Jul 06
While Nokia is still sorting out what to do with the whole Symbian-MeeGo thing on the N-series, the development of the Nokia N9 smart phone continues. And from what we have seen in the initial leaks and videos, no matter what name Nokia decides to give to the N9, it will be one smart phone to look forward to.
The biggest thing about the Nokia N9 that we are certainly excited about is that focus on HD video. The device supports not only an HDMI output port, but it can even hook up to a component cable (which is not as nice as HD, but a welcome feature for anyone who has yet to upgrade their living room telly). Of course, the onboard 8 mega pixel camera is able to take high quality images and more importantly, video is 720p HD quality too. No details yet on how big the internal memory will be for this smart phone, but regardless of the memory space, users would certainly want to use the more versatile microSD cards instead.
The screen is reported to be a 4 inch capacitive touch screen display using nHD 640 x 360 pixels (not quite the 800 x 480 pixel screens on other handsets, but the nHD is a nice touch). For those wondering what nHD means, it refers to the fact that the aspect ratio is exactly proportionate to that of a 1080p display –in this case, one third.
As with most N-series devices, the N900 sports a nice, flat, slide out QWERTY keyboard. The buttons seem even better spaced than before and this would certainly improve the typing experience for many users.
The big clincher in the latest update is that the N9 might just be a MeeGo handset after all. Despite the initial videos showing the device running the Symbian^3 OS, it is possible that Nokia might decide to turn the phone into the very first MeeGo smart phone.
Jul 02
Nokia and Intel’s latest creation, the MeeGo operating system has been confirmed to be set for an October unveiling. Should this latest report be true and the other rumors about upcoming mobile platforms push through, there will plenty of things to look forward to once October comes around: the first Windows Phone 7 handsets, MeeGo unveiling and possibly, the launch of the Android 3.0 Gingerbread OS.
Anyway, going back to the MeeGo, this new mobile platform is actually the combination of Intel’s Moblin and the Nokia Maemo, both are mobile platforms designed with smart phone users in mind (though the OS can be used in other devices too). With the slight success of the Maemo on the Nokia N900, it is possible that the same community that supported Maemo would also be supporting the upcoming MeeGo OS.
In the meanwhile, Nokia has already announced that the N-series would now be making use of the MeeGo OS. The upcoming Nokia N8 smart phone will be the last N-series handset to make use of the Symbian operating system. Despite this announcement, recently leaked images and videos of a device that has been tagged as the Nokia N9 showcase the Symbian^3 mobile platform –which is not what most people expected to see.
Close ups of the device clearly show that the handset is labeled as the “C0-00”, but the software indicates that it is an “N00 Model”. With Nokia not yet making an official announcement regarding the images and videos, it has yet to be confirmed if the device is indeed the N9.
Developers are now being enticed by Nokia and Intel to help develop and support the new MeeGo OS. The platform, despite being co-developed by Intel will be compatible with both Intel and ARM made processors. This will make the MeeGo easier to adapt to other phone manufacturers.
