N900: The Great "It's a phone!" vs. "It's not a phone; it's a mobile computer!" Debate
 

It's a bit sad to see people posting about "lack of MMS" "crippled phone functionality" "lack of profiles" "bad calendar" "missing bluetooth profiles". The reviews highlight how "bulky" and "heavy" it is.

It's not a phone and it's never meant to be. The N900 continues the Internet Tablet heritage and just having a cellular radio does not suddenly make it a phone. After all, all official Nokia sites use the term "Mobile Computer", not a "Smartphone". It's not even marketed as a phone. Everyone just has gotten the idea that it's the Nokia's new "flagship" phone. Perhaps because the model number so so much higher than the N97? :)

For anyone looking for the next Nokia Flagship phone should stick to the N97 (now that most of it's bugs are ironed out) and potentially buy the next Maemo device in the product line equipped with general customer ready Maemo 6 Operating System when it's out.

For anyone "geekish" person who loves the Open Source fundamentally of the device will love it, having access to x-terminal and the ease of developing software for it. Also the great browser and messaging are included.

But your basic customer who has used Symbian it's a whole different thing. They expect N900 to have every single same feature as the Symbian platform. And they expect it to work in the same exact way as Symbian.

Symbian is a phone OS that has been in development for since the 90's. Maemo is a mobile internet device OS that has been in development since 2005 (?) and the phone functionality was added only in latest version. You can't even compare them one to another!

As conclusion, the N900 is an Internet Tablet/Mobile computer with an added cellular radio.

So, When you go ask a geek about his his new phone, you'll be likely to hear "It's not a phone, it's a GNU/Linux based mobile computer with phone functionality" in a high voice ;)

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

It is not? Really? How come I can make cellular calls with it then?

Well, Nokia sites previously used this term for N95, then N97. Do you mean to say that N95 and N97 are not phones either?

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Without having ever actually touched an N900, I still think the statement "It's not a phone" is wrong. Of _course_ it's a phone. It's just that the phone aspect may be overshadowed somewhat by the fact that this phone is also a mobile computer, sometimes called an Internet Tablet. But it's not really the Tablet either, because the screen is smaller.

Maybe some of the phone functions are limited (depending on what you want to use it for - no MMS means nothing to me, for example. It's not what I'm looking for in a phone.) - but missing/limited functionality will almost certainly be added, after all the hardware is there to do it. So, will it then suddenly be a phone? I would say it's one already.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Weird, every online site I go to markets it as a phone. Hmm. how can so many be so wrong and the few be so right?

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

if you add in a phone people will use it as a phone. If you have a radio with a blank screen and one day the screen turns on to show your favorite tv shows does it not make it a tv?

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Please stop deluding yourself, and defending Nokia for leaving out features they should have put on the device.

What is fanboyism if it not defending a company that releases an incomplete product?

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

I recall the term for them was "multimedia computer"

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

You should probably email the site support at www.nokia.com (+regional sites) and let them know that their search functions are broken...when I click Find Products -> All Phones, it keeps showing the N900! Strange. What's the link for browsing Nokia's non-phone, "Internet Tablet/Mobile computer with an added cellular radio" products again?

This whole fixation of calling phones mobile computers is very silly. Nokia should never have done it, I can't see what good it has possibly ever done to them to try to use terms like mobile computer for a phone. Give it a rest.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

haha funny

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Yea, and your desktop PC is obviously an electric typewriter with added graphics...

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Well mine is def not a phone because the mic is fu&&^ed:mad:

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

My house contains phone functionality, but its not a phone either.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Finally someone who understands... Everyone one else just laughs when I refer to my keyboard + monitor as a "typewriter with an erasable page."

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Strong words. Why is it "incomplete"? Because the N900 does not have a kitchen sink included?

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Why does it matter how it's called? It is what it is. Use it or don't. Jeez.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

If you compare maemo 5, in its current version, to for example Symbian S60.3rd. (where I come from) the changeable settings and options are much fewer.

I think the N900 is awesome. But I am truly hoping Nokia has some sweaty programmes adding the "missing basic functions" to the N900.

Minor things like changing the date format easily to whatever I want are not as simple to achieve. I like YYYY-MM-DD for example. On symbian I could just type exactly that into a window and wallah! my dates would be formatted that way. No such luck with Maemo.

The profiles section of the phone is incomplete as well. The only two profiles available are "General" and "Silent" (and a airplane mode if you push the power button). You can not create a additional profile.

