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When we heard about Mansel Kersey’s plans, we knew we had to get involved. Such an ambitious venture needed some support, and we have sent Mansel a Nokia package to both record the key highlights and keep the team entertained along the way. We caught up with Mansel to find out more…
Hi Mansel – you’re taking a Lumia 820 and JBL Play Up speakers on an adventure! Can you tell us a little about what you’ll be using them for on your Snow Leopard travels?
The Snow Leopard Award is summiting five 7000m peaks in the former Soviet Union in 2014, and our preparation for it will involve a lot of travel in the UK and abroad. Having the Lumia 820 and JBL Play Up speakers will keep us connected with the world. The handset will be our main communications hub so it’s a vital piece of kit to us, and the Nokia Lumia 820 fulfils the requirements exceptionally well – having a little extra volume will help the expedition rock.
(For progress on the preparation and attempt, you can visit www.onfireadventure.com)
Have you taken any photos yet? What do you think of the camera?
The camera is a very capable piece of kit sporting a Carl Zeiss with some pretty neat technology. Some of the great features are the Lenses (Smart Shoot is a favourite), its ability to produce good quality shots in low light/shade, a physical shutter button – which makes a great change from jabbing at the screen. Shooting video is capable of producing quality sound and vision. Plus you have the option of backing up to your Skydrive automatically or to your SD card.
You’re used to using an iPhone – have you noticed any significant differences coming to the Lumia 820?
The design makes it stand out, the SD storage is so useful, its awesome screen, and great camera. Plus the battery life is pretty good, as with all smart phones you have to do a little tweaking, but I have been pleasantly surprised so far !
What are you loving so far?
I love the Live Tiles, I can see what I need at a glance, and the speed of connection with wireless network is impressive, the quality of the apps available make my mobile life a lot easier. I have to confess I don’t even think about my previous phone.
What’s the most memorable moment from your adventures so far? What are you hoping to accomplish?
The most memorable moments so far have been working with our chosen charity and getting support from many places that will make this expedition possible. There are going to be lots of moments we will share with everyone and should everything go to plan and we complete the five summits it will be a first for a UK-based team and Nokia will be there to record that moment.
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We’re proud to be a part of this adventure! Be sure to stay tuned for updates on Mansel’s progress here, follow him on Twitter and check out the Snow Leopard site. If you have any good luck messages, we can also pass them on for you – just leave us a comment.
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Today is the 40th anniversary of the birth of the mobile phone, arguably the single most important invention of the last 100 years.
But which models have dominated the mobile space since those early beginnings in 1973? According to the Daily Telegraph, the top twenty best-sellers list is dominated by one phone brand in particular. Can you guess which it is?
Here’s the list in full.
20. Nokia 2850. One of the few clamshell designs from Nokia. Came out in 2004 and went on to sell 35 million.
19. iPhone 3GS. Sold around 35 million.
17 & 18. Samsung Galaxy SII and SIII – each of these has sold around 40 million units.
16. Nokia 6230 – announced in 2003, sold 50 million, and still one of the loudest phones we’ve produced.
15. Nokia 3100 – released in 2003; sold over 50 million. Pink and blue were the best.
14. Motorola StarTAC – back in 1996
13. Motorola C200
12. iPhone 4S – launched in 2011. Estimated at just over 60 million sales.
11. Nokia 5130 – one of the phones to debut XpressMusic; 65 million sold.
10. Nokia 6010 - coming with a colour screen!
9. Nokia 1208 – tough and affordable; 100 million sold.
8. Nokia 1600 – Do you recall playing Soccer League on one of these? 130 million people do.
7. Motorola Razr V3 – last non-Nokia on the list.
6. Nokia 2600 – very nicely designed keyboard on this one.
5. Nokia 3310 – one of my own first Nokias from 2000.
4. Nokia 5230 – one of the youngsters on the list; launched in 2010 and went on to sell 150 million.
3. Nokia 1200 – born 2007; sold 150 million.
2. Nokia 3210 – Adam on the editorial team still owns one of these.
1. Nokia 1110 – sold an astonishing 250 million after it went on sale in 2005.
Between the team, we’ve owned quite a few of this top twenty. Which ones have been part of your mobile kit over the years?
