Well, depending on what you want, the N900 can be heaven sent or hell bound.

And lets not beat around the bushes, as of now, THE MAIN PARTS OF THE OS is in landscape mode only, besides the browser, some other third party apps and the phone app.

While ctrl-shift-r (and the shortcutd hack that runs this) allows for rotation, in the end it's still a hack and things might not work as expected. IE, the SMS view is cut off, menus are not shown well (or not shown at all).

Alsp, the keyboard will not work in portrait unless you install other apps or hacks.

So, the short answer is, as long as you're willing to hack and play around with your N900 and accept the risks that comes with it, it will support portrait.

But than again "as long as you're willing to hack and screw around" means you can do a HECK of a lot of things with the N900, and is the main reason I and most of the other guys here love it.

AND more efficient most of the time. I usually run 8+ microB windows (I'm OCed to 850mhz BTW), no slowdowns. I've gone up to 12 windows on many occasions with only minor hiccups.

But I block flash to begin with lol, only load flash elements when I need them. Helps keep things fast.

Note to everyone: apt-get remove using wildcards (qt4* for example) is very, very dangerous.

Wanted to remove qt4-experimental packages (semak my storage only), wiped out python-qt4 along with it lol. Pressed n-enter to abort, N900 took the enter part only lol and removed everything.

Thankfully I've reinstalled everything, and all apps seem to work fine. But that sure took some hours off my life right there.

And also, rm -r is not a good thing to use wildcards with. Unless you're sure your syntax is right.

Yes, roll back to defaults. Unless you're flashing an OC kernel.

But if you've backed up (and was using Titan's kernel before reflash), the App Manager will prompt you to reinstall everything you have before reflash - OC kernel included. Though you have to re-set the OC configs.

Lol, couldn't tahan the loose slider edi, so I tore through the warranty stickers and opened up my N900 for a quick fix. Now everything is as tight as a... well you know, anything tight lar.

Bye bye Comsat warranty - I was planning to run to Nokia Care and let them charge me for repairs anyway. Wih all the Comsat scare stories floating around.

Or at least get spare parts from ebay and repair myself lol.

But seiously, the N900 is really easy to open up for some unknown reason. Have a picture that would make some of us owners cry - the N900 split in half lol - but it's not with me right now.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 14 2010, 04:02 PM

No proper camphone nearby, just a touch cruise first gen (a friend's). Even if I videoed, it'll be pure crap compared to the one tehkseven already has floating around in youtube - the source of me moment of insanity actually.

But really, the insides of the N900 look very... simple...

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 14 2010, 04:07 PM

Bro chica, answers below:

1) I downloaded Evangelion 2.22 400p xvid avi before and dumped all 1.5GB onto the N900. Media player played without any hiccups at all. But for the sake of optimal space usage, I've gone to converting most of my files to baseline H.264 mp4s that are far more efficient than xvid/divx. RMVB is a problem though, haven't tested any but I've heard that only Mplayer does them, and audio goes out of sync after a while.

But VLC is on the way, so no worries.

2) This one is tricky. PDFs, yes it views sans laggness but the built-in pdf viewer is crap. Evince should theoretically do better (will install to test, haven't yet). As for doc, OpenOffice is laggy yes - but it's running chroot. For native viewing you have Abiword, FreOffice and DocsToGo viewer - all of which is more than acceptably fast, but buggy in one way or another (DocsToGo is the best IMHO, premium w/ editing is running late tho for some unknown reason).

It's an app issue really, so as Evince matures (and alternatives get developed), expect things on the PDF/doc front to get better.

And Firefox, it really depends on which Firefox you mean. MicroB runs on a firefox core too you know, and it's so sublime that it's actually the N900's killer app IMHO...

But if you mean Firefox as in proper Firefox (Fennec), it's so so, but flash is slow.

IMO the only advantage Fennec has over MicroB is the add-ons/extensions to begin with so I stick to my modded MicroB with flash-block (now fast and reliable even on 2.5G) with Opera Mobile as backup (and W3M as text based ultra-backup for those reallllllly slow connections).,

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 14 2010, 06:19 PM

YES! I finally solved my greatest issue with NOT having GarminXT on the N900: Speed trap POIs (or the lack thereof).

Funnily enough AFTER I played with Navit and Libgarmin (which can't even route), ONLY did I find out that it was actually very simple.

Managed to convert the MFM speed trap POI into Sygic UPI - and they're showing up fine on Sygic (though the icon I set for it is not showing, oh well). Set it to warn me 1 km prior, should work fine. Will post up here if tests prove that they work.

If any one of you wanna try, just convert GPI->CSV (online tools) -> TXT (Microsoft Excel + some editing) -> GPI (POI Converter from Sygic website).

