Nokia Maps & internal GPS on the Nokia 6650

http://maps.nokia.com

The AT&T branded Nokia 6650 includes AT&T Navigator powered by TeleNav.
Unfortunately this requires a subscription of $9.99 per month plus data charges for route information (no charge for maps). But if you're in the know with Nokia products and services then you might have heard of Nokia Maps or non-subscription based mapping solutions like Garmin.

I've heard the 6650 has an internal GPS but I didn't see any of the customary Nokia GPS related applications like GPS data to show satellite and position information.

Would AT&T lock out the internal GPS like the Verizon's Blackberry GPS while AT&T's Nav relied on network assisted GPS? If the internal GPS was working, would GPS applications other than AT&T's Nav work with the internal GPS? Let's find out...

First, let's download and install Nokia Maps onto the 6650.

Go to http://maps.nokia.com and click download. You will see the screen below to choose your phone:


You won't see the Nokia 6650 on the list so choose the Nokia E50 (it's close to the 6650 as they're both portrait oriented). Although the Nokia 6650 runs S60 3rd Ed. FP2 like the N85, Nokia chose not to include the additional S60 packages needed to run the later versions of Maps. So we're stuck with Nokia Maps 1.2.

I connected the 6650 to my computer using a USB data cable (CA-101, not included with 6650) and installed it via Nokia PC Suite but I'm sure you can do it by Bluetoothing the SIS to the 6650:

Seeing the install message is a good sign it'll likely work

Opening Nokia Maps from the 6650, click Options > Map Options > Satellite Info and you'll see the screenshots below:

Satellites connection strength:

The dark blue shows I'm locked on!

Satellite relative positioning:

The darker blue are the locked satellites

With maps loaded on Nokia Maps and a GPS lock:


To avoid data charges for downloading maps I suggest turning off network use in Settings > Network > Use network = Never and pre-loading maps from your computer via Nokia Maps loader.

I was very surprised to find out the Nokia 6650's internal is open for other applications to use and it's a real GPS. Not some lame network based GPS. It's also a very fast locking GPS taking less than half the time of my N82. I'm very impressed with the Nokia 6650's GPS but too bad AT&T's Nav services will prevent the GPS from being the strong selling point of this phone.

Getting GPS and maps the easy way: Nokia Maps 1.0

This is the easiest way to get maps on a Nokia S60 and it's totally free if you turn off A-GPS and pre-load the maps.

If you don't have Nokia Maps on your phone already, you'll need to download Nokia Maps to your device. And if you want to pre-load the maps to your phone you'll been to download the Nokia Map Loader to your PC. You'll also need a USB data cable to pre-load maps. Both of them can be downloaded at: http://maps.nokia.com

Note: For S40 users, you can't added Nokia Maps to your phone. You must have it already included (pre-installed) in your phone's firmware. Some phones with Nokia Maps S40 support: Nokia 6300i, 6600 classic, 6600 slide, 3600 slide

If you intend to pre-load maps and want to avoid data charges like I do:

1. Turn on Nokia Maps
2. Go to: Options > Settings > Network
3. Set "Use network" to "Never"

If you select the use data as needed option then it will prompt you for data access when you move to a location you don't have a map for.

Pre-Loading the Maps through your PC:

1. Connect your phone to your your PC
2. Set your phone to Data Transfer
3. Launch Nokia Maps Loader
4. The only instructions you'll be getting:
   
   Click the button at the bottom
5. The Nokia Map Loader window will open:
   
6. Click on the > to expand and drill down to the map you want
7. Click + to download the map. So clicking + beside America will download all maps for North and South America so that includes Canada and the United States.
8. The right pane under "Selection" shows what you've selected for download and install to your phone.
9. Click download.

Note: You can delete all the maps from your phone by clicking "Delete maps from storage".

Nokia Maps loads map cumulative so you don't have to reload maps you already have on your phone, it will merely add maps to the ones you already have. But you can't see which maps you have installed on your phone via Nokia Map Loader. To remove the maps you don't want any more, for those moments you need to free up space on your memory card, you need to delete all maps on your phone and re-load the maps you need.

