The Nokia Blog » Reviews

Must-Have App: Maps Booster by Skyhook Wireless

Mark Guim — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:48:23 +0000

My Nokia phones need to find my position accurately and quickly since I use location services like geotagging photos, checking-in on Foursquare, or navigating with Ovi maps. Fortunately there’s a revolutionary app called Maps Booster that helps your Symbian phone find your location really fast no matter what other applications need it. That’s right… I said revolutionary. If you don’t believe me, watch Steve Jobs explain the awesome technology behind the app.

Video below might now be visible in some RSS readers. Head over to the blog to watch it.

Maps Booster is powered by Skyhook Wireless and implemented as a positioning method on Symbian. They’ve driven around the world to map out Wifi hotspots (similar to how Google drives around with cameras for Street View). When your phone opens an application like Maps, Gravity, or Camera that tries to find your location, Maps Booster runs in the background to compare the Wifi signals near you with their database to pinpoint where you are. That means, they can find your location quickly even if you’re indoors! Here’s their coverage map.

I’m really happy with Maps Booster and it works perfectly on the Symbian phones I’ve tested: Nokia N86 and Nokia n97 mini. I hope it gets built-in with all upcoming devices. It’s available at the Ovi Store for $2.99. It’s well worth it!

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Capture Panoramic Images with QuickPanorama for Nokia N900

Mark Guim — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:00:49 +0000

Morpho QuickPanorama showed up in the Ovi Store for the Nokia N900 this week. It lets you take panoramic photographs by only moving the camera to capture a wide landscape. Users don’t need to snap multiple pictures and join them later on. The ease of use will definitely attract more people towards panoramic photography.

The movement detection engine based on the Morpho’s unique algorithm only requires users to move their cameras to an area to be paranomically photographed. All the complicated works such as positioning and image pasting are processed within the Nokia N900. All the processing is performed in real time, so the users can preview the panoramic image of a photo while being taken.

My first attempt is included below. Click on the image for the original size.

The missing section on the right side of the image is the result of moving the camera up or down from the horizontal line.

The version of QuickPanorama currently available in the Ovi Store shows a message that it is a trial version with a limited capture size of VGA (640 x 480). I’m assuming that a paid version can capture larger sizes when it becomes available. Try it out and share links of your panoramic photos from the Nokia N900 in the comments below!

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Review: ProClip Car Mounts for Nokia N97 & N97 Mini Allow Typing With Keyboard

Mark Guim — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:05:38 +0000

If you know anyone else who makes better car mounts, let us know, because ProClip is definitely up there. The latest device holders they sent for me to review are for the Nokia N97 and N97 mini. Not only are the fit and build quality top-notch, but they also allow you to slide the devices open to use the keyboard if needed.

If you haven’t heard about ProClip yet, there are two parts to their solutions. The mounts are made specific to your vehicle and the holders are made specific to your devices. This ensures a perfect fit.

ProClip provides different types of holders depending on your need. For example, the holder for the Nokia N97 they sent already includes a car charger while the one for the N97 mini doesn’t. The ones with the charger cost more. What makes these holders stand out for me is that they secure the devices and also let me use the hardware keyboards. Nokia’s mounts do not allow you to open the sliders at all.

Since Nokia just gave away turn-by-turn voice navigation for free on their phones, you’re probably going to be using car navigation more frequently. You’ll need a mount thats dependable and won’t fall off your windshield after time or hitting bumps on the streets. ProClip provides a great product, but it comes with a hefty price, too. For example, the mount for my car and the holder for the Nokia N97 mini, plus shipping add up to at least $70.

More Photos

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Google Nexus One Review from a Nokia Lover

Mark Guim — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:34:11 +0000

I can’t give you proper reviews of Nokia devices if I don’t try other phones from other manufacturers for comparison. I’ve been using the Google Nexus One in the past 30 days and have been really enjoying it. I’ll share my review of the Nexus One with lots of comparisons to Nokia’s current superphone, the Nokia N900.

Hardware

Size. The Nexus One is much more pocketable than the Nokia N900. It is thinner, but slightly taller. The dimensions are 119 x 59.8 x 11.5mm compared to the Nokia N900’s 110.9 x 59.8 x 18 mm. One photo below gives you a general idea, but head over to the Google Nexus One vs Nokia N900 photos and first impressions post for more. The Nokia N900 is also a little heavier at 181g versus 130g on the Nexus One.

Build Quality. The Nexus One is well made. A smooth metal wraps nicely around the phone and complements the soft-touch material on the housing. The front is covered by glass on top of the display that looks just as good when it’s off. The battery cover is snug and opens by sliding it up. There are only 3 physical buttons: trackball, volume control, and power button. Tactile feedbacks are fine when pressing these buttons. There’s no creaking or rattling noises when squeezing or shaking the device.

Internals. Inside the Google Nexus is the Qualcomm Snapdragon running at 1 GHz with 512MB RAM. It’s not recommended to compare MHz from different chips, but the Nokia N900 has a 600MHz ARM A8 processor. The Nexus One also has twice the RAM of the Nokia N900. Applications open up quickly and I haven’t seen any “out of memory” warnings that Symbian S60 users may be familiar with. You can definitely multi-task on Android, but it’s not as intuitive as multitasking on the Nokia N900. More on that in the software aspect of this review. Google includes a 4GB microSD card for storage, but you can replace it with another card that can store up to 32GB of data.

Display. The Nexus One has a 3.7 inch capacitive AMOLED touchscreen display with 800 x 480 resolution. It’s really beautiful but it has some flaws. The colors are are crisp and bright, but it’s difficult to see outdoors when it is sunny. Putting the brightness all the way up fixes this problem.

Another complaint I have with the touchscreen is the accuracy of the touch-buttons below the screen. I was initially getting frustrated that my presses weren’t getting registered, but after some usage, I learned to press just above the buttons to make it work. BGR also documented this in a video for their review.

Camera. The camera is one of the most important features to me. If a device does not take “good enough” pictures for sharing online, I disregard it right away. The 5 megapixel camera on the Nexus One does not have that problem, but I have a couple of complaints. I still prefer the photos that come out of the Nokia N900.

The Nexus One takes great photos outdoors when there’s light, but you won’t be able to really see much of the photo quality at the location if it’s sunny. This is due to the AMOLED display. This problem also exists on Nokia cameraphones using this type of display (Nokia N85 & N86).

The other problem is the white-balance. The color seems off on many of the indoor photos I’ve taken. Here is a sample from both the Nokia N900 and the Nexus One indoors. Click here for more photos taken with the Nexus One by Flickr members.

Nokia N900

Nexus One

The 5 megapixel camera on the Nexus One is supported with an LED flash. It’s better than no flash, but just like any cameraphone, don’t expect great photos at night.

To take a photo, you hold the on-screen camera button or the trackball to focus. You then release to capture the photo. You have to make sure not to press on the screen too hard because you can shake the camera when releasing the button, resulting in a blurry photo.

The Nexus One records video 720×480 pixels at 20 frames per second (fps) or higher depending on lighting conditions. It’s fine for quick sharing online, but I would have preferred something closer to 30 fps.

Speakers. The speakers on the Nexus One isn’t spectacular, but it is good and loud enough. The placement on the back could be a problem though. I’ve missed a few calls when the Nexus One was on a soft surface like the bed or sofa because the speakers were blocked. My left hand also tend to cover the speakers when I browse the web in landscape view.

Software

The Nexus One runs on Android 2.1. You’ll love Android if you use Google services. At initial setup, you’re asked for a Google account. If you have one already like a Gmail address, it will automatically set up push email, synchronized phonebook, and calendar.

First time Android users will notice the status bar where notification icons show up whenever an application running in the background needs attention. A couple of example notifications are new emails or new Twitter replies. Pulling down the status bar shows the expanded messages from the apps and clicking on the messages opens the related application.

You can place widgets, shortcuts, or folders in the home screens of the Google Nexus One. It’s not like the Nokia N900’s panoramic desktop where you can loop around if you keep swiping in one direction. Widgets also lock into a grid on the Nexus, unlike widgets on the N900 that can move freely and possibly overlap each other.

It’s not an important feature, but Live Wallpapers stand out to many people. It’s cool to show off and it doesn’t seem to slow down applications. I really like the one with moving grass.

Multitasking. As you can tell by now, there’s multitasking on Android. Holding down the home button shows the 6 recent apps used. This could be confusing to Nokia’s Symbian users where holding the menu button shows icons of current running apps. The Nokia N900 handles multitasking best with the dashboard showing thumbnails of current running apps. It’s far quicker to exit or switch between apps on the Nokia N900.

Google Voice. Google Voice (GV) users will love how nicely integrated the service is on Android. You can dial or send SMS out to any number or anyone from the contacts list, and the phone work in the background so that the call or SMS comes from the GV number instead of the number linked to your SIM card. The current GV apps for Maemo (DialCentral and The One Ring) have potential, but the Android solution is way better.

Email. I have a better email experience on the Nexus One than the Nokia N900. My main account is Gmail and push email is not supported on the N900. This is due to Google Sync (email, contacts, and calendar) not being compatible with the Nokia N900 through Exchange. A workaround to get push email is to use Gmail through Nokia Messaging service, but it’s currently broken if you are also trying to sync contacts and calendar.

On the Nexus One, I enter my Gmail address and then my email, contacts, and calendar are all setup for synchronized updates. The Nexus One is also noticeably faster than the Nokia N900 at showing the list of emails when opening the mail client. Both support HTML email.