Also, found out why Sygic seems to randomly crash on me, some downloaded POI data was corrupt somehow (MAL-Selangor to be exact).

Next, to extract POI data from the MFM maps themselves and convert to UPI (one by one, category by category as that's how UPIs work). Sure the Sygic maps suck to begin with, but with more POIs they should work OK enough for general use.

But only if I rajin lol.

@jloi: Sad to hear about the accident, extremely glad to hear you're ok.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 15 2010, 09:30 PM

Converting whole maps is an entirely different problem to begin with, might look into that later. But for right now, wanna convert the POIs built into MFM Maps. Also, if I can figure out how to make UPI icons show properly, can do the whole "every thing has it's own icon" thing MFM is so well known for.

Converting saparate GPIs like the one in the MFM extra POIs pack is not that hard, extracting built-in POIs would be considerably harder. Also, combing through, reclassifying and re-compiling each POI according to it's own class (UPIs only show ONE icon per POI group) is no easy work, considering that there should be thousands of them in each MFM map.

And again, EXTRACTING them to begin with also I'll have to figure out (most prolly I'll have to play with Mapsource).

That's why, we'll probably have to wait until school holidays time - when I'm most free. Maybe then we can set up a group to do this or something.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 15 2010, 09:42 PM

Mmmmm, quake. Maybe I should install it later for a quick frag or two. Wonder if I can get Urban Assault + Bots on as well.

But for me the best time waster so far has got to be Descent. Hopefully LordNelson releases a version that supports D2 as well, I've yet to win that one actually.

That and Jagged Alliance 2. Though I have to squint really hard for JA2.

On a side note, I wonder if my Otterbox arrive edi.

Also, 3G has been acting a lil funky lately, I hope it's just Sialcom being... well... you know, rather then me zapping the 3G module with static when I operated on my N900.

Or the thick electrical tape liberally applied on the backside of the LCD module (to improve the slider tightness - main reason I voided warranty and raided my N900 to begin with) is blocking 3G reception lol.

My 2.5G connections has been superb though. Which is a wonder.

@jakiman: I'm still running 500 all the way up to 850, starving stock voltages. Any advantages of running 3-step in terms of responsiveness?

I really can't run 250 as base because the phone app gets all laggy after the phone is used and locked a while. Using 500 as base has not really shown much battery life impact in actual use for me, but general responsiveness has been good if not impressive - even more so with my modded transitions.ini.

Unless I leave things on and they get swapped, in which case everything slows to a crawl lol.

@gogo2: There are several methods to get chinese input already on the N900:

1) MSCIM
2) Stroke-order
3) Online javascript
4) Emacs
5) Penpower
6) Kanjipad (in a way)

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 16 2010, 01:37 AM

Everything in my list is free as in beer (RM0), and free as in speech (FOSS).

Except maybe Penpower (not really free as in speech? Not sure, but definately free as in beer).

If you need a PHONE that does smart things (and takes GREAT pics), stick with the Satio though. The N900 is quite severely crippled on the PHONE side (also, no 3G calling yet), and Symbian STILL has quite a few apps that the N900 lacks. Camera and video on the N900 is also so-so.

If you want a mobile computer that makes calls and SMSes (and MMSes sometimes, if fMMS doesn't screw you) - AND can be hacked to your heart's content - then come on over to the N900 camp. Provided you like to mess around and don't mind reflashing if something goes wrong.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 16 2010, 01:47 AM

How crippled? Lets see:

1) No contact grouping
2) No per caller ringtone
3) No 3G video calling
4) Phone app sometimes screws up while you're doing a lot of things (lags and freezes = missed call)
5) No speed dialing
6) No voice dialing

There's some more, but those are the major problems, although an app called MyContact solves the first two problems (and number 6) and the forth one, well, is dependent on how heavily you load the N900 and if you're OverClocked (you can REALLY, REALLY multi-task on the N900 after all).

But speaker phone is KINDA loud (only a little lower volume compared to the 5800/N97, though it sucks in the car) and ring tone is loud enough IMHO.

And voice is ok, no real problems on that front unless you are in an area with bad reception (like all other phones). It's not as good as some newer phones with double microphones and noise cancellation though (Droid/Milestone and Nexus One).

@jananan: sorry bro, fast typing on N900 at late night + ngantuk = typos galore.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 16 2010, 02:15 AM

For me on 2G pure mode, it's still bearable at low signal situations. But 3G with low signal is a ridiculously gone case, it seems our little computer baby needs to be held the "right way" or something lol?

But then again, the person I call most regularly lives in a cellular black hole, so it's hard to tell if it's my side at fault or otherwise.

