Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

I am honestly very happy with the form that the N810 is in. To be honest, most of my concerns are software related. I would be pleased if the N900 mirrored the N810 hardware very closely.

I think the biggest change to the N900 should indeed be software. Maemo seems like a great platform, though its far from being perfect. Additionally, key applications should be improved dramatically (eg. MPlayer should be standard).

I came across an article that compares the N800 to the Apple Newton. The reviewer has done a very good job of outlining areas that can be improved. Check it out: http://cs.gmu.edu/~sean/stuff/n800/

What do you think?


}:^)~
YARR!

Capt'n Corrupt

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

I would like to see the N900 come packed with one of these: http://www.wirelessground.com/mircousbhfadap.html

It's a microUSB to 3.5mm headphone adapter eliminating the need for a dedicated 3.5mm headphone jack in the N900. The benefits are many:

1) It frees up internal room for more hardware (extra micro USB, for example).
2) It forces audio over USB, which can be useful for digitally perfect, crystal-clear, audiophile grade sound reproduction from the N900. Great for home stereo hookups.
3) It allows power users the choice of bypassing the in-pack microUSB to 3.5mm adapter for use with an efficient portable amp and HiFi headphones.
4) It's a very simple and low cost solution.
5) The headphone output can be controlled via software, allowing the adapter to act as a line-out, for quick and easy stereo hookup.
6) It can accommodate wired headsets complete with microphone input.


Ideally, this adapter would have the ability to tightly 'clip' to the headphone jacks base, eliminating the need to re-connect it each time you want to listen, or reducing the possibility of it coming loose in the pocket.

Together with usb charging, this would free up a great deal of internal space. The current 3.5mm headphone jack and the DC power input could be wholly eliminated in this scenario.


}:^)~
YARR!

Capt'n Corrupt

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

I could not agree more. When evaluating N810 against competitors, two things stuck out:

-- N810 is a great piece of hardware
-- N810 really lags in software

In my opinion, the hardware makes the N810 a potentially great PIM, media viewer/player, GPS, and eMail client. These are all well-established "killer apps" with large markets. The only thing preventing the N810 from competing in (and possibly leading) these markets is the software.

I know there is 3rd party software, which is certainly useful. However for such important applications there should be a much better out-of-box experience. I wonder what Blackberry's market would be like if they had suggested people find and install their own email client, or if Palm suggested people wait until someone else developed a PIM application.

The ROI for Nokia here must be huge. I really can't get my head around why they haven't done it.

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

I still have some usability concerns with the dpad/button-cluster placement on the N810. I'd like to see something like my mock-ups, with 2 dpads arranged in the center sides (or upper sides, like where the N800 dpad is) and the camera and light sensor above the screen instead of to the side.

The other hardware things, though, I would agree aren't as critical. They're "nice to haves" (charge via USB, microSD/transflash, rear facing picture and video camera, tilt screen instead of kick-stand, WWAN (wimax, hsdpa/hsupa, etc.). Once the usability concerns are addressed, these "nice to haves" can, and probably should, take a back-seat to software concerns. And, hopefully, those software concerns don't have to wait for an N900 -- they can be done within the OS upgrades to the current tablets alone.

The things I think are "Must Haves" on the software side:

• Calendar/Todo app
• Sync app for contacts, bookmarks, calendar, todo with all of the following desktop/server based counterparts:
  • thunderbird/firefox/lightning/sunbird
  • Apple addressbook and iCal perhaps via iSync compatibility
  • Google Apps
  • (maybe Outlook/Entourage)
• Full IMAP client (can read all server-side folders, can use the server-side inbox/sent/trash folders instead of local ones, automatically syncs all IMAP folders when checking for new messages)
• Bluetooth PAN support (in addition to Bluetooth DUN)
• Fully supported integration with Bluetooth Hard drives, NFS, CIFS, WebDAV (windows "web folders"), and Apple File Share volumes.
• Support for Socks 4 and Socks 5 Proxies in the Configuration wizard (in the same dialog where you specify HTTP, HTTPS, and other proxies).
• Support for password protected proxies.
• Gmail Notifier should support logging into Google Apps hosted gmail domains, and not just the main gmail domain. (it notifies just fine, it just doesn't work when you tell it to go login)

These things are "Nice to Haves" on the software side:

• Act as Bluetooth keyboard and mouse for other devices (supporting both HID and SPP modes)
• Act as Bluetooth "handsfree" device for cell phones (display caller-id, dial calls, answer calls, route audio through NIT, sync NIT and phone contacts, send/receive SMS and MMS messages)
• Bundled OpenSSH client (keep server as an add-on)
• Built in VNC client (just like xterm is now built in) (use the zoom buttons for actually magnifying/demagnifying the display, and not as surrogates for mouse2 and mouse3)
• Easy to install and manage VNC server
• Support for "video out via USB" devices
• Office Software (view/edit Word, Excel, PowerPoint docs)
• Sync documents to desktop host via simple user interface
• Sync documents with Google Docs
• Support for USB modem/network devices (POTS modem, RTT1x/EVDO, GPRS/EDGE/HSDPA/HSUPA/LTE, WiMAX, Ethernet 10/100/Gig)
• Support for USB tethering with cell phones (via USB OTG port)
• Support for USB card readers
• Support for various Express Card devices via Express Card to USB adapters (so, EVDO Express Card plugged into adapter plugged into cable plugged into USB port)

(you'll notice I don't mention any media device oriented stuff; I don't use my NIT that way ... I wouldn't object to having faster video frame rate support, more codecs, etc. -- just didn't include them because they aren't on my radar)

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

Agreed, and very well put. This is especially puzzling when one considers that many of the apps are available, high quality, and open source. For example, were Nokia to pack Canola, or canola 2 as part of the Internet Tablet stock applications, it would be considered a POWERFUL and complete PMP (personal media player) replacement, capable of taking advantage of almost all types of media with its optimized Mplayer backend.


