In the “15 things I’ve wondered about the Nseries,” which I wrote 2 days ago, I asked myself what happened to FOTA and why isn’t it used anymore? Apparently it is still used, but not as often and not on as many handsets as we would think.  Some 6120 user for example pointed it out that they had performed such an update. But wasn’t FOTA (Firmware-Over-The-Air) supposed to be this big feature on S60 Feature Pack 1 devices? It seems like more S60 3^rd edition devices (Non-Feature Pack 1) devices supported and actually use this feature than the actual FP1 devices themselves. Think of the N80, N80IE and N73, all supporting and even frequently updating via FOTA.

Nokia seems to be making a new attempt at using FOTA by releasing the FOTA-only software version 11.043 for the FP2-based N78. The N78 update will not be available through the Nokia Software Updater application, but is available directly through the Nokia N78 and improves the stability with Bluetooth (headsets and car kits) and music (playback over a long time and content refresh). It will also include optimized Camera performance and Naviscroll sensitivity improvements, requiring a 2MB download. Nokia informs that “To get this software through your Nokia N78, click Menu > Tools > Utilities > Device Manager. Select Options > Check for updates and follow the on-screen prompts. Remember that you can also use Wi-Fi to download the update.”

After such a long time tt’s great to see Nokia using FOTA on a recent device such as the N78, but in my opinion the user should have options and in this case releasing a FOTA-only update to me seems like a big No-No.

In other FOTA news, Nokia has released OS2008 Feature Upgrade v. 4.2008.23-14 for the Nseries’ line of Internet Tablet. The great thing about this update is that again further OS updates will be made available over-the-air. User will automatically get notifications about the availability of OS updates in the status bar when new updates are provided or by manually checking this from the Application manager. Worth noting however is that again this will only work over WLAN connections, while updates via PC are apparently just being left out.

This to me seems like a case of giving more options to the user and to me leaving out updates via the PC seems like a not so good idea. So basically we would like FOTA, but we would love to keep updates via the PC.

What do you think? Should Nokia completely remove the option of updating via the PC?

1. If the Eseries stands for Enterprise, than what does the “Nseries” stand for?

2. Why doesn’t the Nseries include USB charging?

3. Why wasn’t Nokia able to make a stylish and feature packed phone (N76 doesn’t count)?

4. Why does the N95 8GB with no upgradeable memory, exposed camera and lower Image Quality (when compared the N95) is considered an upgrade?

5. Why doesn’t screen auto-rotation work when the device is turned to the left?

6. Why doesn’t the Nseries Internet Tablets include phone functionality?

7. What will happen when all the numbers are used?

8. Why is the SportsTracker name used, when in fact it could be used for more than that?

9. Why are the icons being moved around with every new phone or even firmware?

10. What happened to FOTA and why isn’t it used anymore?

11. Why aren’t detailed lists provided with every new firmware?

12. Why isn’t firmware updates cached in case I want to reinstall them?

13. Why was the Video editor TRULY removed on the N95 8GB and N82?

14. If the N93 had such a great keypad, than why are newer keypads getting worse? (N82, N78)

15. In Nokia Search, why can’t I send the file I just found?

It’s no secret that Nseries device have an obvious limitation: No re-charging via the now universal micro- and miniUSB connections. This problems also ties in with the need to include a desk holder in the Nseries packages that’s also able to charge the device and perform the usual data transfer and sync duties via PC Suite or your Media Player. Nokia does offer the universal Desk Stand DT-13, up till now only the N91 has been blessed with the included DT-10 desk stand and before we forget the Nokia Phone Holder NK007044. As for USB charging, Nokia does offer the Charger via USB port CA-100, but again this solution only offers charging via USB , but no data transfer and sync. Until Nokia offers such a solution and includes it in the package, Proporta comes to the rescue with their dynamic duo…

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I know I’ve been a little behind with my post, my apologies for this. I just returned from a trip to Aruba where the local telecom provider Setar invited me for a weeklong event to talk about Nokia’s Nseries and to educate the staff on the many uses of these devices communicating in the local Papiamentu language. Setar on the neighboring island of Aruba is the first Caribbean provider to launch a 3.5G network. It was a fun, action filled week where we covered everything from the Nseries line, S60, Applications, Smartphones and the endless possibilities of these devices.  Having clocked 30 hours (total) of lectures, I will need to hit the beaches to get some rest, but in the end the staff was quite impressed and surprised as to what is possible on these powerful devices. I will be making several trips to Aruba on upcoming events. Happy to be back home and let the posting begin!

