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Lots of Singaporeans now have the easy option of surfing outside their home, thanks to Wireless@SG, the initiative led by the Infocomm Development Authority under the iN2015 masterplan that has made almost 4,000 cafes, institutes of learning, commercial and government buildings hotspots areas for wireless net surfing.
That means, with a mobile phone equipped with WLAN or WiFi, it takes just one click to get on board Wireless@SG and onto the worldwide web to upload a blog or download a podcast. It really is that easy if you have the right device.
Testing out the Nokia E65 at a bistro last week for instance, I was able to detect the wireless service of a café two floors up. A day later, using the E90 from Nokia, a colleague of mine was able to jump on the unsecured WLAN of a café next door to the restaurant she was in.
Using the mobile with wireless access is great to make a quick check on email or the news. To do more, you really would need something a tad larger in screen size.
What I noticed last week at the bistro was that most people still carry about their laptops to surf outside their homes, and most are using rather large-sized laptops. Where are the nifty 10-inch ones that are small enough to fit into any bag? Could there be something even smaller, lighter and just as good, I mused as I dreamt about investing in a 10-inch laptop. Then I saw it … the latest gadget that should sit in every bag - the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet.
Holding the device, feeling its weight and experiencing its functionality, had me wondering just why I had hankered after a 10 inch laptop in the first place! I think this just might be the device for me, simply because, size DOES matter.
Imagine, a mere 206 grams packed with the functionality of a 17-inch laptop, dressed in a casing that’s only 144 mm long and 13 mm thick. You can slip it into your pocket or for ladies, an evening bag, if the night ahead seems destined to be long and boring.
The 4.13-inch screen is great for reading and answering those emails, and to also have a decent, proper surfing experience without having to invest later in a pair of prescription glasses. The TFT screen with 800 x 480 resolution means you enjoy clarity to appreciate the QVGA 800 x 480 pixels display.
You can easily work or play on the move with the N800. It comes with an on-screen keyboard and a stylus input pen to jot notes, send email or chat. This is especially with the Nokia Team suite on board. It’s found in all the latest Nokia devices and enables you to conduct multiple conference calls to team members. You can create as many separate ‘teams’ (or groups of contacts), as you want. It’s a very useful function for sales managers, and even, social net-workers. In addition, you can carry out instant messaging and email with your team members.
The N800’s internet access through WLAN or Bluetooth connections to a phone, makes this a definitely must for the next trip away from home.
You can make VoIP calls with video, thanks to the VGA web camera. If you're bored, you can stream your favourite music and videos with the wide range of media formats supported, along with internet radio. It helps too that the N800 comes with stereo speakers.
As a multi-media device, it’s tops. But with 128MB of built-in memory it’ll be handy to make full use of the internal memory card slots, yes plural, since there’s not one but two slots that are compatible with SD, MicroSD, MiniSD, MMC and RS-MMC cards of up to 2GB.
What’s there not to like?
Well, if you’re looking for a keyboard, there’s only a virtual one, which you operate with a stylus, or you can opt for handwriting recognition. But if you write badly and type even worse… there’s little help there since this device, unlike the Nokia E90 Communicator for instance, doesn’t offer voice activated commands or Text-to-speech message reader. Maybe next time.
All will be forgiven though when you think of the laptop you now don’t need and the four-figure price you don’t need to fork out when choosing the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet over a laptop.
It comes at a recommended retail price price of S$698.
Yes, I saved the best for the last.
Discover more about the N800 Internet Tablet here
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