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The N95 Classic (N95-1) continues to prove itself worthy as Nokia releases another firmware update for this legendary device. There have been many great updates for the N95 that brought it up from a crappy, memory lacking device to one of the greatest Nseires devices released, but this firmware doesn't provide much new changes. In fact this firmware comes with strings attached - it's NOT HACKABLE.
Similar to the latest N95 8GB, N82 and FP2 devices, Nokia has effectively plugged the hole on Symbian platfrom security issues, which previously allowed users to "hack" their phones and gain access to sensitive system files. Hacking allowed many of us to install a wider range of cracked applications, as well as tweak system files and customise our devices in ways one could never imagine. Sure, this is great fun for us, but practically nightmare for Nokia and developers.
It's probably a little late that I'm posting about this update now, but I wanted to wait for a change log to be released, just so you can judge yourself whether it's worth the update. As usual there are bug fixes and tiny tweaks here and there, but for me all these aren't enough to move me into a none-hackable firmware.
Change log for N95-1 V31.0.014 (User Observations)
1. the most important (for me): Random hang and reset caused by D5000 ASIC COMBO memory problem solved
2. Phone runs quicker, more memory available (might just be due to the fresh install)
3. Better photo quality
4. Bold fonts in the menu
5. Icons don't flash at phone startup
6. WLAN connectivity problems solved, better signal sensing
7. Quicker GPS connection creating
8. Browser stability improved (also, it works much faster)
9. FULL N-Gage app. 3 new games for free tryout
10. No more connenction interrupted message on cable disconnect in data storage mode
11. Seems to me that the speakers are louder than with v30
12. Better battery life
...So long "Open To Anything" Nokia phones....
Personally i have not and do not plan to update yet. I'll be sitting at the side line patiently to see how it all plays out, whether the crackers can find a loophole in this firmware. but till then i'm happy with v30.
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EDIT: Nokia has just removed this firmware last week. LOL... i think they realised these petty tweaks aren't enough to tempt users into updating a none-hackable firmware! I'm curious to see what's to come. Perhaps a nice little christmas surprise for us all. :D
To the present date, N-Gage game developers had been limited by Nokia in their ability to develop 3D-accelerated games, in an attempt to maintain compatibility across all the range of N-Gage supported phones, which includes largely dissimilar devices. But this seems bound to change.
Nokia started a site (http://ngage.uservoice.com), through which, users of the N-Gage service could make themselves heard by making suggestions or supporting other members.
Time went by and the majority of N-Gage users continued to show their support for this feature, until last week, an announcement was made by an official spokesperson in the site, that the suggestion had been accepted and 3D acceleration support, including OpenGL ES 1.1, would be included in the next version of the N-Gage SDK.
Although there will be some learning to do, the inclusion of 3D hardware acceleration into the next version of the N-Gage Software Development Kit (SDK) provides developers a reduction in the time and effort required to develop 3D games for the S60 platform.
This should mean that in a not-so-far future, we should be getting a breakthrough in graphics quality, by games making use of the full potential of phones powered by Texas Instruments' 3D-accelerated OMAP 2420 chipset (N93, N93i, N95, N958Gb and N82), and Nokia devices freaturing any future OpenGL ES compliant hardware.
As much as I'm happy to hear about this, i think it would be in Nokia's best interest to encourage developers to create 2 versions of games. A regular version, and an enhanced version for 3D accelerated devices.
It was roughly 1pm on Friday before we left for KL and I was juggling whether or not to bring my D60 along.. was really not a fan of the extra weight but the opportunity to really test the D60 out in the field finally caved in on me. I did not regret bringing it one bit.
Headed over to Taylor's College first to settle the fees for my college education next year and check out the apartment I'll be living in. Being at Taylor's was a real slap in the face as to how soon I'd need to start studying again. The day to day routines, classes, tedious exams, peer pressure etc. all over again, and it's been only 4 days since i had finished my SPM exams. Quite the bummer. The strangest part of it all - I wasn't even the slightest bit excited that I was about to step foot into college.
Things started looking up when we went to check out the apartment. It was much, much better than what I had in mind and I absolutely loved the facilities! The room itself wasn't too shabby either, but of course it was just a show room. What my room will really look like god only knows.
After clearing out all the official business it was off to Sunway Pyramid to chill a little and get some essentials for the Beijing Trip to come. In there I was pretty glad i brought the D60 along. Spotted a Nokia store and I fiddled with the N78, N79, N85 and N96 for a bit. Holding the N85 and N96 in hand and I really begin to understand why Nokia choose the N96 as their flagship instead of the N85.
Yes, arguably the N85 does have better features and a more powerful processor than the N96, but it feels rather tiny in the palm of my hands. Don't get me wrong, the N85 is a great device but i felt it was lacking the "Ummpph!" factor a flagship device should have. In fact I wasn't convinced that was the real deal until I picked it up and used it, by Jove that thing was small! I was also rather disappointed with the fact that the N85 on demo did not have a working Navi Wheel, nor did it have smooth transitions as the prototype N85 showed over the Internet. The N85 button were also rather stiff and hard to press compared to many other Nseries devices, I believe they may soften up after progressive use. The N85 looked much better than originally thought, especially since the front was made of plastic material instead of glossy glass-like substance as per N96 and N78.
All the models on demo there did not have working Navi Wheels, even though in the settings the Navi Wheel is set to "On", this was rather disappointing. Anyway, after holding those devices I understand why Nokia chose the N96 as their flagship model instead of the others. I won't sugarcoat it, the N96 is full with bugs and it's features are not what I'd expect from a flagship device set to replace the N95, but it definitely has the "Ummpph!" needed to be one. To many users who aren't techno geeks, the N96 will seem like a great device. The feels of the device is great and solid, the keys are relatively easy and comfortable to press, and the keypad is generously large too.
