Category Archives: Mobility

Symbian Belle – Buzz All Around !

Symbian Belle is the buzz that has been around for while with many devices already been launched and  some models due for an upgrade. The  Nokia 600, Nokia 700, and Nokia 701 are the devices that are ready to use with Symbian Belle.

Why does one need to migrate from Symbian 3^(Build Anna) to Symbian Belle?

The UI has changed to a reasonable extent considering the Symbian development cycle is finished. Nokia has still made an attempt to make sure that it cares of its existing users.

Tops Visible Changes Include:

  • Flexible Widgets
  • Smooth Sweep
  • Notifications Bar
  • Toggle Widgets
  • Modernized Menu
  • Contacts
  • Flexible  Widgets

If we compare the home screens of a Symbian Anna and Belle based device, the widgets on a Belle based device are more flexible and easy to customize leaving the user with ample space and adjustment options and making the phone more personal. The image below is an example of the customization options.

  • Smooth Sweep

The Overall improvements have led to a smoother interface where once can switch between home screens at a faster speed without an inconvenience, although this might vary on handsets depending on display type and the overall  hardware performance.

  • Notifications Bar

The Notifications Bar  is similar to the Android operating system, the top swipe displays a menu providing access to Mobile Data, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Messages and Missed Calls which is comparatively much better than Symbian Anna.

 

  • Toggle Widgets

Toggle widgets are a great way to make things easier which includes Wi-Fi On/Off , NFC, GPS, and Packet Data widget. Toggle between services to enable or disable them.

  • Modernized Menu

The menu design is similar to the Nokia N9. Folder based navigation is no longer a part of the menu, all menu items are accessible within the main menu.

  • Contacts

Contacts have been given a good space and room within the widgets area of different home screens one can add various contact widgets, it includes contacts with larger image and better visibility also the ability to drag an individual contact from one home screen to another.

 

Still Waiting for the Symbian Belle Update for My Nokia E6-00, will keep you posted with an interactive post or a video once I’ve experimented more.

RIM Launches 3 New Blackberry Smartphones in India

Research in Motion (RIM) has launched three new smartphones powered by the Blackberry OS 7. These are the Blackberry Bold 9790, Blackberry Curve 9350, and Blackberry Curve 9380. The Curve 9350 is identical to Curve 9360, the difference being that it is a CDMA phone. The Curve 9380 is Blackberry’s first complete touch phone with an elegant optical track pad and navigation keys, an initiative to attract existing customers and new users to adapt and switch to the all-new multi-touch interface.The Curve 9380 sports a sleek, stylish, and slim design. The Bold 9790 is a touch and type smartphone both offering both a QWERTY keypad a touch interface. A quick review of technical specifications, features and pricing for all newly launched models is found below.

Features

Blackberry Bold

9790

Blackberry Curve

9380

Blackberry Curve

9350 (CDMA)

Display Size

2.45-inch

(480 x 360 pixels)

3.2-inch

(480 x 360 pixels)

2.4-inch

(480 x 360 pixels)

Processor

1 GHz

806 MHz

800 MHz

RAM

768MB

512MB

512MB

Camera

5MP Auto-Focus

With Led Flash

5MP

With Led Flash

5MP

With Led Flash

Video Capture

VGA

(640×480)

VGA

(640×480)

VGA

(640×480)

Expandable Storage

Yes

Micro SD Card Up to 32GB

Yes

Micro SD Card Up to 32GB

Yes

Micro SD Card Up to 32GB

Internal Memory

8GB

512 MB eMMC

512 MB eMMC

Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/3G

Yes/Yes/Yes

Yes/Yes/Yes

Yes/Yes/Yes

A-GPS/GPS/NFC              

Yes/Yes/Yes

Yes/Yes/Yes

Yes/Yes/Yes

HSPDA

Yes

7.2 Mbps

No

No

OS

Blackberry OS 7

Blackberry OS 7

Blackberry OS 7

Media Playback

Multi format audio and video player

Multi format audio and video player

Multi format audio and video player

Talk Time

Up to 5.3 Hrs.

Up to 5.5 Hrs.

Up to 5.5 Hrs.

