Nokia N900
Encyclopedia
The Nokia N900 is a smartphone
Smartphone
A smartphone is a high-end mobile phone built on a mobile computing platform, with more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary feature phone. The first smartphones were devices that mainly combined the functions of a personal digital assistant and a mobile phone or camera...

 made by Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...

. It supersedes the Nokia N810
Nokia N810
The Nokia N810 Internet tablet is an Internet appliance from Nokia, announced on 17 October, 2007 at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco. Despite Nokia's strong association with cellular products, the N810 is not a phone, but instead allows the user to browse the Internet and communicate using...

. Its default operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...

, Maemo
Maemo
Maemo is a software platform developed by the Maemo community for smartphones and Internet tablets. It is based on the Debian Linux distribution, but has no relation to it...

 5, is a Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...

-based OS originally developed for the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet
Nokia 770 Internet Tablet
The Nokia 770 Internet tablet is a wireless Internet appliance from Nokia, originally announced at the LinuxWorld Summit in New York City on May 25, 2005...

. It is the first Nokia device based upon the Texas Instruments OMAP3 microprocessor
Microprocessor
A microprocessor incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit on a single integrated circuit, or at most a few integrated circuits. It is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and...

 with the ARM Cortex-A8
ARM architecture
ARM is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computer instruction set architecture developed by ARM Holdings. It was named the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that, the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA in numbers produced...

 core. Unlike the three Nokia Internet tablets preceding it, the Nokia N900 is the first Maemo device to include phone functionality (quad-band GSM and 3G
3G
3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 specifications by the International Telecommunication Union...

 UMTS/HSDPA).

The N900 functions as a mobile Internet device, and includes e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...

, web browsing and access to online services, a 5 mega pixel digital camera
Digital camera
A digital camera is a camera that takes video or still photographs, or both, digitally by recording images via an electronic image sensor. It is the main device used in the field of digital photography...

 for still or video photography, a portable media player
Portable media player
A portable media player or digital audio player, is a consumer electronics device that is capable of storing and playing digital media such as audio, images, video, documents, etc. the data is typically stored on a hard drive, microdrive, or flash memory. In contrast, analog portable audio...

 for music and video, calculator
Calculator
An electronic calculator is a small, portable, usually inexpensive electronic device used to perform the basic operations of arithmetic. Modern calculators are more portable than most computers, though most PDAs are comparable in size to handheld calculators.The first solid-state electronic...

, games console and text processor, SMS
SMS
SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...

, as well as mobile telephony
Mobile telephony
Mobile telephony is the provision of telephone services to phones which may move around freely rather than stay fixed in one location. Mobile phones connect to a terrestrial cellular network of base stations , whereas satellite phones connect to orbiting satellites...

 using either a mobile network or VoIP via Internet (mobile or Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...

). Maemo provides an X-terminal interface for interacting with the core operating system.

It was launched at Nokia World on September 2, 2009 and was released on November 11, 2009 in the United States and 9 European countries.

The N900 was launched alongside Maemo 5, giving the device an overall more touch-friendly interface than its predecessors and a customizable home screen which mixes application icons with shortcuts and widgets. Maemo 5 supports Adobe Flash Player
Adobe Flash Player
The Adobe Flash Player is software for viewing multimedia, Rich Internet Applications and streaming video and audio, on a computer web browser or on supported mobile devices. Flash Player runs SWF files that can be created by the Adobe Flash authoring tool, by Adobe Flex or by a number of other...

 9.4, and includes many applications designed specifically for the mobile platform such as a new touch-friendly media player.

History and availability

The Nokia N900 was announced on September 17, 2008 during a keynote presentation by Dr. Ari Jaaksi of Nokia. New supported features were announced for Maemo 5 such as cellular connectivity over 3G/HSPA
High Speed Packet Access
High Speed Packet Access is an amalgamation of two mobile telephony protocols, High Speed Downlink Packet Access and High Speed Uplink Packet Access , that extends and improves the performance of existing WCDMA protocols...

, TI OMAP3 processor and high definition camera support. No news on backward compatibility for older Internet Tablets and no time frame was established. The release of the pre-alpha Maemo 5 software development kit
Software development kit
A software development kit is typically a set of software development tools that allows for the creation of applications for a certain software package, software framework, hardware platform, computer system, video game console, operating system, or similar platform.It may be something as simple...

, in December 2008 targeted exclusively the OMAP3 architecture, revamped the user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...

