Nokia Point & Find Now Available

Nokia Point & Find

The Nokia Beta Labs Boys & Girls really have been busy this week! Normally we have to wait months for new software to play with, but they’ve just released a new version of their ‘Point & Find’ application. Point & Find is an application that lets you access information and services on the internet, just by pointing your camera phone at everyday objects. It then uses GPS data, along with a database of virtual tags to figure out what you’re looking at, and then sends the relevant information back to your phone.

You’re probably thinking, “sounds great but what does that actually mean?” so I’ll give you a few examples:

• You’re walking down the street and you see a poster for a new movie. By pointing your camera phone at the poster, you’ll be able to view movie trailers, check showtimes, book tickets and get directions.
• You’re out shopping and the latest gadget catches your eye. You scan the barcode with your phone, and are able to read more detailed product information & get the latest reviews. You also get a price comparison from leading online retailers so you can check to make sure you’re not paying too much.

This software is still a very early Beta, so that means that there will be bugs and times that it won’t quite do what its supposed to, but I’d say its still worth a try!

Point & Find is available at the moment for Nokia Symbian S60 handsets (Most NSeries) and is available to download from the Nokia Point & Find website.

Download it, Try it, and let us know how you get on with it.

Make your phone ring for longer before going to voicemail

Changing voicemail settings on T-Mobile

I think we’ve all had experiences in the past where the phone rings, you’re in the middle of doing something and miles away from your phone. You drop everything in a mad panic, dash to your phone, only for it to go to voicemail the second you pick it up. You try and call the person back, only to end up playing voicemail tennis, with them getting your voicemail, you getting theirs, until one of you decides not to ring the other person back. I don’t know about you but that winds me right up!

There is a pretty quick and easy way to try and prevent this, and that is to increase the amount of time your phone rings for before diverting the calls to voicemail. Sounds tricky, but is actually very simple. By default, most networks will have set your ringing time to 15 seconds. Plenty of time if the phone is in your pocket, but not if its somewhere else in the house.

If you have a Samsung phone, you can increase the amount of time before voicemail through the settings on the phone, but for most other makes you will need to key a code into your phone and send it to the network.

These steps should work for all phones on all networks, but there might be some instances where this doesn’t work, in which case, you’re probably better off speaking to your network provider to find out how to do it. Before you start you will need to find your voicemailbox number. This can normally be found in the voicemail settings on your phone, or in the call diverts settings. I can’t really explain in any great detail where to find this number as it’s stored in different places on different phones. If you can’t find it, either leave a comment below and we’ll investigate for you, or contact your network for it.

To set the ringing time, key in: **61*MailboxNumber**N# then press ok/send/call
(N is the number of seconds you want it to ring for up to a maximum of 30 seconds)

To cancel previous setting key in: ##61# then press ok/send/call. This will reset it to the network default

For Example:

If your voicemail box number is: +44 7978 123 456, and you want your phone to divert to your voicemail after 20 seconds, you would key in:

**61*+447978123456**20# and then press ok/send/call.

Your phone should then say “requesting,” or something similar, and after a few seconds you’ll receive a confirmation message. If you get an error message, check the code you’ve entered and try again. If it still doesn’t work, you’ll need to contact your network, or if you know someone with a Samsung phone, ask them nicely to borrow it!

Feel free to ask any questions below and I’ll do my best to answer them.

Nokia Photo Browser now available for 5800

The boffins over at Nokia Beta Labs have just released a clever little photo application for the Nokia 5800. Imaginatively called “Nokia Photo Browser,” the application adds a flashy looking interface to your photo gallery. To view your photo’s you can now just swipe your finger across the display and all of your images will flow nicely across your screen. Double tap to view an image, and you can now tap your photo to bring up a magnifying glass to zoom in.

The cleverst part of it though seems to be the face recognition. When you double tap on a face in a photo it zooms in to the face, and as you swipe the display, it moves to the next face in the photo. No more scrolling around to refocus on people faces! The Photo Browser is only available at the moment for the Nokia 5800 (and N97 when released) and is available now to download from the Nokia Betalabs website.

