Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) opened a press conference Tuesday at the Mobile World Congress with the announcement of its new Lumia 640 and Lumia 640 XL smartphones. These two new phones are targeted towards a bigger tech market with its lowered price point, making it available to more consumers.

The Lumia 640 and the Lumia 640 XL are both technically the successor to the Lumia 630 and Lumia 1320 respectively. Featuring the Clear Black Display, the Lumia 640 sports a 5-inch, 1280×720 screen, while the Lumia 640 XL ups the size a bit to 5.7-inch. Spec-wise both are almost the same, 1.2 Ghz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB of internal storage. The Lumia 640 gets an 8-megapixel front camera while the Lumia 640 XL gets its 13-megapixel Carl Zeiss optics camera.

The Lumia 640

Lumia 640 XL

Perhaps the most notable feature of both phones is its one-year free subscription to Office 365 Personal, which saves its users at least $70 worth for the new units. Coupled with its relatively low-cost, Microsoft aims to widen the base for Windows Phone users, which would in turn help the development of more apps for its mobile OS.

Information for the announcement of the two new Windows Phone models was actually already leaked at least a day prior to the press conference at the Mobile World Congress. The leak was through an empty link header, which clearly detailed the announcement in the title.

Both the Lumia 640 and the Lumia 640 XL will be installed with Windows Phone 8.1. However, the two phones are also designed to be upgradeable to Windows 10 later on after it becomes officially released. It will be commercially available sometime around this month, at an equivalent price of about $156 (3G) and $178 (LTE) for the Lumia 640, and about $212 (3G) and $245 (LTE) for the Lumia 640 XL. It will also be available in matte and glossy versions, as well as in cyan, orange and black colors.

The post Microsoft Reveals the Lumia 640 and Lumia 640 XL at MWC 2015 appeared first on VR World.

When Microsoft launched the Lumia 535, its first branded smartphone after absorbing Nokia’s mobile and services division, the strategy had become clear: that the company will start focusing on the low-end in its quest to gain market share in the smartphone industry. This has been further cemented with the announcement of the Lumia 435 and 532, budget Windows Phone 8.1 smartphones clearly targeted at the masses — the devices are even priced lower. After all, a core focus for the company is “connecting the next billion people to the Internet.”

Outside of smartphones, Microsoft also has the Nokia 215 up its sleeve — a sub-$30 feature phone that will enable access to apps like Facebook Messenger and Opera Mini. This is clearly aimed at emerging markets, where the priority is to connect people through mobile Internet, even if it’s through a small screen and slow transfer speeds.

Priced at about $120 unlocked, the Microsoft Lumia 535 seems to strike a balance between the low-end and mid-range. Microsoft markets it as having a “555” strategy, offering a 5-inch touchscreen display, 5-megapixel main camera and 5-megapixel wide-angle front camera for selfies.

As with most entry-level devices, it’s not exactly stellar in terms of specs and design. But being a Windows Phone, performance is decent even this low in the price and spec range. A clear advantage over the Lumia 530 and 520 it replaces in this segment are the bigger screen and better camera. While the user experience is decent, I do have some gripes with the screen being washed out — something common in this price range for Lumia devices. With this pricing, there has to be some compromise in component quality.

Specs

The Microsoft Lumia 535 is powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 Cortex A7 clocked at 1.2 GHz. Display is powered by an Adreno 302 GPU, outputting 540×960 pixels onto a 5-inch screen. This results in a PPI of approximately 222. The devices comes with 8GB of flash storage, with the system eating up about half. Good news for photo and music junkies: the device supports miroSD cards up to 128GB. Storage is augmented by 15GB of OneDrive storage — Microsoft account holders who have activated auto backup in September 2014 will have up to 30GB free.

The 535 thankfully has 1GB of RAM, which should improve app performance over previous entry-level devices. Even the “affordable flagship” Lumia 830 ships with 1GB, so raw performance can be comparable, memory-wise.