Browsing. I’ve mentioned in my Nokia N900 review that it had the best web browser on a mobile device. I still believe it holds that title, but that doesn’t mean the browser on the Nexus One sucks. There’s no flash support, but the Youtube player works well and offer better video quality than the N900’s embedded flash videos. One thing I really like about the Nexus One is portrait browsing. No matter how much you zoom in via multitouch pinch-to-zoom, the text can wrap around the screen so you’re not required to scroll left and right again and again to read text.

Music. I prefer to stream music rather than download songs on my computer or mobile phones. I use Pandora on my Macbook so I’m glad there’s a Pandora app on the Nexus One. There’s also a widget that I can leave on one of the home screens for quicker access. There’s a Pandora app for the Nokia N900, but it’s currently in development and still look very rough. I depend on internet radio like TuneWiki for the N900.

Google Maps Navigation. When it comes to navigation, the Google Nexus One beats the Nokia N900 hands down. It’s really amazing. Searching for places is exactly what you can expect from Google and the maps look great. Actually hearing the names of the intersections while driving is cool since this is included without extra fee. Other features I like are the pinch-to-zoom, automatic switching to night mode, and street view when reaching the destination. Unfortunately, not everyone with a Nexus One can take advantage of this service because Google Maps Navigation is currently only available in the United States.

3rd-Party Apps. The Android Market holds much more apps and games than the younger (& still beta) Ovi Store for Maemo. There are apps in repositories from the Maemo community too and while many may be functional, the UI aren’t very pretty. There are good choices of Twitter apps for the Nexus One like Twidroid, Seesmic, or Tweetcaster, but the native Twitter apps on the Nokia N900 aren’t on the same level yet. I still rather use web apps like Hahlo or Dabr for my Twitter needs on the N900.

Cellular

Cellular call quality is pretty good on the Nexus One. There are two microphones that work together to keep your voice clear for the other line while suppressing the background noise. I was surprised it actually worked in real life. I received a call at a bar while I still had a good amount of beer in my glass. The bouncer didn’t let me bring the alcohol outside, so I answered the call near the exit. It was still pretty noisy where I was standing, but the other line heard me pretty well.

Battery Life

The Nexus One packs a removable 1400mAH battery. I’ve been used to leaving my phones connected to the charger before I head out and I haven’t noticed any significant battery issues to report. Just like the N900, the Google phone typically survived until the night.

Verdict

There’s a lot to like about the Nexus One, but I find myself going back and forth with the Nokia N900. As a Nokia Blog reader, your big question is if the Nexus One is better than the Nokia N900. My quick response is that I like both. If you had to choose one, I’ve listed some of the Big IF’s:

Get the Nexus One

if you already use many of Google’s services like Gmail, GSync, & GVoice.
if you like apps, apps, and apps.
if you want a powerful, yet very slim device.

Get the Nokia N900

if you want the best mobile web browser
if you want a great camera
if multitasking is important to you

Which one are you choosing?

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TuneWiki SMP Now Available for Nokia N900 With Awesome Internet Radio

Mark Guim — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 01:33:21 +0000

TuneWiki had a widget for the Nokia N900 since launch, but today, they’ve released a full application called TuneWiki Social Media Player (SMP) that you can download for free at the Ovi Store. It works like the widget where you can read lyrics while listening to music, but they’ve added some cool new features. I’m in love with the new internet radio and the option to watch music videos with lyrics!

TuneWiki SMP automatically grabs your music library and you can sort them by artists, albums, or song titles. Playing a song will display the album art next to the lyrics, as well as music controls for shuffle, repeat, play, etc.

Tired of your songs? Another killer feature of TuneWiki SMP is its internet radio. It includes a list of music genres loaded with A LOT of radio stations not included in the default one on the Nokia N900. It will also show the lyrics of the song playing on the radio if it’s available.

There’s a long list of internet radio stations available.

There’s an option to search Youtube for the music video of what’s currently playing. It doesn’t matter if you are playing from your Nokia N900’s music library or from the internet radio. It will display the lyrics next to the music video!

Watch music videos with lyrics

TuneWiki SMP also lets you find out what other Tunewiki users are currently playing. You can select the regions or even your GPS location to find out the type of music people are playing near you. Icons of users show up on a map (powered by Google Maps), and clicking on them gives you the music title. From there, you can search Youtube for its music video, or find other users in the world currently playing the song.

Find out what other people are listening to.

For a free application, TuneWiki SMP offers a lot to its users. It’s a no-brainer must-have app for the Nokia N900. You can download it now from the Ovi Store.

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Learn Something New with WikiHow for Nokia N900

Mark Guim — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 05:00:57 +0000

There isn’t a lot of applications for the Nokia N900 at the Ovi Store, so it’s kind of a big deal when new apps show up. The latest one I noticed is called WikiHow. It lets you access over 60,000 how-to articles on several topics. For example, I just learned how to practice proper sushi etiquette. I like what WikiHow is trying to do, but I have a couple of things to complain about their app.

WikiHow displays a random article when opened. I guarantee you the first thing users will notice is that you can’t drag the article to scroll. Instead, there’s a thin scrollbar… Yuck! You can use the arrow keys on the keyboard, which might be more convenient.

The articles themselves are very interesting and I can see myself reading plenty during a roadtrip or a long wait at the doctor’s office. The Survival Kit category might come handy in the future too. Wouldn’t you want to know how to escape from a sinking car or how to survive a long fall?

WikiHow has great content, but their application needs to work on the user interface! I mentioned above that we cannot drag an article, but I find that we can drag lists. Selecting an article from the list isn’t that obvious either. You have to double-tap.

Despite my UI complaints, the content really makes up for it. I also like that I can bookmark content for quicker access next time and also like the option to send links to articles via email.

The WikiHow application is free and available at the Ovi Store. If you don’t have a Nokia N900, you can also go to WikiHow.com to access many of the user-generated content. Check it out and let us know what you think.

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Nokia 5800 Navigation Edition Unboxing Video

Mark Guim — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 20:10:30 +0000

I’ll have more impressions and write a review in the near future, but for now, feast your eyes on the Nokia 5800 Navigation Edition and my unboxing. There are a lot of things inside the box, but I managed to keep this video short and to the point. Take a look.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview our latest videos before they get published on the blog.

The Nokia 5800 Navigation Edition did not include the new Ovi Maps with free worldwide navigation recently announced, so I’ll have to install it myself. The car holder looks sturdy, but I haven’t tried it on the road yet. More to come soon.

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App Review: 2G/3G Mode Selection Applet for Nokia N900

Mark Guim — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:40:37 +0000

2G/3G Mode Selection Applet works exactly as it sounds. Installing this applet adds 3 buttons to the Nokia N900’s status menu that lets the user change between 2G only, 3G only, or Dual (3G priority) connection. This is a really quick way to change modes without going through other settings. I made a video to show you how it looks.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

This is great for those who want to save battery by staying on 2G only connection, or prevent the phone from looking for an unsupported 3G connection. I personally keep the option on 3G only, because I don’t want my device to even bother looking for a 2G connection. This applet is developed by Faheem Pervez, the same person responsible for the awesome applet, Simple Brightness.

2G/3G Mode Selection Applet was available in Extras-Testing at the time of publishing this post, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it makes it to Maemo Extras by the time you read this. Confused? Read the guide to Maemo Extras first.

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App: Camkeyd for Nokia N900 – Shortcut to Dashboard Using Camera Button

Mark Guim — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 16:57:46 +0000

Camkeyd is nifty tool developed by Heikki Holstila that lets Nokia N900 users access the dashboard quickly by half-pressing the camera button. It is disabled when the lens cover is open so it doesn’t mess with camera functionality. Read on for the video demo.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

Camkeyd is useful with fullscreen apps like the web browser on the Nokia N900. Without this tool, the usual way to see current open apps from fullscreen is by clicking expand on the lower right corner and then the dashboard icon on the top left. Camkeyd makes it even quicker with just one click. If you already have the keyboard open, pressing Ctl+Backspace provides the same result without installing any other apps.

Camkeyd is currently available in the Extras Development repository. Read the Maemo Extras guide to find out how to download apps from this repo. Make sure not to skip the information about the risks involved by installing apps from there.

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App Review: TuneWiki for Nokia N900

Mark Guim — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 21:31:35 +0000

TuneWiki has been available for download on the Nokia N900 at launch, but I haven’t really given it any attention until now. It’s kind of pretty cool. TuneWiki allows you to watch subtitled lyrics while listening to music.

Since TuneWiki works as a desktop widget on the Nokia N900, I place it next to the music player widget. Lyrics start showing line by line the moment music starts. Don’t expect it to be as helpful as a karaoke machine because it doesn’t highlight word by word.

Not all songs are supported though. Some songs do not automatically scroll and some don’t have lyrics available. I was also hoping that TuneWiki work along with the awesome Internet Radio on the Nokia N900, but that’s not the case.

In conclusion, I think TuneWiki is a cool app to have on the Nokia N900. It will help you sing along with your current songs or just find out what your favorite artists are actually saying. You can download this app for free from the application manager or Maemo Select.

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Nokia Messaging for Social Networks Beta2 App Review

Mark Guim — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:00:17 +0000

I’ve been using the second beta to Nokia Messaging for Social Networks the weekend before today’s official announcement. If you need a reminder, the first beta was released at Nokia World, supporting only Facebook. The new version adds new options for Facebook and adds support for Twitter. Read on for some of my feedback.

Nokia’s Announcement Video

If you see an error in the video player, we still need to wait for Nokia to make it public. Here’s the Youtube link.

