Author: Jim O Brien/CEO

CEO and expert in transport and Mobile tech. A fan 20 years, mobile consultant, Nokia Mobile expert, Former Nokia/Microsoft VIP,Multiple forum tech supporter with worldwide top ranking,Working in the background on mobile technology, Weekly radio show, Featured on the RTE consumer show, Cavan TV and on TRT WORLD. Award winning Technology reviewer and blogger. Security and logisitcs Professional.

Nokia launches $100 million Connected Car Fund managed by #Nokia Growth Partners (NGP)

Press Release..

The recent sale of the handset division to MS was complete and now we hear today of what some claim to be a gamble moving into the smart car world with the likes of google and apple.Nokia are also well know for their mapping technology which is excellent.

 

The fund will invest in promising auto tech and local services companies in collaboration with HERE, a Nokia company, to grow the ecosystem around HERE’s mapping and location products and services.

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Espoo, Finland – Nokia today announced the launch of a USD 100 million Connected Car fund to be managed by Nokia Growth Partners (NGP). The fund will identify and invest in companies whose innovations will be important for a world of connected and intelligent vehicles.

Nokia is already a major player in the automotive industry providing location intelligence for connected vehicles through HERE. The NGP fund, working closely with HERE, will seek to make investments that also support the growth of the ecosystem around HERE’s mapping and location products and services.

“NGP has been consistently performing well bringing in both new innovation and financial return to Nokia,” said Rajeev Suri, Nokia President and CEO. “Our new USD 100 million venture fund launched today further underlines our belief that the connected car is a significant growth opportunity where NGP is poised to make great investments.”

“For the last few years there has been a surge in innovation that has brought technological advances leading to safer, cleaner, increasingly connected, intelligent and more affordable vehicles. Vehicles are becoming a new platform for technology adoption very similar to phones or tablets,” said Paul Asel, Partner at Nokia Growth Partners.  “We are excited to deepen our collaboration with HERE through the Connected Car fund to invest in companies that are driving the future of the auto ecosystem, local services and personal mobility.”

“NGP’s Connected Car fund underscores that connectivity is rapidly reshaping what is possible in the car environment,” said Michael Halbherr, CEO of HERE. “We believe that connected cars equipped with precise location awareness and sensor data can become powerful devices capable of helping drivers make sense of the world around them. With more than 25 years of experience in creating automotive grade maps for the automobile industry, we look forward to working with promising companies in NGP’s new fund to create a whole new class of services that keep drivers safe and connected.”

The Connected Car fund extends NGP’s global investment activities in the U.S., India, China and Europe where Nokia Growth Partners continue to invest in high potential businesses.  The new fund brings Nokia’s commitments managed by NGP to USD 700 million. As an independent VC sponsored by Nokia, NGP has a strong track record of investing in technology companies that have made an impact in their respective industries globally, including Rocket Fuel, Heptagon and UCweb.

The Connected Car fund will be the fourth fund that NGP has managed on behalf of Nokia over the past decade.

Full press release HERE

Samsung Galaxy S5 #Otterbox Commuter case review.#Cases #Samsung #Otterbox #JTB

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is one of the latest devices to hit the stores and it is not cheap so protection is a worthy investment,today we have the otterbox commuter case for the S5 which is alot less bulky than the defender case we had last week and it fits quite well and also looks good.

 

Now as pictured above here is the Galaxy S5 without the case and one with the case to see the difference between the two and to give some idea on how it will look with the commuter case on board,to be honest i think this is a great case and if you are a samsung fan this is the one for you which of course is cheaper than the all out defender case.

The case comes with a screen protector pack too so the full package is complete with the commuter kit..

 

The bottom of the case leaves enough room to gain easy access ton the USB section of the device which has a rubber flap built into the S5 this adds even more protection to the charge port which would be one of  the most frequently used areas of the S5.

The top gives us the headphone socket and mic areas and the headphone socket has a  flap which opens and closes giving the headphone socket full protection when not in use.

The back of the case has a good gripping texture making it non slippy,it also gives us the camera,flash,the infamous heart monitor and speaker.

These are quite recessed on the case which will certainly keep them from harms way and there is no rough edges to be felt anywhere here either.

The right hand side it is completely protected giving us just the power button,this is soft and did not cause any issues at all and we seen no lack of functionality..

The left hand side leaves us again completely protected and with the volume toggles again softly covered and worked perfectly fine with no loss or interruption in functionality,.

To hold the device with the case on is quite nice and not bulky or awkward…

Over all the case looks great,feels great and i would recommend this case even for the not so concious user.

You can check out the case for the Galaxy S5 and more at otterbox.ie .

Otterbox cases can be also found at the CPW ,O2 and Vodafone stores..