, included support for hardware graphics acceleration
Graphics processing unit
A graphics processing unit or GPU is a specialized circuit designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory in such a way so as to accelerate the building of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display...

 and other functionalities not found in Internet Tablets at the time such as cellular data connectivity and high definition camera support.

The first photo and specifications of the N900, codenamed Rover while being developed, came out in May 2009. The release of FCC approval documents in August 2009 confirmed the device and provided the second codename RX-51. The Nokia N900 was officially announced on 2 September 2009 at Nokia World 2009 in Germany. Nokia says it is step 4 of 5 in the line of Maemo devices which started in 2005 with the Nokia 770
Nokia 770 Internet Tablet
The Nokia 770 Internet tablet is a wireless Internet appliance from Nokia, originally announced at the LinuxWorld Summit in New York City on May 25, 2005...

.

The device was initially available in selected markets starting November 2009 (4 December in the UK) with a retail price of €599 in Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain, €649 in France, 2499 zł in Poland, 5995 kr in Sweden and £499 in the United Kingdom, all prices including VAT
Vat
Vat or VAT may refer to:* A type of container such as a barrel, storage tank, or tub, often constructed of welded sheet stainless steel, and used for holding, storing, and processing liquids such as milk, wine, and beer...

 but excluding subsidies. The retail price at launch was US$649 in the United States excluding sales taxes and subsidies. It will be available in Canada through independent retailers for around C$800. As of March 2010 the Nokia site in Australia lists the N900 on the homepage, hinting at launch some time in the near future. Black was the only color available at launch. Initially, availability was extremely limited, leading to further delays. The statement from Nokia was that there was higher pre-order demand than expected. The Nokia N900 launched in Hong Kong on 29 May 2010, with added features to facilitate character handwriting input. Price at launch was 4998 HKD. It has already been released to Australia via Optus.

Processors

The Nokia N900 is powered by a high-end OMAP 3430 ARM Cortex A8
ARM architecture
ARM is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computer instruction set architecture developed by ARM Holdings. It was named the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that, the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA in numbers produced...

 which is a System-on-a-chip
System-on-a-chip
A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...

 made by Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology...

 based on a 65 nanometer CMOS process. The OMAP 3430 is composed of three microprocessors; the Cortex A8 running at 600 MHz (up to 1.15 GHz with good overclocking) used to run the OS and applications, the PowerVR
PowerVR
PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration....

 SGX 530 GPU made by Imagination Technologies
Imagination Technologies
Imagination Technologies Group plc is a British-based maker of a mobile graphics and microprocessor chip technology primarily known for its PowerVR graphics and Pure DAB radio divisions...

 which supports OpenGL ES
OpenGL ES
OpenGL for Embedded Systems is a subset of the OpenGL 3D graphics application programming interface designed for embedded systems such as mobile phones, PDAs, and video game consoles. OpenGL ES is managed by the not-for-profit technology consortium, the Khronos Group, Inc.- Versions :Several...

 2.0 and is capable of up to 14 MPolys/s and a TMS320C64x, the digital signal processors, running at 430 MHz used to run the image processing (camera), audio processing (telephony) and data transmission. The TMS320 C64x main purpose is to offload the Cortex A8 from having to process audio and video signal. Moreover the OMAP 3430 on some N900 devices has been successfully over-clocked up to 1150 MHz by using a modified kernel and editing the kernel power configuration file. The system has 256 MB of dedicated high performance RAM (Mobile DDR
Mobile DDR
Mobile DDR is type of double data rate synchronous DRAM for mobile computers.-Original LPDDR:...

) paired with access to 768 MB swap space managed by the OS. This provides a total of 1 GB of virtual memory
Virtual memory
In computing, virtual memory is a memory management technique developed for multitasking kernels. This technique virtualizes a computer architecture's various forms of computer data storage , allowing a program to be designed as though there is only one kind of memory, "virtual" memory, which...

.

Screen and input

The Nokia N900 has a 3.5 inches (88.9 mm) resistive touchscreen
Resistive touchscreen
In electrical engineering, resistive touchscreens are touch-sensitive computer displays composed of two flexible sheets coated with a resistive material and separated by an air gap or microdots. There are two different types of metallic layers. The first one is Matrix, which is a striped electrodes...

