Ovi Maps now down to 'admin charges' levels for older phones
Published by Steve Litchfield at 9:05 GMT, March 9th 2010
As noted in Rafe's Maps interview thread, Nokia isn't keen to put resources behind creating a version of Ovi Maps 3.3 with free voice navigation for older S60 3rd Edition FP2 and FP1 (and vanilla 3rd Edition) phones. A good question is why Nokia doesn't then just make existing navigation licenses free, thus having much the same effect. It seems that they've gone much of the way to 'free' for older devices, with even a full 'Drive Europe' license now only costing 10 Euros for a year - this presumably to help cover admin and server costs. Photo proof and more below.
The battered editorial N82 from 2008, showing the price of a full annual Drive Europe license
People will still ask 'Why couldn't the licenses just be made totally free?' - but I think we have to throw Nokia a bone here - there are substantial admin and infrastructure costs to maintaining an online mapping and routing service, handling license retrievals, and so on, and in my opinion 10 Euros for a full year across an entire continent is still spectacular value. Competing phone-based navigation systems are still in the 70 Euro to 130 Euro a year bracket, and the purchase prices of standalone devices are higher still.
You'd spend more than 10 Euros by ordering coffee and a muffin for 2 people in a cafe - and here we're talking about unlimited journeys, everywhere you're likely to travel, with full in-car real time voice navigation, for a year, for less money.
A more interesting question is why Nokia haven't actually told anyone about the big price drop. Comments welcome if you noticed when it actually happened!
Steve Litchfield
Categories: Software, Miscellaneous
Platforms: S60 3rd Edition
News Discussion
Insane Reindeer
Now this is fantastic news! Yes, it is not free, but given that my free year only run out two weeks ago, I will, in effect, being paying 9.99 for two years! I had been waiting to see if the older models would benefit from any sort of free license/maps sort of thing, but having read this I am now more than happy to pay for the full year. Oh and on my phone the "traffic and safety" option is 4.99 as well.
When this runs out a year from now I will be ready to upgrade anyway. Nokia, some sort of big style press release would be nice please!
When this runs out a year from now I will be ready to upgrade anyway. Nokia, some sort of big style press release would be nice please!
megapack162
My question is "just what exactly is an older S60 FP2 handset?"
I bought an N86 in July, I could have just as easily have bought an N97 as it was released on the same day (but wasn't happy with all of the negative experiences that people were reporting) and it's still not supported even though the N97 is.
I have roughly 6 months remaining on my 3.0.1 Drive Europe licence and 3 months Traffic left, why should I have to purchase another year's coverage until my network contract comes up for renewal when other similar phones such as the 6710 Navigator and 6730 Classic get the free version.
I bought an N86 in July, I could have just as easily have bought an N97 as it was released on the same day (but wasn't happy with all of the negative experiences that people were reporting) and it's still not supported even though the N97 is.
I have roughly 6 months remaining on my 3.0.1 Drive Europe licence and 3 months Traffic left, why should I have to purchase another year's coverage until my network contract comes up for renewal when other similar phones such as the 6710 Navigator and 6730 Classic get the free version.
fakefur
@megapack... i'm beginning to feel we N86 owners bought a lemon that is being left out in the cold by everyone
Hurlley
megapack the n86 is supported just select some other phone as your phone and get the sisx file it works! I think making navigation free was a good but pointless move. nokia should be pouring money into marketing, they will have to take a bigger hit if they want to make a difference. All nokia users i know say "what its free?"
Unregistered
c'mon i bought the fabled nokia n85!!!!
gaming.... ngage is dead
music..... doesnt sound any better than my sony 850i which i bought in 2006
navigation.... not allowed for free.... need to pay money....
why doesnt nokia take a leaf out of the book of the automobile cos and recall phones which it can not even support for 3 years after the last sale.....
then again you people are hell bent in calling apple the devil while at least they are able to provide equal service to all the handset owners....
c'mon guys, i am in india spent 23k(rupees) on n85 in april... my warranty is not even over yet..... but my phone has no more support!!!!! thats an ugly truth..... no more nokia for me anymore......
no more nokia....... bad bad bad experience.......
and guess what nokia becomes a non recommendation product for me from now on......
Rohit K
India
gaming.... ngage is dead
music..... doesnt sound any better than my sony 850i which i bought in 2006
navigation.... not allowed for free.... need to pay money....
why doesnt nokia take a leaf out of the book of the automobile cos and recall phones which it can not even support for 3 years after the last sale.....
then again you people are hell bent in calling apple the devil while at least they are able to provide equal service to all the handset owners....
c'mon guys, i am in india spent 23k(rupees) on n85 in april... my warranty is not even over yet..... but my phone has no more support!!!!! thats an ugly truth..... no more nokia for me anymore......
no more nokia....... bad bad bad experience.......
and guess what nokia becomes a non recommendation product for me from now on......
