Tutorial : LED Torch (for Symbian 3rd and 5th edition)

The time when you need torches the most is when they’re hardest to get to – in a black out (or brown out as they oddly call it in the Philippines). And looking for a torch is only useful if you actually own one to start with. No point trying to find the torch to check what’s rolled under your bed/sofa if you haven’t even got a torch.

Here’s a FREE application that allows Nokia 5800 owners to use the white and red LED flash as a torch.

It has a simple start/stop, switch colour mode and even the ability to convert your text into morse code flash! How brilliant is that? But now all you need is for someone else to be able to understand morse code (although it maybe useful in certain emergency situations where a flashing light maybe the only way to contact for help…such as attracting a boat if you’re desserted on an island, because that’s very likely to happen)

Please be aware that you install this at your own risk. Also there are two installation methods for signed and unsigned.

You can view these instructions and download the application fromhttp://dev.meh.at/.

Make sure though that you download the most recent version to get the latest features.

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Tutorial : Using your Nokia smartphone as a modem.

One of our readers Gemma sent us an email asking for a short how-to on using your Nokia smartphone as a 3G modem. Given that it’s something I felt like a great deal of our readers would benefit from (if they didn’t already know  ) I decided to take up the torch and do a quick post showing this.

As we all know, when buying a Nokia device, Nokia provides their software suite installation CD in addition to other accessories. Although the CD itself is not mandatory for installing the software suite (It’s just as easy to find on the internet) the majority of users will gain access to Nokia’s Ovi Suite or PC Suite via this method.

1st step:

Install the darn thing! As much as you may be inclined to do without it there are quite a few features included with this that’ll amongst other things, allow you to use your mobile phone as a modem!

2nd step: connecting your phone to the PC.

This can be accomplished in two main ways, Bluetooth or via the USB cable provided with your phone. Either method works, though for faster download  speeds it’d be best to go the USB route (saves battery life as well!)

3rd step launch Ovi Suite or PC Suite on your PC.

You’ll be greeted by a screen much like this one. (For the sake of privacy my photos, contacts and text messages have been removed LOL  )

 Provided that your mobile has been connected via USB, it’s really a very simple matter.

Click there and voila, you’re phone is a USB modem. This is a free feature on every sim-free/unlocked Nokia that I’ve ever owned, EVER. I’ve never incurred any extra cost for doing this and for those conscious of your data consumption, Ovi suite will provide information on the amount of data transferred and the time elapsed since the connection was opened  .

[Jay: Alternatively you can share your 3G connection over WiFi with apps like JoikuSpot. This is free, and the paid premium version will let you secure your connection. I like the USB function too as it also charges your device (if that's a feature)

Do be careful as some networks prohibit the use of your connection as a modem/data tethering. Also note that it becomes so much easier to consume data when browsing over PC.]

As a bonus feature to this little How-to:

How would you like to be able to send and receive text messages on your phone and reply to them without ever picking the phone up? Click on the messaging section and you’ll be brought to an area where you can back-up all the messages on your cell either manually or every time your phone is connected to your PC, send text messages to any contact you desire, read conversations in threaded, IM-style fashion and receive unobtrusive pop-up notifications on your desktop every time you receive a message.

This feature is VERY useful for texting while in class! 

NB. Don’t know what the scenario is for you mac users out there, but I’d imagine it being a somewhat similar procedure provided a PC-suite-esque program exists.

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Nokia Lumia 90 Dual Screen Windows Phone/Windows 8 tablet

This concept comes from ScChow (h3csc)and it is the Nokia Lumia 90.  This is a dual screen tablet phone without a bezel between the two screens.

The mechanism is shown below as well as the specs.

Imaginary spec:

• Quad-core Tegra 3 processor
• 2x 4″ 1280×600
• Clear Black Display
• 1GB of RAM
•  Dual boot
• Windows Phone 7 (just imagine it is Tegra 3 compatible)
• Windows 8 (ARM compatible mode)
• Around 18mm (Nokia N900 reborn!)
• Additional feature
• Micro sim slot, MircroSD card slot and 3.5mm audio jack on top of the phone. (or left in tablet mode)
• Back cover with 8mp autofocus camera, dedicated camera and volume keys. (has to be detach in tablet mode)

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Nokia Concepts : Nokia Lumia ‘Coffee’ Tab Windows 8

Here's another Nokia tablet design. This one as a few of the others has the N9/Lumia style design but this one reminding me of the N8 too (perhaps the black ends on the blue edges?). This design is by Tristan who wanted to have a bit of fun speculating on what the tablet might look like. Check it out with those Nokia Purity in-earphones. The scattered coffee beans are a nice touch  .

The camera isn’t in the middle but in the top left corner (so not impeded I guess when held in landscape with two hands). I’m not sure if those buttons are hardware or appear with the Windows 8 swipe. There’s even a nice picture below where its set in natural surroundings.