 with a resolution of 800 × 480 pixel (WVGA, 267 ppi). According to both Nokia and the Xorg.log, it is capable of displaying up to 65k colours (565 RGB). Nokia N900 camera capability is 2592x1944 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, Dual LED flash, video light, geo-tagging The LCD is transreflective to permit usability over a wide range of luminosity (from daylight to dark). Haptic feedback is provided to touchscreen input by applying a small vibration or a sound; the user can choose whether to have this feature enabled. A stylus is provided to allow more precise touch input and access to smaller user interface elements. A 3-axis accelerometer
Accelerometer
An accelerometer is a device that measures proper acceleration, also called the four-acceleration. This is not necessarily the same as the coordinate acceleration , but is rather the type of acceleration associated with the phenomenon of weight experienced by a test mass that resides in the frame...

 allows the orientation of the screen to change between portrait and landscape
Page orientation
Page orientation is the way in which a rectangular page is oriented for normal viewing. The two most common types of orientation are portrait and landscape...

 mode in certain applications, or it can be used as user input in games and applications. While the dashboard or desktop is active, rotating the device from landscape to portrait mode activates the phone application (a feature that can also be disabled at user discretion). With update PR1.2, It became possible to view web pages in portrait mode. Developers may add support for portrait mode in their applications if desired. There is a proximity sensor which deactivates the display and touchscreen when the device is brought near the face during a call.

The slide-out 4-row keyboard and D-pad
D-pad
A D-pad is a flat, usually thumb-operated directional control with one button on each point, found on nearly all modern video game console gamepads, game controllers, on the remote control units of some television and DVD players, and smart phones...

 of the Nokia N810
Nokia N810
The Nokia N810 Internet tablet is an Internet appliance from Nokia, announced on 17 October, 2007 at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco. Despite Nokia's strong association with cellular products, the N810 is not a phone, but instead allows the user to browse the Internet and communicate using...

 have been replaced on the Nokia N900 with a slide-out 3-row backlit keyboard with arrow keys (as with previous Internet Tablets, an on-screen keyboard is also available). In addition to the English QWERTY layout, the slide out keyboard will be available in variants for Italian, French, German, Russian, Czech, Nordic (Finnish, Swedish), and Spanish. The Nokia N900 has an ambient light sensor that adjusts the display brightness and activates the backlit keyboard. The OS comes with a word prediction software that can be configured to the user preferences (auto capitalization, word completion, auto spacing between words).

The device has an autonomous GPS with optional A-GPS functionality and comes pre-loaded with the Ovi Maps application. Ovi Maps provides typical mapping features such as alternate views (3D landmarks, satellite, and hybrid maps), address/places of interest searching, and route planning, although it does not have turn-by-turn navigation
Turn-by-turn navigation
Turn-by-turn navigation is a feature of some GPS navigation devices where directions for a selected route are continually presented to the user in the form of spoken and visual instructions. The system keeps the user up-to-date about the best route to the destination, and is often updated according...

 as of yet.
The 5 megapixel back camera has an autofocus
Autofocus
An autofocus optical system uses a sensor, a control system and a motor to focus fully automatic or on a manually selected point or area. An electronic rangefinder has a display instead of the motor; the adjustment of the optical system has to be done manually until indication...

 feature, dual LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....

 flash, 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratio options, and 3× digital zoom
Digital zoom
Digital zoom is a method of decreasing the apparent angle of view of a digital photographic or video image. Digital zoom is accomplished by cropping an image down to a centered area with the same aspect ratio as the original, and usually also interpolating the result back up to the pixel...

. The focal length
Focal length
The focal length of an optical system is a measure of how strongly the system converges or diverges light. For an optical system in air, it is the distance over which initially collimated rays are brought to a focus...

 of this camera is 5.2 mm, the aperture
Aperture
In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture of an optical system is the opening that determines the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane. The aperture determines how collimated the admitted rays are,...

 is f/2.8, and the focus range is 10 cm to infinity. It is capable of video recording at up to 848 × 480 pixels at 25 fps
Frame rate
Frame rate is the frequency at which an imaging device produces unique consecutive images called frames. The term applies equally well to computer graphics, video cameras, film cameras, and motion capture systems...

. The lens, while not in use, is protected by a sliding hatch. Opening the hatch launches the camera application. Although the 0.3 megapixel front camera is capable of video recording at up to 640 × 480 pixels and pre-production units could be used for video calls over IP using Google Talk, the retail version was delivered without any software enabling video calling or video chatting. In update PR1.2 OTA
Over-the-air programming
Over-the-air programming refers to various methods of distributing new software updates or configuration settings to devices like cellphones and set-top boxes...

 (over-the-air) Skype
Skype
Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chat over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system...

 video calling was added, enabling the fascia camera.