The Nokia Messaging team listened to the user feedback from the first release. The major addition is Twitter support. Product Manager Davis Fields explained, “We’ve added much more to this release including Twitter, all delivered live to the homescreen on your Nokia.” Clicking on a tweet or a friend’s Facebook update opens the full client displaying the relevant page so you can quickly respond.

Enhancements

Facebook

Full profile support
Events: view upcoming events and birthdays
Search

Twitter

Adding support for Twitter
View / reply to your Tweets
Update status on Twitter

Going Above and beyond (for Facebook only)

Location

Integration with device GPS
Integration with Ovi Maps (add map link to location and points of interest)

Enhanced communication:

Click-to-call
Click-to-SMS
Click-to-FB email

Device native apps:

Integration with device calendar
Video and picture uploads

Feedback

Nokia would like its users to try out the beta give them some feedback. You can download the app at messaging.nokia.com. This beta supports the Nokia N97 N97 mini, and the 5800.

My feedback. It’s great that they’ve added Twitter, but it’s definitely very basic. Pressing on most of the options usually ended up with a coming soon message. You can update, view mentions (hidden below the “what’s happening” form), and favorites (also hidden).

During a pre-briefing, we were told that this will not replace full-featured Twitter apps like Gravity, and the final software will be more targeted towards new users. I sort of disagree since I think new users will probably have a better Twitter experience using the Gravity application.

One bug I noticed that needs to be fixed immediately is the Twitter reply. It does not register the original tweet, hence not showing the “in reply to” submessage.

I also found this beta to be very slow at times even on my fast wifi connection. For example, my friends’ Facebook wall and photo albums take too long to load while there’s a considerable waiting time for the Facebook calendar to load as well. I’m not sure whether to blame the hardware I’m using which is the Nokia N97 mini or the beta software.

I really can’t complain too much since Nokia Messaging for Social Networks is still in beta. I’ve provided my feedback and Nokia is hoping to hear from you, too. I’m looking forward to the upcoming releases to see more improvements.

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Nokia Booklet 3G Review

Mark Guim — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:39:52 +0000

The Booklet 3G is Nokia’s first netbook, but they’re trying not to label it as such. It’s supposed to be a mini laptop for all-day mobility allowing up to 12 hours on a single charge. It looks great, too. The Nokia Booklet 3G’s chassis is made from a single piece of machined aluminum, similar to Apple’s Macbooks. How do I like it? Read on for the review.

Hardware

Size. The Nokia Booklet 3G’s dimensions are 10.4 x 7.3 x 0.78 inches. It weighs 2.76 lbs. It won’t be pocketable like Nokia’s phones, but it’s smaller than most of my old college textbooks. It can also easily fit in a backpack.

Build Quality. The Nokia Booklet 3G feels really solid in the hands. I wouldn’t try, but it gives an impression that it could withstand a fall. The laptop is mostly visibly aluminum with the exception of the glossy plastic cover on top of the lid. It’s not removable, but models come in black, ice (white), or azure (blue). It’s upscale looks really matches its build quality.

Internals. Inside the Nokia Booklet 3G is is an Intel Atom Z530 1.6 GHz with a soldered 1GB DDRD RAM that is not upgradeable. It includes 120GB 4200 RPM hard drive for storage. For more details, check the full specifications.

I’m a little disappointed with the performance. I’m a demanding user, but even simple multitasking seems to lag on the Booklet 3G. I couldn’t browse the web smoothly while Windows 7 was pestering me about stuff about available updates or that the virus protection was expiring soon. Even just browsing with multiple tabs seem to give the Booklet some trouble. I’m also shocked that Hulu videos are choppy. Fortunately, Youtube seems to play well.

Display. The Nokia Booklet 3G provides a 10.1 inch display with 1280×720 pixels resolution on glass. Glare and reflection is noticeable at some angles, but I prefer to have a glossy display over matte. I wouldn’t say the display is dim, but it’s comfortable at maximum brightness. The viewing angle isn’t that great, with details being lost if tilted too open or closed. Fortunately the hinge lets you tilt the Booklet 3G to almost 180 degrees to compensate.

Keyboard. The Nokia Booklet 3G keyboard buttons are slightly smaller than those found on regular laptops, but not so much that it hinders typing. Tactile feedback is great. I didn’t have problems writing emails, tweets, or filling out forms on the browser. Although, those with bigger fingers might disagree. There’s a dedicated Nokia button than opens the Nokia Social Hub software. I’ll talk more about that below. What I don’t like about the keyboard is that I have to hold and press two buttons to adjust volume, or screen brightness. There’s also a noticeable delay between pressing the brightness/volume button an actually making the adjustment.

Multitouch. Contrary to Engadget’s review, there is actually multitouch on the Booklet 3g’s trackpad. Scrolling is possible with two fingers and zooming can be done with pinching. It’s not exactly smooth, but it’s there.

Inputs. The Nokia Booklet 3G provides an HDMI port so you can connect to a TV or projector to watch movies or give presentations. I plugged it to my 32in HDTV and it worked right away. There are also 3 USB 2.0 ports, 3.5mm audio jack, slot for an SD card, and another for SIM. The door to access the SIM and SD cards is tough to open unless you have long nails or a paper clip. Nevertheless, I rather have a tight door than a loose one.

Speakers. The speakers on the Nokia Booklet 3G can be loud enough. They are located at the front on both sides. The quality isn’t bad, but it’s also not that great. I noticed the included Nokia Headset WH-205 that also came with the Nokia N900 sounds better on the N900 than the Booklet 3G.

Software

Windows 7 Starter is pre-installed on the Nokia Booklet 3G, but it’s upgradeable to Home Premium using the Windows Anytime Upgrade. I used my student discount to upgrade for only $29.99. Features missing on the Starter version include ability to change dektop wallpaper, but more importantly the Aero interface. I don’t see why Nokia decided to stick to Starter especially at the price it’s trying to sell.

I’m a Mac user and this is my first time playing with Windows 7. I love the Exposé feature on my Mac. Aero on Windows 7 seems just as useful. Pressing Alt+Tab or WIN+Tab rotates through currently opened applications. The two methods show it differently, but I like the WIN+Tab better. Windows and taskbars are also translucent, which I think is appealing. I also like the subtle transitions when closing and opening applications.

Nokia Social Hub. With Nokia Social Hub, you can read your text messages and access social utilities like Twitter, Flickr, and Facebook. It’s similar to other tools like Seesmic Desktop or Tweetdeck. This is a must-have app on the Booklet 3G if you are planning to use SMS messaging from the mini-laptop.

Ovi Maps Gadget. Windows 7 users can have widgets or gadgets on their desktop and Nokia included one for GPS location. It was able to find my location outside my brick apartment building in less than a minute. I thought clicking on the gadget would open a bigger Ovi Maps app with more options to play with but that’s not the case. Okay, so the Booklet 3G knows where I am… now what?

Ovi Suite and Software Updater. The Booklet 3G also includes the Ovi Suite where users can sync their calendar, contacts, media with other devices and the cloud. Software Updater checks for any updates specific to the Booklet itself.

Connectivity

Staying connected isn’t a problem for the Nokia Booklet 3G. Along with wifi, it can connect to a carrier network. Here in the US, the Booklet comes with an AT&T DataConnect Plan for 3G access. They also provide access to their WiFi hotspots nationwide. An application is included to show the location of these access points. I see a lot of McDonalds’ on the list.

Battery

I think the key selling factor for the Nokia Booklet 3G is the battery life. I can actually carry it around without bringing the power adapter. The removable battery was rated to provide up to 12 hours on a single charge, but I found my typical usage to last about 8 hours. I think that’s still pretty good.

Verdict

The Nokia Booklet 3G is a good-looking solid hardware. The battery life is really impressive as well. However, I think it is disappointingly underpowered. I wish it was faster at opening applications. I wish I can watch Hulu videos. I wish I can run multiple applications without slowdowns. Nevertheless, if you are just going to use the Booklet 3G for small tasks and light browsing on the go without being tied to WiFi, then it could be for you. Here in the US, it costs $299.99 with a two-year AT&T DataConnect contract and $599.99 without the contract.

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Nokia N97 Mini Review

Mark Guim — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 04:10:18 +0000

It’s hard to like the S60v5 again after using a Maemo device like the Nokia N900. I’ve been trying to use the Nokia N97 mini to write a thorough review, but I always ended up putting it down quickly. Want to know what I think in one sentence? The Nokia N97 mini looks damn good and packs a lot of features, but I would recommend other devices before this one.

Hardware

The Nokia N97 mini was well-designed. It’s shiny with nice combinations of curves and lines. It feels good in the hands, too.

Size. It’s a little smaller than the Nokia N97 making it more pocketable. Here’s a size comparison between the two N97’s. I didn’t have problems putting it in my jean pocket.

Build Quality. Nokia added stainless steel to the back of the phone with the battery cover and the camera bezel. It adds a premium look and feel to the hardware. The hinge for the slider is very smooth, yet provides nice reassuring clicks when the device is closed or open. The N97 mini is a solid device. I found no wobbling, creaking, or loose parts to complain about.

Internals. Inside the Nokia N97 is a single-core ARM 11 microprocessor clocked at 434MHz with 128MB RAM. That’s similar to the original Nokia N97. It isn’t a powerhorse if you compare it to other recent devices. For example, the Nokia N900 runs at 600MHz with 256MB RAM. A big concern for power users is the RAM. I found that running multiple applications like Gravity for tweets, web browser, Mobbler for streaming music, and Nokia Messaging for emails take up a lot of the RAM. This could be good or bad depending on how you look at it, but the phone silently closes one of those apps without warning to free up memory. This wouldn’t be a problem if Nokia gave the N97 256MB RAM instead.