The Lumia 535 comes with a 1,905 mAh removable battery, which is rated at 552 hours standby and 11 or 13 hours talk time (2G and 3G, respectively). In real-world scenarios, however, I would usually get about 55 hours standby time on this device, with a few calls, news reading and and Skype chats.

Our review device is the Dual SIM variant, which means you can use two SIM cards simultaneously — a great way to reduce device clutter in your purse or pocket, or at least get more than one active line on the phone, whether from the same or different networks. It’s a handy feature whilst roaming — you can keep your current number and also use a local prepaid SIM to save on data, SMS and call costs.

Comparing it with the Lumia 530 it replaces, the 535 is certainly an improvement, although the devices sport basically the same procssor. You can see VR World‘s review of the Lumia 530 from a few months back.

Design and User Experience

The 535 sports the familiar Lumia design — polycarbonate removable back cover that comes in bright colors. The phone comes in orange, green, black and white, with the latter two coming in matte, while the more colorful ones in shiny finish. Our review unit was orange, and while the shiny plastic can be a fingerprint magnet, it’s also provides better grip, which should help reduce accidental drops.

Button layout should also be familiar to longtime Lumia users, with all keys at the right side of the phone: volume rocker at the top and sleep/power button at the middle. Sorry, no dedicated camera button here. Microsoft has done away with the dedicated capacitive softkeys, with on-screen soft keys that can be hidden and shown with a swiping-up motion. This can take some getting used to, especially for those more familiar with fixed capacitive touch keys.

Screen is a bit washed out in direct sunlight

The 3.5 mm audio jack is at the center top, while the USB port is at the center bottom. Pretty standard stuff, unlike the Lumia 830 we earlier reviewed, which had the USB port at the top.

The box comes with Microsoft-branded earphones, Microsoft-branded wall charger and a USB cable. Everything looked suspiciously the same as Nokia’s bundled accessories, only they now carry Microsoft branding.

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Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) has announced the Lumia 435 and 532, two sub-$100 smartphones aimed at enabling Internet access for first-time smartphone users, especially in the emerging markets. The two devices will be powered by the latest Windows Phone 8.1 Denim, promising decent performance even at low price points.

Both devices will have a 4-inch 800×480 pixel screen, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage. While similar in form factor and in some specs, the two devices have their differences.  The Lumia 435 will feature a dual-core Snapdragon 201 chip and 2 megapixel camera and. The 532 will have a quad-core version of the same SoC, a 5 megapixel camera and support for the famed Glance screen feature. Both devices will come in single-SIM and dual-SIM configurations, with the latter being a popular feature in emerging markets.

The Lumia 435 will be priced at around $80, while the 532 will be around $95. According to Microsoft, the devices will be available in key markets in Europe, APAC and EMEA in February. As with most of Microsoft’s latest entry-level offerings, the devices are not likely to be marketed in the U.S.

This is not the first time Microsoft has announced a device meant to be accessible to the masses. The first Microsoft-branded Lumia — after its acquisition of Nokia’s mobile and services division — was the Lumia 535, a $120 device that touted as offering a “5-5-5″ experience: 5 megapixel main camera, 5 megapixel wide-angle selfie-friendly front camera, and a 5-inch screen. Microsoft also announced the Nokia 215, a sub-$30 Internet-capable feature phone.

A smartphone in every home

In its early days, Microsoft’s vision was to “a computer on every desk and in every home.” While the company has succeeded in making the desktop accessible to the masses, mobile devices are more dominant today. The Redmond company’s focus has shifted quite drastically: “to create a family of devices and services for individuals and businesses that empower people around the globe at home, at work and on the go, for the activities they value most.” While this might be a mouthful, the company’s strategy for mobile devices is quite simple. It wants to focus on “connecting the next billion people to the Internet.”

