Nokia N900 announced... another attempt at the "iPhone killer"?
- Thread starter teuchter
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Fez909
toilet expert
FridgeMagnet
Administrator
It's a full linux distro (with all the standard tech and frameworks like Qt, PulseAudio, etc), so there'll be a vast amount of software readily available from the get-go. As a comment on slashdot puts it ...Normal linux in a phone = epic win
That is all very well, but the prospect of open source hackers around the world being able to recompile the GIMP for a phone, and you can install it if you just run these simple terminal commands and hack a config file with vi, is not going to impress the phone-buying world.
What they will want is (a) a proper UI not some Nokia abortion and (b) apps that do useful phone-type stuff which are (c) easily available and downloaded and (d) don't break anything or need any configuration or fixing.
I would love a nice Linux phone that I could write shell scripts for, but I am a horrible geek and do not represent even 1% of the phone-buying public. I dare say that Nokia are only interested in my custom to the extent that I might, theoretically, write a terrific application for their phone or fix something they broke.
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Decent spec, but that doesn't mean shit if it isn't very usable. On paper my Touch HD whips my iPhone, but the Touch HD just feels clunky.
Why not just stick Android on it? Why add yet another mobile OS onto the market?
Why not just stick Android on it? Why add yet another mobile OS onto the market?
UnderOpenSky
baseline neural therapy
Have you tried flashing the ROM? Won't make it the same as an iphone, but I've found it makes a huge difference.
Jonti
what the dormouse said
Do you expect a package manager *not* to be included? Why on earth would maemo.org omit such a vital component, that doesn't make sense at all
That said, I don't know what arrangements maemo.org will be making for repositories, or what folks will need to do to get their code into the repo. All the same, is there another phone that is as open and accessible phone to developers? Not even android!
Of course, we'll have to see how that potential pans out in reality.
Crispy
The following psytrance is baṉned: All
And it'll all be so easy to install and use, with consistent interface conventions and everything!
FridgeMagnet
Administrator
A package manager is not the point at all. There are package managers for all linux distros these days. They are not what phones need.Do you expect a package manager *not* to be included? Why on earth would maemo.org omit such a vital component, that doesn't make sense at all
who cares?
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Yeah, fully flashed with the latest dutty.
ymu
Niall Ferguson's deep-cover sock-puppet
It's an open source OS. The first, I believe. That is an important addition to the market. Nokia are presumably backing it because they've noticed that open source is becoming very popular and usable and they know how much everyone hates Symbian.
Sunray
Its sunny somewhere.
LOL!
Better than mouse wheel on a full sized screen? Yer 'avin' a laugh!
No. Totally serious, the integration with my phone and ease of use of Google Maps makes it #1 choice every time.
If you looking for something specific you search, find the place your looking for, click the button and then click the phone number and it calls the number.
I can put a pin in the location I want to go to, get directions to the place, directions I can just pick up and leave with.
Jonti
what the dormouse said
No reason why not!
For a few years now, installing linux from scratch has generally been far easier than installing XP from scratch. Remember that all that work on installers is available to other developers to build on. No need to reinvent the wheel here!
And, similarly, interface theory and design guidelines are well developed, and only have to be followed. Linux is very modular, meaning the visual layer (GUI) can be changed completely, yet run the same applications. Ubuntu's NBR has shown the power of this separation most convincingly
It'll be interesting to see what maemo.org decide.
Jonti
what the dormouse said
Android is linux based as well, but it isn't able to take advantage of the tens of thousands of apps that are available under one sort of open-source license or another. Not just available, of course, but available to have portions of their code reused in some new app or another. It's this possibility of reuse from a vast library of code that is making people sit up and take notice. It's a unique advantage for a new phone platform, and it may be crucially important. We'll have to wait and see.
Thing is, this pre-existing codebase is not available to Android. The Android developers have, as a matter of strategy it seems, pretty much closed the door on everything but Java and Javascript for writing applications.
That makes sense when you think that google (the firm behind android) sees it in its strategic interests to promote webdevices, rather than this or that platform, even linux. Java and Javascrip are platform agnostic, which would make it easier to port applications to a new platform entirely (provided it has a suitable java runtime and javascript processing ability).
Android is a platform for running java and javascript that happens to be linux. The N900, in contrast, will be the first full linux platform in the phone market. Developers won't have to learn a new development toolset and processes. Their existing skills will be easily transferable to the N900.
editor
hiraethified
There were claims made a while back that Palm's webOS was the 'most open' mobile platform.
Is that a valid claim?
Jonti
what the dormouse said
Had a quick look at that piece written in 2007, and yes, it probably was a valid claim then. Palm's webOS was all about the ease with which new apps could be created in JavaScript. That was the 'vision' ...
).