• Lumia “coffee” tab
• 1.4GHz cpu
• 512Mb ram
• 16/32/64Gb storage
• 9.7″ AMOLED “clearblack” display (1280×800)
• 8Mp Rear camera, 2Mp front facing camera
• Windows 8 tablet edition
• Wifi/3G connectivity

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Nokia Concepts : Nokia Lumia Espresso Windows 8 Concept Tablet – with Play 360 :P

My Dream Nokia #43 Lumia Coffee tab was a surprising hit (surprising in a way that I didn’t expect the likes of CNet and co to pick it up)

‘Tris clark’ returns again with another stunning design, addressing the constructive criticisms of his last work.

It is called, the Lumia Espresso.

Erm? YUM!!!! I want this YESTERDAY!

Projection keyboard is interesting  Gives you a chance to maintain all the screen real-estate but not have to have extra size for the keyboard. There might be some limitations obviously regarding where it can be used (just on a table perhaps) but I guess that’s when you”d be wanting to do more longer typing? There’s no image of the back so we don’t know what that looks like but it does have 12mp.

NFC is very much welcome – makes great use of cool accessories such as Nokia’s simple pairing Play 360 (that sound fantastic) though the Espresso tablet does have its own set of ‘quad’ speakers. Also pretty neat is wireless charging. You know Ahtisaari and crew have been after removing more moving parts/ports etc, in favour of more streamline designs – wireless  charging was one of the conclusions of the Guardian newspaper.

Addressing the constructive criticisms of my original Lumia “coffee” tablet, ive had another crack at coming up with my dream Nokia (what better way to spend my day off!)
The new tab is a touch sleeker with a quad core cpu, more ram and a proper 16:9 screen along with some other bells & whistles like the projected keyboard and quad speakers.

Lumia “Espresso”

• 1.2GHz quad core cpu
• 2Gb system ram
• 10.1″ clearblack AMOLED screen (1280×800)
• 32/64/128Gb storage
• 12Mp camera (2Mp front facing camera)
• wifi/3g connectivity
• quad speakers
• nfc
• wireless charging
• MagicKey, projected keyboard

comes bundled with the Nokia play360 speaker!

‘If’ it was in a video :p Ah, if only it was real and this was actually from Nokia labs.

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Nokia Concept : Symbian’s amazing everyday!

I haven’t had much time to blog lately but, today is no ordinary day. I woke up in the morning with a feeling that something great was about to happen at MWC. I’m so glad I wasn’t wrong  The announcement of Nokia 808 Pureview is pretty much a dream come true to all of us Symbian/Nokia fans.

Nokia has been a pioneer in must mobile phone advancements, but today’s revelation, in my opinion, surpasses them all; not because of the technology presented (not that it isn’t an amazing achievement), but because it once again places Nokia in the vanguard of mobile device’s technology, in the most mind blowing way!

A few days ago, we were discussing that the competition was just now catching up with what Nokia brought us with the N8. There’s nothing out there, that can even be compared to Pureview. If the N8 was a game changer, I don’t really know what to say about this… 41Mp???!! It’s undoubtedly a shocker for everyone. It’s a delight to see the brand raise once again to its full potential, specially because it is making use of the house’s OS: Symbian.

Contrary to what’s been highlighted by part of the blogosphere today, Symbian is by no means an inferior OS. Although I have to agree that as far as UI was concerned the platform was a bit outdated, the arrival of Belle “cleaned” Symbian’s face, and brought to surface the potential withhold in it. It can be an eye pleaser as well but, more than everything, a functional and feature filled, eye pleaser.

It has matured gracefully in the last decade, and is now starting to make use of the newest pieces of tech/engineering available.

The only problem is that the public’s perception of it, is tinted…

I can only hope that advancements of this nature, implemented in the OS, can start changing people’s view of it, and perhaps, who knows, give it (and/or Meego/Maemo) a clean start.

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Nokia Concept : Nokia Snow Concept Lumia Windows Phone

 It was super busy last week and I didn’t think it would be fair for this to get drowned by the other news as these are some really great designs we have for My Dream Nokia.

Mohamed Magdy emailed us last Tuesday about his new concept Nokia phone, called Nokia Snow (Lumi = Snow in Finnish?)

http://vision.recentglance.com/

You might be familiar with his previous work, the Nokia C8 (C7 inspired)

• 1000X600 pixels
• Super AMOLED plus
• 2MP front camera
• MicroUSB
• MicroHDMI
• USB OTG
• Active noise cancellation microphone
• Stereo speakers
• 14.1MP

There’s another post to come right after this one, the Nokia tablet.

http://wp.me/p1gHxJ-8z3

The presentation is quite something, the video looks professionally done.

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