Features
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Ideal keyboard design in smartphones - looking at Aspect Ratios
David Gilson has a theory. It concerns correlating the aspect ratio of a smartphone's virtual or physical qwerty keyboard with text entry speed, on the grounds that one's thumbs have more (or less) work to do, depending on form factor. Read on for his data and the theory in detail - and see if you can help produce more data points with your own device(s).
David Gilson · 01 August 2010 -
Not a Dedicated Follower of Fashion - 10 Reasons Why Touchscreens Suck
Playing devil's advocate, but only to a degree, Steve Litchfield turns the entire smartphone world on its head by rejecting its latest darling - large touchscreens. Ask any pundit in the mobile world about smartphones and you'll get the answer that it's all about touch. About large displays that can be caressed and programmed and manipulated with your fingers. Except that traditional, non-touch form factors have these 2010 'flagships' well and truly beat - here are the Top 10 Reasons Why Touchscreens Suck.
Steve Litchfield · 07 July 2010 -
How to: Use the mobile web - There's a Bookmark for that!
Over the last few years, I've had a burning conviction that's been growing and growing as I watch the current craze for 'Apps' blossom. Now, I've nothing against genuine applications or games, but it has to be said that a large number of so-called 'Apps' are simply scraping or managing exactly the same data as you get right now, on any phone, for free. And my way there are no installations, no complications and no hassle. Apps? Pah - I've a new slogan to rival Apple's. "There's a Bookmark for that!"
Steve Litchfield · 22 June 2010 -
Sergejs' N900 Application List
In this feature article guest author Sergejs Cuhrajs shares his list of applications for the Nokia N900 that have earned his attention. There are more than 130 applications on this list, ranging from Abiword (a word processor), through gPodder (podcast client) and Leafpad (notepad style application) to Zoutube (a YouTube browser and viewer). With one or two exceptions they are freely available through the maemo.org repositories.
Rafe Blandford · 11 June 2010 -
The Right Tool for the Right Job - Seven users, seven smartphones
Spanning all platforms and all usage types, at the start of 2010 I compiled recommendations for seven types of smartphone user (i.e. for seven use cases) for The Phones Show, in video form. Six months later, I revisit the same stereotypes in textual form, with updated choices, recommendations and predictions. Do you agree with my assessments? Whether yes or no, your comments are welcome.
Steve Litchfield · 05 June 2010 -
Nokia's design directions
Rafe reports back from a 'conversational briefing' with Marko Ahtisaari (Head of Design at Nokia) at Nokia's London Design HQ. There's an explanation of Nokia's "smart push", of how Nokia's three tier device strategy fits together, of how Nokia's software and hardware design teams have been brought together to promote a holistic approach and accelerate the pace of innovation, and there are hints of future design directions for both Symbian and MeeGo devices and software.
Rafe Blandford · 12 May 2010 -
N900 talking to the Mac!
The N900 has been available in the market for a couple of months now. From a geek point of view, it's an attractive device, but what if you are not a geek, and want to use it as a portable multimedia system? With a Mac?
Asri al-Baker · 10 April 2010 -
Accessing extra characters and accents on the Nokia N900
You want a particular character or accent but can't find it on your N900's keyboard. What do you do? Well, there is actually a built-in character and accent menu, but it seems some people have been missing it, so we present below a short-and-sweet video showing how to accesss it.
AAM Staff · 22 February 2010 -
How to unlock the FM radio on the Nokia N900
The Nokia N900 has a secret FM radio receiver which is not on the official specs. Although it's hidden by default, you can unlock it by installing a special unofficial application, as shown in the video below. The video also briefly demonstrates the N900's FM transmitter which lets you listen to music files and internet stations on any nearby FM radio (which is quite handy in a car).
AAM Staff · 20 February 2010 -
How to update the firmware on the Nokia N900
There have been several firmware updates since the N900 was released, and more are on the way. The video below is intended for beginners who need a little help with updating their device. You don't need a PC, the update can be done entirely on the phone itself.
AAM Staff · 19 February 2010