Update: The N73 SMS Reader!

Ever since the first version of the N73 SMS Reader was rolled out a few weeks ago, I've received several requests for additional features, the most interesting one being the ability to read out any existing text message from the inbox or from sent messages. This updated release of the SMS Reader addresses that issue and introduces many new features too.

If you haven't already tried out the previous version or wish to read more about it, have a look at my original post here.

Overview:

The N73 SMS Reader is a convenient and innovative text-to-speech message reader and inbox backup solution for your smartphone. It enables you to take full control of your text messages using simple joystick navigation and reads out all messages for you without letting you strain your eyes to read from the phone screen.

You can also make backup copies of all your messages using the N73 SMS Reader. If you happen to accidentally delete an important SMS, or your SMS database becomes corrupted, you can then rely on the backup copy that the program has created for you.

Key Features:

• Reads out existing text messages straight from the inbox or even from sent items whenever requested
• Reads out new text messages either at user request or immediately when they arrive
• Activity Icon for alerting the user whenever the program works in the background
• Simple and Intuitive controls
• Message Preview Option for displaying the last received message without actually opening it
• Inbox Backup tool for exporting all messages to file

Compatibility:

This program is designed for S60 3rd Edition phones. It has been tested on Nokia 3250, N71, N73, N80, N91, N93, N95 and N95 8GB currently but will work with ALL devices.

Instructions:

Please follow the instructions in the exact order listed as the program might not work otherwise.

• This program uses the latest version of Python for S60. Remove any older versions before proceeding.
• Install the Python for S60 application (PythonForS60_1_4_2_3rdEd.sis) to phone memory.
• Install the script shell (PythonScriptShell_1_4_2_3rdEd.sis) to phone memory.
• Sign the N73 SMS Reader (N73_SMS_Reader_v1_5_UNSIGNED.sis).
• Send it to your phone and install it.

Download Links:

P.S All the required files are provided below.

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Introducing the N73 SMS Reader

Free App Friday may be over, but not here at the S60 Weblog. Disgruntled with the lack of a Text-to-speech message reader on the N73, I decided to work on my own simple, no-frills message reader. The merits of such an application are plenty. Not only is it a convenient way to access your messages by having them read out aloud with minimal fuss, but it is also something that can be of tremendous use especially while on the move -- you could be driving, jogging etc. Moreover, this is a concept that is yet to make inroads and so, is quite fascinating to say the least!

It is a well-known fact that Nokia have already 'blessed' phones like the 5500, 5700, 6120c with a Text-to-speech (TTS) tool complete with different voices, while strangely ignoring the majority of Nseries devices. What is quite absurd is that this is a concept that was perfected around two years ago with the release of SilentComm's commercial TWT SMSReader -- for devices ranging from the Nokia 7650 to the 6600, 6630 and N70. And yet, here we are...

Anyway, the only message reader ever to be released for the likes of the N73, N80, N95 etc was Mobicrac's SMSTalk, which, unfortunately, left a LOT to be desired -- mainly because it could only read 3 words at a time, as ridiculous as that seems.

Ofcourse, that was a purely commercial venture, but one that was inspiring nevertheless. Another feature that I wanted my message reader to have was the ability of saving or backing up all text messages to a separate file. I borrowed this idea from David Siorpaes' SMSDump for the Nokia 6600, 6630 and N70 -- a handy, albeit commercial, utility that was capable of 'dumping' all text messages from the inbox to a text file. Incase your database of text messages got corrupted, you could always rely on the backup created by SMSDump.

After much scouring on the Internet for a message reader, I was finally able to find an app, called TTSMS, created by bugb in Python for S60. Sadly, that didn't work -- but since it was written in Python, it provided enough motivation ;)

Enter the N73 SMS Reader

The N73 SMS Reader (or TTSMS Reader) is a no-frills app that sits in the background and is activated automatically whenever a new message arrives. It requires Python for S60 to run. Upon installing, you will have a new icon labelled 'TTSMS' in the Applications folder of your S60 3rd Edition device.

Key Features:

• Reads new text messages either at user request or immediately when they arrive
• Simple and Intuitive controls
• Message Preview Option for displaying the last received message without actually opening it
• Inbox Backup tool for exporting all messages to file
• Compatibility with ALL S60 3rd Edition Devices (N73, N80, N95 and more)

Special Notes:

Whenever a new message arrives, by default the user is presented a list of three options:

• To read the new message
• To preview or display it
• To ignore it

Upon pressing the Read message option, the TTSMS Reader uses Python's Text-to-speech function to read the message out aloud. There is also a Replay Message feature that automatically kicks in whenever a message has been read, prompting the user for further action.

