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R.Cadden aka SymbianGuru attended NokiaWorld and was able to pose the  question to Nokia as to why the world has not yet seen Nokia release a 8MP, 10MP shooter for 2009.  The N97 was amazing announcement but the same tired 5MP Carl Zeiss?  While rival companies like Samsung and SonyE are dolling out the 8MP shooters, Nokia is sticking with its 5MP Carl Zeiss, why?  The answer comes in three focus points that Nokia is setting their sights on for their products.  Follow link for details!

LINK

I finally decided to take advantage of the E71-2 Firmware update. The phone go’s from the natively shipped 100.07.76 to 110.07.127.   The changes to the software include (courtesy of SymbianWorld):

New features in MCU SW version 110.07.127:
- Nokia Email client for Nokia Email service in user disk (visible in countries where service is available)
- Mail for Exchange 2.5.5
- New Maps 2.0 release
- New Voip release
- New Switch release
- New Download! Release
- Y-drive for WMDRM protected files

Changes/improvements made to MCU SW version 110.07.127:
- Email set-up improvements
- Maps 2.0 improvements
- Music library refresh function performance improvement
- Browser improvements
- Bluetooth improvements
- Camera improvements

This download is available via the NSU! Enjoy!

S. Litchfield has released a new episode of his wonderful PhonesShow with tidbits about his new haircut! (I never thought the old look was bad), updates to his arsenal of shooting the show with the Samsung i7110 and Nokia N82. The meat of the show focuses on Samsung i7110 vs i8510 and the SonyE’s Xperia X1. Enjoy!

Often times Ill be texting and I wonder if someone on the side of me is peeking at what Im writing.  Its not like I write anything that could be taken offensively but I do like my privacy.  I used to ponder whether or not to purchase a privacy shield for my mobile but this would often hinder the brightness and clarity of the screen and the shield would be on the device even when I wouldnt need it.  I took a dive into the realm of Japanese phones with the purchase of the Sharp SH-01A and I must say one of the features solves my problem.  VeilView is a technology that allows the user to turn on a privacy “viel” that overlaps the screen and blocks out views from the side, and its as easy as pressing a button. Below I have recorded a short video demonstrating the technology.

Sure the E71 is slim, has 3.2MP camera, GPS, WiFi, qwerty keyboard, 2.4″ screen and has a solid construction.  But will all these characteristics be enough to create brand loyalty with Nokia to ATT customers.  While the E71 is good, it seems like the competition is offering something better.  ATT users have a slew of choices when it comes to phones.  Samsung Epix, BlackBerry Bold, HTC Fuze, all great handsets that offer something similar.  Most times in the US market software expandability isn’t a sought after feature.  So Again how will the Nokia E71 win over the crowd, by word of mouth since the price point is much lower then the competition.?

BetaLabs has released Nokia Maps 3.0 for testing.  Some of the major improvements from 2.0 include:

• The 2D/3D Map Hybrid allows for better views of the streets and surroundings
• Buildings and other locations are more clearly marked
• Train Maps! 
• Walk has been improved allowing Nokia Maps to navigate users not only through streets by parks, side streets, non pedestrian areas

http://www.nokia.com/betalabs/maps

Nokia has just announced the flagship touchscreen device for 2009.  The unit will be positioned to take the place of your home PC.  Thats quite a bold statement , but this device aims to do it with 32gb of onboard storage (with MicroSD expansion), 5MP camera, 3.5″ touchscreen, full qwerty keyboard, GPS, WiFi, 3G.  Quite a bit of features, this will be a first for Nokia to pack this many features into one handset.  This is indeed an N-series flagship.

Nokia Point and Find will be a new application that will allow Nokia users to point their device at a poster, location, building, etc and instantly retrieve information from the internet.  The application is currentley in beta phase.  Sounds like an intersting concept, Im sure that this will not be launched until way later in the year of 2009 for U.S. users.

Dexter from NokiaE71.wordpress.com had a user email him a link to a video of the NGage-less E71 running NGage.  He did right by contacting the poster and found that the E71 can be hacked!  Although this requires some effort on the users side, I think its well worth it.  Hit the link for the full read and tutorial!

http://nokiae71.wordpress.com/2008/11/21/n-gage-games-on-e71/

S. Litchfield has released a new show reviewing the newly released SonyEricson C905 with 8MP camera, WiFi, GPS.  It seems that overall the phone does well, but his main gripes are that “there is a little too much Sony, not enough standard” which is a great way to put it.  He also talks about firmware upgrades that may be available for your phone, and summarizes his experience at the Nokia test center.