In terms of capabilities or technical terms, many phones already outrun iPhone.

But in end user or for normal user, iPhone might still be the best up till today mainly because of it's apps available and the usability/usage of the phone/device.

Really depends what you want or looking for. Find out yourself what you want and which phone suits you the best. N900's Maemo OS is totally different from the rest, is what I can tell you, and it's also the only device running Maemo 5.

Some people prefer Android OS design, WinMo, iPhone's OS, Symbians, etc. Other than OS, it also depends the design of the phone, and what are the factors you look into, e.g. the cameras, multi-touch, keyboard, etc. and how important is each to you.

As an end user, if you're looking for a true multi-tasking device with pc-like experience web browsing. The N900 is no doubt the best you can find. It's amazing when you can use to surf net and multi-task at Starbucks or anywhere just like having a laptop with you. My friend who owns the iPhone also have his eyes wide-open and "wow-ed" by it and started to pay attention to this device.

But if you're someone who uses the phone a lot, needs very stable phone and make frequent calls, or are very particular with camera functions; you might want to re-condsider or think carefully and review the phone in detail first.

just wondering,,

1. n900 doesn't have fm radio? only transmitter? how about the receiver?
2. the sms tone,, full tone or only for a few second?
3. what so speacial about meego?

please help coz i want to decide to buy n900 or Iphone 3gs,,

I haven't really encounter crash so far; lag probably when the processor usage is high or when something is running the in background. If you know what to do, you can kill/close the application from X-Terminal (MS-DOS alike for Maemo/Linux). If not, just simply restart your phone.
It's best if you install the "System Info Widget" which allows you to view the processor and ram usage on your desktop, thus if you notice your processor is using up constantly and you're not running any programs, you can suspect something hidden is running.
Nonetheless, the N900 Maemo 5 OS is still very fresh and new, many things to be improve and bugs to fix. Eventually it'll get better.

As for N97, the initial firmware has quite a lot of problems too, it's not smooth and laggy too. The latest firmware is pretty stable and smooth too, also have kinetic scrolling.

There's another more annoying problem on the Symbian, which is you can't make calls and you keep get "Connection Error". And another is the call didn't get through and goes to some voice operated like "The number you have dial...." and keeps repeating, you can't cancel, you can't do anything, just can wait until it automatically stops. That's more annoying, but after some firmware updates, the problems seems rearely or never happen again, can't even remember.

Don't worry, software issues can be fixed, as long as it's not hardware, then it's more of a headache. These are very complicated software/OS, thus there can NEVER be any perfect one; it's through testing, user's feedback, etc that the software/OS gets better and better.

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Added on March 16, 2010, 7:57 pm

For people who're interested in iPhone, please understand about the battery replacement issues.

And make sure you take good care of the battery. I mean, REALLY!

No problem. Don't worry, nowadays update is very easy, just download the NSU (Nokia Software Updater), connect your phone via USB and it will check and download latest firmware and update it. It also works for older N series which supports USB connection. I've been updating my previous N series myself via the NSU.
Or for faster and safer way, just send to Nokia Care to update it (if you bought authorised set (Zitron/Avaxx), you can update it for free if it's still under warranty.)

can come to me, today price 1930..

This is the same old stuff, same source. Nothing is confirmed yet, and it's been mentioned many times.

Anyway, check out official MeeGo website, they're using N900 in the main page picture itself.

Of course, there's still no confirmation whether it will be officially available for the N900 in the future.
GPS yes of course. There're also Infra Red (which many devices do not have, long forgotten features) and also FM Transmitter (another cool feature).

Currently the phone functionality is very very basic; You can't even assign ringing tone to individual contacts, no contacts grouping, etc. It's very basic phone function, basically it's an Internet Tablet (think laptop with touchscreen; hence Tablet) with "added" phone functionality.
These are softwares issue, sure it can be improve and updated. As long as it is not missing the hardware (e.g. camera).

When new iPhone launch, N900 is long outdated, lol; You might want to consider MeeGo devices VS Android 3.X (or higher) devices VS iPhone.

