The Nokia Blog » n96

The Evolution of Geotagging on Nokia Phones

Mark Guim — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 06:27:37 +0000

Geotagging has really evolved in Nokia’s latest phones, more specifically with the FP2 devices like the Nokia N85, N96, and N79. Previously, I needed to run an application like Shozu or Location Tagger in the background of an FP1 device in order to add location coordinates to the photos I took. Now it just happens automatically.

Note: Not sure the difference between FP1 and FP2 devices? Check this S60 device comparison.

I was browsing through my recent photos I uploaded to Flickr and noticed a bunch I took with the Nokia N85 had Map information I can view. Flickr lets you see on the map where the photos were taken.

Take Geotagged Photos

Nokia made geotagging so easy that it made me forget I had it on from the beginning. You can find this setting at the camera options – settings – Record location – On.

Viewing Geotagging Info

Computer. On the computer, you can view the GPS coordinates on the photo’s exif data. On the Mac, you can see this by right-clicking a photo and clicking on ‘Show photo info.’

Online. I prefer to look at a map, rather than number coordinates. On Flickr, if a photo is geotagged, there’s a link nearby that says ‘Map.’ Click on that to see it on a map.

For example, I can tell you that ate a triple chocolate cake at Martha’s Bakery in Astoria, but it’d be better to see the exact location of the place. By clicking on the Map link below the the Flickr photo page, a map pops up looking like this:

Map displays location of geotagged photos.

I’m really glad how Nokia worked on this aspect of their camera software. This process previously took plenty of steps, but now it doesn’t require anything other than the initial setup. Just be careful when uploading geotagged photos, though. There might be some pictures you don’t want your boss or wife knowing where you are.

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Your Nokia Usage Poll

Mark Guim — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 20:42:30 +0000

I was asked to answer a few questions about Nokia by the guys over at WOM World. I’m sharing my answers here because it got me curious to what others will answer. Take a look at my response and let me know your answers.

Questions

1. How many devices have you used over the past 6 months (please list them below)?

Owned: Nokia N95 8GB, Nokia E71, Nokia N85
Trialed: Nokia N96, Nokia 6220 Navigator

2. Has your trial experience ever led to you purchasing a Nokia device? I was not sent the Nokia N95 8GB, E71 or the N85 to trial beforehand. I bought them when they first came out and absolutely love them. On the other hand, my usage and trial experiences which I share on thenokiablog.com lead to visitors and friends purchasing Nokia devices.

3. Has your trial experience ever led to you recommend Nokia to friend? The Nokia N96 experience led me NOT to recommend the device to friends and thenokiablog.com visitors. During my trial, it had faulty firmware, slow response and was too annoying to use to bother testing further.

4. Which features of your Nokia device do you use most often (ie camera, GPS, gaming etc)? Please list below and feel free to list more than one… Web browsing, camera, GPS navigation

5. How often do you use the following Nokia services? [daily] [weekly] [monthly] [hardly ever] [not at all]

N-Gage – weekly
Nokia Maps – daily
Share on Ovi – Not at all. I prefer to use Flickr.
Nokia Music Store. Not at all because it isn’t available in USA.
Widsets – Not at all. Useless.
Nokia Email Service – Not at all. I’ve been using Profimail instead.
Mosh – Monthly. Good place to download free games.

7. How many mobile apps (games, widgets, downloads etc) have you installed and used over the last 2 months? [between 1 and 5] [between 6 and 10] [between 10 and 20] [more than 20] More than 20

8. How do you define “convergence”? Using one device instead of carrying a camera, iPod, cellphone, and gps navigator.

Your Answers

Let me know your answers to this poll. Just list the question numbers with your response instead of copying the questions over.

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What If Apple Announces Next iPhone With 5MP Camera and Keyboard – Death of Nokia N97?

Mark Guim — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:25:09 +0000

An iPhone announcement is not expected at the upcoming Macworld, but what if Apple surprises us with a direct competitor to the Nokia N97? If they talk about an iPhone with Qwerty keypad and at least a 5mp camera releasing before the first half of 2009, I’m predicting the death of the N97. Read on to find out why.

Photoshopped iPhone Pro concept with keyboard and better camera.

Less cost out the door. Since the next iPhone will be available through my provider, it will most likely cost half the price of the Nokia N97. No rumors of any network in the US carrying the N97 have come up yet, so it should be around $761 USD (550 euros) unlocked.

