Are you in Kuala Lumpur in early February? Or are you planning to be there? Asri al-Baker is organising the first KLSS (Kuala Lumpur Symbian Stammtisch) and would like to call all Symbian enthusiasts in Kuala Lumpur and the nearby places to attend. Full details below. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Stammtisch is apparently German for 'regular get together' or 'pub meet', and is a term you'll start to see quite a bit in the Symbian Foundation's activities.
Standing up in front of the world’s press, or quietly letting the numbers be published and just nudging people to draw their own conclusions? In their own ways, both Apple and Nokia this week laid claim to be the “the biggest company in mobile devices.” Steve took the stage, and Olli-Pekka left it to the annual results. And they were both right. Read on.
Ewan takes another trip down memory lane here on our Ovi Gaming site with a review of Time Riders 2, a Java vertical shoot 'em up from the Nokia Ovi Store that (somewhat surprisingly) impresses hugely, being responsive and pretty. Oh, yes, and cheap, at a true pocket money price. Hit!
Nokia has released their Q4 2009 results, reporting an operating profit of EUR 1.141 billion, with net sales EUR 12 billion (down 5% YoY). Nokia's device and service division's profits were EUR 1.14 billion, up 130% year on year. Margins in devices and services were 14.9% (up 5.5% YoY and 3.5% QoQ). Converged devices sales (smartphone) were 20.8 million, compared with 15.1 million units in Q4 2008 and 16.4 million units in Q3 2009. As such, worldwide converged device ('smartphone') marketshare increased from 35% to 40% sequentially.
David Gilson and Panashe Ngwerume review the new Rseven online sync and backup service, uncovering a number of browser compatibility issues that the developers need to address. They find the beta-status Rseven understandably immature from a functionality standpoint, requiring more development in order to deliver its aims and ambitions in a modern multi-platform environment, but Panashe in particular calls the service a 'gem', implying that there's great potential here for the future.
When it comes to Twitter applications (perenially popular, it seems), Symbian and S60 have no shortage of choice. Guest author David Gilson has done a mass review of all the Twitter applications he could find for S60, and presents us with a detailed feature comparison, along with a number of recommendations.
In All About Symbian Insight 102 (AAS Podcast 166), the team start with news of Sony Ericsson's Vivaz and its continuous focus HD video capture capabilities. We move on to an in-depth discussion of Nokia's Ovi Maps announcement last week. The final item in this weeks podcast is a quick mention for the new beta version of Ovi Suite. You can listen to AAS Insight 102 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
The social networking application, Fring, has been updated to version 4.1. Notable additions include fast switching of your status (offline, online, busy or invisible), the addition of DTMF tones in VoIP apps, and an improved GUI for their Twitter section. This sits on top of their multi-platform solution that covers not just a wide range of smartphones, but different online services as well. The latest version can be found at Fring.com/download.
There's a certain swashbuckling look to this game, from Electronic Arts. With a chisel-jawed hero and the 'exciting adventure' font on display (plus the all important sequel number), this has all the hallmarks and subtle signals of a Hollywood blockbuster from the 1950s. Which, of course, is an age ago in the motion picture, and is the perfect metaphor for Jewel Quest 3, finds Ewan Spence.
Everyone has been wondering why Ovi Maps hasn't been offered, for convenience, through the Ovi Store client - and, with the release of the new all-free, official v3.3, that's exactly what Nokia has done, indicating a high degree of confidence on its part. Great to see it heading up the store, anyway, and now merely a download away. And a side note for those for whom this doesn't appear - many other S60 3rd Ed FP2 phones will work fine with Maps 3.3 - just grab the closest version via your desktop and side-load it.
Last year, David Gilson compared Google Maps and Ovi Maps, controversially finding that Google Maps (for Mobile) had the edge. However, Nokia has now announced that voice guided road navigation for Ovi Maps no longer requires a subscription fee and is available to all. Read on to see how this game-changing move effects the battle of the maps! (Note that this article is a rewrite and does contain some of the original text.)
Nokia Conversations has been doing a series of 'Three favourite Nokias ever', asking the question of famous people around the Nokia ecosystem, and it's our humble site-master's turn today. The N95's inclusion was probably a given, but the other two will surprise you. Worth a read!
Ewan takes a sideways look at the addition of Lifecasting to Ovi Maps this morning - what implications are there for bringing this social element into a mapping and navigation product? And what challenges remain in this area for Nokia? How will this release change the world? Read on in his Lifecasting editorial.
Nokia today announced that it is releasing a new version of Ovi Maps with free walk (pedestrian) and driving (car) turn-by-turn, voice guided navigation functionality. Ovi Maps has global coverage, with 74 countries covered by its navigation services. Maps for all regions will be available, for free, for loading over the air or pre-loading via a desktop computer. Traffic information and city guides, from Lonely Planet and Michelin, will also be made available at no extra cost. There's an initial set of devices, in terms of availability, with more compatible devices to follow. See below.
This is an industry-shifting move; Nokia is essentially changing the economics of the consumer GPS navigation market overnight. It will give its phones a significant differentiator on shop shelves and has long term strategic implications for the future of location services. Read on for further details and analysis.
Third party web browser Skyfire has released their latest version for Symbiansmartphones. Version 1.5 updates the user interface for a smoother experience both in the updated UI and in the rendering engine, as well as making its debut on 5th edition devices.
