AAS Insight 104 - Symbian goes open source

In All About Symbian Insight 104 (AAS Podcast 168), Rafe and Steve start with a quick look ahead to Mobile World Congress and then round up a number of small news items, including multiple firmware updates (N97 mini, X6, 5730, E52), details of a new version of the Ovi Store client, information on Greystripe and the Ovi Store and  the lowdown on 1.4 million Ovi Maps downloads. In the second half of the podcast we discuss the big news that the the open sourcing (EPL) of the Symbian platform (40 million lines of code) has been completed four months ahead of schedule. You can listen to AAS Insight 104 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.

The Nokia N97 Story: Choosing Classic or Mini?

With the release of the new (v21 or v11, depending on the device) firmware for the Nokia N97 and N97 mini, both smartphones suddenly got distinctly more appealing, running more applications at once and with their software finally becoming 'fit for purpose'. So you like the unique, patented, hybrid form factor? So do I. But the big question is: which one should you buy? In this feature I look at every single difference between the two phones, commenting where needed and.... I try to pick an overall winner.

Optimising (and rationalising) RAM on the Nokia N97

Steve Litchfield explores the world of RAM on the Nokia N97 and N97 mini, demonstrates that you can still multitask well over a dozen applications at once, discusses what Nokia got wrong and gives some pointers as to what you can do to keep things on the rails...

Video: Symbian's journey to EPL

Continuing our coverage of Symbian EPL news we offer this video were we talk to Chris Davidson, a Program Manager at the Symbian Foundation, about the journey to EPL. Chris talks about the processes involved in the transition, some of the challenges and the opportunities for device manufacturers and developers. We've also added an extra bonus video where Chris explains the #symbiancountdown and the story behind it.

Symbian Foundation completes move to open source

Today the Symbian Foundation announced that it has completed the move to open source. The platform, which runs on more than 330 million devices and has been developed over the last 10 years is now freely available to all under the EPL (Eclipse Public License). The process, which was delivered four months ahead of schedule, is the largest transition from proprietary code to open source in software history.

The completion of the open source transition marks a critical milestone for Symbian as it seeks to build the enablers for the future of mobile, based on openness and innovation. Read on to view our video interview with Lee Williams and for further information.

Mobile World Congress 2010: The Plan

With Mobile World Congress just 10 days away, it's time to share some of our plans with you. This year All About Symbian (AAS) is teaming up with Mobile Industry Review (MIR) to bring you in-depth video coverage direct from Barcelona. We're combining our resources to bring you in-depth content that we hope will inform, educate and entertain. In addition, you can expect our usual flow of live updates and editorial from all the All About Symbian team.

AAS Insight 103 - Nokia Q4, Skyfire, iPad

In All About Symbian Insight 103 (AAS Podcast 167), the team start with news of Nokia's Q4 results, which saw an encouraging 5% upswing in smartphone market share (QoQ). We then discuss the Apple iPad news, which leads into a discussion of the importance of service ecosystems. Finally there's news of Skyfire and listener questions on advertising subsidies and dual boot devices. You can listen to AAS Insight 103 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.

Nokia versus Apple and those 'surprising' stats - it's a question of range

We live in interesting times. Nokia and Symbian (in particular) are regularly savaged in the tech press, yet managed to turn in (on Thursday) a surprisingly positive set of results, with over a billion Euros profit in Q4 2009 and with their smartphone market share up (not down, as the analysts would have you believe) 5%, worldwide. Read on for my thoughts on how Nokia has managed this particular feat and on why Symbian's market share is also not going away anytime soon - it's all a question of RANGE.

Apple vs Nokia: Who is the biggest, and why it matters

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.

Nokia Q4 2009 results, smartphone world market share up 5%

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.