-
This site is a curation of observations about what I can best call the intersection of tech and life. Yes, give me a better term.
Over and above that, it's a stream of stuff that I like.
You can explore older stuff on this website, or read a random entry. I've been writing since 2004. You can also read it in your RSS reader.
Comments or interesting links? Email me.
-
About me
-
I'm on Twitter
-
What I'm reading on the web
-
RSS Feed for this website
A while ago I wrote about why it did not make sense for me to buy an iPhone 3G in India, and why I purchased a Nokia N82 instead. However, a combination of the N82 and the iPod Touch is a different matter altogether. It costs about the same as the iPhone in India and offers a far, far better overall experience.
In a nutshell, iPod Touch is iPhone without the phone, SMS, camera and Bluetooth. Which is great, because those were the very features that iPhone was criticized for. Fortunately, the N82 excels at all of these. Here’s my take on using the 16GB iPod Touch and the Nokia N82.
Price
8GB iPod Touch + 2GB Nokia N82 = Rs. 17000 + Rs. 19000 = Rs. 36000. 8GB iPhone = Rs. 31000.
16GB iPod Touch + 2GB Nokia N82 = Rs. 22000 + Rs. 19000 = Rs. 41000. 16GB iPhone = Rs. 36000.
So the combination costs Rs. 5000 more than the equivalent iPhone. We’ll see what you get in return for that amount of extra money.
Connecting the iPod Touch to the Internet via the N82
The chief difference between the Touch and its iPod predecessors is Wifi. This transforms the Touch from a music and video player into a full-fledged Internet access device that also happens to do music and video. In fact, there’s evidence to show that iPod Touch owners rarely use the device for music. The corollary is that if you don’t have a Wifi signal, your iPod Touch is little more than a very expensive iPod with (comparatively) tiny amounts of storage.
Enter Joikuspot. This marvelous application converts your GPRS/EDGE/3G-capable Nokia phone into a WiFi hotspot. Most recent Nseries and Eseries phones have Wifi capability, including the N82. This means that I can connect to the Internet by simply selecting the N82 Wifi hotspot from my iPod Touch.
This give your iPod Touch a whole new lease of life. No mobile device matches the Internet experience on an iPhone/iPod Touch. I can’t quantify this, but mobile Safari renders pages in a way that makes the Internet connection seem faster than on the N82 browser.
Finally, the $9.95 iPod Touch software upgrade gives you access to the iPhone App Store, where you can install anything ranging from the Twitterific twitter client to the New York Times news reader app, to iPhone Wordpress client to literally hundreds of free and paid applications and games.
What’s better on the N82
The N82 does a splendid job at whatever the iPhone is poor at. The best example is the superb 5MP camera with autofocus, Carl Zeiss optics and Xenon flash. The camera can also record videos at up to 30 frames per second. Check out the quality of photos and videos from the N82 on my Flickr stream.
I can use Bluetooth on the N82 to transfer files, sync with my PC over the air and pair with hands-free headsets. The crippled iPhone Bluetooth implementation only does headset pairing. Nothing else. The N82 can be used as a modem for my PC. For reasons unknown, iPhone cannot do this. The only third-party app that could do this was pulled from the App Store within a day. The N82 also supports copy-and-paste and can forward text messages, features inexplicably left out of iPhone.
There are thousands of S60 applications that aren’t part of the iPhone App Store. Nokia’s Sports Tracker and Nokia’s Map Loader come immediately to mind, as does Fring (which only runs on jailbroken iPhones/iPods Touch).
Finally, there have been no reported performance issues with the N82 3G chip. Not so for iPhone, that has had issues so severe with the onboard 3G chip that it has spawned rumors of a handset recall.
What’s better on the iPod Touch
Internet Experience, iPhone App Store – I’ve already spoken about this earlier. Once you’ve experienced the Internet on iPhone/iPod Touch, nothing – nothing – will make you go back to any other mobile device. Its crisp colors, smooth fonts, elegant multi-touch controls are streets ahead of the competition.
The iPod Touch is also a very elegant, capable PDA, comprising Contacts, Calendar (with support for multiple calendars), Tasks and a Mail client capable of displaying rich text/HTML. The Contacts and Calendar sync with Outlook. The Mail client, in addition to supporting POP3 and IMAP accounts, can also connect to a corporate Microsoft Exchange setup.
Lest we forget, the iPod Touch is also an iPod. With 8GB or 16GB of storage, it can hold a big chunk of most music collections. Because of the high-quality display, video playback is exquisite – you forget you’re using a mobile device. Videos also begin playing from the point you left off last time. And yes, almost as a footnote, it’s great for viewing large photo collections too. The iPod Touch multimedia experience is a generation ahead of what the N82 offers.
