Nokia Ovi Blog

Author Archive for EricJohn

Put time on your side

Published
by
EricJohn
on November 18, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia, Promotions and Store
. 3 Comments

I don’t know about you, but this time of year seems to be especially crazy as we race to finish our end-of-year work projects, gear up for the holidays and then try to schedule time for some much-needed rest and relaxation. We can’t add more hours to the day but we can make the best of the time available and Ovi has some apps in Store that can help you make the most of your time.

nightstand toouch

I haven’t used a traditional bedside clock or a watch in years. I use my mobile as an anytime/anywhere clock. It’s the sole timepiece in my house outside of the clock on my microwave. When traveling and staying in hotels, my mobile and my alarm clock are right there with me in one convenient package. Try Night Stand Touch by Offscreen Technologies Ltd., available for Nokia’s touch devices, including the Nokia N97, the N97 Mini and the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. 

worldmate 2009

 World clocks, scheduled weather reports and real-time flight alerts from 350 airlines are just a few reasons that WorldMate 2009 by MobiMate is the #1 Travel app for Nokia S60 phones. I’ve been traveling with WorldMate for years now. With WorldMate, you can set your home city and keep track of the time in up to 4 additional cities. Let’s say you’re flying from Dallas to Helsinki via London and doing a return trip through New York. That’s 4 time zones and trust me; you’ll want to keep on top of the time changes. The Weathercaster is also a handy feature. Schedule a morning or evening weather report and you’re sure to know whether you’ll need a coat when you arrive at your destination. Flight Alerts are a Gold Service feature, but it’s well worth the extra cost and really saves time when you need those updates on the fly. I have this app on my Nokia N97 and it’s available for a wide range of S60 touch and non-touch devices.          

You’ve put in the time and worked up a sweat but not sure if your workout has got you pumped enough? Try the Heart Rate Monitor by Pico Brothers Ltd. Just tap the screen a few times in synch with your pulse and your heart rate shows up instantly. Works like a charm. Check out this quick video introduction to see just how easy it is to use. This app is available for touch devices such as the Nokia N97 and Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. 

They say time waits for no man and I think it’s fair to say that no man or woman wants to wait for long downloads. If high speed access to mobile content is what you are after then try Mobile Download Accelerator by 1000CHI Software. The app can be set to operate on your device in the background or on a one-off basis to speed up specific download sessions while saving battery life. This Java app is available for Nokia Series 40 and S60 non-touch and touch devices like my Nokia N97. 

chessclock touch

I used to consider myself a chess master. But now, I could use some practice and a timer to help with some quick thinking. With Chess Clock Touch by Offscreen, you can set the timer for yourself and your opponent. You can also set the waiting delay and pause the close. This app is available for S60 5th Edition (Nokia N97 and 5800 XpressMusic) and S60 3.2 devices (including Nokia E72, E52 and N86 8MP).

Go ahead! Browse the Store and put time on your side with these great apps. http://store.ovi.com

And be sure to let us know of any cool apps you’ve discovered as well. 

Best – Eric

Ovi Store Scheduled Maintenance: Mon 11/16, 8 PM EST

Published
by
EricJohn
on November 16, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 2 Comments

We will be making updates to the Store that will require us to take the service offline for approximately one hour tonight, from 8 – 9 PM EST. We appreciate your patience and apologize for the inconvenience.

We’ll resume Store and Publish services as soon as possible!
Sincerely,

The Store Team

Ovi Store – scheduled maintenance this week

Published
by
EricJohn
on October 12, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 23 Comments

Hello Store Users,
This week we are working on a number of updates for the Store that will require us to take the service offline for a few hours. Just like a store in the physical world, the digital Store on your handset and desktop, at times needs to be closed so that we can do some renovations. We will be posting more details on these enhancements shortly here on the Ovi Blog.

In the meantime, please be advised, that the Store will be offline at the following times:
- Tuesday October 13th at 7 AM EST the service will be unavailable for approximately 2 – 3 hours
- Friday, October 16th starting at 6 AM, the service will be unavailable for approximately 7 hours

Note for publishers: The Publish service at http://publish.ovi.com will be unavailable from Monday, October 12th starting at 7 AM EST until the afternoon of Friday, October 16th.

We appreciate your patience and apologize for the inconvenience. We’ll resume Store and Publish services as soon as possible!

Sincerely, the Store Team

Ovi Store Scheduled Maintence

Published
by
EricJohn
on September 22, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 17 Comments

Hello Ovi Store Users,
Please be advised, this week Ovi Store will be conducting scheduled maintenance at the following times:
- Wednesday September 23rd at 8 PM EST the service will be unavailable for a few minutes.
- Thursday, September 24th at 8 PM EST the service will be unavailable for a bit longer.
We appreciate your patience and apologize for the inconvenience. We’ll resume Ovi Store service as soon as possible!
Best – Eric

Flicks, Sticks and Tricks

Published
by
EricJohn
on July 24, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 4 Comments

Greetings! I’m Eric John, from the Ovi Store team and I’ve got three apps guaranteed to up your summer fun – - one that lets you order movies right from your mobile, another for cricket fanatics in need of a fix and finally a sure-fire ice breaker for your next party. Enjoy and feel free to suggest some of your own!

