Here at The Nokia Guide we’ve had many and I really do mean many accessories, but none has been quite as useful as the mobile chargers from the guys at Proporta. Calls, hours of music listening and especially using 3G, Wi-Fi and GPS all day long takes  quite a toll on the battery and in the end there’s only so much power management can do, hence the need for these mobile chargers. Many times I have had not 1 but 4 of these chargers with me, basically allowing me  to charge when and wherever I want. I could go days without ever using the Nokia charger. I can’t tell you how many times these things I have been lifesavers: needing to make an emergency just when the battery is empty and all of the sudden remembering that you have a one of these mobile charges with you. Just a few weeks ago I’ve even had  colleague asking me to borrow her that “Thing that does wireless charging.”

Proporta has now replaced all previous Mobile Chargers with 2 versions of the new “TurboChargers” available in both 1200 mAh and 3400 mAh. The new chargers now only come in black, making previous white and the brown Ted Baker models a thing of the past. They actually have the same rubbery material and three blue status LED that we loved on the Proporta Mobile Device Charger Micro. We do like the all-new black design, something we’ve been wanting for quite some time. And simplifying the line to just 2 models is a great move.  The smaller model also comes with a retractable cable that hides away underneath the charger and switch to chnage output from 5 to 5.5. Of course there’s the usual included DS Lite, iPod,Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Micro and Mini USB power connectors included with both models.

Last but certainly not least, they’ve created an all-in-one package called the the World Pack that comes with an in Car Power Supply (compatible with standard cigarette lighters) and an AC World Travel Charger Kit that allows you to plug into the mains all over the globe. We do expect them to come up with one of those Limited editon packages, similar to the Ted Baker model that includes World Pack, with fancy bag and different color.

I really like the World Pack 3400 model and chances are it will join my collection of mobile chargers and a must-have for those of you without a mobile charger or on the look out for backup. I do wish Proporta would have offered the smaller TurboChargers with a capacity of 1700 mah, like earlier models. The 1200 mAh is a slight step down.

Courtesy of WOM World/ Nokia we’ve received this Limited Edition Red E75 complete with suitcase. Other than the different packaging there isn’t any extra accessories or content. The package and presentation is very nice, with no less than 3 boxes(!) in side the suitcase. Considering that Eseries are intended for use in the business environment, what better way to present the E75 than in a matching suitcase. We were informed that the E75 was sent in connection with a project called “Teach a Technophobe.” Basically, the point is to see how easy it is for those unaccustomed to the world of mobile technology to use email from the Nokia E75 with the help of a Nokia fan. For this WOM World has a few challenges for them to complete, competing against other. These challenges will to be completed on a weekly basis. There’s still a bit of a mystery as to how these challenges will have to be completed, but think of the N96 Ninja challenges but with an Eseries device. Below the unboxing.

Looking for a N97 and need a laptop? Here’s  a sweet deal! Dell’s currently bundling the Vostro A860 with Nokia’s latest for $730 after a discount coupon. This combo normally goes for $1,129, but after $259 instant savings  on the Vostro A860 and 20% off $700 Nokia N97 it all comes down to $730 + $29 shipping. More details can be found here.

Via: Engadget

The Nokia N97 is all about widgets and for this reason Nokia has created the “Online as it happens” Widget contest. With the simple tools they give you, you’ll be able to create useful or simply wacky widgets for your chance to have your widget developed and made available for download from Ovi Store.10 Winners will be announced and each will receive a Nokia N97 with their very own widget pre-installed in the device. Winners will be selected by a jury, and the selection is based on the creative execution along with the feasibility and usability of the widget for the Nokia N97. Start creating a widget right here!

Below the widget we created that displays the amount of magnitude 2.5 or larger Earthquakes through a beating drum.
 Direct link here.