Buttons

When holding the device facing the screen; on the top, from left to right, rocking buttons (which function as volume up/down or zoom in/out depending on the context), power on/off and camera button. Pressing the power button brings up a menu to change the profile, activate offline mode (a.k.a "Airplane or Flight mode", which turns off all emitted signals), Lock Device (either "Secure" with key code, or simple lock), and an option to end the current task.

As the Nokia N900 has fewer hardware buttons, it makes use of the touchscreen to display on-screen buttons, for example, to accept, reject and end a call.

Audio and output

The N900 has a microphone and stereo speakers located on each side of the device. There is a 3.5 mm four-contact TRRS connector which simultaneously provides stereo audio output and either microphone input or video output. PAL
PAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...

 and NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...

 TV out is possible using a Nokia Video Connectivity Cable (included upon purchase) or a standard TRRS -> 3x RCA
RCA connector
An RCA connector, sometimes called a phono connector or cinch connector, is a type of electrical connector commonly used to carry audio and video signals...

 cable.

There is a High-Speed USB 2.0 USB Micro-B connector provided for data synchronization, mass storage mode (client) and battery charging. The Nokia N900, unlike previous versions of Nokia's Internet Tablet, hasn't enabled support for USB On-The-Go
USB On-The-Go
USB On-The-Go, often abbreviated USB OTG, is a specification that allows USB devices such as digital audio players or mobile phones to act as a host allowing a USB Flash Drive, mouse, or keyboard to be attached.- Architecture :...

 (the ability to act as a USB host) by default, this in order to meet the deadlines for production and USB certification. There is an ongoing community effort to add this support subsequently, currently the software is in beta stage. Requiring a non-standard USB cable or USB A-A adapter and software from the development repository
Software repository
A software repository is a storage location from which software packages may be retrieved and installed on a computer.- Discussion :Many software publishers and other organizations maintain servers on the Internet for this purpose, either free of charge or for a subscription fee...

.

The built-in Bluetooth v2.1 supports wireless earpieces and headphones through the HSP profile. The Nokia N900 supports hardware capable of stereo audio output with the A2DP profile. Built-in car hands-free kits are also supported with the HFP profile. File transfer is supported (FTP) along with the OPP profile for sending/receiving objects. It is possible to remote control the device with the AVRCP profile. The DUN profile which permits access to the Internet from a laptop by dialing up on a mobile phone wirelessly (tethering), the HID profile which provides support for devices such as Bluetooth keyboards and PAN profile for networking using Bluetooth are unsupported but can be enabled.

The Bluetooth set also functions as a FM Receiver, allowing one to listen to the FM radio. The N900 also has a 88.1–107.9 MHz
FM broadcast band
The FM broadcast band, used for FM broadcast radio by radio stations, differs between different parts of the world. In Europe and Africa , it spans from 87.5 to 108.0 megahertz , while in America it goes only from 88.0 to 108.0 MHz. The FM broadcast band in Japan uses 76.0 to 90 MHz...

 FM transmitter which can, for example, play music through a separate radio. ( Note that the FM transmitter's frequency range can be extended to 76.0–107.9 MHz and its power increased to 120 decibels
Decibel
The decibel is a logarithmic unit that indicates the ratio of a physical quantity relative to a specified or implied reference level. A ratio in decibels is ten times the logarithm to base 10 of the ratio of two power quantities...

 by community supported modifications to the operating system ) Furthermore, the Nokia N900 has Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...

 b
IEEE 802.11b-1999
IEEE 802.11b-1999 or 802.11b, is an amendment to the IEEE 802.11 specification that extended throughput up to 11 Mbit/s using the same 2.4 GHz band. This specification under the marketing name of Wi-Fi has been implemented all over the world...

/g
IEEE 802.11g-2003
IEEE 802.11g-2003 or 802.11g is an amendment to the IEEE 802.11 specification that extended throughput to up to 54 Mbit/s using the same 2.4 GHz band as 802.11b. This specification under the marketing name of Wi-Fi has been implemented all over the world...

 connectivity with support for WEP
Wired Equivalent Privacy
Wired Equivalent Privacy is a weak security algorithm for IEEE 802.11 wireless networks. Introduced as part of the original 802.11 standard ratified in September 1999, its intention was to provide data confidentiality comparable to that of a traditional wired network...

, WPA
Wi-Fi Protected Access
Wi-Fi Protected Access and Wi-Fi Protected Access II are two security protocols and security certification programs developed by the Wi-Fi Alliance to secure wireless computer networks...

 and WPA2
Wi-Fi Protected Access
Wi-Fi Protected Access and Wi-Fi Protected Access II are two security protocols and security certification programs developed by the Wi-Fi Alliance to secure wireless computer networks...

