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.
If you’re fed up of missing calls on your mobile because it diverts calls to voicemail too quickly, then we may have a solution for you. By default, most networks set phones to ring for just 15 seconds before diverting to voicemail. Now 15 seconds may seem like a long time, but I can assure you, it’s not if you’ve got your hands full and your phone is at the bottom of your bag!
One solution of course is to simply turn off your voicemail, but that’s not really a solution as having no message service can also cause you problems. Thankfully there is another quick and easy way to solve this problem. A short code, keyed into your phone can increase the amount of time your phone rings for, before diverting the call to voicemail.
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 we’ll do our best to answer them.
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:
Nokia have just released a software update for the 5800 XpressMusic.
As well as fixing a few bugs, the software will add new features to your 5800 and is available to download now from the Nokia software update website.
Improvements in the new software version include faster data downloads from the Internet, an improved e-mail interface, and improvements to the built in search.
The update will also add the following new features:
Faster user interface
Faster download times
Front facing camera can now take still images
Burst mode allows you to take multiple pictures one after another without needing to repress the camera button
Built-in dictionary functionality with voice playback of words utilizing text-to-speech technology, with support for 38 languages
Application Update lets you check for available updates for applications and update them directly on the phone.
Applications can also be kept up-to-date by setting the checking to automatic.
For help in upgrading the software on your phone, please see our step-by-step guide on Nokia software updates.
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If you’re fed up of missing calls on your mobile because it diverts calls to voicemail too quickly, then we may have a solution for you. By default, most networks set phones to ring for just 15 seconds before diverting to voicemail. Now 15 seconds may seem like a long time, but I can assure you, it’s not if you’ve got your hands full and your phone is at the bottom of your bag! 
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!
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