Nokia have unveiled the N73’s replacement at Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress… the awe-inspiring Nokia N78.

The Nokia N78 packs a powerful range of technologies, including integrated A-GPS, with free Nokia Maps, WLAN and high-speed HSPDA 3G connectivity, a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, and support for microSD memory card. The novelties of the N78 are geotagging of photos and an integrated FM transmitter that allows music to be played on any FM radio, in a car or at home.

The Specs
- Integrated A-GPS
- Audio playback time up to 24h
- Music player with integrated FM transmitter (88.1 - 107.9 MHz)
- CMOS 3.2 megapixel (2048 x 1536) autofocus camera with Carl Zeiss optics, LED flash and up to 20x digital zoom. Automatic tagging with capture location.
- 2.4" QVGA (240 x 320) display with 16 million colours
- Mobile broadband with WLAN and HSDPA
- Multimedia menu and NaviWheel for accessing content
- Take up to 1500 tracks with you on a pre-fitted 2GB memory card

Even with those specifications, the N78 is only the lowest-end Nseries device…

At first, I thought the N78 had a really tiny keypad… Actually, it has a touch-sensitive surface. The NaviWheel (Nokia’s version of the Clickwheel) is now standard.

Backlit keys “disappear” when not in use… But beware of the close proximity of keys… fat fingers will need to adapt.

The major add-on it has over other devices is the FM transmitter. Your own radio station!

The design is awesome & it suits perfectly to normal users. The N78 is definitely going to be a massive seller!

[Nokia Press Release]

Update: The N78 Demo Video

Let's start off the Barcelona Mobile World Congress with SE. Sony Ericsson have quite a few touchscreen Symbian UIQ devices… but the recently unveiled Xperia X1 promises to be its next flagship device.

One of the reasons is that it’s running Windows Mobile. However, it’s not your normal touchscreen Windows Mobile. Sony Ericsson have added a new feature… panel navigation.

Here’s a demo video of panel navigation…


Sliding QWERTY keyboard

800x480 display!!!

The Specs:
- GSM/EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA
- 3-inch WVGA (800x480) 65,536 colour TFT display
- High quality video recording & playback at 30fps
- Web feeds
- Touchscreen UI
- Multiple input & navigation - Touch, QWERTY, Optical Joystick, 4-way Key
- Windows Mobile
- 3.2 Megapixel Camera
- aGPS
- Handwriting Recognition
- 400MB Phone Memory
- microSD slot

Now… for the bashing…
I’ve never liked SE devices - this one isn’t going to make me change my opinion. Before considering its specs, let me talk about SE ultra-deficient marketing department. The two “official” SE websites looks to have been made by amateurs - the specs website is total disaster. As for the device itself, they’ve chosen the wrong colours for displaying the panels… (This may be the last time I’m posting a SE device).
Anyway, the device has a very innovative (while ultra-ugly) panel interface built on Windows Mobile 6. It has a touchscreen & loads of buttons (triangular!?!?!). OK, I admit it has a very large screen (800x480) & microSD slot (instead of Memory Stick), but it is ugly-looking. Only 400MB of memory. If you are adding a QWERTY slider (which is ripped from an ATM), you would expect more gadgets… but there’s only WiFi, GPS & 3.2 MP camera… Goodbye SE. Back to business with Nokia in the next post!
It's rumoured that HTC made this device for SE... so it may explain why it's so "good."

More Live Pics here.
More info here.
The Specs

One of the rare movies I’ve liked after Transformers… Ok, I know this is an old movie, but it’s so good that I couldn’t resist myself.

Mysteries, secrets, legends, codes, encryption, secret messages… you get the general idea? If you like these, you’ll definitely love National Treasure… Starring Nicolas Cage & Diane Kruger.

National Treasure is an action-packed movie that will never let you down… Starting from the Knight Templars, then the Freemasons leading to the Founding Fathers of the United States, an incredible treasure that has been hidden over the generations… with only a single clue to find it:

The Eye Pyramid

The Declaration of Independence

One advice: Don’t miss it.

& yes, I’m looking forward to the sequel… National Treasure – Book of Secrets.

Another reason why I liked this movie is because it’s like a Dan Brown novel… like the Da Vinci Code movie. & don’t forget that the Freemasons & the Founding Fathers are central to Dan Brown’s next novel, the Solomon Key. Actually, National Treasure may already have revealed part of the plot in the Solomon Key…

IMDB: 6.8/10
Wiki
The Sequel

Nokia Germany have leaked the specs of the forthcoming N96. Quite a few surprises:

Supported networks
- UMTS networks (WCDMA 2100/850; HSDPA)
- Quad-band operation in GSM 850/900/1800/1900 networks (EDGE)
- Automatic frequency band and mode switching
- DVB-H, class C, 470-750 MHz

Dimensions
- Volume: 92 cm3
- Weight: 125 g
- Length: 103 mm
- Width: 55 mm
- Depth: 18 mm (some places up to 20 mm)

