When the N97 was announced at Nokia World last year, some 8 months ahead of its retail release, it was clear that the software was a work in progress. At MWC, it was equally clear that progress had been made. For example, Nokia were showing off a number of fully operational homescreen widgets, including one for Facebook. A new addition, which caught my attention, was the implementation of kinetic scrolling (finger flick) in the browser, which improves its usability. Read on for (extensive) further discussion and example video.
Read on in the full article.
Bring it all to 5800! Pleeeease! 😊 At least the widgets.
the facebook application looks very promising, the integration with phone hardware makes it usefull and easy.
I just can't wait to have that device on my hands, but i don't want to spend $1000 on it
�.�'
It would be useful for me to be able to scroll up or down or left and right just by tilting the phone, using the motion sensor. One handed always beats two handed for me. Flick is no improvement on what I already have.
Any news about the security/encryption of the E71/E75 to be implemented on the N97?
I don't think you can really say that flick scrolling won't benefit you untill you try it yourself. It makes browsing so much more elegant and easier to do 😊 On my iPhone I can easily surf the web with easy with one hand and I don't exactly have the biggest hands in the world 😉
I do however like your idea of tilt browsing - very unique 😊
This phone needs to come out asap IMO, if Nokia leave it till June/July then of might get lost in the media coverage of the (supposed) new iPhone. We all know how much hype and media coverage the iPhone gets if the N97 launches alongside the new iPhone I think it could be very bad :-/
This makes you think how long it wouldve taken Nokia to come up with these things of it wasn't for the iPhone (Touch screen, widgets, customization, Ovi Store etc) Like it or hate it the Iphone really has been a game changer 😊
I don't care how much it costs. I am getting one. Just sold my 5800XM to make room. Now if I can just sell my iPhone or E71..... 😊
I have tried an iPhone and I didn't like it. It's in a drawer now catching dust. The touch requiring two hands all the time (yes it does) and the oversize form factor, poor pocketability and the "iPhone owners have no friends..." image make it very unattractive.
Unregistered wrote:I have tried an iPhone and I didn't like it. It's in a drawer now catching dust.
Somehow I very much doubt you've even touched an iPhone...
The touch requiring two hands all the time (yes it does)
Yes, if you are a 12 year old girl or a dwarf...
and the oversize form factor, poor pocketability
The 'pocketability' is just fine because of the phone being so thin. The N95 8GB, for instance, makes a big bulge in your pockets because of its fatness, which makes it less comfortable to carry - especially in a pants pocket.
and the "iPhone owners have no friends..." image make it very unattractive.
Somehow I think you are a very insecure person... 😮
The iphone is very uncomfortable in a pocket, especially jeans, better for ladies who carry them in bags. N95 not good either but better. This N97 thing looks too big too. As for one handed pinch zooming and multi-touch, only for mutants and alien creatures.
Please leave the unqualified psychobabble out of it.
There is too much software that is going to be introduced with the N97 (widget homescreen, kinetic scrolling, N-Gage for S60v5), and at each trade show they keep adding some more (e.g. Skype integration). I predict at least one of these two things is going to happen (and possibly both):
1) the release of the N97 will be postponed
2) the initial firmware will be so buggy to be unusable, and it will take at least 6 months to mature to a fairly usable state
I hope that they add kinetic scrolling for menus, gallery and music player.
Kingfisher wrote:The iphone is very uncomfortable in a pocket, especially jeans, better for ladies who carry them in bags. N95 not good either but better.
How is the N95 better? Have you tried having both in your pocket? I have. It's just like the E61(i) - it was very wide and people said it looked like a calculator, yet it was perfectly pocketable because it was so thin.
As for one handed pinch zooming and multi-touch, only for mutants and alien creatures.
The post I was replying to claimed that the iPhone required two hands all the time which everyone who's actually used one knows not to be true. Besides, that 'pinching' action is not a feature that normally gets used a lot. For most operations a double-tap is fine for zooming.
Please leave the unqualified psychobabble out of it.
Please don't get so emotional every time someone says something positive about the iPhone.
Anyway, back on topic. As an ex-Communicator user I find the N97 interesting and its standby screen does indeed make it special. However, I wonder about its longevity now that the new, open Symbian Foundation platform is on its way... I guess the question is: just how committed to the current platform will Nokia stay with a new (and hopefully much improved) platform out soon?
As a long time N95 8GB and an Iphone 3g user, i can say with some experience that both fit ok in my jeans pocket, both leave a bulge but one is not better than another in this department. Can we now get on with the important bit discussing the N97 features.
I belive in keeping my options open when it comes to phones and will be getting the N97, Palm Pre (when available) and the next generation Iphone (if available this year).
For me the N97 is the closest thing to my Psion 5 outside the communicator range. I know its not a clamshell but it has a similar look and feel without the bulk of the e90. I like what Nokia are trying to do, combining good quality hardware, with both touch and full keyboard, complimented with improved software and the new widgets. This device has the potential to be the first complete smartphone for me, and im keeping my fingers crossed that nokia can bring it to market quickly with a decent firmware.
Using the accelerometer as a scrolling agent for the browser and multimedia apps would be a good idea, and push the UI/UX piece a bit further. Though, it does get gimmiky if the app isn't designed for it.
That updated browser engine needs to be in *every* S60 device. Nokia is as bad as MS was with IE6 in this respect.
Polish on the software with the N97 really does work for them. It does seem though that in this respect that the N97 might have been released a bit early. Don't know why, other than making folks save up their chips for it (I'm guilty here).