Turning off vibration and keyboard noise in the menu does not really turn it off: I don´t like the unit vibrating when I touch the screen. I´d like to be able to make it stop doing that.

The Ovi Maps software is well, only a map with a search function. There are really no settings to adjust whatsoever. Very limited functionality. I expect this is being fixed quickly.

I can´t see the icon locations in the programs menu being movable. IF someone knows how to rearrange them let me know. I can´t figure it out. That is a basic function to be able to move those.

Why were podcasts not built into the multimedia player? I know there´s a 3rd party app for that, but Nokia that´s the only multimedia item you left out, why?

Keyboard. It is not easy to change between keyboard layouts on the physical keyboard. It is 6-7 clicks, so you don´t do that while writing a single email or text message. It might be smarter to be able to change the fixed keyboard language with one button in the virtual keyboard. There´s a button that changes the virtual keyboard but that button should change the physical one as well.

I haven´t found a good way to write accented characters by the way in the english keyboard like á ó ú ý and so forth. Also how can I write þ and ð on the N900? Það er erfitt að skrifa sæmilega íslensku án réttra stafa. It´s hard to write that text without such a input option.

On a dumbhone or a smartphone from Nokia you have to make sure to buy it in the right market to be able to write æáóúýíðþ etc. On a mobile computer, you shouldn´t have to. The phone supports that. So we need a proper character map.

The virtual keyboard has some issues. When I write a text in it and hit enter it changes the text, removing and adding letters and symbols at random. This happens if I make more than 1-2 changes to the text in the virtual keyboard. Quite annoying.

MMS, I don´t understand why you´d send one or why you´d want one. In my 12 years of having a mobile phone, I´ve only received one. And it was sent to the wrong number, not intended for me. But apparently there are some people who like those things so I´m sure it´ll come. That´s a semi-advanced missing feature.

I have a good memory so I can cope with not having a search function in the email. But still, that is a function that needs to come. Actually a overall phone search program is needed. When I start loading this up with work related reference documents I won´t be able to find all of them without a search.

And by the way. The N900 is being advertised the same way as my N95 was. So it is a phone and it is a mobile computer. Actually it´s what computers have become!

I suppose the N900 will get better as they roll this out over the next 2-3 months. So it´ll go from awesome to frigging awesome. That´s what my N95-1 did, and that´s what I´m hoping for here.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Incorrect, those should stick to the X6.

It even has capacitive screen, 32gig storage & 5MP cam.
It is advertised as a music phone but so was the 5800, which also was seen as the flagship before the N97 came out.

X6 > N97. Definitly.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Name ONE other device that can make telephone calls to all numbers, that is hand held, that isnt a phone. Please.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Basically all mobile devices with input for sim cards, so most of the netbooks and a bunch of umpcs, if you can consider those handhelds.

But the N900 is rather a netbook than a phone, indeed.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

how old are you? seriously..

we have all heard your problems several times in dozens of threads.

it would piss me off too and there is no excuse for a faulty phone, nonetheless i would advise you to grow up a bit and refrain from bloating up your own concerns, take action instead, whining on threads isnt going to help.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Jeez, you are being so funny.

Oh lawd, did you even read what I posted?

The point was that the device is not primarily a phone.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

being one of the lucky 300, i have heard the question "so, what's it like then" a lot.

My answer is that it is the best all in one mobile device on the market at the moment, but to think of it as a mobile Linux computer with a built in phone, just like the iPhone is a big iPod with a web-browser and a phone, and S60 phones are phones with built in computers.

It is NOT best at any one thing, but it scores highly in EVERY catogory, so ends up as the winner for me:

• camera resolution/quality

the N86 has higher resolution, the N83 has Zenon flash, but it is WAY better than the iPhones camera.
Hopefully some of the code from the S60 branches can be ported without too much effort to help out here

• maps & GPS

the maps implementation on the N900 is brand new (it matches Ovi Maps via web very closely, and has lots of Javascript driving it) so gets a "meh", the GPS can struggle to get an intial lock without AGPS (i.e needs to send some data over cellular network), but the maps can be stored locally on the phone so no huge data bill when roaming (like Nokia/Ovi Maps on S60 phones)

• audio playback

very good speakers, but the software UI is unique (not sure if the iPod UI is better as I am not that big of a music fan). The included headphones are good, the current Nokia in-ear type with the read tag.
Nice touch, is that the indicator shows if they are detected as just regular headphones or also a microphone.
Gpodder has caused me to discover the world of podcasts, so it is becoming more important

