The Symbian Blog

Get Nokia Diagnostics On Your S60 5th Edition Device

Vaibhav Sharma — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:24:03 +0000

The Nokia Beta labs has just churned out a seemingly very useful application called ‘Nokia Diagnostics‘. The application has been created with an aim to help users diagnose, troubleshoot, and configure their devices with ease on their own. This application will let you find out if you are roaming, the signal strength of your device, help setup new access point, configure your WLAN setup and so on. Watch this video to get a better idea:

Currently the application offers:

Network Coverage test. You can get all the network related information and detect offline status & SIM card presence.
Internet Connectivity test. Perform a real-time Internet connectivity test and identify the setting with which you can have a seamless internet access.
Battery Charger test. Check if your device charges properly with the charger connected.
Loudspeaker, Earpiece test. Check your loudspeaker & earpiece functionality.

If this experimental application takes off, we can expect even more tests to be included in the application. You can download the application from here (requires a sign in) or use this direct link.

Huge: Symbian Is Now Free & Completely Open Source

Vaibhav Sharma — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 08:13:35 +0000

You remember the countdown we told you about? The reason for it is now out – As of today the Symbian OS is free and a 100% open source. This means that manufacturers will no longer have to pay for using the OS on their devices and because of its open source nature, the doors to speedy innovation have now been truly opened.

As a consumer this will have little impact on you in the short term, but come 2011 and you will start seeing the awesome fruits of this labour. The Symbian Foundation has managed to completely this huge task an impressive four months ahead of schedule, this means that companies such as Nokia and Samsung will now have even more time to work on and tweak the OS to their needs and release devices a little quicker.

Similar as it may sound to Android’s promise, there are major differences, says Lee Williams, executive director of the Symbian Foundation. “About a third of the Android code base is open and nothing more, and what is open is a collection of middleware. Everything else is closed or proprietary.” Symbian on the other hand is one hundred percent open.

This development will also give developers a much needed push as it will free them of intellectual property issues and give them complete access to the inner workings of the OS. This process had started in 2008 when Nokia, one of Symbian’s largest shareholders, bought out the others and created the Symbian Foundation to distribute the platform as an open source project. Till date Nokia has been the major contributor of the code, but by 2011 the foundation plans to restrict its contribution to not more than 50% of the code. This will be done to help other players also have a say in the development of the OS.

Huge congratulations to the team at the Symbian Foundation for their hard work that helped complete this months in advance. I can’t wait to see what S^3 and S^4 devices bring to the table. Keep up the great work!

[via: Wired]

Nokia E52 Updated To v31.012

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:49:22 +0000

Nokia sure seems to like doling out firmware updates in batches, following in the heels of the X6, the Nokia E52 also has received a new firmware in the form of v31.012. The update is currently only available via the Nokia Software Updater and is a release with a focus on bug fixes and performance enhancements.

Apart from this there are small updates to the Web, Email, Music Store and Maps applications. The E52 features user data preservation so you can update without having to loose data or settings.

Now that the E52’s been updated, expect a similar update for the E55 soon.

[via: AAS]

Nokia X6 v12.0.091 Firmware Now Available OTA

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:40:42 +0000

The Nokia X6, the first Nokia Xseries device has received a seemingly minor update in the form of the v12.0.091 firmware, up from the older v12.0.088. The firmware is available via the Nokia Software Updater as well as over-the-air, you can hit *#0000# on your X6’s keypad and then search for updates to get this release.

The X6 like most modern Nokia devices features user data preservation, so you can update without the fear of losing data. There is no changelog currently available and my guess is that this release will concentrate on bug fixing and optimizations.

Let us know if you notice any changes.

[Image via @acaPAWN7]

The N97 Mini Gets Updated To 11.0.045

Vaibhav Sharma — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:59:31 +0000

Following in the footsteps of its elder sibling, the N97, the N97 Mini has also received a firmware update. The new v11 firmware brings changes similar to the original N97’s v21 firmware that include better call reliability, a better touch scrolling experience, improvements to the web browser and music player and improved image and video stability.

