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We’re excited to tell you about a pilot kicking off this week – a remote security service we’re calling “my Xperia”, that’ll help you locate and protect your Xperia smartphone should it ever get lost.

It’s initially beta launching in the Nordics with a phased rollout, and we’re lining up a global release during Q2.

Marcin Zielinski, Sony Experience Planner and one of the brains-behind-the-app, recently took the time to tell us a little more about it…

Can you describe “my Xperia” in a sentence?

Sure – “When the unpredictable happens, “my Xperia” helps you locate your misplaced Sony smartphone and protect your personal data”

Why have you created this – what’s the inspiration?

We recognise that your Sony Xperia smartphone is equally as important as other valuables like wallets and keys, but it’s also just as easily misplaced.

The thinking behind the app is to anticipate those unpredictable situations, where your smartphone might end up lost or misplaced – when this happens, “my Xperia” is designed to give you piece of mind by helping you a) locate and find your phone and b) ensure private info doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

Can you tell us a little bit about any key features and how it’ll work?

It’s really simple – you activate the app in your phone’s settings and use Google ID to sign in to myxperia.sonymobile.com to access the central interface.

From here, you’ll be able to control a number of remote functions -

• Locate your smartphone on a map
• Sound an alert to get someone’s attention – it’ll also override silent mode and wake the display
• Lock the phone to keep info private, and ping a message with contact details or…
• Erase both internal and external SD card info / data if required

Can you tell us about the beta launch, and plans going forward?

We’re running a phased launch in the Nordics on select 2012 Xperia smartphones running ICS. We’ll start with Xperia Acro S and add new devices over the coming weeks.

Users who are able to participate in the pilot will receive a notification in their Xperia when the service is available to them.

Following the notification, over-the-air download/installation via Update Center (the app which also brings OTA software-updates to your Xperia smartphone) is required, and the final step includes activation via Settings -> Xperia™ -> my Xperia.

The idea is to grab as much feedback / input on the service as possible, so we can perfect and tweak before full global rollout – please drop any suggestions, questions or things you’d like to see in the comments below. Or share your experiences and questions with other users on our support forum

Thanks to Marcin for his time – we’ll be keeping you all up-to-date with the latest on “my Xperia” right here on the blog.

Creating a new, highly competitive portfolio of smartphones on top of a new ecosystem was never going to be easy and it certainly wasn’t going to happen overnight. So it’s worth reflecting on just how far Nokia’s Lumia range of smart devices has come in such a short amount of time. 

One person who knows the Lumia story well is Pekka Horo, Nokia’s Vice President of Europe and IMEA Regions and Business Management for Smart Devices.

As well as being responsible for a fairly large geographical area including Europe and IMEA (IMEA stands for India, Middle East and Africa) he is also responsible for Nokia’s global business management of Smart Devices.

In a wide-ranging interview with Conversations, Pekka started by outlining what he thinks are some of the unique strengths that have helped to establish Lumia as an increasingly popular choice in the competitive smartphone market.

Pekka called them the differentiators that are driving Lumia’s momentum in the marketplace and, in his own words, this is what he had to say about them.

Design & Colours

“The devices that we’ve launched really stand out from the crowd. You see a very fresh and approachable design.

“It’s very clean, human in form and also modern in the way that they look.”

“One of the things that has also attracted consumers is the colour strategy. We have brought multiple and vibrant colours to the market and we have noticed that consumers really appreciate that.”

“We also have a fully consistent design & colour approach across different products, including our accessories such as wireless charging plates, headsets and music speakers, which enable consumers to experience, enjoy and showcase our design more holistically”

Imaging

“In our research we often get feedback that people were really loving the fact that they can take pictures and share them on social networks, and we wanted to make sure that the quality of the pictures and videos taken with Lumia devices are best in class and something that sets us apart from the competition.

“I think we have answered that with the fantastic image quality that we have on the Lumia 920 and Lumia 820.

“If you look at the Lumia 920, where we are bringing a fantastic camera experience with optical image stabilisation (OIS) and great low light performance then it’s something that we are getting a lot of credit for.” 

“It’s not just in the flagship tier that we can provide consumers with great imaging experiences. We are taking that down all the different price points as well so that Nokia stands out with this differentiator throughout its portfolio.”

Location and Navigation

“We’re very proud of the Here platform that Nokia launched recently, where we have great location and navigation assets that are benefitting our consumers in their day-to-day lives.”

“You can use them in your hometown or when you’re visiting new cities. People can find new restaurants or places of interest using City Lens or find routes quickly and effectively when they’re commuting to work with Nokia Transit, Nokia Maps or Nokia Drive.”

Nokia Music

“Nokia Music is incredibly highly rated and appreciated by consumers and the feedback we receive in the form of Net Promoter Scores is very positive. It’s offered free and offers great usability straight out of the box. This is another area where we are continuing to invest.”