The Preview message option shows the first few lines of the sms content as well as the sender's number in a pop-up window.

Tip: Note that not only is 'previewing' the message quicker and less cumbersome, but it also gives the user a convenient alibi of 'forgetting' to read a potentially unwanted message as previewing does not notify the system that a new message has already been read.

The Ignore message option works by sending the program back to the Standby or Home Screen.

With Auto Read set to ON, whenever a new message arrives, the TTSMS Reader uses Python's Text-to-speech function to read the message out aloud automatically without requiring any user intervention whatsoever. The user is also prompted with an option to replay the message once it is finished reading.

Other Options:

The Export Inbox as TXT... option saves ALL the messages from the inbox to a text file compatible with Microsoft Word, WordPad etc.

Tip: Once activated, it normally takes about 20 seconds (depending on the size of your inbox) for the program to save all messages. It also displays the total number of messages saved as well as their location on the Phone Memory.

The Minimize and Minimize all options are something I picked up from the Microsoft Windows environment. The former simply minimizes the current window i.e. of the TTSMS Reader whilst the latter minimizes all windows in use and sends the user directly to the Standby Screen.



Known Issues:

- The TTSMS Reader does not install any extra voice packages to the phone. Instead, it utilizes the device's built-in TTS capabilities. So, be wary of the accent (German, perhaps?) as it may not be able to pronounce accurately.

- While actual words are language-independent, numbers will be pronounced a digit at a time, depending on the language set in the phone.

- Once a message has been flagged as old, it can no longer be read. However, I'm working on a solution for dealing with this :)

- Incase of an unknown number, the program will read out the entire number.

Download Links:

P.S All the required files are provided below.

- Note that you need to install Python first to your device's Phone Memory. If you already have Python installed to Phone Memory, skip this step.

- The TTSMS Reader must be SIGNED before installation.

DOWNLOAD NOW

DOWNLOAD NOW (Mirror)

You may receive an 'Update Error' while installing in some cases. To rectify that, download this file instead. Otherwise, use the links given above.

Currently, this app has been tested on the N73 ME and the N95 only. However, it should work on other devices too without a glitch. Comments are always welcome!

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N95 8GB & N73 ME Firmware Updates Available!

Here's something you don't see very often -- Nokia's been really stepping on the gas in releasing newer firmware updates for their phones lately. A new year's resolution, perhaps? For example, just a couple of days ago, they made available version 15.0.015 of the flagship N95 8GB's firmware. To top that off, they released version 4.0750.31.2.1 of the N73 Music Edition's (ME) firmware some days later. Talk about being on a roll.

According to initial reports, the latest set of updates to hit both these phones is more of a speed boost than anything else -- nonetheless, a very welcome addition indeed, given how lethargic the S60 platform can be.

Let's talk about the N95 8GB first. News is that the newer firmware substantially improves the speed of accessing the device's colossal 8GB of flash memory. Apart from that, several under-the-hood changes have been made that have resulted in a faster and thankfully, more responsive, Gallery & Search as well as stability improvements for the Browser as well as WLAN. Plus, they've also thrown in Flashlite 3 and even made night-mode improvements to the Camera. Amazing, isn't it? The N95 8GB, after all these improvements, might just be the device everyone's looking for. If you haven't updated your device software yet, you definitely should.

Anyway, since I don't have a spare one lying around (it's already on my wishlist), I'll just continue with my ramblings on the N73 ME's latest firmware.



Just like the N95 8GB's latest firmware, v4.0750.31.2.1 for the N73 ME fixes a myriad of issues that have plagued the device for quite some time now. More importantly, it makes the phone much, much faster.

Although I haven't taken any pictures yet for verification, according to reports, Nokia seem to have made night-mode improvements to the Camera here, too. This, if true, is something that was much-needed. Although the N73 ME has a top-of-the-line (though not exactly cutting-edge) 3.2 Megapixel camera that performs exceptionally well in most cases, night-mode shots aren't its speciality by a long shot. The main reason, ofcourse, being the blue-haze or bluish-tint problem that is evident on pictures taken under night-mode. On the other hand, day-time shots are perfect and easily comparable to typical point-and-shoots.

Moving on, perhaps one of the most notable changes is in the overall menu navigation speed. Make no mistake, Nokia have absolutely done a brilliant job here. Not only is the phone much snappier now, slowdowns and memory-leaks have completely disappeared too!

