10 Things the Nokia N900 can do better than an iPad
Just sayin, there’s another “Tablet” in town that can do a lot more, and a lot better than the Apple iPad.
The Nokia N900 ! Yes yes I know, it’s not really considered a “Tablet” nowadays but that’s where it has it’s roots, and many people still count it as one.
With that in mind, and in random order, here’s 10 Things the Nokia N900 can do vs the iPad.
- Camera : The iPad doesnt even have one. The N900 though, has a glorious 5 Megapixel Carl Zeiss lens on the back which means you’ll never miss capturing a moment and sharing it with your friends (via the built in sharing functions). To add to this, there’s a front facing camera too that’s (eventually someday) going to be helpful for video calls and video chat (when its supported). And yes, the camera supports video recording too.
- The Whole Web : The iPad’s missing out on a lot of this, because it doesnt have Flash support. This means no YouTube, no Hulu, no Netflix, no Facebook games (like Farmville). The N900 though, can pretty effortlessly surf the whole web. Flash and all. No “special versions” of websites needed for this Maemo device.
- Multitasking : This was the deal-breaker for me. The iPad doesnt have any sort of Multitasking abilities. The N900 though, does it effortlessly. With 256 Mb of Ram, you could almost keep as many programs as you want open in the background.
- Programming : The iPad runs an iPhone-like OS 3.2 which is pretty much hacker-proof. In a bad way. This means you cant really mod or mess around with much. The N900 runs the linux-based Maemo 5 which is much more programmer and “hacker” friendly, which inturn will probably see a lot more being done with the OS.
- Swap them batteries ! : Sure the iPad is all slim and all, but it’s battery is fixed. Cant remove it. The N900 on the other hand can easily swap its battery, which means you can have more backup juice for those tablet long sessions.
- Call People : Haha. Oh yeah, you can call people on the N900. With a normal Simcard at that. Actual, normal Cellphone network calls. Nada with the iPad. How about that ?
- GPS : Oh did I mention the N900 has GPS ? You have Ovi Maps onboard (admittedly in a very basic iteration) and you can Geo-Tag your pictures and view them on a map. None of that for the iPad y’all.
- Pocketable : The iPad measures 242.8 mm x 189.7 mm x 13.4 mm and weighs 1.6 pounds (thats about 0.73 kg). The N900 on the other hand weighs just 181 g and measures 110.9 x 59.8 x 18 mm. A LOT smaller than the iPad and a heck of a lot more pocketable.
- Full Qwerty Keyboard : The N900 slides out to show a Full Qwerty Hardware Keyboard. With the iPad, you have to either make do with the virtual keyboard, or lug around that keyboard accessory.
- Tougher : You have to admit, Nokia devices are known for their reliability and for being tough. Which means the N900 could probably survive a couple falls or two (not that we’ve tried) without completely imploding. Not possible with that big ol’ iPad eh ?
Here’s a fun little video we made, just to illustrate our points :
So there you have it. Im my mind, without a doubt, I think the Nokia N900 is a way better “Tablet” device. I honestly cannot understand all the hype around the iPad.
What do you think ? Am I wrong in thinking so ? Which do you think is the better device, and why ?
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View Comments
I totally agree with you, esp on the multi-tasking, flash support… don't know why they didn't feel the need for it :/
Can't AGREE more.
this the the most original (the very idea of comparison) content and the most awesome content i've ever read on zomgitscj. just amazing.
In the interest of fairness I think I should point out a few things..
5. Battery life on the ipad is far longer than the N900. No 10 hrs on on the N900.
7. The iPad DOES have gps, see http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/
10. Reliability – I have an N97, I would have to disagree with you on this point, although yes, the glass is a weak point on the ipad.
I also think it is worth mentioning that the app store that the ipad has access too eclipses the N900 and possibly symbian altogether.
i agree
Dude it's ASSISTED gps, and it's not really feasible going around places carrying that thing, plus spending 10hrs having yourself immobilised at a spot to use one app at a time from the app store which a smaller ipod touch can already do.
Though the build quality of N97's supposed to be inferior to that of N900, i suppose iPad will have the benefit of being safer from falls since you won't really be carrying it around..
Found this beauty on engadget today –
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/23/android-dual-boot-could-make-nokia- n900-jack-of-two-trades/
“Hacking is par for the course with Nokia’s N900, so it comes as no surprise to see that a motivated individual has managed to get his unit set up in a trick dual-boot configuration with Maemo on internal storage and Android on a separate partition loaded from the microSD card. ”
There is a video posted as well
where will you put the iPad on your car or you are walking when you will use the turn-by-turn GPS ? i think you can use it more when you will buy a stroller
I had to laugh when I watched the 10 Reasons video on Youtube… ON MY N900…knowing that I wouldn't be able to do that on an iPad if I had one. N900 FTW!
The ability to multi task is the real deal breaker. But multitasking and flash supports are software level problem, iPad can do that is Apple allows it too. So not much of a problem. And the point number 10 aren't really valid IMHO. Have you try dropping an iPad and N900 before? Who will survive is still questionable. Nevertheless, I still agree with you that N900 is better than iPad. :p
Ovi Maps voice navigation is not compatible with N900! Also N900 does not have an office suite like iWork or open office. The programs that are available for N900 are extremely expensive!
What are you on about? I'm looking at AbiWord, Evince, freoffice, and a half-dozen sketch / note programs, and that's within 90 days of maemo5 being on the market.
The N900 can run Skype. One suspects the iPad is very locked down to prevent applications such as Skype.
dear Cj, i think you forgot to mention FM Radio and Transmitter ;)
Heh tried to keep it under 10 things :D Otherwise the list could go on and on and on hehe.
You really shouldn't mention the phone call ability and size. iPad is a tablet, N900 is basically a phone. It'll make more sense if you're comparing it to iPhone. Also, I never saw an iTouch/iPhone comparison that mentions the phone feature. Y'know, cause they are both different devices.
But agreed with the rest though, N900 does have much, much more power than iPad.
I just bought a N900 2 weeks ago, I love it. Best phone I've ever owned. I just miss on thing, do you know if you can buy a hardware keyboard for it? Through bluetooth or Micro USB connection. The QWERTY keyboard on it is really good. But when writing larger documents or even doing homework on it, holding it will eventually make my shoulder and fingers tired. So using the little stand on the back on it and connecting a normal keyboard, would make it just like any other computer. (email: trettifem@gmail.com)
Hey there Thomas ! It's very possible to use a Bluetooth keyboard with the N900. NokiaExperts had a good article on that, which might be worth taking a look : http://nokiaexperts.com/nokia-n900-tips-bluetoo...
I couldn't agree with you more. My only complaint about the N900 is the battery life, but I always carry a fully charged spare, as per your point number 5.
No gaming just get a n900 and buy a itouch double win xD
We need a bigger screen and flatter phone man. I'd like to have one though. and of course it would be great if it is beautiful.