Gadget News and Reviews » Maemo

MeeGo for netbooks and handhelds now available

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 05:50:29 +0000

Mobile computing seems to be the marketing mantra for many a hardware company these days, and competition is stiff. Well, MeeGo, which is basically a fusion of Maemo and Moblin, is a new operating system that is available for both netbooks as well as other handheld computing devices. There are three builds available, supporting Intel Atom netbooks, ARM-powered Nokia N900s and Intel Atom handhelds that run on the Moorestown architecture. It would be interesting to see whether MeeGo is able to jostle sufficient breathing space for itself in the mobile OS market – what do you think?

Permalink: MeeGo for netbooks and handhelds now available from Ubergizmo | Hot: iPhone for Verizon: nearly official?

Orginal post by Mike

Nokia at Mobile World Congress – Wrap Up

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:53:04 +0000

[MWC 2010] Nokia has just finished their press conference at Mobile World Congress 2010 and a lot was said, but little was substantial and up to the audience’s expectations (whether fair or not). First, no new device was announced, which is kind of weird, but I guess that Nokia World is now the new place for that type of launches, and it is somewhat understandable. Secondly, Nokia has announced that Maemo and Moblin – two Linux OS backed by Nokia and Intel – will merge. Well, ok it’s good, but without other handset makers joining the party, it’s going to be hard to create a “common” platform. In reality, everyone is going their own way (cf. Samsung with Bada, Apple Mac OS for iPhone, Google with Android…). It’s not surprising as we’re talking about nothing less than the control of the gate to mobile riches. Expect more fragmentation than ever in the coming years. The second part of the presentation was Nokia’s way of saying that although it is not a leader, its Ovi services are moving forward. It’s not that great, but Nokia is trying really hard to build an eco-system and I give them some credit for doing the right thing: think of software as the added-value. Ultimately, Nokia is currently successful only in developing countries where its sort still has a “halo” that was lost in western countries. Although any progress is good, I believe that Nokia has to recapture the developed world market or face a deterioration of its grade everywhere. that starts with sexy devices and a great smartphone experience. When you loose the high-end, you can take refuge in the low-end, but only for so long…

Permalink: Nokia at Mobile World Congress – Wrap Up from Ubergizmo | Hot: Nexus One Review

Orginal post by Mike

Mac OS X 10.3 Running On Nokia N900

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:07:40 +0000

So you’ve seen Nokia’s N900 dual booting Maemo and Android, nothing too special about that, right? Well, what about a full blown Mac OS X 10.3 installation? Now that’s a rather impressive feat, wouldn’t you say? Thanks to the help of PearPC, a ability PC emulator, that was achievable, though there are obvious downsides to that approach. The most noticeable would be that it took nearly 2 hours to boot the operating system. You’ve really got to give credit to the person who had the patience to pull that off, after all, most humans would walk off halfway after waiting for such a lengthy boot date. So what is next for Nokia’s N900, Windows 7?

Permalink: Mac OS X 10.3 Running On Nokia N900 from Ubergizmo | Hot: Nexus One Review

Orginal post by Mike

Firefox For Mobile Is Now Available On Maemo!

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 01:34:02 +0000

We’ve been pining for it for so faraway, and after the faraway wait, Mozilla has officially announced that Firefox is now available for Nokia’s Maemo platform. that means that all you Nokia N900 owners out there can have Firefox on your N900. whether you’re wondering what makes Firefox for mobile different from the usual third-party browser that you cram on your cell phone, check out some of the features, such as:

Awesome Bar – Go to your favorite sites in just a couple of keystrokes with intelligent and personalized searching
Weave Sync – Sync your Firefox tabs, history, bookmarks and passwords amidst your desktop and mobile device for a seamless browsing experience
Add-ons – Customize your Firefox by adding small pieces of functionality, like games and news readers, that help manufacture the mobile Web browser your own
Location-Aware Browsing – Get maps and data relevant to your location
Tabbed browsing – View open tabs as thumbnails to easily identify and choose the Web page you’d like to go to next
Safe Browsing – Get an Instant Web Site ID and easily access and edit shield settings
Available in more than 30 languages and counting

The Add-ons support in specific might be a game changer. After all, it certainly is a big contributing factor to Firefox’s popularity today.