Display. The Nokia N97 mini has a 3.2 inch touchscreen display with 640×360 resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio. The pixel density of 229 PPI makes it relatively sharp. Let’s compare it with other touchscreen devices.

Apple iPhone 3GS: 165 PPI
Nokia N97: 210 PPI
Nokia N97 mini: 229 PPI
Motorola Droid: 265 PPI
Nokia N900: 267 PPI

I can’t really say if the screen on the Nokia N97 mini is responsive or not because of inconsistencies. Scrolling through lists and pages varies between applications. It’s sometimes smooth and fast on one application, while slow on another.

Keyboard. I’m a fan of the Nokia N97 mini’s keyboard. I got used to the layout very quickly found myself typing texts and emails really fast. Unlike the Nokia N900, there are actually spaces between the buttons so they don’t feel cramped. The buttons provide adequate tactile feedback, but I recommend leaving the keyboard sounds ON for a better typing experience. Just like the the 2.0 firmware on the original Nokia N97, long-press on the keyboard outputs the corresponding symbol on top of the letters.

Nokia provides an on-screen alphanumeric keypad for those who prefer not to slide out the real keyboard. Handwriting is also an input option. Since I like the keyboard on the Nokia N97 mini, I never used these two other options. On-screen Qwerty is not currently supported.

Camera. The Nokia N97 mini packs a 5mp camera with Carl Zeiss lens and dual LEDs flash. It’s similar to the original setup on the Nokia N97, but the flash is now separated from the lens to prevent it from bleeding into the photos. I’ve been impressed with the Nseries line from Nokia in regards to camera quality and the N97 mini is no exception. It takes great photos outdoors as long as there’s enough light. Of course it’s no match for my DSLR, but for quick snaps and sharing online, it’s a great camera you can bring everywhere. Don’t bet on getting great photos at a bar or club though. The dual LEDS is simply not strong enough to capture friends dancing at the club.

Video recording on the Nokia N97 mini is fine, but I wish it offered more. It records at 640 x 360 at 30 frames per second by default, but there’s an option to record VGA (640×480) too. I like that you can use the LEDs to provide light for video. I wish there was autofocus because the Nokia N97 mini seems to lock focus on far objects. This is great for landscape videos, but people talking to the camera could be sharper. Forget about objects up close.

Speakers. After some usage, I find the speakers on the Nokia N97 mini loud but found it better to use earphones. The included earphones did pretty well when I listened to music full of bass and hard-hitting beats. There’s a 3.5mm audio jack for those who want to use their own headsets.

Software

The Nokia N97 mini runs on S60 5th edition. I am no longer a fan after using other systems like Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android, and Nokia’s newer Maemo OS. I found the S60v5 interface required more presses to get things done.

My main complaint about S60 5th edition is the inconsistency. Even when I’m currently connected to the wifi on the web browser, opening another application that needs connection still asks what connection to use. Different applications also require different flicks for scrolling. For example, the screen responds immediately at the menu lists, web browser, and the twitter app, Gravity, but the email application like Nokia Messaging requires a lot more flicks to scroll. Some menus also won’t scroll the page but highlights the text instead. The keylock sometimes needs to be flicked twice to turn the screen back on. This really didn’t bother me much until I’ve seen how it’s done elsewhere.

Widgets. You can install widgets on the home screen of the Nokia N97 mini. These are useful to get quick information without the need of opening individual apps. Android and Maemo however already improves on this by allowing users to have more than one page of widgets with different sizes. On the N97 mini’s homescreen, I included Facebook, calendar, music player, email, app shortcuts, and clock.

Email. Out of the box, users should avoid the default email application on the Nokia N97 mini and install Nokia Messaging right away. It provides push email with HTML support. While Nokia Messaging on S60 is better than the default email application, the email experience is much better on iPhone, Android, and Maemo.

Browsing. The browser on the Nokia N97 mini is works fine and the kinetic scrolling looks good. Flash content like embedded Youtube videos can play within the webpages without opening another application. I recommend viewing pages in landscape view because I found some websites not rendering properly in portrait view. Zooming is done with double-tap and there’s no support for pinching or multi-touch. Performance-wise, it’s not as fast as the other browsers found in the Nokia N900 or the iPhone. Users might want to check out a popular alternate browser called Opera Mini 5. I found it to be faster especially when loading larger pages.

Music. Instead of owning music albums or downloading music, I prefer discovering new songs by streaming via last.fm or Pandora. Fortunately, there’s an app for that on the Nokia N97 mini. It’s called Mobbler. The traditional way of listening works fine as well. I transferred an album via bluetooth from my Macbook and it showed up in the music library. Album art was supported. I don’t think it’s a dealbreaker, but Nokia dropped the FM transmitter in the Nokia N97 mini.

Mobbler and Music Player

Ovi Maps. Unlike the Ovi Maps in Maemo, Maps for S60 is actually pretty good for navigation. It’s not free, but a 30-day license in the US is available for about $7. I’m not sure about other regions. If you’re searching for places, I recommend finding it on the Google Maps application and bookmark it for later use on Ovi Maps. Walk navigation is surprisingly useful too. It helps guide you along pedestrian areas, parks, or over crossings while walking. 3D landmarks display buildings for better orientation.

3rd-Party Apps. The Nokia N97 mini came with a bunch of pre-installed apps and more can be found within the Ovi store. Some of my favorites are

Handy Taskman – Task manager that also lets you view RAM usage
Gravity – Really good Twitter application.
Qik – Stream live video from your phone
Pixelpipe – Upload and share your media to more than 100+ services.
Boingo – Use your phone’s data connection as a wifi access point to connect your other devices like a laptop.

Handy Taskman and Gravity

Cellular

I have no complaints with the call reception on the Nokia N97 mini. The earpiece seem loud enough. Voice command is activated when holding the green call button and incoming calls can quickly be put on silent by flipping the device over.

Battery Life

The Nokia N97 mini includes a 1200mAh battery. It survived a whole day of my normal usage that includes taking some photos, making calls, checking emails, tweeting, and browsing the web. Official measurements by Nokia rates it at 7.1 hours of GSM talk time and 4 hours of WCDMA. Standby time goes up to 13 days while music playback goes up to 28 hours.

Verdict

The Nokia N97 mini is a good-looking phone and offers a lot of features for those want to do more with their device than just make calls or text messages. However, there are inconsistencies within the OS that leave room for frustration especially for new users. I wouldn’t recommend this phone as anyone’s first touchscreen device. If you already love your S60v5 device like the 5800 or the original Nokia N97, then maybe the N97 mini’s appealing looks, sleek body, and great QWERTY keyboard make it a worthy gadget for your pocket.

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Nokia Booklet 3G Unboxing

Mark Guim — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:18:22 +0000

Hey, it’s not a netbook! I’ve got the brand new Nokia Booklet 3G for AT&T in hand and it’s not hard to see that it’s a beauty. The chassis is made from a single piece of machined aluminum, weighs only 2.76 lbs, and .78 inch thin. If it didn’t have a Nokia branding on it, I would have thought it was a mini Apple Macbook. I’m working on the review right now, but here’s some unboxing photos to whet your appetite.

Gallery: Nokia Booklet 3G

Here’s what’s included in the sales package

Nokia Booklet 3G
Battery BC-1S
AC/DC power adapter
Setup guide
Nokia Headset WH-205
Nokia USB multi-cable charger CA-126
Cleaning Cloth

The Finnish company added some features to this ‘mini-laptop’ that aren’t found on many netbooks like an accelerometer, dedicated Nokia button, and swappable SIM card. If there’s one thing to mention, it’s the battery life that really stands out on the Booklet 3G. Nokia claims up to 12 hours on a single charge. I noticed about 7 hours of continuous usage, but noone should ever be in front of their computer that long.

It’s not all about hardware, so I’ll let you know in my upcoming review how it performs with some real-life usage. Stay tuned.

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Hands on the Nokia Booklet 3G for AT&T USA

Mark Guim — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:11:24 +0000

On Monday I met up with a few Nokia folks for some time with the Nokia Booklet 3G for AT&T in the US. We bowled afterwards too, but I won’t tell you how bad I scored. Instead, I’ll give you an overview of the Booklet, thanks to Nokia’s Joe Gallo who didn’t mind getting in front of camera for our blog readers.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

The first time I had my hands on the Booklet 3G was at Nokia World, but we didn’t get the specific pricing for the US market back then. As seen on the video, it will be available in time for the holidays, priced at $299 with contract ($599 without) on AT&T’s 3G network. You can find it exclusively at Best Buy.

Mr. Gallo explained that there’s a dedicated AT&T plan for the Nokia Booklet 3G. That means we can’t take our existing AT&T SIM card from our current phones and pop it into the Booklet for data.

The Booklet 3G looks great. It reminds me of Apple’s Macbooks whose designs I absolutely love. The reported battery life also makes it very appealing to just put in the bag without the power adapter. One thing I’m concerned about is the performance. I was shown an early model, but I noticed some of the apps took time to load. I’ll have my hands on a retail version shortly so I can perform more accurate tests and provide a better opinion.

