I asked an eclectic selection of 20 luminaries, bloggers and power users from the Symbian ecosystem: "Which is the Symbian-powered smartphone of the Decade? Which one was most significant, the most memorable, the most game-changing and the most loved?" Here are their answers, for your interest and amusement - and yes, a clear winner emerged...
Following on their action in October, Nokia have asked the US International Trade Commission to investigate Apple, alleging that '[they infringe] Nokia patents in virtually all of its mobile phones, portable music players, and computers'. The patents in question cover the areas of user interface, camera, antenna and power management technologies. Read on for more.
In All About Symbian Insight 99 (AAS Podcast 163), we discuss recent news including Nokia's presence at MWC, Ewan's Le Web trip and recent Apple legal activity. Then there's discussion of the Nokia Booklet 3G and the future direction of such mobile devices and software platforms. Finally there some special Christmas related content making for a longer-then-usual podcast. You can listen to AAS Insight 99 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
It's been a rough year for the Symbian ecosystem, and an especially rough year for their partners. Samsung and Sony Ericsson have taken their portion of the punishment, but the lion's share belongs, for good or ill, to Nokia. The ecosystem strikes me as remarkably like another that last year was on the way down, but is now in good health.
Track and Protect, now available in beta, is a personal remote security tool for Symbian phones. It brings easy-to-use remote management and security features, such as remote locking and wiping, to a consumer audience and also includes a location tracking module. We've taken a closer look at the beta version in this in-depth review and conclude that Track and Protect should 'significantly improve the chance of having your phone returned to you', if it is lost or stolen. Read on for more.
One would assume that with the Nokia N95, N96 and N97 having sequential product numbers, there would be a common aim for their use in the minds of Nokia's design team, along with a clear technical evolution. To be fair, you can see the former, in their focus on multimedia in conjunction with a decent camera. However, the latter isn't that easy to demonstrate, as I found when comparing the three Nokia flagships (from 2007, 2008 and 2009) head to head - it seems there are plenty of attributes for which the N95 wins and still more for which the N96 wins....
Ewan Spence looks back with a practised eye on Ten Things that Nokia could have done with their Regent Street flagship store in order to have made it a success... Can you add to the list? What did the Apple store do right and Nokia do wrong? (and you're not allowed to say 'Sell iPhones'...)
It's all very well having huge screens, tens of thousands of applications and even virtual and physical qwerty keyboards, but there's plenty you can do without typing a single character using Google's humble new Mobile App, using voice recognition on a vanilla, cheap S60 3rd Edition phone. Here are a few ideas - you might be very surprised!
In All About Symbian Insight 98 (AAS Podcast 162), we discuss the weeks news including closing Nokia Flagship Stores, Skype for Symbian Beta and Nimbuzz's Twitter integration. We also discuss some of the information that came out of Nokia's Capital Market Day, Steve's interview with Lee Williams (Executive Director of the Symbian Foundation) and offer insight into future Ovi Store developments. You can listen to AAS Insight 98 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
I'm repeatedly called a Nokia 'fanboy' in various comment threads by a small but determined set of Samsung i8910 HD-owning zealots*, and I'd like to respond with my own objective thoughts on the state of this Symbian flagship. Read on for what's good and bad about the i8910 HD (Omnia HD in some markets), along with a number of relevant links for further reading.
In All About Symbian Insight 97 (AAS Podcast 161), we discuss the release of Qt 4.6 and why it is important (Symbian and Maemo support, Qt Mobility APIs). We answer a range of user questions ranging from Ovi Suite for Mac, through N86 firmware and E72 software, to discussing what's the best current imaging phone. You can listen to AAS Insight 97 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
Returning to a familiar theme but with a new twist, I caught myself doing something rather silly and rather telling. Reprising the pros and cons of touchscreen phones in the face of almost universal acceptance, seemingly, it does rather seem as though a tipping point has been reached. Read on for my Dec 2009 thoughts on 'Touch vs non-Touch'...
The times, they are, as the bard quoth, a changin' - Google Maps Navigation now provides free turn by turn voice instructions on Android-powered phones in the USA, and it's only a matter of time before the licensing restrictions and map rollouts get sorted for real time navigation in many other countries. And all for free. But this still leaves a window of opportunity for Nokia to step in and change this landscape in an even bigger way - right now. And sell a truckload of phones in the process, worldwide. Read on for my thoughts.
There is a lottery whenever you download an application for your Symbian Samrtphone. I don't mean the lottery of whether you'll be able to re-download the app (although that can still be a concern); I don't mean the lottery of getting the right platform variation in terms of 3rd or 5th Edition or something even older (although that can be a concern as well); nor am I thinking about the “will the security certificate still be in date” when I install the app (seriously – who thought that expiring apps would be a good idea?)
In All About Symbian Insight 96 (AAS Podcast 160), we discuss recent rumour around Nseries in 2012 and the related Symbian / Maemo debate. Then there's news coverage of the Nokia 6700 Slide and Spotify on Symbian. We finish with a number of reader questions ranging from the web as a platform to buggy firmware and augmented reality. You can listen to AAS Insight 96 here or, if you wish to subscribe, here's the RSS feed.