As for the CPU, I see the CPU fluctuations as well. But being confined to 500-850, it's not so bad. I guess a lower limit of 250 does cause the CPU to step up more often, but then my setup is more performance biased (Powersave bias = 0, threshold = 75, sampling rate = 150000) so it goes to 850 faster to begin with.

As a result, the OS as a whole stutters less but spends more time going full throttle. I'm from the "get things done faster so you can idle more" camp after all, though I do love the N900 (and plan to use it long) enough not to let it blaze around at 1GHz all the time (hence the modest 850 top cap).

But if you're right, less flipping through the numbers also seems like a good thing. Do continue researching and see if we can make the A8 sip less power WHILE retaining adequate responsiveness.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 16 2010, 02:30 AM

Of course, check the Maemo.org overclock wiki for a script that underclocks automatically when the N900 is locked. But it makes things laggy from my research.

Other than that, you can install Titan's kernel and kernel settings from AppMan (the guide up front is for lehto's kernel actually, but yes it's the easiest) and tweak the low-high CPU limits and voltages yourself for best battery life, as every N900 is unique when it comes to OC tweaking. But it takes some work and a lot of reading up on the Maemo website.

Also, if you don't have any apps running in the back when locked, the N900 runs at 0mhz anyway - whatever OC method you use.

Witter. It's got a smexy portrait keyboard hey! There's also the smoother looking Tweetgo. Mauku also does twitter.

But stay away from the Twitter plugin for the internal conversation app. It has a cpu eating bug, as for now.

@Cloud3818: Actually the only REAL high-cap battery is the Mugen Power one, and it's only available online. The local high cap ones are usually crap.

You're better off with a USB battery pack if you wanna extend battery life without battery swapping, IMHO.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 16 2010, 11:52 AM

Either you have a busted battery or a buggy widget somewhere sucking up juice. Do check. You have autodiscon installed? It does help battery life a lot.

Using XP2000 right now, get the short Nokia USB charging cable (DC-10?), some velcro tape and you're set.

Got it for RM160-ish from Hypermart PJ.

But you also have XP4000-4400-8000, but the size is considerably larger.

The BEST USB battery pack I know of is Just Mobile Gum Pro, 4000mah in a package only slightly thicker than XP2000 (but MUCH heavier) and for about the same price + high power (1000ma/5v) charging = charges your N900 as fast as your wall charger can.

Only problem it's ONLY available online or from ebay.

Thus the 1000ma output Just Mobile Gum Being the better choice, as everything else I know of ONLY outputs 500ma = would only charge effectively if the phone is idle.

But even then, it's still nowhere as fast as the wall charger, although by using USB packs the effective running time of the phone gets extended by a few long hours (phone draws power more from USB charger than internal battery.

@cloud3818: Just get what you need. The XP2000 is good for a full charge up (not completely though) and the XP4000 is good for 2x that.

Anyhow, enough of that. I just got my Otterbox, and from what I'm seeing so far, it's worth every sen.

Main issues:

1) Had to korek my own lanyard/strap hole (actually made a mistake and made 2)
2) The top part of the keyboard (the small strip of empty space) now has been blocked by the thick top cover (the top row is now slightly harder to type with).
3) The unlock slider and stylus is harder to access.
4) Provided screen protector looks cheap.

... but everything else is top notch, especially in terms of design. It's actually not just stupidly mahal branded rubberised case + silicone liner. The seams are actually designed to make sure that the part that clips onto the top part never interferes with the one that clips onto the bottom (the main cause of hard case clip breakage).

Gonna use for a while before I go and give it a full on review, but I'm liking it so far.

No noticeable added friction when sliding at all (although my N900 is deliberately hard to slide to begin with as I've modded the slider mech). And it's RM95-ish including postage from ebay, not cheap, but with the no-go of the resin case, what other option do I have (that doesn't regularly break like the Epik Rubber case)?

Will posts pics later when I do the full on review in a few days.

One thing I can tell you though, because it's made to securely fit on your N900, it takes a lot of effort to pull off once you have it on - to the point that an external battery of some sort becomes a must (pulling it off to put your spare BL5J takes so much freakin work that it's annoying).

Playstation ISOs are STILL NOT abandonware, but your local ROM website should have them - google for Playstation ROMs. I'm not gonna go any further than that though, non-abandonware linking is still Jack Sparrow-ing.

And the scph1000/1001/whatever is the BIOS file, which I cannot legally tell you where to get (unless you have/have bought a PS some time in the past). But a quick trip to uncle google should help.

Though all this is useless for me - my AC3 Japanese version (arguably the best Ace Combat version out there) is extremely PSX4ALL unfriendly. Wonder if FM3 would run though.

Also, PROPER USSD and SERVICE CODE support released today: http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=58712

Now we can use StarHash (*#06#) codes like the olden days.

This post has been edited by Eiraku: Jul 19 2010, 09:37 AM