Conclusion
For Rs. 5000 and one gadget extra, you a great camera, video recording, functional Bluetooth, functional SMS, 2GB extra storage, ability to use your GPRS/EDGE/3G connection from your computer, access to thousands of S60 apps and reliable 3G. As with the iPhone you also get a top-of-the-line PDA and a gorgeous multimedia device.
Sounds like a good deal? To me, it was a no-brainer. What do you think?
August 28, 2008 · Post to Twitter · Email this · Nokia, iPhone, iPodTouch · 17 Comments
You might also be interested reading:
- What happened at Apple’s iPod event on the 9th
- Steve Jobs: We made the iPod touch, then didn’t know what it really was
- What do Apple’s App Store rejections mean for you users and startups?
- Two reasons why Apple sells so many iPhone apps (and why Nokia and co. understand only one)
- Prediction Proved: The Immediate Future is Native Mobile Apps
So did you get yourself an ipod touch?
My online problem is that i do not want be carrying two devices around in my pocket.
Yes, I got an iPod Touch – 16GB goodness!
Two devices – yes, that’s most definitely a problem. For a lot of folks that’s a deal-killer. The N82 while small isn’t exactly sleek. I’ll probably get one of those Nokia leather pouches that attach to your belt.
Two devices – yes, it really pair very well as compared to 3G iPhone.I am using Nokia E51 which is light and handy. with the Joikuspot Premium application, it is very good option for 3G iPhone. Have been using this ” E51 cum iPod Touch ” iPone for more than two months, so far it has been fantastic and truely appreciate the Joikuspot for developing this amazing application.
For some reason I just cannot get myself to like the N series. I'm a hopeless E series addict. Waiting to get my hands on the swish e71 soon.
Reena,
I've been lusting after an E71 too, after I played about with it 2 weeks
ago. Fabulous build quality. The E71 has A-GPS, 3G, WLAN, just like the N82.
But it lacks an accelerometer and a high-quality camera (only 3.2MP), and
that's the deal-breaker for me!
Hi, This information was really valuable for me. After reading this content i purchased new ipod touch 8 GB. I am now looking for a mobile which would be not so expensive but would provide hotspot using WIFI for my ipod touch. I checked with some mobile shops but none of them know about creation of hotspot. I would be appreciated if you let me know some more range of mobile among sony erricsson, Nokia, motorola etc in a medium range of cost. Again just to make sure, if I purchase the said mobile with WIFI/3G features and download Joiku software i can access internet on my IPOD touch using GPRS in the mobile.
Please revert. Thanks Girish
Girish,
Since Joikuspot is a Series60 application, it runs on Nokia phones and
a few Samsung ones. The former are your best choice.
Wifi connectivity is now a standard feature in Nokia's recent Nseries
and Eseries phones. Visit nokia.co.in, go to Find Products, and in
“Advanced Features”, choose “Internet over WLAN”. That will display
Nokia phones with WiFi. To estimate price ranges, rea the reviews for
each phone on mouthshut.com, or make a list of the models and walk
right into your nearest Nokia Gallery/Subhiksha/The Mobile Store. I
think the cheapest phone with WiFi is the E51 at appx. Rs. 12000.
Hope this helps.
Hey Rahul,
I also opted for the same combination after reading your blog I must say its the best possible deal!!! Thanks a lot!!!
Rahul, is it possible to connect to the net via bluetooth + GPRS?
Amit, glad you liked the combination. If Nokia were to do a better job with its music player and browser (especially font rendering), I'd get rid of the iPod Touch.
Gigin, while that's an interesting idea (it'd open up access via mobile phones that don't have WiFi), I haven't been able to find any applications that can do this.
An excellent article to describe a brilliant idea! I totally agree with you. Joiku is easy to use and efficient. Plus, if you just need to carry your phone with you, you dont have to haul a huge device around. Thank You for this article!
what data plan is required on the nokia to do this..
currently on AT&T family share plan, but not unlimited internet plan or smart phone data plan
Is it possible to link the N82 A-GPS to the iPod touch via Bluetooth in order to make the iPod aware of it's location and so enable it to make use of location centric apps ? It seems to me, you see, that the absence of GPS on the touch is the only thing stopping your solution from being the perfect compromise. It's huge screen is perfect for implementing GPS apps in a way that the N82's could never be!
Oh, this is beautiful! I just bought a 3rd Gen ipod touch and have a Nokia 5800. With Joiku I have just fixed the major gripes I had with the new toy.
love your article!, am deciding if i had to let go the qwerty E71 to iphone. I’ll stick with it and buy ipod touch as a secondary toy.
great article
Hey Rahul.
U seem pretty knowledgeable to me I have a small question is it possible for me to transfer music from my nokia 5310 to my iPod touch 3g via bluetooth if yes how please reply. And yes google was not of much help to me