Recently I lost battery power in the sensor for my Nike Sport Kit and found out that I would have to unfortunately pay full price for another sensor retail package from the Apple Store. To make matters worse there was no kind of discount available for its purchase. Fortunately I discovered the Nokia Sport Kit application once again and remembered that it can basically perform the same functions as the Nike Sport Kit except for the iPod/iTunes integration...and all for free from a GPS enabled Nokia unit!! A while back I first used this app with my Nokia E90 but soon learned that it was not meant for jogging without a holster when it fell to the ground. Since then I had no use for Sport Tracker without another GPS enabled Nokia and I continued to rely on the Nike Sport Kit and my nano...until the battery died. At this point I am extremely happy to say that using this Nokia app on my runs for the past few days has been just as fulfilling as using the Nike Sport Kit and is enhanced with the use of GPS. Upon first opening of the Sport Tracker on your Nokia phone it will prompt the user to create an account login and password so that their workouts can be stored to the phone appropriately. This saved information can even be forwarded to an online beta service for the app which uses the same login previously set on the user's phone! The online beta service operates very much like the Nike website in the manner that it stores all of the user's workouts uploaded from the Nokia unit. At this point the same data in regards to distance, time, pacing, max/min speed, etc can either be shared with the online community, with friends or kept private. One interesting aspect of this app is how it traces my route in real time via GPS as I am running through my neighborhood and then saves it to a map view online. Upon studying each route that I have completed so far it is safe to say that the GPS is definitely accurate, although there may be issues when running in between tall city buildings when a sharp spike may appear on the route. The pacing and timing data from the Nokia Sport Tracker compliments that of my previous records with the Nike Sport Kit, so I am confident that I can stay on track with my daily workouts. Another amazing benefit of this app is that I can run with my iPod Touch 32GB instead of the nano, which allows me to have my entire audio library with me during my runs. I get criticsm from people who point out the obvious fact that one cannot possibly listen to 32GB of music on a 3.5 mile run, but this is simply a matter of having variety as I am shuffling my music tracks. I will say that I do miss the tactile click wheel of the nano which allowed me the operate it without looking, but there are always compromises to be made. I believe that this Nokia application will be a reliable resource for me for a good while, for it does feel good to break away a little bit from the iTunes/iPod setup. Not that Apple is at all bad at the business that it is generating with its products, it is just good to have variety as a consumer so that one isn't relying entirely on what could be potentially viewed as a monopoly. Kudos to Nokia for developing this app, for I don't think that even Windows Mobile has anything comparable to this!
Update: a friend of mine gave me the sensor to his Nike Sport Kit that is no longer being used, but I still think that I will keep using my Nokia in the meantime.
The second application mentioned was the Missing Sync for Symbian that I purchased from the Mark/Space website. Such an amazing development this is!!! To be able to have the same reliable and accurate syncing with my Mac and to even have it occur wirelessly AND automatically when my E71-2 is within proximity is pure genius!! I will be honest and declare that when this was first released as a public beta I was not impressed with it and actually uninstalled it immediately from my Mac after using it with my E90. But as of now that has all changed since the people of Mark/Space have worked out the major bugs and made appropriate improvements. The only drawback is that the S60 calendar on my Nokia still doesn't support categories like the Windows Mobile Professional units I own, but this is a very minor issue outweighed by the benefits. It is really impressive to see my Mac and my E71-2 AUTOMATICALLY link with one another and sync PIM data in the midst of my web surfing or iTunes managing!! My Windows Mobile Professional units can't even do this!
For the first time ever in the history of my ownership of smartphone devices I am almost 100% trusting of my E71-2's overall performance. There have been rare issues here and there with sluggishness and emails not regularly updating, but these haven't been cases that couldn't be solved with a simple pressing on the power button. No device will ever be perfect, so I am more than happy to accept this unit for all of its good points. My Nokia E71-2 has solid build quality, amazing speaker volume, loud and clear earpiece volume, a great tactile qwerty, terrific word completion software, AT&T 3G, GPS, Wi-Fi, bluetooth, a suitable camera, a vivid interface, a flash-enabled web browser and a form factor that is practically perfect for daily commuting (not once have I used a belt clip holster)!! Minus the video recording quality and the external stereo speakers, this E71-2 is truly a worthwhile reincarnation of the E90 Communicator.
TRENT
Sent from my Nokia E71-2
6 comments:
Hey Trent,
glad that you back on the right track with Nokia. But the sport tracker where is this application? Is it by GPS? What i see in GPS is an Trip distance. But nothing like an sport tracker?? please advise where i can find this?
Kevin
Hi Trent,
Since your first encounter with Nokia E71 I've been waiting for your posts and opinions on the device. Honestly, while analysing a phone, you are the best. After your this much certificate to E71, I've just decided to go for it. But PLEASE let me know how comfortable are the small keys and compact keypad for FAST and PROLONGED TYPING for HOURS with BOTH hands? My thumbs are NOT VERY Fat. Actually for all most all of my writing works, like taking long notes, writing articles, emails, blog posts, I prefer to use my cellphone. So a comfortable keypad, capable of FAST Typing is very important for me.
Also, I remember your review of Nokia E51. Will prolonged Typing be faster and easier with E71 than with T9 activated E51?
Eagerly waiting for your valued reply. THANKS A LOT in ADVANCE.
Hi Trent,
One more thing. Please update your Blogger Profile, if you think so, as now you are a happy owner of a Nokia E71, but it's not noted there.
With regards,
The Sport Tracker app can be downloaded directly on a Nokia via the Download! folder. I believe it was automatically available on my E71-2. Another method is to go to the Nokia Beta Labs website and get the app from there.
Psmartk,
I have to be honest about the qwerty on the E71-2 and say that it is not the best for prolonged typing. While it is tolerable it isn't as great as the HP 910, but it is still suitable nonetheless. This comes from the fact that the qwerty is more narrow on the E71. The tactile feedback on the E71 is great and allows for fast typing once you are used to it, but you must be careful of the word completion software. As great as it is for typical word editing there is a chance that it could alter certain words by mistake. Despite the narrow sizing of my E71-2 I still find it to be faster than T9 on the E51. While I like the E71 for typing I still miss the HP 910 at times for prolonged typing.
Hi Trent
I keep reading about the excellent handset speaker on the E71 which I've just purchased.
I can hardly hear the person at the other end despite turning it up to full volume.
Have other people reported the same problem? Is there some way of fixing this? Or do I have a faulty handset?
What are your thoughts?
Andy
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