Nokia has introduced what it calls the flagship Windows Phone 8 device. In fact the company says the Lumia 920 is the most innovative smartphone in the world. Those innovations include a PureView camera for bright and blur-free photos, Nokia's CityLens augmented reality app (part of Nokia's location platform), a 4.5-inch PureMotion HD+ display, and built-in wireless charging.
Microsoft also teased some of the key features of Windows Phone 8, including super-sized live tiles for apps like CNN and new Lens apps for the camera that go way beyond Instagram.
Design: The Lumia 920 is built stronger than its predecessor and will come in multiple color options. It features a curved display and the back plate for the camera is scratch resistant.
PureView camera: The Lumia 920 camera captures between 5 and 10 times more light than competitive smartphones, thanks to floating lens technology. Nokia says the Lumia 920 even outperforms some DSLRs. The aperture is f2.0.
The other benefit of the PureView camera is object image stabilization, which uses floating lens technology to make your video super-stable, even if you're on a moving bike (as shown in the demo). There are springs around the entire lens assembly.
Location and City Lens: Nokia is bringing together its location applications to deliver a suite of services. Nokia Maps offers true offline maps that work without caching. Nokia Drive will also include daily commute feature, calculating time it takes to your place of work. It will tell you when to leave. Nokia Transport will give you public transportation info, and maps will even extend indoors.
Nokia City Lens lets you explore the world around you by pointing your camera at any city block. You can see names of restaurants, cafes, shops and more overlaid on buildings. You'll be able to see it all in the Lumia 920's display. This app then links to info and you can book reservations from there.
Pure Motion HD+ Screen: This 4.5 inch curved glass display on the Lumia 920 is designed to outclass the competition. It has blur-free scrolling and a fast refresh rate, keeping content sharp and flicker free.
Built-in wireless charging: The Lumia 920 features a 2200 mAh battery paired with a Qualcomm Snapdragn S4 processor to help save on power. Nokia says this phone is up to 30 percent more efficient than quad core phones.
Nokia will also sell wireless charing plates to help you juice the Lumia 920 just by placing it down. Third-party options will include the Fatboy Pillow based on the Qi wireless charging standard and a cool new JBL speaker that has wireless charging and pairs via NFC. Nokia is also bringing wireless charing to Virgin Atlantic within the airport as well as Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf shops.
Windows Phone 8: Microsoft showed off some of the new features of Windows Phone 8 running on the Lumia 920. You can pin people to the Start screen and resize them so you can see at a glance how many messages or updates you have waiting.
The CNN app takes advantage of the new extra-large size Live Tile, which lets you see the latest headlines scroll across the screen.
In Windows Phone 8, you can customize the IE browser to add a special tabs button. Microsoft showed off the Pulse website, which apparently shares the same code across Windows Phone 8 and the browser in Windows 8. You can pin HTML5 sites to your start experience. Finally, Windows Phone now lets you capture screen shots by pressing the power and volume up button.
The Windows Phone camera experience now supports Lenses, which are mini apps for enhancing and having fun with applications. One example is FX Suite. Another is Photosynth, which is a super panorama app.
Nokia will debut its own Lenses as well, helping you remove unwanted strangers from the frame and Cinemgraph, which lets you add a little bit of motion to still images. An example could be a flag, or a person bending down in a photo.