I like the openness of the widgets, and especially the widget competition bringing visibility to the widgets. Nokia could really help that aspect of web dev out a lot, and I'm sure that Yahoo and Google are ready and waiting for their widgets for this and future devices. I only hope that Nokia keeps the firmware synced in respect to the N97 and near-after devices so that a fix to the widget engine can be applied to all, not just a few select models.
Looking forward to your impressions, keep up the great work. I tend to learn a lot from the team here.
any chance you guys can find out/ask nokia if they plan to implement kinetic scrolling in the menus?
good thing nokia didn't went all touchscreen on this cell phone, it has been proven with research that users are not too happy with full touchscreen devices, it requires 99% of the time your vision to use it.
Rafe great info and good eyes.
As Quoted:
Incidentally, the demo units at MWC varied in quality. The one I saw had the most recent software update and a more recent hardware build. Some of the demo units on the stand appeared to be running an earlier software version. There was enough of a difference that people's perception of the N97 could be affected. This just underlines how significant software has become to the overall 'experience' of a device.
To add to this theme, from watching may clips from MWC i noticed the staff demoing the N97 to the press did a very poor job.
Not on par with the device information nor did they know how to in the sense "sell" its features to the type of questions.
Sounded very "techy" wasting time speaking of tech ends than rather speaking of keypoints and highlighting what the general press cares to here.....which are main points that differ from the competition and todays attention to "software".
Could you share your taught's.
-Snowy
Raven - I think you may have a misunderstanding about the Symbian Foundation Platform. It is very heavily based on S60. In fact it si best to think of it as S60 5th Edition Feature Pack 1. Yes there will be evolution in the future, but the first goal is for a version of S60 5th Edition running touch / no touch devices.
Unregistered - not sure I buy the too much software argument. The Ovi store will have already been available. The Skype software will not be available on the first shipping devices. It is due out in Q3 and will be via a side load or firmware update. Moreover software, these days, is not specific to a phone, it more about the platform.
Kinetic scrolling - the impression I got was this has been implemented by the browser team (good news as it means it is more likely too appear on other devices), but maybe 'baad' news in the sense its not at a systsem level. That said Nokia are only too aware that this would be a good thing to have elsewhere (though of course it has to fir in with other priorities). There's a fair bit of software development time to go - so... fingers crossed I guess.
Snowy - demoing devices is a tricky job. Compressing everything down to a few minutes is not easy. Moreover you've got a widely ranging audience - the levels of knowledge will vary a lot in the press too. During demos you'll almost never hear competitors referred to (why give them free publicity). MWC is also a business event, though of course there's an element of sales to it. That said there's certainly room for improvement.
meanwhile, "outdated" UIQ3 phones had kinetic scrolling for months via the BEST symbian browser for touch devices available, Opera 9.5 (now with fingertouch tech)...how ironic
Point taken, thx for the reply Rafe.
-Snowy
With the expected release price of around �800 and release date of late June I think Nokia have aboslutely lost on this one. I mean that pricing is seriously ridiculous! �800+ for a smartphone? Who on earth will pay that when you could get an E90/5800 or even an iPhone for a heck of a lot less?!
Also, if they do release it in June then it'll get compared to, and forgotten to the new (expected) iPhone, the BBC etc. will be all over the new iPhone like a Fish to water, too little too late for N97 in my eyes.
(Release date and pricing info taken from Mobile-Review/Expansys)
Kingfisher wrote:The iphone is very uncomfortable in a pocket, especially jeans, better for ladies who carry them in bags. N95 not good either but better.
Agreed. I always keep my N95 (Classic; no case) in my front (non-jeans) pockets. I wouldn't do the same with my (silicon back case + screen protector) iPhone 3G: it's certainly bigger and more fragile (glass touchscreen).
Raven wrote:How is the N95 better? Have you tried having both in your pocket? I have. It's just like the E61(i) - it was very wide and people said it looked like a calculator, yet it was perfectly pocketable because it was so thin.
Agreed. While my BlackBerry 8800 is certainly wider than the N95 Classic, it's considerably thinner. I've found it, in general, easier to put in my trousers' front pocket than my N95. (I use both phones: N95 for calls & camera and the BB 8800 for e-mails and quick Web browsing; nevertheless, I also keep my iPhone 3G with me - mostly in a shirt pocket - for gaming and better Web browsing).
Rafe wrote:Kinetic scrolling - the impression I got was this has been implemented by the browser team (good news as it means it is more likely too appear on other devices), but maybe 'baad' news in the sense its not at a systsem level. That said Nokia are only too aware that this would be a good thing to have elsewhere
Definitely - most importantly in Messaging. In the demo device I played with at MWC, Messaging still used the old and very ugly scrollbar to scroll mail headers, not any kind of kinetic scrolling. (BTW, the situation is the same on WinMo - there, there isn't system-level scrolling either, unlike on the iPhone.)
Nokia definitely should look into this problem.
I use an iphone and a macbook pro. You see where this is going? No... I will be getting rid of my iphone for a new phone--5800, N97, OmniaHD, etc...
I want wideo from the web, flash, etc. I want to install my own software, andI bet mist of you use the iPhone with two hands... Give me a break. Everyone can have an opinion about a phone without it saying you ir your opinion are wrong or stupid. If you take everyone's opinions so personallt, you need to qork on that.
Just accept the fact that everyone can like a different phone...
To each their own... I just don't. Think the iPhone is it for me even if it is for you...