Ask a Google Nexus One owner why they chose it over the other Android offerings and chances are they’ll tell you it’s because of the frequent updates. Back in the day you had to take your phone to a Nokia repair center to get a firmware update, that’s if you were lucky. Most of the time the firmware you had the day you received the phone, that’s exactly the firmware it will have at the end of it’s life cycle. But with the increasing popularity of firmware-over-the-air (FOTA) updates, updating using your PC is becoming less popular. The best example of this is the Nokia N900, which got all of its updates using FOTA. So what exactly should can Nokia learn from Google?

The Nexus One not only provides the vanilla Google experience, but also gets lots and lots of updates. Big or small, as soon they’re available to the public, they are available for the Nexus One. This gives you the ability to quickly address issues and give your customers their most requested features that didn’t make it in the initial feature list. The latter is especially important for the mobile enthusiasts that wants the latest features and bugs fixed. Other Android devices with similar specs get the updates many many months later. Better yet, the Nexus One even gets all the major releases. I never heard of a Symbian device getting an update to the next major release.  

In the case of the N900 there has been a lot of improvement when compared to Symbian devices. First of all, because every single update has been done using FOTA, it’s more user friendly. There’s even an early build of MeeGo for the N900, arguably the next major release to follow Maemo. Despite Nokia’s lack of commitment to fully support MeeGo on the N900, we still see the early build for the N900 as a step in the right direction.

A lot is at stake with MeeGo and Nokia should treat it like it’s only child, giving it frequent updates. Listening to community and knowing what they want and putting these in frequently released FOTA’s is a big lesson they could learn from Google.

Do you value frequent firmware updates?

Back in May we brought you the scoop on the upcoming Documents To Go Premium Edition (PE) and now it’s finally here. Technically, Documents To Go Premium Edition isn’t the first documents editor for the N900. That honor goes to FreOffice, but seeing that it’s still in extras-devel repository, it’s not something we would recommend yet. So the first, stable, ready for prime-time release indeed does go to Documents To Go PE.

Now let’s get to the more important details. Buying the full version will set you back $29.99, while the Viewer Edition still costs $9.99. But if you were smart enough to get it during the introduction period, you’ll get the update to the Premium Edition for free!

Where you the one of the lucky ones that go the first version of DTG? Will you be getting the viewer or premium edition?

Nokia never made a USB desktop cradle for the N900. The closest thing from Nokia is the now discontinued DT-13. Brando has released two very interesting solutions for the lack of a proper desktop stand. The first model, the 8500 syncs your N900 using the built-in USB connection and charges the battery in the process.

The second option is basically the same thing, but adds a place to charge a second battery. That last model, the 8600, cost $6 more, but the option to charge a second battery seems well worth the extra.

Both of these cradles seem  a bit plasticky to us, but overall quality seems to be good. Have seen any cool desktop cradles for the N900, let us know.

Nokia phones are known for three things: good reception/call quality, solid build and easy to use menu. While that last one might be slowly slipping away, there’s no denying that Nokia devices are known for their incredible ability to get good reception even in difficult areas. There have been countless cases where I was the only one with reception, while others had 1 or 0 bars. Considering all the news around Apple and the antenna design of the iPhone, one thing is for sure, if the actual phone feature and good reception is a high priority, Nokia is still the best. With all the features being added, sometimes we forget that it’s still a phone and meant for making calls.

This what Nokia had to say about antenna design:

"Antenna design is a complex subject and has been a core competence at Nokia for decades, across hundreds of phone models. Nokia was the pioneer in internal antennas; the Nokia 8810, launched in 1998, was the first commercial phone with this feature.
Nokia has invested thousands of man hours in studying human behavior, including how people hold their phones for calls, music playing, web browsing and so on. As you would expect from a company focused on connecting people, we prioritize antenna performance over physical design if they are ever in conflict.
In general, antenna performance of a mobile device/phone may be affected with a tight grip, depending on how the device is held. That’s why Nokia designs our phones to ensure acceptable performance in all real life cases, for example when the phone is held in either hand. Nokia has invested thousands of man hours in studying how people hold their phones and allows for this in designs, for example by having antennas both at the top and bottom of the phone and by careful selection of materials and their use in the mechanical design."

So Apple mostly prioritizes form, while Nokia chooses function/performance. What these two are not seeing is that a good device should have both. When you prioritize the over the other you get compromise, a good design closely matches form and function.

Do you agree that Nokia is still number 1 when it comes to antenna performance? Is reception/call quality important for you? Let us know.

Via:Engadget

Image Courtesy: S60 Blog

The BH-214

Nokia BH-214 Adapter

The BH-214 is a Stereo Bluetooth adapter with a built-in clip and 3.5mm audio jack, allowing you to use your headphone of choice. If you noticed we called it an adapter and not a headset. Technically a headset  consists of both headphone and a microphone. The microphone itself is built into the BH-214 and it isn’t until you attach an ear/headphone can it be categorized as a Bluetooth headset. Even though you do have the option of using you own headphone, Nokia does include one (in-ear) called the Nokia Music Headset HS-44.