Better Interface. The user interface on the current iPhone is dead simple, a caveman can use it. I’m afraid the user interface on the Nokia N97 won’t be even close. I have gotten used to S60’s maze of menus, but it might turn others away.

Better Software Availability. The App Store on the iPhone is amazing putting Nokia’s Download catalog to shame. Searching and installing apps can’t get any better. Nokia badly needs to improve on this before the N97 comes out.

Conclusion

If Apple upgrades the next iPhone to have hardware similar to the Nokia N97 like having a 5mp camera + qwerty keypad, then we can really only compare the software and user interface. Sadly, we all know which one is better in those areas.

Sure I’m a Nokia fanboy, but if Apple comes out with the surprise before the N97’s release date, I’m afraid I’ll be getting it instead. How about you? Would you get the dream iPhone Pro mockup over the Nokia N97 if they come out around the same time?

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Nokia USA $50 Discount Extended After Holidays

Mark Guim — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 23:41:43 +0000

Nokia USA has extended the $50 discount after the holidays, so if you are still looking to snatch a new Nokia knowing you are getting it direct from the mother land, now may be your last chance to take advantage. A little bird told us the deal is available day-to-day, without a set expiration date.

The $50 off coupon is automatically entered on the cart if the phone purchase is over $300. That means you can get the new phones:

Nokia N85 for $502
Nokia N96 for $726
Nokia N79 for $405

Of course you’ll find better prices on eBay using The Nokia Blog Price Check, but some people prefer having the security of buying directly from Nokia’s official store.

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How To: Make Shazam iD Work on Nokia N85, N96, N79, or Other FP2 Devices

Mark Guim — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 09:02:52 +0000

I wrote earlier that Shazam iD is the most amazing app for Nokia S60. It lets you name any tune with the phone. However, I was shocked when I couldn’t get it to work on the Nokia N96 or the Nokia N85! After some trial and error, I found a way to make it work.

Name that tune with Shazam iD

While Shazam iD is open, go to options – settings, then turn off Audio Alerts. That’s it. Shazam iD should now work on your Nokia FP2 devices like the Nokia N85, N96, or N79.

I’m glad I have this application running again. You have no idea how many times I found myself hearing some random song on the radio or the mall hoping to find out the artist and title.

Got It Working?

Did you get this working on your FP2 device? Love it as much as I do?

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Mobile Photography Guide: Using the Grid Lines

Ani — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 23:07:16 +0000

What I have today for you all is a small and simple guide with the help of which you can click better pictures. I have been using Nokia cameraphones to click some pictures worth displaying on my Phontography Blog and thus this month I will be doing a series of posts for the same. These are simple tricks, hacks or guides that will help you click exceptionally amazing pictures.

We all have been using our cell phone cameras and many a times we end up clicking pictures which go blur or which could have been clicked better. With the new wave of Nseries and Eseries devices we have now been provided with a lot of functions which we hardly use. A part of this series is the Black & White pictures on which I did a post over at my blog.

Grid Lines

This post will reintroduce you guys to the use of GRID LINES in your device. While you turn on your camera, enable the grid lines from the right options bar. Now why do we need these lines? Well, let me tell you something first;

Focal points are the areas of interest in a photograph. If you are taking a portrait, the obvious area of interest is the eyes of the person. If you are taking a landscape it could be a house in the foreground.

So don’t put the areas of interest in the middle of the photograph. Most people do. Phontographs work better when the area (or areas) of interest are placed off center. And this is where the Grid Lines come in.

Picture taken with Nokia N96

With the above picture in as an example, just use the points of interest to lie on the corners on the center square formed by the crossing lines of the grid. In this case I made the vegetables to lie on the left corner of the center square. Also note that the building on the right is parallel to the right vertical grid line and the tomatoes below are parallel to the horizontal grid line. Finally the cycle at the bottom right. Thus with this in mind you can click amazing pictures by keeping your points of interest at proper location.

Helpful?

Do let me know if this tip was helpful. I would be posting more on how to use your device camera to the full. If you too have a trick please do share it with me. Looking forward to your feedback

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Vlog: Nokia N96 OTA Firmware Update Walkthrough

Mark Guim — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 01:07:55 +0000

The Nokia N96 received a firmware update to version 12.043 today and since I haven’t done an over the air (OTA) update before, I decided to capture it on video for those who haven’t seen how it works. I love it! This is how all firmware updates should be.

