SYNAPSE CIRCUIT NOKIA X?

Are you serious? C'mon, Nokia...

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
NOKIA X?
#Nokia #NokiaX #X #Android

Good evening, Synapse Circuit Readers! I hope that all is well with you and that you had a great, productive day! If it’s still daytime where you are then use the time well!

If you have been paying a little attention to the Mobile World Congress this year you probably have one question in mind...

...WHAT THE HECK IS NOKIA DOING WITH THE “X” RANGE OF LEVEL ENTRY HANDSETS AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, ANDROID?
Hmmm... Looking at the Nokia X range I can see that they have arrived too late with a modified Android operating system. The X range is about 6 years too late! Yes, 6 years ago Android wasn’t as ubiquitous as it is today! Today just about every housewife / ordinary Josephine knows that Android is an operating system. What, “Sexist!” you say? No. Of course there are some great tech journalists such as Jessica Dolcourt who knows their tech. But the reality has been – at least from my perspective – that many women 5 or 6 years ago thought that Android was a handset manufacturer – if they ever heard the operating system at all. I have told you in previous articles how many women bought a budget Android handset only to find that it has no storage capacity for essential apps, etc.

Anyhoo! Needless to say that I think that Nokia has missed an opportunity to do something grand with Android and their handsets X, X+ & XL are out of step with today’s budget Android offerings. Their spec is so uninteresting that I can’t be bothered to take the time to list them! I don’t think the X series is going to work on a mass scale! The “X” is short for eXit out of the handset market AGAIN!! The Windows 8 handsets haven’t exactly set the world on fire! But I acknowledge the Lumia 1020 for its innovative 41MP camera and that’s about it!

A massive company like Amazon is able to get away with a bastardized Android user interface because of the huge ecosystem that it is: music, movies and books! But Nokia and Microsoft do not have such an ecosystem to be messing around with Android and leading people to the sparse Microsoft application store! Of course the X user (hee hee) would have access to other app stores but I do think that Nokia has missed a great opportunity to create a stunning Android handset!

DIPPING IN
It seems that the once fearless Nokia are dipping in a toe to test the waters which is quite odd because we know that Android sells and very, very well at that! The “X” range is what the likes of ZTE, Huawei and LG were – and in some cases still are – putting out a couple of years ago! I don’t see how the “X” range is going to fly!

I reckon Nokia should have been brave and / or smart and put out a lower-mid range like the Motorola Moto G for example! It would have been better to have used a launcher that emulates the Windows 8 phone interface. What Nokia have done to Android is not exactly horrible but it is definitely not good!

It’s a shame because I see Nokia ending up like BlackBerry if they don’t watch out!

What do you reckon?   

Take good care!

Thank you for watching and reading!

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SYNAPSE CIRCUIT CAN HTC GET ONE-UP

Oh, yeah? This I've got to see!

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
HTC (AND NOKIA) SENDS A STRONG MESSAGE TO SAMSUNG!
#HTC #ONE #HTCONE #ONE-UPPED

Good evening, Synapse Circuit Readers! As always, I am hoping that all is well in your world!

It’s not long since Samsung have announced their Galaxy S5 and already the knives are out...

HTC ONE 2: ONE-UPPED
HTC are looking to deliver their successor to the popular One handset in March and at the same time they are taunting Samsung that their reign at the very top of the Android Kingdom is going to be cut short pretty soon.

The One certainly shook up the Android handset design world and after the reveal of the Galaxy S5 has shown Samsung emulating Apple in their more of the same ethic to design, HTC could very well cause another upset!

I can tell you now that some Samsung fans aren’t impressed with the Galaxy S5 design. Is Samsung becoming a victim of their own hype? Or is that those concept designs have people wanting, expecting Samsung to come up with a radical design? Either way Samsung seem to be stuck with the design.


AS FOR NOKIA...
...hmmmm... Nokia can be compared to a mouse climbing Mount Everest in the smaprtphone steaks. And their Android effort does not look like it’ll make a dent in the Android marketplace; I can’t see the Nokia X range going down with Android fanboys and fangirls! I will bring you details soon! Mind you, if the likes of XDA Developers can root it and CyanogenMod create a custom ROM I think there could be something in it.

THE QUESTION FOR HTC......will they make the battery removable on the One 2?
What do you reckon?

Review coming very soon.... Stay tuned (pun unintended but works so well)...    

Take good care!

Thank you for watching and reading!

Please check out the Synapse Circuit website for video, i-PDF and more! 

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SYNAPSE CIRCUIT - NOKIA GOES ANDROID? Normandy?

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

NOKIA GOES ANDROID?
#Nokia #Normandy #Android

Good early morning, Synapse Circuit Readers! I sincerely hope that all is well with you and that you are not suffering too much – if at all – in this freak storms that’s put much of the UK underwater! I do pray for those whose homes, businesses, etc has been flooded. It’s awful! Brace yourselves because, according to the weather reports, the worst is yet to come! Make sure you don’t get blown away on Valentine’s Day!

Hmmm... What’s this? Nokia is going to reveal an Android handset???? Gadzooks!

