Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

While I like certain aspects of my N900, it's definitely not the 'smartphone' of the year when it doesn't support features(out of the box) that are standard on even the 'non-smart' phones out there (USSD/MMS anyone??), the maps application (again, standard on every major smartphone) is pathetic compared to Google maps, and the lack of any manufacturer-supported sync (Ovi suite does not support N900, and the other Ovi sync offering doesn't work with half of the features without some serious hacking).

Smartphone of the year? No.
A fun toy to hack around on? Yes.

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

The strange part is that NOKIA owns all the maps behind google maps...
Have you tried the MAEP package Crafty? Might get you a little happier.

Post back about the issues closer to summer and lets see what comes out, buy random phone that have the stuff you need and let the N900 rest.

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

Modell900,
Hmmm. I tought that google maps has some license with Teleatlas. And will be probably dropping that too city by city. After they have mapped cities with streetview car that basically draws map also.

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

This thread now has official 1/5 council endorsement. :D

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

They're missing "Most anticipated device of 2009" :D

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

Thanks for the suggestion. I did give Maep a shot a couple of weeks ago, but there is no routing, which is probably the most useful maps feature (to me at least). I guess I grew too attached to being able to load up Google Maps on my old iphone, and quickly get directions from my current location to a destination in under a minute while traveling :( (btw, my old iphone was horrible in a lot of areas that the N900 excels at, so I'm not trying to start that argument ;) )


Another potential alternative is the Map Buddy package, it loads VERY quickly, but POI search is not nearly as good as Google Maps(though better than Ovi maps), and there is no routing with that either.


The N900 does a TON of things, the problem is that it does no one thing extremely well. Like being the 'jack of all trades', but not being more than an apprentice at any one of those trades.

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

I ALWAYS say that the iPhone is the best phone in the world. No contest. It will win the Engadget thing - and deservedly so. I would never recommend the N900 to 99% of my buddies. I would tell them to get an iPhone.

Having said that, we're a minority: Linux-geeks or -buffs or whatever. For us, or at least for me, it's by far the best device right now. But come on. It never stood a chance of winning this contest.

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

You sir, are wrong. Other than the iPhone's amazing Google Maps integration, and simplistic SMS/email, it's a horrible device. Unless you spend time jailbreaking it, you're 100% under the control of Apple (they dictate what you can and cannot install, for instance).


I've been an N900 owner since December, and before that I was the owner of an iphone 2G for 2 years. There's a reason I am still sticking with the N900 despite the several shortcomings of the device, and not loading my SIM back into my iphone...

If the contest was titled "Best OPEN smartphone of 2009", I'd vote for the N900 hands-down. The Android is not as open as Maemo, but definitely not as closed as iphoneOS.

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

Actually, I've owned them all... 2g, 3g, 3gs. They are all awesome phones that changed the whole world of mobile phones. I've yet to meet a "simplistic" user that doesn't love it to death. I still maintain that for the vast majority of people, it's the best phone.

I jailbroke and I was sort of the go to guy for unlocking and hacking it with people bringing me iPhones every week. But I grew tired of it, once I realized my wife, my mom, my dad all had iPhones. Plus, I've always known I want a physical keyboard - there just wasn't anything suitable out there until the N900 (and maybe the Droid).

So, for me and you it matters that apple dictates what goes on it, but for "normies" it doesn't appear to... nor, it seems, for the people who read Engadget. You can't even blame Engadget's Apple-bias, since it isn't the editors who are voting, but the readers...

Re: Vote for the N900 in the 2009 Engadget Awards!
 

N900 is currently 4th in Gadget of the Year, which isn't great, but it has recently overtaken HTC HD2 and Zune HD. Probably too little time left to overtake Palm Pre, but vote if you haven't already! Still second from last in Smartphone of the Year.