Developer experiences

“We are working with a lot of developers to develop specific apps where we feel we can add value to consumers. Together with Microsoft we’ve been able to grow the app ecosystem to a highly competitive level.”

“I think there are now over 125,000 apps overall but it’s not about the quantity but the quality of those apps and the understanding that we have with our partners to develop great apps for Nokia devices and the ecosystem.”

“With our differentiators we are delivering fantastic experiences to consumers and enriching their lives in many new ways.”

“In addition, things like wireless charging, which is available on the Lumia 920 and 820, and the innovative accessories bring a sense of magic to the every day life of our consumers.”

Later this week we’ll be publishing part two of our interview with Pekka Horo where he’ll be taking about some of the other factors that have pushed Lumia’s rise to global prominence. Keep your eyes peeled!

If it’s the developers who are shaping the way we use our smartphones, then it’s the teachers who are shaping the developers. After all, very few of us are born with an innate ability for anything other than eating and being smelly.

Last week we spoke to Rob Crocombe, who is studying for his Computer Science degree, about his early experiences of being an app developer.

This week we are returning to the University of Hull in England to talk to one of his lecturers. Another Rob… Rob Miles, 55, who teaches Software Development using C#.

When he’s not teaching, Rob also develops his own apps, keeps a daily blog at robmiles.co.uk and is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP).

Was there a magical moment in your life that made you want to work with computers?

I don’t know about magical, but I first started writing programs in the Fortran language at Sixth Form, punching each line of the program onto a card. We sent the bundles of cards over to York University who ran them through their mainframe and posted back a listing from the line printer.

It took you a week to find out that you had typed a line wrong but I still found it fascinating. I still remember the thrill of being able to sit at a terminal and talk to the computer directly. This was in the seventies by the way. I’ve been hooked on programming ever since.

Do you get the same satisfaction out of teaching others to develop as you do out of developing for yourself?

Oh yes. It’s great watching light bulbs come on in people’s heads.

What qualities do you think a good programmer needs?

Patience, persistence and the ability to get on well with other folks are very important. Also an ability to “think your way out of trouble” is very useful.

What has been the effect of smartphones and apps on programming?

Smartphones and apps are great, because they provide you with a shop window for your skills. Even if only a few people download the app you wrote, it will still be out there showing what you can do.

I think that Computer Science is getting more popular at the moment because people recognise that it provides a path to employment. The world will always need programmers.

What inspired your Voice Music app?

I wanted to be able to select the music I wanted to hear when I was driving. And I wanted to be able to play the album containing a track I was listening to at the time.

So I spent a lunch hour playing with ideas and got something going. I couldn’t believe that it would be that simple to make.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

What difference will Windows Phone 8 make?

I just find it a friction free way to do the things that I want to use my phone for. I have a Nokia Lumia 920 and it has an awesome camera, a lovely screen and it’s just a nice place to be.

I like the elegant simplicity of the interface.

I also like the way that the phone and desktop are converging, so that skills picked up in phone development can be applied to desktop applications.

As someone with a lot of technical knowledge in this area, do you find yourself judging the apps that you use?

Sometimes I wonder how it works. The worst thing for me is when I find that something is hard to do in the app just because the user interface has been badly designed, or where you have to “know” a magic trick or action to get a program to do what you want. I hate that. 

It’s one of the reasons I like Windows Phone so much. Once you have learnt a few simple actions on the phone you can use them on whatever program you are working with. Usually what you guess should happen is what actually does happen.

What is a Microsoft MVP?

Microsoft gives the Most Valuable Professional (MVP) award to a number of folks every year. It is for work done in the community that helps people use a particular branch of technology.

I’ve done a fair amount of teaching on Windows Phone over the years, with things like Windows Phone Jumpstart and the Windows Phone Blue Book. I also go to conferences and give phone-based sessions for developers.

MVPs can also get to interact with the Product Group for their specialism, which means that I get to pass comment on the way the phone development is going and sometimes we get early access to tools and technologies so that we can help find bugs and potential issues. 

You can follow Rob Miles on Twitter @robmiles.

Pro-snowboarder Jeremy Jones once said, “With a snowboard on your feet the sky is the limit. You can do anything and go anywhere.” It’s this can-do attitude that makes snowboarding such an awesome sport. And one reason why, together with legendary snowboarding company Burton, we’ve challenged the world’s creatives to dazzle us with their snowboarding art, photos and short films. 

This unique competition, which has been running for the last few weeks closes tomorrow. We’ve had literally hundreds of kick- ass entries. Now, it’s up to you and the judges to decide who’s best interpreted the lifestyle of this unique, snow loving tribe. But firstly, let’s take a quick look at the guys who’ll pick the two winners to accompany Nokia to this year’s Burton US Open, held in the stunning resort of Vail, Colorado.