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Nokia N97 mini Unboxing

Mark Guim — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:35:45 +0000

I got my hands on a retail version of the Nokia N97 mini and will be providing a thorough review of this device soon. For now, enjoy some of the unboxing photos. It’s already available in certain regions, so check your local Nokia shop.

Gallery: Nokia N97 mini Unboxing

Want a quick reminder what the Nokia N97 mini is all about? Check out my Nokia N97 briefing from Nokia World. The Nokia N97 Mini and the regular Nokia N97 hardware are almost similar except the missing lens cover, different keypad, smaller battery, 8GB built-in memory instead of 32GB. The size is smaller, but not a big difference. I’ll have a review up after spending some time with it.

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Hahlo is an Awesome Twitter (Web) App on the Nokia N900

Mark Guim — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:06:40 +0000

I’ve been using Dabr on the Nokia N900 for my Twitter needs, but I stumbled upon a better web app called Hahlo. There’s no need to download anything since it’s accessible through the web browser. I’m surprised at the features it offers like auto-refresh, inline photos, inline replies, tweets near me, OAuth login, and more.

You don’t even need to read this review since you can quickly head over to the site from your current browser to see for yourself. I’ll highlight the 6 things I love about Hahlo.

#1 If a tweet is a reply to another, pressing “in reply to” shows the reply on the same page.

#2 Tweets with photos like twitpics or flickr are shown.

#3 I can choose how often my timeline automatically refreshes and new tweets become highlighted for a moment.

#4 Access to more options like tweets near me, trends, and advanced search.

#5 It’s customizable. Settings allow you to hide/show or turn on/off features.

#6 Options to retweet, reply, favorite, or direct message by clicking on a tweet.

Hahlo is a great example of how we really don’t need to install applications to get what we want. The browser is a powerful all-in-one app. It looks great on the Nokia N900.

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Nokia N900 Review

Mark Guim — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:19:52 +0000

The Nokia N900 was just announced that it started shipping on Tuesday. I’ve been using a pre-production version for a month now and just updated to the production firmware (1.2009.42-11). I’ll edit this review when I get my hands on a production hardware model and notice any difference. Want to know what I think in one sentence? I like the Nokia N900, but Nokia still has a lot of work to do.

Prelude

One of the reasons I started this blog was to share my experiences using what I believed were the best phones created. When the Nokia N70, N93, and N95 8GB were released, I thought everyone else’s phones were garbage. I was happily taking photos, videos, checking the web, my email, and navigating with the built-in GPS while most of my friends were just happy with SMS and making calls on their phones.

But then the iPhone 3G and 3GS came out. Now my friends, their parents, and their grandparents can do what I’ve been doing because Apple made it easier, faster, and prettier to use.

I’m a phone fanatic and always want the best. Unfortunately, I did not feel I was using the best devices anymore when I got the Nokia 5800 and the latest flagship, Nokia N97. That’s why I was excited when the Nokia N900 was announced to run on Maemo. I wanted something new… not just a touch-optimized layer placed on top of the previous S60 OS.

I’ve been asked several questions when I show the Nokia N900 to friends. Do I feel the Nokia N900 is the best device to have right now? Is it better than the iPhone or Android? Read on to find out.

Hardware

Size. If you’re updating from a Nokia N97, the N900 it’s slightly thicker, shorter and heavier. It’s pocketable, but you’ll feel that it’s there. If you wear skinny jeans, you might want to carry this in your coat pocket or belt case, instead. Check out the size comparison between the iPhone vs N900 vs N97 vs E71.

Build Quality. The build quality of the Nokia N900 is fine. It seems plasticky, but it’s not terrible. The slider locks on to place with nice reassuring clicking sounds and the hardware buttons like the camera, keylock, power, and qwerty are firm. It’s not a dealbreaker, but my pre-production N900 makes a little creaking noise when I squeeze on the side of the device. Some metal would have been reassuring, but it would make the N900 heavier than it already is.

Internals. Inside the Nokia N900 is ARM Cortex – A8 microprocessor running at 600 MHz with 1GB (256MB RAM + 768MB virtual memory). It’s the same CPU as the iPhone 3GS. Opening, scrolling, and switching through multiple applications is really fast. On average, I have 4 windows open and don’t notice any lag. There’s 32GB of internal storage, but the N900 provides a microSD slot if you need more space.

Display. The Nokia N900 has a 3.5 inch touchscreen display with 800 x 480 resolution. That means a pixel density of 267 pixels per inch (PPI). Let’s compare it to other touch devices:

Apple iPhone 3GS: 165 PPI
Nokia N97: 210 PPI
HTC HD2: 217 PPI
Motorola Droid: 265 PPI
Nokia N900: 267 PPI

The more pixels you have in an inch, the more information they can represent, and hence the clearer and sharper the picture. Believe me when I say the display on the Nokia N900 is sharp.

The screen on the Nokia N900 is responsive. It reacts quickly to the touch. Pages scroll in sync with the finger, while applications and menus open and close immediately. Unfortunately there’s no multi-touch gestures like pinching to zoom in or out like the iPhone. A unique gesture is a circular motion at the web browser to zoom. Might seem silly at first, but it’s great for one-handed browsing.

Keyboard. I needed a few days to get used to the QWERTY keyboard on the Nokia N900. Coming from the Nokia N97, it felt really different. The @ sign and arrow keys went to the right, while symbol and function were switched to the left side. It became easier after more usage.

Those who haven’t used the Nokia N97 before will notice right away that there are only 3 rows of buttons and the spacebar is placed on the right. I’m fine with the 3 rows, but it needs getting used to. I also don’t mind the weird placement of the spacebar because I’m right-handed. It makes it more accessible in my opinion. The buttons provide adequate tactile feedback, but I suggest leaving the keyboard sounds ON for a better typing experience. My major gripe about the Nokia N900’s keyboard is that long-pressing on a key does not output the corresponding symbol like other recent Nokia Qwerty devices such as the E71, E75, N97, and E72. I’ve voted for this feature on Maemo Bugzilla. We’ll see if Nokia decides to implement it.

On-screen QWERTY is available on the Nokia N900, but it’s off by default. It’s really good for typing, but I still prefer using the slide-out keyboard. Panning or zooming is not available when the on-screen QWERTY is displayed on the N900. For comparison, the iPhone and the Motorola Droid still shows some of the surrounding elements when QWERTY is shown on-screen.

Camera. The Nokia N900’s camera does not disappoint. It features a 5mp camera labeled with Carl Zeiss lens. It also packs dual LEDs flash, but don’t expect miracles when taking photos in dark restaurants and bars. By default, the N900 takes 3.5mp photos. It crops the top and bottom to give a widescreen aspect picture. You can change this to 5mp in options. It does not include all the camera options from previous Nseries cameras. It’s missing sequence, self-timer, color tone, contrast, and sharpness that are found in the Nokia N97.

The Nokia N900 is certainly capable of taking great photos under enough light. Nokia usually does well in this aspect of their devices. The flash is great to help out at night, but it will never be as good as the xenon on the Nokia N82. Overall, I found the N900 to have a better camera than the iPhone 3GS and the Motorola Droid.

Video on the Nokia N900 went both forward and back. As a step up from previous Nseries devices, it has the ability to autofocus before recording. This is done by half-pressing before recording. This makes videos sharper because previous models had fixed focus to either infinity like the Nokia N97 or a few meters like the N86. The N900 is also capable of shooting at a higher resolution of 848 x 480 pixels, but lower max speed of 25 fps. I wouldn’t mind having an additional option to shoot 640×480 pixels at 30 fps. Proper exposure is measured from the center and the N900 adjusts it automatically while recording.

Sharing photos and videos online is really amazing on the Nokia N900. If someone asked me what my favorite feature is on the Nokia N900, this is it. Just install the Pixelpipe plugin and you’ll be able to upload to several services immediately. Tagging and geotagging are also supported.

Speakers. The Nokia N900 speakers are loud, but the quality isn’t the greatest. The speakers are also on the top sides of the N900 so they get covered by my index fingers. I like the placement better on the Nokia N97 where they are at the bottom side corners. The Droid also has noticeably better-sounding speakers.

Software

Maemo is refreshing to use after the S60 OS from previous Nokia devices. The interface is much nicer. It also places a lot of emphasis on multitasking. For example, when you’re running an application, the dashboard icon on the top left gives you quick access to other current open apps. From the dashboard, the icon changes to the application menu icon, where touching it gives you access to all your available apps.

It’s all easy once you familiarize yourself with the status area, menu, and application bar. The status area shows the current time, battery, signal strength, internet connection, available updates, and the active profile. Clicking on the area gives you the status menu where you can quickly change access points, turn on/off bluetooth, profiles, IM status, and volume. This is extendable too. Plugins allow you to add more options. For example, I installed a plugin that lets me quickly change the screen brightness from the status menu. The title bar is where settings for opened apps are available.

For the most part, the Nokia N900 is used in landscape view. Currently, the only apps I found portrait view possible were using the phone or the photo gallery. Portrait view for the browser is expected by the end of the year. I’m not sure about other applications.

Panoramic Desktop. The desktop on the Nokia N900 is very customizable. There are 4 panels for users to place bookmarks, shortcuts, widgets, and contacts. Out of the box, there are two available themes. It depends on you if you want orange or blue accents. You can place four different wallpapers, or follow my guide to loopable wallpapers.

Email. I’ve already thoroughly reviewed the email aspect of the Nokia N900, so I’ll briefly describe it here. Setting up email accounts is pretty easy. Nokia lists the service providers so you’ll only have to enter the proper login info. It’s very straightforward to compose, read, and reply to emails. I’m really glad that HTML is built-in.