Note: Head to the blog if you can’t see the video below in your RSS reader.

You can try this on your FP2 phone, too. Press *#0000# at the main screen, then click on “check for updates.” Let it do its magic if it finds an update. The phone restarts with the new firmware. Simple, fast, easy.

I usually have to run Windows XP on my Mac while connected via a USB cable to do an update. Doing an upgrade just using the phone is much user-friendly, so I’m all for OTA!

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Nokia N96 vs Nokia N85 Fall Foliage Photos

Mark Guim — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 03:36:53 +0000

I think it’s the perfect time to compare photos taken by Nokia N96 vs Nokia N85 at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden because of fall foliage. It was cloudy, but I still managed to take some great photos from both the 5 megapixel cameraphones. Take a look and let me know which device takes better pictures.

You can also click on the photos to enlarge.

Leaves on Ground

Taken with Nokia N96

Taken with Nokia N85

Pathway

Taken with Nokia N96

Taken with Nokia N85

Fountain

Taken with Nokia N85

Your Opinion

The image quality on both the Nokia N96 and Nokia N85 is pretty good. It’s pretty close, but I think the Nokia N85 has sharper colors. Which device took the better photos in your opinion?

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Nokia N96 Ninja’s First Challenge

Mark Guim — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:48:36 +0000

For my first Nokia N96 Trial Challenge, I was supposed to take a geotagged photo from the Nokia N96 and upload it to Nokia Vine which is currently in closed beta. My buddies and I were originally just meeting up for dinner, but I decided to bring the ninja costume and have some fun with the challenge

Andrew volunteered to be the ninja, Ninong Brown as the victim, and I took the pictures with the Nokia N96 at a mall parking lot.

These are the photos I uploaded to Vine for my challenge. I am unable to see it on the official Vine website yet, so I’ve also uploaded it to my flickr.

Note: if the embedded flash slideshow is not visible, head straight to the blog.

Limitations

Let me just say that Nokia N96 is not a great cameraphone at night compared to the Nokia N82. Even with the new dual LEDs flash, it is not strong enough. This is an area where the Nokia N82 remains the champion.

Another problem was with the Nokia Vine application I was testing. It crashed on me twice freezing up the phone and forcing me to take out the battery to restart. I was able to upload the pictures after the third attempt.

Fisheye

I wanted some pictures of the ninja with the Nokia N96 so Ninong Brown took out his DSLR with fisheye lens. Click on the photo below to see the rest of the pictures taken with his camera.

The Next Challenge

I’m waiting for the next challenge. I’ll let you know as soon as I’m notified of the task at hand. As a reminder, if I win the challenge, I will be given FIVE Nokia N96’s to send out to others to trial. I will consider the top blog commentators, forum posters, and contributing writers.

Contact me if you want to publish an editorial, review, or guide at the Nokia Blog. This is also a good venue for you to get some exposure from our 250,000 monthly pageviews.

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Nokia N96 Video Recording With Dual LEDs

Mark Guim — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:25:15 +0000

One thing I love about the Nokia N96 (and the N85), is that you can record videos with the dual LED lights on so you actually see your subjects in the dark. We tested this at the park two nights ago so you can see it in action.

I usually like to edit my videos on iMovie before publishing, but this video is a direct upload to Flickr with absolutely no editing done. I found you need to be around 3 feet away from the subject to light them properly.

Note: head straight to the blog if the video is not visible in your RSS reader.

The photo taken during the video looks like this:

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Nokia N96 vs Nokia N85 Video Recording Battle

Ninong Brown — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 02:28:46 +0000

We were at the park today and I had my hands on both the Nokia N96 and Nokia N85 to take some the basketball action on video. While both phones are capable of recording VGA at 30 fps, I’m a little surprised there are differences between the two videos.

The videos below are direct uploads to my Flickr with no editing done. Note: if videos are not visible in your RSS reader, head straight to the blog.

Nokia N96 Video

Nokia N85 Video

Spot The Difference

The Nokia N85 video is clearer and smoother. I also like the audio better on the Nokia N85. Another note is that the camera button on the Nokia N96 is harder to press than the Nokia N85.

Now that you’ve seen both videos, what differences do you see? Does the Nokia N85 perform better than the Nokia N96?

