Photos of alleged WP8 Nokia surface, seem pretty dubious

While the rumor mill is trying to pinpoint when the announcement of Nokia's upcoming Windows Phone 8 devices will be, now a couple of photos surfaced showing what one of the smartphones may look like.
The phone is clearly sticking to the Lumia design guidelines and size-wise seems to be close to the Lumia 900. Unlike the 900 however, the screen edges are beveled (like on the 800), the Nokia logo is to the right (and not centered), the phone is yellow (not available on the 900) and, of course, there's the brand new homescreen.

There are a couple of red flags though. For one, Windows Phone 7.8 uses the same homescreen, so it's not a clear enough indication that we're seeing a WP8 device. Another one is the file names of the images uploaded on WPDang (the site that broke the news): "Lumia-900-prototype_1.jpg" and "Lumia-900-Fake-prototype_2.jpg". I don't know if the WPDong admins are the ones that named the files or if it's the user, Playberry, who first posted them.
We have our doubts these photos show an actual WP8 prototype by Nokia, but if the rumors are true we only have to wait until Nokia World to find out (it starts in a month)

Windows Phone 8 might make an appearance at Nokia World

According to Bloomberg, we'll be seeing some devices introduced at Nokia World that will run on Microsoft's recently-announced Windows Phone 8 platform.
If this is true, then we might see the announcement of new WP8 devices before the rumored press conference for the next iPhone on September 12. This may not be a good thing, however, as Nokia run the risk being overshadowed by Apple's highly anticipated announcement.
As for when we'll actually see the first WP8-powered devices on the market, Microsoft have remained tight-lipped (although there are rumors of a an October release date, to coincide with their scheduled release of the Windows 8 OS). Hopefully, if announcements for Windows Phone 8 devices are made during the Nokia World conference, we'll also learn when we can get our hands on one.

Nokia's marketing stint for the Lumia 900 involves nail polish

Nokia has decided to boost the appeal of its Lumia 900 flagship in the United States in a rather unusual fashion. The Finnish giant has partnered with Duality Cosmetics to release its own branded nail polish, which matches the color of the pink Nokia Lumia 900 for AT&T.

The campaign also included one-day only salons in Los Angeles, Dallas, and Denver, where those who are interested will be able to check out the pink Lumia 900 while getting their manicure done by a celebrity nail stylist. You can find out all the info on the official Facebook page of Nokia USA.
Naturally, Nokia have released a promo video to mark the occasion. Here it goes.

With Windows Phone 8 right around the corner and the Nokia Lumia 900 not scheduled for an update, it is understandable that the company is trying to move as many devices as possible. We can't wait to see how this marketing push turns out.

Nokia to launch Windows Phone 8 powered phones in September

This year is a big year for Microsoft.The company has rebuilt the Windows ecosystem around Windows 8 and its new Metro UI. There is alot riding on the success of Windows 8 and the recently demoed Windows Phone 8 OS which is Microsoft's successor for the Windows Phone family.
Nokia (which continues to see declines) was hit a blow when Microsoft announced that existing Windows Phone devices could not upgrade to Windows Phone 8 as it left current owners between a rock and a hard place and it would most certainly deter some new buyers from buying a device with an OS that was soon to be outdated.
Reports are however, that Nokia will be releasing devices rocking the anticipated Windows Phone 8 as early as September, that is way ahead of their competitors. If you are a Nokia fan or a fan of Windows Phone, then this is most certainly good news... a double rainbow if you wish. For Nokia, this is crucial, because it would allow them to gain important foothold in the lead-up to fall mobile sales as well as the upcoming holiday season and also against Apple as there are reports that Apple might also release it's new mobile phone and OS later this year.
The new Nokia devices, reportedly the Nokia Lumia 910 and 920 are expected to sport multi-core processors and High Resolution displays as Windows Phone 8 supports processors of up to 64 cores and a 720p high res displays. This is all thanks to Windows Phone 8 sharing it's core with Windows 8. As such, you can expect alot of additions, upgrades and perks in the upcoming release. The devices are expected to included Nokia PureView imaging technology which the monster Nokia 808 PureView sported with its impressive 41MP camera.
If the report does turn out to be true, then Nokia has some time to gain traction in the smartphone market. This may be one of the best chances they might ever get.

Will We Ever See Nokia Apps on iOS or Android?

you won’t find many people that will argue with the statement that Nokia makes some really great hardware. What some may not know is that Nokia can also develop some pretty nice software, too! Meego was proof of that, before the project was killed off.
Today Nokia and Microsoft are buddies. An advantage Nokia phones had over other Windows Phones was the inclusion of their own location-based apps, most notably Drive. Nokia Drive is an intelligent GPS-based navigation app with some logic built in to help monitor traffic and dynamically re-route based on conditions.
Sounds familiar, right? Android and iOS devices have Waze and each OS has navigation solutions from their respective backers, but a lot has been said about Nokia Drive and some of its features that are reportedly superior to other solutions on the market.
Not long ago, Nokia announced their decision to make Nokia Drive available to all Windows Phone 8 partners. At first glance this sounds like a great idea, but looking deeper, one has to ask why. Nokia Drive was one feature that differentiated Nokia-built Windows Phones from those made by other manufacturers. Perhaps that was the problem: Microsoft likes uniformity — at least when it comes to software.
With this move — and Nokia’s previous experience with Linux-based environments — Nokia has the potential to offer their location-based apps not only to Windows Phone 8, but to Android as well. If they do that, how long until they’d expand to iOS. Why might they want to do that?
Offering Nokia Drive on other devices provides a chance for Nokia to advertise their brand, something that’s losing popularity in the States. It would be an opportunity to show off what Nokia software can do. The next time a buyer goes to get a phone and sees “Includes Nokia Drive!” featured prominently next to some devices those buyers may be more likely to consider them because they include something familiar.
Nokia got rid of most of their Linux developers when they dropped Meego. That having been said, do you think Nokia could consider releasing their apps on other platforms to help woo potential customers back to the Nokia brand? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!