N800 Needs an Update
The Nokia N800 Internet Tablet has been with me for several months now. When I first got it, of course I was obsessed. I installed nearly anything I could think of, and didn’t use half of it. When the first update came, I obviously lost all the apps that I’d installed, and have started over. What I’ve noticed is that I don’t really have much installed.
When I was in London recently, I had a chance to sit down with Donna from WOM World and we had a great discussion on the N800 Internet Tablet. For a while now, it’s been reduced to an Internet Radio Tuner and a Mahjong board. That’s it. I told Donna this, and she asked what I thought it should be able to do, for me to find it more useful.
Now, first, a disclaimer. I realize that the whole idea of the Internet Tablets is that they’re open, and really able to be almost anything to anybody. I’m on InternetTabletTalk.com and keep up with it somewhat. I also know that Nokia approaches it very carefully, doing everything possible to encourage the community to develop for the platform.
That being said, I think Nokia needs to step up to the plate a bit more. Follow the link to find what I think the Tablet series needs to have…..
First things first, I need an offline blogging tool. End of story. I realize there’s one for Wordpress, but what about Typepad? Nokia supports Typepad with Lifeblog, and Vox is connected to them as well. Why isn’t there a blogging tool for Typepad for the N800? Heck, the Typepad website doesn’t even work right on the Tablet’s browser.
I’ve recently started travelling for my blog, and fully expect to do more. There’s some situations in which I’d need a full laptop, but what about instances where I don’t. Take the L.A. event, for example. I’m going to be there less than 24 hours. I’m taking a backpack. Literally, that’s all I’m bringing. How great would it be if I could just toss my N800 and Bluetooth keyboard in my bag and know that I could hack out a few quick posts while I was there?
The next thing is an image editor. Not viewer/organizer, but editor. Make this thing a blogger’s best friend. Let me watermark, crop, and perform other relatively basic image manipulation. I can snap pics with my N95 and transfer them via Bluetooth, but then they’re just there. The N800 didn’t even have an image manager out of the box. I had to go find one. Video editing would be sweet, too, but that would probably require a better processor. I can live without for now.
These two little things would make the N800 considerably more useful to me. I’m sure the successor to the N800 is already in the works, but I think that a few simple software applications would do wonders for it.
I know it’s been asked before, but what would you like for the N800 to be able to do? Realistically. Forget hardware updates, we’re not talking about that right now. I think that the current hardware is fine, but is considerably hindered by a lack of software.
Personally I think the N800 could use an office viewer… I’d love to be able to look at word/excel documents. Editing, not so much maybe, but viewing would be lovely.
It’d also be nice to have a proper email client. Since this thing is so tied to google, have the built in client support google without me having to set it up as a pop account.
Finally… nothing. Honestly, the N800 has reduced my smartphone to a phone. :) Once you browse on the N800, you’re never going back to a small screen format. I can’t think of any way to improve on the N800 other than those two quibbles.
I have just the 770, but I do know that integration of the camera to Skype is direly needed.
Viipottaja
The camera is integrated into the Gizmo phone…
I’ve been looking to buy the N800 (along with the bluetooth keyboard) to serve as my primary blogging tool, but the lack of critical software for such use, as you just mentioned in your post, is what’s keeping me from buying it. Instead, I uphold 5 blogs solely from my N95 (the original one with the miserable RAM…), Not an easy task, really, but I don’t own a computer or laptop right now, and probably won’t for several months. I’m on the move all the time and do most of my blogging away from home, during work, on the bus, in bars, and whatnot…
Is there an easier way of using the N95 to (fully) blog (with images from Twango) on Wordpress.com, rather than adding the keyboard and the N800 to the set up?
Ricky, not sure if you saw this thread. You didn’t comment in it at all on HoFo and I thought it would have been something that caught your eye. http://howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1247451&highlight=n800
Just so happens the next-gen N800 has hit the FCC and some pictures were found of it.
I have an n800 that goes pretty much unused as well. I WANT to have a good use for it, but I’ve yet to find a place where it logically fits in. I’ve been writing a good bit later (screenplay type stuff) and I really tried to just bring the n800 and Bluetooth keyboard but there’s a lack of good text editing, atleast not that I’ve found yet.
Other huge improvement would be to make the soft keyboard both easier to touch type with, and smarter (yes like the iPhones)
JC, I know. But let’s face it: virtually no one uses Gizmo and probably never will.
Doesn’t the Maemo project contain some of the additional add-ins people would want?
I’m ditching my Palm T/X for a Nokia N800 for the better browser and fresh software.
Besides the normal PIM applications, I use Bluetooth GPS to play golf and navigate, and a couple of other small programs for remembering passwords and diet stuff.
Here’s my story with the N800
http://symbian.avinashrathod.com/2007/09/n800-not-for-me.html
I wanted to get a N800, but read the PIM applications available for the platform are not very good. I plan to take a closer look, but good, extensive, flexible PIM application with synchronisation is really a prerequisite. I’m not asking alot, I’ve done with a Palm Zire until now: some custom fields, easy search.
It’s a pitty the N800 is no phone, and I don’t think Nokia is ready to make it a phone.
Raph
Hey Ricky,
Sorry to dig up an old post, but how does the MicroB browser in OS2008 handle the TypePad web interface now? My blogs are through TypePad as well, and I’ve been strongly considering getting an N800 for a travel terminal (blogging, email, surfing, some IM, and uploading photos while out of the country). WordPy looks cool, and it’s great the WordPress upgraded everyone to 3GB of storage, but my TypePad is paid up for a while, so…
Keep up the great work here, Symbian-Guru, and MobileBurn!