumia 900 earlier this month at the consumer electronics show (CES) in Las Vegas. It’s effectively a bigger version of the Lumia 800, which along with the Lumia 710 has sold an estimated 1.3 million units.

We haven’t heard back from Nokia about the launch date but when it does tip up the Lumia 900 will offer a 4.3in touchscreen, an 8MP rear facing camera and Windows Phone 7.5 Mango. µ

The Nokia Lumia 800 is without a doubt one of the most interesting devices produced by the iconic Finnish smartphone manufacturer in a long while. There’s a huge amount riding on the Lumia series, which are Nokia’s first devices running Windows Phone 7.5. At the same time, we haven’t touched many Windows Phones since our initial review what seems like ages ago, but the platform has moved along, giving us an opportunity to finally take a formal look at the new things Windows Phone 7.5 brings.

Read on for the full review!

FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia is ditching its Symbian brand altogether and is renaming its latest version of the Symbian mobile operating system as Nokia Belle.

Nokia announced in its blog, “The all new Nokia Belle (previously Symbian Belle) user interface will soon be available for download to some existing smartphones and begin shipping with a selection of smartphones that are already on the market.”

What was formerly Symbian Belle was launched earlier this year with the Nokia 701, Nokia 700 and Nokia 603 smartphones.

Starting in February 2012, Nokia will release the Nokia Belle software update to existing customers, who will be able to donload it straight to their phones.

Nokia Belle brings more home screens, expanding the current three home screens on Nokia Anna to six.

Nokia has also improved the home screen widgets and made them more functional than before. µ

FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia has sent out invitations to a press event at next month’s consumer electronics show (CES).

The firm has booked a slot on 9 January at the technology show to update us on the latest Nokia news, which could include some new devices. We think it’s possible that the company will unveil the Lumia 900 that we saw leaked last month.

Colourful Metro style squares make an appearance on the invitation signifying a Windows Phone device. It’s possible, if a bit of a long shot, that Nokia will announce a tablet running Windows 8. After all, the upcoming operating system shares the Metro style interface.

The Lumia 900 would be an obvious follow on from the Lumia 800 that Nokia launched last month. No details have been leaked about the Lumia 900, which looks like a thinner version of the Lumia 800 but with a larger screen, possibly 4in or 4.3in.

The INQUIRER will have a hack in Las Vegas for CES. µ

FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia has announced that it will issue two software updates to address power efficiency issues with its Lumia 800 smartphone.

Nokia’s new flagship Windows Phone handset has been on sale for just over a week and already the firm is promising a fix for power problems. The first software update will come in December followed by another in January.

Nokia said in its support forum, “We understand that some people have expressed concerns about battery life on the Nokia Lumia 800. Early investigations show that the majority of people are enjoying the full Nokia Lumia experience without any problems. A software update in early December will include improvements to power efficiency, while a second update in early January introduces further enhancements to battery life and battery charging.”

We’ve had the smartphone in for review at The INQUIRER and we didn’t discover any problems in this area, but a quick web search reveals that a lot of customers have been encountering the issue. The trouble seems to be with the firmware rather than the physical battery, which is good for Nokia as it will avoid having to replace faulty units.

It’s not exactly what Nokia needs at the moment with its aim of scraping back market share that it has lost recently to rivals such as Samsung and Apple. An industry analyst has slashed its sales forecast for Nokia’s Lumia 800 but the company remains positive about the launch of its first Microsoft Windows Phone 7.5 smartphone. µ

FINNISH PHONE FIRM Nokia launched the Lumia 800 today but thoughts have already turned to follow-up devices and a Windows 8 tablet.

Whilst Nokia is busy hyping its launch of the Lumia 800 smartphone, news has come from France about the next versions of the device and a Windows 8 tablet.

Speaking about the Lumia 800, Paul Amsellem, head of Nokia in France told Les Echos, “It’s just the equivalent of the BMW 5 Series. We will soon have a full range with a Series 7 and Series 3.”