Permalink: Firefox For Mobile Is Now Available On Maemo! from Ubergizmo | Hot: Nexus One Review

Orginal post by Mike

Aigo N500 MID runs on Maemo

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 08:05:04 +0000

Aigo’s latest MID (Mobile Net Device) is the N500 which will be powered by an ARM-based 806MHz Marvell PXA310+ processor that runs off the Maemo operating system. Strangely decent, N500 is very close to what you would signal a Nokia device, and the fact that that is the second non-Nokia device to run Maemo makes things all the more interesting. The Aigo N500 will feature a 4.3″ WVGA resistive touchscreen display, coupled with 128MB RAM, 256MB ROM, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity, 3G (EVDO) voice and input support, GPS capability, an integrated VGA webcam, a 3.2-megapixel camera and a high capacity 2600mAh li-on battery to supply sufficient juice for its everyday use. It retails for around $586 in China, with no word on whether the N500 will reach Stateside. Would you pick that up instead of a netbook?

Permalink: Aigo N500 MID runs on Maemo from Ubergizmo | Hot: Nexus One Review

Orginal post by Mike

Nokia N900 Can Dual Boot Android And Maemo

Sun, 24 Jan 2010 16:09:22 +0000

Nokia’s N900 is certainly a cool phone, but the Maemo 5 OS that it runs may not be for everybody. Considering that Google’s Android OS is one of the more popular operating systems out there at the moment, it’s really cool to find out that a person called Brandon Roberts has managed to get Nokia’s N900 to dual-boot Maemo and Android. It’s currently still a proof-of-concept, but it seems pretty usable from the video that was posted. Unfortunately for N900 owners out there, directions on how to do that aren’t available, but hopefully there will be detailed guides on how to do that sometime soon. After all, who wouldn’t want a dual-booting Nokia N900, right? Remember to check out our review on the N900 whether you aren’t familiar with the device.

Permalink: Nokia N900 Can Dual Boot Android And Maemo from Ubergizmo | Hot: Nexus One Review

Orginal post by Mike

Optima OP5-E review samples sent out

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:15:22 +0000

Don’t think that Maemo is a Nokia exclusive – review samples of Optima’s OP5-E have already been sent out to selected bloggers, where initial reports on the specifications point to a 4.3″ resistive touchscreen, an 806MHz Marvell ARM processor, 128MB RAM, 3G support, a SIM card slot, GPS navigation, Bluetooth connectivity and an exchangeable 2600 mAH battery that ought to run for up to 8 hours on average. The Optima OP5-E is tipped to retail for $500 without any subsidies, giving the Motorola Droid a good run for its money whether it takes off.

Permalink: Optima OP5-E review samples sent out from Ubergizmo | Hot: Palm Pixi Review

Orginal post by Mike

Nokia will improve Symbian user interface in 2010 and reveal Maemo 6

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 08:36:38 +0000

Tired of good old Nokia smartphones interfaces? They promise to change UI to assemble user experience better, and bring the Symbian UI to a new level. that change will affect only Symbian phones though. In addition to UI upgrade Nokia is going to unleash its first Maemo 6 (mobile computer) late in 2010.

Orginal post by Mike

Only One Maemo Device In 2010?

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:46:06 +0000

For those of you are who huge fans of Nokia’s N900 and Maemo, it’s probably a little disappointing to get wind of reports that indicate that Nokia will only be rolling out one Maemo device in 2010. Aside from that, a Nokia spokesperson stated that the company is firmly committed to Symbian as their smartphone platform of choice. With the recent waning interest in S60, it might actually be an view for Nokia to put additional focus into Maemo and see how things turn out.

Permalink: Only One Maemo Device In 2010? from Ubergizmo | Hot: Palm Pixi Review

Orginal post by Mike

Nokia drops S60 for Maemo (updated: not happening)

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:19:10 +0000

Could the Symbian S60 operating system be dying a slow but certain death? That is what most folks would think with word going around, stating that Nokia will include Maemo on all of its flagship N Series smartphones down the road instead of the old faithful, Symbian S60. It won’t be instant though, but gradual with the transition being brought to completion when 2012 rolls around. Well, at least the S60 can still find a home on the X Series and E Series.

Update: Nokia has issued a statement that contradicts what its Maemo team said publicly in London. There you go:

While it is our policy not to reveal details of our product roadmap, we’d like to explicitly communicate that we remain firmly committed to Symbian as our smartphone platform of choice. Any speculation on what our 2012 roadmap, including operating systems and product branding, are completely premature.

Permalink: Nokia drops S60 for Maemo (updated: not happening) from Ubergizmo | Hot: Motorola Droid Review

Orginal post by Mike