Diaries of a Nokia Fan Boy

So I’ve been meaning to write about this for a while. I’ve used my Android-based HTC Magic for about a month’s time, and I’ve posted up what I felt about it in comparison to my Symbian-based Nokia N95 8GB. But now I went back to my N95 8GB and have for about a month’s time.

My first impression going back to the Symbian phone was really more of a “It’s good to be home” feeling. But after using it for a while I realised just how much more thought out the OS really is. Not only does it allow for some customization not available on the Android, but it runs better. Its much more stable, running for days, if not weeks, without crashing or having to reboot. There are no major memory leaks, and multi-tasking on it is a joy!

Besides that OS, the hardware is much more impressive. I rarely used my Magic’s camera, but the camera on my N95 8GB has such impressive quality that I never have to think whether I will need a camera wherever I am going. Text messaging on this phone is much more pleasant due to the addition of a hardware keyboard.

I must say, however, that Android does have its pluses, and so does the Magic. For one, the Android market is easier to use than the Ovi Store, even considering that the Android market has a terrible search. Also the applications available on the market are better – I downloaded some music players and, while they didn’t improve audio quality/support, they did add some interesting functionality such as immediate lyrics or song suggestions. At the same time, I really liked how HTC allows you to upgrade the OS via a ROM file. Different OS versions out there come with their ups and their quirks. While I didn’t like the fact that the quirks seemed to be quite large and annoying, I did enjoy being able to install a new firmware when it came out because I know someone had ported it (I am referring to my v20 N95-4 when N95-2 is on v30+).

Since I’ve been using my N95 8GB, Mike has been using my Magic and has found some even more fascinating programs. For example, he found a spectrometer that kept us amused for an hour, playing different songs into it and seeing the visual representation – it was quite interesting to see how much richer a voice is compared to an instrument.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking a lot about the direction that Symbian is going in, and whether Nokia should consider other OS’s. To be honest, I think that there is a lot of potential in Symbian, and I hope that Nokia draws that potential out. But operating systems such as Android have already built on that potential and are already available, which will make things much more difficult for Nokia. I think that Nokia is doing well to stand by its operating system, especially considering how stable and efficient it really is, but it won’t be easy to win against the new hot shots on the block.

Also, things I would like to see on Nokia devices:

• Easily and safely exchangeable OS versions (a la HTC phones)
• Much higher support for applicatoins, more so those centered around entertainment
• Smaller, lighter, sexier touch screens (X6 is definitely an improvement)

Well these are my thoughts for a Saturday afternoon,

-Nokia FanBoy

One of my readers, atul recently asked me question on upgrading their phone:

…planning to move from Nokia E71 (my 4th eseries phone) and have always used a Nokia since ‘92. Do u think it would be sane to move to HTC Magic or should I wait for E72?

This isn’t exactly a question that can be answered with a couple lines, but I liked the question enough that I decided to actually write a post about this.

Choosing between the E72 and the Magic there are a number of factors you have to consider, first and foremost that the two devices are in a completely different class altogether. The Nokia E72 is an Enterprise-class devices. What this means is that the design of the phone, operating system, and software was all done with the requirements of the business world in mind. That also means that the manufacturing process didn’t compromise on quality, however may not have put too much thought into the physical appearance of the phone (granted, the E71 is the first exception to the latter).
On the other hand, the HTC Magic is a somewhat more mainstream phone. Thus the physical appearance was more important than quality (mine scratched in a matter of days and slightly creaks on the sides).

Another part of construction you have to look at is the input method. If you write a lot of emails, the Magic, or any touchscreen phone, is not for you. At the very least not until they have displays that can morph to have actual physical buttons raise up and provide proper feedback. Of course even then, taking up important screen real-estate for a keyboard will never be as good as having a separate screen actual physical keyboard.

Taking a look at the operating system is also important. Symbian is over a decade old and in that has become extremely stable, even if a little outdated. Android, on the other hand, seems to crash applications on a regular basis (3-5 app crashes per day). At the very least, however, when an application crashes Android and other applications continue running. You also have to keep in mind that there’s a fairly large learning curve going from OS to OS, especially when switching from hardware keys to a touch-centric UI (trust me on this one).
Also don’t forget to consider the applications that you are using on your phone now. Going from E71 to E72 you’re pretty much guaranteed that all of the applications will work. Going to the Magic, however, you will need to find equivalents in the Android Market or the online community, and that can take a large amount of time.

Finally, the features of the phone itself are important. The main one, for me at least, is the battery life. The HTC Magic is severely handicapped by its battery, whereas the E71, and likely the E72 as well, is not.

So what does all that mean for you, my dear friend?
Well just think about what you’re doing with your phone now, and what you will be able to do with your future hone. If you’ve gotten used to the E-Series quality then I’m afraid the Magic, and other mainstream phones for that matter, may be disappointing to you. If you’re connected to a MS Exchange Server then I must tell you that Symbian is integrated much more tightly with it. Also, Symbian has Nokia, Garmin and TomTom mobile GPS applications whereas Android is stuck with just Google maps.
So think about whats important to you, and which phone can better support your requirements. Also, take a look at my post on Nokia E71 vs. E72 (Nokia E72 – worthwhile upgrade?), maybe an upgrade isn’t even really required.
Lastly, consider other phones, such as the Nokia N97, or even other operating systems, such as Windows Mobile.

If you have any more questions just drop me a line and I’ll try to help as much as I can.

-Nokia FanBoy