Anyway, actually for now, so many phone has already beaten the iPhone. When iPhone first launch, no doubt, it was a "WOW!!!!!" and really make a BIG difference to the smartphone market, like a big difference in technology. But then, think again, iPhone 2G -> iPhone 3G -> iPhone 3GS, actually it's like minor/small updates, nothing exciting and more like squeezing people's money. Imagine bought 2G, then come out 3G, the SAME THING just with 3G, then 3GS, again like a small "facelift" model with some improvements. All this I call rubbish, pardon me.
They should drop and come out with TOTALLY NEW and again WOW the market, not keep doing minor updates,... (e.g. 3GSS? 3GX?)
And another major problem with iPhone... the battery!!! Try watch YouTube and see how risky and hard it is to change the battery, it's really stewpid and totally unfair to do this to the consumers.
Another thing is that it is very very "CLOSE" or very "restricted" device, and tell the truth, would you not want to jailbreak it? 

Now, I think the Android devices are moving really fast, and the community support and participation is superb. They even have overclock Moto Milestone processor! And the apps and games are coming up like crazy and fast, not to mentioned great ones. In Malaysia, probably it's less well known to the public as many might not be tech conscious and many are brand conscious, but I think with Sony brand bringing in Xperia X10, that would make a difference.
Besides, seems some Android devices already have flash support!

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Added on March 19, 2010, 11:05 am

Actually, for now, many app is simply ported to N900~ Which makes it even faster.

We have PSX emulator, N64 Emulator, in the works.

PicoDrive ported (Sega Megadrive Emu)
SNES
GBA
GB

There's also other apps from older Maemo ported to Maemo5, and so on.

But I think the issue now is... the next major updated which will sort of change the structure of current Maemo OS? Wonder what will happen to all those apps currently available.

I think there're many apps/games ready for the next update, we just need to wait for the next major update to be released...
Oh darn! It's been so long....

To be honest, with technologies moving so fast, if you want to keep update to the latest, it's very hard; One thing you can do is decide the best device for "yourself" not others.
Every phone design is different, even they may have very similar design, like the N900 and Motorola Milestone, but still there're some people prefer N900 while some prefer the Milestone.
If design is not a factor for you, then look at what's important for yourself and what fits you most.

The N900 and Milestone only have 5MP camera for example, while the X10 have 8MP cam and have 1Ghz snapdragon processor. The X10 seems more updated than the other 2, but it lacks qwerty keyboard; it depends how important is each to the buyer/owner.

To me, even tough I've known the N900 lacks of capacitive touch screen, multi-touch capabilities, AMOLED or SUPER AMOLED, could have been better with 1Ghz processor and also more RAM; but most important is whether it is good and efficient. No point a phone have 1 Ghz processor if it's slow and laggy right? Most important is it works fine, the resistive touch screen works fine for me too (who care if it's resistive or capacitive; if one does not know, he/she just care whether it works nicely), the display is OK too altough would hope it can do better under sunlight condition. The key point here is whether the things work fine or good enough. Of course, more is better and always welcome. 
Besides, the N900 have Infra Red, FM Transmitter, which isn't commonly available. You don't always find a device with these available; I'd say it's a great device.

Ok, to make it simple and short:
If you're worry about outdated, then get the latest phone and NEVER follow up news of any new phones 
If not, go check out the real thing yourself, you might get yourself an answer if you really like the phone.

thanks! just hope it helps, most important if you like the phone, suits you and don't regret later.
whichever phone u get, learn more about it and utilize it, make it worth. each phone also have it advantages or appealing points unless we're rich and don't mind carry many phones, maybe we can get each hahaha. too bad nobody come out with the best of everything, so we can just chnoose the closest thing that is best for us.

in terms of gps, n900 currently really lacks of great gps software especially those we use often like garmin or papago. not sure how long or will it be available in future as this maemo5 os is only available on 1 phone now. i doubt those companies will want to specially develop or port one for the n900... so if gps is the top priority, u might want to consider again.
wifi is no problem, touch is not a problem too plus is super accurate and u can use ur nail, its less sensitive but i kinda prefer like this, too sensitive can be annoying too depends on individual or probably need some time to get used to.
camera is decent, need to play around with the settings to capture better quality,its alsohave quite some noise and the white balance needs some improvements. but all these i suppose can be improve/fix through software updates. would be great if it has more advanced settings.

smootheness... oh yes, it's great! i mean, its sick! it has nice and smooth transition, look and feel nice. the user interface looks sick too, very nice desktop concept and design, like no other phones in the market.

problems?
well, sometimes the phone can get quite laggy due to some app taking up the processing power or when u first connected to the internet and all the updates and login running in background. the thing with smartphones (any smartphones) is tha u have too have some patience and understand whats going on and adapt to it. if hyou see its laggy, find out whats wrong and don't keep press and press or reset the phone, just like a computer, some ppl just hit the power buttom.

other problems are mostly software problems which can be fixed/improved in newer updates.
like the lack of contacts grouping, individual contacts ringtone assign, basic phone funtion, etc.
lack of apps and updates 
seeing android getting so many updates and cool apps/games is really uneasy hehe, making me more impatient with the next update for n900. 

for hardware part, i just wish it comes with more ram and also faster processor. but it's still a great and awesome device nonetheless.

oh btw, this is posted through n900.The beauty of having a qwerty keyboard!
p/s? forgive me for any spelling mistake.

