Nokia launches Lumia 920 with windows phone 8

Nokia unveiled on Wednesday in New York City the Lumia 920 phone, which will introduce the next phase of Windows Phone to run on Windows 8.

The news comes just one day after Apple announced its next-generation iPhone event on Sept. 12, heightening the need for rivals to come out with truly competitive devices.

The new flagship phone supports wireless charging and Nokia’s PureView 41MP camera, along with a 1080p HD camcorder. Its “floating lens” optical image stabilization technology allows users to take sharp, crisp pictures even when it’s dim. It packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor and built-in wireless charging.

The device also introduced “Nokia City Lens” and “Nokia Maps,” true offline maps with augmented reality. By pointing the Lumia 900 at a city block, the phone reveals virtual “signs” beside the storefronts, with business and location information.

Last year around this time, Nokia announced its two Windows Phone devices — the Lumia 710 and Lumia 800 — during Nokia World in London. The devices were the first phones to run Windows Phone 7, and the first phones to result out of Nokia’s partnership with Microsoft.

However, this isn’t the first Windows 8 device to hit the scene. Samsung last week announced its Windows Phone 8 during the 2012 IFA conference in Berlin, deflecting some of the attention away from Nokia.

But Nokia has a tall order to live up to — in fact, its Lumia 900 device was dubbed one of the best Windows phones to ever hit the market.

Earlier this year, Microsoft announced plans to grow its Windows Phone operating system. Windows Phone 8 is reworked from the ground up and is compatible with Windows 8 itself.

Hulk Smash iPad: With Avengers Initiative, Marvel Brings The Avengers To Mobile

Starting with Iron Man, Disney-owned Marvel famously built a connected cinematic universe for its superhero movies, and the strategy paid off spectacularly this year with the release of The Avengers. Now the company is revealing universe-building aspirations in mobile and social gaming, with the launch of Avengers Initiative, which it’s describing as its biggest mobile release yet.

Patrick Moran, the title’s lead game designer at developer Wideload Games, says Avengers Initiativetakes place in the same universe as Avengers Alliance, a Facebook game released earlier this year. These games, he says, aren’t just an extension of the comic books or the movies, but take place in a consistent world of their own, with “versions of the characters that are perfected for interactive storytelling.” That connection is more than a story- and character-level — players can earn experience (called Marvel XP) in both the Facebook and mobile games, and experience from one game can be redeemed for rewards in the other.

The Avengers Initiative game is also an attempt at episodic storytelling. This first episode stars the Hulk, who has a fight a bunch of bad guys after they’ve been freed by an event called the Pulse. In future installments, you’ll continue the story while playing as other superheroes in the Avengers. The goal, Moran says, is to release a free new episode every two to three months.

That might seem like a pretty rapid turnaround, but that’s because further installments are built on top of the platform that Wideload spent 14 months developing for the game, Moran says. He adds that as a team of “console guys” (Moran, for example, worked on the Mass Effect franchise) Wideload’s goal was to build a game that could stand up to the console experience: “You want to feel like the Hulk.”

I definitely had fun playing Avengers Initiative on my iPad last night. The story (at least what I saw of it) is pretty simplistic, as is any gameplay that doesn’t involve punching the crap out of someone. But hey, the punching itself is pretty satisfying, and the graphics look good.

Avengers Initiative costs $6.99.

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer’s Newest Hire: Jacqueline Reses, EVP Of HR And Talent Acquisition

After appointing former Lockerz CEO Kathy Savitt as Yahoo’s CMO, the company’s new chief Marissa Mayer is staffing another key role—executive vice president of people and development. Mayer has tapped Jacqueline Reses, a private equity exec, to help lead hiring and HR for the company.

                                                           

Prior to Yahoo, Reses led the U.S. media group at private equity firm Apax Partners, she focused on investing in media and technology. In addition, Reses was also involved with the firm’s talent initiatives, including recruiting and training. While at Apax Partners, Reses served on the board of directors or led the investments in Cengage Learning, Intelsat, Nelson Education, Hit Entertainment, and NEP Broadcasting. Additionally, Reses was the CEO of iBuilding Inc., a real estate software business that was launched by Tishman Speyer and Benchmark Capital. Previously, she spent seven years at Goldman Sachs.

Reses, who will report directly to Mayer, will be responsible for leading human resources and talent acquisition as well as corporate and business development globally.

“We are very excited to have Jackie join the Yahoo! team, leading our efforts around finding and retaining the best talent,” said Mayer in a release. “Jackie brings two decades of uniquely applicable operational experience around structuring organizations, programs, and strategies to build world-class teams in media and technology. Her tremendous energy will serve our employees well, and we’re looking forward to her fresh perspectives.”

As Allthingsd’s Kara Swisher reported a few weeks ago, Yahoo’s HR head David Windley departed the company shortly after Mayer was appointed as CEO. Perhaps what’s next up in Yahoo’s hiring plans: a COO.