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Nokia N8 Official With Symbian^3 & Qt Onboard

Ani — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 10:14:54 +0000

The Nokia N8, Nokia’s latest smartphone, intuitively connects to the people, places and services that matter most. With the Nokia N8, people can create compelling content, connect to their favorite social networks and enjoy on-demand Web TV programs and Ovi Store apps. Available in select markets during the third quarter of 2010, the estimated retail price of the Nokia N8 is EUR 370, before applicable taxes or subsidies.

The Nokia N8 introduces a 12 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, Xenon flash and a large sensor that rivals those found in compact digital cameras. Additionally, the Nokia N8 offers the ability to make HD-quality videos and edit them with an intuitive built-in editing suite. Doubling as a portable entertainment center, people can enjoy HD-quality video with Dolby Digital Plus surround sound by plugging into their home theatre system. The Nokia N8 enables access to Web TV services that deliver programs, news and entertainment from channels like CNN, E! Entertainment, Paramount and National Geographic. Additional local Web TV content is also available from the Ovi Store.

Social networking is second nature to the Nokia N8. People can update their status, share location and photos, and view live feeds from Facebook and Twitter in a single app directly on the home screen. Calendar events from social networks can also be transferred to the device calendar. The Nokia N8 comes with free global Ovi Maps walk and drive navigation, guiding people to places and points of interest in more than 70 countries worldwide.

Symbian^3 in action
Powering the Nokia N8 is Symbian ^3, the latest edition of the world’s most used smartphone software, which introduces several major advances, including support for gestures such as multi touch, flick scrolling and pinch-zoom. The Nokia N8 also offers multiple, personalizable homescreens which can be loaded with apps and widgets. The new 2D and 3D graphics architecture in the platform takes full advantage of the Nokia N8′s hardware acceleration to deliver a faster and more responsive user interface. Symbian^3 also raises the bar in performance by delivering greater memory management allowing more applications to run in parallel for a faster multi-tasking experience.

Getting Qt for Developers
The Nokia N8 is Nokia’s first device to be integrated with Qt, a software development environment that simplifies the development and makes it possible to build applications once and deploy across Symbian and other software platforms. Nokia has also made the powerful and simple to use Nokia Qt SDK available, in its initial beta, to enable developers to start realizing the potential of Qt.

Nokia N97 Camera Test – New York

Ani — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:46:28 +0000

Running through the madding crowd, I finally managed to get on the E Train from Uptown to Downtown. Life in New York City is no less than New Delhi or London. The pace is so fast that even if you are slow people push you along. None the less this was a good time to explore the potential of the 5 MP camera on the new Nokia N97 I had been carrying around. Following are a few picture samples of the N97. There are more to come as I make my trip across this land of concrete beasts.

At Columbus Circle

On top of Empire State Building

Inside a Metro to Uptown

A Rickshaw

Initial Days With Nokia N97

Sehaj — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 16:52:20 +0000

Hello readers,
I have had the N97 with me for a few days now… and i must say the device has grown on to me slowly but yes steadily. Why i say slowly is because the first 2 days it took me some time to get the hang of the device. Not that I say this as a negative. The device has so much to offer that you actually get bogged down.

The Built:

When I first felt the device in my hand, it felt super nice. The device gives you a very solid feel. If one is not aware that the n97 packs a slide-out QWERTY you cant tell, it is that solid and well built. The metal strip that runs all around the device adds to the quality and gives the device a very sophisticated and classy look. I still haven’t been able to get my hands on the white n97 but I am sure the white would go down in front of the black (and i thought I loved white phones). The one annoying thing is the back cover. It is plastic, i don’t mind the plastic but what I mind is when you open the cover it is scary. You actually have to force it open and same is with closing it. Nokia has again done well by giving a cover for the camera it not only protects the lens but also adds to the aesthetics of the device.

Coming to the slide-out QWERTY keypad i am super impressed. It is perfect Nokia has given a few lessons to all the manufacturers of slide phones. It is that good no creaks, no noise and it is amazingly smooth. I am totally in love with it.

The Touch experience:

The touch experience is amazing. I know all of u must be wondering that its the same as the 5800 but I personally feel Nokia has worked on the touch and has improved on it. I am personally a big fan of the hepatic feedback and love the fact that it has been improved a little from the 5800. All is not good but, the hepatic feedback sometimes refuses to function and you find yourself missing the vibration ( can be device centric so do not panic ). I hope Nokia fixes this problem with the firmware upgrade.

The Keypad:

I have already told you guys about my love for the sliding QWERTY keypad but I am not impressed by its functionality. The keys are nice and big and you get used to them in a few hours (constant usage i mean can be more for the average or below average user). But and i must say there are two big BUTS one is the placement of the Enter and the Backspace, I still haven’t got used to the placement. The second is the numerical keys, Why has not Nokia provided for long press of the keys two provide for the numerical keys. It can become cumbersome and actually quite irritating when you have to press the function key every time you need to use a number key. I am hoping the 2nd issue will be solved with a firmware upgrade. I am aware the 1st problem cant be removed but I had to put forward my grievance.

The Music:

I am not mighty impressed with the quality of music that the N97 has to offer. It is similar to the quality of the music provided by the 5800. I know some people feel that the quality of the music provided my the 5800 is quite impressive, but not me when you are spending Rs 30,000 on the device you better be provided with top of the line. I hope Nokia is listening. With regard to the earphones I am happy with the quality of the headphones (could have been better). Owing to the fact that the N-series is primarily a entertainment device, Nokia should have done much better.