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Nokia Music is on a path of continual evolution, with new features and content being added all the time. Nokia keeps listening to direct consumer testing and feedback, as well as analytics from how the app is used in real life, to prioritise improvements around the people that love and use the service most.
So what’s new in the latest release of Nokia Music?
There is the gorgeous new Live Tile. This looks fantastic and provides live information about the music you’re playing without having to do anything. It’s another great reason for people to keep the app pinned to their home screen – big, beautiful and easy!
David Fishlock, on the development team, implemented this feature based on his own Music Wallpaper app (which is available here in the Windows Phone Store).
Second, there’s now the ability to capture your music history, including MP3s on your phone. What was that great track you heard last night? Now you can find the answer simply.
A great existing feature in the service comes when you add your personal music catalogue to your Nokia Lumia – Nokia Music pulls in a wealth of information like artwork and artist bios, also suggesting mixes you will like to help you discover great new tracks and artists for free. You can now rewind and fast-forward when playing tracks from your own collection.
With the latest release, you will also find:
Improved Downloading and Performance of Mixes
The automatic screen lock on the phone is disabled when downloading mix radio stations, ensuring downloads complete in a single operation. Mix radio stations will also start playing more quickly when selected.
Voucher Redemption
Music vouchers can now be redeemed using NFC tags and QR codes making the music discovery process more efficient and speedy.
The latest update for Nokia Music is available now for Nokia Lumia Smartphones.
Happy listening!
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4
Nokia Music isn’t just about listening to your favourite tracks, it’s about finding new ones, too. To celebrate this joy of discovery, Nokia Music recently launched a competition in collaboration with the Sundance London Film & Music Festival. Its aim was simple: To encourage filmmakers to showcase the amazing, the unusual and the unknown music scenes in their cities.
To do this they had to create a trailer for a short movie to be filmed on a Nokia Lumia 920. Now, after going through hundreds of fantastic entries, the judges have finally chosen two lucky winners. Cue drum roll!
“There’s nothing like a Sound System” By Barros Made ski
“Glasgow’s reggae sound systems are gaining worldwide fame these days. Sound system sessions are both the opportunity to see famous producers, MC’s and singers and a showcase Glasgow’s own music and style. Heavy bass is the main focus – music played on custom made speakers sounds powerful, clean and organic. Music played in big warehouses, small clubs and sometimes the most unlikely secret locations. Music that brings people from all backgrounds together and makes Glasgow an exciting place to live.”
“Red Earth Hip Hop” By Jason Van Genderen
“Take a music culture built on survival and introduce it to the world’s oldest surviving indigenous race. ‘Red Earth Hip Hop’ is the trailer for an inspiring, visceral documentary that examines the underground pulse that’s travelled all the way from the Bronx to the red heart of the Australian outback, empowering a new generation of Aboriginal Australian youth with both story and voice. Didgeridoo meets turntable. Clap sticks meet beatbox. If ever there was a music to liberate the oppressed and celebrate the magic of song… that music would be ‘Red Earth Hip Hop’.”
The Judges on the winners
Here’s what Nokia Music Short Film Competition judges, Trevor Groth, Director of Programming for the Sundance Film Festival and Mike Plante, founder of indie distributor Cinemad Presents, had to say about the winning idea’s trailers.
“We found the two shorts, Hip Hop Australia and Reggae Glasgow, very engaging and illuminating. Both show how incredibly popular forms of music can be adapted to become exceptionally personal and symbolic of a specific region, even a neighborhood. Reggae Glasgow seduces you into the Glasgow nightlife and truly makes you feel the music and its cultural impact. Hip Hop Australia may be as underground and unique as you could get by reframing the way we think about seemingly disparate but intrinsically linked styles of music.”
A festival of film fun
Huge congrats to the two winners, who’ll receive two Nokia Lumia 920s and a $5,000 budget to shoot their film. Once completed both films will get a special screening at the Sundance London Film & Music Festival (2013) in April, and one lucky grand prizewinner will walk away with $5,000 and a Nokia Lumia 920.
