samedi 28 juillet 2007

Yahoo pull Yahoo Go 1.x

I received an email this morning from Yahoo, informing me that from August 27th 2007 at 11.59 GMT, Yahoo Go will be discontinued. Instead they invite you to use Yahoo Go 2.0

This is disappointing. Yahoo Go has been one of my favourite applications, and I was always frustrated that it would only work on the N73, N80 and 3250. The Yahoo Go app was superior to Yahoo Go 2.0 and I've had a fair few people ask me for the file through this blog, frustrated that they couldn't download the application directly.

I never understood why Yahoo was never more popular with mobile users, I've used their WAP service since the days of the 6310 and 8310, with access to Yahoo Email and Messenger. Losing Yahoo Go is frustrating, and I can't see myself using Yahoo Go 2.0 that much as usability is pretty poor. Instead of discontinuing the app, Yahoo should have been looking to make it more compatible with other S60 phones.

More info from Yahoo here

mercredi 25 juillet 2007

NSeries XpressPRINT problem

A few weeks ago Nokia released an app for NSeries phones called XpressPRINT. For those that missed the announcment you can see the XpressPRINT website here. I managed to install the app fine on the N95 but it won't install on my N73. I get an error message, saying "Unable to install. Install base package first"

Does anyone have a clue what this means? It's got me bit. Any suggestions please drop them in the combox.

jeudi 19 juillet 2007

Nokia announce A-GPS Service

Nokia sent out a press release today, announcing that they are enabling the 6110 Navigator with A-GPS and all their upcoming phones with built in GPS will also support A-GPS. Most N95 users I know have already updated their firmware with the latest available and are enjoying A-GPS on the N95. I updated my N95 and I was impressed at how quick the device found current location compared to before. With the N95 previously, it could take a minute or so to get a lock on current location. The few times I used Nokia Maps after updating the firmware on the N95 lock on was almost instant. I was very impressed. Here's the full press release:

Nokia makes finding yourself faster with new A-GPS service


This Assisted GPS (A-GPS) service helps Nokia Maps users find their current locations faster and get to their desired locations quicker using their Nokia mobile device with built-in GPS.

Nokia intends to equip all of its future devices that have built-in GPS with this service. The first devices to use this service are the Nokia 6110 Navigator, which has begun shipping in select markets, and the most recent software release of the Nokia N95 multimedia computer.

Current owners of the Nokia N95 can take advantage of this free* service by using the Nokia Software Updater. http://www.nokia.com/softwareupdate This will update the firmware on the device to the latest version.

This service has the ability to reduce the time a connected mobile device with built in GPS needs to find its current position, known as time to first fix (TTFF) for most geographical locations worldwide. The reduced fix times can increase and improve the usability for all Nokia location-based experiences.

"By decreasing the time wasted while you wait for a first fix, we are increasing the enjoyment that Nokia Maps provides," says Ralph Eric Kunz, vice-president, multimedia experiences, Nokia. "Consumers now have the comfort of quick fix times which create a better navigation experience when using Nokia Maps."

The service operates in tandem with a technical framework that allows third parties, such as service providers, to provide their own regional A-GPS services, making fix times even faster in certain areas- to the benefit of their subscribers.

The Nokia Software Updater is a free PC application that enables people to update the device software on compatible Nokia devices. The Nokia Software Updater is available in almost 40 different languages. The link to Nokia Software Updater is also available in the most recent versions of Nokia PC Suite software. Nokia Software updater has been used over two million times to update Nokia devices since it was introduced almost one year ago.

* Assisted GPS (A-GPS) service uses the data network, data fees vary, to check the cost of data transfer services, contact your service provider

vendredi 13 juillet 2007

N73 or N95

N73 or N95

That’s the choice I’ve been deciding over for the last few weeks.

The N73 is probably my favourite phone, ever. I judge how good a phone is by the times I go back to it. Back in the day, the 6310i was a great phone. I bought one, sold it on for something else, which didn’t measure up, and I went back to the 6310i. I think I had 4 or 5. Same with the 7650, I’d buy a different handset but I kept going back to it, and also with the 6600. And so it is now with my N73. I’m currently using a black N73, which I updated a while ago to include the latest firmware, with the new style music player previously found on the music edition. The N73 is a fantastic handset.

