DISQUS

LINK your original source Ani.

LINK your original source CJ.

Judie, the navi-key is like the ipod wheel, but it's not activated by default. Go to settings, then either inside personalization either in the main settings menu, there's a Navi-something option. Click it, and there you'll find the option to activate the Navi-key. It's not available everywhere on the menu, but it is in long lists (music, gallery, contacts, main menu....).
My guess is that Nokia are tinkering with it now, to see how it works, and then probably implement it activated by default over their portfolio. It was first present on the N81, but it only worked in the music and gallery, now it works in other apps and menus, which is an improvement.

@questionfear there will be a NAM version of it, confirmed by nokia officials.

WTF?!

What the N97 has? 32GB of on board memory AND a microSDHC slot. TV-Out. Bluetooth with A2DP support. A customizable homescreen where you choose your fullscreen background, you choose what to be notified about right on the screen. TRUE multitasking. Dual LED for even better images and videos in the dark. Resistive screen that works well with finger touch AND when wearing gloves. Higher resolution screen than the iPhone. Flash support in the browser. An OPEN platform (yes today Nokia aquired Symbian and the Symbian Foundation is official).. Do I need to continue? Also, funny enough, when you take it out of the box, you can instantly use it, without an iTunes activation, woooaw how about that for a *does have* list? It's an average feature, but somehow becomes rather important when you compare it to the competition.

What it doesn't have? Multitouch and major support in the USA, the 2nd being a big fat error in its otherwise perfect portfolio.

The apps?! At least 20% of current S60 apps run on it now, in 2009 when it's released they almost all will. iTunes Sync? You never heard of Nokia Multimedia Manager for the Mac, or the Nokia PC Suite and iTunes Agent for the PC, have you?

Please next time you write an important post like this, don't let the loyalty to a brand get over to you. The last time I checked, Gear Diary was a global site, not a US-only site, so you owe it to your readers to write with objectivity, and to write about global announcements with a global point of view, not a local or a subjective one.

In an subjective point of view of my own: we will sure see who will play catch up.

*cough* *cough* the post was written by Dotsisx, which is, somehow, me.

Congrats Dan, very clean new look. The old feed works well :) but might I suggest full post feeds, and not truncated ones? Would be much more helpful.

this is a definitely too much for one person to win... i'll leave my comments on what i'd do with the prize until the actual contest. wooo, can't wait!

i just bought a stationnary 640gb external hard disk, and am pretty amazed I can have this much space in a unit that is relatively not THAT big. But to be able to cram 64GB into a USB stick, OMG, this is so awesome, it's almost crazy. I still have a 1GB USB stick and use it, but 64GB?!

*my post got cut in half*
Anyway, you could also get womworld to send you a trial handset, but I believe you won't be able to use it as a phone, but more as a workhorse.

@Doug send an email to these guys: trial@womworld.com , I bet they'd be very happy to send any Nokia S60 device your way for a 2 week trial. It's not a long time, I know, but it's long enough for you to get a primary impression. May I suggest the E71? It's currently my main device, and although there are differences that I know a hardcore Windows Mobile user will feel (I have used a Windows Mobile handset for 9 months myself, so I know what I'm talking about), I know that there will be some good moments there. The E71 is definitely the best thing I have owned. I also have the N82 which I wholeheartedly recommend as it's an awesome overall handset. I have been sent the N96 for trials, but I honestly *hate* it. Amongst all the handsets I've trialled, it's the one that has collected the most dust, sitting in my drawer.

@Lauren, sigh, we all know how hard Nokia has it in the states. For some reason, they still can't break into that market, although they try, but I believe they're trying the wrong way. Anyway,

Great post as always, and thanks for including 3 point of views, makes it richer, but wait a second...
Did 2 of you say you were impressed by a 1GB memory card?! A 1GB memory card inside the box?! Oh good Lord, you have never been spoiled in your life, were you?
Any Nokia phone I have trialed, tested, owned, or even gazed at in the past year has come with AT LEAST 2GB microSD memory cards. The N79 comes with a 4GB and the N85 with an 8GB. They have made it such a must-have addition that I am not even close to being impressed beyond the price, now I almost expect it to be this way. (yes, I am a Nokia and S60 fan, sowwy).

that was Epix, woops

I think you should take a look at the E71, Christopher. I've had it for 2 months now and i LOVE it. Even though i'm an S60 fan at heart, the E71 is just much much much more than a regular S60 or Nokia handset. I wonder if you've held one in your hands or not yet, but the Epiz is MAMMOTH next to the E71!

A: N96 or N85
B: N95
C: N96 or N85
D: N82

B & D are very obvious. A & C are basically the same so it's hard to tell which handset took which picture.