Nokia HS-44

The BH-214 seems to be a direct replacement for the Nokia BH-500, gaining a more refined and sophisticated design, but looses the included Nokia Wireless Audio Adapter AD-47W, a Bluetooth USB adaptor which lets you use the BH-500 with your PC. But as most modern laptops and desktops already have built-in Bluetooth, we certainly agree with Nokia’s decision to drop that accessory, which should help lower the overall price. And in fact it did. The Nokia BH-500 was a fairly expensive accessory and it was pretty common to see it offered well above the $100 mark, while the BH-214 can be easily found in the $50 range, making it a very good deal. 

Compared to its predecessor, the 214 seems to be the overall winner and even though it does have a smaller rechargeable battery, Nokia has managed to squeeze similar talk/music times as the 500, which is a very impressive feat by itself. However its still a mystery to us as to why the older BH-500 has the more advanced Headset profile 1.5, while the newer product includes the lower 1.2 profile.

When it comes to design, the BH-214 takes the complete opposite route compared to what we saw on the BH-500 and goes for a white and light grey theme. The overall look is traditional Nokia with the square shape, rounded edges and an almost futuristic design typically found with Nokia accessories. The overall white and grey theme holds surprisingly well against scratches, dirt, smudges and anything else that the elements can throw at it. You will have to clean it from time to time, but not as much as we expected.

***Pic Glass front***

  The front of the adapter is dominated by a see-through plastic that has a light Blue-Grey color, giving it an almost glass-like effect. They also subtlety integrated the answer/end and music controls in this see-through plastic, giving it a nice minimalistic look. Completing the design is the Nokia logo behind this plastic cover. Despite throwing it into a bag full of keys and other gadgets that might get it scratched, we were surprised to find that it’s virtually scratch free.

The back of the unit is done in a light silver plastic finish, but is mostly dominated by the integrated clip. The clip is integrated into the shell of the body, making it very sturdy and difficult to break. The top has microphone, power button and indicator light. This light if of the multi-color kind, serving several purposes instead of cluttering the overall clean design. There’s also a 3.5mm audio jack right where the body and clip are held together. The right side has the volume controls , while the bottom and left side are free of any buttons.

The supplied Nokia  HS-44 are mostly White, but has a light Blue-Grey accent to match to the BH-214. In certain situations we did find the cable for the HS-44 way too short and a bit to thin for our taste. For this last reason we really don’t expect them to last long and they got tangled way too easily. With the addition of the clip, Nokia expects the BH-214 to be held close to your head making the short cable something you could work with. But in certain cases you’d want to clip the BH-214 lower, for example on your belt or pocket. For these cases the cable is simply too short, forcing you to clip it closer to the neck area. However we do expect that a good chunk of BH-214 owners will buy this product for its music capabilities and simply swap the HS-44 for high-end headphoneS or in-ear monitors.

Performance

Both the BH-214 and HS-214 impressed us during the performance tests. Nokia states that fully charging the battery can take up to 2 hours, but during our testing we found this to more in the range of 30 to 45 minutes which is reasonably fast. However in future version of the BH-214,  we would like to see a fast-charge system,  like the one used on the BH-904. We were easily able to connect it to our laptop, Playstation 3 and several mobile phones with any problems. You can pair it with up 8 devices, but it can hold a connection with only 1 device at the time. In future versions we would like to see it have the ability to connect to two devices simultaneous, like a mobile phone and laptop for Skype calls. This is a future we’ve already seen on the BH-904.

The Bluetooth wireless range was something that truly stood out. Perhaps due its larger size, the BH-214 was able to hold a connection at almost twice the usual 33 feet (10 meters) range of your typical Bluetooth headset and has the longest Bluetooth range we’ve ever seen! This was only equaled by the ultra expensive Nokia BH-905.  As we moved farther away from our test mobile device, the music seem to almost pause for a split second, but quickly continued without any problems. Our guess is that as you increase the distance the BH-214 will increase it’s power to keep performance in check. Another interesting observation was how the BH-214 maintained its solid performance even with 2 walls between us and the test mobile device.

But were the BH-214 truly excelled was in the audio department, earning a flawless performance. Even more impressive when you consider that this is coming from a $50 accessory. The supplied earphones are usually the last thing manufacturers think about, but despite the HS-44’s short and thin cable, it also positively surprised with us a very good performance. Listening to these was like listening to $75-$100 earphones and not some bonus earphones included with an accessory. We decided to takes things a step further and attach the $550 Shure SE530 PTH to the BH-214. This little wonder was able to easily drive the SE530 with clean audio and plenty of volume headroom into levels that would do damage. With so many Bluetooth accessories lacking in volume, the BH-214 falls into the rare category that does. We simply couldn’t tell the difference with the our reference Shure SE530 plugged directly into our test Nokia N900 or wirelessly connected to the BH-214, proof  of its audio output quality. 