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Nokia N82 vs Nokia N85 vs Nokia N95 8GB vs Nokia N96 Camera Flash Test in Darkness

Mark Guim — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 05:36:06 +0000

Some people asked me how the dual LED flash is on the Nokia N85 compared to the xenon flash on the Nokia N82. What better way to answer by showing the results instead? I took pictures with N95 8GB, N96, N85, and N82. Sheila was kind enough to stand in front of the camera and try not to get blinded.

Post Now Updated with the answers below and link for larger original image sizes.

Nokia N82 vs N85 vs N95 8GB vs N96

Here’s the breakdown on what kind of flash each phone has:

Nokia N95 8GB – LED
Nokia N96 – Dual LEDs
Nokia N85 – Dual LEDs
Nokia N82 – Xenon!

The photos were all taken in automatic mode with all the lights turned off in our hallway. The wall is painted light yellow and the doors are dark brown. The photos were also resized to fit the blog’s width. Can you guess what camera phone was used? I’ll update this post with the answers and links to the larger original size photos on Monday night.

Camera A

Camera B

Camera C

Camera D

Guess

I wonder if the guesses will be unanimous. Is it hard or too obvious ? We’ll see. Please let me know your answers in the comments.

Answers:

You can click on the photos and check the properties to make sure I am telling the truth. I think the Nokia N85’s picture looks better than the N96, but the Nokia N82 is still definitely Nokia’s photo flagship.

A = Nokia N96
B = Nokia N95 8GB
C = Nokia N85
D = Nokia N82

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Nokia N85 OLED Display vs Nokia N95 vs Nokia N96 – Light and Power Saver Time-Out

Mark Guim — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 07:24:14 +0000

One of the features the Nokia N85 has over the Nokia N95 8GB and the Nokia N96 is its OLED display. It reproduces sharper and brighter colors with better battery consumption. I want to show you how much better the Nokia N85 is at light time-out and power saver time-out.

Nokia N96, N85, N95 8GB at full brightness

Usually when you don’t touch any buttons after 15 seconds, the screen brightness dims. After 30 seconds, the phones go into power saver. Take a look at the differences at how these 3 phones handle these time-outs.

Light Time-Out

After 15 seconds of inactivity the screen dims and the image above shows how the three phones appear. You see a hint of some image on the Nokia N95 8GB and Nokia N96. Tilting the phones gives you more visibility. Those who already own these phones know what I’m talking about. Now take a look at the Nokia N85. Even at lower brightness, you still see whatever is displayed on-screen.

Power Saver

After 30 seconds of inactivity, the phones go into power saver. You see a hint of the date and time on the Nokia N95 8GB, while the screen on the Nokia N96 does not have an option to display date or time defaulting to just turning off the display. You can tilt the Nokia N95 8GB to see the time better, but it is permanently illuminated on the Nokia N85.

Thoughts

This is just a minor detail, but it’s one of many details of improvements the Nokia N85 has over the Nokia N96 and Nokia N95 8GB.

One more thing. Take a look at the pictures again. The phones all hold the same calendar appointments and To-do list, but did you notice that the FP2 devices (N96 + N85) actually display the to-do notes instead of displaying “2 to-do notes not done.”

Full reviews of Nokia N85 and Nokia N96 coming soon so stay tuned.

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Nokia N96 Trial Challenge Begins – To Give Away N96’s To 5 Readers

Mark Guim — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 19:33:30 +0000

A big brown box came today including the Nokia N96 and a killer ninja costume to go along with the Nokia N96 challenge. As explained before, I will be going through some tasks to win five Nokia N96 trials to our most participant readers.

Nokia N96 Challenge begins.

I’m currently having issues with the application I’m supposed to use with the challenge. Once that is fixed, I’ll keep you all updated about the tasks at hand. I think the challenge goes on for about a month.

Wish me luck! If I win, I will allocate the five Nokia N96’s as such:

Top 2 blog commentators,
Top 2 forum posters,
and 1 contributing writer with highest article popularity

Contact me if you want to be a contributing writer to publish an editorial, review, or guide at the Nokia Blog. This is also a good venue for you to get some exposure from our 250,000 monthly pageviews.

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Keep An Eye On The Nseries Workshop Blog

Mark Guim — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 16:31:43 +0000

My recent discovery is the Nseries Workshop blog that has been bringing out exclusive unboxing videos and other interesting posts. It looks like it’s under the same domain as the official Nseries site, so you can’t be more official than this blog.

For example, the workshop was the first to show the unboxings of the latest Nseries phones. They seem to do it outside in New York City too.