The biggest bonus apart from the usual bug fixes and performance tweaks is the addition of an extra 5-6 MB RAM at boot. The update is currently only available via the Nokia Software Updater, as well as over-the-air (OTA).

The N97 Mini supports user data preservation so you can update without the fear of losing data. I did not notice any overt changes after updating the device as this is primarily a performance enhancing update.

The Nokia N97 Gets Updated To v21

Vaibhav Sharma — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:32:10 +0000

The N97 has just received some love from Nokia in the form of the v 21.0.045 (v 21.2.045 for some) firmware update, labeled at PR 2.1. This update builds on the improvements brought by the previous v20 (PR 2.0) update and will improve call reliability and provide a better touch scrolling experience. The web browser and music player also get improvements; the new firmware also promises improved image and video stability.

Apart from these changes, expect other under the hood optimizations, bug fixes and a new theme. The update will only be available via the Nokia Software Updater at first, due to the large number of improvements. Nokia promises an over-the-air update after a period of testing.

As you may be aware, you can update the N97 without losing data. However, a backup never hurt. I will update this post incase I notice any other changes/improvements.

If you do not see the update via the NSU, it means that the rollout has not reached your product code/region as yet.

Nokia Fumes At Apple’s Claim Of Being The Largest Mobile Company

Vaibhav Sharma — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 21:51:51 +0000

At the iPad keynote, Steve Jobs made a statement that has set-off another round of Nokia v/s Apple action. He called Apple the largest mobile company in the world, even bigger than Nokia when it came to revenue. Needless to say, this did not go down well with Nokia, not one bit, and today they shot back on the official Nokia Conversations blog with a provocative, ‘A Fruit Confused?‘.

Mark Squires, Head of Social Media at Nokia called for an ‘apples-to-apples’ comparison where laptop computers could not be included in the generally accepted definition of ‘mobile devices’. With in play, Nokia’s devices and services business from Oct-Dec was shown as €8,18 billion while Apple’s turnover for “newly defined” mobile devices was €7,25 billion.

Now there is no right/legally accepted definition of ‘mobile devices’ so I would expect the give and take to continue. Nokia and Apple are already embroiled in litigation, may I suggest they setup an arbitral panel to rule over this as well. What is important to note is the hard tone of that Nokia has adopted in its effort to set the record straight. Here is an extract:

“Well you don’t see me putting pen to paper a great deal but sometimes there are articles floating around on the sphere that get my blood pressure rising to what my doctor is prone to call an ‘unreasonable level for a man of your years/weight/physical condition’. Reading coverage of one of our competitor’s much hyped web pad event this week, I was surprised to see that, by revenue, they were claiming in their leader’s keynote to be “the largest mobile devices company in the world.”

The difference between the two companies is even larger if you use the more common measure: the number of devices sold. By that comparison, Nokia has been the largest mobile devices company in the world for a dozen consecutive years.

What do you think? Does a Macbook fall under the category of a ‘mobile device’?

Eros Bollywood On The Ovi Store Brings Indian Cinema To Your Nokia

Vaibhav Sharma — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 06:04:41 +0000

If you are an Indian cinema fan, just a quick heads up to let you know that the ‘Eros Bollywood’ application is now available from the Ovi Store. Eros Bollywood was one of the winners of the Open Screen Project Fund developmental grant and features Bollywood songs, movie trailors, director’s cut and behind the scenes footage from Eros International’s huge catalog of over 1900 films.

The application is available for S60 5th Edition devices and can be downloaded directly from your handset by visiting the Ovi Store or you can use this link from your computer. It uses WRT and flash to stream the videos to your device, I have tried the application and the video quality isn’t stellar, but it should still serve as a good way to kill time.

If you want to see how the application works without having to install it first, look this YouTube video up.

The Nokia N97 Finally Gets Free Navigation

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:00:48 +0000

When Nokia announced that they were going to give away free drive and walk navigation and other premium content for Ovi Maps, the N97 was left out from the list of devices that were supposed to get this. This left many people shocked, wondering why had Nokia done this.

Infact, Nokia almost got bad press for this. They quickly went into damage control mode and made it clear that the original N97 will be getting this free functionality, and soon. January 28 was the date promised, and Nokia has delivered ahead of time. Awesome.

