It's Friday, and that means the final day of the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show. Most of the tech press have already packed up and gone home, which just leaves the vendors and the attendees just a few short hours to soak it all in before the doors close and the whole thing is a memory until next year. While you're waiting for that registration to open, why not soak in a few stories you might have missed from the last few days?
Finland's Nokia has good reason to celebrate this week, as the onetime mobile phone giant provided a sneak peek at its Q4 2012 earnings and found they "delivered better than expected results." The Lumia line of Windows Phone handsets were a particular bright spot for the struggling company, but their overall operating expenses were also down, which helped contribute to Nokia exceeding their own guidance for the quarter. Nokia CEO Stephen Elop counted 14 million Asha and Lumia smartphones sold during the quarter, and if the company can keep this up, 2013 could be the year things finally turn around for them.
9to5Mac is reporting that case maker Incipio has teamed up with carrier AT&T to offer the Cashwrap, an NFC-enabled product for the iPhone which is powered by the fledgling ISIS Mobile Wallet service. Previewed at CES 2013 and available in March, the $60-70 specialty case will only be available for the iPhone 4 and 4S at launch (huh?), available at AT&T brick-and-mortar locations. Uh… yay?
One thing video editors can't get enough of are transitions, and where Apple's newest Final Cut Pro X is concerned, things are finally getting better. The folks at FxFactory developer Noise Industries have just served up a new batch of digital and analog-style glitches, wipes, spins and more with Luca Visual FX's new Impackt plugin. Available now for $49, the suite includes a wide variety of transitions ranging from Blocky Pixels to Chroma Spin and even Digital TV Glitch, all ready to rock your FCPX creations. As always, a free downloadable demo is available so you can try before you buy.
The Next Web is reporting that Microsoft has started mass emailing users of its Messenger IM service with the news that ding-dong, the instant message is dead. On March 15, 2013, Redmond will officially pull the plug on more than 100 million Messenger users, migrating them over to the company's far more capable Skype service, which Microsoft acquired nearly two years ago. The move isn't a surprise -- Microsoft previously announced a transition for Q1 2013, but now Messenger users have a date to pin on the calendar.
Fierce Wireless is reporting that FreedomPop's inexpensive, WiMAX-equipped iPhone cases have popped up on the radar numerous times in recent months, but it seems eager buyers may have a little longer to wait. According to the company, the case adds a WiMAX radio right next to the iPhone's own, and the previously untried solution apparently stumped the folks over at the FCC, who must certify the device before it can legally be sold in the U.S. The unexpected delays have cost FreedomPop upwards of $550,000 thus far, with 5,000 preordered cases stuck in U.S. customs waiting for the FCC to sign off on them. An unfortunate situation, but one we figure will get worked out soon enough -- assuming you can be patient until then.
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