What they don't tell you about the n8

OK, let me be frank with you. I like the Nokia Symbian series. So what if I am sitting on the fence on this one, between Android's remarkable speed of adoption and Apple's OS. I want a phone that works for me, and not just an app machine. When the n8 first came out, all I know is that it has an aluminum body and a great 12 megapixel camera. And that's it, really.

But now, over the last few days as I was upgrading the firmware and what-nots, I began to know a little bit more about the n8.

1. Memory card
It can take in a 32Gb microSD HC memory card. Yep, lots of memory, more than you ever know what you can do with it.

Because its so small, it can be lost easily or end up with me doing something stupid with it like accidentally inserting it into the SIM card slot.

2. Bluetooth.
If you have Bluetooth in your car's sound system, as soon as the n8 connects to it, it will start playing the songs in it. If you have a playlist, its even better. It will continue where you left off the next time you start your car. Bluetooth is amazing as you can even choose the songs (but not forward/rewind to the parts you liked). Someone said its also compatible with bluetooth mice and keyboard but I haven't tried that yet since I have neither.

Or this one: You can scan for Bluetooth by device type which is good because you never know if someone renames their Old Nokia 5800 to iPhone or something. Plus, with Wifi, you can also hide unwanted Wifi spots, which is a boon because everyone has Wifi and they're not free.

3. FM Transmitter
If you do not have Bluetooth, the n8 has a FM transmitter. Just select the empty frequency on your radio and then set that to the n8, you're all set. Unfortunately, you cannot use the Mic to make announcements. Maybe no one at Nokia likes karaoke.

4. Homescreen
The n8 has three customisable home screens and each screen can have its own background. And your homescreen still works even when you're not at home. I can fill it with a lot of shortcuts, widgets and apps, etc. But I am not going to.

This is the main screen. Note how n8 resize your
wallpaper picture when you rotate it.

The same goes for the other screens. Like I said, you

can have a different wallpaper for each Home screen.

5. The Aluminum casing.
This makes the phone feel solid. I hate heavy phones that feels plasticky. Then again, that's just me.

6. Open Applications
You can also see the current running apps akin to Window's ALT-ENTER and shut them off from there.

And so, with a glance, you can shut off
any applications from this screen. Neat.

7. Battery saving mode
With mode on, you can conserve the battery. However, all I noticed was that the display goes from bright to dim and bright again, everytime you select something. The clock screensaver will not come on in this mode either. Still, compared to the Nokia 5800, I feel that it lasts longer. Then again, I only use this to make calls and SMS.

8. Menu Button
The MENU button now has a double hearbeat light when there is a missed call or a new SMS.

9. USB
I hate it when the USB port changes 'shape' which means I have to be extra careful not to lose the cable because its not easy to get them right now. But what is great is that finally, I have a phone that can be charged via USB port.

And when it comes to file transfer, its even easier. No more flipping out the USB cover and taking out the memory card. I hate this on the Nokia 5800 because it will wear the USB cover and memory card contacts. And not only that, once I reinsert the card, I have to reset some programs so that it does not use the phones memory. The n8is different. Once you plug the USB cable to a PC, a special screen will open up and you can start transferring files to and fro.

The manual even says you can connect to an external thumbdrive or a a PHD (with its own PSU)

This works well on Windows7 but took ages and it nearly hang the Vista. I must try the XP Pro one day...

10. SMS
The SMS screen now sort of 'tracks' your SMS conversation per contact you in speech bubble format that you know who's talking what, sort of a at-a-glance SMS history.

Also, it would display on the bottom right of the corner
if there is a SMS while you are connected. However, I
have yet to view the actual message from this box.

11. Wallpaper
Each homescreen can have its own wallpaper but what is nice about this is that you can now readjust the size and position, something which Nokia 5800 cannot do and I had to retake some photos to compensate for this. Yes, I can use a PC software to edit them but its time consuming, especially in the middle of the night.

Now, you do not have to worry about
shooting your intended wallpaper
pictures a bit different because now,
the n8 allows you to reposition and
also resize your photos. Neat.

12. Games
OK, so there are some very nice games, 3D games in fact and it shows the power of the n8's processor. Then again, why should I be playing games? But I noticed, they have Angry Birds too....

13. The 12MP camera
Well, this is also one of the main reason why I got the n8. A real xenon flash and well, a very nice camera which I can take photos with some satisfaction while not taking my Nikon about. Not only that, when you go into the picture viewer app, it automatically refresh itself. This is a very big difference especially when I took some screenshots via Screensnap. On the 5800, the pictures would not exist until you restart the phone. On the n8, its already there. Yesterday.

14. OVI Maps
You can now download maps stright to the phone without the OVI PC Suite and even look for their updates. Yep, so, if you happen to be in London, you can just go to the nearest free WiFi spot and you're set



But here are some facts from the Internet:-

1) Wifi
It has b/g/n Wifi.

2) HDMI Touch screen
If you plug in to a HDMI TV screen, and then point the n8's camera at it, it will make the screen 'touch sensitive'. Although its just an experiment, this is amazing

3) Recorder
During a phone call, you can hit the RECORD button on the recorder and the n8 will start recording the conversation. To be fair, both parties will hear a beep at every interval.

4)Conference calls.
I did not know this but this phone can also do conference calls. Not that I have anyone to call...yet.

5) Phone Lock
Now you can also remotely lock your Phone if it gets stolen via SMS. How to unlock, I have no idea.

Well, when I first saw this, it is amazing. And I thought
it only works on XBox and iPhones.

There you go, the FM Transmitter

The file transfer screen that pops up when connected

Oh, and one more thing. The n8's charger now looks like this, where the Earth pin can be pulled out. So, I think this will be for all future Nokia models too. Makes the charger easy to bring for travelling. But for a person like me, I have to be extra careful with that Earth pin...

So, this is what I have learnt about the n8 so far...

(This post will be update quite often as I discover more about the n8)