• physical size

no denying that compared to current phones it is physically large, but it's as small as you can get while still being able to make use of the 800x480 resolution

• web

The inbuilt browser (microB) is good, but like everything struggles with Javscript or Flash heavy sites (causes high CPU which in turn increases battery drain)
It is leagues ahead of the S60 browser and there is Fennec coming as well
I have only briefly played with MobileSafari so can't really comment.
Major drawback is lack of copy from web pages

• mobile computer

This is where the N900 SMASHES the competition, iPhone is closed, Android requires Java(shudder), S60/Symbian is a phone first & computer second. Shame the Man pages are not included (man man on terminal returns command not found :mad:)

• UI

Takes a little getting used to, but the intro video does an excelent job of that. A bit more complex than iPhone, but then it's also more flexible (and in my book that is a good thing!)

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Actually there is, the "manipulation mode" (swipe from left) allows you select and copy text.

Re: N900 is not primarily a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

If Nokia don't want people to think that the N900 is a phone, then maybe they should stop their resellers from calling it a phone: :)

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

wonderful.
when someone asks me if i have a cell phone with me i can say no legitimately:)

damn this is going to be phun!:)

Re: N900 is not primarily a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

I don't consider the N900 to be a cell phone either. I wrote about this in my (non-commercial) blog.

http://kurt555gs.blogspot.com/2009/1...-thoughts.html

Easier than re-typing. Cheers

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

putting a GSM card into my computer does not make it a phone not even if its my netbook, the device is an internet tablet and the gsm/umts module is supposed to give you the possibility to stay connected. nokia is calling it a phone... they could call it else. but they want to show that the new NIT has phone capabilities.

I can do phone calls with my netbook does that make it become a phone now? no its a computer with phone capability, true the form factor is telling it is a phone and its hitting off in that direction but the n900 is still a test device and remains more an IT than it becomes a phone. the future devices will leave the phone not out but loose focus as it isnt a primary tool anymore its more like a base function.
first phones where used to call someone not to send emails browse the web and edit PDFs. The device landscape is refurbishing. my current phone is a walkman first a phone second, and that changes every day, the goals and needs of such a "phone" is not being a "phone" anymore its to become a full blown computer in your pocket. helping you to do your work faster better or what else or give you fun joy and so on... kids dont want phones to call someone they want text with friends share videos and pictures go online.

call it what ever you want it to be but keep in mind that phone functionality, in this case cellphone, does not come at first its more at last. so for you its a phone and you expect all phone features. you got contacts, make calls and receive calls! there is your cellphone functionality! its not ment to be a business device yet so this kind of stuff will come later on. its the last try to get to know problems of hardware and software combination before they start to build step 5 of 5. and its a nice way because the community gets the chance to request and support stuff nokia wasnt thinking about yet. most of it has close to nothing to do with cellphones anymore.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

It's really strange the contortions of logic that people put themselves through to convince themselves and others that the n900 is not a phone.

Of course it's a phone. End of.

The issue really becomes one of expectations.
The 770, n800 and n810 were not phones. In many ways they worked really well and were great devices but had some bugs and limitations that were accepted by most because of what they could do very well.
If the n900 was not a phone and was just another progression up from the 770/n800/n810 then I'd expect similar i.e. it would work very well in many areas but have some limitations and would be satisfied enough if that's the way it worked out.

However my expectations of a phone would be different and I'd be a lot less tolerant of poor performance. If my phone was glitchy, unexpectedly rebooted itself or similar I'd be back to the phone shop to replace it or look for a refund.

As the n900 is marketed as a phone, is sold in phone shops, is labelled everywhere as a phone then it's a frickin' phone.
It has to match the expectations one would have of a phone regardeless of all the extra bells and whistles it includes.

And if it doesn't it should take the flak.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Humm, I must "be doing it wrong", as I am not seing text being highlighted if i "swipe from left".
Got any pointers for videos/longer explanations of this "manipulation mode"?