Phone calls with the BH-214 sounded excellent, with the supplied in-ear HS-44, it sounded a bit too good. However be prepared for a few stares while using the BH-214 for calls.

With a tiny and compact body, the BH-214’s 3.5mm jack could easily be put to use with more than just earphones and headphone. It worked nicely with speakers that accepted a 3.5mm audio-in, making our Bluetooth enabled smartphones a surprisingly good wireless remote.

Conslusion 

If you love music, especially streamed wireless, you should take a serious look at the Nokia BH-214. Audio streamed vai Bluetooth has been synonymous with lower quality and in fact it still is. The BH-214 is one of those rare devices that shows that wireless audio can sound as good or close to what can be achieved with a direct cable connection. During our testing with high-end earphones the BH-214 proved that it can sound as good as plugging our reference In-ear monitors directly to our mobile device. The supplied HS-44 earphones sound surprisingly really good, even though its cables are thin and way too short. This shouldn’t be such a big problem as we expect many owners to simply swap these with custom with high-end earphones or headphones. The BH-214 had one of the longest wireless range we’ve seen on an accessory and battery life is equally good to its predecessor with a smaller battery.

If you own high-end earphones or headphones and want some wireless freedom? We highly recommend the Nokia BH-214. It gets a 9.9 out of 10.

Some great Stereo Bluetooth Headphones can be found at our friends at MobileFun.

Pros

-Holds surprisingly well against dirt and scratches.

-With smaller battery gets equal music/talk time

-Impressive audio quality

-Supplied HS-44 earphones sound very good

-Lightweight and sturdy body

-Built-in clip

Con

-No microUSB charging

-HS-44 cables are too short

Nokia branded memory cards are usually not the fastest, but very reliable. We still don’t have no word on pricing, but expect something in the range of $130 to just south of the $200 mark. It’s also safe to say that the latest if you bought your Nokia in the last 2 years it should be able to supprt the SDHC standard. Nokia’s own compatibility list can be found here.

Why? There’s absolutely no reason why the N900 can’t  support this feature. There’s onboard support for OVI chat and even files can be uploaded to OVI, so why no support OVI contacts stored into the cloud?

It’s true that I should make regular backups, doing so would save me a lot of headache! But fact is that the average user won’t bother making any backups and that both the average and power user will simply we forget to this. For this reason  the process should be transparent and automatic, and should at least allow some level of customization when it comes to the frequency it makes backups. Nokia should enable this feature and allow activation through a one-time setup. Such a feature can be a life saver, but Nokia you should at least enable this for us N900 users.

As a N900 owner, do you wish it had an automatic backup feature that stores contacts into the cloud?

Amazon is now offering the Nokia N900 at a great $399 price, with free shipping and no coupons to deal with. While not as good as Dell’s $369 deal, which now officially has gone the way of the Dodo, the Amazon deal is quite a steal for such loaded device.

I might hit the buy button myself.

Know any other good deals on the Nokia N900? Let us know!

That other browser for the N900 has been updated to version 1.1 and in the process gains a few neat little tricks. Firefox for Maemo now includes interesting new features such as Self-Updating Add-ons, Save pages as PDF and context sensitive menus. This build finally integrates portrait browsing, just like the built-in microB browser and zoom using the volume buttons.

Other usability improvements include Start page with for example a list of your tabs history, there’s also a Form Autocomplete and Smart tap.

This update is for both the N900 and N810. Madhava.com has more  details on the new features.

Want to get this browser? Use the built browser and visit: Firefox.com/m

As you might have noticed, we haven’t been covering Symbian-based devices lately, focusing completely on the Nokia N900 and the upcoming MeeGo OS.  We started The Nokia Guide to cover the Nokia devices we’ve come to know and love, which at the beginning were Symbian-based. But as the mobile market has gotten progressively more competitive, especially from Android, we feel that Symbian-based devices have lost their edge to the point where we’re simply not covering them enthusiastically; we won’t buy them and won’t recommend them to our readers. As a result we’re going to make it official what we’ve been doing for a while now: stop covering Symbian-based devices. We feel that Symbian is becoming irrelevant and upcoming Symbian^3 and^4 don’t seem to change that. Other Symbian bloggers, such as our friends at Symbian-Guru are taking it one step further.

Luckily this doesn’t affect the Nokia N900 and upcoming MeeGo devices. I’m a happy Nokia N900 owner myself and would easily recommend it to our readers. Because Maemo serves as the basis for what will become MeeGo we have very high expectations for this platform and for this reason we will continue to cover Maemo and MeeGo exclusively.

Microsoft recently scrapped their plans for KIN and are completely focusing on Windows Phone 7. Nokia should do the same: scrap upcoming Nokia N8 and it’s QWERTY-based version and focus on MeeGo and getting developers on their side.

What do you think? Is Symbian becoming irrelevant?