We can’t wait to see the end result. In the meantime, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the winning trailers.
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Nokia’s Asha range of phones provides a wide range of useful features for all sorts of people. Picking the one that’s right for you can be simple. Let’s take a look at all the phones currently in the Nokia Asha range, from the versatile Nokia Asha 203 to the full touch Nokia Asha 311.
For people upgrading to their first smartphone, a touchscreen can be a little daunting, at first.. That’s where the Nokia Asha 203 comes in, providing both a touchscreen display and a regular keypad to make it easier to stay connected while on the move. At 2.4 inches, there’s more than enough space for checking out your favourite web sites, and there’s also a 2-Megapixel camera for taking photographs.
Best suited for:
People new to touchscreens
With its integrated Facebook app and QWERTY keypad, the affordable Nokia Asha 205 is the perfect device for fans of social networking. The dedicated Facebook button can launch the app within seconds without having to go through the menu, keeping you in contact with your friends and family at all times.
Best suited for:
Social networking on a budget
If photography is something you care about, the Nokia Asha 300 could be the perfect phone for you. Despite its compact dimensions, the Asha 300 is one of the most impressive, affordable handsets on the market, boasting a pin-sharp 5-Megapixel camera. It also gets Touch & Type technology, 3G, and comes with a host of different apps including Facebook and Angry Birds.
Best suited for:
Photography fans
The Nokia Asha 302 is an ideal device when it comes to keeping in touch with work, friends and family. The large QWERTY keypad features an ergonomic design that’s great for emailing and instant messaging, and the inclusion of both 3G and WLAN means you’ll be able to access your emails without delay, wherever you go. Add in features like Bluetooth and a 3.2-Megapixel camera, and there’s a lot to like about the Asha 302.
Best suited for:
Email addicts
Nokia leads the way when it comes to affordable touchscreen smartphones, and the Nokia Asha 305 is a brilliant example of this. This stylish phone is available in four different colours, including black, red, blue and silver, and it packs in a 3-inch touchscreen with tactile feedback and an orientation sensor so the phone knows which way you’re holding it. The Asha 305 also gets dual SIM technology, so you’ll be able to make and receive calls from two different phone numbers.
Best suited for:
Full touch on a budget
The touchscreen Nokia Asha 308 is ideal for people with several phone numbers, thanks to the inclusion of dual-SIM technology. The main SIM card lives under the battery on the Nokia 308, but you can also add a second SIM card, letting people contact you on the same phone using both home and work numbers. The SIM cards are also hot-swappable, so you can switch multiple SIM cards and numbers without having to turn off the phone – perfect for sharing with other family members.
Best suited for:
People with multiple phone numbers
The Nokia Asha 310 Dual SIM makes a compelling case for itself when it comes to features. As with the Asha 308, it features dual-SIM technology, and also packs in Wi-Fi for faster and more affordable web browsing and downloads. It boasts a 3-inch touchscreen, offers Bluetooth for sharing your files with other devices, and there’s also a 2-Megapixel camera.
Best suited for:
People who want it all
Just like Nokia’s Lumia range, the Asha family offers plenty of stunning smartphones. The Nokia Asha 311 is the perfect device for fashion fans, with a contemporary design that’s available in a host of smart colours. Features on the Nokia Asha 311 include a scratch-proof Corning Gorilla Glass display, 3G connectivity, a 3-Megapixel camera and Wi-Fi.
Best suited for:
Fashionistas
Here’s an overview of the whole range (click for full size):
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Five years ago Nickhil Jakatdar was struck with the realisation that videos on mobile phones were becoming increasingly important in emerging countries.
Nickhil grew up in India where a lot of people had their first experience of watching video on their mobile phones, which differs from western countries where watching videos on desktops, laptops or TVs was perhaps more prevalent.
He had a hunch that just as YouTube was taking off for video clips on desktops, people would also want to watch videos on their mobile devices – especially where their phone is the primary screen.