To verify, I timed how long it took for various elements (e.g Menu, Contacts etc) to load before and after the firmware upgrade under identical conditions. Results are as shown below.



The column on the right (in bold) lists the times for the latest firmware, whereas the one on the left are for its predecessor. You can immediately spot the differences. The latest firmware, undoubtedly, has made the phone much faster and overall navigation a breeze. Moreover, note that the Camera starting times are virtually unchanged in both cases.

Another area where there's been a substantial improvement is in the amount of available memory for use. With typical use, previously the amount of free RAM available for apps used to hover around 10-11MB. Remarkably, that figure has shot upto 12.5-13MB with the upgrade. What's interesting is the fact that Symbian-Freak is reporting the implementation of Demand Paging with this new firmware, which only goes to confirm the much-improved memory handling capabilities. Note that this isn't the same as the memory available to the user after startup. Think of this as under load conditions :)

All in all, I honestly think that if you own an N73 ME and haven't updated yet, you should definitely get this upgrade without any hesitation whatsoever. It's available free of charge via the Nokia Software Updater. Click here to get it.

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The Case of the Exhausted Phone

Greetings everyone! Hope you guys are doing much better than I am. A fried hard drive and more than a dozen phone formats/hard resets later, I'm back! See, a few weeks ago, one of my PC's 120GB SATA hard disks started acting funny when a bunch of bad sectors surfaced out of nowhere.

I tried fixing them with a program called Spinrite, but all was invain and within no time, the drive completely disappeared from Windows! The worst part is that quite a lot of data got corrupted in the process. Sad stuff...especially when you couple that with my recent cellphone woes!

Which brings me to an important issue. Some days ago, my cellphone (an N73 Music Edition) started to (literally) 'die out' under normal usage. For instance, whenever I slid open the camera lens cover to take an occasional snap or two, the phone would automatically switch off as if all the juice had been sucked out of its battery. This would also happen during phone calls, texting etc.

A quick google search revealed that this problem was equally common with other Nokia phones, such as the N93i. The proposed solution? Take the phone to your nearest Care Center (Bah!)

Since I'd been testing new apps regularly, I naturally thought there was a software glitch with one of the apps. Piece by piece, every app installed to phone memory was removed and the phone formatted not once, but multiple times. However, the problem was never fixed. I even suspected this to be one of the shortcomings of the N73's latest firmware update. Luckily, common sense prevailed and I discovered an outrageously simple way of fixing the issue.

The solution: After powering off your phone, remove the battery along with the sim card and set them aside for about half an hour. During this time, clean the battery terminals (i.e the 3 'golden rectangles' that you see on top of the battery) using rubbing alcohol -- or even some leftover cologne will do. Also, be sure to clean the battery terminals present on the phone body as well as the camera activation terminals present on the phone's back cover (i.e. the 2 golden bits that you see on the inside of the back cover). Once our makeshift cleaning liquid's evaporated, simply plug everything back and you're good to go!

I still haven't figured out the reason behind this strange behaviour (rusty terminals?), but hey, I'm not complaining! :)

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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:

• 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

Miscellaneous Notes:

• 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.
  
  

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Speed Up Your Phone Camera

One of the more common problems associated with newer multi-megapixel phones from Nokia is the frustrating time delay that's always encountered while turning the camera on. A slight comparison with modern digital cameras immediately puts the coveted Nseries to shame. For instance, it takes the Nokia N73 a good 3-4 seconds to get to the Viewfinder to snap a picture...enough to get your subject distracted with something else. Performance takes an even bigger hit if you're starting from Sleep mode and delays of upto 10 seconds are fairly common.

Relatively newer Nokia phones, especially ones with a mechanical shutter and an autofocus lens (N73, N95 etc), are the most affected in this regard. You must've observed how the screen orientation lazily changes from Portrait to Landscape as soon as you slide open the lens cover to get the camera ready.

However, here's an amazing tip that'll really help speed things up while using your phone camera, making it much snappier than ever before.

The trick is to get the phone in Landscape mode before you're about to use your camera.

Apart from being less taxing for the processor, there also won't be any significant delay between switching screen orientations and the camera will be ready for action in no time! The results speak for themselves. Notice how fast the phone response is when you start the camera from standby/sleep in Landscape mode.



Changing screen orientations isn't much of an issue too, especially with freeware apps like the excellent RotateMe v1.21, available here for the N73 and N80. Once you start RotateMe, simply tap 'Rotate' from Options to switch to Landscape mode (and vice versa).

