Nokia N900 gets new firmware, new games coming too (video)
If your N900 is in need of a little more excitement, this post is for you. First up is word of a new firmware release (3.2010.02-8 (PR 1.1.1)), 16.2MB worth of apparently minor changes along with a slew of new regions, the inclusion of which may mean good things for those who haven't been granted to this smartphone yet. If that's not enough for you, at MWC Nokia is showing off some new apps for the handset, the most notable being a couple of 3D games that look a wee bit simplistic in terms of gameplay but don't disappoint in terms of graphics. No word on when exactly these will be hitting Ovi Store -- well, nothing more specific than "soon." Video after the break (of the games, not the firmware update).
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
See more video at our hub!
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
























@ipads
Ugly troll
Wow that web browser looked sluggish as hell
@Luffy yes the new firefox sucks on n900, the build in web browser is much smoother, which is running on mozilla
@IINexusII I wonder what happened to firefox.... at one time it was the goto browser for lightweight fast browsing, even on my desktop computer firefox has managed to become a slow crawling pig.
@Luffy
Yeah, it was kind of funny to watch a smooth 3D game, and then have them switch over to a clunky web browser
@Luffy
They tried for some reason to be like Explorer. . . Dumb! That was the beginning of the end. Chrome is my new goto browser.
Could we please get the italics and folded comments back? And it would be great if you could go ahead and unverify all those commentors!
... no but seriously :b how do I fold an unrelated thread if I don't want to scroll through it?
That game is indeed the best mobile game! Beats every iPhone game out there
@iluvms
Really? You really think that? Have you not played Rollercoaster 3D before?
I know something for a FACT, it doesn't beat GTA:CW for iPhone, or Command and Conquer Red Alert for iPhone....etc.
Oh, hey, Zen Bound. I was wondering if they'd ever get some big names behind the platform.
@ipads
thought for the day (or for the year by the look of your posts):
USA is not the only country in the world (roughly 4% of the world's population) and in the rest of the world Nokia is still by far the worlds largest and most popular phone manufacturer. Sure Apple and Google have the hype over their devices, but Nokia is still leading in Europe and Asia.
As an example in UK the most popular smartphone in 2009 was not the iPhone, but the 2 year old nokia 5800!
I would be really happy if they would get a new carrier too! (Verizon)
@Ineed911 It really isn't possible to use any phone on any carrier in the states? So I hear but it still sounds odd.
@MattyP
not when the n900 is GSM and Verizon is CDMA lol
Nokia still following the iPhone years apart I see...
It's kind of odd that with such a serious amount of 3D horsepower, that the web-browser still can't do smooth scrolling.
On a mobile device, the GPU should be doing all the heavy lifting.
@Carniphage This is not the built in browser which is Mozilla based. This is a downloadable web browser (Firefox).
Nokia is just to slow to respond to new tech. They've been followers, but in the smartphone industry, you can't be a follower and steal marketshare.
@Jamma
Don't bother.. do you think folks livin' in US knows where UK is?
To all who commented about the sluggish Firefox, you should find an N900 and try the browser it comes with. Just about every review out there states that it is THE best web browsing experience on any mobile device. I would have to agree, I picked this phone up in Dec and I've been loving it ever since
@blazingarf Since you say you have the N900, do you get any kind of calendar/contact synchronization?
@Ahmed Eltawil Yes synchronization with exchange mail/contacts/calendar, no tasks or notes though, also no search function.
@blazingarf It can't be the best web browsing experience since the N900 has some pretty good Flash support.
@cherryboom - really, how old are you? I mean, 11 y/o people should have better things to do than trolling Engadget...and if you're older than that, I feel sorry for you and your simplistic view of the world.
@cherryboom
You're an idiot. Nothing you said makes any sense and doesn't add to this topic at hand, at all.
@ipads
Actually I still love my Nokia phone, it's a pretty old E63, but it's fast, does multitasking, has an insane battery life and can be read incredibly easily even in the strongest direct sunlight. It also has access to all the apps I would use on an iPhone/Android device.
The N900/Maemo is a fantastic device, it's powerful and has a ton of potential. However the hardware isn't really consumer friendly atm, and with a bit of slimming down and a capacitive touch screen I think they could have a real winner. Because the integration of services such as skype in this phone is way beyond what any other manufacturers are even toying with, it's a fantastic concept, it's perhaps just a bit ahead of it's time in some areas and too late to the game in others.
@ipads
Just a little extra my Nokia E63 has survived being dropped several times. And that includes being dropped on ice and having me land on top of it, and surviving a quick dip in water. I've seen iphones break after being dropped from a couple of feet onto carpet... Nokia is still a huge company, and many people including me still choose them simply because they generally make very hardy phones with great battery life/software and sunlight legibility.
@Mack Stone The difference is on the N900 it's high resolution at 800x400 on the same size screen as the iPhone. Or you can use the TV out and play it on the big screen.
The hardware on modern mobile devices outperforms the Wii, just look at the graphics the N900 and iPhone are capable of.
@triplea
Its funny, the N900 screen has a higher resolution then the wii is capable of haha
@triplea
why do you have to put me in such an awkward position? i love both! lol
i guess u have to look at it like this... a wii is $199msrp. a n900 is $650msrp. a n900 better be able to do what my wii can. lol
@cherryboom "We may be only 4% but fuck with our military. In addition to that we eat damn good and can feed the world"
reason of American fat ass.
Ah this just made my day. Great.
I've been waiting for the next update, because I think they this will finally properly enable paid content (apps & games) in OVI store. Wouldn't be surprised that if the update goes well, we will be seeing new OVI tomorrow.
@Mack Stone I think you meant to say your iPod Touch Mega.
@cherryboom No but I played Cromag rally on an 350MHz Lime iMac. Ran fine back then so that doesn't say much.
bravo N900 Nokia, I will buy it tomorrow!
@trimalo lucky you, i have to wait till next week :(
@cherryboom
From an American:
WTF are you a Teabagging J-hole? Idiots like you give us Americans a bad name. Go back to the hole you crawled from.
Update done. Wow. N900 once again even faster. How much speed can they crank out of this thing....
That looks pretty cool. For some reason that Roller Coaster game reminds me of Wind Waker.
Is that it for NOKIA ?! MeeGo & Symbian S^3 UI Preview only??!!
NO announcement for new phones for Q2,Q3 & Q4 ?! WOW!!
Ive been waiting for MWC i thought nokia will drop info about line up of phone coming soon...im disappointed to nokia!
Andriod is pulling me away!!!
N900 woohoo. Best phone ever. Excited about some new games. Wondering what the firmware update is all about. How many games are being announced?
Where's the proper OS X sync?
@Bad Beaver
You mean this?
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/31/mac-os-x-10-3-installed-on-nokia-n900-via-pearpc-barely-usable/
:)
Changelog:
http://wiki.maemo.org/Maemo_5/PR1.1.1
@konceptz: From the changelog: "Disables apt-get from installing ovi store content"
Any bets on how long it will take until the workaround is public knowledge? ;)
@Pookiewood
Seriously! I'm tired of such morons giving us a bad name! Here's a quote for you guys:
'Tis better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt. --Abraham Lincoln
This especially goes out to the ones who can't even form complete sentences!
update bricked my phone there sending it to be repaired
Update just hit. Installing now :)