A few weeks ago, the guys over at Womworld asked if I’d like to try out an N95 for a couple of weeks, with a view to writing my thoughts about it on the blog. Until this point, I’d resisted buying the N95. I’ve mentioned this in another post on the blog, despite being one of the many who was looking forward to the N95 I got cold feet. What put me off is the experience I had with the N80. You see a handset to come on the market that is just packed with features, looks great, running on the best phone O/S available, S60. You can run your life on these things, and record it all and put it online for all to see. At least, you can if the battery lasts. I have a real big hang up about battery life. If I’m going to go out with a phone, I like to know that it’s going to do what I want it to, and I’m not going to have to worry about it dying on me anytime soon. That there gives you one big reason why I love the N73 so much.

So, the N95 came onto the market, and I passed it over. But when the guys at Womworld offered me a review model I thought “Why not?” It can’t hurt.

At least that’s what I thought. The phone arrived, and I unpacked it, loaded the memory card, stuck it on charge, turned it on, and something happened that I feared might. Deep in the recess of my mind, I had a nagging doubt that if I played around too much with the N95 I would want one, despite my reservations on staying power. And that is exactly what happened. I loved that phone. I went out for the day with the kids. I took a few pictures, browsed the web, took a few videos, uploaded some stuff online, sent a few text, made a few calls. Around mid-afternoon I started to get battery low warnings. “Oh well,” I thought “Maybe I need to condition the battery a bit.” We went home, I charged it up again, and tried the TV out feature. The video quality was excellent. The kids thought it was great seeing themselves on the TV. Sound and picture was very clear. The pictures I had taken viewed well on a PC screen, all good.

I had a film I’d downloaded for my Video iPod. I put it on to the N95 and the video playback quality was amazing. So clear, so bright, so utterly watchable.

The pattern continued this way over the next few weeks. I used the handset a lot for pictures, videos, web browsing, calls, text, email. All applications I put on the phone worked well (Admittedly mainly java apps) The Gmail app, Yahoo Go 2.0, Opera Mini and the new beta version, Yell.com, all looking good. That battery was a bit suspect though, sometimes I’d charge the phone in the car on the way to work and I’d be needing to charge it again in the car on the way home.

Time came when I had to send the N95 back. I was back to the N73. The old faithful, reliable handset, always there and ready to use. But I liked the N95. A lot. So much that a few days after sending the review model back, I bought one. It really is that good. And for the next few weeks I was forever switching between the N95 and the N73. I couldn’t make up my mind. And I can’t go on switching handsets, I need to make up my mind, which will I use? But in the end, I was helped to my decision by the handset itself.

I went out at the weekend. It would have been great to be able to take a few pics, maybe a few video clips, and post them online. But by half day on Saturday the battery was running down, and I’d only made a few calls in the morning! After charging the handset just the night before, too. I can’t be on with a phone that needs charging in the morning and in the evening. And so, my N95 is heading to Ebay, looking for a new home, and I am enjoying mobile life with my N73. And in all honesty, there’s not much I’m missing. Video quality on the N95 is a bonus, the new features in the menu such as sub folders are a great touch (although I can do that on the N73, in a roundabout way) I don’t miss built in GPS, I never used it. I don’t miss the camera, the N73 is a quality camera in its own right.

I’ve never experienced the problems some have had with the N95. Mine never rebooted, not even once. I’ve not had any problems since the s/w update either. I just need to know that my phone will work when I want it to, and I know that the N73 can give that to me, the N95 just doesn’t cut it on that important issue to me.



Originally, when I received the N95, I was going to just write a 'review'. But there are so many good reviews out there already. Click the following links for the review over at All About Symbian
Part 1

Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Conclusion

vendredi 6 juillet 2007

N95 Firmware update now available

Finally the Nokia N95 firmware update is available on the Nokia Software Updater. The latest version is 12.0.013 and includes the rumoured aGPS update which should enable quicker positioning when using the maps application.

I'll be updating my N95 later on this evening, I'll post up any thoughts when I'm done.

Source

8GB N95?

According to Just Another Mobile Phone Blog it's very possible. Click here to see the xml from a Nokia site, and here for the original post

iPhone web apps on the N95

An excellent article by Ewan over at AllAboutSymbian, about browser apps being developed for the iPhone that will work perfectly well on the S60 3rd Edition handsets.

How would you like a few more 'applications' for your smartphone? Well, one of the knock-on effects of the Apple iPhone is the number of (mainly American) coders that are using its Safari web browser as a thin client for applets (small applications that run inside the browser). And while it may not have the multi-touch screen or sheer size of the iPhone screen, Nokia’s latest browser is perfectly capable of running many of these applets – after all, it is based on the same WebCore components as the iPhone's Safari.

Click here for the full article

 
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