If you're planning a long road trip, you will need to obtain maps to every state/province you plan to drive through or Nokia Maps will not be able to provide directions. Garmin provides a base map with major roads by default so specific state/province maps are not required.

Let's disconnect your phone from your PC and launch Nokia Maps.

Before your phone gets a GPS lock, you're greeted by a globe. If you're willing to pay for data, you can speed up the GPS lock by enabling assisted GPS (A-GPS) by going out of Nokia Maps to the phone menu, click Tools > Settings > General > Positioning and enabling Assisted GPS. I personally keep this off since I roam a lot.

When your phone has acquired a GPS lock, Nokia Maps will zoom into your location. You can return to your location at any time by hitting '0' on your keypad. The look of the map is clean.

Too bad the 3D view doesn't differ much from the 2D since the viewing angle difference is so insignificant.

Moving around the map with the d-pad is smooth and there are no loading or "drawing" delays commonly seen on low end GPS devices.

Video of browsing maps in Nokia Maps 1.0:


With Options you will find the following:
-- Find
---- GPS location
---- Address (type out the full address)
---- keyword search (if you know the name of a place and you're lucky it's listed as a POI, this is the fastest way to find something)
---- Nearby
---- Guides
---- Recent
---- Landmarks (special POIs)
-- Use this place
---- Search nearby
---- Route from
---- Route to
---- Navigate to
---- Send
-- Extra Services (purchase Guides or navigation)
-- Map Options (Zooming, 2D/3D, Categories (choosing which POI types appear on the map), Change map colours (switch between brighter day to dimer night mode map colours), and Satellite Info (which is my favorite feature of Nokia Maps and I describe later)

I'm glad Nokia added the shortcuts for each of the functions in brackets such as zooming in and out. The more I see the shortcut the better I remember them.

Using route to, route from, and navigation you can have Nokia Maps calculate the "best" path from the start point to the end point. "Best" path is determined by the criteria you set in Options > Settings > Routing. Here you can avoid things like Ferry, Tunnel, and Toll road. There are many cases where "fastest" route is not the fastest as traffic is not factored and sometimes creates routes with a lot of turns.

With navigation, much of the screen real estate is spent on icons and text, you don't see much of the map:

Without paying you won't get voice turn by turn navigation but you will get navigation simulation and a limited navigation through Options > Use this place > Navigate to. I was watching the navigation simulation for a while and I got really bored so I doubt anyone without patience, like me, would use it.

Video of Navigation Simulation in Nokia Maps 1.0:


A very valuable feature of map software are its points of interest (POI). I find myself frequently pulling out my phone to look up the closest parking lot or gas station by the airport and it's nice to be able to do that within the GPS software so I can easily have it calculate a route without re-entering the information.

A few points of interest are included with the maps but accuracy is questionable. For example, there is a McDonald's and Wendy's by my place that have been there for a couple years, McDonald's shows up and Wendy's does not while a Boston Market appears on the map but no longer exists in real life. If you want more POI you can purchase guides but I think it's risky given the included POI are hit or miss. Of the points of interest included, you can hover over the icons on the maps and when the cursor locks onto the icon you can click Option > Show Detail.

It's not pretty. If you want to call the place, you need to have to go back to Option > Call. You don't see the number you're calling until you make the call.

If you have screen rotation on your phone like the N82 and N95 (new firmware only) then you can rotate the screen to get it in portrait mode. I personally prefer letter mode since you can see further ahead instead of to the sides.

One of my favorite features in Nokia Maps is the ability to monitor the GPS lock on.

Go to: Options > Map options > Satellite Info

Here you will see how many satellites your GPS has connected to. The bars will fluctuate with various lengths. The longer the bar the closer to a position lock. You need 4 satellites to get the initial GPS lock but only 3 satellites to maintain a GPS lock.

Nokia Maps come with most S60 phones and it's very convenient that maps are free and accessible through the air as well as pre-loading via PC. Nokia Maps shines in its presentation and easy to navigate map. Nokia Maps stumbles with its numerous routing options, weak POI, and limited usefulness of the 3D view. Nokia did a very good job in its first version and most users will find everything they need in Nokia Maps. Power users will likely look elsewhere for maps with better POI. I found Nokia Maps only useful for walking around and having it tell me where i am. It's good for exploring the area around me since moving around the map is fast, smooth, and I didn't buy navigation.

