Hi all...

I just recently saw the N800 at a local CompUSA and I think it's a really slick little device. I've been looking at getting something like this for weekend trips and stuff to be able to browse the web and check email without having to bring my laptop, and UMPCs are just way too expensive (who wants to pay $1500+ on a UMPC when you can get a decent laptop for the same price or cheaper?).

I have two worries about buying it and I hope the community here can help me out with information: 1) continuing Nokia support, and 2) when is the rumored N900 coming out?

Regarding #1, I'd hate to buy this device and then Nokia pull the plug on it or something within a year. From the research I've done since this weekend, the 800 and 770 seem to have a great user community and I think that's spectacular. However, I was burned once before... a few years ago I got the Sony Clie UX50 for Christmas. A year later Sony pulls out of the US market and thus all Sony support was pulled as well. I don't want that to happen again. I'm hoping this is something that Nokia isn't just testing the waters with and will fully support these devices for years to come.

#2, I'd hate to buy the N800 and a few months down the road, the N900 come out. I can only imagine it'll be more powerful and have more features (and hopefully that slide out keyboard from the leaked pics, but they should move those thumb controls back up to the console). If it isn't coming out until mid- to late next year, then I suppose I can justify to myself buying the N800 now lol But if the N900 will come out within the next 6 months or so, then I'll just wait for it. If I had the disposable income, I'd be all over the N800 now

So any information, personal views/opinions, etc would be greatly appreciated. I'm just trying to gather as much info as possible so I can hopefully make a well-informed decision.

TIA!

There's really nothing you can do about either of these situations. As far as we've been told, Nokia is planning to have continuing software updates for at least the next 2 major revisions. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see an N900 on the way though. But if that's really an issue, you shouldn't really buy electronics whatsoever.

Good point. I didn't think about that. That's just the way of electronics and I don't know why I didn't think of it. I'm the guy that's upgrading his cell phone every year and the N800 is about as much as a smartphone/PDA phone lol

You sound like a good customer for the N800. It's what you want, it seems to me.

A lot of people are buying 770s these days, despite the N800. I wouldn't do it myself, but they seem to be having fun. The same thing would happen to those of us with N800s if an N900 came out tomorrow.

Do you use any old calculators that aren't state of the art? A lot of people do. They might be happier if they had a more recent calculator, but the old one does the job.

The N800 is cool and light and will do more stuff than you probably realize now. You may as well get one.

Yeah, I've read some of the things that people are doing with this device and I'm really impressed. Small devices like these always just seem underpowered to me, but I read ArsTechnica's review (from like January or February) and they loved it and multitasking wasn't an issue, so that's good.

I'm thinking of going ahead and getting one. I like the idea of running VNC on it too. I've already thought up a ton of uses for it so that's not an issue. My only hang ups are support and when the N900 comes out but I have a feeling it won't be until mid-2008.

I do have a question about the on-screen keyboard of the N800. In ArsTechnica's review, they seemed to like it but had a problem with the where the space bar was located. For some reason, Nokia had the space where the Z, X, C keys should be (i.e. located on the left side rather than in the middle). Is this still the case? Or did Nokia ever release an update that corrected that?

Thanks!

well, so far that 130$ 770 is doing almost everything the 800 is doing. minus the camera and minus skype. 2 things I can live without.

can't justify a 300$ N800 when the 770 is 130$ (and got that VERY nice hard cover)

anyway, regarless of the price, those internet tablet are a fun gadget that made me put that laptop in the closet whenever I can put that 770 in my pocket

miro, the keyboard layout for stylus use (or pointy finger poking) is very close to standard qwerty. If you switch to the much larger normal finger input keyboard (which takes up 2/3 of the screen real estate), the space bar is located to the left of zxcvbnm. I normally use the stylus and smaller keyboard so don't know if this is a problem. You can see the layouts if you step through the flash tutorial on the nokia site:
http://nds2.nokia.com/tutorials/supp...ish/index.html
Select the demo "User Interface / Writing Text"

I don't think the space bar is a real problem; I never noticed it. The esc key bothers me as a vi user; sometimes I am using the N800 in the dark, and I have a hard time finding the damn thing! It's not on the lit keyboard, but one of the hardware buttons on the side of the N800, which of course isn't illuminated.

If you have an UX50, what would you need a N800 for?
The UX50 can do everything the N800 can, and then some.

Though I love the UX50, the screen is just way too small for browsing. Plus, I only get about 45 minutes of use before the battery dies, and that's with a new battery! I've checked around for extended batteries and they're still $100+ (I think around $160 for a new one) and I'd rather just get a new device rather than an expensive battery for a non-supported device. I've started going back through the old forums trying to see if there's still development for it though. If I can find a battery that will last a few hours, then I might hold off on the N800. But like I said, the screen just isn't all that great for web browsing.