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| The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to ehab For This Useful Post: | ||
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2010-06-11
, 21:38
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Posts: 22 |
Thanked: 4 times |
Joined on May 2010
@ Karachi, Pakistan
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#92
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Originally Posted by terryowen
Thanks for understanding my dillemma
If the N900 is going to be your main browsing device, you might not be happy. It's great for a smartphone and if I were traveling for a while it would be enough but for the money you might be better off with a cheaper phone and a netbook.
I don't think an iPod Touch would be that much better than the N900. There's almost as much space for media on the Nokia and it has a keyboard and camera. Most recent phones, even cheap ones, double as decent music players, anyway.
Apps are another story. Is there something you think you can't live without? Certain games that have specific clients? Word processing or programming needs? I think you said you were a student so the larger screen and storage, as well as usb peripherals might be the wiser choice.
I gave my daughter my netbook but I still have access to desktops at home and work, as well as an old laptop so I don't miss it. But being dependent on one device for internet, phone, media, etc. seems workable only if you are extremely motivated and prepared to risk being without anything if you drop your phone, or it's stolen or whatever.
It's good that you weigh the options. Maybe the MeeGo netbook, when it comes out? :-)
Terry
In some ways the N900 almost seems too good for me. If the money was in my hands I'd impulse buy it immediately. The thought of browsing (nearly) the full web, listening to my music, downloading stuff via BitTorrent, watching movies thanks to the enormous storage and using it as a phone seems like an amazingly exciting prospect. It'd be so much more portable (and modular) than a netbook if I could whip out a bluetooth keyboard, connect a TV cable and use it just as I would a normal netbook.
However, this thing is costing me near $560 in my country. I'm getting a pretty well specified notebook here - which I admit isn't as portable - for $200 more. (I assume you're in the US, so using local currency)
For that extra $200 I put obsolescence completely at bay since laptops usually last six or seven years from a technical standpoint, get around 15 times more storage and all the flexibility of a PC, except the portability. And that alone is crucial to me. I cannot bear to live with my Nokia E90's browsing and MP3 playback on it's 330MHz processor for longer, and since this is my last major purchase for quite some time, I'll have to live with it a few years more. The N900 would be my internet browser, music player, plaything and utility device, but buying a laptop would mean buying all of those separately.
Last edited by hackm0d; 2010-06-11 at 21:44.
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2010-06-11
, 21:40
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Posts: 22 |
Thanked: 4 times |
Joined on May 2010
@ Karachi, Pakistan
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#93
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Originally Posted by ehab
Thanks for your input.
I am an SEO and web developer and so I will answer the part about the browser.
The n900 has the best online browser of any mobile phone or tablet BY FAR.
I tested the compatibility of the browser in many hard to handle pages. I owned and used Iphone, Ipad, G1 ( android ) and many HTC devices. So I am talking with real experience in mobile browsers here.
It will load and display complex AJAX pages that Iphone users can only DREAM of seeing in years.
After pr 1.2 the keyboard got much more usable by using long clicks.
So I would recommend this phone.
By the way, having used all of those devices, how do you feel about the screen size? Having the full web experience is useless without adequate screen size, so do you think the N900 is easy to browse on with regards to the screen?
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2010-06-11
, 22:03
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Posts: 1,455 |
Thanked: 3,309 times |
Joined on Dec 2009
@ Rochester, NY
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#94
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Originally Posted by Maruzko
You can get arrowed directions in OVI by clicking the arrow pointer as of PR1.2. Re-route is not a simple option though. Mappero (a community navigator) has all these features though, and is free. Re-route is an option when setting the route, has voice guidance, etc. And Sygic is also available.
3. Even though Ovi Maps doesn't have voice guidance [yet], does it at least show you arrowed directions on the screen and will it auto re-route if you are forced off the current due to road blocks, missed a turn, etc ?
Originally Posted by inidrog
I used my N6230 for over 6 years. Most mobiles are capable of quite a long life span if you buy them matching your projected needs. Since the N900 is so configurable, I expect to use mine for at least 4 or 5 years. The only way that would change is if GSM goes away for some reason, which I highly doubt will happen.
Max two years as any mobile
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2010-06-11
, 22:14
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Posts: 56 |
Thanked: 35 times |
Joined on Apr 2010
@ Iowa
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#95
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Well, a netbook in the US will usually cost a little more than half of what the N900 costs. A decent notebook (laptop) is what I'm assuming you estimate would be $200 more.
