The N96 – which is similar to the N95 but is one more better – has finally gotten its own special Flash-based web-tour. It goes into all the dirty details regarding GPS, music playback, and Internet browsing but sadly leaves out the cool bloopy music we’re used to when we see these sorts of tours.

Nothing amazingly exciting but if you’re a Nokiard you might get a kick out of it.

Meet the new Nokia, completely different from the old Nokia.

Well, that’s what its executive vice president for entertainment and communities wants you to think. See, while Nokia is content creating genuinely good cellphones, some inside the company think it’s time to move in a different direction, namely entertainment. Hence, services like Ovi and deals with records labels. No one ever went broke marketing base, silly entertainment to the everyday Joe.

Most interesting is where Nokia sees its efforts going in the future. From your cellphone, you’d be able to order movie tickets, rent a hotel room, and post photos to Facebook, all from a central hub and with the push of a single button. Sounds neat.

At least Nokia’s trying something new, and not clinging onto the Old Ways like some companies and organizations seem to do.

A lot of you weren’t aware of this, but the opening music for Google’s new Android OS is Enter Sandman. Basically someone stuffed a Java VM and Android on an N95 and got it to run most of the applications including the dialer and Google Maps. This obviously requires some hit background music and poor lighting to be a true “proof of concept” so enjoy the videos above and after the jump.

via Giz

Tomorrow Qik, the popular webcasting service that streams video from your phone, will announce support for Microsoft’s Windows Mobile platform. Actual support for phones will be rolled out in the coming months.

I had the chance to sit down and chat with Bhaskar Roy, Co-Founder and VP Product Management of Qik, and Jackie Danicki, Director of Product Marketing. The transcript of the phone call follows:

Greg: So – What’s new with Qik?

Bhaskar: Tomorrow morning, we are going to announce support for Windows Mobile as an additional platform. So far, Qik has been on the Symbian S60 platform, and people have been streaming live video from these Nokia S60 phones. In tomorrow’s announcement, we’ll be announcing support for the Samsung Blackjack, and the Motorola Q as the primary devices for Windows Mobile.

With that, we’ll also be announcing a partnership with Microsoft, who we have been working with closely in the releases for these devices and making sure we are optimized for Windows Mobile overall. Microsoft will also be helping us push this through various events, starting at Tech-Ed next week. They have something called “Mobile Smackdown”, which will be one of the Tech-Ed events. There will be close to a thousand attendees for that particular session, and Microsoft folks will be demonstrating Qik.

Greg: It seems like the idea of streaming live would be foreign to some, with a lot of people being used to editing things down before they post them online. How have people been embracing Qik?

Bhaskar: We are actually seeing very good pickup overall, where people are using Qik to do a number of things from citizen journalism, to lifestyle applications, to healthcare, and just sharing things with friends and family. Live adds an element which recorded and edited video can not do, which is impromptu. Whatever I’m doing right now, people can see it, and people can appreciate that.

The best part is that when I’m streaming live I can actually interact with my audience. Whoever is watching that video can chat with me, and that chat shows up on my phone. It creates an engaged interaction with me and my viewers, something that you just can not get with an edited or an on-demand type of video… After you’re done, the stream is automatically archived, and you can download it, edit it, and repost it somewhere else. We’re not taking that capability away from users, but we’re providing the capability to stream it live. If you want to edit it, you’ll have the tools to do that as well.

Read more…

Now that everyone is on the multi-touch bandwagon new systems are popping up all over. Seth Sandler’s solution is fairly ingenious. It uses a piece of paper and a camera to create a camera-based multi-touch interface. All you need is a box, a webcam, and some graph paper and he even includes the demo and application source code.

The system can be used to demo multi-touch functionality or to actually drive a Windows cursor around the screen. He estimates it costs about $5 to $50, depending on the quality of box and camera you use. FinestFones has also discussed using a Bluetooth connected Nokia N95 phone to do this as well.

You’ve been patient little Nokia fans, haven’t you? You are now being rewarded. The N95, perhaps the most advanced cell phone after the iPhone, (even with my misgivings), is now available in North America direct, for $779 retail.

This is the 8GB, US-friendly HSDPA version, and is SIM-free, meaning un-subsidized, and will work with T-Mobile or AT&T, however the HSDPA will only work with AT&T until if T-Mobile launches its 3G network.

This is a great phone, and if you can afford it, you should definitely have a look. It will get you laid.

Nokia US shipping N95 8GB: $779 for US-spec HSDPA [Phone Mag]

Nokia N95 8GB NAM passes FCC approval [The Nokia Blog]

RotateMe by Samir

There has been some dispute over the speed of the browsers on these next-gen phones. N95 users say that the 3G connection makes all the difference, iPhone users say EDGE is just fine when you’ve got a great app like Safari. As it turns out, they seem to go at about the same speed in their natural habitats, but when you throw a 3rd-party browser into the mix, it’s all over. Opera mashes them both; it seems that the “other” other browser is the king of the hill in the mobile arena. I can vouch for this as well – on my Helio Ocean, the built-in browser is better integrated with the UI, but for serious internet use, Opera’s the way to go.

iPhone vs Nokia N95: Browser Wars [tech.co.uk]

This is a pretty neat mod from ShakerRacer that uses the N95’s accelerometer via Bluetooth. Are our recent N95 winners willing to rig an RC with Bluetooth and test this out for us?