So for all those of you with the original N97, hit the Software Updater in Application to get the update in the form of a 8MB download. Make sure you have enough phone memory before you hit update. Now the wait for the v2.1 firmware starts, tomorrow perhaps?

[Image via @MickyFin]

What Is Symbian Counting Down To? (Hint In The Page Source)

Vaibhav Sharma — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:52:23 +0000

A little over two hours ago, there was a tweet from the official Symbian account that simply said – #symbiancountdown 108.

108 what? Hours, Days? My first thought was hours, but its been two hours since that tweet and the countdown.symbian.org still says 108, which makes me wonder what does 108 actually stand for?

For a hint I looked up the Page Source code and actually found one! It didn’t really help, all I got was:

!– if you’re looking for a secret, here’s one: 108 –>
!– we promise not to self destruct –>

Any ideas anyone? The number of packages left before Symbian goes completely open source? It cannot be something that geeky. I’m thinking mainstream. 108 days till Symbian ^4? That’s too far away to countdown too. An new device from a Symbian partner?

[Update] These tweets from the @SymbianIT account, should help as well. In case you are wondering, 0×6C stands for 108. So does this countdown have something to do with the S^4 UI?

Shaun.Ph/108, leads to http://www.salagram.net/108meaning.html which gives us the significance of 108 across different fields.
The next clue, is http://shaun.ph/4h that leads us to a clue to the next episode of the series Fringe. Follow @shaunph for more hints.
#Symbian educating the community thanks to 108 http://bit.ly/6HDvad via @jfourgeaud

Nokia Launches The X6 16GB

Vaibhav Sharma — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:55:10 +0000

Nokia has just announced a younger sibling to the X6, the major difference being a smaller 16GB inbuilt memory and the lack of a ‘comes with music’ offering. This was a move long expected, since the time the X6 was launched. The device features a 3.2″ capacitive touchscreen and will come in all black, all white, white with pink highlights and white with yellow highlights.

The X6 16 GB will also come with free navigationand will run the Symbian^1 software. Specs promise a 18 day standby time, 11.5 hours talktime (GSM), 4.5 hours of video playback and an impressive 35 hours of music playback. The X6 16GB will be available this quarter and come with Spore by EA, Asphalt4 and DJ Mix Tour by Gameloft pre-installed.

KEY SPECIFICATIONS

Frequency – WCDMA 850/1900/2100+QB GSM (LTA, NA). WCDMA 900/1900/2100 +QB GSM
SW Platform – Symbian^1
Size – 111 x 51 x 13.8
Display – 3.2” 16:9 nHD, 231 ppi
Memory Internal/External – 16 GB/-
Talk time – up to 11.5h (GSM)
Stand-by time – up to 18 days
Music playback time – up to 35 hours
Video playback time - up to 4.5 hours
Processor – 433.9MHz
Connectivity – GPRS/EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA/WIFI

The X6 16GB will be aimed at markets that do not feature the ‘comes with music’ service and will retail at about 350 Euros, 100 Euros cheaper than its older sibling. This translates to about Rs. 23,000 in India, would you buy one?

[via: Nokia Conversations]

Nokia Booklet 3G Unboxing & First Impressions

Vaibhav Sharma — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:42:22 +0000

The Nokia Booklet 3G marks Nokia’s first foray into the netbook market and is currently only available in a few markets around the world. You can think of the Booklet as a premium netbook constructed out of a single block of aluminium, much like Apple’s Macbooks. It packs a 10.1″ 1280 x 720 display, a fanless 1.6 GHZ Intel Atom processor (which makes the Booklet virtually silent), a 120 GB hard drive, 1GB of non upgradeable RAM and runs Windows 7.

What sets it apart from the average netbook is the fanless design, a HDMI port, an inbuilt A-GPS for positioning with Ovi Maps and the incredible 12 hour battery life provided by its 16 cell replaceable battery. The Booklet manages of give a very premium feel to the user and that is where Nokia is looking to distinguish it from the rest of the netbook lineup. It may be noted that Nokia likes to call it a mini-laptop rather than a netbook.

