Symbian Review

Every Symbian developer knows that the most of mobile applications for new Symbian devices have to go through the special certification, a Symbian Signing. For many small development companies this new initiative of Symbian has turned to a plaque and made the development of Symbian applications not interesting financially. Symbian market becomes to be dominated by companies, not single developers.

In this article we want to give some tips for Symbian application developers.

What does the Symbian Signing bring?

There are some benefits and some drawbacks as always.

Beneficial is this mobile software certification system first of all for the consumer. Buying the certified applications the consumer can be sure that there is a certification authority that has tested the application, so it can not crash the system or include viruses.
The main drawback is felt by the developers. They have pay more, wait unpredicted time for the certification and have to fill out many papers to pass the Symbian Signing.

Read the rest here.

Courtesy Symbian-review.

N93i - the rest of the story..

Continued from here...
Problems

There are a lot of problems with the new N93i, mostly coming up due to the new design and form. For instance the mirror screen up front has been designed to facilitate using minor features of the phone without opening it and for seeing incoming call IDs. But when you stand outdoors the visibility of the screen reduces drastically - so much so that you'll have to bring it up to your eyes and twist and turn to get an angle that let's you see the screen. Problems with the form factor also arise such as a misalignment of the front face of the phone as well as some play..mostly towards the left. But on the looks front it really does looks good..!


Improvements

The new improvements include a joystick for side control when using the camera, buttons on the screen for added user friendliness, good Zeiss lens cover, stylish sim access and a battery similar to the n95 - but which lasts noticeably longer.


The Metal keyboard scores way high on looks and durability but is in the pits for usability..a real pain for my poor lil' fingers they've been. There isn't much of a divide between the buttons except a flimsy rubbery thing and the delete button is microscopic, you'll have lots of trouble with that little thing!!

Camera
Easy to use, with design elements of a handy cam, the N93i's Imaging Capabilities are similar to that of the the N93. Noise reduction is the same though the stereo effect has been found to be comparatively lower. Another bug that i found was that the brightness decreases upon zooming using the optical zoom. This is a real bad situation, because there isn't much use with a Optical Zoom camera if you can't get more detail into it!

Another thing i took note of was that the subject can see himself on the front screen and get an idea of what he looks like when the picture is taken. And girls could use it for putting on make-up and applying lipstick..creative of me isn't it?...

Speakers

The speakers are garbage compared to that of most other recent releases from Nokia.. it doesn't even come half way near to what the speakers of the Nokia 5700 can do! What good is a N-series multimedia phone if you can't even use it for hearing music?? Nokia seems to be losing it's touch here...

And so in the end the N93i is yet another expensive phone in the market today, and will be so until the next Nokia N-Series handset comes along.

N93i Wares:
Games ( Symbian S60 v3 )
Softwares ( Symbian S60 v3 )

looks some what like a transformer doesn't it?? or like a lap top computer perhaps ???

Quickoffice Premier v4.5 (Upgrade) for S60 3rd

Our favorite Mini-Office suite is back again in a different avatar.. this time as the Premier version with a premier pricing - 50$(handango). Tagged as version 4.5.14.8, the upgrade weighs a full 2.4MB and recquires atleast 3MB free for smooth working.

One of the problems that the demo version had was that its a very non-functional demo... if you open an existing file I don't believe you can edit it at all. Its not a bad little editor, though, and it will open large Word and excel files without difficulties... my problem is that its SLOW.Guess I'll have to stick to my laptop for real writing....Unlike most other competing mobile office products, Quickoffice preserves documents during editing preventing document corruption and loss of formattingn and i believe that this little function has been made more perfect in the premier version.

New Features Added in v4.5:

1.Advanced spell check with free dictionaries available in multiple languages.

2.Read text easier than ever with sharper fonts optimized for smartphones. That is a real necessity when you take smartphones into mind.

3.Record live voice notes in PowerPoint to more conveniently add and share your review comments.

4.Performance optimizations for handling documents with large amount of text. I

Compatible Devices:

Nokia N75 (S60 Erd Edition), Nokia E90 Communicator, Nokia 6120 (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia N73 (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia N77 (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia N93 (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia N93i (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia N95 (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia 6290 (S60 3rd Edition), Nokia E61i, Nokia E65, Nokia N76 (S60 3rd Edition), LG JoY, Samsung SGH-i520, Nokia 6110 Navigator

To see nokia's page about this application go here.

The product requires a registration key to unlock the full version. Your registration key will be provided at the time of purchasing and will be displayed on the software download page and within your confirmation email. If you buy it that is..

Psst..u can get an alternate office suite over here.. it's app number 23...

This and that - V12.0.013

These are certain things that i've started noticing after I installedu
the l8test N95 firmware.

