Nokia's first Windows 8 phone surfaces
updated 08:58 am EDT, Tue August 7, 2012
Nokia's first Windows 8 handset continues current Lumia look
A Weibo user has posted, then deleted, images of what could be Nokia's first Windows 8 device, reports BGR. Following in the footsteps of the Lumia 800 and 900, the latest design follows the same unibody polycarbonate approach. The device also bears similarities to the rumored Lumia 910, that is thought to be the first Nokia device to ship with the new OS. With Windows Phone 8 just around the corner, it is unlikely that Nokia would launch a new handset running a soon to be superseded OS lending further credibility to the leak.
According to embattled Nokia CEO Stephen Elop, Nokia is likely to headline the launch of Windows Phone 8 with Microsoft sporting Windows Phone 8 running on a Nokia handset. As Windows Phone 7 does not support multicore chips, Nokia and other Windows Phone partners have found it difficult to compete with devices only running a single core. By comparison, even though Android is not fully optimized of multicore chips, Nokia in particular has found it difficult to promote its devices on the basis of their raw performance and specifications up against dual-core and quad-core handsets.
Although Windows Phone has grown up to 277 percent over the past year, according to Canalys, it still only accounts for just over 3 percent of the global smartphone market. Further, with Nokia struggling to stop bleeding market share, news that Windows Phone 7 devices are not upgradeable to Windows Phone 8 has been yet another difficult sell for a company that cannot afford to lose any market momentum.