 (AES
Advanced Encryption Standard
Advanced Encryption Standard is a specification for the encryption of electronic data. It has been adopted by the U.S. government and is now used worldwide. It supersedes DES...

/TKIP) security protocols.

The Nokia N900 can synchronize with Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook is a personal information manager from Microsoft, available both as a separate application as well as a part of the Microsoft Office suite...

 through ActiveSync
ActiveSync
ActiveSync is a mobile data synchronization technology and protocol developed by Microsoft, originally released in 1996. There are two implementations of the technology: one which synchronizes data and information with handheld devices with a specific desktop computer , and another technology,...

 and various other e-mail and calendar clients through SyncML
SyncML
SyncML is the former name for a platform-independent information synchronization standard. The project is currently referred to as Open Mobile Alliance Data Synchronization and Device Management...

 over bluetooth or the micro-USB. Contact information can also be exchanged via the vCard
VCard
vCard is a file format standard for electronic business cards. vCards are often attached to e-mail messages, but can be exchanged in other ways, such as on the World Wide Web or Instant Messaging...

 file format which is supported commonly by e-mail programs, including Evolution and Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook is a personal information manager from Microsoft, available both as a separate application as well as a part of the Microsoft Office suite...

.

The device also features an infrared port (not compatible with IrDA
Infrared Data Association
The Infrared Data Association defines physical specifications communications protocol standards for the short-range exchange of data over infrared light, for uses such as personal area networks ....

) that can be used to turn the Nokia N900 into a remote controller using third-party software.

Battery and SIM

The battery life of the shipped BL-5J (1320mAh) battery in N900 seems very deficient and it was not able to make it through a full working day with a internet connection and call usage. In a press release Nokia stated they are aiming at "one day of full usage" or "Always online : Up to 2-4 days (TCP/IP connected)" and "Active online usage: Up to 1+ day". Early reports from users range from 12 hours (Wi-Fi on, web browsing, video and some GPS), to about 2 days online but not used continuously. The value appears to be highly dependent on the user's choice of background software, active desktop widgets, IM and email polling, as well as mobile network signal quality (especially 3G) and in some cases, software bugs. Nokia reported talk times are around 9 hours with GSM and 5 hours with 3G. Battery life can be extended significantly by switching off GPS/A-GPS, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth and by replacing 3G by 2G / GPRS.

While previous Internet Tablets used larger batteries (1500 mAh
MAH
The National Security Service was the governmental intelligence organization of Turkey between 1926 and 1965, when it was replaced by the National Intelligence Organization ....

 compared with the N900's 1320 mAh), they are based on a less efficient microprocessor. Typical battery time for the Nokia N810 is around 7 hours of continuous full usage, display and Wi-Fi on. In principle, on N900 figures are expected to be much higher. Third party extended batteries up to 2400 mAh
MAH
The National Security Service was the governmental intelligence organization of Turkey between 1926 and 1965, when it was replaced by the National Intelligence Organization ....

 capacity are available for the N900. Also, there are community supported modifications that can be performed on 3rd party N900 compatible batteries, usually involving putting two of said batteries in parallel, which can increase the effective battery capacity of the Nokia N900 to over 3000 mAh.

The SIM card
Subscriber Identity Module
A subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module is an integrated circuit that securely stores the International Mobile Subscriber Identity and the related key used to identify and authenticate subscriber on mobile telephony devices .A SIM is held on a removable SIM card, which...

 is located under the battery which can be accessed by removing the back panel of the Nokia N900. The microSD(HC) card socket is also located under the back cover (but not under the battery). No tool is necessary to remove the back panel.

Storage

The Nokia N900 has 32 GB eMMC and 256 MB NAND non-removable storage. Additional storage is available via a hot swappable
Hot swapping
Hot swapping and hot plugging are terms used to describe the functions of replacing computer system components without shutting down the system...

 microSDHC card socket, which is certified to support up to 16 GB of additional storage. Hot swapping works based on a magnetic sensor which detects removal of the back cover, which causes the partition to be unmounted. The microSDHC card can be formatted with a supported file system
File system
A file system is a means to organize data expected to be retained after a program terminates by providing procedures to store, retrieve and update data, as well as manage the available space on the device which contain it. A file system organizes data in an efficient manner and is tuned to the...

 such as ext2
Ext2
The ext2 or second extended filesystem is a file system for the Linux kernel. It was initially designed by Rémy Card as a replacement for the extended file system ....