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Added on March 20, 2010, 11:46 am

check out N900 push technology and what they're doing. it's simply amazing!
thwy're controlling ao many type of thing using the N900!

n97 mini can use garmin for now...
later n900 should be ok one... just wait the latest garmin annoucement

n900 next week price drop some, 1880 can get for ap new set... woohoo   
who wan buy is time to buy it..

Garmin is good but since got the free nokia maps...i've been using it too..plus the google maps street live view is good too

he is a seller, of coz he knows
there are a number of gps softwares but only some have a detailed maps for malaysia..as i know, malsingmap/malfreemap provides map for garmin,mapking,popogo and somemore..but the most popular one is garmin bcoz easy to get for free..

Poor guy getting so confuse.

Let me do a comparison for you.

N97 vs N900 70% of the hardware are identical except for the processor, ram and OS.
First ask yourself what is the purpose of you getting the phone den only find the phone to suit you.

N900
Fast processor
Fast 3D graphic accelerator
Fast RAM
Limited Software and games are found at the moment ( Future there will be more)
running on Linux Maemo so the unlimited possibility is even possible
Support H264 video codec
Currently only support in landscape mode
No MMS support at the moment
Support Flashlite 9.4 aka u can use browser to load flash
Full Screen view
Capable to multi task
More expensive compare to N97
1320 MAH battery  ( so powerful but lack of battery life)
Better Animation
Support INFRA
Comes with Bluetooth 2.1
Higher resolution 800 x 480 pixels
3G support up to HSDPA, 10Mbps; HSUPA, 2Mbps

N97
Using Symbian OS so alot of games and software available to download
Slower processor
Slower ram
Lack of 3D graphic accelerator support
1500 MAH battery ( Alot of juice to last all day)
Average animation
Phone is laggier
FM Transmitter
Limited outdated codec support so always need to convert
Features Identical N900 with N97
3.5 inch screen
FM Transmitter
QWERTY Keyboard
Resistive touch ( Iphone running capacitive aka must use finger only)
Dual Speaker
32GB Internal Memory expandable to 48GB with SDHC memory card
Both also heavy
Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate
And for your GPS question Garmin have more features and flexibility compare to other GPS softwares. And Garmin maps are the most up to date from MFM website compare to other maps due to lack of mappers.

thats true but it comes with a price.New OS have its own problem like lack of softwares.

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Added on March 20, 2010, 11:26 pm

Even when N97 was launch there was tons of problems even n97 doesnt support kenetic scrolling. After a few updates of firmware its pretty stable now.

Just calculate Nokia 5800 is using the same battery with N900 i can tell u the battery sux. Massive usage or online 4hrs flat. When my N97 can last me from 8am to 8pm.

Actually N900 have lots of functions rather than just call and sms. Well in some part I agree with u N900 has a pretty basic sms and call function, but do u ever think about the IM? This is the only phone that can open YM, MSN, Google Talk, Skype at the same time!!.. Plus they are all integrated into one.. same like pidgin in linux 

The Emails (Mail for exchange and Nokia messanging) also work like charm..

The Internet browser.. There's no need to explain about it coz it has the best internet browser for phone right now

p/s: I really love the ctrl-v and ctrl-x function.. feels like using a real computer   

My conclusion for N900 is... U need to get a 3G connection / wifi for it to be totally utilize. I've been using N900 in quite awhile and still never get bored with it... So many things to be explored 

OS different is already enough to bring one into a whole new world

define lower? Is RM1000 lower in 10months time? If really got so low price when u still cant make up your mind someone else already buy it

PR1.2 SDK (Software Development Kit) is available, we can see the changes from there.

http://thenokiablog.com/2010/03/22/nokia-n...k-major-update/

Darn, can't wait for the real update!
Will the official launching unit in Malaysia already come with PR1.2? If not, they're doing a very bad move to expect Customer to update themselves and bringing more problems to themselves.

