Espoo, Finland – Nokia announced plans to offer its first Lumia Windows Phone 8 smartphone through Verizon Wireless.
The entry-level 4G LTE Lumia 822, which will be available exclusively through Verizon Wireless, is the first U.S.-market CDMA/LTE Lumia phone announced to date by Nokia.
Verizon didn’t announce a precise availability date or price for the device, positioned as a device for first-time smartphone buyers.
The phone will join only one other Windows Phone 8 smartphone announced to date by Verizon. That phone is HTC’s Windows Phone 8X, but as of this posting, neither a price nor availability date had been announced for the 8X.
Three other Nokia Lumia phones, also based on the Windows Phone 8 OS, are due from AT&T and T-Mobile. AT&T will offer the 4G LTE Lumia 820 and exclusive step-up 920 sometime in November, and T-Mobile plans to offer Nokia’s Lumia 810 with 4G HSPA+42 network technology.
The two carriers haven’t yet announced pricing or an exact availability date for their Lumia phones, but those details might be revealed in the afternoon when Microsoft hosts a launch event for Windows Phone 8 phones.
At Verizon, the Lumia 822 will feature 4.3-inch display with Corning Gorilla Glass, nearfield communications (NFC), 1080p video capture through the rear 8-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, 1.2-megapixed front camera for HD video chats, wireless charging support in exchangeable color shells, and multiple Nokia services.
The services include Nokia Drive+, a turn-by-turn voice navigation solution featuring offline access to preloaded U.S. maps and transit information. Other Nokia services include Nokia City Lens, an augmented reality experience, and Nokia Music, an ad-free, subscription-free music streaming service with offline playback.
A suite of photo and video features includes Smart Shoot, which lets users remove moving objects and pick the best expression for each person in a group shot. Cinemagraph lets users turn photos into animated GIFs. Panorama mode captures an entire scene or landscape, and Creative Studio lets users enhance pictures with creative effects before sharing them.
