Nokia has debuted a new Lumia challenger, packing 4G support and a PureView camera.

Set to land first in the US, where it’s exclusive to Verizon, the Lumia 928’s main sell is its 8.7 megapixel camera.

That doesn’t sound like much compared with the 41-megapixel camera from the original PureView phone. And in truth probably isn’t so good that we can throw our SLR’s away, whatever Nokia claims.

But augmented by Carl Zeiss optics, a xenon flash and other features from on earlier PureView-branded kits, the snapper is certainly the standout spec here.

Elsewhere, the Lumia 928 packs a 4.5-inch OLED Gorilla Glass screen, the latest Windows Phone 8 version of Microsoft’s OS, 32GB of internal storage and a dual-core 1.5GHz processor to keep things ticking over.

Nokia is also making much of the phone’s audio capture smarts, which it claims keep distortion to a minimum, and loudspeakers that are purportedy capable of playback at 140 decibels.

Matt Rothschild, vice president of Nokia North America, said: “Whether you’re attending a party, a concert or a sporting event with friends, the Nokia Lumia 928 excels at capturing high-quality video, audio and blur-free photos of life’s most share-worthy moments.”

Nokia is set launch the European version of the phone on Tuesday, when we’ll also learn which UK carriers are offering the phone.

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Nokia has officially raised the curtain on its latest flagship challenger, the Lumia 925, as it plots its slow but steady comeback to the smartphone top table.

The Lumia 925 is a direct sequel to the Lumia 920, featuring a 4.5-inch PureMotion HD+ display with ClearBlack technology, a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and an 8.7-megapixel PureView camera with optical image stabilisation – all rolled into a slick and slim metal chassis – for the first time in the Lumia range.

Elsewhere, it’s home to an all-new feature called Smart Camera which introduces a range of editing options and shooting modes to further augment the handset’s imaging capabilities, plus a host of Nokia’s best apps and services pre-installed, such as Nokia HERE Maps with free navigation and Nokia Music for unlimited streaming of free playlists.

"We keep innovating," said Jo Harlow, executive vice president of Nokia Smart Devices. "We're advancing experiences on the Nokia Lumia portfolio whether that means great new benefits for an existing Lumia owner, or bringing new showcase devices like the Nokia Lumia 925."

The Lumia 925 also comes with Microsoft’s mobile Office suite out of the box and wireless charging support though compatible back covers and charging docks, which can be purchased separately.

Vodafone UK has already confirmed it will be offering the Lumia 925 on its Red tariffs when it launches sometime in June and will have exclusivity over the 32GB edition of the handset.

Phones 4u has also revealed it will be ranging the 925 on contract through various networks and will reveal pricing and availability details in the near future.

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O2 and Three have officially confirmed they’ll be on board for the impending launch of Nokia’s latest flagship smartphone, the Lumia 925.

The networks join Vodafone, which has already thrown its support for the 925’s UK debut in June. Customers can currently register their interest on the networks’ official websites to be informed as soon as the handset is available to pre-order.

High street retailers Carphone Warehouse and Phones 4u have also confirmed they’ll be ranging the handset and are accepting registrations on their sites to notify punters when deals become available.

Announced this week, the Lumia 925 is the first handset in the Lumia range to feature a metal casing and houses a 4.5-inch ClearBack display, a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon chipset and an 8.7-megapixel camera with a Carl Zeiss lens and optical image stabilisation.

Powered by Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system, the 925 also comes with some new software features, namely the Smart Camera mode that offers built-in photo editing and a host of shooting modes.

It’s also preloaded with Nokia HERE Maps with free driving navigation, the Nokia Music app that lets you enjoy unlimited streaming of free playlists and a mobile edition of the Microsoft Office suite for working on the move.

The Nokia Lumia 925 goes on sale in June. Pricing details are still under wraps but we expect free-phone contracts to be in the region of £30-35 per month.

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