E61i : QWERTY Enthusiasm

With a total of 52 keys offering various functions,summing up to more than twice the number of those physical keys E61i is the perfect example for a mobile computer(I’m not calling it a Pocket computer,cos the word “Pocket” doesn’t suit it in general with its dimensions,but still I have to admit that you can have a total computing experience with it ).Leaving aside the idea of the BlackBerry or Windows Mobile substitution,this solid device comes with a real bulk of productivity in the means of a handheld.Though this post is dedicated to discuss the nature of E61is QWERTY layout,let me first cover a little bit on the other keys,in fact they too offer a vast range of customization and expandability.

First starting from top right corner the power button offers switching between 6 default profiles,keypad lock and phone lock like every other Nokia smartphone.Then moving to the left side of the phone the there are 3 white plastic(I think the white coloured plastic parts including the rear side bottom part ruins the elegant design).The two top most white buttons are for volume control,but sadly don’t work in the camera or gallery for zoom in/out functions like in other devices and the third one from the top brings the voice recorder into action with a single press and a long press you’ll get voice commands activated.Moving back onto the front side keys the selection keys and call/end call keys work like in other Devices,but there are 3 additional shortcut keys beside the D-pad replacing the usual arrangement of pencil key,multimedia key and the ‘c’ key.You’ll see a predefined shortcut key for contacts,and another shortcut key for your email inbox which will prompt you into the new email message window by a long press.Next to that the own key,a key which is totally customized as you wish,where you an assign a preferred function.

Ahh that’s all about it and now its time move on to QWERTY.In this full keyboard there are 39 keys and among them except 14 all the others are having an additional function which is indicated in blue colour at the top right corner of each key.So you’ll hardly miss your PC or laptop,apart from the relatively small size of the keys.But that too wouldn’t be a big issue and most probably you’ll get use to this,I’m saying so with such a confidence cos I too had some down toward thoughts about the key arrangement,but after using it for the last couple of days,I’m very much satisfied.Its true the keys are crammed but they aren’t jammed,each and every key is separated by a gap and you’ll find it easy to use.

In idle screen only the num-pad,backspace and “p” key are working,very similar to a ordinary T9 kaypad.To see the full key pad in action you gotta try an SMS,email or any other document.Like in a normal keyboard in the bottom most row there are two shift keys and a space bar,also a ctrl key which allows you to perform copy,paste and save operations like on a PC.But there is no delete key and you can use the backspace for deleting.And there are some dedicated keys for special characters,also you can use the chr key for a complete list of other characters.So my impression on this keypad layout is very satisfactory one and I’m telling this by my experience as I’m writing all these posts on this.After playing sometime with this keypad you’ll see that how fast and easy the typing can be.So if you are hardcore texter or a blogger go grab a E61i and give a try for your self.

Nokia Mobile Filmmaking Guide

There have been some requests coming from my readers asking about the contents of the little Filmmaking Guide Booklet that I received with my filmmaking kit as the reward, from Pangea Day Mobile Filmmaking contest.I promised to bring it,but then totally missed it due to all the work with this rearrangement of the blog and theE61i trialling.So after about 2weeks here you go,all the Mobile filmmaking fans,the long awaited post.First I thought of writing the content in text as a complete post,but then I got this idea to get the first use of my Nokia DT-22 Tripod I received along with the goodies to bring the whole booklet as it is, in colour.All these images were shot with my N95 8GB mounted on the Tripod,under usual light conditions and with Macro mode in Automatic flash settings.I shot them in full resolution and Cropped to make them really look like the Booklet it self.So here is another good example for Nokia N-series camera usage in your day today life,which I’ve been using frequently(With my N80) in my university life to steal Pages in colour from Library Reference section.So in the macro mode you can really turn your device into a portable scanner,and convert your important notes into good quality readable images.A handy,Easy,Fast copier.
So here it is, go grab it and enjoy,I’m glad I could share it like this on OVI.You can get the full-size images of all the pages by clicking on the Slideshow and If you are having any problems please leave a comment.

Note : You’ll need flash player installed for your browser to view this.