Fast forward to the present day and Nickhil, based in Silicon Valley, is the CEO and founder of Vuclip.com, a mobile-focused video destination portal with 45 million active monthly users who watch 1.5 billion minutes of video every month.
Vuclip works on all mobile browsers and has users all over the world, however it is particularly popular in India, South East Asia, Middle East and Latin America – territories where Nokia Asha devices also have a strong following.
In fact, Vuclip is the most popular web app in the Nokia Store and the two companies are continually working to enhance the video experience even further.
A video standard for mobiles
Although Vuclip has quickly become a huge success story, Nickhil, in a phone interview with Conversations, was also quick to highlight the challenges that his company faced at the beginning.
Primarily, there was no real universal standard for videos on mobile phones, unlike desktop computing with the dominance of Adobe Flash. There are also different mobile operating systems, video formats and network data speeds to take into account.
“To get a desktop video to work on your mobile requires optimising for a lot of different variables,” says Nickhil.
“This is what makes mobile a challenge and an opportunity.”
It was a challenge that Nickhil turned to his advantage. Other video providers had established desktop systems that were being re-purposed for mobile devices, but he instinctively knew that this solution would not scale well.
“This problem was probably easier for us because we didn’t have any legacy of having created a desktop platform. We created our technology platform from scratch and it was optimised purely for mobile.”
Nickhil also acknowledges a stroke of good fortune – one of the key members of his team had done his PhD thesis on solving the problem of a highly fragmented mobile ecosystem.
Spreading the word
Having got a handle on the technical side of things, Vuclip faced an obstacle that a lot of start up companies face: making people aware that they existed. Two key decisions helped them early on.
Nickhil explains:
“First, in order for virality and organic growth to kick in, we needed to remove any barriers to usage so we went with a browser based approach to start with. It meant that all someone needed to do was open Vuclip.com in the browser. They didn’t have to download an app. Today, Vuclip is also available as an app.
“The other thing is that we made it very easy to share videos. If you watched a video and liked it then you could share it and your friends would get a link. So it was easy for us to introduce people to the service because the users were our ambassadors.”
The content
The videos you can watch on Vuclip are a mix of UGC content from websites such as YouTube, MetaCafe, DailyMotion and hundreds of others. Vuclip uses their APIs to index the videos and serve them to Vuclip’s users.
In addition, there is also premium and copyrighted video material, where Nickhil and his team strike commercial deals with content owners to make them available.
Often, these are served in innovative ways. For example, if Vuclip notices a user likes to watch a lot of soccer videos, then it can offer them the option of watching of the English Premier League’s Goal of the Day video for a small fee that is paid through their carrier billing. There are hundreds of content owners that Vuclip works with closely in order to ensure consumers get the type of content that is most relevant to them.
“As we are getting to a larger consumer base, the one thing we are noticing is that the big name content providers, like Sony and Disney, are finding that Vuclip is a great way of getting distribution,” says Nickhil.
Nokia calling
Vuclip worked with Nokia to optimise the video viewing experience for Nokia mobile phones, and subsequently, Nokia began promoting the service through the Nokia Xpress Browser and via the Nokia Store. The service quickly reached critical mass, particularly in countries such as India and Indonesia.
The launch of the Nokia Asha touchscreen devices was another important milestone for Vuclip.
Nickhil calls Nokia Asha Touch ‘low cost smartphones’ and they are an important part of his company’s future.
“There are four billion people in the emerging markets. A lot of them are going to be mobile-only or mobile-first users and they all want video. They won’t be on 4G networks but instead primarily on feature phones and low cost smartphones on 2G and 3G networks.
“I want all of them to think of Vuclip as the go-to place for mobile video, just like YouTube is for the desktop. I want that to be the future for Vuclip.”
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A couple of weeks ago we explored some of the common sensors that are found in our smartphones. They are used practically every time that we pick up our phones or turn them on, but how much do we really know about what they do and how they work?
One young man who knows is Philip Daubmeier, 27, of Ingolstadt, Germany, who has just finished his master’s degree in computer science.