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Actually you said this "It's not a phone and it's never meant to be."
Read your own posts you muppet.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

The Misconception

Well, this is a huge problem with misconception. People who are not familiar with the background of the tablet series are going to make assumptions about it based on what they are more familiar with. And many times this will be based on a smartphone since that is all the craze because of the iPhone, BlackBerry, HTC's smartphones, Nokia's smartphones, and so on. They jump to that conclusion because they generalize that if it has a certain grouping of features then it must be the same. It must be a smartphone or a phone. But the general audience who are not as technically savvy will many times not care with trivial differences and not care about the history. Maybe because it is boring or because it is too complicated.

The Intention

I think the most important thing is to think about what the intention and approach was. I believe that it is a mobile (tablet) computer because of its lineage from the n### series. In one of the interviews of Ari Jaaksi he mentions that this is an internet centric device. Given that it is a internet centric device and not one that focuses on cell phone capabilities, I wonder if when putting the cellular radio into the device that their main purpose was to use it for the data EDGE/3G/and so on capabilities and the voice capabilities last in order to extend the internet centricity. This is important especially if you cannot get wifi which is similar to how the Booklet 3G can utilize 3G data. The voice capabilities sound more like an afterthought at this point? (So it is a tablet mobile computer with internet centricity--their focus, but it is also a phone--not their main focus. It's many things.)

Part of this goes back to what chemist said.

The Mistake

Nokia's mistake is with thinking that people are going to keep these granular differences separate and that people not familiar with the N### history are not going to see that it came from an internet tablet mobile computer. Hence it is a mobile computer first and phone second or last. Looking at a few definitions of smartphone, if you look carefully you can see that many of them say a mobile phone with extensions or capabilities of PC-like features. Notice how the direction changes compared to how the N900 is described by others as a mobile computer first with cell phone extensions.

I wonder like others do why it is listed under find phones rather than on its own page. I can only guess that it could either be a mistake or it could be intentional in order to sell more devices. If someone is looking for a phone first and a certain PC-like feature second and they are indifferent to all else then from a business standpoint you are going to want that person to get the more expensive device, but those are words from a sales point of view.

Conclusion

This is a very esoteric market much like tablet computers were when I first bought my Toshiba tablet notebook in its early years. It is esoteric because of its features, its dimensions, the hardware, and software. In my opinion the N900 treads on many of these areas and markets, but very lightly. In the end they satisfy the minority rather than the majority. If Nokia wants to make this device mass market quickly they would need to bring in the best parts of the other worlds in order to extend their acceptance to a broader audience. But for now I think we are wasting our time debating about labels instead of helping improve the device and product line and supporting Nokia with good feedback if we, the few, think this device has potential in other people's lives.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Call it whatever you want, Nokia has something here, and IMHO its just going to get better and better. This is the honeymoon remember of tablet and phone, bringing them together in holy matrimony. We'll see how the kids grow up in the future. N920 the first born.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

I wouldn't hold such hopes.

http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=33551

Check it out. Also the original portrait thread. It is highly revealing about how Nokia's Maemo team thinks.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Agreed. Nokia has something different here. That's what is exciting about the N900 and the Maemo. But it is not ready for mainstream yet! This is for the devs and tech-heads.

And browsing around in Maemo on the N900 just looks so damn gorgeous... and iPhone has got nothing on this with it's low-res screen and limitations as far as mobile computer goes.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Do most people who buy the N900 intend to keep a second "real" phone with them at all times? If the answer is no, and most owners will rely on the N900 as the only mobile phone they carry, then it's a phone.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Here you go: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUCc2C4JPJE

Watch from 2:00 +

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

Pretty much what I think. The phone functionality in the n900 is an afterthought (as evident by Nokia's handling themselves, heck the thing lacks basic phone things like assignable ringtones per contacts). It's the tablet's heritage in the n900 that is at the forefront with the n900 and Maemo which is why I consider it a mobile computer (like MIDs) first, a phone second.

If you take away the cellular voice capability, which they probably only added because they were already adding a chip that could do celluar data so you could use the internet anywhere instead of relying on tethering and wireless points, then you just have the next internet tablet from Nokia.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

I carry two phones: Work phone, private phone. I plan to replace one of them. As a phone.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

I do! This isn't replacing my Blackberry (which is really a phone I use for work and occasional personal use). Its replacing a netbook for me. I'm not even going to hook voice or text services up on it. Only data. Totally a pocket computer / internet tablet to me, and I'll be quick to correct people I meet "on thde street" that refer to it as a phone.

Re: N900 is not a phone ! Why people still don't get it?
 

How about sticking speaker and microphone to the opposite ends of your computer for holding your computer to your ear and mouth? Because that is what N900 has...