Here at The Nokia guide, we’re big music fans, as a result, the music features of our Nokia devices are very important to us. Having many or cool music-oriented features means nothing if the device itself is unable to produce a high quality audio signal the 3.5mm audio jack. When it comes to music, the N91 is pretty much still the Gold standard. Things seem to look promising for the N97 according the review at GSMArena. The review says that:

“The audio quality of Nokia N97 is just great, save for the disturbingly high intermodulation distortion levels. The handset fared excellently in all other parts of our test achieving some pretty impressive scores. The frequency response has been greatly improved over what the N96 could deliver. It now closes on perfection, deviating by no more than 0.27dB throughout the audible range. The noise level, dynamic range and stereo crosstalk readings are also very good, comparable to the best in class. Here go the results so you can compare it to some of the other handsets we have tested.”

The N97 seems to be performing quite admirable in the audio department, should be nice if you have one of those fancy In Ear Monitors.

Images courtesy: GSMArena

Nokia Eseries devices traditionally come with free out-of-the-box QuickOffice editing, while  their Nseries siblings only come with document viewing. (Updating to document editing is possible though by paying a little extra.)  Quickoffice, today announced it will be offering free upgrades to the latest version of Quickoffice for users on certain Nokia Eseries devices, including the E51, E52, E55, E63, E71, E72, E75 and E90.

By using Quickmanager you can download Quickoffice 6 as a free upgrade!

Quickoffice 6 includes more advanced document viewing and editing functionality of Microsoft Office 2007 documents, ZIP file support, password-protected file handling, Excel 2007 chart viewing and multiple usability enhancements.

Apparently these’s more to come as they also mention that: “Subsequent software updates released by Quickoffice for these select devices will also be available on a continual basis, including PowerPoint 2007 format support. Quickoffice 6 will initially only be available in English and a fully localized update will follow in the near future.”

Quick update: Newegg currently has the  Nokia BH-102 for $1after $24 instant discount and $15 mail-in rebate (expires 6/30/09), which is 98% off the $40 original price. Shipping is free.

The Nokia BH-102 Bluetooth Headset features up to 10 hours of talk and 7.5 days of standby time. Use this rebate form.

Via:Gizmodo

Despite earlier reports, it seems that the N97 will include a pouch in the package, at least for certain regions. Nokia tends to have different packages depending on the region, with the APAC (Asia-Pacific) packages being the ones with the most included accessories. These images from Pemix clearly show the N97 with a pouch included in the package. Considering the listing is for a HSDPA 900 / 2100 MHz device, we can conclude that some non-NAM (North American) device include such a pouch, most likely APAC versions. Judging from the two pictures, it doesn’t look like we are talking the same pouch here. The post does say that it’s a”Leather pouch” and the pouch in which the N97 is pictured in doesn’t look like leather to me.

There you have it, looking for an included pouch, make sure you get an APAC N97.

Update: Vaibhav Sharma from the Symbian blog talks about the N97 pouch in his first impression of the device. Lot’s of pictures of the new pouch.

The E71 is considered by many as one of the best Nokia devices of all time. The lack of 3.5mm headphone jack and a better camera are just about the only things needed to make it “just right.” Allaboutsymbian has uncovered information about the upcoming E72 that seems to address the camera. But we’re willing to bet that the now standard headphone jack will be included. The E72 is rumored to have S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 with the latest version of Nokia’s messaging and email software. Think an updated E71 with the software of the E75. From the looks of this, it won’t be long before Nokia makes it official.

Update: Nokia has released the E72 and  5530 XpressMusic. The press release can be found here and here.

Phones from the likes of Apple, Palm and RIM tend to keep a data connections alive at all times, but on Nokia’s S60 handsets, things are done a bit different. These are set to leave it up to applications to initiate a new data session each time they need to communicate, hence the “Allow connection to network?” message every time an app needs to connect the internet. In some ways this is handy for folks who don’t have unlimited data and want to control their monthly usage. By using a connection only when needed you do save on battery life.

But for those with an unlimited data connection this can be more of a burden. Keeping a data connection alive should allow your data-dependant apps to launch a lot faster, but again be aware that battery life will suffer. To enable this option, simply go to Settings>Connection> Packet Data and change the Packet data connection to “When Available”

For newer S60 devices like the N97 and 5800 XpressMusic it should be Settings>Connectivity> Admin. Settings>Packet data.

Do you prefer a always-on connection or one that’s used only when needed?

Via: BGR