Dimensions (HxWxD)

110 x 60 x 11mm

109 x 60 x 11mm

109 x 60 x 11mm

Weight

107g

98g

99g

 Price (INR)

27,490

20,990

20,990

Samsung Galaxy Pro B7510

 

PROS –

  1. Good Build Quality – SAMSUNG has appreciably improved its build quality on this Handset. Useful Slider on USB cum Charging Port. Convenient 3.5mm Headset Port, Volume & Power Switches.
  2. Convenient Slots for SIM and SD Card. Slots don’t interfere with the Battery.
  3. Large Display, Convenient Keys, Comfortable Touch, Comfortably Large Font Size for easy reading.
  4. Feature Packed Mobile – 10/10 Score on Features other than Camera (have not evaluated it yet).
  5. Good Quality of SAMSUNG Supplied Accessories viz. SANDISK 2GB SD Card, Charger, Wired In-Ear Headset, Carrying Pouch and Data Cable.
  6. Very Easy-to-Use and Personalize for a Proficient Smartphone User.
  7. Very Good Value-for-Money, specially for a Touch and Type Handset. The only Phone which delivers better overall Value, Stability, Ease-of-Use and Performance at equivalent pricing is the Symbian S60 based NOKIA E63 Smartphone in spite of the fact that it has much fewer Features and lower Technical Specifications.
  8. Best Buy Product from Price and Performance points of view for anyone wanting to make a move to Android with Thousands of Applications from Symbian/ Bada/ other Proprietary OS Mobiles; have not evaluated the Camera yet.

CONS –

  1. With most Applications and Features enabled on a 2G Network, the Battery drains out very quickly, within just a few hours even though it is of a Higher Capacity than equivalent Motorola and the closest HTC handsets. The Battery Drain is extensive primarily due to Multiple Tasks being run simultaneously in the Background by the Phone such as Push mail, Gmail, . Carrying an AC/Car Charger/ USB Data Cable is a MUST for fail-safe performance – which is Impractical as well as convenient most of the times. The Nokia E63 has a Killer Battery in comparison.
  2. Display is Large but not with 16 Million Colors and an Owner migrating from Nokia can feel that Difference.
  3. The First Impression to a Non-Owner presents it as a low end Phone since the Phone is extremely Light due to light weight Plastics used in the Phone.
  4. The Back Cover could have had been more easy-to-remove for replacing a Low Battery with a Second One (Spare Bty. to be purchased separately).
  5. The Back Cover could have been a Steel Cover, it would have added a little more weight to the phone, dissipated more Heat and made the Phone look Better.
  6. The WHITE Color Variant should also be available, it looks better than Silver on the Samsung India website.

Idea Cellular Launches its Android Phones in India

 

 

On 23rd November, Telecom Operator, Idea Cellular Services launched its first Android based Smartphones in India The Smartphones named  Idea-ID280 and Idea-Blade will be available in the market for Rs.5850/- and Rs.7992/- respectively. These smartphones will be soon available at all major mobile retail stores and Idea outlets across all major cities in India.

The Idea-ID280 is a re-branded Huawei Ideos X1 whereas Idea Blade is a rebranded ZTE Blade, which is already available in the market for many months as Dell XCD35.

Idea Cellular Services is also offering its Data Services at Special Prices with these Smartphones. For Rs. 259/-Idea Cellular Services is offering its 3G Services and Data Usage up to Rs.3500/-. The Rs.259/- pack also provides the User with a Free Subscription of Idea TV for 3 months, 1 GB of data download per month for 3 months, 3G Double Dhamaka benefits for 6 months and a Talk time of  Rs.25/-. This special Introductory Offer is available to both Pre-paid and Post-paid Users.

Idea ID 280 Features:

  • Android 2.2 Froyo
  • 528 MHz Processor
  • 256 MB RAM
  • 152 MB Internal memory
  • 2.8 Inch Capacitive Display with 240 x 320 Pixels Resolution
  • FM Radio
  • 1200 mAh Battery
  • 3.2 MP Camera

 Idea Blade Features:

  • Android 2.2 Froyo
  • 3.5 Inch Display with 480×800 Resolution
  • 600 MHz Processor
  • 3 MP Camera
  • Wi-Fi / Bluetooth / USB
  • FM Radio
  • 150 MB Internal Memory/ Up to 32 GB Micro SD Card Support
  • Weight : 130gm | Dimensions : 116 x 56.5 x 11.8