I was never a fan of post-processing photos, possibly because I come from the one-chance era where you looked at a large slide projection and knew that most of the skill had gone into the preparation of the shot. Today, of course, it’s much different. We view 600 pixel-wide photos on crappy LCD screens and the image we’re viewing is one of probably 50 that got shot in succession. We view that photo as it passes from bottom to top, our eyes scanning for the briefest hint of something worth stopping at as we scroll. Because of that, processing that photo for an eye-catching effect is a normal part of todays smartphone-based social sharing process.

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It’s just become available on my Nokia 808 (A generic UK version) and despite a few download restarts due to the damn WiFi dropping out (one of the known issues I’ll be checking for) it’s installed and updated without issue.

Go check your 808 for updates now (settings –> phone –> phone management –> device manager –> (menu) check for updates.

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We asked the question yesterday…is the Nokia Lumia 920 worth 600 Euro and picked up a few comments from Nokia PR in Europe. At first I thought they were suggesting the RRP (recommended retail price) would come in at under 600 Euro but a further message suggested that we should make a full test before making a decision about value for money. Fair enough but there are people waiting in line you know! Today we get confirmation that the price isn’t coming in under 600 Euro.

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Lucky Myriam Joire of Engadget got to do some live testing of the Lumia 920 stabilisation feature and were allowed to publish the video – or at least a cropped part of it.

As you would expect and as I saw with my own eyes last week, it’s stable, way more stable than the already good software stabilisation on the iPhone 5.

Engadget were also allowed to slot in a few other phones including the HTC One X and Galaxy S 3 – phones that could be in the same price bracket as the Lumia 920
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Update: Nokia PR Europe say they think it’s too early for this question. I can only interpret that in one way; There’s a possibility that the official MRRP for the Lumia 920 is lower than the price we’re discussing here. True, distributors may have been given indicative pricing and launch pricing could be lower. For those wanting to pre-order though, the question is valid.

Update2: Nokia PR Europe also suggest to me that one should test a device before evaluating. True if you have that luxury and clearly the sensible choice would be to wait until launch or retail-package reviews. We’ll certainly put another opinion forward when we’ve tested further!

Pre-order for the Nokia Lumia 920 is now available in Europe with most retailers settling on 599 Euros after tax. That puts it up there as one of the most expensive phones you can buy. More expensive than a Galaxy S3, iPhone 4S, Galaxy Note and the HTC Windows 8 Phone. It’s more expensive than the Nokia 808 PureView was at launch. Prices will start to drop as more retailers jostle for position but don’t expect too much. The PureView, a device that has seen some discounting, is still only 50 –70 Euro cheaper than at launch. Is it worth it?

The value-for-money equation is one that can only be completed by you so you’ll have to decide but for me, I’m a little worried that it’s over priced. I certainly don’t see myself handing over 600 Euros for the Lumia 920.

Let’s look at some of the features…

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We’ve got a few more details on the Nokia Lumia 920 for you including more specs on the camera which is an F2.0 device that can take in “five times more light” than competing smartphones. Impressive!

The floating lens is effectively a camera unit (not lens) mounted on springs which we assume dampened in some way. Update: This is an active system driven from data obtained by a gyroscope.

Here’s a demo that Nokia was showing at the press event. The images are designed to show the difference between the image you’ll get from a standard smartphone and the image you’ll get from a Nokia Lumia 920 with PureView and the floating lens.

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I’ve just watched the introduction of Windows 8 Lenses – part of the camera in Windows 8 phones. IN essence is allows an application (either built-in or 3rd party) to both integrate with the viewfinder (by adding functionality), control the camera and tag images with an application so that the application remains associated with the image. Combined with sharing in Windows 8 it looks like this takes WIndows 8 Phione forward as potentially (it depends 100% on developers) the most creative cameraphone platform out there. Very smart!

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I posted just half an hour ago on Google Plus…

“Stabilisation is a huge challenge for cameraphones because there’s not enough processing power to do it well enough in software and no room for optical stabilisation.”

Nokia may have solved the problem with “Floating Lens Technology” on the Nokia Lumia 920.

Technical details are unavailable right now but I’m excited to see that as it will a) allow slower shutter speeds (more light) b) reduce the need for xenon flash to freeze motion c) allow for longer zoom d) reduce video bitrates.

Update: Specifications and details are here.

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