The S60 Road Warrior, Part 1: Finding my way around

You could be travelling in a different city each week or just exploring your own city, a GPS is a valuable tool to help you find your way. Just last week I used it to find a detour to avoid an accident on my way to Yankee stadium and find a close parking lot to the stadium.

Unlike the "GPS" pushed by your wireless carrier for phones that clearly do not have GPS (Motorola RAZR and first generation Apple iPhone) and rely on triangulation of cellular towers, a real GPS relies on a clear view to the sky to connect to a GPS satellite to give you your position accurate to within a few meters (accuracy depends on your GPS receiver). Moreover, a real GPS does not need to use cellular data if you have the right map software and maps already installed.

Most of Nokia's recent S60 include a GPS receiver but if it doesn't, you can always get a bluetooth GPS receiver and pair your S60 phone to it. The benefit to having a bluetooth GPS is that your handset's battery is not drained as quickly. But you have one more thing to carry and that's one more thing you;re likely to forget to bring when you really need it. There were a few times I was lost in New York City and relied on my GPS to find my way back to the hotel.

A couple years ago I plotted my trips on paper maps. With the advent of the Internet and MapQuest/Google Maps, I plotted my trips online and printed out the directions. But now with a GPS, I can jump into my car and plot an address or place of interest onto a map program.

Unlike the GPS products you buy from BestBuy or Fry's, S60 phones don't usually come with maps pre-installed onto the phone or memory card. You may also need to download the map software and install it to the phone. It's a little more complicated than buying a dedicated GPS but you the flexibility to choose the map program.

With each mapping program comes pros and cons so it's important to evaluate each one before purchasing. The most common mapping programs available for S60 and support Nokia's internal GPS in North America are Nokia Maps, Garmin XT, and Google Maps. Here is a brief list of pros and cons of each before I going into detail on how to get them set up on your phone:

Nokia Maps 1.0

Pro: Usually installed by default. Installable over the air. maps are free, maps can be downloaded over the air (wifi or data) Con: Turn by turn navigation is charged by subscription. Pay for Points of Interest (POI) guides that are not up to date for North America. Pre-loading of maps requires a data cable. If you choose to install maps from your computer, Nokia Maps needs an Internet connection to download the maps from Nokia's servers.

Garmin XT 4.10.80

Pro: Same software you find on dedicated GPS devices from Garmin. Decent list of Points of Interest (POI) included with maps. Con: Complicated install if you deviate from the suggest method. High initial cost. Need to pay for maps. Maps must be pre-loaded.

Google Maps 2.0.14

Pro: Simple install instructions. Installable over the air. ability to see satellite view, always up to date. Points of Interest (POI) comes from Google. Can be used with GPS with limited accuracy. Con: Relies on data, slow to load maps depending on your data connection. No voice turn by turn navigation.

There are two more major map software for S60, but Wayfinder doesn't support Nokia's internal GPS and TomTom just released 6.02 to support it. I haven't a chance to test out TomTom.

I was going to write about all three map software in one blog entry but it quickly got too long so I'll blog about each one in an individual blog entry. Stay tuned!

The S60 Road Warrior

From toasty dry summers in Dallas to the frosty winters of Toronto, I've been on business trips all over North America for the last three years. Each week I spend at least a full work day at the airport or on a plane. Being so mobile, I need a quality phone that suits my life style and Nokia has offered that in their S60 platform.

A lot of web sites already review S60 applications so in the next couple blogs I will write about how S60 helps me with...

• Finding my way around
• Capturing my experiences
• Getting my work done
• Keeping me entertained
• Saving me money
• My reminder
• Connecting me with work and friends
• Sharing
• Safe guarding my phone

I hope you will find this has interesting to read as I will writing it. If there's any topic you want covered, feel free to leave me a comment.

I will be writing my experiences with my Nokia N82 but I'm sure the experience is similar on many other S60 phones like the N95, N96, E90, etc.