The N97 mini also receives a number of other changes, including updates to the Mail application and other built in applications, and performance and stability improvements. Applications now open more quickly and the UI is smoother when browsing through long lists (e.g. in Photos, Mail and Music player).
Some of these updates have been previously been made available via separate download or via the Sw Update application. If you have not previously done so there are a number of updates available via the Sw update application that are also worth installing (e.g. Internet radio 2.2). The Sw update application can also be used to start the firmware OTA update process (Phone software - around 17 MB in size).
N97 mini firmware v30 - updated browser and improved performance. Published by Rafe Blandford at 10:42 UTC, July 6th 2011. A new firmware for the Nokia N97 mini, version 30.0.004, is now available OTA (17MB) or via Nokia Software Updater (Ovi Suite). This is part of the series of updates to older devices that Nokia announced last week. I updated my N97 mini recently to FW 30.0.004 (It's available in India). But I had to reset my phone because I kept getting annoying out of memory messages and because I couldn’t uninstall the tons of apps from system manager (which kept closing automatically due to out of memory issues). Nokia N97 mini RM-555 Version 30.0.4. Phone Name: Nokia N97 mini; Product Type: RM-555; Firmware Version: 30.0.4; Variant ID:; Varian Name: Rm-555. 99 Comments Nokia N97 with Ported Firmware from C6-00 V42.0.004 (Latest) There are many CFW but full with bugs. For example many CFW have full and mini qwerty virtual keyboard but video calls are disabled because stupid moders overwrite StaticFeatures.dll to enable one feature but disable another.
The most important update is the new version of the Web application, which significantly improves the web browsing experience. We described the browser update in our original post here:
S60 5th Edition devices receive an update to version 7.3.1.26 of the Web application. This is the same version that ships with Symbian Anna and includes updates to both the rendering engine (WebKit) and the UI of the the application.
The new UI is more intuitive and is less clunky that the previous version. An address / search bar sits at the top of every page, but is also available, at any time, by tapping or swiping down from the top of the screen. At the bottom of the screen, two floating buttons, on either side of the screen, give access to navigation ('back') and additional browser functions. One notable new feature is the ability to open a new browser window on demand, effectively giving multi-tab-like support to the browser.
Web standard support is also improved with initial (basic) support for HTML 5, expanded support for CSS 3, and JavaScript 1.8. A good illustration of how this improves the browsing experience is that these updates mean that AAS's (Disqus) JavaScript based commenting system now works on these devices. Support for International Domain Names (IDNs) and also support for non-ASCII letters such as Arabic or Chinese is also added. Nokia Developer provides a technical overview of the update here.
The new version of the WebKit engine is used by WRT applications; this gives a noticeable speed improvement to applications such as the Facebook client. The Facebook client now offers similar performance to Nokia Social on the Symbian^3 devices.
Nokia N97 mini version 30.0.004 change log
- Web application updated to 7.3 with new UI and updated WebKit engine
- Updated Ovi Maps 3 to Service Release 6 (also known as 3.06 / 3.6)
- Emoticon support in Messaging for SMS and MMS
- Smart dialler added to homescreen
- Updated version of Nokia Messaging with improved HTML support
- Ovi Contacts removed, intended replacement is Nokia IM
- General performance and stability improvements
In light of the Nokia N97 firmware update a couple of days ago, Nokia also released a new firmware update for the Nokia N97 mini, taking it up to v11.0.045. The new firmware brings along similar features and usability improvements as the Nokia N97 update, with the inclusion of more RAM after booting and music player improvements. New firmware updates also contain many bug fixes and optimizations necessary for other software to perform correctly, therefore we recommend you always keep your device up to date. Check out the rest of the details along with the full changelog after the break.
Firmware v11.0.045 Changelog | Nokia N97 mini
The software contains many fixes and improvements on the earlier releases including:
- Improved call reliability
- More free RAM after booting (55mb)
- Browser improvements
- Music player improvements
- Improved image and video stability
Unfortunately the new version of Ovi Maps 3.3 has not been preloaded and will therefore require a separate installation. Its definitely worth it as voice guide navigation is now completely free. You get the latest version here.
How To Update The Firmware:
There are many ways of updating the firmware on your Nokia handset. To install the software through your device using FOTA (Firmware Over-The-Air), type in *#0000# on the home screen or go to ‘Device Manager’. Then select ‘Options’, ‘Check for updates’ and follow the on screen prompts. If the firmware update is not immediately available via FOTA, or the device you are using does not have support for this service, you can also update your firmware using NSU (Nokia Software Updater) and or Nokia Ovi Suite on your PC. Once you plug your device in, use the ‘PC Suite’ mode ensuring that the phone has a Sim Card inside and the profile is set to ‘General’. Some devices also support UDP (User Data Preservation), which will preserve all your data and content on your device during these updates. However we still recommend you do a full backup just in case anything was to go wrong (highly doubt it if you follow the instructions). If you have any further questions just drop a comment below, and if you like, how about sharing some of your experiences with the new firmware, we’d love to know what you think of it.
Nokia Custom Dictionary | Changing The Way You Use Predictive Text
The Nokia Beta Labs have just announced a new experimental application for S60 users to edit the list of words used by the phone for text prediction and transfer it between phones. Nokia Custom Dictionary gives you the chance to import words from a text file. This means you can quickly “teach” your phone commonly used words or even create specific word lists to be shared among a like-minded community, for example in the medical domain. Check out the video demo after the break.
New Firmware PR 2.1 (v21.0.045) | Nokia N97
Nokia has today released a new firmware update PR 2.1 for the Nokia N97, taking it up to v21.0.045. The new firmware brings along a host of new features and usability improvements including smoother touch screen scrolling and browser improvements. New firmware updates also contain many bug fixes and optimizations necessary for other software to perform correctly, therefore we recommend you always keep your device up to date. Check out the rest of the details along with the full changelog after the break.
Nokia N97 Mini Firmware V30.0.004 Update
Changelog for the Nokia N97 PR 2.1 (v21.0.045) Firmware
The software contains many fixes and improvements on the earlier releases including:
- Improved call reliability
- More free RAM after booting
- Smooth touch screen scrolling
- Browser improvements
- Music player improvements
- Improved image and video stability
How To Update:
Nokia N97 Mini Deals
To get this software through your device using FOTA (Firmware Over-The-Air), type in *#0000# on the home screen or go to Device Manager. Select Options > Check for updates and follow the on screen prompts. Additionally this software release should also be available via NSU (Nokia Software Updater) and Nokia Ovi Suite. Although the Nokia N97 supports UDP (User Data Preservation), we still recommend you do a full backup to ensure you do not lose any data.