This strategy is evident with how Microsoft has started focusing on low-end Internet-capable devices. While flagship devices have highlighted the Lumia platform especially in Nokia’s heyday, Microsoft is adamant at releasing devices priced within reach of the masses. While the market has been flooded with likewise cheaply-priced Android devices, the advantage of Windows Phone would be the platform’s focus on providing an almost consistent level of usability, with even low-spec’d devices offering decent performance. Windows Phones also come rich with Microsoft’s productivity offerings like Office, OneDrive and Skype.

The question now is whether Microsoft will be successful in this strategy, especially with developer and app support being the main concern with the Windows Phone platform. A rich app ecosystem has made Android a runaway success for Google. Apple touts the quality of apps on its own ecosystem, as well as tight hardware-software integration as among its main selling points. Windows Phone does have its own fanbase, but at about 3.5% market share, Microsoft will, indeed, have to focus on the next billion, in order to shore up numbers for the platform.

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When it comes to smartphones, one often relates the term “flagship” to mean bleeding edge specifications, crisp and adequately-sized screen, and of course the price tag to match. Thus, a company offering an “affordable” flagship device might be met with skepticism at first. Nokia — and now Microsoft — has such a device in the Lumia 830, which is marketed as an affordable flagship smartphone for people who want the capabilities of a top performer, but who are price sensitive enough to be discouraged by the Lumia 930’s price tag.

Earlier, VR World reviewed the Lumia 930, which is among the last of the Nokia-branded flagships. It seems that after Microsoft dropped the Nokia brand, the company is focusing on the lower-end with the upcoming Lumia 535. The Lumia 830 is somewhat of a holdout in between. It still carries the Nokia branding. The specs are decidedly midrange, but the device is being marketed as a flagship of sorts.

Being that the Lumia 830 is meant to be a toned-down version of the Lumia 930, we will focus on doing a comparison rather than a full review, especially in terms of how the user experience and performance differ between the devices. Windows Phone users would already be familiar with the user interface and how the platform generally works, and so we will leave such details to the Lumia 930 review.

In a way, the Lumia 830 may, indeed, be considered the poor man’s 930, but don’t be too dismissive of the 830 just yet. It does have certain advantages over its more expensive sibling, and what it lacks in pure performance it makes up for in other ways.

Specifications

While the Lumia 930’s processor is already an unimpressive (by today’s standards) quad-core 2.2 GHz Snapdragon 800, the Lumia 830 scales back even further with its use of Snapdragon 400 — a quad-core SoC clocked at 1.2 GHz. This means the device will take a bit longer in performing processor-intensive tasks, compared with the Lumia 930. Given that the Windows Phone platform is usually optimized for performance even on low-end specs, you can expect that Lumia 830 to perform decently in everyday tasks, however.

Notable in comparison with the 930 is the use of a lower-resolution screen, at 720p. With the same 5 inch display, this means a lower pixel density. The 830 also uses an IPS LCD screen instead of the 930’s OLED. The advantage, of course, is that the LCD screen can support the Windows Phone “Glance” feature, which is a handy way of checking notifications like messages or missed calls without actually waking up the device.

Here are some key specs differences with the 930:

Hardware Design and Build Quality

This device being a Nokia, you can expect good industrial design and durable build quality. The Lumia 830 follows the same design principles as that of the 930, with aluminum plus polycarbonate construction. A marked difference is that the 830’s back plate is designed to be user-removable, with the nano SIM slot accessible by removing the battery. The microSD slot is also accessible by removing the back plate, which comes in various bright colors like orange, green and white. In contrast, the 930’s back plate is removable, but only for purposes of replacing the cover. The 930’s battery is not user-replaceable, and the nano SIM is housed on a slide-in tray at the top of the device.