Memory
- 16 GB of internal flash memory, memory expansion via hot-swappable microSD memory cards
Approximate storage capacity of 16 GB disk space:
- Video: 40 hours
- Music: 12,000 songs
- 128 Mbytes of RAM, 256 Mbytes of system memory (operating system plus dynamic memory for user data)

Operating Time
- Battery: Nokia Battery BL-5F, 950 mAh
- Talk time: GSM: up to 220 min; UMTS: Up to 150 min
- Stand-by Time: GSM: Up to 220 hours; UMTS up to 200 hours
- Video playback: Up to 5 hours (in offline mode)
- Music playback: Up to 14 hours (in offline mode)
- TV Play: Up to 4 hours (DVB-H)

Display and user interface
- QVGA TFT display with a 6.1 inch diagonal display (2.8 inches) and 16.7 million colours at a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels
- User interface: S60 3rd Edition, Feature Pack 2
- Active standby mode, multimedia menu

Data transfer
- In UMTS networks (WCDMA 2100/850) are both voice and data connections possible (packet switched connections to max. 3.6 Mbit / s (download) or 384 kbps (upload), circuit connections to max. 64 Kbps.
- Dual Transfer Mode (DTM) for the simultaneous use of voice and packet data connections in GSM / EDGE networks. Class A, multi-slot Class 11, max. Data transmission speed to Herunter-/Hochladen: 177.6 / 118.4 kbps
- EGPRS Class B, multi-slot Class 32, max. Data transmission speed to Herunter-/Hochladen: 296/177, 6 kbps
- GPRS Class B, multi-slot Class 32, max. Data transmission speed to Herunter-/Hochladen: 107/64, 2 kbps

Video Centre
- Video Centre: Central application for video experiences
- Access to the recent play videos and simple continuation of play
- My Videos: collection of videos stored in the device
- Access to Internet video, compatible with news feeds and video podcasts, updates and downloads directly over the cellular network
- Catalogue for new Internet video

Video codecs and formats
- MPEG-4 Part 2 (H.263/SP), up to VGA at 30 frames/s codec with hardware acceleration, max QVGA on the screen of the device, max SDTV on TV Output
- MPEG-4 Part 10 (H.264/SP), up to VGA at 30 frames/s codec with hardware acceleration, max QVGA on the screen of the device, max SDTV on TV Output
- Windows Media Video (WMV9), up to CIF/QVGA at 30 frames/s codec with hardware acceleration, max QVGA on the screen of the device, max SDTV on TV Output
- Real Video (QCIF) with 30 frames/s
- Support for Flash movies in Internet Browser
- Digital rights management: OMA DRM 1, OMA DRM 2, WM DRM (Windows Media DRM)

Live TV
- DVB-H-based mobile TV with integrated antenna
- DVB-H, class C, 470-750 MHz
- Access to videos on the browser
- Downloading, streaming and playback during download
- Support for Flash movies

Music
- Digital music player - support for MP3, AAC, eAAC +, WMA and album cover
- Editing and sharing playlists
- Equalizer and visualization of sounds
- Online search and purchase music tracks in Nokia Music Store - with support for WM DRM-protected files (Windows Media DRM)

Radio
- FM stereo radio (87,5-108 MHz) with support for RDS; possibility for the use of the VHF radios in offline mode
- Nokia Internet Radio

Main Camera
- Up to 5 megapixels (2,592 x 1,944 pixels)
- Optics by Carl Zeiss
- Autofocus, automatic exposure control
- Aperture: F2.8
- Focal Length: 5.2 mm
- Focus range: 10 cm to infinity
- Two flashlights (LED), video light, lighting-support autofocus and recording progress indicator

Second Camera
- VGA (640 x 480 pixels)

Video recording function
- Video recording in MPEG-4 format, with up to VGA 30 frames/s
- Digital video stabilization
- Video clip length: Depends on available space
- Video File Format: MP4 (standard), 3GPP (for MMS messages)
- Program settings for automatic, a video light, white balance and colour change

Photography
- Photo Resolution: Up to 5 megapixels (2,592 x 1,944 pixels)
- Format for photographs: JPEG / EXIF
- Details on the recording location: Automatic recording of information on location in the image file
- Program settings for automatic, flash, serial shots, self-timer, colour change, white balance, contrast, exposure correction.

Discover
- Digital maps and navigation
- Integrated GPS module with support for A-GPS (Assisted GPS)
- Nokia Maps application
- Free downloadable maps for more than 150 countries, millions of locations, location details and satellite images **
- To purchase upgrades available multimedia travel guides and navigation services for the car navigation Sprachgestützte
- For pedestrians: Special optimized for pedestrian navigation with Directions

E-mail and Messaging
- Easy-to-use e-mail client with support for attachments (photos, videos, music files, and text documents)
- Support for e-mail protocols SMTP, IMAP4 and POP3, as well as for MMS and SMS messages Common SMS-/MMS-Editor
- Compatible with Nokia Wireless Keyboard SU-8W (optional)

Mobile Internet Access
- Nokia Web Browser with Mini Map function, visual history display, support for HTML and JavaScript, Flash Lite 3.0, and for Flash videos
- Support for news feeds (RSS)

