Berlin: Microsoft will seek to draw more people to its Internet-based services with two new mid-range smartphones it unveiled Thursday, including one designed to help people take better selfies.
Both devices are under the Lumia brand Microsoft bought from Nokia. They run the latest version of Windows Phone 8 and feature Cortana, a Siri-like voice assistant available to help with directions, calendar appointments and messages. Many of those interactions will steer users to Microsoft services such as Bing search and OneDrive storage.
Microsoft bought Nokia’s phone business in April as it seeks to boost Microsoft’s Windows Phone system, which has had little traction compared with Apple’s iPhones and Google’s Android system.
Microsoft used the IFA technology show in Berlin to announce the new Lumia 730 and 830 phones.
The handsets won’t have all the technical advances found in Microsoft’s pricier flagship, the Lumia 930 phone, which is known as the Lumia Icon in the United States. The 730’s rear camera takes 6.7 megapixel shots, while the 830 is 10 megapixels. By contrast, the 930 phone is at 20 megapixels, one of the highest in a smartphone.
But the 730, in particular, will have features designed for better selfies. The front camera used for selfies will be 5 megapixels, higher than the 2 megapixels found in the 830 and many other phones.
For even better shots, it’ll be possible to take selfies with the rear camera. Users won’t be able to see themselves on the screen, but an app called Lumia Selfie will use face-detection technology and beeps to guide users on where to hold the camera. Samsung’s upcoming Note phones will have a similar feature, along with software to stitch multiple shots on the front camera to fit more people in.