The backplate design is also one big giveaway when it comes to distinguishing between Lumias. The 830 has the camera and LED flash combo encased in black reflective plastic, while the 930’s camera and flash sit flush with the backplate. The 830’s aluminum frame is a bit thinner than the 930’s, with the back plate taking a more sloped approach than the  rounded rear design on the 930. The 830 is actually a bit taller, but thinner and shallower than the 930. The aluminum frame is also thicker at the sides and the corners are less rounded than that of the 930.

Placement of the hardware buttons is similar — all at the right side — but with slightly different positioning. One main difference is that the 830’s microUSB charging/data port is located at the top part of the device instead of the bottom part, which might entail some adjustment when using the phone whilst plugged.

Our review unit seems to have come with some design or production defect, however, with the upper right corner of the screen having detached a bit from the frame. Perhaps it’s a production issue, or maybe the phone had been dropped from some height by a previous reviewer. It’s probably a design limitation when working with glass plus aluminum constructions, compared to the usual full polycarbonate shells.

Software and User Interface

The Lumia 830 ships with Windows Phone 8.1 Denim, which means users need not install an update to get the latest features and functionalities from Microsoft. In contrast, the 930 ships with Windows Phone 8.1, but requires an OTA update to get the Cyan update. Denim is right around the corner, however, for the 930. Having basically the same screen size as the 930, you can expect a similar user experience, save for some feature differences. As earlier mentioned, the 830’s screen enables the device to have the famed “Glance” feature that enables users to have a quick look at notifications on-screen through a low-power monochromatic display (with the backlighting at zero). This is simply unavailable on the 930 due to the limitations of its screen.

Likewise, with storage expansion through microSD, users have a choice to store apps and data on the external card through Storage Sense. Beyond local storage, you have options to automatically synchronize photos with OneDrive. And as with other Windows Phone 8.1 devices, your email accounts, preferences, applications and even SMS messages can be automatically backed up on a regular basis, so you can switch to a new Window Phone device without having to redo everything.

One big software difference between the 830 and 930 is 4K support. Once the Lumia 930 gets the Denim update, it will come with support for 4K photo and video recording, which means future-proofing once the ultra high-definition standard becomes more popular as a means of recording and consuming content.

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Windows Phone is not exactly the heavyweight in the mobile industry as Windows is on desktops. Microsoft has played a catch-up game to iOS and Android, with activation figures stumbling in the recent quarter, shrinking from 4.6% to 4.3% in the US. Windows Phone is not without its fans, however, particularly in the enterprise markets where IT departments need remote management, BitLocker encryption and app approval. Surface and Surface Pro, are of course, gaining ground in the enterprise market as viable laptop replacements, too.

For those coming from the Android and iOS camp, Windows Phone would be either a refreshing reimagining of the smartphone or an alien concept altogether. There is, of course, the use of Live Tiles, which puts content front-and-center of one’s home screen experience. The Lumia 930 also features the PureView camera, which promises excellent image quality, offering crisp focus and excellent image reproduction in most lighting conditions. The unavailability of many apps on the Windows Phone marketplace could be a big concern, however.

Today we take a look at the Nokia Lumia 930 — called the Icon in some markets — which is possibly the last flagship in the Lumia line that will bear Nokia’s branding. Recall that Microsoft recently acquired Nokia’s mobile devices and services division and will integrate the Lumia line under the Microsoft branding. This means succeeding flagships will be branded “Microsoft Lumia.”

Released in April and available in most markets as of July 2014, we got our hands on the Lumia 930 care of Nokia’s media representatives in Manila. The result was a generally positive flagship experience, coming from one more used to a mid-range Android device as a daily driver and for development purposes.

Specifications

The Lumia 930’s specs are nothing to write (or phone) home about, with its last-generation Snapdragon 800 chipset running a quad-core Krait 400 CPU clocked at 2.2 GHz. Video is taken care of by an Adreno 330 GPU, outputting a full HD 1,080×1,920 pixels onto a 5-inch AMOLED display featuring a crisp 441 ppi display density.