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5 Lucky Readers Can Trial Nokia N96 – I’m Participating in the N96 Challenge

Mark Guim — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:28:23 +0000

Next week, I’ll be participating in the Nokia N96 Trial Challenge created by WOMWorld Nokia. This would basically involve using the Nokia N96 and completing a series of weekly challenges set around the features of the device. It will also give me the chance to send five Nokia N96’s to our readers to trial.

The details of the challenge will come next week, but be sure that I’ll try my best to win five Nokia N96 devices for you! If I win, I’ll be selecting five people that participate the most on the Nokia Blog by answering questions and leaving comments on posts throughout the blog.

I was also told this challenge involves a martial arts costume (inspired by Face The Task site)… I’ll keep you updated once I receive all the details!

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Nokia N96 Launches in London Exclusively at Nokia Flagship Stores Sept 24th

Mark Guim — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:23:35 +0000

The Nokia N96 device will go on sale from the 24th of September in London exclusively at Nokia’s Flagship stores on Regent Street and in Heathrow Airport Terminal 5, but launches in the UK on the 1st of October. If you show up, you might even win one!

Those who turn up at the flagship stores will have the chance to win one of the devices, as well as other prizes. To learn more about what’s going on in-store, including details on how to win an N96, visit Nokia’s Flagship page.

The device is also available to buy directly from the Nokia site from the 24th at 535 pounds or from the Nokia N96 page at Phones4u (free on contract). Need to read up on the specifications? Take a look at details here.

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Review: Nokia N96 First Impressions from AAS

Mark Guim — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 21:18:18 +0000

One of the first owners of the Nokia N96 posted a review on All About Symbian today. Read their first impressions and thoughts on this new multimedia device. For more discussion on the Nokia N96 from other early owners, you can also read the comments on our post, Nokia N96 Starts Shipping.

Key points from Nokia N96 review:

Nokia N96 is shorter and easier to hold than the Apple iPhone.
Build quality is good but back is plasticky.
Nokia N96 battery life lasted full day.
Loud speakers.
USB transfer speed is faster than Nokia N95 8GB.
Good 5 MP camera.

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Charger Saves the Nokia N96

Jason Goh — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:18:55 +0000

Everyone (well most of ‘em) is saying Nokia N85 is more superior than the Nokia N96 because it has an OLED screen, micro usb charger and so on… and I was actually thinking if it’s worth getting the 16GB Nokia flagship monster because I have always wanted to charge my phone via USB. Looks like it is possible to do USB charging with the Nokia N96.

I was looking through the Nokia N96 product page and I accidentally clicked on the accessories tab. Guess what I saw…

Nokia Charger via USB port CA-100!!! You can read our review of the CA-100. It’s not exactly USB charging like the one on the Nokia N85, but it seems like there’s a reason not to leave the Nokia N96! So let us all go out and queue outside Nokia stores now! (Since the N96 has already started shipping).

You can buy the Nokia CA-100 USB charger for around $28.

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Nokia N85 vs Nokia N96 Screen Comparisons

Mark Guim — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 06:35:43 +0000

I think the Nokia N85 is better than the Nokia N96, but don’t take my word for it. Let’s take a closer look at what others say about the new AM OLED screen on the Nokia N85 vs the LCD screens used on the Nokia N96 from those who actually had their hands on both devices.

Nokia N96 vs Nokia N85. Photo by Smape.

Rafe from All About Symbian on the Nokia N85 first impressions wrote the AM OLED on the Nokia N85 screen is brighter, colours sharper and more accurate compared to an LCD screen. He also wrote there is an improved viewing angle and contrast ratio that are noticeable in watching videos. What about text? Rafe says the screen is more readable even with small fonts.

Dmitry from Smape on his Nokia N85 vs. Nokia N96 comparison wrote about the improved power consumption and a better looking color palette. Just like Rafe, he also notices the wider angle and higher refresh rates. He explains the LCD screen on the Nokia N96 is good, the screen on the Nokia N85 definitely better and close to perfection.

Rita from Symbian-guru on her Nokia N85 OLED vs LCD screen comparison wrote in a non tech-savvy vocabulary, that everything on the Nokia N85’s screen looks more real. The colors are more popping and images appear to have more dimension.

Thoughts: Size or Quality?