Aaron,
there's also the fact that the "end all, be all" handset would cost $$$$ more than anyone would imagine, and would me more voluminous than you'd picture. A brick. Xenon flash made the N82 as thick as it is, more battery life means a bigger battery size...
Nokia's strategy is to implement the tech in some handsets and commercialize them. Meanwhile, the tech's price becomes lower, hardware parts have become a bit smaller and more efficient, and Nokia has gained back their investments' worth. Then they can implement it across all their range.
That's what they did with GPS, with 5MP cameras,... They were first limited to 1 or 2 handsets across the range, then BOOM, they are the strict minimum on any handset they release. Believe me, Xenon is coming to all the range, so is DVB-H (as the tech seems to have brighter days now), so is OLED, and probably optical zoom. In 3 years time max, 8MP & Xenon WITH dual-LED & optical zoom will be the bare minimum for cameras, OLED will be the minimum for non-touchscreens.

There was a period of time when I did wholeheartedly agree with you, but now I TOTALLY DISAGREE, and I've already stated my clear points here.

You have to look at the big picture, with all the eyeglasses you can find, but unfortunately you are looking at it as the über connected / addicted / knowledgable person. For the average consumer, this means two words: MORE CHOICES.

Let's go back in time and try to think of what made Nokia's dominance in the market:
1. Personalizable handsets
2. More choices for the consumer (more handsets that offer quite the same, but have a few pluses and minuses here and there) and hence more internal competition inside Nokia between different handsets
3.Great logistics, and supply meeting demand.

Another thing to take notice off: take a look at the 2005-2006 year. There was a major shift, between S60 2nd Edition and S60 3rd Edition. At that time, Nokia released many handsets that did quite the same. N70 and N72 anyone? It was obvious that S60 2nd was saturated, that's the best it could support: users needed more RAM, more memory, faster processors. Fast forward a little, S60 3rd Edition on the Nokia 3250. Hardware features? VERY similar to the N70/N72. Fast forward just a tiny bit, N80, N91. WOW! One boosts a high-res screen and a 3MP cam, the other has 4GB of internal memory! S60 3rd was given a small lift through the 3250, then bang, N80, N91... Platform takes off, it's capable, it's not EXTREMELY innovative compared to S60 2nd when it's released, but day after day, its capabilities are more and more obvious to everyone.

From the 2 points stated above:
1. It is soooo wrong to ask Nokia to produce less handsets. Yes, personally I would love if they focused on a few like you say, but offering choices IS their strength
2. The N79 and the N85 are like the N70 and N72 of 2005-2006. I'm excited about them. Because they're flawless, they are a proof that better things are coming from Nokia. The technology is saturated.
3. It is also soooo wrong to say that Nokia is going off-course, because it is going PRECISELY ON COURSE.

Anyhow, only time will tell if my analysis is correct :)

Hey Mitchell. I hope you can tell us a bit about your experience with it on the N95 8gb and the E71. I wanna know if it performs well (in terms of speed) or if it slows down the handset, as I want to get one, but am tempted to go for the 8gb microsdhc Ultra (class 8) instead.

Oh wow, I had never thought that I was the one who pushed you into blogging!
On a personal note, Ricky and Darla were my very own inspiration into starting blogging, and if you told me when I first started that I was going to work for Ricky one day, I would've laugh my ass over for hours and called you insane!
See, it's amazing how we move forward when we have the inspiration and the passion, and that is why I know you will go way further in this symbian blogging life.
You bring a fresh and personal look at everything Symbian, and pardon me for saying it, but you blog with innocence. That is not a bad thing, NOT AT ALL, on the contrary, it's what sets you apart from all those bloggers who are just looking for links, mentions and fame.
Keep up the good work, Ravindra, and keep that simplicity that makes Symbian-Life what it is today: the blog of someone who really lives and shares his symbian life, for what it is.

Rita El Khourys last blog post..What Is 5$ Worth?

and a very happpy birthday to mitchell from a regular gear diary reader, and a fellow e71 and n95 8gb fan ;)

Wayne, this amazon price is basically an awesome deal!

The N82 originally had a lower price compared to the N95 8gb cuz it has lesser music features (no inline remote control for the headphone, no dedicated music/video playback keys, and lower volume speakers overall), less memory (no 8GB here), much smaller and dimmer screen, and there's a newer version (the black one) just out. But the N82 is reportedly snappier and sturdier than the n95 8gb ;)

So i guess Nokia was relying on people to pick one of these according to their personal preferences, but with this new price deal on amazon, getting an n95 8gb now is just silly ;)

Awww the Poison Ivy post was the first review I read on Gear Diary, I remember him saying something like "throw it on the the new guy". The review was so awesome, I immediately bookmarked this site and knew i'll come back. Happy Birthday Chris :)

I am in for it too!

Weew this one is just too cute :) my friend is a big fan of all things pandas, and she transmitted that to me. nice work!

good then :D