Push email exists in the Nokia N900. Exchange is supported. I’m disappointed that Google Sync for email doesn’t work on the Nokia N900. It somehow grabs some email headers, but will not display all the other data like messages, sender, and time. Depending on the region, users will be able to use their Nokia Messaging account for push email. ~~Unfortunately that option is not available here in the US.~~ It’s now available for US consumers.

There is a known performance issue for IMAP users like Gmail. Those with large amount of inbox messages will notice the Nokia N900 slow down. The workaround is to archive your old emails before setting it up on the N900.

Contacts. The phonebook is really powerful on the Nokia N900. It’s the one-stop place for messaging, whether it is email, instant message, voice call, or internet call. Out of the box, you can add Skype, SIP, Gtalk accounts to show your buddy list within the phonebook. It is also extendable. For example I added my AIM account with a plugin called Haze that’s currently in development. My favorite feature of Contacts on the N900 is sorting the list by status. Therefore, those who are currently online stay on top of the list. And since I’m using Google Sync, my phonebook will always be in sync with Google contacts.

I also suggest installing the Hermes app right away to grab additional information from Facebook that may be missing in your contacts like photos, birthdays, and web links. I’ve spoken to the developer Andrew Flegg before the application was released. Check out the interview here.

Browsing. The web browsing experience is closer to what it’s like using a computer at home than other phones. It loads the full pages of my most visited sites like Techmeme, Engadget, and Mashable accurately and fast too. It’s powered by Mozilla Technology and includes Adobe Flash 9.4 and full AJAX support. It will show flash objects like ads, embedded videos, or even games. I can now access pages on this device that my previous phones couldn’t. For example, The Nokia N97, iPhone, or Motorla Droid can’t open Speedtest.net. Unfortunately, it’s not always smooth as I want it to be. Embedded Youtube videos only play nice if I pause and let it load first. Videos from Vimeo or Hulu are just horrible. It’ll load, but save yourself from headache and avoid these sites completely on the N900.

I recommend installing the Adblock Plus plugin for the N900’s browser made possible by Alan Bruce. It gets rid of ads and banners that often take longer to download than everything else on the page.

Music. When it comes to mobile devices, I usually install Pandora or a Last.FM application to stream music. Unfortunately there are no apps for those services on Maemo yet. I can’t remember the last time I transferred music to a phone, but for review purposes, I tested it on the Nokia N900. I downloaded from my Mac to the N900. I did not have to ‘refresh library’ to make the songs show up in the music library like I remember doing in Symbian devices. Album art also automatically showed up. There’s a built-in FM transmitter if you want to play the music through the car radio or home stereo. By the way, Pandora and last.fm websites will work on the browser, but I found them to be laggy on the N900.

Ovi Maps. I think Ovi maps is what I hate most about the Nokia N900. Searching is nowhere near the same level as Google maps on any platform so it’s often hard to find places. There’s also currently no voice navigation, but there is routing and tracking. Routing allows you to mark the destinations, while tracking follows the current position. The headache gets worse when the car hits a stop light. The map unexpectedly rotates, so I forget whether it was a right or left turn at the intersection. Without the navigation, Maps is actually very snappy on the Nokia N900. Panning and zooming is responsive to the touch. It also usually finds my location in less than a minute.

3rd-Party Apps. Check Maemo Select for third-party applications. There isn’t much right now and that could be turn-off for some. Since Maemo is still new, I’m sure the numbers will increase eventually. I’ll highlight apps that deserve attention in upcoming posts. We really have to depend more on the web browser than using standalone apps. There’s a Twitter app called Mauku, but it’s not even close to what Gravity on Symbian, Tweetdeck on iPhone, or Twidroid on Android offer. I resort to using the Dabr site for my Twitter activity on the N900. I’m also missing a music streaming application like Pandora, music-identiying magician like Shazam, and better map search with Google Maps. I’m glad the video-streaming Qik jumped on Maemo quickly. They’ve created their app in just a few days and have been updating frequently.

Cellular & VoIP

Cellular call quality is fine. I can hear the other callers clearly and noone has complained of not hearing me. Since Skype is built-in, it’s a little easier to make and receive VoIP calls. When using the phone, there’s a quick drop-down to make it a cellular or Skype call on the fly. I tested it on the T-mobile USA 3G network and calls went through fine. However, there’s one major flaw in this integration. Skype requires a ‘+’ before the telephone numbers. Since I store my friends’ numbers in the format 11234567890, pressing the “call with Skype” option on the phonebook returns an invalid number. If I want to use Skype to call my friends, I have to manually add the ‘+’ sign before the number.

Battery Life

The Nokia N900 packs a removable 1320 mAh battery. I haven’t done real objective tests, but I found my average usage on the Nokia N900 lasting me the whole day. An example of heavier usage consisting of snapping several geotagged photos, shooting a couple of short videos, uploading, navigating with Ovi maps, checking email and tweeting lasted me about 7 hours.

Verdict

No device is perfect, but I like the Nokia N900. It has a sharp screen, fast at multitasking, great at web browsing, awesome at taking and sharing photos, and nicely integrates accounts in the phonebook. At its current state, most of the user’s activity will be on the browser. Buying the the Nokia N900 right now gives you a powerful internet tablet that makes calls and takes great photos too. However, it’s open to more customizations, plugins, and applications that potentially make it better.

If you skipped the whole review and went straight to the summary, you’ll miss that I had a few complaints. The good news is that most of those issues can be fixed with firmware updates and the addition of more third party applications.

Is the Nokia N900 the best device to have right now? That’s not an easy question to answer because there isn’t one perfect device. It depends on what you need. I’ve recently cycled between the iPhone 3GS, Motorola Droid, Nokia N97, and Nokia N900. If applications or music is important to you, then look elsewhere. I need a device that has to have a good web browser AND a good camera. That makes the N900 the best device for me… better than the iPhone 3GS, Droid, and the N97.

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App Review: Opera Mobile 10 beta on Nokia N97

Mark Guim — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:22:10 +0000

Opera Mobile 10 beta just came out for Symbian S60 3rd and 5th edition devices. I installed it on the Nokia N97 right away and shot it on video to show you how it looks. It’s a nice alternate browser, but prepare for occasional headaches because it’s still in beta.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

It is very similar to Opera Mini 5 which I demoed previously. This version is optimized for Symbian meaning faster rendering, zooming, panning and almost everything else you do with a browser. Page downloading is now 50% faster than the previous version.

It’s still Beta
Sounds too good, right? I encountered some problems while using Opera Mobile. Clicking on links sometimes do not get recognized and I often get ‘Out of Memory’ messages when I have multiple tabs open or scrolling down a page.

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Nokia N900 Preview of Qik

Mark Guim — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:15:49 +0000

You probably already know that Qik lets you stream video live from your phone. In case you need a reminder, I met the cofounder, Bhaskar Roy, at the Nokia N900 NYC meetup and asked him to give The Nokia Blog viewers a demo. Take a look.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

As a reminder, this is just a preview of what’s to come. This article is based on Qik version 0.0.36 running on a pre-production Nokia N900. Features may be added or changed when the Nokia N900 arrives in stores.

Qik on the Nokia N900 has a very simplistic interface. There’s a prominent green button that lets you stream videos immediately. There’s also quick access to set a title and and privacy.

The application menu on top gives you more settings to play with. Here, you can choose whether to stream videos with max quality or minimum delay. You can also go to your Qik profile from this menu or sign up if you’re new.

Clicking anywhere else on the screen toggles full-screen mode just like the main camera application on the Nokia N900. I noticed there’s currently no way for me to use video autofocus. I hope this feature gets added in an update.

Video Sample

Results

I found streaming to work really well on wifi. The delay is very minimal. My main complaint is that the videos aren’t really viewable ‘live’ when using the a carrier’s internet connection. Viewers will see a choppy video until the file is fully uploaded. For best results, use wifi. What’s also great about Qik is that it will automatically resume uploading if it was previously interrupted or disconnected.

Qik is the fastest way to share your videos online. You can choose to automatically upload your videos to Facebook or send out a Tweet when streaming live. There are more services to automatically forward the Qik streams. I recommend installing it if your phone is supported and definitely recommend it on the Nokia N900.

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App Review: Vlingo on Nokia n97

Mark Guim — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:55:39 +0000

Vlingo came pre-installed on the Nokia N97’s firmware 2.0 and I’m surprised at how well it works. You can use ordinary language to instantly send a text or an email message, call a friend, create a note, update your Facebook or search the web simply by saying what you want. I’ve included a video of while trying it out.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

The app recognizes commands pretty well if you follow the instructions. For example, I was not getting matches when I said, “Send message Sheila, what’s for dinner”. I had to say, “Send message to Sheila, what’s for dinner.” It tries to find a match from the phonebook when I want to call or message someone. It’s even accurate with numbers for zip codes. If you forget the exact commands, the instructions are one button-press away.

Vlingo really saves time. It’s faster than typing for certain tasks. I recommend checking it out yourself. The free version has all the features, but limits the amount of text messages and emails to 15 each. Buy Vlingo Plus from within the application to send an unlimited amount of SMS and emails. A 30-day license is $4.99 while the full license is $19.99.

Vlingo on the Nokia N97 currently cannot update Twitter status. It’s a feature available on the iPhone version. It also transcribes from the ugly default email program and cannot do it from Nokia Messaging. I hope these options get added in an update.

