MODDING: blogs

No, that’s not a misprint for 5mp (i.e. 5 megapixels), it’s SMP - Symmetric Multiprocessing. You may remember that Nokia’s flagships, the N95 and N82, both have dual CPUs? This didn’t really have as much effect on performance as their (also unique) graphics acceleration, but every little helps. However, SMP seems to be a technology that will make a bigger difference in the future, according to an interesting interview with Symbian’s Jason Parker, over at SymbianOne.

Carnival of the Mobilists 152 is over at another of my stomping grounds, All About iPhone (no relation!). Leading off with a few homegrown AAS pieces, there are also some thought provoking items from other Carnival newcomers and regulars.

As usual for such events, there are a number of online resources with which to follow Nokia World 2008. The main landing page links to a Tangler discussion group, plus there’s a link to any press releases and live video will appear from 8.15am (GMT / UTC) on Tuesday. If you need reminding to ‘tune in’, there’s even a countdown timer and automated email system. Rafe will be reporting live from Barcelona - watch this space.

In the concluding part of his very detailed hands-on (p)review of the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, based on almost a month of day-to-day running with Nokia’s ‘Tube’, Rafe Blandford brings us a report on the rest of its applications and on third party software compatibility, plus, of course, he sums up the device. Why is it unique and just how well will it do worldwide?

Dennis Bournique has done a great job here of writing a full critical review of the new Skyfire browser for S60. It seems that, despite still being in beta, it’s the best for viewing web video, but that there are still some day to day usability problems that need addressing.

If you’re a Python tinkerer like me then you’ll be interested in a summary post over at Forum Nokia by Daniel Crocha, talking about possible reasons why Python for S60 doesn’t often make for easy development of full, commercial (read polished) applications. He also links to a possible solution for making building all-in SIS install files easier.

Black Friday is here and I couldn't get motivated to go out till 8:45am, but I'm glad I waited as everything I wanted was still in stock by the time I got to Best Buy at 9am. It seems that the lines are shorter this year here outside St. Louis, Missouri. As you can tell from the picture below the $6.99 movies and $5.99 CDs were untouched for the most part and there wasn't even a check-out line! Be sure to head to our free forums to post your pictures or tell your Black Friday story.

“I usually go out for the “mania” of the day, but I just wasn't as into it as usual. My wife and daughter went to a movie last night and came by Best Buy on the way home around 10pm and people were already lining up. I personally didn't see anything I HAD to have, and the couple of things I saw that I might pick up are on sale for the weekend and online (though out of stock atm) anyway.” - DaIceMan

ASUS Radeon HD 4830 Video Card EAH4830 @ Benchmark Reviews and other reviews from around the web can be found by visiting our forums!

After a rather disappointing HD 3000 series, ATI took the world by surprise with the HD 4000 generation of graphics cards. Since the launch of the HD 4000 series back in June, ATI has reclaimed its presence in the market and has been steadily eating away at Nvida's marketshare. Benchmark Reviews has had the opportunity to review several cards from the HD 4800 series lineup and today we look at one of the newest additions to the family: the Radeon HD 4830. This particular model, the EAH4830, comes to us from Asus and sports a custom cooler design and factory overclocked memory. We'll put it through its paces and find out how it compares to its two closest siblings; the HD 4670 and the HD 4850.

Kudos to Symbian Guru (the developer, not the blogger) for introducing a new genre of S60 utility. GPS-Action uses GPS and/or cell ID to fire alarms, switch profiles, open applications, etc. according to where you are rather than the time of day. So, for example, you could be reminded to look for a particular product the next time you get to the shopping mall. Lots more other examples and information at the main GPS-Action page.

It appears Nvidia is carrying out the rebranding of their GPUs on both desktop and mobile front as VR-Zone has learned from the recent releases of the Forceware drivers. …