Wow so he needs to go and get a phone just because he comes up with a list of basic functions many of which Nokia phones have had for like over 5 years!!!

I don't buy release 1.0 if I can avoid it. I was planning to upgrade my phone after Christmas and the N900 was at the top of my list. Now, I'm not so sure. I hope version 1.1 will address more than jus the portrait mode issue and, if so, it remains a possibility. But the Android releases are increasingly tempting. While I support Open Source, I'm not willing to sacrifice my phone on its altar.

I would normally wait too except my commuting circumstances needs a solution as soon as possible. And I don't use my phone very often so as long as the n900 doesn't reboot every single time I need to make a phone call I decided I might as well get it now rather than buy another device, and then the n900 later.

The problem here is what you should get for 500 is entirely your opinion. It will vary wildly depending on who you ask.

I could buy a PC for 500 with NO OS! Does that mean I should piss and moan about it? Its up to you to know what you are buying before you pony over the cash.

Fact is you DO get a good device, it might be missing a few features you thought it would have, but for the most part Nokia have been totally honest about what was missing so the only person at fault is the buyer who did not check first to make sure it had the feature they needed.

Many phones still do not have Bluetooth, the quality of the web browser can also vary wildly, as well as software compatibility. Granted they are usually phones cheaper than the N900 but it doesn't make it any less likely I would have expectations of those devices that are not met. You just have to know what you are buying BEFORE laying down your cash, period.

Personally, I am buying a Linux based mini-PC with phone functionality. The N900 I believe is EXACTLY what I expected it to be, based on reading other peoples reports and fiddling with the SDK. I would be shocked if when I get my N900 I am disappointed, because I have researched what it does/does not do out of the box.

Would I like it to do more? Of course.
Would I rather wait 6/12 more months to get those features? Hell no!

The N900 already does certain things far better than any other device and is certainly the most customisable (without needed to jailbreak the device). People who are moaning at things its missing clearly did not do the research, but then that is normal as hardly anyone RTFM. People have a preconception of what a phone is going to do, that is why Nokia tried to make it clear this is a NIT with a phone.

Fact is, some of us all we WANTED was a NIT with basic phone support. We will use IM most of the time and mostly need the phone part so people can call us who have more primitive devices, landlines, etc and so we do not have to carry a basic phone with us too. Mainly, the phone part was added so we would have an always-on connection and Nokia added the more essential parts of that, phone calls and SMS, so we only need the one device. MMS would have needed WAP support which would have stolen developers away from the more important NIT functionality and the huge improvements the whole UI experience has undergone compared to previous Maemo versions.

Bottom line is yes, Nokia did rush this device. But if they had waited it would have a had few more stock features but NO community software, as the community needs the device to be available first before it can start working porting/coding applications. That is the catch to making it more community driven, you don't have a community until the device is out there.

As long as they do not shoot themselves in the foot and totally break compatibility with Maemo 6 (which I fear they might, especially if they switch to capacitive screens) then releasing the N900 will mean there will be a large community working on Maemo 6 software long before that device is released. This is where we can truely say if Nokia made the right decision, Maemo 6 MUST be backwards compatible IMO or else this was all for nothing.

That is the only point where I might argue Nokia made a mistake with the N900, the little things like a portrait on-screen keyboard "out of the box" so that the API is complete even if the software on top is not. Although I believe the API IS there, just no stock layout/graphics for a portrait keyboard.

I know this is a little off topic but I just have a quick question...

I hear that on the 2010 Ferrari California can hold four occupants but can't accommodate a standard child's car seat.
In this day and age expecting people to pay over $180,000 for a car that an average growing family can't use is a huge mistake. I read one review that said the car didn't even have a dang cup holder.
I can't believe that Ferrari expects to be successful with this thing in California

Sales of the the Toyota mini van are so good that there is no way they can catch up The cup holders on the Toyota glide out smoothly when needed and the whole thing is so much more consumer friendly. I mean, what was Ferrari thinking? Someone should be fired for this.

Does anyone know if there is a Ferrari California users group or forum I can join to let them know how screwed up they all are?
...and what is with this new "Bertone" interior? Do we all have to use it or can we install another interior and at least have working cup holders?

No voice navigation?? In GPS? surely not?

Yes, not included in Nokia Maps oin the N900 currently.

you have to pay for that crap anyway with all nokia;s
just upgrade to some other pay for gps software
there is one out before the end of the year

Fast, cheap or right, choose any 2...

Now on what you've posted in bold.. I have to say (I do believe they will bring it out) but let's not forget that Nokia & timescales are not usually correct for flagship devices (N97 v20...)...

That being said, due to the mass interest they have received in the N900 that has easily surpassed expectations I'd expect to see the next firmware by end of december/ first week of january!