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Companies Glom onto Apple iPhone 5, iPad Mini Unveilings

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IPhone 5 – There’s no shortage of companies trying to steal Apple’s thunder this week. While Apple is widely expected to unveil a new iPhone — and possibly an iPad Mini as well — on Sept. 12, the week ahead is full of rivals announcing their own products.

First up this week is Microsoft and Nokia, which have announced a Sept. 5 media event. However, not to be outdone, Google’s Motorola and Verizon are teaming up for their own New York City press event on the same day. Oh, and let’s not forget that Amazon.com has announced an event for Sept. 6 to presumably unveil a new Kindle lineup.

That’s quite a bit of hyped product announcements for one week; let’s dive in to what investors should expect.

Nokia’s last stand?
The mobile market moves stunningly fast. It was little more than a year ago that Nokia sold more smartphones than any company in the world before Samsung passed it up. Today, it feels as if Nokia is quickly approaching a last stand for relevance.

The company had pinned hopes on its Lumia lineup of Windows Phones to boost sales. With mobile networks such as AT&T desperate to cut their reliance on the iPhone and its costly subsidies, the phone found plenty of marketing support. However, even after several rounds of discounts, the Lumia has yet to gain significant sales traction.

Part of the problem is that older Lumia models wouldn’t be upgraded to the new Windows Phone 8 operating system, making them essentially … well, obsolete. That situation will be resolved this Wednesday, when Microsoft and Nokia announce a lineup of Lumia phones with Windows 8 installed.

However, while Microsoft and Nokia have long been seen as the key partners behind Windows Phone 8, Nokia won’t be the first company to unveil a smartphone with Microsoft’s newest mobile operating system. Instead, that honor went to Samsung, which unveiled its Windows Phone 8-based ATIV S smartphone last week

The key point here: Many have labeled Microsoft the winner of the Samsung-vs.-Apple patent trial. With Android facing stiff litigation from Apple, more OEMs, including Samsung, ZTE, and Acer, could look to Windows Phone. If that prediction proves true, Nokia loses the differentiation it had…

Read more: Daily Finance

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