14 DAY TRIAL // An updated flavor of the Skype application is now available for the owners of Nokia X devices out there, including the Nokia X, Nokia X+, Nokia XL, and Nokia X2 handsets, and can be downloaded from the official Nokia Store on these smartphones.
The updated Skype application will provide users with a variety of battery and call quality improvements, while also packing full support for cloud-based 1:1 and group chats.
Basically, this means that users will be able to message their friends even when they are not online. A series of improvements to the app’s video messaging capabilities have been also included in the new app iteration.
According to a recent post on Nokia Conversations, Nokia X owners who are using the pre-installed version of Skype should upgrade to the newer app iteration in order to continue using Skype and make the most of the latest features.
In addition to the new Skype app flavor, owners of Nokia X2 devices can now download and install a new flavor of HERE Maps, which provides them with true global navigation with voice directions in all of the 96 navigable countries supported in the service.
Although available only for Nokia X2 devices at the moment, the updated HERE Maps app will land on Nokia X, X+ and XL handsets as well in the next few weeks.
The mobile application has received a series of performance and usability enhancements as well, offering a much simpler first-time-use experience than before.
“The number of steps it takes to get you to where you want to be has been reduced. At first launch, gone are the ‘do you want to download voice packs?’ screens. Instead, you’ll get these notifications later on, when you’ve got more time on your hands,” the aforementioned blog post explains.
“No longer will you see a blank screen as the map loads itself, an informative ‘downloading data, the map will appear shortly’ notice will appear, letting you know HERE’s working hard to retrieve the data for you.”
On top of that, HERE Maps for Nokia X devices also comes with better satellite imagery, as well as with a tweaked registration for a HERE account. In the Log-in screen, users will also find and select favorites, it seems (specifics on the matter are provided during the actual log-in process, it seems).
To grab the new flavor of HERE Maps, users will have to head over to the Nokia Store, search for HERE Maps, and then hit update. In a matter of weeks, all of these features will be available for Nokia X, X+, and XL users as well.