Nokia have put this video together to show it in action:

Manual Internet, WAP & Picture Message Settings

The settings that you need to enter are the same for all phones, regardless of make, but where you have to enter them does vary from handset to handset. If you’re unsure, consult your user guide as this will explain where to enter them. If you’ve not done so already, it might be worth checking to see if you can get the settings sent to you automatically before you start. My post on WAP and MMS settings should help you with getting them sent through to you.

Which iPod have I got?

Since Apple launched their original iPod back in October 2001, the range has grown and evolved. Although iPod’s look fairly similar, each one is individual, and has its own range of accessories. Here you can determine which iPod you have, and find out what accessories are available for it.

What does the “G” mean?
When Apple launched the early iPod’s, they weren’t given names like they are today. The original iPod was replaced by a newer model also called iPod. As the newer model had several advanced features over its predecessor, it was dubbed the new generation of iPod, this over time change to 2nd Generation, which in turn got shortened to 2G.

The number preceding the “G” just determines where that particular model sits in the range of iPods. Even now with the Nano iPod, we are seeing 2nd and 3rd Generation models. The original style of iPod is now called the iPod Classic, and no doubt as time goes on, more generations will follow. The only exception to this is the iPhone 3G, where the 3G refers to the technology within the phone, and not the generation of iPhone.

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How to Boost your 3G Mobile Broadband Signal

High Gain 3G Antenna

One of the great things about Mobile Broadband is that you can go online anywhere you like – but you can almost guarantee that the place you need it the most is the place where signal is at its weakest.

While 3G coverage is getting stronger with all networks, there will still be blackspots where it drops out, or you can only pick up a 2G signal. Thankfully, a couple of solutions are now available to try and get round these signal issues. If you don’t have a dongle yet and are looking for the network with the strongest 3G signal, then the OFCOM website has just published updated coverage maps (as of 31/12/08) that allow you to view the 3G coverage by network.

There are now two different types of antenna available:

• Clip Antenna: This Antenna is designed to be a portable solution that clips onto the screen on your laptop or sits on your desk. It is omni-directional, which means that it will pick up signals from all directions.
• High Gain 3G Directional Antenna: This is a much more powerful signal booster than the clip antenna and is ideal for people who have real problems with 3G reception. They are directional, which means that you will need to point this towards your network’s transmitter in order for it to improve the signal. The High Gain antenna when positioned correctly will make a significant difference to the signal you receive and can be wall mounted as a permanent fixture.

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What is DLNA?

DLNA Certified Logo

DLNA is all about the Digital Home and getting the devices you use everyday to work together. Chances are you’ve got a digital camera, but are restricted to watching your photos back on the screen of your PC, or you’ve got video footage on your camcorder that you have to stop and burn to disc, and then hope it will play on your DVD player. You’ve got a big screen TV in the lounge, but can only use it for TV and DVD’s. Getting them all to work now normally involves lots of cables, lots of patience and a fair bit of time too, but DLNA is hoping to change all that.

DLNA stands for Digital Living Network Alliance, and is basically a set of rules that electronics companies are all following in order for devices to talk to each other. I struggled to get to grips with it to start with, but if you look less at what it is and look more at what it does, you’ll soon see how its going to change how we use our devices.

What is DLNA?
The first thing to remember is DLNA is not a product itself (you can’t buy DLNA adapters for existing devices) the support for DLNA needs to be built into the software of the device you’re using, so for most of us its not gong to be something we can all use straight away – but the next time you buy a digital device its worth looking for one with DLNA support built in, just look out for the DLNA logo (shown above).

In order to use DLNA features there are a few things you’ll need:

• A home network (wired or wireless)
  Most of us by now already have networks in place at home for accessing the internet, so you should easily be able to expand your network to incorporate more devices with minimal hassle. Some devices will only be able to connect wirelessly, and others will need to connect to your network using a cable.
• Home media server software
  It sounds scary, but its not. There are several different media servers available, but these are becoming a standard part of PC operating systems, and most new PC’s should have one built in.
• DLNA Certified products
  Certified products include mobile phones, PC’s, TV’s, Network Storage Devices, Digital Video Recorders, Audio Systems, Printers, Games Consoles & Digital Media Players. You’ll need more than one obviously in order to really do anything, but no doubt over time most devices in your house will support DLNA.