Vlingo have been around in the US for a year and have over 2 million users who downloaded from iPhone app store and the BlackBerry app world store. The free version is pre-loaded on Nokia N97, Nokia E72 & Nokia Mini at launch. It is also available for download at the Ovi Store and compatible with

Nokia N95
Nokia N95 8GB
Nokia E51
Nokia E71
Nokia E75
Nokia 5530 XpressMusic
Nokia 5800 XpressMusic

Try it out and let us know what you think of Vlingo.

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Review: Simple Brightness Applet for Nokia N900

Mark Guim — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:24:07 +0000

I’ve been checking the Maemo Downloads site and found this cool little applet called Simple Brightness for the Nokia N900. It adds an option to the top control panel that lets you quickly adjust the screen brightness. I made a video to show you how it looks.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

The applet works exactly as it is described. It is developed by Faheem Pervez and can be installed directly from the Nokia N900 by going to Maemo Downloads.

I like this a lot because it enhances the already awesome control panel on the Nokia N900. Even without this applet, users have out-of-the-box quick access to the access points, bluetooth activation, messaging status, clock, and profile.

I wonder what other options developers can add. What would you want?

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Nokia N900 Review of Email

Mark Guim — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 02:24:48 +0000

Email is a very important feature for me and it works pretty well on the Nokia N900… for the most part. I’ll show you how it looks on the pre-production Nokia N900 from setup, to reading the inbox, replying, and creating emails. In this post, I use my Nokia Messaging account to push my emails from Gmail.

The Nokia N900 referred to this post is running software version 1.2009.41-10.

Video Overview

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. Subscribe to the channel to preview the latest videos before they get published on the blog.

Setup

During the setup, there’s a pre-loaded list of service providers like Gmail, Yahoo, or Exchange. The list makes it easier for you to just log in and start using email. Most of the other info like ports, server addresses, etc. are no longer needed. For advanced options, select ‘Others’ to manually fill out all the credentials.

Multiple email accounts are supported. There’s no option to combine the accounts into one inbox, but you can choose from a dropdown which account you’d like to send your new emails from.

For some weird reason, Nokia Messaging does not show up in the list when I’m using a SIM card from AT&T or T-mobile here in US. It is available when I insert my European Vodafone SIM.

Inbox

Browsing through the inbox is fairly easy. Flick your finger up or down to see the list of emails. Those in white mean already read, while the ones in color are still not read. Long-press on an email activates a popup while blurring the background. You can mark the email as read or delete it from there.

Search is currently missing. You will not be able to look for certain emails.

Reading Emails

HTML email is supported by the Nokia N900. Images do not load automatically, so you’ll have to press the load image button at the bottom of the screen. If there’s an option to load images automatically, I haven’t found it yet. Other options while reading an email include the usual reply, reply all, and forward. It’s very straightforward.

Writing Emails

As I previously mentioned, you can select in a drop down which account you are sending the email from. You can also use the bottom panel options to change the font, size, format, and color. More options are available by pressing the status bar panel. This includes attachments, CC, and BCC. Attaching images is pretty straightforward as well.

Finishing Thoughts

Email on the Nokia N900 is simple and easy to use. Many users will be happy with it. However, it is not exactly perfect yet.

Issues. There are some issues on this pre-production Nokia N900’s email experience that hopefully gets resolved before hitting the shelves.

1. If I login using the Gmail account, the app becomes too slow. I will often get a “not responding” warning and force quit the application. I think it is trying to download all my emails since a couple of years ago, but I could be wrong.

2. Google Sync for Email is not fully supported. It can download some emails, but will not display the content or recipient.

3. Nokia Messaging is not in the preloaded list if I am using an American SIM card. It shows up when I have my Vodafone SIM card from Netherlands.

4. If I am using Nokia Messaging as an email account AND use Exchange for Google Sync, I can read emails but cannot send emails. Mike from Nokia Conversations has the same setup, but told me he is able to send emails.

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Nokia N900 1-Minute Multitasking Demo

Mark Guim — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 05:47:06 +0000

I asked Chanse Arrington, Product Manager of Multimedia at Nokia North America, to show me the Nokia N900 in about a minute and this is what we came up with. You can see how multitasking is done on this Maemo device. I have to say I’m loving the N900 more each time I see it!

You can also watch this video in larger size on Youtube. For a video walkthrough, you can also watch my longer Nokia N900 hands-on video from Nokia World.

Thoughts on Multitasking

The Nokia N900 appears to be made for multitasking. There’s no physical button on the front of the phone, but the area of the screen you’ll be touching a lot is the upper left corner. You press it once to show all open apps then press again to show the applications grid. Clicking outside the grid takes you back to your panoramic home screen.

Complaint & Suggestion. My complaint about multitasking on the Nokia N900 is that it tries to display the thumbnails of all open apps in one screen. If you have more than 3 apps open, the thumbnail preview of each app becomes very small.

I recommend Nokia to look into how the Palm Pre uses their “card view.” It shows one full thumbnail and two partial thumbnails that are movable like the panoramic home screen. Here’s how it looks.

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Nokia 5530 Hands-On Video and Initial Impressions

Mark Guim — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 06:00:44 +0000

You’ve seen the Nokia 5530 hands-on photos. Now it’s time for the video! I had a couple of days with it, so I have initial impressions to share. I was surprised that navigating through the menus feel better on the 5530 versus the Nokia N97. Nokia uses kinetic scrolling on the 5530 already while N97 users currently have to wait for the update. Check it out.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube. I go over some of the physical aspects and briefly show how it runs.

A noticeable feature on the home screen is a scrollable favorite contacts list. It’s not as smooth as I like, but it works. Kinetic scrolling is a feature that a lot of people like and Nokia tries to implement it for the most part. Unfortunately, you still need to use the scroll bar in the application menu grid.

The browser is very similar to how I remember it on the Nokia 5800. It does not automatically go to full screen mode when opening web pages like the Nokia N97. I’ve also notice horizontal lines when scrolling through large pages. I’m not sure what that is about.

A stylus is accessible in the lower left edge of the Nokia 5530. I don’t like using it, but it is handy when trying to open the battery cover, microSD slot, or microUSB port.

The Nokia 5530 is pretty, small, light, and packs plenty of features. However, it doesn’t match the Nokia 5800 in hardware. The Nokia 5530 does not support 3G connectivity, but is priced about $50 lower than the 5800. Other things to consider is that Nokia is releasing similar touchscreen devices called the X6 and 5230 soon. Hmm… decisions…

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The Nokia Blog’s Nokia N900 Hands-On Video

Mark Guim — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:14:55 +0000

Can’t get enough of the Nokia N900? I’ve got a special Nokia N900 video walkthrough for you. Jussi Mäkinen, Marketing Manager at Maemo Devices (and a fan of The Nokia Blog), shows off the Nokia N900 for our camera. Take a look.

You can also watch this video in HD on Youtube.

In this video, you can see the how the contacts list works, the multiple home screens with Twitter and Facebook widgets, the quick and responsive transitions, and more. I don’t want to ruin it for you, so just watch the 6-minute video and let us know what you think!

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Nokia Booklet 3G Hands-On and First Impressions

Mark Guim — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:32:11 +0000

Nokia completed its announcement of the Booklet 3G today at Nokia World and I’ve got to play with it briefly. Take a look at some of the hands-on photos and my first impressions. I’ll have access to a Nokia Booklet 3G spokesperson later this afternoon, so I’ll have some videos up soon.

Hands-On Photos

First Impression

I suggest picking it up from a table to really appreciate the Nokia Booklet 3G. It feels and looks like a lighter, smaller version of Apple Macbook. Even the keyboard and battery feel similar. That’s not definitely a bad thing because I love my Macbook. The Booklet 3G is priced at 575 Euros.

I’m surrounded by bloggers and journalists who use their computers a lot and I haven’ heard anyone complain about using the Booklet 3G’s keyboard yet. I also like how much I can tilt the display backwards.

I noticed some performance issues. I’m not sure whether to blame it on its RAM (1GB) which is not expandable, but the devices I’ve played with aren’t running on final firmware. Stay tuned for some video walkthrough soon.

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Nokia N900 Preview By Mobile Review

Mark Guim — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:28:35 +0000

Mobile Review came through with a very early preview of the Nokia N900, an upcoming device running the new Maemo 5 OS. I wrote that Nokia needed a facelift and they responded with the N900. I think this is the freshness that Nokia’s high-end users like me are looking for.

Eldar Murtazin’s preview of Noka N900 is worth reading entirely but I’ve broke it down for a shorter read.

Specs

Side-slider form factor similar to the Nokia N810.
5MP camera with lens cover similar to Nokia N97.
1320mAh battery
32GB internal memory + microSDHC slot for extra storage.
Responsive 800×480 pixel resistive screen

UI

There are lots of UI screenshots provided by Mobile-Review, but here are some of my favorites.

Music Player

Customizable Home Screen

Nokia Maps

Applications menu

Multitasking

Impressions

Here are some of the stand-out impressions from Mr. Murtazin.

For simplicity sake, it runs the next version of Maemo and it differs dramatically from the Nokia N810.
Variety of visual effects, smooth transitions and decent reaction time of the touch screen which is a significant improvement over the Nokia N97.
Browser is pretty stable, and it supports flash, video and applets.
Phone’s GPS department seemed well-tuned.
Context menus are made in the form of pop-ups which are easy to dismiss. All you need to do is press on any area of the screen outside the menu and it’ll be closed in an instant.
True mobile powerhouse… that comes wrapped in a very eye-candy and functional UI at that
Available late in 2009 for 550 Euro (subject to change).