Amazingly put. Nokia is providing a less than stellar user experience in a number of areas:

1) shoddy software
2) less-than-stellar user interfaces
3) difficult to find/manage software
4) missing key applications

The thing is, many of these things exist! Rather than wasting time writing yet another media player, include Canola! The extra time can be spent porting PIM software or the like.

At the very least, stick a 'get latest software' button on the menu, to automatically grab a select list of OSS hand picked by very capable people.

As for the 3rd party apps:

Nokia could really benefit from hiring one or two people, dedicated to maintaining a website for 3rd party apps. At the present moment, the maemo site does a pretty good job of delineating the existing applications, but with non-intuative names, and often shoddy websites, it's VERY difficult to know what the program is prior to installing it. This problem could be wholly eliminated if one (or two) people, was committed to making comprehensive writeups for an applications on a standard page, with screen shots and install links.

The user-friendly software site would not only help existing users find software that's easily installable (only the standard repository!), but understand what is actually available to be installed. Future tablet owners will have the luxury of knowing what the tablet can do before the purchase. Lastly, the user site will easily point out the lacking areas of the current software base, and site statistics analysis, will determine how the masses are using the tablet.


Sometimes these obvious things to us (the users), are not obvious to executives reading charts. Someone should mail this thread to thread to the key individuals responsible for the Tablet Series.

I'll draft an open source letter :) and post it here for the scrutiny of all. Hopefully, once mailed, it'll be read, and have an impact on the direction of Internet Tablet development.

To all: Get your ideas in!


}:^)~
YARR!

Capt'n Corrupt

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

Good suggestions. It seems as though first time N810 owners don't have that much of an issue with the dpad location. Do you think this is something you have gotten used to, and is uncomfortable on the N810?

As a first time tablet owner, I doubt I'd have a problem with the dpad on the N810. Is this just me?


A great list of must haves!

In regards to bluetooth PAN: this thread seems to suggest that it is indeed possible, but certainly not out of the box. A forum member has posted a script to enable it, but it could potentially be easily setup with easy to use configuration software. Worth a look.


Certainly. It seems as though you mainly use the tablet as a remote network tool! :)


}:^)~
YARR!

Capt'n Corrupt

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

I don't have my N810 yet. For me, it's about ergonomics and convenience. Thumb placement, and fatigue from extending the thumb, etc. say that the N800's dpad location is pretty ideal. The N810's location means you have to extend your thumb down to use it (assuming you're firmly holding the sides of the device). That's likely to cause thumb aches in the long run.

Then there's convenience. With the N810, to use the dpad, I'll have to open the device. That's just not a good requirement in my opinion. If the UI was as finger-friendly as the iPhone, the that'd be fine. But OS2007 certainly isn't, and while I hear OS2008 is better, it doesn't sound like it's as good as an iPhone for finger-friendliness.

Thank you :-)

I've seen that thread. And, you're right, I mean "out of the box". I want it to be as basic and as integrated feature as Bluetooth DUN and Wifi. While I am quite capable of hacking any unix/linux box (I'm a unix sysadmin by profession), I don't want to do that with my consumer device. I want it to "just work".

Yup! For me, it's about connectivity. Chat from anywhere, Email from anywhere, Web browse from anywhere, read RSS from anywhere, ssh to my servers from anywhere. I suppose it's possible I'd be just as happy with a sidekick (I know they have ssh, don't know if they have a decent RSS reader), but on principle, I want an open source platform as well, and unix based is a huge bonus. And there are some other things I enjoy about the NIT platform beyond those basic connectivity goals.

I have an iPod I _never_ use. It is just forever charging on my desktop (probably killed the battery from doing that, and I just don't know it yet because I haven't touched it in over a year). I don't begrudge people who want more PMP features on the NIT platform -- even if I probably wont use it, it improves the platform in all sorts of ways. I just don't have any of those features on my list of "must haves" and "nice to haves".

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

- While I would certainly use some vnc type of functionality, support for a sena clent would be cool.

- WAY faster processor and the ability to underclock it if you want longer battery life.

- The current camera offends me. Nokia, 2001 called and they want their camera back.

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

Kinda redundant, as we're guaranteed to get a processor upgrade next generation (it's already been mentioned several times, anyway). Underclocking already comes with OS2008, it just scales to user demand. A selector for this would be rather pointless, you either get more cycles with a slight reduction of battery life to get something done quickly or fewer cycles with less of an impact on battery life that takes longer to complete—the result is mostly the same.

Plus, these sort of things should be transparent to the user, anyway. :)

Re: What woud you realistically like to see in the N900?
 

I'm just feeling mouthy this morning. :)