They all agree that seeing is believing, so I am looking forward to getting my hands on a Nokia N85. I’ve gotten used to the bigger 2.8 inch screen like the one on the Nokia N96, but the huge improvement list on the screen of the N85 sounds like a 0.2 inch size difference is negligible. What do u prefer? Size or quality?

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Nokia N96 Starts Shipping

Mark Guim — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 18:53:10 +0000

Good news for those waiting for the Nokia N96! Some of our readers waiting for their limited edition Nokia N96 were just emailed by Nokia that their Nokia N96 is ready to be sent and will arrive soon. Since they will be the first in their country to receive it, the general release should follow soon.

Here is the email sent by Nokia:

Dear soon-to-be owner of a limited edition Nokia N96.

We are excited to tell you that your country’s limited edition Nokia N96 is now ready to be sent to you and will arrive soon. You will receive the delivery details to track your order in a separate email within couple of next days.

Thank you for purchasing a Nokia N96, and helping the Red Pandas of Nepal.

Kind regards,
Nokia

Update: Our reader, Julien have received his limited edition Nokia N96! Head over to his blog to see more photos.

Some buyers have also reported they received the free bluetooth headsets for waiting on the Nokia N96. Here are photos of the Nokia NH-503 sent by Nokia to our reader Julien.

Limited Edition Nokia N96 buyers also receive Nokia BH-503 headsets

If you are one of the early limited edition Nokia N96 buyers, please keep us updated in the comments below. Who else is excited that the Nokia N96 finally starts shipping?

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Top 5 Reasons Why Nokia N85 Is Better Than Nokia N96

Mark Guim — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 17:22:29 +0000

The Nokia N85 was announced this morning and I’m surprised how this newcomer is forcing itself into the Nokia N96’s territory. The N96 is supposed to be the upgrade to the Nokia N95, according to product managers I spoke to, but it seems the lower-priced Nokia N85 is actually bringing more to the table. Read on for the top 5 reasons why the Nokia N85 is better than the Nokia N96.

#1 Power

The Nokia N85 comes with bigger battery with 1200 mAh vs 950 mAh on the Nokia N96. Take a look at these comparisons:

Talk time

Nokia N85: 6.9 hours on GSM, 4.5 hours on WCDMA, 9 hours VoIP
Nokia N96: 3.8 hours on GSM, 2.7 hours on WCDMA, (no VoIP on N96)

Standby

Nokia N85: GSM 363 hours, WCDMA 363 hours
Nokia N96: GSM 230 hrs, WCDMA 200 hours

#2 MicroUSB Charging

Reduce clutter with one less cable. The Nokia N85 can now be charged though the microUSB port simultaneously while doing data transfer. This is the first for Nseries phones, and a missing feature in the Nokia N96.

#3 FM Transmitter

The Nokia N85 has a built-in FM transmitter that will let us listen to the music from our phone directly on a radio. This feature was introduced in the Nokia N78 but is missing on the Nokia N96.

#4 Lens Cover

Readers told me they want lens cover on their cameraphones. The camera on the Nokia N85 is protected, but not the Nokia N96.

Lens cover on the back of the Nokia N85

#5 Screen

The Nokia N85 has new screen technology called AM OLED. You can read All About Symbian’s detailed explanation about AM OLED, but it basically means brighter, better colour gamut (numbers of colours that can be accurately displayed at same time), better contrast ratio, have a better response time, have better viewing angles and use less power than current Nseries devices including the Nokia N96

What do you think?

What do you think about the Nokia N85 vs N96 battle? Which one will win your wallet over and why?

Availability

The Nokia N85 launched today in the UK as well as in Asia. The North American version has not launched yet, but it will be just a matter of time.

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Evening With S60 Party At Nokia New York Flagship Sept 17th

Mark Guim — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:04:08 +0000

Hey New York Nokia/S60 fans! There’s a party at the Nokia Flagship on the night of Sept 17th. There’s going to be food, drinks, people like you and of course cool new phones to play with. During the last Evening with S60 NY event, they gave away a Nokia N95 before it was generally released! I’m predicting a Nokia N96 giveaway this time? Who knows… better show up!

I had fun at the last event and wish I can make it to the party this year. Unfortunately, I can’t be at two places at the same time. I’ll be in Berlin that week for another event, the Maemo Summit, and learn more about the people and platform behind the Nokia internet tablets like the N800 and N810. I’m excited to visit another city, but wish I did not have to miss Evening With S60 in New York City.