Another advantage is the fact that Landscape mode isn't a hassle and is quite useable, although initially you'll feel otherwise due to the awkward position you'll be holding your phone in. Furthermore, it's compatible with a plethora of apps and you could, for instance, use it with the excellent free Sega Genesis Emulator, Picodrive, to play a quick game or two of Street Fighter II Turbo or get a much better view of the www while browsing the internet...the possibilities are endless :)

So, next time you're at a party, be sure to have your phone in Landscape mode before you start snapping away!

Screenshots:







UPDATE: If you wish to download RotateMe v1.21, you may do so here. Please note that you must get this app signed prior to using it.

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Part II: Top Apps for the N73

Here's an extensive list of some of my favourite apps for the N73. The best part is that these essentials are free, so you definitely need to get them.

I've also included a concise description of their functions along with some screenshots and links for free download, so that you can get the specific version that's made for your phone.

1. AutoLock: Autolock is a simple, easy-to-use automatic key lock for S60 3rd edition devices that starts up automatically whenever you switch on your phone. I'd recommend you to install it to phone memory. A great utility!

2. cCalc: cCalc is an intuitive, function-rich scientific calculator. The reason why I prefer it over any other app -- such as Calcium, for instance -- is simply because with cCalc, you can make your own conversion tables as well as perform advanced calculations. Install it to phone memory.



3. HourPower: HourPower is quite a simplistic app that can read the current system time aloud upon the press of a key. You can, for instance, have it as one of the softkeys on your phone for easy access.

4. MobiReader: If you're into ebooks or enews, you must get MobiReader for your phone! I love this app as it gives me the flexibility to convert ebooks, comics, articles etc using its Creator Publisher software on the PC and later, to read them on my phone in landscape mode. You can even use the Web Companion on the PC to schedule enews downloads and read the latest news or weather on the go! MobiReader also supports dictionaries -- but they must be purchased separately.

5. ActiveFile: This is an excellent file manager that you can use on your phone to browse or sort your files. It uses two panes instead of one so that you can easily copy and move stuff around. It's also faster than other file managers -- like the commercial Xplore from LCG and doesn't have any expiration date -- like the popular FExplorer that's currently in beta testing. Plus, ActiveFile also features a nifty landscape mode, a decent task manager as well as a memory monitor all bundled into one! A must have that deserves a place in your phone memory.

P.S Make sure you get the signed version if you're unsure about the signing process for S60 3rd edition devices!

6. RotateMe: Another great app to have. RotateMe lets you use your phone in landscape mode. What's the advantage, you ask? Well, for starters, some apps that do not include a landscape mode switch can easily run in landscape using this and besides, it looks amazing! So far there's just an unsigned version out, so you'll have to sign it by yourself.

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The Nokia Series 60 Experience

To start things off, I've been a huuge supporter of the Series 60 platform for a long while now (In case you don't know what Series 60 is, please take the time and google it!) Anyway, it's what makes ordinary cellphones much smarter...more like small 'multimedia computers' (the term that Nokia's coined for their Nseries).

I've had quite an experience with Nokia Phones...from my first Nokia 6610 to my current Nokia N73 Music Edition. Some years ago, having a diminutive colour screen, the ability to write messages on the fly and playing a few java games on your cellphone meant a lot to everyone. Infact, it was the Nokia 6610 that had me thinking about Series 60 in the first place. Could phones get any smarter? Sadly, I thought otherwise.

It was only when I was introduced to the 7650, followed by the 6600 that I realized how wrong I was. Here were phones that could clearly do a lot more -- record videos, take quick snaps, serve as excellent ebook readers, as dedicated music players and gaming devices or even as talking dictionaries and television remote controllers! Yup, these phones were streets ahead of the 6610 and the rest of the pack. My fascination with Nokia phones grew tremendously as a result and soon I 'graduated' to the Nokia 6600 after spending a fortune, followed by the Nokia 6630, before my recent acquisition.

The point that I'm trying to get at here is that smartphones are the future. Sure, they cost more than regular, conventional phones, but I guess one has to pay a certain price for cutting-edge technology. In a few years time, you won't find anyone lugging around a portable radio, music player, ebook reader, a video recorder, a digital camera and a phone all the time.

No matter what people say or believe about the superiority of having separate devices today, convenience is what we, the human race, look for in everything. We epitomize laziness...it's a proven fact. Don't believe me? Ask yourself a simple question...would you rather walk or take a ride to work? Next question...would you rather carry a sleek smartphone that does everything you can think of or all of the items mentioned above on your next trip to the beach? A simple answer, really.

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