What does DLNA do?
In a nutshell, DLNA allows digital devices to talk to each other over a wired or wireless network. It lets you access content from your PC on your TV, play music from your phone through your Hi-Fi, all with out having to plug anything in!

Example of a connected home using DLNA

What does it allow me do?

There are loads of different ways that DLNA devices can help make your life a little bit easier, here’s a couple of examples.

You’ve been on a day out, you get home and want to look back at the photos on your phone. With DLNA devices, you can play your photo slideshow back on your widescreen TV, and when you’re finished you can send all your photos to your network storage device for safe keeping. Without DLNA, you’d have been restriced to watching them back on your phone screen or messing around with cables to transfer them to your PC to watch on your computer screen.

You’ve filmed your recent holiday and downloaded it to your PC, and you sent it to your networked storage device for safe keeping. When the family come round, you can all sit and watch it together, watching it back on your TV using just your TV remote to play it back – its that simple. Without DLNA, you’d have been restriced to watching them back on your computer screen, burning the film to DVD or messing around with cables to connect the camcorder to your TV.

For more possibilities have a look at the DLNA website.

In reality:

I’m sure you’re probably thinking this all sounds good, but does it really work? Honestly, Yes. To give you a better idea of what a simple DLNA network set-up would be, this is my current set up at home:

• Windows PC running Home Media Server, connected to Wi-Fi network,
• Sony Bravia TV connected to my wireless router using an ethernet cable,
• Nokia N97 connected to Wi-Fi network.

With this set up I can view photos from my phone and PC on the TV using my TV remote. I can play music from my phone through my PC or TV, and can control the music playback from my phone or my TV remote. My Dad has a DLNA enabled laptop, and when he visits, he simply logs onto my wireless network and he is able to show pictures and music on my TV straight away with out having to set anything up.

The Playstation 3 is DLNA enabled and is more and more people have one, people are starting to use DLNA without even realising. The PS3 allows to you stream music, photos and video from any pc in your home to your TV – as long as you’re running media software (see below).
Current DLNA certified Mobile Phones:

Currently there aren’t many handsets in the UK that are DLNA Certified, I’ve listed some of the more recent of these are listed here:

Nokia N79

Nokia N82

Nokia N95

Nokia N95 8GB

Nokia N96

Sony Ericsson W705

Sony Ericsson C905

Samsung Omnia

To see what other devices are available have a look at the DLNA certified Product Range.

If you don’t have a Media Server installed on your PC, take a look at these solutions.

• Twonky
• Home Media Server (included free with Nokia NSeries)
• Orb

These aren’t the only options out there, but the one’s I’ve found easiest to use, although Orb is slightly different in as much as it allows you to stream your content over the internet to any device. Twonky and Home Media Server are simpler to set up and use.

If you have any questions or comments, or need anything clarifying – leave your comments below!

Which 3G Antenna do I need?

The table below shows the current 3G Broadband Dongles and the Antennas that are available. If you aren’t sure which dongle you have, my post on how to boost your 3G signal will show you where to find this information.

There are two different types of antenna available. The standard Clip Antenna is designed to be a portable solution that clips onto the screen on your laptop or sits on your desk. It is omni-directional, which means that it will pick up signals from all directions. The High Gain 3G Directional Antenna is a more powerful signal booster. It is directional, which means that you will need to point this towards your networks transmitter in order for it to improve the signal. The High Gain antenna when positioned correctly will make a significant difference to the signal you receive, and can be wall mounted as a permanent fixture.

To find your dongle quickly, press “ctrl” and “f” on your keyboard, and then type in the model number of your dongle excluding the manufacturer or network eg: E160G to search this page. If your dongle is not listed here, don’t worry, this is only a snapshot of the most popular dongles.

If you still can’t find your dongle, please add a comment with the network, dongle make and model number and I’ll find out which antenna you need and add it to the list alternatively the Universal antenna will work with all USB modems.
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