Rohit K
India
slitchfield
The N86 is somewhat out on a limb, technically, I get the feeling it would have fitted OS-wise into a Nokia game plan from 6 months earlier than its eventual release. And, yes, its firmware has a few oddities that we're still hoping Nokia can find resources to fix up. Having said that, people bought the N86 because of its camera functions - which continue to work very well. It's hardly a 'lemon' 8-)
ansgp
^ same feeling comes here, when i see 5800 and nokia's future plans.
Unregistered
Nokia haven't actually come out and said the N86 isn't going to ever be supported, it could simply be a timing issue.
maartenmk
That really is a good price, almost worth buying just to show support for the initiative.
But without a Nokia statement about it I will wait a bit more anyhow. What if the free version does come along for FP1 in a month's time?
Well maybe I will go for the 1 month option...
But without a Nokia statement about it I will wait a bit more anyhow. What if the free version does come along for FP1 in a month's time?
Well maybe I will go for the 1 month option...
Unregistered
I am from India and observed this price drop ever since Nokia announced Ovi Maps going free. I use a Nokia 5320 XpressMusic phone (S60 3rd FP2), which has Nokia Maps app along with an external bluetooth GPS module.
Prices for pan-India drive license: Rs. 260 for 1 month license and Rs. 670 for 1 year license. Infact, I thought they should be free and that it was being shown in error, but not to be!
But anyways, its still soooooooo cheap!
Will this also apply to Nokia C5 phone?
Prices for pan-India drive license: Rs. 260 for 1 month license and Rs. 670 for 1 year license. Infact, I thought they should be free and that it was being shown in error, but not to be!
But anyways, its still soooooooo cheap!
Will this also apply to Nokia C5 phone?
Hardeep1singh
Never thought I'd say this but Nokia is turning into a bigger devil than.... Apple.
People who bought their iphones before I bought my Nokia are still getting support and my N82 is prehistoric and unsupported in Nokia's eyes.
People who bought their iphones before I bought my Nokia are still getting support and my N82 is prehistoric and unsupported in Nokia's eyes.
malerocks
All the people here who are comparing product support of Nokia to Apple are forgetting the fact that Apple has just 1 phone since launch - the iphone. Subsequent releases (3G, 3GS) have just had minor hardware & software updates, but basics of the phone model is the same. They dont need any special effort to support those models.
slitchfield
"N82 is prehistoric and unsupported in Nokia's eyes"
How exactly? At these prices, navigation is very nearly free and you get Ovi Maps 3.1, which is pretty near the Maps cutting edge.... All for a phone on which Nokia made a few tens of pounds profit from you two or more years ago. And presumably the phone is still otherwise working as advertised, with great photos etc.
Methinks people complain too much sometimes.....
How exactly? At these prices, navigation is very nearly free and you get Ovi Maps 3.1, which is pretty near the Maps cutting edge.... All for a phone on which Nokia made a few tens of pounds profit from you two or more years ago. And presumably the phone is still otherwise working as advertised, with great photos etc.
Methinks people complain too much sometimes.....
Unregistered
Well the price drop only happened in the last week! I had to buy a Ģ1.50 day license on my N95 8GB last Tuesday...
Sockatume
What does this mean for the software itself, though? The free access is inextricably coupled to Maps 3.3 and newer, so does this mean that every other handset is stuck with the current version of Ovi Maps, bugs and all, for eternity?
richardyates
Sorry Steve just can't agree with you on the N86 camera. I have a lot of experience with camera phones ( I have 5 8Mp or more camera phones on my desk right now).
N86 is a good camera, but only in optimal conditions. The moment the going gets at all tough, particularly in low light *without* flash, the N86 is a pile of... It is easily outclassed by both the Sony Ericsson phones I have, and by one of the Samsungs - to be fair I haven't tried the i8910 in low light.
Like the others I am disappointed that the free maps aren't supported on the N86 in an offical way - I can't even get them to instyall on mine, despite completely updating the software, and of course Nokia won't help me
So what could have been a great phone for me in almost every respect is completely let down by poor support, and lack of attention to photography in sub-optimal conditions.
If only Sony Ericsson made a Satio with a keypad, I'd be very happy:-)
N86 is a good camera, but only in optimal conditions. The moment the going gets at all tough, particularly in low light *without* flash, the N86 is a pile of... It is easily outclassed by both the Sony Ericsson phones I have, and by one of the Samsungs - to be fair I haven't tried the i8910 in low light.