The Lumia 930 comes with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. In terms of raw specs, you could probably compare this to last year’s Nexus 5, although given the difference in OS, you will feel some real-world performance differences.

Battery is a non-removable 2,420 Li-Polymer pack, which is decent enough to give a full day’s moderate use. Qi wireless charging enables powering up even while unplugged, provided you have a compatible power mat (or dashboard accessory, as with some vehicles).

The Lumia 930 is bundled with a USB-type charging wall plug with detachable cable, as well as manuals. If you’re using a mini SIM or microSIM, you will need to replace it with a nano SIM or cut it down to size to fit the phone’s SIM tray. This should not be a problem for those already using the iPhone 5 and newer.

Some specs:

• Dimensions: 137 x 71 x 9.8 mm, 94.7 cc
• Weight: 167 g
• Screen type: AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
• Screen size: 1080 x 1920 pixels, 5.0 inches (~441 ppi pixel density)
• Touchscreen: Corning Gorilla Glass 3, ClearBlack display
• Chipset: Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800
• CPU/GPU: Quad-core 2.2 GHz Krait 400 / Adreno 330
• Memory: 2G RAM
• Storage: 32GB internal
• Connectivity: HSDPA, 42.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps; LTE, Cat4, 50 Mbps UL, 150 Mbps DL, Bluetooth 4.0 A2DP, NFC
• Port: microUSB v2.0
• Main Camera: 20 MP, 4992 х 3744 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, optical image stabilization, autofocus, dual-LED flash, 1/2.5” sensor size, 1.12 µm pixel size, PureView technology, dual capture, geo-tagging, face detection, panorama
• Front Camera: 1.2 megapixel, 720p

Hardware Design and Build Quality

Industrial design is where Nokia shines, and the Lumia 930 subscribes to this design philosophy, as well. The 930 deviates from most recent Lumia smartphones save for the 925, with its brushed aluminum frame. Coupled with a curved Gorilla Glass 3 touchscreen and matte-finished polycarbonate back plate, the 930 is decidedly a Lumia, but with a bit of inspiration from other brands like HTC and Apple. The aluminum frame certainly helps improve durability and adds some heft to the device. It’s likely to be susceptible to dings and bumps, compared with plastic, though.

The hardware buttons are all aligned at the right side of the 930, starting with the volume buttons, sleep/wake button and camera shutter. The pull-out SIM tray is located at the top. A 3.5 mm audio jack sits right in the middle of the phone’s upper frame, while the microUSB charging and sync port is at the bottom. The bezel includes back-lit capacitive keys for Back, Start and Search.

The 930’s rear plate is actually removable, although this is only meant for replacing the cover with another color. There are no user-removable parts. The phone lacks microSD card expansion, forcing users to make do with the 32GB storage and cloud offerings like Microsoft’s own OneDrive.

Being a 5-incher, the phone might pose some difficulty with one-handed use. Even the placement of the Back capacitive button can sometimes be a hindrance, especially for someone used to it being more accessible to the thumb, like with some Android devices. The touchscreen does offer high-sensitivity, however — it can register multiple touches from fingernails or gloved fingertips.

Software and User Interface

The Lumia 930 is the first ever Windows Phone device to ship with 8.1, the latest consumer release of Microsoft’s mobile OS. Being so, it comes with Cortana, Microsoft’s personal assistant derived from the popular Halo series of games. WP8.1 also comes with the ability to create folders on the Start screen, and limit app usage to the Apps Center — something that IT departments might appreciate.

Live Tiles are a refreshing deviation from the usual Android and iOS interface heavy with icons and widgets. Again, content is front-and-center with Windows Phone, and you can see updates at a glance right from the Start screen. A notable feature on Windows Phone is the heavy integration with Microsoft services like Xbox for games and music, OneDrive for automatic backups and storage, as well as Skype for instant messaging. A useful built-in feature is social network integration right within the People app, which shows the latest updates from amongst your contacts without having to launch the dedicated Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn apps.

