Tzer2 has been busy - we've got lots more 5800 XpressMusic beginner tutorials online, all centred on getting the very most from Nokia's new touch-screen S60 5th Edition phone: How to change the wallpaper on the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, How to use memory cards on the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and Using the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic in other countries.
The BBC have just released a full, standalone (i.e. not Web-hosted) version of their hugely popular iPlayer for S60 5th Edition, specifically for the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. This runs slickly and includes the 'Download' feature first seen on the likes of the N96, where you can grab DRM-ed programmes for watching in the next month or so, offline. To get the new version of iPlayer you need to go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/mobile/iplayer/iplayer.wgz in Web on your phone. Read on for screenshots and extra comment.
In All About Symbian Insight 59 (AAS Podcast 112) we talk about the recent release of Google Maps 3.0 and its inclusion of the Latitude location service. We follow up with a general discussion of 'people location services' and discuss their implementation, utility and surrounding privacy issues. In the last third of the podcast we preview the forthcoming Mobile World Congress event.
Google today launched the beta of its new Google Sync service for mobile phones. The service, which is free, allows you to synchronise data between your phone and Google's web services. This, for example, allows you to synchronise the contacts on your phone with the contacts data used by Google's GMail. All recent S60 and UIQ phones are supported through the use of SyncML. However currently only the synching of contacts is supported. Read on for more details.
The first major firmware update for the Nokia 5800 Xpress Music, version 20.0.0.12, is now available, adding camera photo geotagging, full device search and (slightly) faster operation. You can update either using PC Suite or over-the-air (OTA). The 5800 does have user data preservation, which means your data should be retained during the update, but it is still advisable to do a back up before carrying out the update. Read on for more, including a special reset code that you might need...
With its 3.2 inch screen, which has a 360 x 640 wide screen resolution, the Nokia 5800 has all the hardware it needs to be a great video playback device, but what about video content? In the latest in our series of Nokia 5800 beginner tutorials Tzer2 explains how to convert and watch video files and DVDs on the 5800 Xpress Music.
Although described as not yet 'optimised' for S60 5th Edition/Touch, the popular file utility Y-Browser at least works at 90% capacity on the Nokia 5800 and N97 now, see version 0.89 at the venerable Dr Jukka's web site, along with new versions of the companion plug-ins. Just thought you'd like to know that. Especially if you're trying to get some S60 miscellany files out of your 5800's Inbox like me...
I often want to subscribe to a podcast that's not in the official Podcasting directory. At the moment, I have to bring up the RSS feed's address on the screen, write it out by hand on a piece of paper and then type it all in again into the Podcasting application. However, there's a quicker way, involving copy and paste. In this tutorial, I show how to subscribe to podcasts in Nokia's Podcasting system without typing a single podcast URL.
Google's desktop web site has been offering the text of public domain and other licensed books for a while, but they've just launched a mobile version as well, books.google.com/m . Ostensibly formatted for Android devices and the iPhone, it works after a fashion on S60 devices too, with their Webkit-based browsers. Some screenshots below to show how it works...
PhotoFlow, from Scalado, is a piece of software that can be used to view, and zoom-in on, images stored on the phone. While Gallery ties in with the rest of the phone (e.g. send as MMS) PhotoFlow is a better performer if you are simply interested in viewing images; as our video demonstrates, you are able to browse through images and zoom in much faster than the standard Gallery application. Read on for more and to view the video.
Quite a lot of people think you need a computer to subscribe to podcasts, but you don't. In another in our series of Nokia 5800 beginner's tutorials, Tzer2 explains how to browse, subscribe and download podcasts straight onto the phone, with absolutely no need for any kind of PC or Mac. The tutorial is, of course, equally useful and valid for using Nokia's Podcasting application on any other S60 phone. Also, see our new index page to Tzer's excellent tutorial series for the 5800 XpressMusic.
Yup, Google Maps for Mobile, the native S60 version, just hit v3.00 an hour ago. The main change is the addition of Google Latitude, a way of finding your friends on the map. More details, screenshots and the high-res version of the Latitude launch video below. To grab your own copy of v3.00, go to m.google.com and click on 'More' and then 'Maps'.
NS Basic, the hybrid (and cross-platform) Basic/object-oriented development system has officially added "support for Symbian OS S60 5th Edition". The new v1.1 of the NS Basic SDK also features "an improved user interface for applications created with the tool". See the NS Basic release for pricing and more. (via Symbian One)
Kudos to SymbianpOp and getting there first with a detailed and illustrated look at the new version of Buddycloud. This free software (for Java, S60, etc. and with special emphasis here on touch and S60 5th Edition) lets you interact with friends, with full status and (favourite) location updates, derived from GPS, cell towers and Wi-Fi, plus there's interoperability with the likes of Twitter and Facebook. An interesting read!
Yup, BBC iPlayer just appeared in Download! for UK users of the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. Some screens below the break. Technically it's only a streaming solution, though. Despite prompts from the widget to 'Save' a file after watching, you're not saving the video stream itself. A little messy. Comments welcome!