Like the others I am disappointed that the free maps aren't supported on the N86 in an offical way - I can't even get them to instyall on mine, despite completely updating the software, and of course Nokia won't help me
So what could have been a great phone for me in almost every respect is completely let down by poor support, and lack of attention to photography in sub-optimal conditions.
If only Sony Ericsson made a Satio with a keypad, I'd be very happy:-)
neilhoskins
Thanks for the heads-up. Entirely reasonable approach, and I'm just about to pay for a year now. You also seem to be given a free "City Explorer" licence.
slitchfield
@richard: Methinks you're a little hard on the N86 - half the trick in low light is to keep the device steady while depressing the shutter. But I'll 100% agree with you that Nokia should have given it a Xenon flash. YES, IT'S STEVE XENON RANT time of the year again. I can feel it building inside me.... Just waiting for the Satio update to be available for my product code and then I'm heading for a Xenon showdown piece.....
Unregistered
I don't care what it costs Nokia. I don't agree that some of us should have to pay for Ovi maps while others get them for free. I have an N95 8GB. It isn't a cheap phone and it is still in contract. Yet when I try to use Ovi maps it just tells me I have to pay. I an VERY, VERY annoyed over this. I have always bought Nokia phones but, if they don't give me the maps for free, my next phone will NOT be a Nokia!!
malerocks
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Unregistered
I have always bought Nokia phones but, if they don't give me the maps for free, my next phone will NOT be a Nokia!!
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Unregistered
The price in the US is: $14.99 for the year and $4.49 for 30 days.
I'm a little embarrassed over everyone's sense of entitlement here. At no time when I purchased my E71 a year ago was I promised Nokia Maps (was a beta project at the time) much less a version with free turn by turn navigation. I read the reviews, compared prices, and concluded that it was the best phone for me at the time. Already, it's had firmware updates and a great version of Nokia Messaging, not to mention other cool Nokia bits like Custom Dictionary, Ovi Files, Ovi Sync, etc. that I use constantly.
All of those were given to me for free by Nokia and none of them were part of my purchasing decision. There were icing on the cake. I still would have purchased the same phone if none of those things were given to me.
The only reason that Nokia is releasing free navigation, is to sell more phones. It's costing them a TON of money to do this. The only valid reason I had for not paying for Ovi Maps in the past was that I thought it was too costly. Now, it'll cost me just over a dollar a month. I would have paid twice this amount 6 months ago, so it's a steal.
I'm a little embarrassed over everyone's sense of entitlement here. At no time when I purchased my E71 a year ago was I promised Nokia Maps (was a beta project at the time) much less a version with free turn by turn navigation. I read the reviews, compared prices, and concluded that it was the best phone for me at the time. Already, it's had firmware updates and a great version of Nokia Messaging, not to mention other cool Nokia bits like Custom Dictionary, Ovi Files, Ovi Sync, etc. that I use constantly.
All of those were given to me for free by Nokia and none of them were part of my purchasing decision. There were icing on the cake. I still would have purchased the same phone if none of those things were given to me.
The only reason that Nokia is releasing free navigation, is to sell more phones. It's costing them a TON of money to do this. The only valid reason I had for not paying for Ovi Maps in the past was that I thought it was too costly. Now, it'll cost me just over a dollar a month. I would have paid twice this amount 6 months ago, so it's a steal.
Dead1nside
Ģ9 for voice guided navigation for Europe. And Ģ3 for traffic is a very good deal. However when everyone else is getting free navigation there doesn't appear to be much reason to withhold it. I'm disappointed. Saying that you get free navigation on your Nokia was only half true wasn't it?
A conciliation would be if they get Nokia Maps for Maemo up to scratch in time for my next purchase. After all the N82 is old now.
A conciliation would be if they get Nokia Maps for Maemo up to scratch in time for my next purchase. After all the N82 is old now.
Pawlee
I might purchase this for my n82 and leave my n86 to collect dust... I'm getting sick of holding out a hope that my n86 will live up to my dreams... I know where I stand with my n82 at least :)
germcevoy
the moans are hilarious. You buy a phone and you get a phone. Bugs get ironed out in firmware. You can't expect to keep getting all the new bells and whistles that come along. Nokia is a hardware company. They want you to buy a new phone to benefit from free maps etc, Thats a much better deal for them rather than adding extra functionality to 'old' devices at a loss.
Unregistered
It should be free!! This article seems to be an excuse. Cīmon nokia (and CīMON A.A.S.). Are we paying the costs that new owners donīt have to pay ? It is not fair!
I have an unlocked E71 (NAM).
Regards from Argentina,
GermanG
I have an unlocked E71 (NAM).
Regards from Argentina,
GermanG