Nokia X7 For AT&T Leaked Again !

PocketNow has gained access to press images of the upcoming Nokia X7. The phone is shown to be running on the AT&T network and could signify the beginning of Nokia's effort to enter the North American market with a significant push.

Previously leaked specifications include :

1. 8MP EDOF Camera with Dual LED Flash

2. 4 loudspeakers

3. 3.5" Multi-touch capable screen

The remaining specifications will be more or less same as the Nokia N8 and the E7.

[via - PocketNow]

Want Swype For Android ? Here's Your Chance !

Heard of Swype ? The award winning and arguably the best method of entering text on Android is presently only available pre-installed on a select few devices. Not on your phone ? Fret not ! The limited beta is set for expansion and now you too can get in on the action.

If you want to sign up for the Swype beta program and try the slide-to-type keyboard method for yourself, just head over to Swype's beta site and click on the link to register. The app is free, but there's no telling how long registration will remain open -- so if you're interested, you might want to sign up soon.

Being the awesome application it is , we highly recommend that you go and grab it NOW !

[Via- PC World]

Nokia E7 Gets Pushed Back To Early 2011

In a move which is unsurprising and disappointing simultaneously , Nokia have pushed back the release of the upcoming Nokia E7 to early 2011. No specific month has been stated and so it could vary anywhere from January to March 2011. Nokia claims a small durability issue is responsible for the production delay.

The Nokia E7 combines a 4" CMD AMOLED Display with a slide out four row QWERTY keyboard. Powered by S^3 it also comes with HDMI output , USB OTG support and an internally sealed battery.

Ovi Maps Update Hits Nokia Betalabs !

The Nokia Betalabs just reported the availability of an update to the beta version of the Ovi Maps client. The biggest feature update here seems to be the ability to download maps directly on the phone. The entire changelog is embedded below.

1. Download street maps directly to your device! A new feature called “Update” on the main menu which allows you download Street Maps directly (via WiFi) to your phone without a PC!
2. My Position and Search are now integrated (now called Map). When accessed, it will show your last map view
3. Back button in Favourites
4. Long tap functionality to delete & rename collections & routes
5. Pop up for first time use – to inform user to download new map data (when upgrading 3.04 > 3.06 for the first time)
6. Improved behaviours of transit lines settings in map toolbox (no more grey out)
7. Compass calibration hint
8. Refreshed place details information view

You can click here and download the new beta to try it out.

[Via - Nokia Betalabs]

Nokia X7 Gets Leaked

Another phone from the Nokia stable has been leaked before launch. This time its the top end of the music range , the Nokia X7. Forget about the old Mr. Blurrycam images , the phone has been shown off in a 720p HD video ! Some images have also surfaced of the phone. The X7 comes with 450MB of internal memory, 245MB of RAM, microUSB port and fixed battery. The X7-00 also has four speakers, one at each corner and a 3.5mm audio jack. It appears to be running an updated version of the Symbian 3 operating system. The video shows off 4 homescreens as opposed to the 3 on current Symbian devices and also details other minor changes throughout the OS. We'll be waiting quite anxiously for this one

Nokia X5-01 Comes To India

The Nokia X5-01 was recently introduced in India at a price point of Rs 10,449. Running on the S60v3 operating system it offers a decent feature set which includes a 5MP camera, slide out qwerty keyboard , 3G connectivity. The display is a 2.36" panel with QVGA resolution.

Nokia X5-01 is available in 5 vibrant colors – Yellow Green, Purple, Pink, Azure and Graphite Black.

Skyfire Ditches Symbian And Windows Mobile Platforms

The Skyfire browser which has recently been in the highlights for bringing Flash to the iPhone had initially launched on the Symbian and Windows Mobile platforms. However the company has recently issued a statement that they will no longer be supporting either of the operating systems. The proxy based browser worked on the basis of extreme data compression. The servers for the platforms will go down by the end of 2010. Skyfire is now aiming for a more local browser level solution on Android and iOS.

From the Skyfire blog :
"We are announcing that we will complete the phase out of our legacy v1.0 product on Windows Mobile and Symbian on December 31st, 2010 for remaining countries. This two-year old product used a “proxy browser” approach which is no longer our vision.  It was a revolutionary product when introduced and offered for free, but the fast-moving mobile market has changed significantly since 2007, and as a small tech start-up, we need to keep innovating forward.
Our new 2.0 product is built for the next generation of smartphones and tablets with full support for html5, offline browsing, javascript, WebKit, and full-screen video. The 2.0 architecture is exponentially more data efficient as well, and better fits the technology roadmaps of our B2B customers (wireless carriers and handset makers).
This was a very difficult decision for us.  We put our hearts and souls into the 1.0 product and greatly value the many Skyfire fans who used the product and provided us with invaluable feedback during this intensive research & development phase of our company.   We experimented with ways to charge for the product (in certain international test markets) so that existing Windows Mobile and Symbian users could continue to use the service, but the payment mechanisms were very cumbersome and the piracy rates were so high on those OS platforms that we could not make it work.  More importantly, we faced a decision point:  If we were to begin charging money for a product, we had to commit to multiple years of support and enhancement of the product.  It would not be the ethical thing to do to start down that path, given that we would not expect enough revenue to make that sustainable on the legacy 1.0 product, and we can no longer subsidize it.  The right thing we decided was to focus on 2.0 and beyond."


[From our post on Symbian-Lifeblog]

Google News For Smartphones Gets Enhancements

Google had previously rolled out an improved interface for News on the Palm Pre , iPhone and Android. Starting today there will be a global roll out of a new interface which is aimed to make browsing easier.

From Google

We expanded the story space to make tapping on articles easier and more accurate. Tapping anywhere on an article headline or snippet opens it up, and clicking on a section heading opens up that topic section on your screen.

In addition, the default view of stories is now collapsed, to reduce scrolling time. You can ‘expand’ a story by tapping ‘More sources’, which brings you to related stories from other sources. The screenshots below show the collapsed and expanded view of a story.

via - Google

Sony Ericsson Drops Symbian Operating System

Sony Ericsson , one of the members of the Symbian Foundation , has announced that it will not be launching any device based on the Symbian platform in the near future. Aldo Liguori , SE representative , confirmed that there will be no more Symbian based devices from their stable. He was quick to point out that they keep a tab on the market demands and will release a device if the people want it. As for now , Android seems to be the platform of choice.

[Via]