Connection options
- WLAN (IEEE802.11 b/g) with support for UPnP (Universal Plug and Play)
- USB 2.0 micro-USB port (Type B)
- 3.5-mm jack for connecting a standard headphone and TV output for connecting a TV for playback of photos and videos (PAL / NTSC)
- Bluetooth 2.0 with support for stereo audio transmission (Bluetooth profile “Advanced Audio Distribution (A2DP), and EDR (Enhanced Data Rates)
- Use of Nokia PC Suite for Nseries devices (PC software), in conjunction with Bluetooth wireless connections or cable connections to the USB port compatible PCs

Standard package
- Nokia N96
- Nokia battery BL-5F
- Nokia data cable CA-101
- Nokia video output cable, CA-75U
- Nokia Stereo Headset-HS-45, with remote AD-54
- Nokia cigarette lighter charger cable DC-4
- Nokia compact AC-5E

The N96 has almost the same specs as the N95 8GB, but with a few improvements… the storage is now 16GB, there’s a DVB-H receiver & a microSD slot! Everything in an N81 form-factor, thinner than the N95 8GB. All these add-ons use enormous juice, so you have expected Nokia to come up with a new massive 1500mAh battery… but no! It’s only 950mAh!!! This will not last half a day of intensive usage!
Nevertheless, this will not be Nokia’s next flagship phone as we are still waiting for leaks of the iPhone-killer touchscreen version!

More photos of the N96 here.

UPDATED: Nokia N96 officially released. More here.

[via theNokiaBlog]


Microsoft urges Nokia to offer Windows Mobile devices
Microsoft has been having talks with Nokia concerning the use of Windows Mobile on S60 devices.

How to download embedded Flash Video (flv) from video-sharing sites like YouTube, Google Video, MSN Soapbox, Metacafe, DailyMotion, Veoh, Blip.TV, MySpace, iFilm & more?
The most obvious solution would be to go straight to download sites like javimoya.com or downloadyoutubevideos.com or techcrunch.com or keepvid.com to get a direct link to the flv…
Unfortunately it doesn’t work anymore… (Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t)

The prehistoric method
Play the video & grab the flv from your browser’s cache. Usually it’s in the *.flv extension, but sometimes it’s named get_video?video_id=12342342… You just need to rename the file to *.flv to be able to play it.
Internet Explorer 7:
- C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files
(You’ll need to allow Hidden files & Protected System files in the File Options, to be able to view the folder)

Opera
- C:\Program Files\Opera 9\profile\cache4

Firefox
For Firefox it’s a bit more complicated. You can view the cache by entering about:cache?device=disk in the address bar. To be able to view the cache properly, you’ll need to download the CacheViewer addon.
Actually, we won’t need all these things since there’s a much better way with Firefox via another addon.

The new way
Why Firefox has become the world’s best browser is because it supports extensions & Add-Ons (& GreaseMonkey).
DownloadHelper is the addon that makes downloading embedded FLV videos easy as 123. Download it here.

After installing it, you just need to open the video url… wait a few seconds & the link will appear in the DownloadHelper drop-down menu.

You can configure DownloadHelper to automatically send the link to your download manager. Remember that for most video-sharing sites, multiple-threads or parallel downloads is not allowed, so use only a single connection in your download manager.

DownloadHelper can also be accessed from the Tools menu.

What makes DownloadHelper so attractive is that it can download almost any type of embedded content. & it has advanced configuration features as well.

An alternative to DownloadHelper is Fast Video Download. Fast Video Download is quite straightforward - you open your video link & click Download Video at the bottom of the browser.

The download will be sent to your download manager if you have configured it. Fast Video Download has quite a few interesting options.

How to play FLV videos?
Now that you’ve downloaded your FLV videos, it’s time to watch them. I would recommend VLC & FLV Player - they are both free applications that can play your FLVs. VLC is better since it is an all-in-one media player - it can play ANY audio/video/media file!

Update: Still can't download streaming videos? Try Orbit Downloader! Click here learn more!

The hard way - capturing streaming content
Only use this if you’ve tried every possible way to capture streaming content - like saving the stream with VLC. Most streaming content use either Quicktime or Windows Media or Realplayer streams, so they can be easily detected.
Unfortunately, there are LIVE streams that are temporarily stored to cache & play… well, live! It’s quite hard to capture them if you don’t have the direct streaming link or it’s very well hidden behind a Flash Player.
The solution is to capture the video directly from the screen & the audio from your sound card. Any good commercial screen video capture software can do it, but among the free solutions, there’s CamStudio.
It captures the video correctly, but the only problem I get is with the audio. I can’t configure it quite well… so I expect all the audio problems will be solved in the next version.
In the meantime, remember that CamStudio is capturing your screen & saving it to hard disk in RAW avi… so you need quite a powerful PC & loads of memory. & don’t forget to buffer your streaming video completely before attempting to record… so that you won’t need to record in parts & join everything later.
If you have a slow connection, just forget it…

Good luck with your downloading… :P