BARCELONA, MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS 2014
Yes, it seems that we are going to see so many handsets at this convention! I have always said that Nokia ought to produce an Android handset and by the looks of things that’s what Nokia has done! Yippie!

Believe it or not, I have been a big fan of Nokia as the N95 was a brilliant multimedia handset at the time! I still have it lying around somewhere... It needs some refurbishing! Anyway, here’s some specs from Evleaks:

Nokia X: 2 x 1GHz Snapdragon, 4" WVGA, 512MB / 4GB / microSD, 5MP, 1500MAh, Nokia Store + 3rd party, dual-SIM, 6 colours.

It could be that Nokia will, like Amazon, develop a UI that is very similar to Windows over the Android operating system. We’ll see... I am curious!

MICROSOFT CASHING IN ON ANDROID?
Why not? There has been talk of Android apps being ported to the Windows operating system for ages now! Now there’s even more talk – what with Microsoft’s new CEO, Satya Nadella. It makes sense! The one thing that Microsoft lacks on its mobile devices is apps! And who knows, if Microsoft gets involved with Android then it could mean that the quality of Android apps will continue to rise!

It would have been ideal if Google’s Sundar Pichai had taken over Microsoft’s reins as I believe that he would have quashed the patent trolls that keep getting in the way of progress! I wanted to see Microsoft and Google team up to get Apple to relax and get producing devices that people want! Will the imminent iPhone 6 prove to be as innovative as the premium Android handsets? We’ll just have to wait and see!

NOKIA SHOULD GO ANDROID

http://synapse-circuit.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/nokia-should-go-android.html

http://synapse-circuit.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/nokia-should-go-android-part-two.html

What do you reckon?   

Take good care!

Thank you for watching and reading!

Please check out the Synapse Circuit website for video, i-PDF and more! 

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NOKIA LUMIA 1020: SNAP IT UP ON THREE!

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
NOKIA LUMIA 1020: SNAP IT UP ON THREE!
#Nokia #NokiaLumia #Lumia1020

Snap, shoot and share your experiences like never before with the Nokia Lumia 1020 and get £140 worth of accessories for free on Three

The latest addition to Nokia’s range of Lumia handsets welcomes the beginning of a new era of smartphone photography. Packing a whopping 41 megapixel camera and Nokia Pro Camera software, the Lumia 1020 will turn the average snapper into a professional photographer and is now available to pre-order from Three stores and online at www.three.co.uk.

Included in the pre-order bundle is the Nokia Wireless Charging Plate and case so you can charge your phone without fumbling with cables, a tripod to capture exactly the picture you want, and the Nokia Camera Grip, that has been specially designed for the 1020 to make it easier to grip and use as a traditional camera, along with offering extra battery power.

The Nokia Lumia 1020 has an amazing six times lossless zoom, which means people can take photos and then zoom into the image by up to six times without losing any quality. They can then choose to frame the shot any way they want. Thanks to Three’s all-you-can-eat data, its customers can then share their stunning photos with friends, without having to worry about the size of the files they are sending.

Three is offering the Nokia Lumia 1020 with an upfront cost of £69 on a 24 month contract plan. You can choose from either the Ultimate Internet 500 for £34 a month, the Ultimate Internet 1000 for £36 a month, or take full advantage of Three’s all-you-can-eat data on The One Plan for just £38 a month, including 2000 minutes of talk time and 5000 Three to Three minutes, plus 5000 texts.

Alternatively you can buy the device for £549.99 on Three’s market leading Pay As You Go rates of 3p a minute, 2p a text and 1p a MB of data.

Sylvia Chind, head of devices at Three, said: “The Lumia 1020 is a fantastic high-end smartphone with a ground-breaking, professional style camera, that’s going to give our customers everything they need to take amazing, every day photos that they can share easily across our network. Plus, when we roll out 4G, people can share as many amazing pictures as they want even quicker than ever, without worrying about out of bundle costs.”

The Nokia Lumia 1020 also offers unlimited music streaming for free with Nokia Music, perfectly matched with Three’s all-you-can-eat data, allowing you to listen to the latest tunes, wherever you go.

Key features:

Features a 41 megapixel camera sensor

Nokia Pro Camera with high resolution zoom

Free Nokia Music and offline navigation

Powered by Windows Phone 8

Wireless charging enabled

The Lumia 1020 looks great! Android Fans are probably a little jealous! Check it out!

What do you reckon?

Take good care! 

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Thank you for watching and reading!

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NOKIA SHOULD GO ANDROID! PART TWO

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop. What are you? A chicken? 

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT:
NOKIA SHOULD GO ANDROID! PART TWO

Good afternoon, Synapse Circuit Readers! I hope you had a great weekend... I sure did! Hey, are you a Dexter Fan? I sure am... I have been catching up with the latest and final series (what a shame) and it’s brilliant!

Anyway, I must have some kind of tech-kinesis because soon after I wrote an article about Nokia going Android I learn that Nokia were afraid of Samsung’s dominance...

WHAT STEPHEN ELOP IS REALLY SAYING
Stephen Elop is really saying that Nokia does not have anything in the tank to challenge Samsung’s innovations. That’s the bottom line.

