All About Symbian - Series 80 News

Trivopaedia 2008

I know quite a few of you rely on my definitive pub-quiz-helper, Trivopaedia. It's now been brought up to 2008 levels, with up to date stats for v2.3 . It's available in Mobipocket reader and iSilo formats (i.e. compatible with any portable device or any platform), in addition to being fully online as well - and of course it's still free.

The Traveller's BFF - WorldMate Professional

MobiMate recently added extra real-time flight information and facilities to their flagship traveller's app WorldMate Professional. Luckily our own Ewan knows a thing or two about travel utilities and so I threw the app in his direction. The result? We now have ourselves another (though fairly rare) All About Symbian 'MegaApp'. Here's the full review.

Read on

Introducing Hexxagon Labs

You've got to admire some developers for the way they manage to release their titles across the range of smartphone platforms, in this case at least five varieties on Symbian OS. Attila Katona has been reviewing Herocraft's new Hexxagon Labs strategy game (think Othello but six-sided) on S60 and comes away quite impressed.

How to: Get push GMail for free

Do you use GMail or a service like it on the web? Does your email server have an IMAP option? If so, why not set up Messaging on your S60, UIQ or Series 80 smartphone for IMAP access and get pseudo-push email, simply and for free? I investigate what's involved. And how does GMail via IMAP/Messaging compare with GMail via the dedicated Java application?

"But for single user, home or semi-pro use, I really can't see much point in complicating your email handling by inserting a third party provider or service between you and your mailbox. Like many people, I standardised on a single GMail account last year and have been supremely happy. There's a GMail mobile client, but it's Java-based, which means slower startup, unnecessary RAM overheads (important on some devices), and a manual 'refreshing' of your inbox."

Read on

Eggstreme: Sizzler Supremacy - a free Symbian game for Easter

The makers of the free Xmas game Snowed In have come up with a similar Easter-themed free game called Eggstreme: Sizzler Supremacy. It's available for every Symbian platform (S60 3rd, S60 1st/2nd, UIQ3, UIQ2, Series 80 and Series 90). The S60 3rd version supports all screen resolutions including the N80 and E90. You can download the relevant game file by going here, and you can get the free unlock code by going here.

The Nokia E90 takes on allcomers

I've been taking a look back and forward at four of the competitors to the Nokia E90. What's it up against in the market for qwerty-keyboarded clamshells? And how does it compare, spec for spec, blow for blow? It's certainly an interesting form factor and one which is apparently increasing in popularity.

Read on

Handy Weather v5 keeps up the same high standard

You'll remember that we've looked at Epocware's Handy Weather before, giving both the original S60 3rd Edition version and that for UIQ 3 well deserved AAS MegaApp awards. And now they've gone and improved it again, adding weather maps and streamlining the interface. Still a MegaApp? You bet, it's still one of the stars in the Symbian OS firmament - here's my review of Handy Weather version 5.01.

"It's not often that I get to review an application that's nigh-on perfect in every detail. Yet Handy Weather is such a program - admittedly it only really does one thing (check the upcoming weather for a small number of locations) but it does it so smoothly and unobtrusively that it just had to earn a coveted Mega-App award. Available for almost every handheld platform in the world (really), Handy Weather impresses under S60, shown here, by not only working as a standalone application but also making its functionality available as a screen-saver."

Read on

Top 10 - Classic Smartphones

In times of inconsistent quality, it's good to reflect back on devices that have oozed quality, charisma or style, and sometimes even all three. In "Top 10 - Classic Smartphones", I count down the significant stars of the Symbian OS world from the last 7 years. Controversial? Biased? Probably. But I'll bet there are four or five of these on everybody's own personal top 10 from the same period! Comments and your own picks are more than welcome!

"10. Nokia 9500 (2004)

The 9210 (see below) had been established for a couple of years and the 9500 was the big facelift. Rolling in then-new technologies like Wi-Fi and GPRS made a big difference to connectivity, as did the smaller and more pocketable form factor. To this day there are a lot of hardened 9500 users who wouldn't swap their Symbian and Series 80-powered Communicator for the world."

Read on

OxyCube debuts

Oxygen Software have been plugging away at their Phone Manager product for years, and they've just announced a major revamp, rebrand and relaunch. OxyCube is released yesterday and is compatible with a wide range of handsets and provides syncing and file browsing functions. (via SymbianOne)

4 In A Line for Symbian OS

Krisse has been looking at yet another very solid ZingMagic conversion of a classic game to Symbian OS. In this case, 4 In A Line for all S60 and UIQ-powered smartphones of all vintages. You won't buy this for the soundtrack or graphics, but you can't beat the classic gameplay. It's also probably great for children for long car journeys 8-)

The Travel Survival Kit tested in detail

Never mind other namby-pamby accessory reviews, you can rely on an AAS contributor to pull out all the stops in terms of exhaustive detail. 'Snoyt' from the forums has done just that, testing the (3400mAh) Proporta Travel Survival Kit - just how many times can it really charge an empty Nokia N95?

Incoming: Meteor for all Symbian OS platforms

I reviewed Meteor almost three years ago but Krisse, in the run up to the next-gen N-Gage launch in ~~2007~~ ~~2009~~ 2008, has been revisiting many Symbian OS classics and here reviews Meteor again in QVGA form on a modern S60 3rd Edition device. Has the game changed in the intervening years - does Meteor still hold up? It's available for all versions of S60 and UIQ, plus Series 80, by the way.

"The Breakout/Arkanoid genre has been around for almost as long as computer and video games themselves, and it's a one-player variation on good old Pong. Part of the reason is that it's so darn easy to program such a game, but perhaps another reason is that it's somewhat timeless, still surprisingly addictive after 25 years of existence."

Read on

Last chance to get Snowed In 6 for free

Twelfth Night has come and gone so Xmas is well and truly over, but you can still get Snowed In 6: Deep Freeze for free if you hurry. Simply download the game from this page (click on the relevant "try" button), install it on your Symbian device, and then head on over to the unlock code page to get your free key. SI6 is available for all Symbian platforms, and the offer ends on the 15th of January.

You can see a gameplay video of Snowed In 6 over on the Unofficial Nokia Gaming Blog, and there are screenshots of all the Symbian versions below:

S60 3rd Edition

S60 1st & 2nd Edition

UIQ3

UIQ2

Series 80

Nokia 7710 (Series 90)

Symbian help - by email

Craig Loxton, the guy who guested in the latest Smartphones Show, has been busy - he's set up a Symbian Help group on Google Groups , presumably intending to run it much like the old, beloved EPOC Digest back in Psion days. It'll cover S60 and UIQ matters and is open to all.

Merry Christmas to all our readers!

All About Symbian would like to wish all its visitors a very happy Christmas. If you're hankering after some Xmas-related Symbian action while defrosting or digesting the turkey, don't forget to check out our recent features on Symbian Christmas Games and S60 3rd Edition Christmas Themes.