“Symbian is celebrating its 10 years anniversary. On Symbian site there is an interactive timeline you can quickly browse through the Symbian history. It is fun and brings back a lot of memories. I am surprised that Nokia 3650 is not there. That is the first Symbian phone I ever used in 2003. It is the first MMS phone in US (?) and the first Java handset with MMAPI support. After that I remember Sony Ericsson P800, P900, Nokia 6600, Nokia 9500 and a few newer E Series and N Series.The reason that I pick Symbian (Nokia S60 in particular) device as my personal cell phone is that it is the best developer handset you can ever get. With Nokia’s upcoming N96 for example, you can develop software for it with:
- Java (CLDC/MIDP,eSWT)
- Symbian C++ and Open C
- Python
- Flash Lite 3.0
- SilverLight Mobile
- Nokia WRT Widget
That is just the official supported list. With 3rd party solution, you can add Visual Basic .NET and other options to the list. If you are a developer who are interested in mobile development, there is no other device can even come close to Symbian’s openness and wide language options. As a normal user, more development options for developer means more cool, open and free applications available.Symbian is experiencing some growing pain now. Palm OS, a mobile platform with almost the same age as Symbian, is dying and rebirthing. I am glad to see Symbian OS is still very strong and innovative. I wish it the best.” via wendong.ngphone.com
DivX, Inc, a digital media company, today announced certification of the Samsung Omnia (model: SGH-i900), the newest handset in a growing series of DivX Certified(R) mobile products by Samsung Electronics Co., LTD. DivX and Samsung recently entered into a multi-year agreement to include DivX encode and decode capabilities into Samsung’s future mobile phones, signaling the company’s leading edge in the competitive mobile market. The Samsung Omnia is the first Windows Mobile-based DivX Certified phone on the market and the fourth Samsung mobile to achieve DivX Certification(TM). It features 8GB/16GB of internal memory with a micro SD slot, allowing users to keep a media library on the device, and easily enjoy their video on a large 3.2-inch touch screen. It also features a TV-Out feature to play back content from the phone directly on the television screen. This powerful experience and a portable library gives users the choice of how and where to watch their video. DivX technology enables a high-quality media experience in which video content can be seamlessly transferred from the PC to the mobile environment and beyond. “By including DivX video decoding in the Omnia, we’re giving our users the high-quality technology they would expect from a mobile phone with an advanced feature set,” said Younghee Lee, Vice President of Marketing for Samsung’s Telecommunication Business. “Samsung will continue to provide a flexible, enjoyable multimedia experience to our consumers with DivX on our mobile devices. It was of strategic importance to continue our relationship with DivX, for value added not only in the Omnia, but throughout the Samsung mobile line.” “As the availability and creation of video content explodes, being able to take videos from the PC on-the-go and from the mobile to the living room is of increasing importance to consumers,” said Kevin Hell, CEO at DivX, Inc. “Samsung has recognized that DivX allows users to do more with their media, and we’re pleased that Samsung has continued to expand DivX certification to their mobile devices.” Products that bear the DivX Certified logo have undergone a rigorous testing program to ensure a high-quality DivX media experience, including reliable video creation and playback, interoperability with other DivX Certified devices and the visual quality users expect from DivX. The DivX Certified Omnia launches in South East Asia mid June and will be available in European countries shortly thereafter. For more information on Samsung Mobile, visit 