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Nokia Ships Bluetooth Headsets To Limited Edition Nokia N96 Buyers

Mark Guim — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 06:54:57 +0000

Our readers, Dario and Pedro are going to be the first few to own a limited edition Nokia N96, and they’ll also get a bluetooth headset to compensate for the wait. Some buyers felt that the Face The Task website was misleading making customers wait longer than advertised. Nokia soothes the pain by delivering free Nokia BH-503 bluetooth headset for their patience.

Nokia BH-503 headsets for Nokia N96 limited edition buyers

Here’s the email from Nokia:

Dear customer,

We sincerely apologise for the fact that we cannot at this moment state the exact delivery date for your limited edition Nokia N96. As soon as we have shipped your Nokia N96 you will receive an email through which you can track your parcel and the date of its delivery.

In the meantime, in appreciation of your continued patience, we’ll be arranging a delivery of a free Nokia Bluetooth Stereo Headset BH-503 in silver colour which you’ll be able to use with your Nokia N96 multimedia computer.

Our customer care is the best contact point for you to help with any questions you have. You can find your local customer care contact details at http://www.nokia.com/support.

Once again, we hope you accept our apologies. We assure you that we are doing everything we can to have your device shipped to you as soon as possible.

Respectfully,
Nokia

Update: Here’s an unboxing of the BH-503 from John, one of the limited edition Nokia N96 buyers.

I wonder if all the 96 buyers are getting the headset or if it’s just Pedro and Dario who notified us about the email. Are you one of the limited edition Nokia N96 buyers? Did you get an email about receiving a headset?

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Sighting: Nokia N96 Shown in American Boy Music Video by Estelle Ft. Kanye West?

Mark Guim — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 01:41:57 +0000

The Nokia N96 or Nokia N81 was spotted by Markz over at our forums on the American Boy music video by Estelle featuring Kanye West. I’m confused like Markz which of the two phones are on the video because of the black & white video color. Take a look at the video yourself and tell us what you think it is.

Photos

Is this the Nokia N96?.

Looks like the Nokia N96 from the back.

Video

The hints to look at are the placements of the speaker grille and the volume buttons. The screen size does not really give away which phone it is. What do you think? Is it the Nokia N96, Nokia N81, or something else?

Markz says:

At 1:47, she shows the phone to the person she just took a picture of and the slider form is that of an N81 – or, because the two look alike.. an N96. Maybe, based on the camera shape, an early prototype N00 “N85″? Looking at the buttons on the right side of the device, it looks as though there’s a speaker grille and volume key laid out just as the N81’s keys are, so maybe it really is just an N81.

If you spot a Nokia anywhere else in movies, TV shows, or music videos, let us know!

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Nokia N96 Face The Task Site Misleading? Buyer Thinks So

Mark Guim — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:27:25 +0000

I wrote about the Limited Edition Nokia N96 from the Face The task website, and now I get an email from an angry customer thinking the the site is misleading. Rubin Simons is disappointed to find out he will not get as soon as he thought, and even angrier not getting a real estimated date. Take a look at his letters to Nokia and their response.

Excerpt from Face The Task website

Hi Nokia,

I’m pretty angry right now. To say the least, your campaign as hosted on facethetask.com is very misleading! The website states that (quote):

“Become one of the first to own the Nokia N96 multimedia computer”

and:

“This is what you’re here for. Those who get hold of the limited edition Nokia N96 will have the Nokia N96 before it’s available in their country. What are you waiting for?”

Those are literal quotes from the website. In your response you state week 35 or earlier. That means september! That is f*&*^%&^ck!n9 two months later and approximately in line with the regular release date of the Nokia N96! Why is this not stated on the facethetask.com website?

I’ve stared at that counter for two days, on and off, giddy with excitement that when the counter would hit zero, I would be able to get the N96 _now_ instead of in two months AND help red pandas in the process!

I feel a bit mislead, to put it mildly.

I don’t understand why Nokia starts such a great campaign (who doesn’t want to help the red pandas and get a great phone in return)? But then silently/secretly/weasely fails to keep its promise! In my opinion Nokia should deliver, and keep their word and send me “the Nokia N96 before it’s available in (my) country”!

I remain yours truly, a disapointed and decidedly pissed off customer.

Regards,

Rubin Simons.