The hardcore photographer

Dean Blotto Gray is a photographer dedicated to sharing the snowboard experience. For over 250 days each year, for the past 14 years, Gray has been documenting the snowboarding life. In doing so, he has become one of the most inexhaustible photographers the young sport has yet seen.

The fans’ choice

Gabe L’Heureux splits his time between shooting first-rate photos and video of the world’s top riders. Also an accomplished video editor, Gabe has produced Winter X Games Real Snow parts for both Jeremy Jones and Jussi Oksanen, with Jussi winning the “Fan’s Choice” award in 2012.

Vote to win!

In addition to the choice of the judges, we want to know which entries blew your mind, so there’s a people choice prize, too. The artist, photographer or film-maker you choose will win a brand spanking new Lumia 920 and a Burton snowboard. Happily, you also have a chance of winning, simply by voting for your favourite Nokia x Burton entry! We’re giving away a Burton Custom Snowboard to three lucky entrants – and it couldn’t be easier to win. All you have to do is take a look at all of the awesome submissions and then vote for your favourite using either Facebook or Twitter.

After voting, just share who you voted for on Twitter and include the hash tags #Lumia920 and #NokiaxBurton in your tweet. Voting opens at Talenthouse on February 1st and closes on February 8th – take a look at the Terms and Conditions to find out more.

Any questions, stick them in the comments below. And remember, you have to be in it to win it!

There’s so much material out there written, snapped and recorded about the Nokia Lumia 620 that it can be quite daunting if you’re looking to find out the basics. So we’ve done it for you. You’re welcome.

An unboxing

The best place to start, always. We chose Daniel Rubino from WMExperts (other unboxings are available) – and this ‘true unboxing’.

Highlights include:

‘I really like the size…a great feeling in the hand’

‘front-facing camera – not bad for [this level of] phone’

‘absolutely adorable’

Start here if you want to know the basics.

A review

An armchair review (quite literally) from Dialaphone’s Chris Helsby gives a great idea of what the phone will offer – for example, Nokia ‘hasn’t skimped’ on the quality, feeling much more ‘sturdy’ than higher end smartphones.

It’s worth checking out the full written review of the Nokia Lumia 620 to see how it is ‘lighting the way’ for lower cost phones.

A sample of what it can do

But how does the 620 perform day to day? What can it do? Well, Jay has found an example of the phone’s rich recording capacity. Drums, no less.

I’m not much into drum solos, but this shows just how the Nokia Lumia 620 can record a full range of sound on the HAAC microphones. Great find, Jay!

A bit of fun

‘What would the Nokia Lumia 620 look like if it was rendered in Minecraft world?’ – a question we get asked ALL the time (seriouly, you wouldn’t believe it). Thankfully, Gokuroyu has delivered….in style.

Simply. Mind-bogglingly. Awesome.

Got anything you’d like to add about the Nokia Lumia 620? Let us know by leaving a comment, or hitting us up on Twitter.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

The Windows Phone 7.8 update is beginning its rollout to phones currently running on Windows Phone 7.5. You can transform your Nokia Lumia with a host of exciting new personalisation features, such as the ability to resize your tiles, new lock screen options, and more theme colours.

Windows Phone 7.8 has already been shipping pre-loaded on the Nokia Lumia 510 and other phones in the Nokia Lumia family, with users delighted by the new features.

And now, following extensive software testing, update notifications will begin to appear for Nokia Lumia 510, 610, 710, 800 and 900 owners with an unlocked phone or operator approved software during February.

Starting today and rolling out over the coming weeks, a message will appear on the phone encouraging users to get the update. Simply connect your phone to your computer via Zune for PC, or the Windows Phone app for Mac – and follow the onscreen instructions as shown in the video above.

More tiles, features and signature experiences

As well as major system updates, there has been a stream of exciting new features introduced to Nokia Lumia. These include Internet sharing, Bluetooth sharing, imaging enhancements like Camera Extras, and the release of apps such as Contact Share, Play To and Nokia City Lens that are available.

With Windows Phone 7.8 installed, your Nokia Lumia gets even better.

The Start screen experience is completely refreshed with the ability to re-size your tiles: small, medium and large.

In addition, there are also new options available on your lock screen, such as having a daily background image from Bing; plus there’s improved pocket and child lock screen security.

Plus, there is increased language support, meaning even more people get to enjoy Nokia Lumia.

These new benefits, together with the new look Start screen, will make your Lumia feel like a brand new smartphone.

Availability

The Windows Phone 7.8 update is now rolling out for Nokia Lumia smartphones through February. Delivery of the update is operator dependent, meaning you will receive a notification in the coming weeks if you have an unlocked phone or if your operator has approved the update. If you don’t receive the update notification within the next three weeks, please contact your operator for more information.

In the meantime, you can ensure that you don’t miss out on the update, by checking that notifications are enabled on your phone. Go to Settings > Phone Update > “Notify me when new updates are found”.

