Over the weekend the Lumia Black update started hitting unlocked Lumia 1020 devices across the world; the update was first pushed out to American variants of the phone, after its introduction on the Lumia 1520 phablet, with which it shipped out of the box. We're seeing and hearing several reports that unlocked Nokia Lumia 920 phones are also getting the Lumia Black package, which consists of Windows Phone 8 GDR3, with Nokia's own Black suite on top of it. Among the things included, worthy of mentioning are: the ability to group apps into folders (requires AppFolder app), Bluetooth LE, new ...

Growing the Windows Phone user base will require a lot of steps, not the least of which is simply exposing more potential users to Windows Phone in the first place. Sure, advertisements can go a long way towards generating interest in a platform, but that might not even be able to hold a candle to real-world run-ins with actual handsets, getting to see them in action. That sounds like what Microsoft's hoping for with one of its latest partnerships, working with Delta to get some 19,000 Lumia 820 phones into the hands of flight attendants. On board Delta's planes, the 820s will serve as ...

Watch today's Pocketnow Daily as we talk about the Nexus 10 Cover finally arriving at the Google Play store. Later it's Nokia talk as we go through their software updates and also the leaked video of the Lumia 920 getting tap to wake in the near future. Microsoft follows as we talk about a possible Surface 7-inch tablet. The LG Optimus G Pro is next as it's rumored for an AT&T launch soon and we've also got news of the software Value Pack reaching current customers with some major enhancements. We end today's show talking about the Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 and Galaxy Mega 5.8. All this ...

Oh no! Just how many variations on the same design can the market take? I guess the fair answer to that is different from person to person and there's always the good old saying according to which you shouldn't fix something that is not broken (or, in this case, that still sells). Apple's iPhones look fairly the same; of course there are differences from one major iteration to the other (3, 4, 5) but the design principle is alike. Before Samsung launched its Galaxy S 4 I was praying for a new design because the current pebble-like aspect has been used and abused like a good old... Galaxy S ...

All companies go through rough times. You may not see them financially at first, but it's always a matter of time before the rest of the signs of decline reach their bottom line. We've been worried about Microsoft's performance lately. Whether it's about not being able to deliver compelling products, or having the compelling products not really deliver, it seems that all the corporate genius that was so well put together by Bill Gates is just there to cash a check and be polite. The irony is to have to worry about Microsoft's marketing strategy for Windows Phone. I mean, aren’t they ...

Back in December, we heard from Nokia that it was starting distribution of the Windows Phone 8 Portico update for Lumia 820 and Lumia 920 owners in the US and Canada. What about the rest of you? At the time, Nokia said that wider distribution would begin in February, but it now sounds like the company has gotten a head start, posting an update today which explains that the the process is already underway. According to Nokia, phased deployment of the update will continue from now through the middle of March, by which point Nokia intends to have reached Lumia 820 and 920 users in all ...

Another holiday season's come and (almost) gone, and if you're among the lucky ones, the receding tides of commercialism have left you with a bounty of gadgetry under your Christmas tree, Hanukkah bush, or other homespun symbol of holiday joy. The holiday season is a crucial one for all platforms, but this year we've had our eye trained especially closely on Windows Phone. At this time in 2011, the Microsoft device stable didn't offer much in the way of eye-catching goodies, with the then-unannounced Lumia 900 still months away from release. Would-be buyers of Windows Phone devices were ...

We saw Nokia getting all its ducks in a row yesterday as Windows Phone updates for the Lumia 920 and 820 made their way to the company's servers. All we needed was word of when official distribution would actually get underway. As it turns out, we hardly had to wait at all (unlike what's going on with the HTC 8X on T-Mobile), and today updates are going out to Nokia users in the US and Canada. Today's update may only be available in North America, but Nokia hasn't forgotten about Lumia users living elsewhere. Unfortunately, they won't see their own updates arrive before the year's out, and ...

AT&T's Lumia 820 is as close as American buyers can get to the stock midrange Windows Phone 8 experience Nokia envisioned when it announced its new smartphone line. Its hardware is indistinguishable from the international version of the device, bearing no trace of the heavy-handed physical customizations that mark the other Lumia 8xx carrier variants we've seen. We recently reviewed each of those spiritual contemporaries, the Lumia 810 for T-Mobile and the Lumia 822 for Verizon Wireless, and now it's time we turned our focus to the baseline model. We've already compared it with ...

Watch today's Pocketnow Daily as we go through the recent news regarding the FCC's request to the FAA to remove the limit on tablet usage during flights. Then we talk about the Galaxy S II and how you can install multi window support on it, just like you can with the Galaxy Note II. Then we go through the Galaxy Camera and the rumors of it reaching Verizon. Then we talk about the Nokia Lumia 820 after our unboxing coverage. We end today's show talking about the HTC Butterfly and how it disappoints. All this and more after the break. Stories - You May Soon Be Able To Use Your Tablet All ...

Microsoft kick-starts the smack-talk machine, which blows up in its face just as Nokia sells its own headquarters. The Lumia 822 gives us an excuse to launch a brand-new review format, while a Nexus 4 trade lets us take a post-review look at Google's latest smartphone. The iPhone 5S breaks its cover -maybe- while the Nexus 10 gives everyone a reason to care about big Android tablets - again, maybe. Rumors of a new 1080p device from LG get the speculation bonfire going again, but a cool bucketful of Google Play-colored cold water got us back on track. And, of course, it wouldn't be a ...

The Nokia Lumia 920 has been getting all the media love since its unveiling several months back, mostly at the expense of its less-remarkable Lumia 820 sibling. But much as T-Mobile USA did with the Lumia 810 we recently reviewed, Verizon Wireless asked Nokia to make a customized variant of the "littler Lumia" for itself. The result: the Nokia Lumia 822, an LTE-packing Windows Phone 8 device with a somewhat homely design, but lots of features to call its own. We're in the midst of giving the 822 the quick-review treatment, and if you haven't seen it yet, head on back to our unboxing and ...

"Shorten your topic list," they said. "The show won't run as long," they said. An hour and a half later, another lengthy episode of the Pocketnow Weekly podcast is ready for your listening enjoyment. And make no mistake: we could have talked for another 40 minutes at least. That's not because it's been a huge news week, but because our discussion topics are dense and detailed. Topics like phone reviews, new platforms, and 1080p screens. Subjects like GPS navigation, wide-angle smartphone cameras, and whether Google should become a wireless carrier. The merits and shortcomings of the Lumia ...