Cellphone + computer + speed = Nokia N900

MANILA, Philippines - When life was simpler, is something I hear a lot from people my age and some older folks I get to talk to.

But, sadly, these folks think that it ain’t so anymore.

In this age of computerization everything seems to be less personal, more precise. And there are instances where that is a good thing, right?

“Mas madali bumoto ngayon,” quipped our helper Elena. “Problema lang naman yung mga tao kasi hindi nila alam kung saan sila pupunta.”

Or on Twitter there were quite a few people whose tweets ranged from “Had I known the line was going to be this long I would have bought my own PCOS machine” to “Taking an inasal break and making dasal also so that when I get back they are nearer my number” to “Tweet na lang ng tweet while in line.”

In many ways technology is nothing without the human factor.

Sure, we welcome the speed by which we were able to get the results of the elections. Matter of fact, there were a few radio stations that cut their live coverage of the elections short by a day because the results had come in faster then they had expected.

Good news.

We get the leaders we vote for. Let’s pray that the new leaders will lead us to higher ground.

But when we really come down to it — although most of us have already accepted the results — there are still those who will not accept what has happened until a human voice (Congress) declares the winner.

I guess there is really no escaping the need for the human touch behind every machine.

And then there is the Nokia N900, which is touted as a computer in the size of a cellphone.

A cellphone is a gadget that everyone in the world, at least it seems that way, has accepted as part of life. After all, how can we not love the cellphone — it keeps us connected with the world and all the folks we love or hate.

The cellphone is truly technology made handy. Connections are fast and battery life is better and then there are so many apps that can be downloaded to keep us even more updated about life and then some.

I know many people who had a list that they bought to their polling precincts so that it made the voting process (once it was their turn) easier.

In keeping with that let me list for you 10 things I discovered about the Nokia N900.

10. A tablet and more. I first encountered the Nokia Tablet a few years back. At the time I must admit that I wondered what the fuss was about such a device.

Today, the Nokia N900 is a device to have. It makes multi-tasking a breeze. Check on e-mail, browse the Internet and stay on your fave social networking site — all done anywhere you are and anytime you feel like doing them. And from the Twitter updates I was getting during the elections some people really can’t stay away from connections like this.

9. Maemo 5 software. “With Linux software, Mozilla-based browser technology and now also with cellular connectivity, the Nokia N900 delivers a powerful mobile experience,” says Benoit Nalin, general manager of Nokia Philippines. “The Nokia N900 shows where we are going with Maemo and we’ll continue to work with the community to push the software forward. What we have with Maemo is something that is fusing the power of the computer, the Internet and the mobile phone, and it is great to see that it is evolving in exciting ways.”

Maemo complements Nokia’s other software platforms such as Symbian, which powers Nokia’s smartphones.

8. Lots of space and speedy. What use is all the good stuff a cellphone can do if it does not have enough space for updates and storage? The Nokia N900 has an ARM Cortex-A8 processor, up to 1GB of application memory, and OpenGL ES 2.0 graphics acceleration.

I did try out the speed of the multi-tasking design of the N900 and I was not disappointed. I liked that I was able to run the browser while surfing and then switch to my e-mail when a new one came in. I liked the panoramic home screen, which I personalized, as is my wont.

7. High-resolution visuals. To make Web browsing more enjoyable, the Nokia N900 features a high-resolution WVGA touch screen and fast Internet connectivity.

Although I did do some browsing, and loved how quickly I got to the sites, I am not a big fan of browsing on a cellphone as the costs can be quite prohibitive.

So I browse with caution and get it done quickly. And I am happy to say that the Nokia N900 was just perfect.

6. Easy-to-type SMS and e-mail, too. I liked the way the N900 kept my messaging personal. It was also easy to get those longer messages typed up with convenient full physical slide-out QWERTY keyboard.

I must say that I found the experience of setting up my e-mail accounts on the N900 very easy and quite fast. Text message or IM exchanges with friends are shown in one view and all conversations are organized as separate windows. Perfect.

5. Picture-pretty. The five-megapixel camera did not let me down when I needed it most. The event was the thanksgiving party of Adel Tamano. I got some cool photos of the event and also of my fave senatorial candidate Adel Tamano. Sadly, he did not make it to the magic 12. Nonetheless I got good photos of the event on the N900.

4. Nice design. I like the clean design of the Nokia N900. And even if there were other people who said it was bulky, I am the type of cellphone user who likes a cellphone that is easy to find in a bag, and that is easy to hold in tight situations. There is nothing flimsy about the sliding mechanism of the N900. It seems that this cellphone was made to be used in the landscape mode.

3. Yes, it’s a cellphone. Searching and finding contacts to place a call is very easy with the Nokia N900. I sometimes get worried about the move of cellphone manufacturers to make their devices small computers. I worry that one day these companies might forget that a cellphone was originally designed for calling.

But the Finnish company, which was among the first to manufacture the best cellphones in the world, has kept its cellphones caller friendly.

Nokia has implemented a quick way to find contacts: you can quickly go through an alphabetically sorted list. Once a contact is found the N900 will propose a phone call, or a VoIP service like Skype.

2. Tap two times. If you want to make a text fit the screen all you have to do is double tap the screen. When the screen is double-tapped the browser will look at the structure of the page and will try to zoom so that you can see the entire page.

1. Something new, something different, something unique. And best of all, the Nokia N900 is not just another smartphone. Don’t get me wrong, it is a smartphone, but more than that, it does a great job of keeping its user connected. I like to call it a data device with a great voice connectivity function, too.

Life can be as simple as it used to be — all we really need to do is to make friends with technology; after all, technology can’t work if there is no human force behind it.