And here is the response from Nokia:

Dear Rubin

Due to the nature of the limited edition Nokia N96 we can not provide you an exact time of delivery. We can guarantee that you will be one of the first to receive the device in your respective area. We are aiming to have the device shipped to you during week 35 or earlier. Please note that this time is subject to change without notice.

Best regards,

Nokia
facethetask@nokia.com

So it seems that people who bought the limited edition Nokia N96’s will be getting their phone earlier than others, but not by much. What do you think of the situation? Should Nokia have been clearer to explain when donors should expect their Limited Edition Nokia N96 on the site?

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Face The Task Limited Edition Nokia N96 – The Nokia Blog Style

Mark Guim — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 17:01:46 +0000

Remember the limited edition Nokia N96 I told you about to help red pandas? Well I was just told that I have a customized page on the Face The Task site. LOL a lady’s voice greets me by what my old college buddies called me, Mackarus. The Nokia N96 then rises from the special box with The Nokia Blog logo on the screen. What a surprise!

Customized The Nokia Blog limited edition Nokia N96 page

As a reminder, you may not know that there are certain limited ‘windows’ when people are able to order the Nokia N96, and these only come along every so often. The third opportunity for people to get their hands on the special edition of the device is at 14:33 CET tomorrow (Wednesday).

Will I be buying one? No… I can’t afford it so I entered the competition to try and win one!

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Face The Task Of Getting The Special Edition Nokia N96

Mark Guim — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:06:22 +0000

A new site for the Nokia N96 surfaced yesterday. Face The Task is going to release 96 individually numbered, special edition Nokia N96 on Friday 11am, CET. The bad: $759 euros. The good: proceeds from all sales of the Nokia N96 bought this way will also be donated to charity. If you can’t afford it, try winning it in their competition.

Face The Task does a good job showing the features of the Nokia N96. There are six main features summarized in text and then shown in video how it is used shortly afterwards. You need to try it out yourself to see what I mean. There’s an incentive to watch all six videos: you can’t enter the competition without viewing them all!

Watch all videos to enter competition.

The limited edition Nokia N96 comes in a decorated ash tree box with unique numbering on the inside cover, silk cover, 8GB microSD, and leaflet about the WWF project to save the red pandas in Nepal.

While I like the charity part of this limited edition Nokia N96, I’m not so sure about the exclusivity of this phone. To my understanding, only the box is numbered… not the phone. Will the color of the phone be at least different from what’s going to come out to the general public? Donors and winners will not even get the phone earlier than anyone in their country.

Kobe Bryant with Limited Edition Nike Hyperdunk

Take a look at what Nike recently did. They released a limited “Back To The Future” Nike Hyperdunk earlier this month. The general colorway comes out later this month, but Nike decided to release a limited amount of the special colorway much earlier than the public release and then even have Kobe Bryant autograph the first 10 sold. Doesn’t that feel much more “special” or “limited” than what Nokia is doing with the Nokia N96?

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Rumor: Nokia N85 Is The Next Video Flagship

Mark Guim — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 15:46:03 +0000

The Nokia N96 is not even out yet, but several people are already excited about a rumored Nokia N85 scheduled for summer 2009. Combining info from different sources, we get an almost clear idea of what it may look like.

Nokia N85 is not about photo. It is all about video experience. It comes with 5 megapixel camera. It is smaller than the Nokia N96, but with WQVGA resolution (4??x240 pixels resolution). The most interesting claim is that it looks like a Nokia N93 packed into a different form factor. Sources: Teo from Symbian-Freak, Eldar from Mobile-Review, David from Electronic Pulp.

The photo above was found in Nokia’s patent applications last December. Is that the Nokia N85? That form factor looks really interesting! A lot more exciting the Nokia N96.

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Using GPS and Nokia Maps 2.0 on Nokia N95 8GB to Find My Parking Spot

Mark Guim — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 17:58:48 +0000

I just started using Nokia Maps 2.0 Beta on the Nokia N95 8GB to remember my spot via GPS and help me find my car in case I forget. What sucks about living near two big hospitals is that it is really hard to find parking during the day. It’s not a problem at night, but I often have to park 5-6 blocks away if I get home early.

Remember It

Right after parking, I add the current location to Places.

Add your spot to Places

Find It

When I need to find my car, I just go to favorites and select Walk to on the parking spot. As you walk, trail crumbs also follow you (see the white dots).

This works great on other Nokia phones with built-in GPS. To name a few: Nokia N82, Nokia N95, and the upcoming Nokia N78 and Nokia N96.

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