Silverlight is a development platform based on the Microsoft .Net technology and the good news is that it is now available for Nokia 5800 and other devices running on Symbian S60 5th Edition OS. It enables cross browser and multi-platform application design which somewhat similar to Java and QT platforms.
Like QT, Java and Python, we also have a silverlight runtime installation available for Nokia 5800 which enables the phone to support applications designed on Silverlight. The introduction of Silverlight will lead to rapid application development for Symbian S60 v5 devices. Along with this we will also see more interactive features, better graphics, stability and reliability in the applications built on Silverlight.
There is a demo Bing application designed for S60 which runs on Silverlight. It showcases the possibilities with Silverlight and gives an overview of the application's look and functionality. The application opens in the phone's browser and looks much like the flash-based portals and it is very slow. Since, it is just a demo, we may ignore the performance issues.
To get started you need to install the Silverlight Beta Runtime for Symbian S60 and open the following link on your phone's browser - http://silverlight.net/content/samples/s60/bing/default.htm
Silverlight Beta Runtime for Symbian S60 is a 4MB SIS installation file. Download here
Visit the Nokia 5800 Forum for more interesting news about Nokia 5800.
JoikuBoost Beta is a revolutionizing concept when it comes to 3G internet and mobile Wifi networks. This application is from the makers of JoikuSpot and built on a similar concept. JoikuBoost is an application that allows you to pool in 3G data connections of two or more phones and provide you with a combined bandwidth. Example - Suppose you have phone A with a 3G connection with a 1Mbps speed and another phone with 1 Mbps speed. Now, JoikuBoost allows you to create a Wifi network with the help of these two phones which will have a internet speed of 2Mbps combining the speed of both the phones. You can connect to this Wifi network with a laptop and use it as a normal internet connection. Here you actually create a single network with the primary phone and then use the Add Booster from the application in the primary phone to add more phones with 3G connection to this network.
SmsPreview 1.12.00 is the latest updated version for Nokia 5800. Many a time it happens that you receive a SMS and you are not in a position to actually tap your screen and open the SMS. Consider that you are in the traffic riding a bike or even driving a car. SmsPreview is just the kind of application we want on the phone. It automatically displays the content of the SMS on your home screen without having to to actually open the SMS. You can set the time for which the message gets displayed on your screen. The lowest delay time is 5 seconds and maximum is 60 seconds.
I remember using this application when it was still in its early phase. The message would keep displaying on your screen for the specified time and you cannot do anything on your phone as half of the screen kept covered with the SMSPreview. Now that is an old story, you can tap on the message after reading it and it would disappear. It would no longer keep your screen blocked.
In this post, i am showcasing some of the best applications available for Nokia 5800/Symbian S60 v5 which are officially free downloads from their publishers.
Gmail Mobile 2.0.6
Gmail Mobile is a simple J2ME application for Nokia 5800 which allows you to manage your Gmail account from the phone itself. You can read your mails and perform all the email functionalities that you would generally do on the web-based interface. It has support for the touch screen phones and thus, you can set the game and navigation keys to off in the Application Manager. This application is data efficient and minimum possible data is used every time you connect to your mailbox. Gmail Mobile App is very stable and has a very nice interface. Very convenient to use.
Ebuddy Messenger is a mobile IM client for Nokia 5800. It is actually an extension of the famous Ebuddy multi-chat service. It is a J2ME application which has touch screen support and runs as a full screen application on Nokia 5800. The multiple IM support includes Yahoo, Gtalk, MSN, AIM, ICQ, Facebook, Hyves and Myspace. It has a nice interface and very stable. You have tabbed chatting here. Chat with users from all the chat services simultaneously. The application is completely free of cost and periodically updated. It is a nice to have application on your phone. Always stay in touch with your friends on the move.
Google is an innovator in every field. They have redefined the meaning of Global Positioning System with their amazing ideas. The latest version of Google Maps has a lot to offer, more than you can imagine.
Google Maps for Nokia 5800 is must have GPS application. You will hate to use Nokia Maps after you have used this application. Google has integrated the Buzz feature in Google Maps this time. You can select a location/landmark and post/see a buzz by all the people associated with that location. Everything is realtime and exciting.