As you can guess from the title of this post, I managed to get hold of one and have unboxed it for your viewing pleasure. In fact, I am writing this post from the Booklet itself and the keyboard feels great, I have been able to get pretty reasonable speeds pretty quickly.

Coming from a Macbook, the touchpad doesn’t seem very responsive although it does feature two finger scrolling and pinch to zoom. For a computer this size, it is quite large. My experience with the Booklet was not ‘love at first sight’ but it has grown on me in the last few hours.

It feels good to hold in the hand and despite its 1.2 kilo weight, feels pretty light. I can already see myself loving the battery life on this machine, I have not had to put it on charge despite the 4 hours I have already spent setting it up. The battery indicator tells me I still have 5 hours left, on full brightness and WIFI plus Bluetooth turned on.

The anti glare coating on the screen makes it look just a little dirty at times, specially with light background. But what I really liked about the screen was the 1280 x 720 resolution that allows websites to be rendered exactly similar to your usual computer, better than the 1024 x 600 found on most netbooks.

I am recent Mac convert and netbooks never really have been my thing, so it will be fun to see how the Booklet plays out for me in the coming days. I said that I will try and make this my only computer for the next week, however I can see that will not be possible due to my video editing needs. However I will try and make it my ‘primary’ machine.

Video: When Hitler Finds Out About The Ovi Announcement

Vaibhav Sharma — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:39:17 +0000

One of the best viral videos ever. Hitler finds out about free navigation with Ovi Maps, have a look at what ensues.

[via: My Nokia Blog]

Free Premium Content (Including Navigation) For Maps Is The ‘Big’ Ovi Announcement

Vaibhav Sharma — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:59:16 +0000

So there you have it, the big Ovi announcement for today is Nokia making navigation and other premium content free for its GPS enabled devices. Underwhelmed? On a personal level, yes. On a rational level? No way. I have specially traveled to Nokia India’s headquarters for this announcemnt and considering the simultaneous events they are having around the world, you would have expected more.

On a more rational level? The news is absolutely ‘HUGE’. Gamechanger, definitely. Google had announced free navigation for a select devices in the US but the sheer reach of Ovi Maps is what makes this bigger, much bigger. Based on my person experience with Ovi Maps, I can safely say that the navigation experience is solid, search needs a bit of work but for free this is a killer deal. So that’s free event guides, free lonely planet & Michelin guides, and free navigation.

The one damp squib is that Nokia has just introduced this for 10 devices as of now and that the N97 is not one of them, its younger sibling the N97 mini is. I cannot fathom why would Nokia do this? Perhaps because the N97 has had GPS issues? Here is a link to the official press release.

[Update - Other GPS devices including the N97 will also be added to the existing list of devices that support free navigation and other premium content. N97 to get it within a week].

Come March 2010, new Nokia GPS-enabled smartphones will include the new version of Ovi Maps, pre-loaded with local country map data, with high-end walk and drive navigation and access to Lonely Planet and Michelin travel guides at no extra cost.

Incase you are wondering, Ovi Maps covers 84 cities in India with over 1 million points of interest. Two large updates

Big Ovi Announcement Tomorrow – I Will Be Attending The Parallell Event At New Delhi

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:14:38 +0000

By now you might have heard that Nokia will be making some pretty big announcements relating to ‘Ovi’ tomorrow. When the news first broke it appeared as if Nokia was probably going to announce the new version of the Ovi Store, but since Anssi Vanjoki, Executive Vice President of Nokia was going to be there, it seemed it would be something slightly bigger.

Since then we have had news of parallel events happening in the US, Germany and a few other places and I have just been invited to a similar one at the Nokia India headquarters in Gurgaon where senior Nokia people will be present. All of this leads me to the conclusion that the ‘Ovi Store’ refresh cannot be the ‘big’ news alone. Another interesting things about this Nokia event is the timing, just 3 weeks before the Mobile World Congress and a week before Apple’s Jan 28 event. What couldn’t wait?

We should know in under 24 hours from now, events.nokia.com will play host to a virtual Q&A starting 3:00 pm (IST) on Jan 21, so make sure you check in on time.

