N93i & N73: Firmware Updates Available!
If you have an N93 or N73, you should definitely update your phone's firmware via the Nokia Software Updater. As I recently discovered, the newer firmware for the N73, for instance, addresses a plethora of issues that plagued its predecessor.
The download is about 78.4MB for the Nokia N73, entitled V 4.0735.3.0.2 / 4.0736.3.2.1. I really think this is a much-needed update for the phone. While I don't have a changelog that lists all the improvements in this release, some of the most-noticeable changes are listed below.
Changes/Improvements:
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The download is about 78.4MB for the Nokia N73, entitled V 4.0735.3.0.2 / 4.0736.3.2.1. I really think this is a much-needed update for the phone. While I don't have a changelog that lists all the improvements in this release, some of the most-noticeable changes are listed below.
Changes/Improvements:
- Inclusion of Nokia Maps 1.0 (edition 1.2) for use with Bluetooth GPS devices
- Improvements to the Messaging App
- Improvements to Application Installers
- Updates to the Music Library & Music downloads
- Sleep mode stability
- Autostart issues fixed (finally)
- Improvements to Menu navigation
- Greater amount of free RAM available at startup
- You may (or may not) notice the last few points that I've written about above on the N73. However, on the older version of the firmware i.e. V 4.0727.2.2.1, with sleep mode enabled and the keypad locked, it was sometimes impossible to use the phone as the keypad refused to unlock itself! Thankfully, that seems to be fixed with this release.
- Autostart issues are another thing. As compared to the older version, the newer firmware finally lets you autostart apps, such as Keylocking utilities (the N73 doesn't have it built-in) or Profile Switchers etc. I'm really glad Nokia's addressed this issue.
- The phone seems to be much snappier than before and Menu navigation and UI response times are much better. A welcome addition!
- As mentioned above, there is definitely an improvement in the availability of free RAM while starting (and subsequently using) the phone. Previously, the amount of free RAM used to hover around 18-18.5MB, with all autostart apps loaded into memory. Now this figure's gone upto 19.5MB, which really is a substantial increase!
- I haven't yet checked for improvements in the Camera department. But I doubt if there will be any, especially since the N73 already has an excellent camera that's easily comparable to standard point-and-shoots. The only improvement that is, perhaps, necessary has to do with reducing the amount of jpeg compression.
- Before you update, please ensure that you've made a Backup via Nokia's PC Suite to save all messages, contacts, calendar events etc. You can later restore them after updating.
- If you have a Bluetooth GPS device and are worried about data transfer costs, download the Nokia Map Loader for your PC which lets you download maps from the internet for your phone. It's available free of charge, here.