If it were me, I think I'd buy a smartphone like the HTC Fuze or Tilt 2 (WinMo) or Motorola Cliq (Android) or even a cheap G1 or Nokia 5800, which have all dropped to a couple of hundred dollars and buy a nice netbook for around $300. That way you wouldn't have all of your eggs in one basket.
But if you did go with an N900, I think you could make it work. It just will take some doing, since you'll have to buy accessories and wait until some things like external keyboards are more common.
Let us know how it turns out.
Terry
If it were me, I think I'd buy a smartphone like the HTC Fuze or Tilt 2 (WinMo) or Motorola Cliq (Android) or even a cheap G1 or Nokia 5800, which have all dropped to a couple of hundred dollars and buy a nice netbook for around $300. That way you wouldn't have all of your eggs in one basket.
But if you did go with an N900, I think you could make it work. It just will take some doing, since you'll have to buy accessories and wait until some things like external keyboards are more common.
Let us know how it turns out.
Terry
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2010-06-12
, 00:51
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Posts: 267 |
Thanked: 408 times |
Joined on May 2010
@ Austria
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#96
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I can only second ehab: The maemo browser is top notch, it correctly displays pages that I wouldn't have dared visit with neither iPhone nor XPeria. Also, with the new onscreen keyboard, at least to me, typing feels more natural than with either one (never got used to the iPhone keyboard at all, and the onscreen keyboard of the XPeria is far too small to comfortably use it without the stylus - the hardware one feels slightly superior to the N900, though).
So I'd say, at least for my taste and my diverse needs the N900 offers the best support in it's size category.
If we're talking about comparing it to a netbook, it's not that easy, though.
I can only share my own experiences, and those right now include having sent in my netbook for repairs three weeks ago. At first I was about to panic (I'm travelling a lot) but by now I feel comfortable I can live okay with only my N900 for another couple of weeks.
Both have their pro and cons. The N900 of course is more portable, I can actually sit quite well while carrying it in my cargos (with my netbook sitting becomes a bit more of a... stiff experience...
). Also, I just love how I can just take it with me into bed and surf/write while lying on my side (which I'm actually doing right now 
). And to me there's also that big advantage of how for example while shopping I can just easily use it to look up information without having to look for a place to put it down or balance it on my palm.
Of couse, when I'm spending a whole week or two in a hotel, I definitely prefer having my netbook around. I'm used to turbo-typing with 10 fingers, so of course typing on the N900 still takes five times as long as on the netbook. And of course there's quite a couple of applications that won't run on the N900, but do fine on the netbook.
So I guess browsing the repositories to get a feeling for what kind of application will run on the N900 should be one of the first things to do. Is the hardware's capacity enough for your needs and do you feel that everything you'll need will one day be available for the N900 (considering that this community is very strong at turning requests into actual applications)? With the examples of apps you mentioned earlier and the questions from the first post I dare almost say the N900 should be sufficient.
As for the screen, at least for me, that feels like much less of an issue than the keyboard. Holding the device at arms length I can still easily read almost every website without zoom, only for clicking links I really consider zooming in, and then you can either doubleclick to autozoom or use the volume buttons to finetune the zoom.
But again, that's mostly sharing my own experiences and those might differ from how a non geek might feel about usability and capabiliies of the device.
So I'd say, at least for my taste and my diverse needs the N900 offers the best support in it's size category.
If we're talking about comparing it to a netbook, it's not that easy, though.
I can only share my own experiences, and those right now include having sent in my netbook for repairs three weeks ago. At first I was about to panic (I'm travelling a lot) but by now I feel comfortable I can live okay with only my N900 for another couple of weeks.
Both have their pro and cons. The N900 of course is more portable, I can actually sit quite well while carrying it in my cargos (with my netbook sitting becomes a bit more of a... stiff experience...
). Also, I just love how I can just take it with me into bed and surf/write while lying on my side (which I'm actually doing right now ). And to me there's also that big advantage of how for example while shopping I can just easily use it to look up information without having to look for a place to put it down or balance it on my palm.Of couse, when I'm spending a whole week or two in a hotel, I definitely prefer having my netbook around. I'm used to turbo-typing with 10 fingers, so of course typing on the N900 still takes five times as long as on the netbook. And of course there's quite a couple of applications that won't run on the N900, but do fine on the netbook.