I think these things are what set aside the N96 from the N85. Sure, the N96 doesn't quite pack the same punch as the N85 or N95 under the hood, but Nokia has wrapped up all it's little flaws in a beautifully designed package.. and that's why i say it will do better for Nokia as their flagship device, sales-wise of course. The N96 feels beefy, yet not too fat to disgust. I love my phones that way. The heck with slim and flimsy phones, the N96 feels like a real power house!
I won't say much about the N78 and N79, mainly cause there's nothing much to be said. Out of the four devices, i'd still stick with the N85, no questions asked. But going out there and having a play with all those devices, it's clear to me what Nokia's strategy has been for this year's Nseries product line. Nothing to really nudge me out from my N95 yet, but 2009's lineup with the N97 does indeed look promising.
Well's that's about it. Took some night shots too at the car park. ...and as I said, I'm glad I brought the D60 along, it is an excellent camera indeed. :-)
Thought The Bro Code was nothing more than a cheap piece of article made up by the produces of How I Met Your Mother? Well time to change that thought, the Bro Code is actually for sale on Amazon!
So what is this "Bro Code"?
A code much higher than any law.. A set of rules meant to be a guideline to live by between Bro's, a set of Do's and Dont's for all bro's. The rules began as unwritten rules to follow but because of the Pussification of America haven't been followed properly and for some men they needed to be spelled out in bold print
If you haven't heard the term "Bro Code", you've probably at least heard of the 1st article of the Bro Code.
Bro Code Article 1:
Bros before hoes.
I cannot stress this enough. Always remember, girlfriends come and go, but your boys are always there. Breaking this rule is to commit the cardinal sin against Team Testosterone.
Sounds familiar now eh? So, wanna be a good Bro? Then be sure to check back as I shall quote more articles from this sacred code and guide you on the path to being Legen... wait for it....................dary. LEGENDARY.
If you have some extra dough lying around, you can also purchase the Bro Code at Amazon, awesome.
Mmmmmm... I just love the smell of justice in the morning air. Remember how Nokia shut down Telexy and sacked two of it's employees due to legal issues in Nokia's contract? Well I'm pleased to inform you that Telexy is now back on track and will continue the development of SymSMB.
"For the past two months Nokia ignored all Telexy's inquires to finalize SymSMB issue. Nokia has not confirmed, directly or indirectly, initial demand for rights over SymSMB.
Based on customer feedback SymSMB is extremely demanded application. Many customers consider SymSMB product as one of the key features of Nokia S60 platform that helps Nokia to stay a leader in the highly competitive market.
To satisfy numerous customer requests Telexy has decided to resume support and distribution of SymSMB.
Sincerely yours,
Telexy Networks, Inc."
I couldn't agree more. SymSMB file transfer via WiFi is my number 1 priority for file transfer. Nokia's cable, feh.. Bluetooth via PC suite, too slow! The ease and simplicity of SymSMB has made file transfer between PC and my N95 so graceful, it really goes to show how much room there is for Nokia to improve on their software innovation instead of just raining down relatively similar Nokia phones to the market.
Regarding further details as to how Telexy got back on its feet, the admin said
"Why they changed it I can't say
People just liked it better that way"
(C) Istanbul (Not Constantinople)
I don't really get it either but the important the important thing is that users will be able to enjoy the benefits of having this piece of great software on their phones, and look forward to more innovative wireless solutions from this company.
Till next time, visit Telexy's web site for updates on their softwares
You just love your torrents don't you? You know you do. Well now there's all more reason to celebrate and go crazy with torrents downloads because you can download torrents easily on your mobile device!
SymTorrent just received a 'major' update last week, bringing it to v1.41. SymTorrent has been around for some time, designed with the sole purpose of being a reliable torrent client for users on the go. Let's admit it, whether it's music or movies, software or games, we all love the high speed downloads we get from the torrent network.
I didn't pay much attention to SymTorrent before, mainly because the default browser on Nseries devices could not recognise torrent files, and therefore were unable to download them. Users still had to download torrents on their PC first, then transfer the torrent to their mobile and start the download. ...Not exactly much fun nor convenient for a mobile traveler.
Well the developers of SymTorrent has now fixed that, by using a plug-in which seems to 'listen' in the background for torrent files. So when the default browser downloads a torrent file, it will automatically launch the torrent file in SymTorrent, preventing the browser from trying to open the file by itself. I truly applaud them for coming up with this ingenious solution and because of their efforts SymTorrent v1.4 can be used completely independent on mobile devices.
It is really a walk in the park to download torrents on the go with SymTorrent. Speeds and seeds are good, file downloads are smooth and the application itself is very easy to use. It even includes all the little functions you'd expect form a PC torrent client such as download statistics, options to select which files to download/leave out in a torrent, as well as tracker URLs. SymTorrent can even handle multiple torrents at once, no problem. The only problem I find with downloading torrents on your mobile is the battery issue. Torrents are often big files and require quite some time to finish downloading, and for the average Nseries phone this is a huge setback. We all know most Nseries devices can barely make it through a day with gaming and music, let alone leaving 3G of WiFi on all the time to download torrents.
Nonetheless, if you need a torrent badly and find yourself stranded with only your mobile device in your hand, SymTorrent is a very viable way of downloading those torrents and files onto your phone. A necessity for every media hungry mobile user. Time to get the latest Killers album then!
Get SymTorrent from the official website.
*Trust me when I say that SymTorrent is able to download up to 60kbps or more in my experience, the screenshots below are just samples I took to give you a rough idea of the application interface. Notice how in the first screenshot the default browser can't identify the file as a torrent file.