1. The gallery button flashes on and of when the backlight goes of and
when the screen saver is activated. It looks real neat..reminds me of
the range indicator LED in the n73.

2. It fails to register about a quarter of my key strokes..and it
ain't a hardware problem!

3. Unlike popularly said the music player doesn't start with 2 strokes
of the multimedia menu - it is activated with a single long press of
the same key.

Those are all the differences noted till now..if you have any
suggestions feel free to comment.

P.S: I've heard that the v12.0.014 update is here.

MSN Live! on the Nokia N95!

The title kind of rhymes doesn't it ! Wow - this could be the start of a beautiful relationship between me and poems ;)

Anyways, moving onto the topic, i just found an app for incorporating MSN Live! onto out N95s. I installed the Windows live app and I now have an authentic MSN Messenger running on my N95.

I tries to run and it did run albeit slowly, but that's probably because I only has a plain vanilla GPRS signal - EDGE in Kerala is only available rarely(don't even think about 3G!People will laugh at you!!). It looks good but I'd prefer the Agile Messenger any day.

You can Download Microsoft Windows Live Client v1.0.614 to your PC here.

or

You Download the client directly to your mobile from http://file2mobile.com/get and enter this key: 853651.
Important: Install dep.sisx before the other file.

New Version of Nokia Maps - v1.2

A new version of Nokia Maps is now available for the N95, in addition to a new version of the Nokia Map Loader. Unfortunately the Map Loader's working also recquires the installation of the .NET framework 3.0 on a Windows XP computer, don't ask me why..

You can get the updates here.

I recommend downloading both of them as having the latest version always has it's benefits.

THe new app is very different on my N95. Start-up splash screen shows Nokia Maps and there is the usual network question to click through (I have mine disabled).

The globe screen is also different, scrolling East/West and North/South now follows the long and lat axes and there is a three dot icon in the lower left that cycles red until a lock is achieved, when they all turn green. The cross-hair did NOT zoom in automatically to my GPS position either, so I had to do this manually with the * key and when I did this, none of my map data was available. SO i had to re-install all the maps... such a pain..

Which is when i found that there are new maps available for the new Nokia Maps..to download these this is what you've gotta do:

Method 1

1 - download and install Maps 1.2 to your phone BUT DON'T RUN IT YET.
2 - download and install Map Loader to your PC, connect your phone and run it.
3 - select the option to delete/remove the existing maps from your phone.
4 - Disconnect your phone and run the Maps program once allow it to get a fix and then exit Maps
5 - Reconnect your phone to Map Loader and download your maps, you should now get the latest maps.

Method 2

1 - download and install Maps 1.2 to your phone BUT DON'T RUN IT YET.
2 - download and install Map Loader to your PC, DON'T RUN IT
3 - connect your phone in mass storage mode and find the old maps folder, should be in E:/Private/20001f63 - Delete it
4 - Disconnect your phone and run the Maps program once allow it to get a fix and then exit Maps
5 - Reconnect your phone to Map Loader and download your maps, you should now get the latest maps.
In N95 the GPS receiver is located in the bottom of the device, below the numeric keyboard. When using the receiver, slide the numeric keypad open
and hold the device upright in your hand at an angle of about 45 degrees, with a clear view of the sky. Make sure, that your hand does not cover the GPS receiver.
Establishing a GPS connection may take from a couple of seconds to several minutes. Establishing a GPS connection in the car may take longer.

If your device cannot find the satellite signal, consider the following:
- If you are indoors, go outdoors to receive a better signal.
- If the numeric keypad slide is closed, open it.
- If you are outdoors, move to a more open space.
- Check that your hand does not cover the GPS receiver of your device.
- If the weather conditions are bad, in such a case the signal strength may also be affected.
- Establishing a GPS connection may take from a couple of seconds to several minutes.
- Avoid to use screen saver when GPS connection is establishing.

That's ol folks, have a great mapping time.. :)

Personalising the N95 - the Brando way!!

It's always great to own a N95, more so when it's different from the one that everyone else owns. The standard N95 that comes with the silver face is nice but how would you rank one that comes with a black MusicEdition style face? or a pink one for gifting your girl? or how 'bout a blue one that looks super cool?! Wouldn't it be great?? Ofcourse it will - and that's why I decided to review some cases from Brando.

The cases i received are from Brando - and I must say that I really
liked their cases. The case package includes a front plate, and a
battery cover for added customisation(you could perhaps put your own
graphic or text on it if you have the time and creativity to do it),
but I don't use the battery cover..I'm happy with the face housing
alone.

