If you own a Nokia Lumia phone which runs Win 8.1 then there is an update with quite a few interesting features available. US customers will see a Cortana update while all users will gain the ability to search their phone with Bing, an IE11 update, encrypted S/MIME and improved VPN support. There are quite a few app updates and users of the 1520 and Icon get Nokia Rich Recording and Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 which improves both audio and video options. Check out Cyan at The Register but don't stop there because according to The Inquirer you will no longer need to be a Premium Skype member to make group calls from your mobile device as it is now a free feature for all.
"Nokia is rolling out Windows Phone 8.1 as an over-the-air update that comes bundled with "Cyan," a special feature package that's exclusive to Lumia devices."
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Personally- I just need a
Personally- I just need a phone with test messaging/e-mail and a camera. Cause of my work, GPS is useful. I don’t need all the other shit though some of it is nice. Android and iPhone already have more features than anyone will ever fully use- and most of it you could live without. Why we would want MS OS’s in the mix now is something people have to have a decided preference for.
Maybe MS will give them away?
MS is rumored to be laying-off (related to the Nokia handset) probably 5-10,000 soon(?). It’s supposed to be a culling, but….
I have a cheapo Nokia 521 as
I have a cheapo Nokia 521 as a backup/in between nice Android phones phone. I used it for about 6 weeks last year while waiting for the Nexus 5 to come out and I hated it. The live tiles gimmick is awful in that the tiles sometimes stop updating so I’d always have to open the program anyway to update them. I also can’t stand the completely locked down WP system and the almost complete lack of decent apps. I couldn’t even find a Wifi signal strength meter!
I hear you!!! I have a 521
I hear you!!! I have a 521 also and it is the biggest piece of shit I’ve ever owned. I can’t wait to get a new phone and replace this piece of crap. The app store is also hella disappointing. Full of crappy indie apps and you will almost never find an app you used to use on android and IOS.
I have a Lumia 1520 and I use
I have a Lumia 1520 and I use and enjoy it everyday. Obviously the apps are not all there but I find I don’t miss the iOS apps I used to have. There are enough decent apps I have no freaked out. More apps keep coming in.
Never thought Live tiles were a gimmick. I can glance and see useful information quickly. Simple tiles seem silly to me now.
MS can not abandon WP because they don’t have market share now. They have to keep improving it. No more Zune or Zen – throw something on the market and barely improve then wonder why no one is buying. Android started out as crap from what I saw but after the low coast continual improvements have made it a competent OS. Windows started out as crap and then made MS a few dollars…
I have a Nokia 521, and I
I have a Nokia 521, and I quite like it myself. It’s a neat little phone in my opinion. I’m not too concerned with the lack of apps, but I can see how the low app count can annoy some people.
I wish I had the money to upgrade to one of their larger models. It’s such a small thing.
Looks like MS is laying off
Looks like MS is laying off 12,500 Nokia employees out of a total of about 18,000. No demographic breakdown yet- but I saw one report of 1000 layoffs in the Finnish Nokia site. That they didn’t publish that data may be to cover up the US damage.
I have had this update for a
I have had this update for a while on my Lumia 920 via the Developer Preview. It is pretty cool.
Though not new, I love the live tiles, it’s much better than Android on my Nexus while iOS seems almost archaic now.
I can’t wait to get my hands on a Lumia 930.