David Gilson explores the relative benefits of native applications and cloud applications, both from a consumer point of view, and from the point of view of the developers who ultimately supply our applications. Will the cloud replace the traditional app?
What's the next step for mobile phone and car integration? One option is Nokia's Terminal Mode technology, which proposes an industry standard for the integration of mobile phones (and their applications) into the car environment. Nokia has developed Terminal Mode in conjunction with CE4A (Consumer Electronics for Automotive) and recently held the Terminal Mode Summit at their Espoo offices in Finland. This gives us a good opportunity to review what Terminal Mode is about and what progress has been made to date. Read on....
Symbian's Product Development Kit (PDK) 3.0.0, which is based on Symbian^3, is now available for download. This is the first PDK released since Symbian^3 attained its functionally complete status. The PDK contains a build of Symbian^3 platform, the complete source code, related utilities and an emulator. It is aimed, primarily, at platform developers and device creators, but the curious may also be interested in taking a look, as it enables you to gain a better understanding of the new version of the platform.
I wonder just how much effect the proposed EU Antitrust law change would have on the smartphone scene? The new tweak in the law would change the wording from “Dominant” to “Significant” in regards to market positions of companies. Jason Mick (at Daily Tech) highlights the issue but I don’t think it would have the huge utopian effect that many are hoping for. Here's why...
David Gilson looks in depth at Bolt, a Java proxy-based web browser for all phones that claims desktop-class browsing, a degree of social integration and both Flash and HTML 5 video support. This latter seems to be the only feature that really impressed David though, with Bolt's overall operation seeming stilted and clumsy in comparison to Opera Mini, its nearest competitor.
In All About Symbian Insight 125, we welcome David Gilson to the podcast for the first time. This week we round up a lot of news including a rallying cry from Nokia's Anssi Vanjoki, details on SEE 2010, firmware updates for the E71, E66, N97 and N97 mini, SkyFire's market retreat, Nokia 5230 pricing and more. In the main part of the podcast David tell us about his experiences with the Sony Ericsson Vivaz Pro, Ewan talks about The Big Roll in Paradise and Rafe reports back from a 3UK briefing. You can listen to AAS Insight 125 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
In a move to placate a lot of very unhappy mobile web users (including myself), the BBC’s Anthony Sullivan hopes that the upcoming BBC Accessibility Tools will allow people to replicate the “low graphics” version of the BBC News website. Unfortunately, for people who’ve been using that version of the site for over ten years, it feels like they’ve lost a close friend. There’s a lesson in here for web developers around the world, read on.
Skyfire, the proxy-based web browser which can handle Flash video, is reportedly tightening its belt, closing down its support, availability and operations in most countries from Thursday (1st July), according to Mobile Royale. A shutdown notice, curiously worded to only apply to Windows Mobile and Symbian users, is presented when attempting to use the browser [updated] anywhere other than the USA, the UK or Canada. [further update] There has now been an official Skyfire blog article on this, albeit with some mixed messages.
In All About Symbian Insight 124, the team discuss the future of Nseries devices and the respective roles of MeeGo and Symbian in Nokia's software strategy. We move on to a discussion of the application business model and app store, which leads into a discussion of Nokia's new developer initiatives. We also share news of updates to Ovi Store and Ovi Suite and the opening of Sports Tracker's online shop. You can listen to AAS Insight 124 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
Ewan and I have a rule of thumb, that 95% of content in every mobile app store is complete rubbish, without significant merit. But, rather than dismiss this 95% en-bloc, or one at a time, we thought we'd do better to dismiss some of the worst offenders category by category, so that you can spot future offenders yourself more easily in future. The traditional way is to handle software roundups is to go for a Top Ten list. But, by way of something slightly different, here's some coverage of the Top Ten Lists we won't be compiling... naturally itself in the form of a (somewhat recursive) Top Ten List!
Nokia has made a number of developer announcements today, which significantly strengthen their developer services and offerings. Perhaps most interesting is news of a public beta service that allows developers to get their content Symbian Signed at no cost (compared to a previous first time signing cost of up to $215). Also important is the news that individuals can now register as Ovi Publishers (previously restricted to companies) and that the Ovi Store is now accepting Qt-based applications. Finally, and the most significant in the long term, is the first full release of the Nokia Qt SDK 1.0 and the accompanying Nokia Smart Installer (previously in beta). Read on for additional details.
Nokia has quietly updated its Ovi Suite desktop connectivity suite, from v2.1 to v2.2(.0.241), adding simplified navigation, Office 2010 support, awareness for newer devices and a new 'full-screen' photo and video viewer. You'll be prompted when you next start Ovi Suite - or you can 'Check for updates' manually. It's a 69MB download.
Over the last few years, I've had a burning conviction that's been growing and growing as I watch the current craze for 'Apps' blossom. Now, I've nothing against genuine applications or games, but it has to be said that a large number of so-called 'Apps' are simply scraping or managing exactly the same data as you can get right now, on any phone, for free. And, my way, there are no installations, no complications and no hassle. Apps? Pah - I've a new slogan to rival Apple's. "There's a Bookmark for that!"
In All About Symbian Insight 123, the team discuss the news of the Nokia X5-01 and X6 8GB, which were launched at Nokia Connection in Singapore. Ewan gives us an overview of the Nimbuzz application, before Rafe explains that Symbian^3 is now functionally complete. Finally, Rafe and Steve discuss their thoughts on what they learned at the recent Nokia N8 hands-on event. You can listen to AAS Insight 123 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
As part of Nokia's 'Open for Ideas' event, I had the opportunity to attend the Tampere Innovation Experience @ Demola day, which included a showcase more than 40 research projects that had been guided by open innovation principles. I teamed up with The Really Mobile Project's Ben Smith to shoot three videos of NRC (Nokia Research Centre) demos. The first video covers the Nokia Image Space research, with a demo of the Image Space mobile client on a Nokia N900.
