It’s no secret that Nokia plans to bring NFC connectivity to future smartphones, however a recent article over at Guardian.co.uk highlights the fact that one of Nokia’s design chiefs has revealed that the Finish company is also paying close attention to wireless charging technologies – could this mean that a portless Nokia Lumia isn’t too far away? It sure looks this way – especially if you read the following quote from Marko Ahtisaari (Nokia’s head of design).

“If you can take away a moving part and make it more beautiful in the placement of the components, we’ll do it, so that’s something where we can certainly keep improving. Take it to the extreme, and why are there any connectors?”

These days people don’t utilize ports as much as they used to, all top-end smartphones feature WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity which both allow for fast data transfer, not forgetting the fact that cloud storage is very popular at the moment and mobile data carriers offer much faster internet connectivity than they did a few years back. So, why do we need USB cables to link our smartphones to our computers? There’s really no need these days.

Some people used to link their smartphones to their computer to update the software phone’s software and perhaps utilize the smartphone’s internet connectivity, however mobile operating systems like Android now allow over-the-air updates and mobile WiFi hotspot functionality. Currently iOS and Windows Phone 7 don’t allow such functions natively, but the hardware is already there so it’s something which could be built into future OS builds. If Microsoft make such progress with WP7 there will be two fewer reasons to connect your Nokia Lumia smartphone to a computer via USB.

Currently all smartphone also feature a 3.5mm headset jack, here consumers can plug-in earphones/headphones and hands-free kits, but there are wireless options available. NFC headphones and headsets are beginning to take off and Bluetooth hands-free kits have been around for years, so despite the fact that a 3.5mm headset is convenient it is by no means a necessity.

Finally let’s talk about wireless charging. CES 2012 showed that wireless power solutions are making strides, albeit slowly, but we remember when 3D technology and dual-core processors coming to smartphones was laughed at, so it’s not out of the question.

Would you like a portless smartphones? Or do you think current ports are convenient?

The Nokia Lumia 900 may be referred to as the “Ace” when it is released, apparently this smartphone will be on show at CES 2012, but thanks to a recent PocketNow article and a not-so-recent BGR post we already have an idea as to what we can expect. Before continuing please note that none of the following specifications have been officially confirmed by Nokia, so take them with a pinch of salt.

Let’s start with its most noticeable feature, the display, the Lumia 900 is said to boast a 4.3-inch display which utilizes Nokia’s ClearBlack technology and somewhat trumps the Lumia 800′s 3.7-inch display, we don’t know what resolution the 900 will support, but we hope it improves on the Lumia 800′s 480 x 800 resolution. PocketNow also suggest that the Lumia 900 will have 512MB of RAM at its disposal, an 8megapixel camera on the rear and a great-sounding 1830mAh battery. BGR has stated that we should expect a 1.4GHz Qualcomm CPU, which should run WP7 nicely, however lacks in comparison to some competing smartphones – again this may turn out to be false.

Less interesting information which has been stated includes talk of 1700MHz band and LTE connectivity and a design which weighs 160 grams and comes in at 12mm thick. Many had hoped that this smartphone would run Windows Phone 7 Tango upon release, however the rumors are currently suggesting that it will run Mango out-of-the-box, which pretty much sums up that this will not be the most exciting handset we see at CES 2012.

With all that said, Nokia spent years releasing lackluster feature phones and lost market share, so maybe a few average smartphones will solidify the company’s position – as long as they are not priced similarly to top-end Android dual-core smartphones etc the Lumia 900 may attract quite a lot of attention.

Are you excited or underwhelmed about the Nokia Lumia 900?

Now the two have teamed up and things are looking promising with the recently announced Lumia line, but are they going to be enough to ignite a Nokia comeback? Windows Phone OS for smartphones has had a mixed welcome to the market, having already launched it on several handsets and not having much success, competing with the likes of Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android OS, whereas Nokia are still yet to make an impact.

Their latest offerings, the Lumia 800 and 710, look to be the real deal. They have been making the headlines recently and getting a few people excited, including us. In the past where Windows Phone has failed it hasn’t been with the software, as their latest OS Mango seems sufficient enough, but the hardware has been a letdown. This is where Nokia will be stepping in with these two devices and at the same time with hopes of having success in the market themselves.

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop says ‘it’s a new dawn’ for the company. While optimism is a start, the company will need to produce the products to match their energy, the Nokia Lumias could just be those products. Check out the link above for more details on the new Lumia handsets for yourself. You can also check out the innovative Nokia Kinetic, a concept smartphone with a unique ‘twist.’
What do you think of the new Nokia line? Do you think it’s enough to ignite a comeback?