I first started this blog in the name “SymbiansV3″ but after few days I found out that there is another well established Site in a very similar name.And was in a hurry to change it immediately,cos I never wanted to steal somebody’s reputation. But then I was actually troubled by this Name selection Issue for my blog.Finally I came up with the name “Symbian-Life Blog”,but I never revealed the real reason behind this selection in any of my posts,So here after a long time I’m putting those thought together with my S60 experiences.
S60 entered my life when I was starting my 2nd year in the University and my 1st device was an 6630,one of the best devices I’ve seen and I still have it with me almost for two and half years with more than 450 talk hours,without single fault.That 6630 was my classroom at that time in which I learned what the productive Smart-phone usage is.While I was using Samsung c200 and x480 as my very first mobile phone,What I did with(Actually what I could do) their java based UI(Can’t call it a OS) was use some ringtones and add some wallpapers to the phone other than making calls and texting,But with s60 things changed rapidly and actually you’ll run out of choice in front of endless options offered,their slogan “s60 opens to new features” is the ideal context which expresses its capabilities.Since 6630 runs on s60v2 but currently the s60v3 is mostly used let me round up my experiences with the second Symbian based device I owned,the N80 and how effective its usage was throughout the last one
and half years.Actually the basic device is useless most of the situations unless you optimize it with the right applications,for the right requirement.Throughout the last two years life was put on a fast track and always need somebody to stay alongside of me to remind and help me on the tight schedule.This is where the N80 became my perfect digital companion to assist me in every aspect of my daily life.When you know that there is a little buddy in your pocket to help you whenever you are in need,you can face so many things without any doubt or second thoughts.Honestly I’ve felt this so many times,motivated in many situations it was real lifesaver for me.So lets start from the early morning wake up alarm,to describe the Symbianization in my life.
1.Epocware Handy Alarm -
Since it requires more than one shocking song to wake me up,I cannot survive with the default clock application alarm,and the worst is you gotta set it up daily.So with the handy Alarm by Epocware,I use two daily alarms on weekdays one at 4.30am and the second at 4.35am,this really works because I don’t get it always with the snooze as I press the stop or Snooze with half my eyes open and not in a habitual manner,So with the default alarm if I press stop and thats end of my morning lecture session,cos I’ll never wake up for another 2 or 3 hours for sure.But Luckily with Handy alarm it kicks me off from my bed with the second or third alarm,no matter whether its the left or right soft key I press.So in all those hard days I solely depended on this little app and have never used a separate alarm or a watch since I’ve started using it.The only Downfall is this alarm cannot be heard if you keep your headset connected,in which the sound is going through the handsfree.
Download Handy Alarm
2.Symbian-Guru AutoThemes -
The mobile screen you see everyday is also just another sight that you’ll get bored with unless you change the theme at least once in a while.But doing this on weekly basis won’t be working at all cos by another 7days you’ll probably forget it unless you really hate it.And change the theme daily will be really annoying especially in the latest N-series devices themes Icon is not easy to spot at once as it is placed under several sub folders.But for me changing theme frequently is must,but didn’t have the right pro gramme for that until this app arrived.So as a refreshment I’ve set up a chain of themes to change daily in the morning with Auto Themes and the automated process is really amazing.So by the time I finish my wash there appears a new theme on my phone screen.
Download AutoThemes
3.Symbian-Guru AutoProfiles -
This is the best application I’m using.Because ringing a phone loudly during a lecture will definitely drive the lecturer mad and no longer such nasty things will happen if you use AutoProfiles.So the phone will change the profile without any hesitation as it is scheduled and you will not be in trouble anymore.Mine was going into silent by the time of my lectures start and comes back to general in the evening.Also this is very useful if you are a regular Library user.
Download AutoProfiles
4.Mobisystems MSDict viewer -
As an Undergraduate who is doing his degree in English but use it as the second language,it’s a must to keep a Dictionary with you.But even the smallest Oxford pocket Dictionary I hate to carry along with me,and most of all searching a word on it is killing me.But with the MSDict viewer you are getting all the words,In many diverse fields like Medical,Bussiness,and many more are just in your hand not only the meaning,but with the pronunciation audio too.So what else you need when you have this perfect translation companion with you?