He also confirmed plans for a tablet on the next version of Microsoft’s operating system, saying, “And in June 2012, we will have a tablet running Windows 8.”

Likening the phone to a car isn’t common, but nevertheless he’s touting that various Lumia handsets will arrive that will be better than the Lumia 800. One of these could be the Nokia Champagne, which we heard about last week. That apparently will run Windows Phone 7.10 Tango.

Amsellem also spoke of the firm’s plans to boost its market share, saying, “More than 60 [per cent] of French people do not have smartphones and this is our target.” In France Nokia’s market share is less than 16 per cent now, compared to 25 per cent two years ago. µ

FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia has unveiled plans to reel in developers as part of its effort to increase Windows Phone market share in collaboration with its partner, Microsoft.

Nokia’s head of apps and partnerships, Keith Varty told The INQUIRER in an interview, “Now we are working in conjunction with Microsoft, the game changes. The way we reach out to developers needs to change. Microsoft has a good reputation in the developer market and we want to add to that.”

Varty said that Nokia will offer developers help with marketing, as well as getting into new markets where Nokia is strong, such as China. He said the company is working on a programme along with Microsoft to help developers translate and market their apps.

Nokia will also run UK workshops, Varty said, following a kick-off event a few weeks ago. The firm is looking to train Symbian and Nokia developers on the platform too. Varty added that Nokia is still “in the early stages” with Microsoft and “a lot lies with them, as they do the SDKs,” while Nokia will be looking at adding its services such as mapping and Nokia Music to the Windows Phone 7.5 operating system (OS).

The Windows Phone 7.5 app store has around 40,000 apps, we reckon, so Nokia and Microsoft still have some work to do before the OS catches up with Android and IOS. However, Varty said, “I don’t think we’d have any milestones but it’s not a numbers game. If we look at all the categories we have the apps in each of those. We want a mix of the popular stuff but we also want the long tail.”

Nokia and Microsoft are obviously hoping that Windows Phone will emulate the rise of Android that we’ve seen over the last year, so the pair are investing heavily. Varty said, “The investment we are making behind the platform, I’m sure we will tick that box {of growing share]. Our job is to potentially get the awareness out there.”

He added, “It’s our smartphone platform and very much our plan A and it very much hasn’t had the focus from others [manufacturers]. It’s kind of welcomed. If you talk to operators, developers and retail staff everyone really likes the platform.”

Microsoft and Nokia also want to integrate Xbox further with the Windows Phone OS. Varty said, “We want to tightly integrate more. The ambition would be to be able to stop a game on the Xbox and pick it up over the device.”

Nokia’s first Windows Phone 7.5 device, The Lumia 800 will be released on 16 November and it wouldn’t be far off to say that Nokia’s future depends on its success. When asked about sales targets for the device, Varty wasn’t inclined to say and used language we’d rather not repeat on this family web site. But it was said in fun, we think. µ

FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia’s upcoming smartphone is a cause for celebration, going by its name, Champagne.

A lot of smartphones get leaked on the internet long before they are launched or even before we hear of them from the vendors. The latest addition to the leak list is the Nokia Champagne, according to WPcentral.

Maybe the firm is planning a party over the holiday to celebrate the launch of its first Windows Phone handset, the Lumia 800, or a New Year’s blast with a follow-on device. We don’t know because Nokia has annoyingly failed to get back to us on the subject.

Information is rather limited, unlike with a lot of leaks, and all we know about the Champagne is that it was first seen on 25 October. The interesting part is that it apparently will run Windows Phone 7.10.8711, signifying that it is the Tango version of the Windows Phone operating system that will follow Windows Phone 7.5 Mango.

There are many possibilities for this handset. It might be a new device or possibly a different name for the Lumia 800, or perhaps it’s destined for a different market. We’ll be sure to let you know if we hear anything more about the Champagne. µ