Nokia

RIM lost Nokia suit, now faces BlackBerry ban

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated June 13, 2016

An interesting opportunity has presented itself to Microsoft following news that Canada-based Research In Motion has lost a legal dispute with Nokia over wireless technology patents. As a result, RIM could see BlackBerry handsets banned unless it agrees to pay royalties to Nokia. As things stand, Nokia has already filed cases in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom to enforce the ruling, a move that could see all Blackberry smartphones removed from store shelves.

"In order to enforce the Tribunal's ruling, we have now filed actions in the US, UK and Canada with the aim of ending RIM's breach of contract", Nokia said in a statement. If the courts enforce the sales ban, consequences for the ailing BlackBerry maker could be devastating while opening door to Microsoft's Windows Phone becoming the #3 mobile platform...

iPhone 5 helps Apple regain lead over Android in US smartphone market

Ed Sutherland ∙ November 27, 2012

Apple's iPhone 5 has helped the California-based gadget maker propel itself into the first place in the United States, topping Google's Android in arguably the world's most important smartphone market. Specifically, Apple's iPhone doubled its share of US smartphone sales and now enjoys a 48.1 percent share compared to 46.7 percent for Android.

The last time Apple held the lead in the US smartphone market was after the introduction of the iPhone 4S. Market research firm Kantar Worldpanel ComTech announced Tuesday Google's mobile operating system still dominates in Europe, where it holds up to 81 percent of the market share in some countries...

Nokia’s Here Maps app hits the App Store

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

Last week, Nokia's CEO Stephen Elop told reporters at a San Francisco press conference that Nokia was rebranding their mapping service to Here Maps, and would be releasing a native iOS app for the service within a few weeks.

Today, Nokia has made good on that promise, as its Here Maps app has just been spotted in the App Store. The HTML5-based software includes walking and public transportation directions, and many other features...

Gartner: Apple and Samsung shipped nearly half of all smartphones in Q3

Ed Sutherland ∙ November 14, 2012

As mobile phones become smarter, Samsung and Apple continue to rule the landscape as the world's best-selling cell phone brands. As for Google's Android platform, it now controls more than seven out over every ten smartphones in consumers' hands, a new report suggests. Both Samsung and Apple controlled 46.5 percent of the smartphone market in the third quarter.

The iOS-Android duopoly had a commanding 86 percent platform lead in the third quarter, according to research firm Gartner. Individually, the South Korean smartphone maker held 32.5 percent of the market while Apple held 13.9 percent, the researcher announced Wednesday. Android now controls an astounding 72.4 percent of the mobile operating system market for smartphones, up from 52 percent in the year-ago quarter...

Apple Stores outrank Tiffany in US retail sales per square foot

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Next time you are in an Apple Store, look down. You are standing in the most profitable real estate of all retail. For the second year in a row, Apple Stores rank #1 with the highest sales per square feet, once again beating Tiffany for the top spot.

According to Retail Sales' ranking of U.S. chain stores, Apple Stores pull in $6,050 per square foot compared to Tiffany's $3,017. Apple's brick-and-mortar locations see 100 million visitors every three months, with each Apple Store visitor leaving $45...

Patent troll hits Apple with iPhone screen rotation suit

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 29, 2017

A Boston University study from July pegged the cost of lawsuits filed last year by nonpracticing entities - that's the code word for patent trolls - at an unbelievable $29 billion. Patents and lawsuits are their 'products' and Apple is among their favorite targets. You need look no further than Lodsys or VirnetX, which has expanded claims against Apple after winning $368 million in FaceTime case damages.

You can now add MobileMedia Ideas on your list of Apple patent trolls. Thanks to a Delaware federal judge, its suit against Apple over the iPhone screen rotation and call rejection features can proceed. What's really peculiar about MobileMedia Ideas, apart from the obvious patent troll innuendo in its name, is that it's a proxy for Sony and Nokia...