, ext3
Ext3
The ext3 or third extended filesystem is a journaled file system that is commonly used by the Linux kernel. It is the default file system for many popular Linux distributions, including Debian...

, FAT16 and FAT32.

The 32 GB eMMC is split into 3 partitions:
  • 2 GB as ext3
    Ext3
    The ext3 or third extended filesystem is a journaled file system that is commonly used by the Linux kernel. It is the default file system for many popular Linux distributions, including Debian...

     mounted to /home
    Filesystem Hierarchy Standard
    The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard defines the main directories and their contents in Linux operating systems. For the most part, it is a formalization and extension of the traditional BSD filesystem hierarchy....

  • 768 MB as swap
  • the remainder as VFAT
    File Allocation Table
    File Allocation Table is a computer file system architecture now widely used on many computer systems and most memory cards, such as those used with digital cameras. FAT file systems are commonly found on floppy disks, flash memory cards, digital cameras, and many other portable devices because of...

     mounted to /home/user/MyDocs
    Filesystem Hierarchy Standard
    The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard defines the main directories and their contents in Linux operating systems. For the most part, it is a formalization and extension of the traditional BSD filesystem hierarchy....

     with about 27 GB of free space.


The 256 MB NAND is formatted as UBIFS
UBIFS
The Unsorted Block Image File System is a successor to JFFS2, and competitor to LogFS, as a file system for use with raw flash memory media. Development began in earnest in 2007, with the first stable release made to Linux kernel 2.6.27 in October 2008.Note that UBIFS works on top of an Unsorted...

 and contains the bootloader, kernel
Linux kernel
The Linux kernel is an operating system kernel used by the Linux family of Unix-like operating systems. It is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software....

 and root directory
Root directory
In computer file systems, the root directory is the first or top-most directory in a hierarchy. It can be likened to the root of a tree — the starting point where all branches originate.-Metaphor:...

 "/"
Filesystem Hierarchy Standard
The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard defines the main directories and their contents in Linux operating systems. For the most part, it is a formalization and extension of the traditional BSD filesystem hierarchy....

with about 100 MB of free space.

Programs larger than 500 kB including dependencies should be stored in /opt  which is symlinked
Symbolic link
In computing, a symbolic link is a special type of file that contains a reference to another file or directory in the form of an absolute or relative path and that affects pathname resolution. Symbolic links were already present by 1978 in mini-computer operating systems from DEC and Data...

 to /home/opt
Filesystem Hierarchy Standard
The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard defines the main directories and their contents in Linux operating systems. For the most part, it is a formalization and extension of the traditional BSD filesystem hierarchy....

 and therefore located on the 2 GB ext3 partition. The VFAT partition is also available for storage but needs to be used carefully as it is unmounted and exported if a usb cable is connected to the device.

Software

Maemo 5, also known as Fremantle, is the default operating system on the Nokia N900. Maemo 5 is Nokia's adaptation of the Linux desktop environment
Desktop environment
In graphical computing, a desktop environment commonly refers to a style of graphical user interface derived from the desktop metaphor that is seen on most modern personal computers. These GUIs help the user in easily accessing, configuring, and modifying many important and frequently accessed...

 for a pocket-sized device. The UI is fully customizable: the user is able to move widgets around, add/remove widgets, change the background and add shortcuts to applications. The N900 comes preloaded with a variety of applications such as:
  • Web: Mozilla
    Mozilla
    Mozilla is a term used in a number of ways in relation to the Mozilla.org project and the Mozilla Foundation, their defunct commercial predecessor Netscape Communications Corporation, and their related application software....

    -based web browser
    Web browser
    A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...

     called MicroB
    MicroB
    MicroB is a mobile web browser developed by Nokia for use in smartphones and mobile devices that run the Maemo operating system. The browser is Mozilla-based and uses the Gecko layout engine....

    , which includes Adobe Flash
    Adobe Flash
    Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...

     9.4 and RSS reader.
  • Phone application
  • VoIP: Session initiation protocol
    Session Initiation Protocol
    The Session Initiation Protocol is an IETF-defined signaling protocol widely used for controlling communication sessions such as voice and video calls over Internet Protocol . The protocol can be used for creating, modifying and terminating two-party or multiparty sessions...

    , Skype with video chat
    Skype
    Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chat over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system...

    , Google Talk with Video
    Google Talk
    Google Talk is a freeware voice over Internet protocol client application offered by Google Inc. The first beta version of the program was released on August 24, 2005...