Most of us live out much of our lives online these days. We’re all using our phones for work as well as fun, and to stay in contact with each other. But increasingly this means separating and prioritising all the messages, tasks and conversations that are continuously rolling in to our inboxes. 

That can be a tough job, and there’s always the risk that you’ll miss a crucial work message or a request to connect from someone you really want to speak to.

It is one mark of a successful person, that they can ‘conquer the chaos’ and create order from all the content feeds that they’re tracking (like the example above). So, we want to help you be successful in both your work life and your personal life.

In a series of posts over the coming weeks as part of the Nokia@Work program, we’re going to look at how you can create some order in how you communicate, both to help you do business and make sure you’re on track to get the best from your phone.

Author, trainer and learning and development expert, David Rivers, has talked about the use of Microsoft OneNote as a way of boosting productivity:

“Disorganization is a productivity killer. With OneNote, you can keep your important information and content well organized and easy to locate in a notebook, with color coded sections, page groups, and pages. Now share that notebook with a team, and individuals can contribute to the same notebook simultaneously. OneNote keeps track of the changes and updates your notebook on the fly. You’ll always know who contributed what, and when”.

It’s a matter of allowing your mobile device to become integrated with all your other devices.  After all, why should they be disconnected entities? Instead of trying to keep track of what is on which device, you should be able to seamlessly access, update and share your data. In forthcoming posts we’ll explore how this can be achieved with Nokia Lumia. 

And we want to hear from you, too. How do you use your phone for work? What do you need to know to create order and make life that bit easier?

Check out this guide to using OneNote on Lumia and let us know your thoughts. For more on Nokia and smart business, head to @NokiaAtWork on Twitter – and follow the NokiaAtWork tag right here on the blog.

When people talk about digital maps, naturally the option of navigation immediately springs to mind. For example, when commuting to work or driving in unfamiliar places using voice guided turn-by-turn navigation comes in handy. Additionally, traffic info plays a key role in getting us to our destination, safely and quickly.

We have been helping to paint this picture for the last decades as a pioneer of digital mapping and in-car navigation. We continually strive to provide fresh content and services to meet the needs of our automotive customers. Currently, four out of five cars with in-dash navigation are powered by HERE.  This means that automobile manufacturers can deliver innovative solutions and we can help fulfill the requirements of the automotive industry. 

The latest automotive brand to select HERE to power their next generation Touch&Go navigation and infotainment systems is Toyota, who are in good company with the likes of BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen and Hyundai. Toyota has signed up to use our search with high-quality industry mapping information and community-generated content, including millions of ratings, reviews and images fed directly into their cars from early 2014 in Europe, Russia and the Middle East.

With HERE, Nokia is the leading mapping company providing end-to-end mapping, navigation and location solutions for the automotive industry. But with maps, and specifically with our location platform, our partners can build services that go beyond navigation. That’s the beauty of our business; we can support different kinds of services.

Nokia Lumia 620

Our newest Windows Phone 8 smartphone.

The family is growing.

We lead the way with our maps, which are used over 100 million times a day in a wide variety of devices, services and apps around the world. In fact, wetter.com, Europe’s largest German language weather portal with 13 million unique visitors, is using our API for integration into its expanding European web and mobile weather mapping services.

The first application to benefit is the online Niederschlagsradar (precipitation radar) service in which the map data is overlaid with information from radar stations and satellite imagery. You can track rain and snow cloud movement and see whether light showers, heavy rain, sleet hail or snow are heading your way. By zooming in and out, the current ‘precipitation’ situation can be viewed over an area as small as a street up to a town, a country or even an international region. The information is updated every 15 minutes and is available in Austria, France, Germany, Spain and the UK.

Image credit: Zigar

Zgodnie z zapowiedziami rozpoczęliśmy szerszą dystrybucję obu smartfonów. Nie powinno być problemu z zamówieniem ich przez Salony. Oba modele są również dostępne na naszej stronie internetowej. Dla kupujących przygotowaliśmy specjalną promocję! Tylko teraz przy zakupie Nokii Lumia 820 i 920 dodatkowe akcesoria do bezprzewodowego ładowania GRATIS!!! Nokia Lumia 820 w zestawie z: obudową umożliwiającą ładowane [...]

Od dziś do oferty na życzenie (taryfy głosowe) wprowadzamy następujące urządzenia: Samsung GC100 Galaxy Camera ASUS NEXUS7 myPhone 1082 ELEGANT Samsung S3570 Ch@t 357   Dodatkowo od jutra do cenników oferty indywidualnej (MIX, Postpaid) oraz ofert biznesowych Play wprowadzamy:   Apple iPad 3 4G 16GB Samsung P3100 Galaxy Tab II 7.0 3G Samsung P5100 Galaxy [...]