Nokia"s current Lumia smartphones run Windows Phone 7.5, yet neither the Lumia 710 nor the Lumia 800 have support for tethering, even though Microsoft"s OS gives those smartphones the option of having the hardware support it. Now a new Q&A post on the Nokia web page confirms that tethering support for those devices are in the works.
The Q&A, which focuses on the upcoming Nokia Lumia 900, states that for the current Lumia phones, "It (tethering) will be coming soon for 800 and 710 via Zune update, for 610 and 900 it will be available at launch." There"s no specific timetable for when the update will be launched for the Lumia 710 and 800 but it"s likely that Nokia will wait until the new phones are released, since they will also have the "Tango" Windows Phone update out of the box.
The web site Q&A also answers a number of questions about the Lumia 900, including word that the camera in the phone "incorporates camera optimisation" compared to the Lumia 800. It won"t have a full-screen viewfinder for video recording but Nokia will discuss adding this feature with Microsoft.
Nokia would not give a specific launch date for the Lumia 900 in the Q&A, although a recent rumor claimed it would be out on April 8 in the US. It also dodged a question on whether or not it will be able to be updated to Windows Phone 8, code named Apollo, stating:
We cannot comment on unannounced platform releases, but regarding Lumia 900 updates, we are committed to delivering the best user experience which includes in-market support with updates and features throughout the life of the product.