  • Conversations (IM
    Instant messaging
    Instant Messaging is a form of real-time direct text-based chatting communication in push mode between two or more people using personal computers or other devices, along with shared clients. The user's text is conveyed over a network, such as the Internet...

     chat and SMS
    SMS
    SMS is a form of text messaging communication on phones and mobile phones. The terms SMS or sms may also refer to:- Computer hardware :...

    , MMS
    Multimedia Messaging Service
    Multimedia Messaging Service, or MMS, is a standard way to send messages that include multimedia content to and from mobile phones. It extends the core SMS capability that allowed exchange of text messages only up to 160 characters in length.The most popular use is to send photographs from...

     (only with the PR1.2 software update))
  • Media: Camera, Photos, Media player
  • Productivity: Email, Calendar, PDF reader, Contacts
  • Ovi Maps (Find position on a map using the GPS, Search an address or location, Plan routes)
  • Utilities: Clock, Notes, Calculator, Sketch,File manager
  • System Tools: File manager, Application manager for downloads, Widgets
  • Games: Bounce, Chess
    Chess
    Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...

    , Mahjong
    Mahjong
    Mahjong, sometimes spelled Mah Jongg, is a game that originated in China, commonly played by four players...

    , Blocks (Tetris
    Tetris
    Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...

    ), Marbles, WebOS Games, Snes, Gameboy/Color/Advanced, Playstation


More than 1500 additional applications (an overwhelming majority of them free to download and use) have been created by 3rd party developers.

The OS uses upstart
Upstart
Upstart is an event-based replacement for the traditional init daemon — the method by which several Unix-like computer operating systems perform tasks when the computer is started. It was written by Scott James Remnant, a former employee of Canonical Ltd....

 to reduce the boot time.

An application called "Easy Debian" installs a Debian LXDE
LXDE
LXDE is a free and open source desktop environment for Unix and other POSIX compliant platforms, such as Linux or BSD. The goal of the project is to provide a desktop environment that is fast and energy efficient...

 image on the internal memory, this facilitates the running of applications within Maemo such as IceWeasel
Iceweasel
In 2006, a branding issue developed when Mike Connor, representing the Mozilla Corporation, requested that the Debian Project comply with Mozilla standards for use of the Thunderbird trademark when redistributing the Thunderbird software...

 (Firefox browser) and all of the OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org, commonly known as OOo or OpenOffice, is an open-source application suite whose main components are for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. OpenOffice is available for a number of different computer operating systems, is distributed as free software...

 suite. Within the LXDE interface, other applications in the Synaptic package manager that are included in the Debian installation, such as GIMP
GIMP
GIMP is a free software raster graphics editor. It is primarily employed as an image retouching and editing tool and is freely available in versions tailored for most popular operating systems including Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, and Linux.In addition to detailed image retouching and...

, can be run. Software can also be added to Debian using a chroot
Chroot
A chroot on Unix operating systems is an operation that changes the apparent root directory for the current running process and its children. A program that is run in such a modified environment cannot name files outside the designated directory tree. The term "chroot" may refer to the chroot...

 tool within Maemo using Synaptic or apt-get at the command line, such as Stellarium or the zim desktop wiki, and this can then be accessed either via the LXDE desktop, by icons in the program manager or shortcuts on the desktop.

Missing SIM Application Toolkit

In Nokia N900, there is no "Operator Menu" (or SIM Application Toolkit
SIM Application Toolkit
SIM Application Toolkit is a standard of the GSM system which enables the Subscriber Identity Module to initiate actions which can be used for various value-added services....

), so it is not possible to use any services that require it. Examples of problems:
  • Estonia – MobileID (mobile National ID) is not working on N900
  • Kenya – MPESA & ZAP (mobile money transfer) services are not available on the N900
  • Norway – "mobile BankID" is not working (N900 cannot work as mobile banking token).
  • Sweden – "Mobil BankID" is not working on N900
  • Romania – DigiMobil Roaming is not working on N900
  • Romania – Vodafone Numar Dual (Dual Number) is not working on N900
  • Tanzania – MPESA & ZAP (mobile money transfer) services are not available on N900

Known Issues

Nokia often offers new N8
Nokia N8
The Nokia N8 is a Symbian^3 smartphone of the Nokia Nseries and Nokia's flagship device of 2010. It was released on 23 September 2010 at the Nokia Online Store before being released in markets around the world on 1 October 2010. The N8 features a 12 megapixel camera, a pentaband 3.5G radio and...

 or E7 devices as warranty replacements for N900s. Although warranty terms and consumer rights legislation differ across jurisdictions, users have reported success in refusing those and pressing for an N900 in at least the EU and India as recently as August 2011. Owners who are not confident of getting an N900 as a warranty replacement often attempt to repair their own devices, or sell the Nokia-provided replacement to buy an N900 instead.