The Nokia Software Updater Now Supports Windows 7

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:39:58 +0000

In what should come as great news for all those of you running Windows 7 on your PC’s, Nokia Beta Labs has just rolled out a new beta of the Nokia Software Updater that supports Windows 7. This means that you will no longer have to resort to running the NSU in the compatibility mode on your Windows 7 machine.

According to Mikko Inkinen of the Nokia Software Updater team, this is a release candidate and they only plan to keep it in beta for a few weeks. The beta features an improved the USB connection that has been made robust. Also included is a ‘What’s new’ section to tell you a little about the update.

You can head over and download the update right now (direct link – English), specially when Nokia has just releases firmwares for the E72, N86, Nokia N900 and 5800 Xpress Music.

Nokia, can we now have support for the Mac OS please?

New Nokia 5800 Firmware v40.0.005 Now Available – Adds Kinetic Scrolling & A Reworked Homescreen

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 17:17:09 +0000

Nokia has just started rolling out the v40 firmware for the Nokia 5800 via the Nokia Software Updater. The chief changes are the implementation of partial kinetic scrolling to the device and a reworked homescreen to match the new 5530. Other changes include auto-switching to the on screen QWERTY keyboard when you turn the device and a few optimizations to the tap/double-tap selection process and the addition of Ovi Contacts.

The update is now available over the air as yet and may not even show up on the NSU across all regions, as always patience is the key. This update is a definite must do, although if you care about ‘hacking’, it appears that has been blocked with this release.

The Nokia 5800 features user-data-preservation (UDP) so you will not loose any data when you update, but backing up the device is still a good idea.

[via: AAS]

Nokia Is Inviting You To The India Launch Of The 5230 In Bangalore

Vaibhav Sharma — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:02:13 +0000

I have received word that Nokia is holding a India launch of the 5230 touch handset in Bangalore on Sunday, the 3rd of January in Bangalore and the best part is that they are inviting all of you to join in. The event will be at the Garuda Mall in Bangalore, 7:00 pm onwards and will also see a Swarathma concert.

To top it all Nokia will also be giving away devices at meetup as well. So if you are in Bangalore, go there for the 5230 or the music or a chance to win a new device and make an awesome start to the year.

RSVP on Facebook or Twitter. If you need more details, call these numbers – 080-41119433, 9886261083.

The Nokia N82, N95 & N95 8GB All Updated To The v35 Firmware

Vaibhav Sharma — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 14:38:41 +0000

In a surprise but very welcome development, the N82 and both variants of the N95 have received a firmware update, taking them to v35. Specifically, the N95 (RM-159) is upto 35.0.02 & the N95 8GB (RM-320) is at 35.0.01 and the latest firmware for the N82 is now v35.0.002.

There is no changelog available yet and I am going through my drawers to look for my own N95 to update. Just a word of caution before you dive in yourself, just remember there is no user data preservation, so make sure you backup before you hit the NSU.

Confirmed: Nokia Is Holding A Parallel Event Walking Distance From The MWC

Vaibhav Sharma — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:42:55 +0000

The events.nokia.com page has just been updated and it now holds the answer to why did Nokia choose not to exhibit at the Mobile World Congress 2010. As I (and a few others) expected, Nokia is indeed holding an event of its own walking distance from the venue of the MWC on the 15-16 February.

As an alternative to the noise and crowds at Mobile World Congress, Barcelona, invited guests can relax on comfy sofas, enjoy delicious food and drinks as they discuss the industry and network with their peers — all courtesy of Nokia.

In Barcelona our goal is to create an atmosphere designed to encourage conversations among industry peers. In this comfortable setting you will relax as you learn more about Nokia solutions and services. The event will take place a short walk from the Mobile World Congress at Once – home of the Spanish National Organization for the Blind. Join us between 09.00 – 19.00 on 15-16 February.

The Nokia Press Conference will take place at Once on February 15 from 11.30am to 12.30pm CET. This will be followed by breakout presentations and interview opportunities with senior Nokia executives and subject matter experts. The Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) media and industry analyst briefing will also be held at Once on February 15 at 10.30am CET.

I am pretty certain that Nokia will be unveiling new devices, the MWC just got a lot more exciting for me. Hat tip to Norman for spotting this.

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