That's what the N900 looks like doing, so in that sense, yeah, it will be more open than the Palm Pre.
... so perhaps Palm should have gone the whole nine-yards, and supplied a full linux tool set and development environment (choose whatever language best suits your purpose
).That's what the N900 looks like doing, so in that sense, yeah, it will be more open than the Palm Pre.
editor
hiraethified
Eh? That article was written on July 24th this year!
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
No reason why not!
For a few years now, installing linux from scratch has generally been far easier than installing XP from scratch. Remember that all that work on installers is available to other developers to build on. No need to reinvent the wheel here!
And, similarly, interface theory and design guidelines are well developed, and only have to be followed. Linux is very modular, meaning the visual layer (GUI) can be changed completely, yet run the same applications. Ubuntu's NBR has shown the power of this separation most convincingly
It'll be interesting to see what maemo.org decide.
Why can't you install anything on Asus Eee netbooks running linux then?
Crispy
The following psytrance is baṉned: All
I wouldn't hold your breath. The iphone owes its success to the very opposite of open source - a tightly controlled, tested to hell and back, slickly integrated product froma single supplier. This Nokia device might appeal to us supergeeks, but as soon as a little linux niggle gets in joe average's way, he'll be put right off. I will bet a major body part that this device and this platform will not be a big success.
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Same. People just want shit to work with no effort and no hassle. This is why the iPhone is such a success. Absolutely no thought required to do anything. Even for a tinkering geek like me, that's a big plus.
Besides, I can jailbreak it to fulfill my tinkering needs.
Jonti
what the dormouse said
Jonti
what the dormouse said
Any linux application, you mean? Or any type of linux?
The default os (a type of Xandros, I recall) uses the Asus repositories for "point-and-click" installations. Anything in those repositories will install OK (subject to the usual hassles 'puters manage to generate).
But the Xandros operating system shipped with the Asus eee is not the only choice. It will run other brands of linux just fine as well, and then you'll be using their repositories instead, which may have a somewhat different range of software.
As ever, specialised circuitry in the device (for handling wireless networking, or video processing) can cause problems. It's just that using the linux and repositories from the OEM avoids such hassles.
Jonti
what the dormouse said
I'm certainly not holding my breath, I've been saying we'll have to wait and see. It's not for me anyway; for that sort of money I want a phone I can instruct verbally, not poke at with my fingers
Nokia can produce the N700 as a web appliance (sort of like the original asus) then it can be a tightly controlled, tested to hell and back, slickly integrated product from a single supplier. No reason why not. Not saying they will mind, but there's no great technical or engineering obstacles to doing that.
editor
hiraethified
That's just a lazy webmaster.And the comments are recent. But this ...
The details of Palm's webOS weren't heard of in 2007. The article is from July this year.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/1690...pen_mobile_platform_on_the_market.html?tk=rss
teuchter
je suis teuchter
So ... this is now released. Most of the reviews I'm seeing seem pretty positive.
eg
http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_n900-review-421.php
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/nokia-n900-655862/review
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/0,39030106,49304435,00.htm
At the moment I have the N97 which is OK but there are various frustrations with it, mostly software related. I am tempted to trade it in for an N900 once the price drops a bit.
I like the idea of having Nokia hardware (largely very good) but not being reliant on Nokia software (largely abysmal). I guess I trust the open source community more than I do Nokia to produce decent software. This of course relies on a critical mass of Maemo users existing... but the fact that this phone seems to have been received mainly quite positively provides some hope that this will be the case.
Does anyone have one of these, or is anyone thinking about it?
eg
http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_n900-review-421.php
http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/nokia-n900-655862/review
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/0,39030106,49304435,00.htm
At the moment I have the N97 which is OK but there are various frustrations with it, mostly software related. I am tempted to trade it in for an N900 once the price drops a bit.
I like the idea of having Nokia hardware (largely very good) but not being reliant on Nokia software (largely abysmal). I guess I trust the open source community more than I do Nokia to produce decent software. This of course relies on a critical mass of Maemo users existing... but the fact that this phone seems to have been received mainly quite positively provides some hope that this will be the case.
Does anyone have one of these, or is anyone thinking about it?
UnderOpenSky
baseline neural therapy
I'm watching with interest. I've owned far more nokias then any other brand and jumped ship because I couldn't stand another phone that felt hardly any different to the one I had 5 years ago.
The form factor looks great as does the amount of memory you can have. We'll just have to see what apps arise.
I was uplifted by the news the nokia was looking at maemo for new high end phones and keeping S60 for feature phones, but it doesn't seem like that will be the case as they're spending loads on revamping it.
We can't really justify getting two so I'll have to fight him for it. 
teuchter
je suis teuchter
It seems there will be a bit of an overlap between Maemo and Symbian. Not sure that this really clarifies very much, but here's how Nokia see it:
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