The Nokia N9 has made quite an impression, all but wiping away the memory of Symbian and promising to fill the wait until the first Nokia Windows Phone nicely. We thought we’d take a closer look at some of the features of the N9, its MeeGo OS and the Harmattan UI.
To wake it up, either tap its face or prod its side
Both of these methods would get you a slap if you tried them on a person, but these are two of the most pleasant ways to wake a mobile device from its slumber. No fiddly lock screens or multi-stage processes here – just double tap the N9′s screen or press the discrete button located halfway up the right hand side of the device.
To ‘discard’ apps, swipe from the very edge
While flicking between the three homescreens is an easy matter of swiping left or right on the touchscreen, getting rid of open apps and returning to the home screen takes a more deliberate gesture. The N9 would appear to remain sensitive beyond its screen and onto the thin, rounded border area. This is so that you can swipe from just off screen, which pushes the app into stasis while bringing the home screen to the fore.
Pinch to zoom in Open Apps
The Open Apps home screen lists all of your recently used apps which, as just mentioned, are all frozen at the point you swept them aside. While this view shows nine at a time by default, you can move in to take a closer look through the time-honoured pinch-to-zoom method. This smoothly switches the view to contain four open apps at a time.
The last app used is always at the top-left
Still in Open Apps view, the apps are sequenced according to the most recently used from the top left of the screen (in portrait). This should make quick navigation between apps an instinctive practice.
Long press to close Open Apps
You can close these apps from the Open Apps view through a simple long press on the screen. You’ll then be able to close individual apps, or even close all to wipe the slate clean. Hopefully this won’t become a regular necessity for performance purposes.
Events View explained
If you’ve seen the Events View home page, it might seem like a bit of a free-for-all of information. There is a considered structure to it, though, with so-called ‘first class’ notifications (emails, missed calls and SMS messages) given priority at the top. Second tier notifications, like social media feeds, will appear towards the bottom of the screen.
The unlock button doubles as a camera shutter button
Fans of physical camera shutter buttons (which all sane people should be) can breath a sigh of relief – Nokia hasn’t left one off the N9, it’s just been economical. The unlock button we mentioned earlier doubles as a means to pull the trigger on that tasty 8-megapixel widescreen snapper.
Home screen shortcut menu by swiping up
Swipe up from the bottom of the screen and hold and you’ll bring up a shortcut menu for jumping to commonly used apps. Handy for jumping straight to your email or, indeed, the camera without scrolling through the App View every time.
See the lighter side of NFC
The N9 shows that Near Field Communication technology is about more than just stuffy old mobile payments. Nokia is releasing a load of funky peripherals, such as a portable set of speakers and a set of wireless headphones, which can be paired with your N9 by tapping the two together. This then sets up an instant Bluetooth link without all that pairing palava.
Colourful shell isn’t just for looks
The N9′s unusual polycarbonate shell holds a number of benefits. It looks different to anything else out there, for one thing. For another, it means it’s tough and scratch resistant. Even if/when you do scuff it, the fact that the material is inherently the same colour throughout means that it won’t show up too badly. Finally, the material is great for antenna performance, so there’ll be no ‘death grip’ issues here. Hold the phone how you like. On the negative side, you won’t be able to change the battery.
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