Snaptu on the N97mini

Snaptu is a really popular client to have when you are doing a lot of Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, etc… Sure you can use the dedicated apps for it as well. But what if you want to access Flickr, Picassa and more apps without having to download multiple apps to do the things individually.

That’s where Snaptu comes in. It allows you to access various websites for social networking and photo sharing without having to search for an app for each service.

I thought of giving it a try since I’ve seen a lot of people using Snaptu in the past few days. You can download it from the Ovi Store for free. yes it’s free!

From the above snapshot you can see the number of things you can do using Snaptu. Imagine you would need a similar number of apps (as the no. of icons) if you weren’t using Snaptu.

Remember though that this a data intensive application and hence you had better have a good data plan on your connection. Also you had better have good internet connectivity because the access screen is rather irritating after a while.

So if you occasionally check your Facebook and Twitter status on your phone. This should be app you are using.

Catch a gallery full of screenshots of the Snaptu at work.

Good Old Rotary Dialer for the N97mini

Do you remember that old rotary dialer telephones that we had back in the old days? To dial a number one had to rotate a circular dial till a a certain point and then it go back to it’s position and then again repeat the entire process till the sufficient digits were dialed. Well, wouldn’t be great if you could it once again just for the thrill of it?

Well now you can, Ovi store has an interesting application for the N97 and mini, called the RotaryDialer. The application is a straight forward app, you can download it from the Ovi Store for free. Once you launch it, it shows you the familiar rotary dialer and then you just touch the circles above the designated number and dial, once you have ‘dialed’ the digits, simply press the green ‘call’ button and voila! you are calling someone.

I found it to be a great little application if you want to do something unique with your phone. Oh, and just in case you dialed the wrong digit, you can undo that digit, you don’t need to start the process over again.

I found no problems in its usage. It’s a fun app to have on the phone and lovely way to remember the old times. Try it now!

Nokia Playlist DJ reviewed!

So you like listening to music on your N97mini and want to take the listening to a newer level. How about having your phone profile your music based on a certain set of emotions you are feeling?

Well, the Nokia Playlist DJ does just that. It’s a small app that can be downloaded from the Ovi store for free. In fact it’s being bundled in the newer Xseries as well if I’m not wrong. The Playlist DJ basically profiles all the music you have on your device. it categorizes them into four broad emotions. This can be further fine tuned as each ‘emotion’ is actually a scale by itself. Everytime you choose an emotion and the scale of it, it shows you a list of songs that supposedly match it.

Upon selecting the song displayed, it automatically starts the default music player in your device and just like that, you are listening to a song that customized according to your mood.

You can also create your own playlist and listen to your music. While it may seem like just another app, but for music lovers and even casual listeners it’s a boon. Now you do not need to spend an hour creating that playlist just coz you are feeling blue. The app does it for you in a jiffy, so you can be listening to songs that cheer you up!

I think it’s a neat little app to have. Grab it from the Ovi Store, it’s free!

Symbian^3 UI on video

The good people of Nokia have just outed a video of the new Symbian^3 UI. The new UI clearly seems to be a step forward from the current format being used. It certanly looks promising. Have a look!

Is this something that makes you want to wait a bit for the next Nokia touch device. Let us know your views and thoughts on it.

N97mini Review Part-3: Software, Music and Battery

With the last review of the N97mini happening so late and a lot of things happening at my end (chronic backache, transfer of work location and some personal issues) I’ve been unable to bring you the remaining parts of the N97mini review. I apologize for the same.

Well anyway, without wasting time let me finish this most important part of the review.

Software:

The N97mini employs the latest version of the firmware, a.k.a V2.0, this version of the S60 5th edition, was hotly anticipated by the owners of the N97 as the saviour of the N97. While it did set a few things right, it could not do enough to mend what was committed at the hardware stage. The N97mini seems to have benefited most from the mistakes made by the N97. the mini has a larger internal memory (240MB + compared to 72MB on the N97). The screen is definitely more responsive. It seems Nokia has been really working on their screens.

On the software part, there is little difference with the N97. Everything is just as is on the N97, though I will have to say that things seems much better executed by the phone. Multitasking is much better and overall the mini does seem snappier than the N97. The N97mini also comes preloaded with a huge bucket load of widgets and apps, it also has space for lots more.

Let me list out what came with our review unit,

1. Drawing

2. JoikuSpot

3. Qik

4. Boingo

5. Traveler

6. YouTube

7. AccuWeather

8. Amazon

9. AP Mobile

10. Bloomberg

11. CNBC TV-18

12. CNN Video

13. Elle

14. Facebook

15. Friendster

16. Hi5

17. MySpace

18. Slideshow

19. Vlingo

20. Asphalt4

21. Spore

22. Marble Maze

23. BDayLauncher

This surely makes it a loaded phone. Despite all of these apps being there the phone had an amazing 240MB+ of available memory, meant that one could run Nokia Messaging and install a few more apps and the phone would not slow down or hang like it’s big brother.

A gallery of images will show the N97mini’s OS.

I’d give the entire experience a 8/10. The S60 5th edition works well, but still feels clunky.

Music:

When it comes to music, the N97mini did not disappoint. It was loud and clear. The dedicated audio chip allows one to experience good quality music. The earphones supplied with the mini are also pretty good. Though on the BH-905 is when you can actually really feel the clarity. Devices in the price range of US $300 and above are now mini stereos without the huge speakers now a days. The N97mini is no less. It’s own stereo speakers being pretty loud. In a noisy environment (Indian conditions) it does get difficult to hear the phone.

The music player on the mini is the standard music player on any S60 5th edition, which means it offers shuffle, repeat, equalizer settings. The look of the player remains unchanged and that’s a bit bad as it is beginning to look old already. Nseries definitely need to make the player more appealing to their target audience. Adding a few more features would definitely help.

The music store which is tied to the Nokia Music store works very nicely on the N97mini. Once you log in and enter the serial no. for the free 100 tracks that come with the phone, you can download straight onto your phone. Should you choose to send it to a friend or a PC, you can do it too. Nokia Music Store has a continuously growing library of music and features the latest content and some other content which can be hard to come by these days.

And if all of these things still leave you wanting for more, FM radio should help you. The N97mini has FM radio, so you can listen to all the music you want over the airwaves. Absensce of an FM transmitter is glaring here. I am left wondering why it was not retained for the N97mini?

Overall the N97mini gets an 8/10. If one takes out the Music Store, the score comes down to 7. The Music Player app needs urgent help, in my opinion, when it comes to aesthetics.

Battery:

The battery on the N97mini is not the same that did duty on the N97. Since it has a smaller screen and a few other things missing over the N97, Nokia decided to give it a smaller battery. The Nokia BL-4D does duty on the mini. It is rated at 1200mAh, a full 20% lesser than the N97’s 1500mAh. While in the normal course you would not feel it. But if you are a heavy user the charge awaits you by the time you reach home at night. I’ve been able to squeeze 2-3days from the battery with moderate usage. Heavy users are likely to find it tough to manage that feat.

If you are watching one of the three preloaded movies on the N97mini (Da Vinci Code, Spiderman, My Best Friend’s Wedding) you will see the bars drop pretty fast. The device will also heat up from the bottom.

I’d rate it at 7/10. This is a mixed bag and though the battery life is good on it, with one doing many things on it, don’t expect it to last that long.

Gallery:

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