This week Nokia announced the launch and beta availability of the Nokia Qt SDK, a single 'easy-to-use' software development kit (SDK) for Symbian and MeeGo application development. The SDK is, effectively, an evolution of the Qt SDK, with specific focus on, and support for, Nokia's mobile devices. It provides a complete tool chain for creating, developing, testing, packaging and deploying Qt applications. The SDK is available for both Windows and Linux (Mac support is being investigated) and can be downloaded from the Forum Nokia website. Read on for more details.
If there's such a thing as a popular whipping bag in the mobile world, the Nokia N97 surely has to be it. The original S60 5th Edition flagship has undergone so many troubles and humiliations in the last 12 months that it should surely be six feet under by now. And yet, despite having ready access to any phone in the world, my main SIM card is currently in... the Nokia N97. Here's why it sucks... and why it still rules. In an understated, misunderstood, jack of all trades way....
Always of interest are the quarterly stats summaries from the market analysts. The first figures are in, with Nokia and Apple making gains at the expense of 'others' in the smartphone world, and with Nokia losing out slightly in the battle for generic 'phones'. More info below.
A new firmware, version 210.12.15, is now available for the Nokia E75. The new firmware is a relatively small update, but does improve the responsiveness of the keyboard, updates the underlying email software and contains the usual bug fixes and optimisations. The firmware update is available via both OTA and the Nokia Software Updater.
Never say we don't do some investigative reporting - in all the fuss of the launch of the Nokia N8, I've been sent out to find something exclusive about the latest smartphone from the slightly leaky walls of Espoo. And I think I've hit paydirt. Did you suspect Nokia was holding back on some of the N8's more fantastical features? If so, you're right. Read on for what's really in the N8. Honestly...
Ovi Music Unlimited, which is branded as Comes with Music in some markets, has launched in India. The service, which can only be purchased with a new device, allows unlimited music downloads from the Ovi Music Store for 12 months. Music is DRM protected, but users are able to keep the music after their subscription period has ended. The service has been customised for India with a smaller Ovi Player (desktop client), local content from more than 150 labels and the ability to download music using different PCs.
As part of our Nokia N8 coverage, we have recorded and published the All About Symbian Insight Podcast (number 116) a few days early. Ewan, Steve and Rafe share their thoughts on the announcement of the first Symbian^3 phone and Nokia's new imaging flagship. Over 45 minutes, we run through the N8's hardware and software and discuss the device's pricing and positioning, how the launch was handled and much more. You can listen to AAS Insight 116 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
DreamLife, a popular S60 5th Edition 'Activity manager' (think Contacts/Calendar replacement) for S60 5th Edition, has now been released for S60 3rd edition FP1 and FP2. The new version features "clear display of contact information in business card format, key match and global find contacts, planner calendar view, context activity editor and hierarchical sub-categories". More info and links below.
While outside the Symbian world, the news that the returning warhorse of Palm has been bought by HP could be good news for the industry as a whole. The merger values Palm at $5.70 per share, which works out to be around $1.2 billion. There’s been a huge amount of chatter online as to a suitor for Palm, with HTC, Lenovo or even Research in Motion, but the HP name is a bit out of left field. But there does seem to be some sense in this move.
Nokia’s Point and Find service has has an update, a short three months from the initial release. The latest build of the Beta Labs product improves the flickering problems some users encountered, and brings official support for the X6 and the 5230.
Nokia have released sample images and a video captured on the Nokia N8. They demonstrate multimedia capture capabilities, which are on the cutting edge. They offer the illustrative evidence to accompany Steve's features on the N8's camera heritage and the story behind the N8's camera, which give you all the details you need on the technology, ancestry and design decisions behind the N8's 12 megapixel camera.
The touch screen budget smartphone that is the Nokia 5230 has had a major bump in firmware, from v12 to v20. Adding in new applications, updating others, and bringing kinetic scrolling to the main menu, it shows that while the price of the unit is low, it’s getting the same support as more popular and expensive Nokiasmartphones.
Sports Tracker isn't the only game in town when it comes to GPS-tracking your workouts. And especially not when it comes to sharing these with others, either for interest sake or to provoke healthy competition. Here, Ewan reviews Endomondo, a largely server-side solution that has a wealth of social features, in addition to the traditional mapping and logging summaries.
The announcement of the Nokia N8 has certainly got the internet chattering, more than any other recent Nokia product launch. It’s not an out and out success, but that’s to be expected. No product in the real world can get 100% satisfaction on launch day, but it can get the buzz building from the time the press release goes public (or perhaps before - grrrrr). So what did the internet think of the N8? Lets find out.
