Nokia announces Nokia Drive for makers of Windows Phone 8 devices

Back in June, Nokia had announced that its mapping suite – Nokia Drive – will be available on all devices running Windows Phone 8. According to Pocket Lint, there is no sign of the suite on the HTC 8X. Nokia has once again announced that Nokia Drive will be available to Windows Phone 8 device manufacturers. When asked to comment by Pocket Lint about the Windows Phone devices that will run Nokia Drive, the Finnish company said that it will have this information “in the coming days”.

The inclusion of Nokia Drive in devices could be optional for manufacturers. Also, there is no information on whether a free version of Nokia Drive will be making its way to the Windows Phone Store.

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Nokia Drive will be available to developers of other Windows Phone 8 devices

Nokia had earlier announced in a blog post that it will make Nokia Drive available to all Windows Phone 8 manufacturers in a blog post. The post said, “Nokia’s Location platform will be central to the Windows Phone 8 experience, with the intention of developing smartphones that bring advanced location experiences. Windows Phone 8 partners and developers will be able to use our location assets to build location-based apps and experiences of superior quality.”

Nokia has one of the highest stakes in providing quality location data in the market. The option to use the service offline also enhances its overall appeal. The software has been designed to offer fast client-side map rendering (50 fps), and only requires 10 per cent of the bandwidth of traditional server-side map platforms.

Nokia’s location platform offers:

• Maps data for more than 190 countries in more than 50 languages and navigation in more than 110 countries
• It collects information from Nokia Drive users and local authorities to provide traffic alerts in 26 countries, and also allows dynamic rerouting
• Venue maps in over 5,000 shopping malls, train stations, airport, sports venues, etc. in 35 countries
• Nokia Drive also supports multi-modal routing: by car, on foot (including footpaths and shortcuts, in over 400 cities) and by public transportation (in over 100 cities)

Microsoft launched the Windows Phone 8 mobile operating system at an event on Monday. As a part of the announcement, Microsoft revealed new features, including Kid’s Corner and Rooms. Details and pricing for a range of new smartphones from Nokia, Samsung and HTC were revealed. Each smartphone in the range has its own differentiated design, colour, and features. Windows Phone 8 devices go on sale in November through carriers and retailers around the world. However, it is still too soon to tell when these devices would be launched in India.

“We can’t wait for the world to meet Windows Phone 8, the most personal smartphone there is,” said Terry Myerson, corporate vice president of the Windows Phone Division at Microsoft. “Windows Phone 8 comes on a range of phones that are stunning, colorful and unique.”

Microsoft states that Live Tiles are the core of Windows Phone. Users can arrange the iconic Start screen whichever way they like by pinning people, apps, music, games, photos, and other tiles. One has the option of customising the Live Tiles, and there are three different sizes and 20 different colours of tiles to choose from.