The Proporta Mobile Charger has become a de facto standard when it comes to mobile charging. When I reviewed the unit it was clear why it has become the current standard: there just wasn’t much to complain about here. Proporta later on released a smaller and improved version of the charger called the Mobile Device Charger Micro (albeit with a lower a capacity), which I reviewed here.  Recently Proporta released a special edition black version of the Mobile Charger called the “No Ordinary Designer Charger Kit” by Ted Baker.  According to Wikipedia Ted Baker is “is a British clothing retail company, known for applying twists to their products, and has become a UK designer label through word of mouth rather than advertising.  It seems that the updated unit was Styled by Ted Baker London and features a new black and grey look. Hardware-wise the unit is exactly like the original except for the new black and grey look with the Ted Baker sign and a drawstring bag. The unit will sell for as much as the original version, which is around $ 49.95.

If that wasn’t enough they also released the Ted Baker Six Pack which includes all of the above but adds the World AC Power and Car Power Supply (with USB) for $ 59.95.

I was informed from my sources close to Sandisk that those sought-after 16GB microSD cards are supposed to be available to online stores in about 4 weeks, which should put availability sometime in July. This pushes availability 1 month later as these were supposed to available in June as we hoped. Apparently SanDisk seemed have had few issues lately and due to the large inventory of 8GB cards that needs to be moved, all have lead to the delay of the 16GB cards.

With an impending release of the N96 with its built-16GB of memory and the option of adding microSDHC cards, you could very soon be walking around with devices holding no less than 32GB’s of memory.  Will you be getting the N96 with one of those 16GB Sandisk microSDHC cards?

Update: Some of you have been asking about the 12GB Sandisk microSD cards. It seems Sandisk will completely skip these and go straight for the 16GB models. Looking ahead, 32GB microSD cards should be arriving in the next 12 to 18 months, making it possible for users to carry a total of 48GB of memory in a device like the N96.

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As Tzer2 at Allaboutsymbian has pointed out, the N95 does have gaming keys.  He has heard mixed reports about the N95 8GB, but I can confirm that on my N95 8GB (N95-2) with the latest firmware, the gaming keys work in N-Gage. What variant of the N95 do you have and do the gaming keys work in N-Gage?

Recently the local providers of Curacao (UTS) and Aruba (SETAR) have launched the Caribbean’s first UMTS network (including HSDPA). Besides offering just the mobile options, users can also opt for the HSDPA access modem, in this case the Huawei E220 for PC’s and especially Notebook access. The E220 is an all-in-one solution including HSDPA modem, USB mass storage device and virtual CD-ROM device. Opting for the modem means paying the expensive local purchase price or adding an extra fee to the monthly charge. As an official tester for UTS I decided to put the N95 8GB and the Black N82 against the Huawei E220 HSDPA USB modem. Would the Nseries be slower? How long would the batteries last when tethered?

The N95 8GB and the Black N82 were able to perform just as fast as the dedicated HSDPA modem, clocking close to the 3.6 Mbit/s limit as indicated by www.speedtest.net  An interesting observation however is that the N82 seemed to disconnect more frequently than the N95 8GB or the HSDPA modem. This could be pure chance, but it also could be that it’s less sensitive at picking up signals. During the course of 3 days, the HSDPA disconnected just 1 time just like the N95 8GB, while the N82 disconnected 5 times.

As for the battery life, the N95 8GB lasted 2 hours and 24 minutes tethered to my laptop, while the N82 lasted 2 hours and 45 minutes before its battery died. The HSDPA modem was USB powered so it could keep going for as long as your Notebook could.

Conclusion

The N95 8GB and N82 work well as HSDPA modems giving you virtually the same performance as a stand-alone HSDPA modems. With the latest Nseries devices you can expect battery life of about 2.5 hours, which by itself isn’t bad, but can’t compete with a USB powered unit like the Huawei E220 in the sense that most notebook can keep going for longer than 2.5 hours. In the case that your notebook is plugged in and you didn’t bring your charger along means that the HSDPA modem could keep going while the the N95 8GB and N82 would be dead in less than 3 hours. Getting the Nokia Nokia Charger via USB port CA-100 should bring the latest Nseries devices on par with a stand-alone HSDPA modem.

CNET takes a look at Nokia’s Bluetooth Stereo Speakers the MD-7 and informs that they are easy to use and that they offer quality audio performance. On the other side they think that the MD-7 speakers are expensive and their design is somewhat unstable.  In the mean time I’m working on a review for much much larger speakers that will REALY fill a room with sound and bass (Think 8” Subwoofer), so stay tuned….