The N900's proximity sensor, which is designed to lock the touch screen when the phone is against the user's ear to prevent accidental operation, locks the screen unintentionally in bright light (usually outdoors) when a call is placed or received. Nokia has acknowledged that it is a "hardware issue" and cannot be addressed. To unlock the screen in a phone call, a tactile unlock switch in the right side of the device can be used. This however will keep the touch screen active and accidental operation of the phone keys in a call may occur when device is used as a handset. Application of screen protectors is blamed on the issue, however N900 users without screen protectors are also experiencing the problem.

Also the N900's MicroUSB (charger) port is very fragile.

Future

It was announced in May 2010 that the Nokia N900 will be the last mobile communication device running the Maemo 5 operating system, which will be replaced by MeeGo
MeeGo
MeeGo is a Linux-based open source mobile operating system project. Primarily targeted at mobile devices and information appliances in the consumer electronics market, MeeGo is designed to act as an operating system for hardware platforms such as netbooks, entry-level desktops, nettops, tablet...

. Nokia will continue to support the N900 with updates when necessary.

While transition to the succeeding MeeGo
MeeGo
MeeGo is a Linux-based open source mobile operating system project. Primarily targeted at mobile devices and information appliances in the consumer electronics market, MeeGo is designed to act as an operating system for hardware platforms such as netbooks, entry-level desktops, nettops, tablet...

 operating system is possible, this is mainly of interest to developers rather than consumers, as it is not officially supported by Nokia. There has been some interest within the user community in working on backporting MeeGo developments to Maemo for the N900, and this places it as being an interesting device for people within the wider Open Source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...

 community more than consumers.

A download of the MeeGo
MeeGo
MeeGo is a Linux-based open source mobile operating system project. Primarily targeted at mobile devices and information appliances in the consumer electronics market, MeeGo is designed to act as an operating system for hardware platforms such as netbooks, entry-level desktops, nettops, tablet...

 operating system is available, but not officially supported by Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...

. Nokia used to say that MeeGo was going to succeed Maemo for new devices; however, on 11 February 2011 Nokia announced it will be primarily concentrating on their alliance with Microsoft. MeeGo development will not be stopped and one MeeGo device will become available in 2011.

On March 3, 2011, Jukka Eklund, Product Manager, MeeGo OS at Nokia announced in the MeeGo-dev mailing list that there will be a MeeGo 1.2 Developer Edition for N900 developed by a dedicated Nokia team led by Mika Leppinen. The target of this particular edition is to be usable as a primary phone device for a developer/hacker person but not for regular end users.

There is also an unofficial port of Android to the device.

See also

  • Internet appliance
    Internet appliance
    An Internet appliance is a consumer device whose main function is easy access to Internet services such as WWW or e-mail. The term was popularized in the 1990s, when it somewhat overlapped in meaning with an information appliance, Internet computer, network computer, or even thin client, but now it...

  • Internet tablet
    Internet Tablet
    Nokia Internet Tablets is the name given to a range of Nokia mobile Internet appliances products. These tablets fall in the range between a personal digital assistant and an Ultra-Mobile PC , and slightly below Intel's Mobile Internet device .- Maemo :Nokia Internet Tablets run the Debian...

  • Nokia 770
  • Nokia N800
    Nokia N800
    The Nokia N800 Internet tablet is a wireless Internet appliance from Nokia, originally announced at the Las Vegas CES 2007 Summit in January 2007. N800 allows the user to browse the Internet and communicate using Wi-Fi networks or with mobile phone via Bluetooth. The N800 was developed as the...

  • Nokia N810
    Nokia N810
    The Nokia N810 Internet tablet is an Internet appliance from Nokia, announced on 17 October, 2007 at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco. Despite Nokia's strong association with cellular products, the N810 is not a phone, but instead allows the user to browse the Internet and communicate using...

  • Nokia N97
    Nokia N97
    Nokia N97 is a touch screen mobile phone in the Nseries of smartphones by Nokia, with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard...

  • Nokia N9
    Nokia N9
    The Nokia N9 is a smartphone made by Nokia based on the MeeGo "Harmattan" mobile operating system, the first from Nokia on the MeeGo OS...

  • Nokia N950

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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