Microsoft and Nokia held a joint press event in New York City on Wednesday. During the event, the two companies announced their latest and greatest Windows Phone 8 devices.

"This is Lumia. And it's time to switch," declared Nokia's executive vice president Jo Harlow as she held up a Lumia 920, the latest Windows Phone 8 flagship device. 



As rumored, the device offers built-in wireless charging to help keep what Harlow describes as the "largest battery ever installed on a Nokia phone" running all day long.

The Lumia 920 also brings a PureView camera system, meaning that you should get crisper, clearer images than ever. The technology within the Lumia 920's camera supposedly responds to the tiniest changes in the environment in order to take the best images possible, without triggering the flash.

The new device's 4.5-inch curved glass display should show off those photos quite well, as the Lumia 920 has enhancements which respond to glare from sunlight and other environmental factors. It's a "display that you could even see in the desert," says Harlow.

Additionally, Harlow emphasized that the Lumia 920 will include Nokia's best navigation tools. "This is the real thing," she says, describing the device's offline map feature, explaining that it is not the typical offline caching seen in some competing apps. An additional app called "City Lens" will allow you to point the smartphone's camera at any nearby landmark or business to view an overlay which includes information about the location. (Yes, augmented reality is leaking into more and more apps.)

This is a phone that you'll want to use constantly, according to Harlow. Microsoft corporate vice president Joe Belfiore took about 15 minutes to demonstrate some of the scenarios in which you might indeed reach for the Lumia 920.  It was a basic walk-through of the Windows Phone 8 ecosystem and Belfiore earned a few awkward chuckles as he demonstrated how easily he could add Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer to the Windows Phone 8 start screen, which is dedicated to "the humans you want to keep in touch with."

Nokia senior vice president Kevin Shields took to the stage after Belfiore, to describe how the device "feels so good in your hand that it begs to be picked up." He emphasized the quality and durability of the Luma 920's design. It'll look good, "even throughout the abuse of everyday life."



If the Lumia 920 is a bit too much for you, there's its little brother, the new Lumia 820. The device has most of the Lumia 920's features, but a slightly smaller 4.3-inch display and no built-in wireless charging. It does have some exchangeable back covers though, which can indeed enable wireless charging.




Since no Windows Phone 8 event would be complete without Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, the executive did indeed step on stage to wrap things up and reiterate the advancements the mobile operating system has made.

Windows 8 based Tablets at BUILD conference

Nokia will add a Windows 8 tablet to its product line in June 2012, a French newspaper reported in an interview with the head of Nokia in France.

"In June 2012, we will have a tablet running Windows 8," Paul Amsellem told Les Echos in a story published yesterday.
Such a move would make some sense. Where Android and iOS span phones and tablets, Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system doesn't. But ignoring the tablet market would shut Nokia out of a major growth industry, and Microsoft is the obvious partner, even if it means Nokia must wrestle with the complexities of having two major operating systems.

The Nokia Lumia 800 Windows Phone-powered device will be joined by a Windows 8-powered tablet next year, a Nokia executive has said.

Reached for comment today, Nokia spokesman wouldn't confirm or deny Amsellem's statement, but did say, "We have not announced any plans relating to tablets."
Last month, Nokia Chief Executive Stephen Elop wouldn't comment on Windows 8 tablet plans, but he left the door wide open when discussing earnings results with analysts.
"From an ecosystem perspective, there are beneftis and synergies that exist between Windows and Windows Phone," Elop said. "We see that opportunity. We'll certainly consider those opportunities going forward."

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop speaking at Nokia World in London.

And in a later interview with the Financial Times, he pointed more specifically to the similarities in user interface between Nokia's newly launched Lumia line of Windows Phone products and the upcoming Windows 8 operating system.
Nokia has services it could bring to a Windows tablet, of course. But the synergies aren't always easy: Programs written for one operating system don't run on the other, so spanning the two devices means a lot of work for app developers.
Amsellem likened the new Nokia Lumia 800 Windows Phone to a BMW, saying that higher-end and lower-end models will arrive soon. Nokia already showed off the lower-end Lumia 710, and at Nokia World said higher-end models would arrive as well, but it's not shared details so far.

iOS: Yesterday Facebook updated its iPhone app, and completely overhauled the design for user profiles and group walls, made it easier to share status updates and photos from your iOS device with select groups, and made it easier to tag friends and locations right from the mobile app.
Additionally, Facebook updated the iOS app so your privacy settings (you know, the ones they added last month) on the web carry over to your phone. This means that if you have Facebook set to only share with a certain group by default on the web, the same will be true on your iPhone. The update also makes it easier to select filters in your news feed and share external links.


Unfortunately, there's still no iPad version of the app, and while we all know they have one, Facebook has removed it from the update, and even if you had it enabled you can't log in with it.

• Facebook for iPhone

The software giant unveiled specific business features for “Mango”, its next Windows Phone release believed to be named 7.5:

• Pinnable email folders: Pin a folder to the start screen for quick access. This could be an email folder for a specific project, from a specific group or person (like your boss), or an RSS feed you’ve set up in Outlook.
• Conversation view in email: Emails in your inbox are organized by conversation, bringing replies to a thread into a consolidated view so it’s faster and easier to stay on top of the conversation.
• Server search: Search your email server (e.g. Exchange Server) for older emails no longer stored on your phone, giving you ready access to all of your mail.
• Lync: Lync Mobile brings the Lync experience to Windows Phone customers by delivering Unified Communications capabilities, including instant messaging and the ability to see the presence of your co-workers. The Lync app will be a free download from Windows Phone Marketplace and will be enabled with support from your business organization.
• Security: Complex (alpha-numeric) password support
• Rights management: Information Rights Management Support for protecting e-mails and Office documents
• Wireless improvements: Support for access to hidden corporate Wi-Fi networks

“We’re also excited about the thriving ecosystem of developers writing apps for Windows Phone,” said Paul Bryan, Senior Director of Business Experience for the Windows Phone team. “This week, we expect to exceed 16,000 apps available in the Windows Phone Marketplace. With new capabilities for developers in Mango (e.g., HTML5 support, Targeted Distribution of apps) we expect an even larger number and wider range of apps for Windows Phone in the future.”


Microsoft is currently hard at work on “Mango”, its next major release of Windows Phone. Microsoft has promised to ship “Mango” later in the year. “Mango” is currently in the beta stages at Microsoft, built as 7.1 currently. The company revealed a number of new features in February that will ship as part of its Windows Phone Point release later this year. Nokia is also reportedly waiting for the next release of Windows Phone before it unveils its first Windows Phone device.

“Mango” currently contains multitasking, Internet Explorer 9 mobile and Twitter integration. Microsoft unveiled a number of key developer enhancements at its MIX11 conference last month. Developers will have access to the Motion Sensor library and the camera, enabling augmented reality experiences. Phone integration has also been greatly improved for developers wanting to do more with their apps. The Live Tiles functionality has been expanded to give developers more flexibility and engage with their customers better. Microsoft is also planning to expand on developer opportunities for Windows Phone. The company will expand its Marketplace to 35 countries soon.