The Camera:

The Camera is the standard Carl Zeiss Lens 5 MP which is nice and I am happy with it but why Nokia hasn’t given along with it Xenon flash is beyond my understanding. The N82 showed to us the Xenon flash improves the quality of the picture taken and I wish Nokia had given that aswell.

I know I am a demanding user but I believe that when you are required to shell out astronomical sums for a mobile phone you should be given nothing but the best.

I am done with the 1st of the many posts you will see me writing about the N97. My next post will cover the WIDGETS in specific and other aspects of the device which make it a WINNER.

Please leave in your comments if you want anything specifically covered.

Ciao

Nokia N86 – ComeBack Of The Video Editor

Ani — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:51:03 +0000

Nokia N86 is all set to hit the shelves in India and one of the features which made Nokia N95 different from its sucessors like N95 8GB and N96 etc. was the ability to edit the videos on board the device. This feature is finally back and is in the N86. I will update you more on it in the later part of this week as I will have a hands on with the device itself. Following is the feature as mentioned in the User Guide of N86. Now you can Merge, Cut, Add text and music to your videos all while on your device itself. In this evolving world of moiles, it was a must to have such a feature. Kudos Nokia for listening to us!

Nokia N86 – Camera View Finder With GPS Indicator

Ani — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:14:01 +0000

One of the new things about the Nokia N86 apart from being the first Nseries with 8 MP Carl Zeiss lens is that its view finder comes with a GPS indicator which turns green when it has locked your position and adds it to your picture. Thus, this helps in geo-tagging your pictures accurately. Its a small indicator at the bottom right part. Check out the screen capture from the N86 Manual below (see number 7):

N86 Support Page Up On Nokia India

Mod — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 16:17:35 +0000

Nokia India website has put up support pages for Nokia N86 the 8 MP Nseries from the Finnish giant. We have been covering developments regarding the N86 over the days and have had a change to try it out too. Needless it is a killer combining the good of N96 and the refined design on the lines of N85 with great optics. You guys can get the User Guide Here to see all the new features inside. Click here to head to the support page. And yes, we expect N86 to roll out soon.

Think – Create Widget – Win A Nokia N97

Mod — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:33:13 +0000

Fellas over at Nseries Blog have pinged up a new contest. Create your own widgets, and keep track of your personal interests as they happen online. Once you have created a widget you can take it with you from the site. Embed it on your own site or blog, or access it directly with a unique URL to your widget.

Following are what we ended up making:

Get started straight away, and enter the competition for your chance to have your widget developed and made available for download from Ovi Store. All 10 winners in the competition will also receive the Nokia N97 with their very own widget pre-installed in the device.

You will be able to follow the development process right here on the Nokia Nseries Blog. Winners will be selected by a jury, and the selection is based on the creative execution along with the feasibility and usability of the widget for the Nokia N97.

Click here now to create your widgets.

Nokia N86 The First Nseries 8 MegaPixel Leaked – Pictures Inside

Ani — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:59:28 +0000

We had a clue that Nseries 8 MP was about to go live but in an interesting blooper Nokia itself leaked the N86. We had a hint and told you all earlier about it but now its for sure. The new device will have 8 MP camera with a dual slide design, A-GPS, 3.5 mm audio jack, widescreen video recording, dual LED and N-Gage. We will put up the full features when we get hold of them. Catch the pictures below.

Update: Mark got hold of live pics of the device over at his blog. Catch them below

Specifications Highlights

3rd Edition FP2
1200 maH battery
AM OLED 2.6in display 240×320 resolution
8mp camera with aperture f/2.4 (good for low light)
Mechanical shutter goes up to 1/1000 sec (good for action shots)
Video 640×480 resolution at 30 FPS
Scratch Resistant hard-glass front
3rd gen dual LED flash and video light
8GB internal storage + microSD slot

Nokia To Launch 8 MegaPixel Nseries Carl Zeiss Smartphone At MWC 09

Ani — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 19:35:02 +0000

The following shot says it all. Guys over at the Innovation desk are busy testing out the new Nseries 8 MP Af beast at Barcelona and getting ready to announce it next week. The picture is 3274×2448 pixels the one possible with a 8 MP camera. Good news is that we got hold of full Camera data and its a Carl Zeiss, Bad news is we have a name and its N85. So we feel its an N85 successor, may be N86, but we still don’t know for sure. Read below for complete camera specifications.

Following is a quick specification of the camera onboard this new undisclosed Nokia Nseries Device. I’ll put up more info on this the moment I get to know more but we sure can now expect something New from the house of Nokia at MWC 09

Design A Great Widget And Take Home A Nokia N97

Ani — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 04:47:16 +0000

Here’s your chance to be part of the Nokia Nseries innovation process by designing a homescreen widget for the forthcoming Nokia N97, which is available during the first half of 2009.

How To Participate?

Download the design package here, design your widget and upload it for others to rate. Keep visiting the site to log your opinions on others’ offerings because the ten highest-rated designs will go in front of a panel of judges selected from the Nokia Nseries team. The panel will choose the best home screen widget based on creativity, usability and quality of design.

What is a Widget?

A widget is a time-saving element of the device’s user interface, a visual building block that provides an easily accessible single interaction point with an application, which holds and processes data. There are thousands of types of widget.

Prize

The winning designer will receive a Nokia N97 pre-loaded with a working version of the winning widget.

Deadline

The closing date for the competition is February 27, 2009. The winner will be announced on this site on March 13, 2009.