YouTube for Nokia 5800 has an updated version. The latest version is 2.4.4. Earlier, opening YouTube on Nokia 5800 would open directly in the landscape mode but now what i notice is that it opens in the portrait mode which for some people may be more convenient to use. However, the videos will still play in the landscape mode irrespective of the orientation of your phone.
You can log into your own YouTube account in the application and access all the related account demographics like - My Videos, Subscriptions, Favorites, Playlists. You can now see your playlists and play them. You can see all your subscriptions and directly play all the videos from the subscription. If you have videos uploaded in your account then you can play all those videos. However, you do not have any account management options. For managing your YouTube account, you need to access the web-based portal. I hope we have the management features as well in the future release.
Cellet Neoprene Armband is a nice accessory for Nokia 5800. It allows you to carry your Nokia 5800 with you strapped to your arm. It does not matter if you areworking out, walking, running or trekking, you can carry your Nokia 5800 strapped to your arm safe and secured with Cellet Neoprene Armband. I took some pictures and made a video of the Neopreme Armband I've just bought from ebay.
While working outyou can use your Nokia 5800 as a music device strapped to your arm or even as phone with a headset attached to it. The Cellet Neoprene Armband wrapsaround your armand has a pouch correctly sized to hold your Nokia 5800 tightly. The phone cannot be taken out without unwrapping the armband. I see this as a positive aspect of the armband while some may view it as a negative one because you cannot take out the phone.
Dasur SlideIT Keyboard is an interesting application. As the name suggests SlideIT keyboard replaces the traditional Nokia keyboard and allows you type text by sliding your stylus all across the keyboard. The Dasur keyboard can be used in two modes i.e the ABC mode which is the normal Nokia like mode and the SlideIT mode which is sliding across the keyboard. It also has a Graffiti mode which supports only numbers and other mathematical operators and punctuations. Graffiti mode is nothing but the handwriting recognition mode.
Dasur SlideIT Keyboard does involve a little bit of practice before you can use it flawlessly. However, once you get used to it, you would not want to return back to the Nokia keyboard. The SlideIT keyboard also include "add to dictionary" function for your new words. It also has an intuitive T9 kind of function that keeps displaying all the different possibilities as you slide over the keyboard which is four keywords at a time. This is an impressive feature.
Here we get the winners of MyPhone v2.50 contest. We got 169 vaild comments this time and from those participants we randomly selected the 10 winners with random.org.
The winners will receive an email notification soon to asked for your IMEI number in order to activate your MyPhone. Here we only show you the name/nickname of the winners.
1. M.Alaa
2. Greg
3. ORiOn
4. KK
5. viswesh
6. Xibal
7. Martin
8. kristaps
9. Marco
10. Vpuik
We would like to thank MMMOOO for sponsoring this contest offering the MyPhone application for S60 and all of you who participated and made this contest the most competitive as it could be. If you missed the prize this time, you could always try MyPhone here or purchase it.
There are countless applications for Nokia 5800 today and narrowing down to three top applications for Nokia 5800 is a difficult task. I have tried to pick three applications on the basis of overall usage and quality.
Fring is one of the best applications which combines video chat, instant messaging, voip, internet radio and social networking on a single application. It supports Google Talk, Yahoo, MSN, ICQ, AIM, Skype, Facebook and Twitter among some of the most popular services. You can use your 3rd party Voip account with Fring.
Opera Mobile 10 is an excellent mobile web browser for Nokia 5800. Being a Symbian application, it integrates well with the phone's OS and lets you browse almost 99% of the websites whether it be HTTP or HTTPS protocols. It supports Java scripts on webpages. You also get an inbuilt download manager which is very convenient to use and works on slower 2G connections. It is a must have for any Nokia 5800 user.
BrightLight is a very useful application to have on Nokia 5800. It allows you to use your phone as a torch. With two powerful LEDs provided at the back of your phone, Bright Light allows you to turn them on/off at your wish whenever you want. Just launch the application and slide the soft switch to ON position.
