Monday, October 08, 2007

A New Phone

After years of using very basic mobile phones, I have gotten my hands on a Java phone, the Nokia N73 (Music Edition.)

It has two cameras. Here is a grab shot with the main camera (3MP) taken through a window. And of course it does videos.



It has a FM receiver and headset so I can listen to local FM stations when stuck in traffic.

It has a clock that shows the time on several cities around the world.

Best of all, I downloaded an ebook reader, mobipocket, which runs on this phone. So I can download ebooks (there are lots of free older ones on gutenberg.org) and read them. Mobipocket has an adjustable font, so I don't have to squint. And get this, it has an autoscroll feature so I don't have to flip pages.

(BTW, if you try this, make sure to convert Gutenberg's text files into the ebook format by using mobicreator, a free program from the same site.)

And of course you can run any number of Java or Symbian applications on it for doing a lot of different things.

I signed up for GP's GPRS service to try it out. It costs Tk 1000/month for unlimited uploads and downloads. So I can check email, browse the web. It also supports various news feeds (something I have not explored.) For gmail, there is a separate client that one can download, so it is a lot faster than going through the browser.

Two things missing that I would really like: a) a way to adjust point size for all text; and b) some navigation capability. Also, the basic phone functions that were so easy on my old phone are a little more complicated (it asks you too many questions, and you have to keep on clicking.)

But a very nice toy overall.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

You can also get 'pre-packaged' books from http://www.booksinmyphone.com

You can install directly from their mobile website or via your pc. Their books also run on lower end java enabled phones.

ulysses said...

Hi,

Thanks very much for the info. My phone got stolen unfortunately, and I am now on a more basic model. When I get a new one in Feb, I will be sure to check out this site.