Are you excited as I am about this device?

This post is sponsored thanks to Sell My Mobile – the UK’s #1 mobile phone recycling price comparison site. Go head over to their site and sell mobile phone now.

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Nokia N97 Review of Hardware

Mark Guim — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 01:56:28 +0000

It’s been a week since I started playing with the Nokia N97 and now it’s time for my review of the hardware. I’ve been waiting for this phone for a while and I’m excited it’s finally here. I have reviewed a Nokia N97 prototype before, and the final retail version hardware isn’t that different. I’ll let you know what I think of the physical aspects and continue with my usual posts of usage experience and thoughts.

The Nokia N97 in this review is the Euro version (RM-505) running firmware version 10 dated May 15th, 2009.

You may want to also want read these previous posts:

Size

On paper, the Nokia N97 isn’t that much thicker or longer than a candybar phone like the Nokia N82, but the combination of the extended measurements makes the Nokia N97 feel big in the hand.

Build

The build quality of the Nokia N97 is really good. It feels like an expensive device just holding it in my hands. The edge of the N97 is wrapped in a chrome-looking material while the rest is either white or black depending on the the version. I don’t hear loose parts when I shake the phone or hear any creaks when pressing into the body.

The slide mechanism is rock solid. I hear the nice click-clack sounds and find myself opening and closing the slider just to hear it. I don’t notice any wobbles at all either.

Keyboard

The keyboard on the Nokia N97 separates reviewers. Some hate it while others love it. I think those who hate it only used the phone for a couple of minutes. After testing the keyboard with several emails and text messages, I have to give thumbs up to whoever designed this. It’s not perfect, but it is pretty damn good!

At first, it felt weird because the spacebar is located on the right, but it actually works well because it is comfortably placed under my right thumb. I’m not sure if this makes it very uncomfortable for left-handed persons, though.

Keyboard buttons on the Nokia N97

Complaints. I can type really fast on the Nokia N97, but there’s room for improvement. The keyboard is not perfect. Here are a couple of my complaints:

To type a number, I have to press the function key on the lower right corner, then the corresponding button on the top row. I’ve used plenty of T9 and Qwerty phones and the numbers have always been accessible by simply holding a button. This is not the case on the Nokia N97. Implement this ASAP please!

Another problem I notice is the buttons’ feedback. By default, the keypad tones are on. I suggest leaving that ON because it helps you feel (or hear) that you are pressing the buttons. The Nokia N97’s buttons pop out for separation, but they don’t go down very much when you press down. Tactile feedback is certainly there, but not much. Leave the keypad tones on and you should be fine.

Display

The Nokia N97 has a 3.5 inch touchscreen at 640×360 resolution. It looks great from an arm’s length. The colors are bright and images appear sharp, but I notice some things up close.

There are grey diagonal lines that are fairly noticeable on white backgrounds. It’s not visible when darker images are shown on display. You really have to put your eyes within inches of the display to notice.

The front of the Nokia N97 is glossy, making the colors on display richer, but it also makes it hard to see the screen on bright sunny days. This is a problem found on many devices with a glossy display, though.

Keylock

I like having dedicated keylocks to prevent accidental keypresses when the device is in my pocket. The Nokia N97 has one, but it doesn’t work 100% of the time.

Before I put it in my pocket, I slide the keylock and the display turns off. Later on when I take it out of my pocket and slide the keylock, I get random results. Sometimes it will unlock and sometimes it won’t, forcing me to slide it again. I hope this is something they fix in a firmware update.

Battery Life

I’m satisfied with the battery life on the Nokia N97. It features a 1500mAH Nokia BP-4L similar to the Nokia E71. From my typical usage, I’d have a full charge at 9AM and one bar by 9pm. If I don’t touch the phone at all, I’m sure it can go on for days.

Removable battery

My typical usage includes replying to push emails via Nokia Messaging, push calendar and contacts via Google Sync, taking photos and tweeting them immediately via Pixelpipe, commenting on friends’ photos via Share Online, comment on my friends’ wall posts on Facebook, checking Twitter for Nokia news via Gravity, some web browsing, and some quick phone calls here and there.

According to the official Nokia specs:

GSM Talk Time up to 9.5 hours
WCDMA Talk Time up to 6.0 hours
GSM Standby Time up to 18 days
WCDMA Standby Time up to 17 days
Video Playback Time up to 4.5 hours
Video Recording Time up to 3.6 hours
Music Playback Time up to 40.0 hours

Charging. You can charge the Nokia N97 via the mini-usb cable connected to a computer or the power adapter. A nice addition I like is the light next to the port. It lights up when the phone is charging and turns off when fully charged.

Internal

I don’t like talking numbers and specs because it’s way over my head. It’s more important for me to use the device and how it performs. The Nokia N97 has a 434MHz CPU and 128MB RAM compared to the iPhone 3GS that features 600MHz CPU and 256MB RAM. You can never have too much RAM or CPU so it would have been beneficial if the N97 had more of both.

Navigating through the menus is snappy. Running apps produce mixed results. For example, The Garvity app is really fast and works pretty good. The web browser is fast, but lags on larger sites like Techmeme. A more accurate demo is available from my first impressions video.

When you have too many apps running in the background, the Nokia N97 decides to close some apps you aren’t currently using to preserve memory. For example, if I open the Gallery, web browser, Gravity, calendar, camera, it might close the gallery and sometimes Gravity without warning.

This can be good or bad. Good: Nokia N97 remains snappy with enough RAM to run your current app. Bad: You have to reopen the application that was closed. I’ll write more about the software and performance closely in an upcoming post.

Storage. The Nokia N97 comes with 32GB of internal storage, but you can add another 16GB microSD card for a total of 48GB. This is great for storing lots of music, photos, and videos.

microSDHC slot on top of the micro-USB port.

Camera

The Nokia N97 has a 5mp camera featuring Carl Zeiss lens and protects it with a cover. People want lens cover and Nokia listened. Sliding the lens cover automatically opens the camera app where you can take photos and videos. This is great for multitasking.

Nokia has been producing quality cameraphones for a while now and the N97 isn’t an exception. The quality is up there, but the Nokia N82 still remains the leader when it comes to night photography.

5 megapixel camera Carl Zeiss lens with cover

Pressing halfway autofocuses on a subject and pressing all the way snaps the pic. The camera button is really good too. I already mentioned in my first impressions that it’s the best camera button compared to my other recent phones.

I’ll have another post where I dig deeper into the camera functions and review the quality of the photos. For now, you can check my uploaded live tweeting photos on Flickr, and see which ones were taken with the Nokia N97.

Mac Users Beware!

Update: NMT was updated to support the Nokia N97. As of writing this post, the Nokia N97 is unsupported by Nokia Multimedia Transfer and Nokia Maps Uploader on Mac. This means I can’t connect the Nokia N97 via “PC suite.” This also means, I have to run Windows on my Mac to use the Maps Uploader. I am forced to use mass storage mode when transferring music, videos, or photos which means I can’t receive phone calls or emails while using it. A positive thing that comes out of this is that the app doubleTwist for the Mac works incredibly on devices using mass storage mode.

Of course, you can skip all this trouble by sending files via bluetooth between the Nokia N97 and computer.

Hardware Wrap-up

To wrap-up the hardware review, I’ll list the important things I mentioned about the Nokia N97.

Positive:
Top-notch build quality. Great keyboard design. High-resolution display. Big storage space. Acceptable battery life. Excellent camera.

Negative:
Need to press two buttons to type a number. Diagonal lines visible on screen with white backgrounds. Keylock randomly needs two slides to unlock the phone. Keyboard buttons provides minimal tactile feedback. No Mac support yet.

The Nokia N97 hardware is so freakin’ sexy, but it’s not currently in its full potential. The negatives I mentioned on this review can be fixed through firmware updates, except the diagonal lines I mentioned. An update is already available inside Nokia hinting a more sensitive touchscreen. Don’t let us wait too long!

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Nokia BH-703 Review

Al Pavangkanan — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 20:01:35 +0000

I opened up my Nokia BH-703 today and was instantly blown away with it. The sound quality is really top notch and the design is really elegant.

The BH-703 comes with three earplugs, an ear hook, a neck strap and AC-6U charger. My favorite thing about the BH-703 is that it charges over micro-USB, just like my Nokia N97. The AC-6U charges at a rate of 550maH and takes about an hour to fill up the BH-703 battery. The BH-703 is rated for 6 hours of talk and 160 hours of standby.

Most interestingly, the BH-703 is compatible with the same earplugs I used with my old Sony popular EX-71 headset. I ordered a bag full of compatible ear plugs since I lose them easily. When used with the BH-703, the fit is very good and seals out a lot of noise.

Most striking was the volume quality. I had to turn down the volume on my Nokia N97 to 30% to protect my hearing. Turning it up a notch or two should be perfectly acceptable for driving.

The BH-703 is made of plastic that reminds me of my N82. It has only one button which has multiple functions. It acts as an on/off switch, answers calls and activates voice commands. The face of the BH-703 is touch sensitive. If you swipe towards the mic, the volume goes down. Swipe the other way to raise the volume. Tap it twice and it mutes.

Pairing with the BH-703 is pretty effortless. With most modern Nokia phones, you don’t even need to enter the pairing code. Once paired, it will auto-connect once turned on. Signal quality seems to be fine with my N97 in my right front pocket and the BH-703 in my left ear.

Finishing words

The Nokia BH-703 is a great companion to my Nokia N97. I just wish it came in white.