Download MSDict viewer
5.Skyestream SkyeQuikey - 
What makes Smart-phones too complicated always is the difficulty in navigation through folders and sub-folders.Sometimes even the professionals do forget about application locations.And most of all to find a contact when you are in a hurry it seems like it would take ages to go Contacts>Find the name.But with SkyeQuikey,you can easily find any application or a contact just by typing the first few letters of the appropriate T9 combination,and you’ll be able to find it Immediately.Which have saved me a lot of time.
Download SkyeQuiKey
6.Smartphoneware Best Calc –
As I always forget to keep my Scientific calculator with me,this is an good alternative,though it is way too complicated.It has been really useful to me to do the calculations and to find sine,cosine values.
7.Epocware Handy Calculator -
Not complicated like the best calc,but this is really handy with its D-pad operated functions and the secondary set of functions that can be activated by pen(Shift) key,so altogether 9 essential operations can be done easily with just 5 key strokes,and the simple user interface perfectly blend the application in to the UI,and it gives you all the basic calculator functions.
Download Handy Calculator
8.Webgate Advanced Device Locks -
Mhh to keep your privacy,especially the Gallery away from my friends(most of the time what the do is delete some files and say Haha I deleted in,or sometimes they just put a song on play inside the Library and runaway) so this is the perfect security guard you can assign to your phone,with many other security options like application passwords.
Download ADL
9.Epocware Handy BlackList -
Nuisance calls from cousins and friends sometimes get very annoying,mostly the ones that I receive at mid night,So though it is called blacklist it was the Whitelist function I’ve used most to receive calls from few special numbers and reject the rest.And with the standby screen notification Icon its very easy to manage and stay informed about your calls.
Download Handy Blacklist
10.Mobisystems Officesuite –
Being a blogger for sometime most of my posts were jotted down using this handy mobile word processor.With all the basic functions required for making word documents and excel sheets included with dictionary support and a nice little file browser actually who needs a PC.With this I’ve even done my posts while I was on the go.
Download OfficeSuite
11.Lonely cat games X-Plore -
I can’t rely on the default Nokia file browser due to its security restrictions implemented on the system folders,X-Plore is the Ideal alternative with the looks of Widows explorer.Its easy navigation and the shortcut enabled editing functions are very convenient to use single handed.
12.Mobipocket MobiReader -
This is the best application for students available in S60 platform,with the PC converter you can Import a vast range of formats into *.prc and it is the Ultimate study material Mobilizer,not only that, virtually any Reading and Illustrative material can be made portable with this application and there are plenty of free and commercial books and guides available in this format.So actually you are carrying a whole Library in your Pocket.A sneak preview of how this application become useful for students can be found here in this video by DOTSISX,which tells you its capabilities briefly,Actually it was the winning entry for Rita’s N82.
13.mBrain pdf+ -
This is another useful reading application which allows me to read big pdf files on my Nokia and it offers various options to ensure a smooth reading with Fit to page,Fullscreen,Landscape and many more.So most of the time I put my pdf’s on this and it is a very easy way for quick reference when I need them.
Download pdf+
14.Epocware Handy Taskman -
After running all this apps its no wonder my N80 runs out of memory due its low RAM,But if you use Handy Taskman along with the other apps to kill or close unwanted ones,and also you can monitor what apps are currently running in the background and all those memory related stuff.Best thing is its easy way to recall your frequently used applications to action.I’ve never used any other taskmanager which is productive like this.
Download Handy Taskman
15.MobiFunSoft Smart settings -
This was the application I missed most when I shifted from my 6630 to N80,cos the 3rd edition version took quite some time to released.Why I love this software this much is because it gives you the easiness and the looks of Windows when we need our most frequently used applications,and also it helps you to Lock and Unlock your device very easily.And the best part is that it allows you to assign profile dependent auto keylock function,with which I find myself very comfortable.
Other than these there are many other useful applications I use like Screenshot,Handy Safe,DivX player etc………mostly must have ones.But here I haven’t mentioned any email clients or WEB apps cos my data plan is not a budget friendly one,therefore I rarely used them during my Uni life.But soon I gotta switch into a new plan.
During the past two years of time these applications and my phone made things better and easy in my life and also totally replaced my Watch,Big bulky alarm,Scientific Calculator,Diary,Mp3 player and voice recorder(actually I used my sisters one),Chunky little oxford pocket dictionary and many more things.
So isn’t it fair enough to name my blog as Symbian-Life blog?
But your experiences might be totally different from mine,so please leave comments about how you use S60 apps to make things easy in your life.Another good artical on this is over here at The N82 blog,where Mike expresses his feeling in a totally different field of lifestyle.