Nokia ad slams the iPhone over lack of color

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 3, 2012

Nokia took issue with Apple's black and white iPhone color options in an interesting new commercial for its Lumia range of smartphones. The ad, included right after the break, sets the tone by depicting a gloomy world where mindless drones come to Apple Stores to buy iPhones. When a customer suggest color other than standard black and white iPhone options, hell breaks loose. The clip then switches to Nokia's recently refreshed Lumia lineup, available in a bunch of colors...

Apple explains how to create home screen shortcuts to Google and Nokia maps on the web

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 10, 2018

Apple's boss Tim Cook just issued a mea culpa on Apple's awesome Maps in the form of an open letter published on Apple's website. What's really interesting is that the issue which threatened to snowball into a PR catastrophe has forced Apple to advise customers to use rival services "while we’re improving Maps".

It takes a tremendous amount of public outcry to force Cupertino into such a defensive position. I imagine heads will roll as Cook gives Apple's mapping team a kind of dressing down Steve Jobs once gave to the MobileMe team ("you should hate each other for having let each other down"). No matter how you look at it, the Maps fiasco has tarnished Apple's reputation, at least in my view...

Low-light shootout: iPhone 5 vs Lumia 920 vs Nokia 808 PureView vs HTC One X vs Galaxy S III

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 26, 2012

The biggest change in the iSight camera found on the back of the iPhone 5 is not its sapphire lens cover, the new panorama mode, faster performance, better video stabilization or crisper photos stemming from enhanced post-processing capabilities provided by the heavily customized, Apple-designed A6 chip.

It's its markedly better performance in low-light situations. The difference between the iPhone 4S and 5 camera becomes readily apparent on photos taken under artificial light, poorly lit scenes or no light at all.

By way of Engadget, we are now able to compare night shots taken on the iPhone 5 against those snapped up using Nokia's newly introduced Lumia 920, Nokia 808 PureView device, HTC's flagship One X and of course, Samsung's Galaxy S III. Who do you think came on top?

Nokia infographic tells why its Lumia 920 is better than the iPhone 5

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 20, 2012

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer may have hurt Nokia's feelings at a presser yesterday by calling HTC's flagship phones, the 8X and 8S, truly Windows Phone hero products. Returning the favor, Nokia likened the new HTC devices to a "tactical re-branding".

Better yet, the ailing Finish cell phone maker thinks that the recently unveiled Lumia 920, its inaugural Windows Phone 8 device, is a far better proposition compared to the industry's golden benchmark by which all smartphones are measured, Apple's iPhone.

To prove its point, Nokia chose to play the specs game and published an interesting graphics on Facebook comparing the Lumia 920 to the iPhone 5...

Nokia fan (or Nokia?) creates Samsung style anti-iPhone ad

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 17, 2012

Following up on news of Samsung's upcoming anti-iPhone television commercial and sighting of an amusing print ad appearing in certain newspapers and focused on a laundry list of iPhone 5 and Galaxy SIII features, a fan of Nokia's newly introduced flagship handset, the Windows Phone 8-drive Lumia 920, has taken it upon himself to re-work Samsung's advertisement with a little Nokia touch.

Replacing the Galaxy SIII with the Lumia 920, the new ad proclaims Nokia's device "the heawyweight champion" of smartphone wars, which have grown uglier with the iPhone 5 introduction (which shattered sales records), patent fights, Samsung's nasty ad attacks and March 2013 release of the Galaxy S4.

Now there’s a new “ad” ready to become viral, coming from Nokia fans (or maybe Windows Phone fans). The unofficial commercial is entitled “Flyweight contender, meet the heavyweight champion” and pits the Nokia Lumia 920 against the iPhone 5...

How the iPhone 5 stacks up against the competition

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Apple is going to release its sixth-generation smartphone later this month, and the competition has never been tougher. Yesterday's iPhone event capped off a two week run of handset announcements from Samsung, Nokia and Motorola.

Samsung, for its part, is on fire right now with its Galaxy S III, selling more than 20 million units in 100 days. And both Nokia's Lumia 920 and Motorola's RAZR HD look promising. Here's how the iPhone 5 compares to those devices...