Theme Pick : Vector Bliss

Here I’m starting the new blog post series with the “Theme Pick” topic and hope I’ll be able to bring some good stuff on this.Found this theme few days ago and on my N95 8GB it looks awesome.I rarely use themes that use highly detailed and vivid coloured images as the wallpaper,but this this one after installing looks really cool but still simple.The colours are very perfectly matched with the icons,this is a modded icon version and currently there is no default icon version available,but I’m sure you’ll love it.So give some eye popping Colors to your phone with Vector Bliss by BuLLeT and make your weekend colourful.

Download :Vector Bliss by BuLLeT

E61i : First Impressions and Built Quality

Few days have passed since I’ve received the E61i and honestly I’m so impressed by this solid device.I received it while I was in the uni and all my friends were asking me,what the heck is that,you’ve got a calculator this time?As I mentioned in my previous post none have seen it in real life before,no wonder cos people here rarely use these devices.Now it’s about the E61i everybody asking from me and ohh my brand new N95 8GB is been forgotten by all of them.When showed both N95 8GB and the E61i,and asked them which one do you prefer and surprisingly most of my colleagues sayd their choice is the E61i,its the looks not the features they’ve concerned about.Being a real eyeopener it truly deserves such comments.Even I feel its better than the 8GIG,sometimes especially when it comes to jot down blog posts.Not only the QWERTY keypad,its the build quality of this keypad that impresses me.Actually the whole device is made into a one piece of rock solid gadget and no one would ever regret on buying one,it’s that steady and designed to give a very good physical feedback while you are holding it in your hand.The massive display is Ideal for reading and watching movies,most of all superbly adapted for web surfing.Front face plate around the display looks like its made out of metal but it is also a nice piece of plastic work.The only metal part is the battery cover and it goes well with the rest of the plastic design.Unlike many other Nokia smartphones the start button is placed in the front side and I found it to be more easier than the others.In the other end we can see the light indicator and not like the one in the N80, this can be used for notifications.In the left side it has 3 white plastic keys,two for volume and the other one to activate the voice recorder.The mono speaker and the unprotected camera without flash are big let downs,but for a business device its acceptable.At last the best physical aspect of this beauty is the keypad and the D pad.The D pad on E61i is the best of its kind I’ve ever used and though it’s bit smaller for an average adult,the feedback is superb.with its beveled edges it grips well to the thumb and the middle button is also very responsive.Selection keys and the 2 shortcut keys which allow easy access to email and contacts are perfectly arranged and placed along with the menu key and the customizable own key.And there are so many things to say about the QWERTY layout and I’ll be covering it in my next post.Apart from the phone itself the pouch that came with the package is a nice solution keep the device safely and the phone fits well inside it,so no worries on dropping it anymore.

Two Giant Screens at home

On last Tuesday the local UPS courier guy surprised me by delivering the N95 8GB with the filmmaking kit,cos though I knew it was coming I never expected it that soon.And on Thursday another big screen bearer arrived,a trial E61i from WOM world.This is the first time in my life I’m handling a mobile phone with a QWERTY keypad,and when Donna told there are two devices E51 and E61i,I said I’ll go for the E61i.I’ve been waiting for a long time to get my hands on one of the full keypad device and E51 was not the one I wanted,though it is newer than the E61i.And this is the 1st time ever I touched a Blackberry like device and,here in Sri Lanka people rarely use this type of devices.N-series is every where but E-series still have a long way to go,to enter the Sri Lankan market,and I wonder will it ever be,cos people here aren’t looking for the productivity,they are after 3 factors when selecting a device Big Screen,Good Camera,Mass storage and that’s all.Here in kandy this is the 2nd time I saw this device and actually it was also anE61,the version without the camera,that one was returned back by a customer who has ordered it without knowing that there is no camera,and I can remember very well that it was there at the shop for months,No cam means no deal here.
Before I had this in hand I really thought that it is a bulky device,but actually the truth is that this is the slimmest device among the ones I’ve used .The screen is exactly the same in size(2.8) and resolution(320×240) when compared with the N95 8GB,but E61i’s screen seems much cleaner and sharper than the N95 8GB’s.So for the first time I’m having the chance to experience the two biggest screens made by Nokia(E90 is exceptional in this case) and have plenty of space to move things around,So I’ll be bringing all my experiences and thoughts on this Solid beauty in my next posts.

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