Windows Phone 8.1 also features Groups, which are user-set lists of contacts for sending messages and sharing updates. Rooms offer more functionality, and are meant for use among Windows Phone users, which can be useful for families or colleagues. Microsoft has certainly thought of collaboration and social connectivity in this update.

Performance

Even with previous-generation specs — at least relative to phones from other platforms — the Lumia 930 offers buttery smooth performance and one would rarely experience lags in real-world usage, even when playing resource-intensive games like Asphaplt 8: Airborne, Halo: Spartan Assault and Call of Duty 2015.

In terms of benchmark, AnTuTu total score is 26,105, which is comparable with previous-gen Android devices like the Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC One. This might not necessarily be a bad thing in real-world performance, however. As with any Windows Phone user would know, the platform is usually optimized for smooth performance regardless of hardware spec, which means even entry level devices still hold up well, with the OS tweaked for reduced performance.

Smarthone photographers would appreciate the image quality from the Nokia PureView camera. The Nokia Camera app offers interesting features, like picture re-framing and Live Images — which capture photos as one-second transitioning images a la magical photo frames from the Harry Potter movies.

User Experience and Power

Using the Nokia Lumia 930 is a joy, thanks to the fast access to information right from the Start screen, down to the People app, where you can keep track of friends and their social media updates. Windows Phone’s app ecosystem leaves something to be desired, however. While many of the major and popular apps on other platforms have made their way to the Windows Phone Store, some have yet to make an appearance. Some examples are local mobile banking services, which can be a big inconvenience when you need to do some transactions while on-the-move. Even popular apps like Pocket are not available as native WP8.1 offerings. Google has likewise steered clear of actively building its apps for this platform.

You can take this two ways. First, with the lack of too many apps that are considered junk and repetitive, the apps that are available on the Windows Phone platform will likely be the ones that will aid in productivity rather than kill it. On the other hand, if you rely heavily on apps like mobile banking services, then you might want to look elsewhere.

The crisp high-resolution screen is pleasing to the eye, however, especially with its deep blacks (due to Nokia’s ClearBlack technology). The phone automatically adjusts to a high-contrast mode in bright sunlight, so legibility remains even whilst outdoors.

Sample Photos

Value and Conclusion

Windows Phone is known for its snappy performance across a wide array of devices, and WP8.1 on the flagship Nokia Lumia 930 provides a smooth, lag-free smartphone experience even on slightly dated hardware. However, the relative lack of applications might be a deal-breaker for those who rely on apps for content, productivity and entertainment.

The Lumia retails from $600 to $650 SIM-free, depending on market. At this price, the device is within the same range as premium smartphones like the Google Nexus 6, Samsung Galaxy S5 and the entry-level iPhone 6, which could make it a hard sell for non Windows Phone purists. Perhaps the recently-launched Lumia 830 (review coming up), a top-line mid-range device that sells for about two thirds of the 930’s price would be the device to hit the sweet spot. For those who want the best that Windows Phone has to offer, the Nokia Lumia 930 is the phone to have.

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Naturally, as Nokia slowly becomes absorbed into the Microsoft Devices borg, people who worked there for a long time are reconsidering whether or not they are willing to stay with Microsoft. And clearly, some people are not. So, it comes as little surprise that Nokia’s lead lumia camera guy, Ari Partinen, has left Nokia/Microsoft Devices for Apple and today is his last day.

In a series of Tweets, he alluded that he would be moving to Cupertino, and then confirmed that people’s suspicions of his moving to Apple were indeed correct. What this means is that one of Nokia’s best camera guys is going directly to a competitor, and not just that, he’s going to their biggest competitor. A competitor that already has some of the best camera technology in the smartphone industry and is clearly looking to bring themselves on par with what Nokia has offered with the Lumia line, specifically with their Pureview cameras. If you read our Lumia 1020 review, you can clearly see that it is almost as good as a $3000 DLSR with a $1500 lens, which is really no joke.