For his master’s thesis, Philip needed a tool to evaluate the sensor measurements in a smartphone and as a result of this he created the Sensor Emitter app, which lets you interact and learn about the sensors on your Nokia Lumia.
We spoke to Philip, who is now an automotive software engineer, to shed some light on the sensors within a smartphone, why they are so important and which apps make the best use of them.
What got you interested in developing apps for Windows Phone?
I started developing apps when the first developer tools for Windows Phone 7 were released.
I totally fell for this platform, mainly because of its clean and modern user interface, but also because of the technology underneath.
Still, it took quite some months until I published my first app in the store.
What was your first app?
It is called ‘Technicorder’ and allows you to set timers in your digital video recorder from anywhere with a Windows Phone device. It is designed to work with Technisat German TV boxes – they have many models with a built-in hard drive and a network interface.
I wanted something like that for myself, so I would never miss any of my favourite shows when I would come home late.
What inspired the Sensor Emitter app?
I needed a tool to evaluate sensor measurements for my master’s thesis. The main goal of the thesis was to estimate some key parameters of a person’s body: to find out if someone is standing or sitting or where they are looking, all from the smartphone that is carried in their pocket.
To achieve this, I combined the smartphone sensor data that was streamed live to a PC with the 3D image of a Kinect. The smartphone knew how it was located inside the pocket, while the Kinect could see the actual body of a test person. Put these two things with a machine-learning algorithm, do some fine-tuning magic and you get really good results! I published the source code of the final machine-learning program for my thesis here.
The new Nokia Lumia 720
Curved glass, slim design and full of features.
Find out more.
A lot of the information in Sensor Emitter is very technical. How difficult was it to bring all this together?
I had to do tons of research for my master’s thesis and was fascinated by the level of complexity that is needed to get all those different inertial sensors to work. It is incredible how many components of hardware and software have to work together to measure, filter, transform and combine all the raw data into something useful.
They are inside every smartphone but hardly anyone knows how they work.
I realised that I could share my work by taking the already existing tool that I needed to send those sensor values to the PC, and complete the app by adding explanations of all sensors to it.
I also published the programming interface and a code snippet for a server component to allow everyone to create their own computer software that uses the phone’s sensors. I recently got an email from a physics teacher, who told me he built a small programme that displayed the acceleration values and their integrated speed values in diagrams. This way, his students could experience basic laws of physics hands-on.
How important are the sensors in a smartphone? What are the sorts of things that we couldn’t do without the sensors?
Sensors are those pieces of hardware that let the software access the real world around it.
Therefore they allow phones to become aware of its environment and enables human-machine interaction.
The cool thing is that sensors can be used for totally different purposes, depending on the software that interprets it. Originally introduced to rotate the display when the phone was also being turned, the accelerometer is now also used to control games, monitor sleep cycles, infer your body posture and many more.
The possibilities are nearly endless, especially if many sensors are combined to get a more meaningful and complete picture of the environment around it
Smartphones and other mobile devices will keep getting more sensors – and more accurate ones – so we are looking at an exciting future.
In your opinion, what are some of the best apps that make use of sensors?
The sleep cycle monitoring apps to wake you up in a light sleep phase is a great idea. It is using the fact that we make different movements in different sleep phases and senses those via inertial sensors.
Also, those metal detector apps, which use the compass/magnetometer to detect nearby ferromagnetic metals is a cool gimmick.
I’ve picked those examples because they use the sensors in a way that nobody thought of at the time they were originally built into the phone.
This is also why I think this is only the tip of the iceberg and there are many clever ideas and much more sophisticated apps still to come.
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Smartphones like the Nokia Asha 308 may be a lot cheaper than their Lumia siblings, but they still offer plenty of features and the ability to customise software to suit your needs. Customising the homescreen on Nokia Asha touch devices is just one area where you can make changes, and it can have a big impact on your enjoyment of the phone.
Unlock the screen on an Asha touch phone like the Nokia Asha 308, and the first thing you’ll see is a home page full of icons. These are shortcuts to all the applications and features on the phone: everything from your contacts list, to settings, to your photographs and Nokia Maps.