Yesterday, I was tasked with navigating the streets of Manhattan using only the GPS on a Nokia N95. Of course, I wasn’t alone in this ordeal. I was up against two heavy hitting travelers. Lee Abbomonte is a crazy mofo who is attempting to be the younget person to travel to every country in the world. He’s already been to 135 countries and he’s not even 30. Caleb Smith has traveled each and every street by foot in NYC proper. He is also a crazy mofo. So I pretty much had my hands full. Sure, I’m the geek who can whip through the Symbian OS to get to the Maps app, but did I beat the other guys?

Our journey began at the Nokia flagship store on 57th and took me down to Little Italy and Chinatown before making my way back up to Rockefeller center. That’s a few miles, but at least the weather was nice. Check out a few pics that were snapped along the way. I don’t know who won, either. I passed out somewhere along the way and didn’t make it to the Rock. Don’t forget about the contest to win an N95.

I’m attempting to eat the beckoning cat. Pretty sure that’s bad joojoo.

Totally stopped by Nintendo World and said what’s up to Samus Aran.

Somewhere in China town.

Down in Little Italy.

Welcome to a world where Androids don’t just help Leia get a message to Obiwan. Our slack-jawed faces are leaking happy juice due to the announcement of Google/OHA’s Android platform and to celebrate we’re giving away two unlocked Nokia N95s to the two best BFF posters of the week, based on popularity and number of votes.

Heres how to enter.

1. Go to CG BFF and post your best potential open source application for a smartphone. The sky’s the limit here, people, so it can be anything from a toaster oven remote control to a program that gives worms to ex-girlfriends. The goal is to amuse and enlighten us with your software engineering prowess and descriptive skills. Add video, images, and flowcharts. Have fun.
2. Email us at contest@crunchgear.com with the subject line “GPHONE IDEA” and include a link to your BFF post. This ensures that we actually see it.
3. Have your friends and neighbors vote for your idea.
4. Next Monday, November 12, we will tally the votes and announce two winners. Wait until then.
5. Repeat.

You can enter multiple times with multiple potential applications but register with your real email address so we can contact you if you win. Popularity is based on number of votes, average of stars received, and number of comments. Get cracking.

Special thanks to Nokia for supplying the phones and this in no way suggests that Symbian is a bad mobile OS — I’d say its the best out there right now, aside from the iPhone’s.

You know that cool thing the iPhone does when you turn it to landscape, it automagically knows to turn the content to match? That’s an accelerometer. The iPod Touch has one as well. And so does the Nokia N95, though Nokia doesn’t do much with it. And that’s the issue Mark at the Nokia Blog took up in this dope video. It’s not particularly usefull right now, but app developers could do some interesting things with the technology.

MacBooks, for example, can utilize the sensors to turn into lightsabers. Why not smartphones? Makes more sense to me.

Video: Nokia N95 Accelerometer Demonstration [Nokia Blog]

As a well-respected, professional, hard-hitting technology journalist, I can appreciate what this kit has to — buwahahahaaaa!! I’m sorry, I couldn’t get though it all. Well-respected! Professional! Journalist! L! O! L!

Anyhoo, Reuters came up with an interesting idea to try out with some of its reporters that entailed the use of an entirely mobile setup consisting of a Nokia N95, a Bluetooth keyboard, a tripod, a microphone, and a solar charging accessory.

Trials were run during this past summer and stories were posted a special mobile journalism section of Reuters’ main website. The kit may become available to professional journalists like me (buwahahahaaaa!!) and will also be used in another trial involving student journalists at various colleges.

The Mobile Journalism Toolkit [reutersmojo.com] via CNET

Nokia N95 (8GB) owners are getting a bit more content in the Nokia Video Center for their devices thanks to newly inked deals with seven new content providers. CNN will provide international news coverage, IBN News will provide the APAC region with news, Jamba offers videos in three categories, music videos, cartoons and fun. Sony Pictures will entertain with trailers, TV, and games. RooftopComedy will hopefully make you laugh with stand-up and sketch comedy from around the world. ROK seems like a weird channel, but it’ll bring the latest in celebrity gossip, ‘fun little movies’, classic commercials and sports. Versaly Entertainment rounds it out and is geared towards us, men, with content from Vmbc.tv, which includes ‘intense action sports, hilarious comedy, full contact fighting, the best mobile user-generated content’ (read: p0rn) and a whole lot more. This is all in addition to the pre-existing content from YouTube and Reuters.

Press Release

Been waiting for the Nokia N95 with 3G? Well, the wait is now over. Nokia released the unlocked N95 into the wild today. In case you’ve forgotten what all the hubbub is about then check here for details. Otherwise, if you’re lucky enough to have a Nokia store in your town, which means you live in NYC or Chicago. Get ready to pony up $700, though. Yikes.

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