Tag: nokia

Nokia rolls out software update for N9, bricks mine and others’

Nokia is rolling out its first update for the N9 and as I wrote about it the other week, it’s a pretty big update for those who received their N9s with the stock 1.0 software.

When I received my N9 from Nokia Indonesia, it already came with version 1.1 (20.2011.40_2_PR_005) which is newer than the one that was shipped with the initial batch of N9s. I saw a couple of units with v. 34 instead of the v. 40_2 that I got. The public update that was rolled out earlier today is designated 40_4 which brings four more new features over the 40_2. I listed the differences in the previous post.

Around 11 am GMT+7, a notice popped up on my N9 letting me know that there was an update for the phone, so I proceeded to back up my phone and was about to run the update when I decided to tweet about it and soon after was told by a friend not to run the update because her N9 had gone kaput after she ran it. Another friend also ran the update and is now holding a bricked N9.

The update came in at 11MB instead of the 218MB that was announced earlier. As it turns out, the larger size had been for the entire OS instead of the update. Having gone through Over-The-Air update smoothly for my iPhone, I placed my faith in Nokia, despite the warnings. Turns out I should have trusted her. Now my N9 is stuck in a boot loop and I won’t be able to use it until Nokia gets it fixed.

The comments in the Nokia Conversations blog swayed my decision to update because there had been very positive feedbacks for the updates but I overlooked the likelihood that they were updating from an older version of the OS than mine.

Now, I have to wait for my contacts at Nokia Indonesia to get back to me so I can have it restored to operational status.

[update]

A full restore from scratch apparently would get the phone working again but I may lose all photos, songs, videos, and apps I’ve stored in it. I’m heading to Nokia’s office to get it fixed.  

I’ve got photos and videos transferred to iPhoto, and some of the songs are from iTunes but I’ve downloaded a few dozen from Nokia Music. The apps and songs may need to be redownloaded. This would be a big meh.

Nokia rolls out software update for N9, bricks mine and others’

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Nokia’s in depth documentary on Lumia 800

chartier:

Yes, it’s the same kind of polished marketing fluff that Apple and a few other companies produce, but that’s the point. It’s polished, and they talk as passionately as engineers, executives, designers, and other nervous non-actors can about loving their work.

via GigaOM

While this is about the Lumia 800, a lot about the hardware could probably be said about the N9 which I really love, after all, the two phones share an identical design with slight tweaks in a few places.

I do hesitate a little about openly recommending the N9 given the limited availability of the applications as well as the unique approach to its use but I can say that I’m enjoying the different ways to use a mobile device. I love it when somebody comes along and offers a fresh take on common activities and the N9 is as fresh as it gets.

I’m genuinely excited about Nokia’s future having seen and now own the N9. This is a fresh start for the company struggling to maintain its position in the rapidly changing world of mobile phones.

Though I’m apprehensive about the deal with Microsoft, having used Windows Phone 7 for about a month earlier this year, I can say that it’s really not a bad piece of software from the consumer point of view. I like how it delivers a truly fresh approach to the user interface, focusing on text and panels rather than icons and heavy graphics. Microsoft’s approach to Metro takes away many of the fluff and shows just the important elements.

Having gone back to the familiar iOS interface, I miss the spartan look of Windows Phone but what can I say, iOS feels a lot like home. It’s what I’ve been used to since 2008 and it’s clearly much more polished and mature.

Today, I use both the N9 as well as an iPhone 3GS. Having owned an iPhone 4 for three months, I never had the intention to upgrade to the 4S. Despite the highly publicized and clearly impressive Siri, it doesn’t fully work outside of the United States and I’d rather wait until the next iteration. Without Siri, the camera is the remaining major upgrade from the 4 and I’m currently quite happy using the cameras on the 3GS as well as the N9.

RIM reaching out to Qt developers?

In a piece about RIM’s upcoming BBX phones, something tells me Sascha Segan and RIM hadn’t really done their homework regarding Qt development roadmap.

Qt was Nokia’s preferred developer framework before the company switched to Windows Phone, and there’s a population of disgruntled Symbian developers with Qt skills watching their potential market decline as Nokia switches over to Windows. RIM isn’t targeting Symbian developers specifically, but the company is reaching into Nokia’s traditional home turf.

RIM reaching out to Qt developers?

Nokia’s N9 gets its first update

If you’re one of the early adopters of the Nokia N9, get ready for an update. Nokia has just announced an over the air software update that’s being rolled out within the next few days and should be completed within two weeks. 

The update weighs in at 218MB so you would want your N9 to be within range of a fast wifi connection and plugged in to a power source. The process supposedly could take up to 40 minutes in which your phone would not be usable until it’s completed and you’re advised to back it up beforehand.

The current version of MeeGo on the N9 is the PR 1.1 (20.2011.40-2_PR_005), at least on the device I’m holding. The update will be designated 40-4 and is said to bring parity to the N950 developer device. 

A number of features are listed on Nokia’s developer blog but it seems rather odd because some of them are already available on my device which I picked up right after Nokia World, namely: 

  • Music controls on the lock screen
  • Multi-language Swype keyboard
  • Default swipe down to close an app 
  • NFC tag reading
  • Photo and video shoot with color filter
  • Notifications on the standby screen

That’s six of the ten listed new features. What’s left?

  • Noise canceling, (can’t say because I don’t use the N9 to make calls)
  • More powerful multitasking (it’s kind of slow right now)
  • Faster MfE (I have no idea what MfE means)
  • Multiple smaller improvements to the OS (can’t tell what these are)

If you’re an N9 owner, have you got those features already or are you looking forward to have them?

iPhone 4S vs Nokia N9 photo comparisons

Basically the N9 has a much more muted color dynamics. Which one is more natural? I can’t say but the photos from the 4S certainly look much more vibrant, attractive and lively. The N9 benefits from having a wide angle lens though.

iPhone 4S vs Nokia N9 photo comparisons

So this was announced earlier today in Singapore. Nokia’s upcoming N9, powered by a combination of MeeGo and Maemo software projects that mostly got canned on the company’s way to embrace Windows Phone 7 as its primary smartphone platform. Unfortunately the phone is not yet available to test or preview, let alone to buy.

I think a lot of people would be interested in this. Time will tell if the final product will be as smooth and seamless as Apple’s iPhone with iOS or if it will be stuttery and clunky like the current Symbian on the N8. At a glance the interface reminds me of Windows Phone 7 mixed with Android, and that’s not a bad thing.Being a fan of Windows Phone 7, I can’t wait to see how this compares with Nokia’s upcoming WP7 phones.

You can check out a more detailed look at This Is My Next. 

Nokia pulled an Apple, wants phone back from blogger

Turns out Apple’s not the only one who lost a phone to a blogger before it was made public. Nokia actually asked the Russian police to help get its N8 back in April.

Nokia pulled an Apple, wants phone back from blogger

chartier:

The iPhone 4 “hates lefties,” but the Nokia E71 hates righties. Run for the hills everyone—class action lawsuits and recalls may not be able to save us from this Gadget Signalpocalypse.

Nokia E71 Reception Problems

tj:

Instructions from my Nokia 2320 which boil down to “avoid holding it that way.”