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Nokia Sends Invite to MWC Event, 41-Megapixel Lumia Inbound?

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Nokia had sent us a text-based save-the-date invitation to a Mobile World Congress press conference that the Finnish Lumia phone-maker will be hosting on the first day of the conference. While the language of the invitation did not reveal much, there have been plenty of rumors surrounding Nokia’s upcoming high-end Lumia smartphones that are reportedly being planned for a release this year.

Rumors have spanned from a Lumia 920-based model for Verizon with a better camera than what’s currently offered on that LTE carrier, a newly designed Lumia that sheds its polycarbonate shell for a metal exterior, and also a Lumia with the 41-megapixel PureView camera sensor that debuted on the Nokia 808 a year ago at the same event.

41-Megapixel PureView Lumia

41qozk2EWkL._SL500_AA300_A 41-megapixel PureView Windows Phone 8 Lumia smartphone would definitely be one of the top highlights of MWC 2013 if it does get announced there. Even last year when Nokia announced the Nokia 808 with Symbian, it was highly praised by media in attendance. The move would definitely allow Nokia to not only better compete with iPhone and Android, but further differentiate its hardware from those offerings.

In the past, the phone had been rumored as the Nokia EOS. The EOS moniker is interesting as it’s the same branding that camera-maker Canon uses on its DSLR models.

The 41-megapixel PureView camera also allows for what Nokia called a lossless zoom. Essentially, you can zoom into an image and capture a resulting image of a lesser 2-, 5-, or 8-megapixel resolution and still maintain plenty of details without noise. Attempting to zoom with an iPhone or Android smartphone would result in an image with noise and a loss of details.

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When it debuted the Nokia 808 at the time, Nokia said it was an experimental proof of concept. And despite being praised, many felt the device was too thick as the larger sensor and optics created a hump on the back of the body. The Nokia 808 is quite a bit thicker than the Nokia N8 that it replaced.

Nokia 920 PureView for Verizon

Another device that’s been long rumored is a high-end Lumia smartphone with PureView technology for U.S. carrier Verizon Wireless. As MWC is regarded as an international event that’s not U.S.-centric, it may be unlikely that Nokia would choose that venue to debut Verizon’s phone. However, as Verizon is a member of the GSMA being an LTE carrier, anything’s possible right now.

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The device wouldn’t have the 41-megapixel sensor that we mentioned. What it does have would be the same sensor and image stabilization technology found on the Lumia 920 on AT&T right now. This would allow the phone to record video with minimal shakes and also capture bright images in low light conditions. The Verizon-bound model has been rumored to be called Laser.

Redesigned Catwalk Design

Slim is in and though many have praised the quality and performance of the Nokia Lumia 920, some have complained about its large size and heavy weight. It’s been rumored in the past that Nokia may abandon the polycarbonate shell used on the Lumia 920 in favor of a metal shell that will help to reduce the weight and thickness of a new Lumia called Catwalk. Part of the weight and heft of the Lumia 920 would be attributed to the technologies that the phone carries–wireless charging, imaging technology and camera stabilizer, and a touchscreen that can be operated with gloves on–so it’s unclear how much weight and size Nokia can shave off without having to remove some of those technological innovations.

4 Comments

4 Comments

  1. eigu

    01/30/2013 at 7:38 am

    “Essentially, you can zoom into an image and capture a resulting image of a lesser 2-, 5-, or 8-megapixel resolution and still maintain plenty of details without noise.”

    No, there’s plenty of noise in the crop zoom mode because the pixels are so small in the Pureview 808.
    The noise reduces only in the PIXEL BINNING mode, which combines several pixels to form a lower megapixel image.

    Also the pixel level sharpness and dynamic range are bad in the 808.
    Just check the comments about the highlight clipping at dpreview.

    • Dave Granger

      01/30/2013 at 6:07 pm

      The pixels aren’t that small though. The 808 Pureview has 5 times more pixels on its senor than an iPhone for example (which uses the same Sony-made sensor as a number of high-end phones), but the sensor is 7 times as large, meaning the pixel density is lower.

    • charly

      01/31/2013 at 6:04 pm

      pixels on the 808 are 1.4µm, just like on every 8mp cellphone camera on the market right now.

  2. Mike

    01/30/2013 at 9:00 am

    Considering wp8 (Qualcomm chipset) limitations it is most likely not 41mpix. Unless Nokia have found a way to circumvent the data bandwidith limitations between image processor and cpu. But at least 20mpix+ should be doable without tradeoffs/special tricks.

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