I am disappointed that Stephen Elop has taken a defeatist attitude with regards to Android and using Samsung as scapegoat. Ok, to a certain degree I can see just a little bit why Elop is sceptical... Nokia fell from grace because Android and the build quality of the handsets that followed. I get the impression that Nokia simply did not understand Android and was bewildered by suddenly finding that they were not only knocked down from the number one or two spot overnight - they kept tumbling.

Nokia couldn’t have possibly known about the impact of Samsung back then. Both Nokia and Samsung pre-Android made good but poorly built handsets. If I am correct HTC had a head start on all things Android. My HTC Hero looks every bit as good as when I first bought it. I can’t say the same, as you know, for my Nokia 95. Sure, the HTC Hero’s touchscreen became frustratingly faulty though not entirely unusable. The point I am making is that Nokia quickly found itself being way behind HTC, LG and Sony. In my mind, Samsung was a maverick and they rose from being an okayish mobile phone brand with the occasional unexpected handset (pre-Android) to being the top dog!

GENIUS OR WHAT?
Just to focus on Samsung for a little bit... Yes, I am a Samsung Fan primarily because I see them as the ones coming up with technological innovations. But, trust me I am not like an ardent iPhone Fanboy / Fangirl who’d stick with the iPhone no matter what. If a better technology is released then I am on it!

I am too sure if Samsung cold calculatedly modelled the Galaxy S on the iPhone in anticipation that Apple would have an infant tantrum and meltdown which brought tremendous publicity to Samsung and their wonderful iPhone alternative. We all know the story from there on... In my opinion, Samsung worked hard to top each model year after year. That is why they dominate. Stephen Elop talks as if Samsung is threatening to nuke the competition of the market. Lol!

FAITH
I think Nokia has produced some great looking handsets with the Windows 8 operating system – I really do! As a someone who enjoys taking photos on my handsets I think what Nokia is doing for mobile handsets is inspiring. 

Personally, I am not sold on the Windows 8 operating system on a handset because Android happens to serve my needs and the Windows 8 interface can be replicated on Android if some find it pleasing. Who knows? I may just pick up a Nokia Windows 8 phone to give me something more to write about.

In any event the using of Samsung as a scapegoat goes not hold water! Why? I am glad you asked! By going Windows it was a huge gamble because at the time it was an unknown territory. To be quite frank, Windows 8 is still an unknown territory; where are the apps? The one thing that was and is certain is the rapid growth of Android! All Nokia had to do was to jump on that gravy train and they still can!

THE WONDERS OF ANDROID
The great thing about Android to manufacturers is that they can use it to make any type of handset they want for each and every market or even great new markets like Samsung has done and continues to do!

I really do think that Nokia can produce a handset for the malleable Android market. The Android operating system is a nice chunk of land on which to build foundations. The greatness of the foundations is entirely up to the manufacturer.

It has been proven that the highest spec is not so important with Android handsets, it’s about functionality. Sometimes manufacturers get it wrong trying to build Facebook handsets using Android as the base when the Facebook app does what you need it to do. But that said, the Facebook handset can still work if the price is right! If Nokia could produce a Facebook based handset with a decent camera because people love to post photos for around £90 then I can see it working! If I am correct the HTC First, Facebook handset, requires a $100 upfront payment plus rental fees and if that’s the case that bird was never going to fly! Lol!

THE RACE IS STILL ON
I don’t know why some manufacturers are still insisting upon releasing “budget” Android handsets with 512MB RAM and in some cases they use Gingerbread or even earlier! Shock! Horror! This is not to say that earlier versions of Android aren’t capable but Android should go forward instead of backwards – especially now that Jelly Bean has overtaken Gingerbread and Ice Cream Sandwich as the most used version to date.

Nokia has the perfect opportunity to get a serious budget Android handset out there! The market demands it!

Once again, I’d like to see consumers having more choice over the colour of their handset: Pink, Electric Blue, Lime (Key Lime Pie), Yellow, etc. And instead of bringing out these colours incrementally they’d be there at once!

Imagine the following:

2GHz Intel CPU
1GB RAM
4GB Internal storage
MicroSD slot
8MP Main camera / 720p HD video

4.5” display

And all of the above for £80! I think they would sell by the bucket load! A unique selling point is that they can feature a block on inappropriate content to safeguard minors. Such a handset would be a boon to parents who are under pressure from their children asking for a smartphone. My brother would love to give his 10 year old son a smartphone but he is very concerned that he is not exposed to inappropriate content... Sure, it’s pretty much hard to monitor as many parents either don’t care or have given up on preventing their child or children from being exposed to potentially mentally damaging content.

I don’t see any handset manufacturer being aware of children where surfing the Net is concerned. I think manufacturers are passing the buck leaving child protection to parents who may not be tech savvy!

What do you reckon? Would you like to see Nokia go Android? After all it is the most dominant operating system on the planet! Nokia is losing out!

Thank you for reading!

Take good care!

Please enjoy the video below! Feel free to leave some comments and subscribe!

Thank you for watching and reading!

Please check out the Synapse Circuit website for video, i-PDF and more! 

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