It’s inevitable that you’ll have favourite apps and shortcuts, and it’s easy to move things around on this page to suit your requirements. To move a shortcut on the homescreen, simply tap it and hold until the page turns into a grid. Then tap the icon you want to move, and press the square on the grid you want it to move to. Once you’ve moved all your favourite apps to the top of the page, or any other layout you’re happy with, simply hit the tick button at the bottom of the screen.
Customisation on Asha phones runs deeper than that, however, and you can also change the second and third home screens as well. Once again, tap and hold until the grid comes up, and this time swipe to the page on the right. When you do, you’ll be able to choose an app that appears every time you swipe to this page. You can pick from the phone dialler, the music player and the radio.
Swipe to the page on the left and things get even more interesting. The final page dedicates a good portion of the display to the time, day and date. A lot of people will naturally end up selecting this page as their default home page, and it comes with slightly more customisation than the middle screen.
On this page you’re not restricted to filling the screen with icons, and you can also choose to add a shortcut to pretty much anything you want. So if you’d rather see a photograph of your child, you can choose to delete all but the key shortcuts, accessing all other functions from the middle page.
Or you can choose from a large number of shortcuts, spanning everything from the SIM manager to your radio station list, timer to post-it notes, weather to the Nokia Store. You can also choose to add your favourite contacts, making it easier than ever to send a message or ring the people you care about most.
It’s all incredibly simple to do, and it’s the sort of thing most of us take for granted, but the ability to customise our phones is one of those things that help to make handsets a lot more personal.
What shortcuts have you added to the homescreen on your Asha phone? Leave a comment and let us know.
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Needless to say, we’re already huge fans of our Nokia Lumias, some might even call us groupies. However, believe it or not, there are still some people yet to make the switch. To help convince them, Nokia recently launched a cool competition asking Nokia employees to use their Nokia smartphones to make a Switch Pitch video.
The response was incredible, with over 3000 people from four continents showcasing their creative and sales mastery. We’ve had a ton of fun sifting through the fantastic entries and can now share five that we love best. Hold onto your seat and prepare to be Nokia Lumia Switch Pitched like never before.
Mix and match magic
First up May and Pao’s Mix and Match from Mexico. Their video showcases almost as many moving body parts as it does Nokia Lumia 920 features. Make some noise for the world’s first ever human smartphone movie collage.
Ideal audience: Dali fans and modern art students.
Lumia boys in the hood
Ben G has already gained a huge following on YouTube with his Nokia Lumia 920 rap. Hardly surprising when you see how he combines lush lyrics with bad boy moves. If this doesn’t get you shaking your booty, no Nokia Lumia rap will.
Ideal audience: Hoodies and rappers.
Movie madness
Nothing gets us quivering in anticipation like a big booming voiced Hollywood movie trailer. So what better way to highlight the excitement of Nokia Lumia 920’s arrival than through the medium of cinema. Grab your popcorn and put your hands together for the director of this fantastic flick, Rajeev Chettri.
Ideal audience: Film buffs and all action heroes.
Lumia love is in the air
Who doesn’t love a good old fashioned love story? Amy Zhao takes this tried and tested concept and goes one better. A love story from the perspective of a Nokia Lumia 920. It’s a rollercoaster ride that will have you reaching for the hankies and jumping for joy, all in the space of one and a half minutes.
Ideal audience: Love birds and sweethearts
Cool as cats
If you were ever in any doubt about the innate coolness of cats, this Switch Pitch by Alia Li will dispel them in a whisker. The fantastic feline featured in this video not only shows why the Nokia Lumia 920 is the world’s most innovative smartphone, but why cats are the world’s most innovative animals.
Ideal audience: Cats and their human pets
In our opinion, these fantastic five are all winners, but which do you think deserves to be crowned Switch Pitch video of the year? Pitch us your favourite in the comments below.
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Przy kręceniu takiej reklamy zawsze jest bardzo dużo zabawy ale też ciężkiej pracy – powtórki, duble, ustawianie kamer i świateł. Specjalnie dla Was, dwa dni produkcji w niecałe 3 minuty 
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