The silver housing is sort of like a ditto of the Original Nokia
Product and is an excellent cheap replacement part which will save you
the trouble of dealing with the Nokia Care Center which I absolutely
detest(of all the cases that i have had with the NSC only a rare few have
been positive). And i must say that with the complete silver suiting on the n95 it does look kinda sporty !!

Then comes the Black Housing. Put it on and you have a phone that
could easily be mistaken for the much hyped Music Edition itself! The
finish is excellent with a slightly glossy effect similar to that of
the actual Music Edition about to be released.

Gifting your girl friend a N95 would be the best gift ever. But what
if you have it with a cute lil' pink housing that comes with a soft
smooth finish? Now that would be really something 'cuz she'd know that
you really put your mind into giving her something nice, rather than
just spending money on the best in the market. And when her friends
see the pink N95 they're bound to ask about it. nice eh? ;) Did you know that Darla Mack also has a pink one!!

Finally comes my favourite - the Mystic Blue colour gives the N95 just
the effect that it needs! Coming in a matt finish this is the ultimate
touch that you can give your beloved phone. LUV IT!!

So what are you waitin' for?? Go get yourself one of these chic
housings and get all the bragging rights that you deserve. Even the other N95 users will be there looking in awe at your handset :D
Bathe yourself in the glory of your creation!!

Price: 9 US $.

Pros: Finish, Price.

Cons: Durability.

More N95 Style Tips??

Note: All the Panels used in the above pictures have been supplied by Brando. If you are interested in any of the panels you can order them at Brando.

N95 - Customise the Look

When I tried to take apart my N95 the other day, I found that the (back) cover can be easily popped out. This makes it easy to customize and change covers... I don't think the other N-Series phones have this cool feature..

I'l be putting up a few reveiwed panels within a few days. Damn, it'll be cool to have a N95 that looks different than the rest. With a few lil' tweaks we could even morph it to look like a Music Edition !

Shouldn't be long before different covers reveiw start appearing over here - so don't forget to check this place for any updates !!

Nokia 5700 - The good, the bad & the ugly..

A few days ago, I had the chance to use the Nokia 5700 ExpressMusic courtesy my friend BinuRaj. This one was black in colour and had a 1GB microSD - filled to the brim wih music(obviously). The 5700 is kind of like the update to the Nokia 5300..but sometimes i wonder whether it really is good enough to be considered as a successor.

Most music fans usually crave for a simplistic music device that can play great music as well as provide sufficient bragging rights - which is why the iPod is such a hit.

The 5700 doesn't seem to work that way..it's music output through the ear phones is excellent, more so if you use your favorite headset but it's loudspeaker's performance is..uhm..minimal. The volume is low ant the sound hazy. I considered them as a bad omen for the things to come.

The menu & delete buttons were'nt friendly at all - you had to practically aim first before hitting the key(i really felt like hitting it!). And it's revolving bottom is about sa reliable as the N95's dual slider. Both are unique - not only in their features but also in their complaints...

On the other hand the body materials are really good, i particularly liked the matt finish in the middle. The phone's processor is above 350mhz which makes for a real smooth OS - the S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1; which is one of the reason why i got interested in this particular smartphone.

The screen is crisp and brings out the colours vibrantly. Movie playback was also good - excelt the sound when you put it in speaker mode. The 3.5mm jack lets you plug in your favourite headset easily - you are not restricted tot he Nokia headsets alone, which i must say is a very good move.The 2MP camera also does a good job in aking those precious moments with panache, the flash kicking in whenever you need it the most. Moreover the battery compartment is placed neatly and holds the BP-5M battery snug and cosy. Mind you - it ain't easily removable! And the battery life is pretty good too..especially compared with that of the N95 Euro Edition. The USA Edition is ofcourse a different story...

Overall the 5700 is a nice phone, but it ain't gonna woo anyone away from an iPod.and be carefull when you twist it !!

5700 Wares:

Games ( Symbian S60 v3 )

Softwares ( Symbian S60 v3 )

US 3G Nokia N95 Getting Battery Upgrade!

It seems Nokia has upgraded the N95 for the US market, taking care of most of the problems that it had faced earlier.

The first is that the thing finally has US 3G. It's 850/1900, so you're cruising on AT&T's HSDPA network at speeds up to 3.6mbps. That's fast.Of course, you can still fall back to EDGE, if you're out of area. Worldwide travelers should know that they did remove the 2100 HSDPA.

Then, the battery. Oh, that puny battery.. it's been upped to a whopping 1200 mAh!! That's a competition to the add-on battery released by Yoobao even!!! 'Course the Yoobao battery is at 1400mAh - but it destroys the looks. The Nokia BL-6F fits in there all snug and gives the N95 the power it so desperately needs. Compare that to the previous N-series Battery Overlord, the N73, with 1100 mAh.