Ari Partinen – Photo Credit: Ari Partinen and Marko Saari

However, since then, Nokia hasn’t quite really released a phone that has comparable camera quality and capabilities, which is admittedly a bit worrying since the Lumia 1020 came out in early 2013 and Nokia still hasn’t announced or alluded to anything quite yet. And with Nokia’s acquisition by Microsoft, I have a feeling that some projects have been delayed simply because of management and personnel changes, like Ari’s departure. In fact, the photo above of Ari Partinen was taken by Ari and Marko when they worked at Nokia as part of their photoshoot with the Lumia 1020. Hopefully we’ll see more innovative and creative things from people like Ari, assuming that Apple gives him and his team enough resources to properly bump up Apple’s camera game.

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So, on Friday the Nokia devices and handset division was officially absorbed into Microsoft’s corporate structure and folded into Microsoft’s Devices Group. This officially marks the end of Nokia as an independent handset maker and completes the acquisition that Microsoft had made when they bought the handset division from Nokia (now NSN). It seems as though many of Nokia’s employees will be joining Microsoft today as Microsoft employees, however, the company will only be taking on approximately 25,000 employees from Nokia as they are still going to be leaving a few factories with Nokia due to legal limitations. Elop participated in a Q&A today as the new EVP of Microsoft’s Devices Group and answered a lot of users’ questions about past Nokia devices and decisions, even though some believe he was placed inside Nokia to make the company an affordable acquisition target for Microsoft.

Elop started Friday with an open letter about his new position inside Microsoft and the momentum of Nokia and the brand as a whole, while saying very little to nothing about the future. Nokia also explains that they will continue to maintain the Nokia websites as both a company and as a brand moving forward so that it appears that Microsoft will continue to allow the Nokia brand name to continue to live on for now (thank god). Even though as a phone company Nokia is effectively no longer a company but a brand of Microsoft’s Devices Group. Stephen Elop even said himself during the Q&A that:

Microsoft Mobile Oy is a legal construct that was created to facilitate the merger. It is not a brand that will be seen by consumers.

The Nokia brand is available to Microsoft to use for its mobile phones products for a period of time, but Nokia as a brand will not be used for long going forward for smartphones. Work is underway to select the go forward smartphone brand.

Microsoft also launched a new commercial with the latest Nokia devices showing how colorful they are (as if we didn’t already know?) and how they bring color into our lives and wrapping up the ad with a Microsoft logo rather than a Nokia one. Nokia’s branding was incredibly weak in this commercial, but they make it quite clear that Microsoft is the one that’s in charge now.

In fact, Elop and Satya Nadella (Microsoft’s new CEO) spent some quality time together with their Lumia devices and talking about the new division and leadership. In a fairly detailed posting, Microsoft explained exactly what changes would be coming to Nokia and Microsoft as a result of the acquisition. This is where we learned about the 25,000 employee roll over as well as the continued operation of some of the factories by Nokia while Microsoft takes over the others. After all, as some of you may not know, Nokia manufactures most of their own devices unlike most handset makers that use 3rd party manufacturers/assemblers like Foxconn or Flextronics.

Satya Nadella and Stephen Elop

Also, as part of the agreement, Microsoft will honor all of Nokia’s warranties and policies meaning that no customers have to worry about a loss of coverage as a result of the acquisition. In fact, if you bought a Nokia Lumia phone from Microsoft’s Store like we did, then your warranty situation just got a little more simple if you bought an accidental policy. Even though realistically nothing changes since you are still dealing directly with Microsoft. It will be interesting, however, to see if Microsoft changes how they treat Nokia devices in their stores than they have in the past, even though Nokia’s devices have been pretty prominent in the front of most stores. Perhaps Microsoft will start pushing more of their customers towards Windows Phones now that they actually make a lot more money off the devices than they did in the past…

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