Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

The short version: because buying one got me exactly what I wanted.

A bit longer version: the fruit themed gadgets make the user feel like an idiot (because of the ridiculous amount of pampering "we know what is good for you, we know all your needs"-rubbish and artificial limitations), Google's watchful eye has no business getting to my bedroom (but my communication device has, which is why the two cannot exist in the same entity) and my Windows allergy has been getting worse all the time, so the options were spread rather thin... Blackberries are almost impossible to get here, I might have ended up with a Storm, but then again the 5800 XM felt so cozy all the time I had it that it had to be a Nokia. And it so happens that Nokia has one device in its portfolio that I needed: the most open phone/MID/tablet/mobile computer on the market, the N900. I love it more day by day.

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

I got the N900 because I wanted a faster n800 with a hard keyboard.

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

I got mine because... well, because I can.

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

I switched from the iPhone, simply because I'm tired of Apple's tight fisted platform. Sure their hardware is nice and even the operating system is based on a stripped down of OS X which is just a XNU kernel + BSD.
The problem though, really that finally drove me away was their draconian approval process. the iPhone is the antithesis of what is open and free and reminds me of how Verizon and other carriers were back in the late 90s/early 00s - very controlling in what they would let onto their platforms (anyone remember BREW?). Funny how both Sprint and Verizon (with the Palm Pre and Droid) are now more open than Apple/ATT.

Oh and the other reason I migrated to the N900 is the awesome hardware specs.
I still miss a handful of apps that I used to use on the iphone, but I am content to do with out them, rather than sacrifice my principles.

I don't think the N900 and Maemo is quite mature enough, though I think it will get there eventually - maybe in 2 years time (I think more than one manufacturer needs to produce Maemo devices for this to be really viable though).

But for now I'm along for the (imperfect) ride.

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

Because:

1. The N810 had no phone
2. I'd exhausted the possibilities of WinMo hacking/flashing
3. I wanted the newest/fastest hardware available with a slide-out QWERTY

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

ROTFL. Good one.

Anyway, it's easiest if I just quote the appropriate posts. So, for me:

Agree. I hardly use my phones as phones - much more data and SMS use so this little beast is perfect for me.

Guilty!

Had a bunch of GC on my Amazon.com account and, well, it works better for me than my N97 which I'll sell at some point soon (even if the N97 is a better smartphone :) ).

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

i've had a "dumb" phone for the past 5 years. I've been holding out for the smart phone that met all of my requirments:
1. Qwerty keyboard
2. Touchscreen
3. Ability to run emulators
4. Ability to run most if not all of my media without the need to transcode to a different format
5. GPS
6. A fairly modern processor

I was very tempted by a few of the android phones as they met most of my requirements but I decided to hold out and now I have the device that I want. If i HAD to complain about the n900 i think the only thing could say is I wish it came with a Snapdragon chipset, but i'm more than satisfied with my purchase. Give the developer community some time and i'm sure we'll have more than enough apps to handle anything most users will need.

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

It worked well for S60 all those years, and is working for Apple and RIM so far. More would help, though...

I got the N900 because I've dreamed of having a pocketable laptop until I tried the OQO. Then I knew we'd need a custom UI to make it a reality. The full Linux OS, free open source alternatives to popular software, always on connectivity, open platform access for developers, and a great camera were all I'd need to make my dreams come true.

Now I'm walking around with a finger controlled pocketable workstation, and I couldn't be happier.:D

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

Nokia Marketing is hardly comparable to Apple's Marketing Machine.
People were queueing up for days to buy an unsubsidized phone when the first iphone was released. I see nothing of the sort with the N900 launch (not to mention Nokia royally bungled the release to begin with).

Re: Why did you get the N900?
 

I got the N900 as it's the most geeky phone you can get right now. =P

Also:
1. Browse web just like PC
2. Watch videos without transcoding
3. No need to hack / crack it
4. Hardware keyboard
5. Awesome LCD
6. Resistive touch - I use my finger nails often
7. Good open source developer community right here
8. Possibility to maybe learn some basic linux

Basically, I wanted a mini-pc+phone in my pocket. Seems only N900 fits this criteria.