So I guess browsing the repositories to get a feeling for what kind of application will run on the N900 should be one of the first things to do. Is the hardware's capacity enough for your needs and do you feel that everything you'll need will one day be available for the N900 (considering that this community is very strong at turning requests into actual applications)? With the examples of apps you mentioned earlier and the questions from the first post I dare almost say the N900 should be sufficient.
As for the screen, at least for me, that feels like much less of an issue than the keyboard. Holding the device at arms length I can still easily read almost every website without zoom, only for clicking links I really consider zooming in, and then you can either doubleclick to autozoom or use the volume buttons to finetune the zoom.
But again, that's mostly sharing my own experiences and those might differ from how a non geek might feel about usability and capabiliies of the device.
| The Following User Says Thank You to Nathraiben For This Useful Post: | ||
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2010-06-12
, 06:58
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Posts: 22 |
Thanked: 4 times |
Joined on May 2010
@ Karachi, Pakistan
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#97
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Originally Posted by Nathraiben
I'm most definitely a geek, however I realize that fundamentally I expect as much from the N900 as everyone else does. instead of thinking of it as a typical, average smartphone, I have to understand that it is essentially a powerful box of electronics with an operating system. With this in mind, I have decided to purchase the N900 and sell my E90 (on which I am very comfortably typing this right now) as it seems overall better value than buying a separate laptop, PDA, phone, music player and plaything. The only downgrades I feel might make me hesitate are the screen size and the keyboard. I have already seen from your responses that it is adequate for comfortable browsing; however I do have my reservations about the keyboard.
I can only second ehab: The maemo browser is top notch, it correctly displays pages that I wouldn't have dared visit with neither iPhone nor XPeria. Also, with the new onscreen keyboard, at least to me, typing feels more natural than with either one (never got used to the iPhone keyboard at all, and the onscreen keyboard of the XPeria is far too small to comfortably use it without the stylus - the hardware one feels slightly superior to the N900, though).
So I'd say, at least for my taste and my diverse needs the N900 offers the best support in it's size category.
If we're talking about comparing it to a netbook, it's not that easy, though.
I can only share my own experiences, and those right now include having sent in my netbook for repairs three weeks ago. At first I was about to panic (I'm travelling a lot) but by now I feel comfortable I can live okay with only my N900 for another couple of weeks.
Both have their pro and cons. The N900 of course is more portable, I can actually sit quite well while carrying it in my cargos (with my netbook sitting becomes a bit more of a... stiff experience...
Of couse, when I'm spending a whole week or two in a hotel, I definitely prefer having my netbook around. I'm used to turbo-typing with 10 fingers, so of course typing on the N900 still takes five times as long as on the netbook. And of course there's quite a couple of applications that won't run on the N900, but do fine on the netbook.
So I guess browsing the repositories to get a feeling for what kind of application will run on the N900 should be one of the first things to do. Is the hardware's capacity enough for your needs and do you feel that everything you'll need will one day be available for the N900 (considering that this community is very strong at turning requests into actual applications)? With the examples of apps you mentioned earlier and the questions from the first post I dare almost say the N900 should be sufficient.
As for the screen, at least for me, that feels like much less of an issue than the keyboard. Holding the device at arms length I can still easily read almost every website without zoom, only for clicking links I really consider zooming in, and then you can either doubleclick to autozoom or use the volume buttons to finetune the zoom.
But again, that's mostly sharing my own experiences and those might differ from how a non geek might feel about usability and capabiliies of the device.
Did you actually type all this on your N900? I'm essentially migrating from a five-row QWERTY down to a three-row on the N900.
If it's important, I have precise fingers but they are a little chubby.
Here's a comparison: http://my-symbian.com/other/grafika/n900_3.jpg
http://my-symbian.com/other/grafika/n900_2.jpg
http://my-symbian.com/other/grafika/n900_6.jpg
Now do you think it would be easy to switch?