The phone is said to be shipped along with a 1GB microSD to take care of the memory needs that it's 5MP camera would want.. not to mention the rate at which the camera sucks up memry when in video mode with it's 30FPS shooting rate.

There are also rumours going around that the RAM has been boosted up to 128MB. Qith that kinda power i wonder why they didn't add that NVIDIA GoForce Graphics too.. then the n95 would be the ultimate multimedia device on the face of this planet!!

Oh and by the way, the BL-6F doesn't get into the old n95s :( . From what they've said the BL-6F needs more space in the battery compartment. If this phone does come out, then it'l be a really bad day for all euro n95 users out there..

Symbian-Guru says:
Finally they're throwing the US a bone and giving us a leg up over the European market.

Oh well..i guess life's like that...sniff

courtesy symbian-guru.com

AntiVirus - security vs performance

Ain'tVirus...i mean it's an Antivirus ;)

Trend Micro Mobile Security v3.0:
The integrated solution provides automatic, real-time scanning to protect wireless devices against malicious code and viruses on the Web or hidden inside files in combination with a packet-filtering firewall.

As the number of data-centric mobile devices grows, industry analysts such as Gartner and Meta Group expect them to become an attractive target for virus writers. Mobile Security provides protection against emerging threats via a compact yet sophisticated scan engine that helps detect and block malicious code.

NEW FEATURES:
This release of TMMS support for Symbian OS/S60 3rd Edition adds usability improvements as well as a firewall and intrusion detection to the previous releases of TMMS.
GETPROTECTED!


One of the drawbacks that i see from getting your hands on one of these is that they seriously slow down your phone, and in the case of the already tight strapped RAM of the n95 - it'll be Hell for the user !

Moreover there aren't many viruses around for the s60 v3 phones as yet, so you can just keep the sisx file on your phone incase of an emergency.

But the firewall and intusion detection are certainly things that we can't live without - especially in today's world of digital espionage and theft...cyber theives can ruin your life with touch of a button !! Scary isn't it?

Others to check out are:
NetQin Anti-Virus Pro v2.2.40
Jiangmin Antivirus [beta]

Or read about the Folder.exe virus that seems to be affecting symbian phones!

LifeStyles !

Select your choice add-ons from these themes and skins or try one of the housings or panels for size...

I. Themes/Skins.
II. Covers/Panels/Housings.
III. Vaja Ivolution Holster.
IV. Customising MasterPlan - MusicEdition.

have a gr8 time surfin' thru this collection...i'l be back with more of 'em !

Do check out my other reviews here..

Device Locker

WebGate Advanced Device Locks v1.01:
Advanced Device Locks is a Symbian OS application for locking the phone or selected applications only, such as Messages, Pictures, Contacts, Video or any other. With Advanced Device Locks you can secure your phone by locking it up with a secret code up to 7 characters long.

Advanced Device Locks allows you to lock your phone automatically by choosing one of the following options:


Always - each time the phone is turned on, it asks for the unlock code.


When SIM Changed - the locks are on if the SIM card of the phone is changed.


Automatic lock - an automatic lock is switched on after a specified period of inactivity in minutes.


Protected applications - this option turns on the device locks if someone tries to access the protected application.

DOWNLOAD

SMS Spam Manager

WebGate SMS Spam Manager v1.01:No more unwanted messages and SMS Spam!

Advantage

SMS Spam Manager blocks the unwanted SMS messages without producing any sound or light indication.

Functionality

With SMS Spam Manager you can effectively filter all your incoming SMS messages.

There are 6 different types of filters to block unwanted SMS. You have the freedom to choose whether to reject all incoming messages or to accept messages only from people listed in your phonebook. You can also choose to block incoming SMS messages from a defined phone number, from a defined prefix number and even messages that contain a defined phrase.

With SMS Spam Manager you can tune your phone with 4 different modes and choose among 6 different filters to block junk and unwanted SMS messages:

Accept all (inactive) - the phone will accept all incoming SMS messages.
Block all - the phone will block all incoming SMS messages.
Accept phonebook only - the phone will accept incoming SMS messages only from people listed in your phonebook.
Block from black list rules - the phone will block the incoming SMS messages, which meet at least one of the rules listed below.
Block from black list rules option allows you to filter and block incoming SMS messages in three different ways, choosing one of the three black list rules:

Telephone number - all messages coming from a defined phone number will be blocked.
Prefix number - all messages coming from a defined prefix number will be blocked.
Text match - all messages that contain a defined phrase will be blocked.
You can check all blocked messages anytime, as they are kept in "Blocked SMS log" and restore them into your SMS Inbox if needed. You can also easily check the number of messages rejected and accepted since SMS Spam Manager has been started.
DOWNLOAD