Nokia introduced the newest version of the Symbian operating system in a webcast on October 2. The Symbian operating system is used in many Nokia phones and one of the most used operating systems in mobile phones. The release of Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android operating system have put some pressure on the world’s largest mobile phone maker to build an operating system that can compete on the same level.

It is therefor no coincidence that touch panel support was one of the major improvements in this release. Besides that the new Symbian OS will support higher screen resolutions and advanced sensor technologies. Nokia optimized the operating system for longer battery life and performance.

Nokia has done a lot to create a competitive operating system to compete with Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android plattform on the same level. The first new handset running on Symbian Os 9.4 was announced in the same webcast.

continue reading "Symbian OS 9.4 Announced"

Nokia released a new version of their PC Suite about a month ago which is the central PC software to manage your Nokia mobile phone. The software application seems to grow in size with every release, the current version is Nokia PC Suite 7.0.7.0 with a size of 34 Megabytes.

Basic functions that Nokia PC Suite 7 provides are backing up important data of the mobile phone, synchronizing all kinds of data like contacts, emails and calendars and providing Internet access for the computer the mobile phone is connected to.

That is obviously not all. The PC Suite can check the availability of new firmwares for selected mobile phones and instantly download them to the computer. Besides that you get a file manager and administration of messages, contacts and multimedia files on the mobile phone.

continue reading "Nokia PC Suite 7"

Mobile Phones that support WiFi connections have a huge advantage over those that do not. Connecting to a wireless hotspot makes it possible to use services that would otherwise cost lots of money. How about free services like VOIP phone calls, checking emails or surfing the Internet ? Best of all you can do all that with a free software that does all of that for you if your handy is using the Symbian S60 operating system and is currently supported by the developer.

In case you are wondering, HandyWi is the application that can be installed on many Nokia mobile phones including the Nokia N78, Nokia N95 and the N93. A list of supported devices can be found at the developers homepage.

The process is pretty simple. The HandyWi software has to be installed on the mobile phone which will alert the user whenever a free WiFi spot has been discovered. The user can then connect to that spot and start using services like VOIP or Internet surfing for free.

continue reading "WiFi for Symbian S60 Mobile Phones"

After writing the article about Locate PC, a utility that sends information like the IP address on a daily basis I was wondering what the state of the art of the anti-theft software for mobile phones would look like. I’m just guessing but it’s probably true that mobile phones get stolen more often than notebooks, probably due to sheer numbers but also because they are smaller and easier to steal.

I was surprised that a very effective way of dealing with mobile phone theft was already available. All of the applications that I took a look at support sending a SMS whenever the SIM card of the mobile gets changed. The SMS will contain information about the new phone number and, depending on the software and phone, other relevant information like GPS coordinates.

This makes it very easy to track down your mobile phone with the help of law enforcement agencies who simply contact the phone company asking them to reveal name and address of the person behind the new phone number.

continue reading "Anti-Theft Software for Mobile Phones"

Mobile phone giant Nokia is looking for a foothold into the music distribution business. To that end, Nokia has introduced an online music service called the Nokia Music Store in Australia. Their aim is to provide a service that will take on Apple’s iTunes and win.

There’s nothing wrong in wanting to beat iTunes. However, the way Nokia is going about things, you’d think they were trying to scare away all their customers. It’s a case of how do I frighten thee? Let me count the ways.

Let’s start by getting to the site. I accessed the site using Firefox and was told that the music store does not support the browser. You can only get to the site using IE6 or higher. That’s strike one. To transfer the music to your phone, you need to have Windows XP or Vista. That’s strike two since it shuts out all the Linux and Mac users.

continue reading "The Trouble with Nokia’s Music Service"