__________________
Phone History:
Nokia 1600 --> Nokia 9500 Communicator --> Sony Ericsson P800 --> Nokia 2310--> Nokia E90 Communicator -->Nexus One
Computer specs:
Q6600 @ 3.41GHz - Corsair DHX 4GB DDR2 - WD SE16 500GB + WD GP 1TBx2 - EVGA GTX 285 - Asus VW222U Widescreen
Phone History:
Nokia 1600 --> Nokia 9500 Communicator --> Sony Ericsson P800 --> Nokia 2310--> Nokia E90 Communicator -->Nexus One
Computer specs:
Q6600 @ 3.41GHz - Corsair DHX 4GB DDR2 - WD SE16 500GB + WD GP 1TBx2 - EVGA GTX 285 - Asus VW222U Widescreen
Last edited by hackm0d; 2010-06-12 at 09:04.
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2010-06-12
, 09:19
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Posts: 267 |
Thanked: 408 times |
Joined on May 2010
@ Austria
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#98
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There really shouldn't be any problems with chubby fingers - I have them (and mighty long fingernails), too, and I have no problems writing. Not even with the top row, which was my biggest concern because of it's close proximity to the screen.
Also, it' still a perfectly fine QWERTY (well, QWERTZ in my case), only the special characters, numbers and the spacebare have been repositioned. I'm already used to only using the right thumb for hitting the spacebar, so that wasn't much of a problem for me, but it might be for someone who's normally using both thumbs for inserting spaces.
I'm still using the onscreen keyboard most of the time (and that's what I was writing that last post with), but that's mostly because right now I spend most of the time on the N900 modifying it, and one of the drawbacks of the hardware keyboard is the limited number of keys. I dearly miss my greater-than and lesser-than keys and the most beautiful round and-sign...
(Yet for normal use it's more than enough. I can't tell what special characters are included with non-German keyboards, but all in all there should be 25 of them.)
Another small drawback is that half of the screen of course is hanging free when the hardware keyboard is open, so I'm a bit cautious when tapping that part. That might just be me, though, as it seems to be rather stable - nothing is moving when I put some pressure on the upper border around the screen.
Well this post was written with the hardware keyboard this time, and I think I was actually typing a bit faster. Still far from the usual a-sentence-a-second on a real keyboard, though.
Also, it' still a perfectly fine QWERTY (well, QWERTZ in my case
), only the special characters, numbers and the spacebare have been repositioned. I'm already used to only using the right thumb for hitting the spacebar, so that wasn't much of a problem for me, but it might be for someone who's normally using both thumbs for inserting spaces.I'm still using the onscreen keyboard most of the time (and that's what I was writing that last post with), but that's mostly because right now I spend most of the time on the N900 modifying it, and one of the drawbacks of the hardware keyboard is the limited number of keys. I dearly miss my greater-than and lesser-than keys and the most beautiful round and-sign...
(Yet for normal use it's more than enough. I can't tell what special characters are included with non-German keyboards, but all in all there should be 25 of them.)
Another small drawback is that half of the screen of course is hanging free when the hardware keyboard is open, so I'm a bit cautious when tapping that part. That might just be me, though, as it seems to be rather stable - nothing is moving when I put some pressure on the upper border around the screen.
Well this post was written with the hardware keyboard this time, and I think I was actually typing a bit faster. Still far from the usual a-sentence-a-second on a real keyboard, though.
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2010-06-12
, 09:37
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Posts: 261 |
Thanked: 73 times |
Joined on Sep 2009
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#99
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one of the scare tactics that caused me to rethink my plan of buying the n900 was the claim that it is bad in terms of basic phone-functionalities
the truth is: never had any glitch, nokia conversations is excellent (sms/im) and minor flaws like extended call logs can be obtained by using an app. works absolutely great as a phone. that being said there are issues with no multiple profiles, linking certain ringtones to certain people for e.g
the truth is: never had any glitch, nokia conversations is excellent (sms/im) and minor flaws like extended call logs can be obtained by using an app. works absolutely great as a phone. that being said there are issues with no multiple profiles, linking certain ringtones to certain people for e.g
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2010-06-12
, 10:52
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Posts: 1,425 |
Thanked: 983 times |
Joined on May 2010
@ Hong Kong
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#100
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Raubtier is right. The reception is great. For those whose who have problem with it, try a LG phone.
The n900 has the best online browser of any mobile phone or tablet BY FAR.
I tested the compatibility of the browser in many hard to handle pages. I owned and used Iphone, Ipad, G1 ( android ) and many HTC devices. So I am talking with real experience in mobile browsers here.
It will load and display complex AJAX pages that Iphone users can only DREAM of seeing in years.
After pr 1.2 the keyboard got much more usable by using long clicks.
So I would recommend this phone.
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