Pray Pray    
P/S: There's new version of NSU (Nokia Software Updater). Just updated yesterday...

Yup, fully agree on recommending phone based on the purpose.

Previously, I was actually more like differentiating between Android based device Vs Maemo as the person who asked was deciding between both. So, I gave slightly more in depth on both OS, being Android will have more support from both google and the community, and a better choice is one is more concern about apps/games "for now".

Anyway, usually I try to add in the final word as a summary or in short, for those who prefer short and simple answer; As this is a discussion/sharing forum, plus we're talking about smartphones, possibly someone might want to know more; I know I would if I'm new to both and don't know where to start.

Just my personal opinion~ Cheers~ 
Battery terrible?
Um... yea, IF you came from a non-smart phone background; Basically, "smart"phones are like a phone + mini computer. So, you should expect the battery consumption is higher than normal phone and also understand and be a little more patient with the phone, just like handling a computer (sometimes, it may lag a little, etc).
Overall, I do the N900 is more power hungry than other "smart"phone, but it also depends on how you use it.
If you care a lot about battery consumption, just follow the battery saving tips/advice on the web, and don't put any update/background processing widget on the N900 Desktop. It should last you up to 2~3 days most probably?
I can't tell because I bought this device to ENJOY it, not to save battery. Imagine buying a sports car, but driving very slow to save petrol. Again, this is just my personal opinion and everyone has their own personal way of doing things, there's no right or wrong.

Also, if you've been using those older phones. I suppose the battery are Ni-Cad or Ni-Mh Battery? If yes, you might want to know that most phones nowadays already use Li-Ion or Li-Poly; These battery you should NEVER let it die off (means, don't wait until the phone turn off due to low battery). You can charge it as often as you like, but NEVER let it go empty as it will damage/shorten the life of the battery.

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Added on March 22, 2010, 10:24 pm

Are you doing that in web browser?

Just slide your finger or stylus from the LEFT SIDE of the non-display area towards the display area.

I actually put up a demo for this, but it's at the last section of the video:

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Added on March 22, 2010, 10:30 pm

For Facebook contacts sync and integration with the contacts in N900, try below instead of the Hermes app:
http://thenokiablog.com/2010/02/10/how-to-...out-of-the-box/

T__T...abit despo for money and feel like selling it..but in other geart i wan this phone! T___T..LOL

Haha, I also wanted Portrait mode; but when I think about the Desktop, it doesn't look right to be in Portrait mode. But the MENU might make sense in Portrait mode as it's just a list style, just like every other phones.
I think you mean *#06#, which gives you the IMEI number, which then you can check where this phone is built. This previously was a circulated/forwarded mails.

Not sure how true but anyway, for N900 US set, it is make in Korea as stated in the box itself.
My old Nk6600 has the code of "00" which according to the forwarded emails, it's made in the original factory, best quality.
Uuuuhhh, has the BB "force" get into you? Are you switching over?

Yes, u can also make pre-order thru the Nokia Zitron centre located at Pulau Tikus, just opposite the One stop shopping complex. U need to pay 200 bucks for deposit and it comes with free DC-11 charger too, act fast!

not reli like BB XP..d only thing i like from BB is d twitter apps, ubertwitter..yea i m a heavy twitterer XD..feel like selling it off to fund for my cam gear T_T
Yes i do, bought it b4 CNY 

the 2 codes is the 7th and 8th digit of the IMEI.

For the N900, physically, you can check for any scatches, check the gap betwen your LCD part and the keyboard part, some units are pretty "loose" and have big gap. Check the slide is it very loose or firm.
For 2nd hand, more things to check... check the screen properly for scratches, test out each key is it working properly.
Check the camera lens condition, check the led lights (slide the phone to reveal the keyboard which has white lightings) and also the LED fash is working.
Test the speaker, FM transmitter, also test the microphone (do a video recording and make sure it can record sound clearly). Try and make a call and make sure the other party can hear you and you can hear the other party clearly.
Test the WiFi, etc.

Important:
Check the USB port on the Phone, make sure it's firm and tight!
When plugging in and plugging off the USB charger/cable, do it with care. The pre-prodocution unit have major problem with it where it comes off.
Suppose the production unit should have fix the problem, but just taking precaution.

You might also want to check for Dead Pixels, and so on. Actually, there is an app (program) which you can install to check for many things. It's call HealthCheck, check below for more info:
http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=45453

nop..if i sell it my gf gonna angry on me..said i simply spend money again XP