Netflix Category: Entertainment Cost: free (data charges apply)
In our household, it’s no longer a contest to control the TV remote; it’s who’s at the top of the Netflix ordering queue. With this handy app, built for touch devices like the Nokia N97 or the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, you can ” jump the line” and manage your Netflix queue right from your Nokia phone. Easily search the Netflix library, add or remove a movie from your queue, change the delivery order, see rating and recommendations. Best of all, its free!
Go to http://store.ovi.com and search: Netflix
NOTE: This app is available to Ovi Store users in the U.S. for the Nokia N97 and Nokia 5800 XpressMusic phones.

Ashes Scores Category: Applications / Sports Cost: free (data charges apply)

Simply marvelous, these widgets! Cricket fans in the U.K. can now get the latest scores as they happen, directly from their Nokia N97 or Nokia 5800 XpressMusic phones. No need to open a browser. This app puts you where the action is, with near real-time updates. One click and you’re in synch with the game. At the historic test match at Lords this week, we were lucky enough to be there in person the first day as England put some runs against the Aussies. The Ashes Scores app was especially useful when queuing at the bar afterwards where having stats in hand meant the difference between free drinks and picking up  the tab. On the train home the next day, we broadcast the score to the rest of the carriage and in the taxi, we updated the driver. We also entertained our office mates with a bowl review of Freddy Flintoff’s five wickets and England’s histoiric win there - – the first in 75 years!

Go to http://store.ovi.com and search on the keyword “ashes.”
NOTE: This app is available free to users of Ovi Store in the U.K. on the Nokia N97 and Nokia 5800 XpressMusic phones.

Hand Reading Pro Category: Entertainment Cost: $4.99 USD

Ever been to a party badly in need of an ice breaker? We’ve got the perfect thing. The Hand Reading Pro app lets you analyze people’s palms and discover secrets of their souls (ha ha!). For true believers, you can learn about the meaning of palm lines, finger shapes and what that bodes for your health, career and relationships. Even if you don’t believe, who doesn’t like to pretend they know what the future holds? 

Go to store.ovi.com and search on the keyword “Hand Reading”
NOTE: This app is available for use on Nokia S60 3.2 and 3.1 devices including the Nokia N95 and the Nokia E71

Give them a try and let us know what you think.

Ovi Store – week 2 update

Published
by
EricJohn
on June 17, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 45 Comments

Now that Ovi Store has been up and running for a couple of weeks, I’d like to share some initial results from a content and usage perspective. We’ve been hard at work since we first opened our doors, adding more content every day and optimizing the experience with the release of a new Ovi Store client that has incorporated your feedback. We’ve also launched the Nokia N97 as the first device with Ovi Store inside. In the midst of all this, I wanted to take a moment to share some things that I am extremely proud of regarding the Ovi Store roll out as well as provide you with some updates on content in the store.

First off all, our “thanks!” to all the Ovi Store users who have visited and used the store over the last two weeks. We are working very diligently to make the store available to everyone. Thus far we have:

• users from 152 countries around the world

• support for more than 75 Nokia devices

• integrated mobile billing with 27 operators globally

• localized the store in 5 different languages

And….downloads have exceeded our expectations! Since launch, our users have made the Applications category the #1 spot for free items, while the Games category now holds the #1 spot for premium content.

You may wonder, what application has been downloaded the most times? Well… that would be “Digital Alarm Clock” of course! with its retro-green digital interface that lights up your nightstand.

What application is the current highest seller? That would be our beloved, full-featured Twitter client, Gravity.

In fact, we’re finding most of the top applications across all 152 countries are applications that offer messaging solutions like Twitter, Facebook & SMS apps.

Speaking of countries, the top countries in terms of download #’s are (in alphabetical order): Germany, Italy, Spain, UK & USA.

That’s all the updates we have for now, but we’d love to hear your comments and suggestions. Let us know what kind of information you’d like to see in future! (top 10 apps? staff picks? new hottness?)

Thanks! – Eric & Ovi Store Team http://store.ovi.com

Update on Ovi Store opening

Published
by
EricJohn
on May 26, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 45 Comments

Hi all,

Shortly after launching the Ovi Store at 2 am ET, we began experiencing extraordinarily high spikes of traffic that resulted in some performance issues for users accessing store.ovi.com and store.ovi.mobi. We immediately began to address this issue by adding servers, which resulted in intermittent performance improvements. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused Ovi Store users and encourage you to continue giving us feedback as we develop the service further.

The Ovi Store device client, however, has continued to perform very well and there were no reported issues from users logged on through that entry point.

We’ll keep you posted,

Eric

Ovi Store, now “Open for Business”

Published
by
EricJohn
on May 26, 2009
in Ovi by Nokia and Store
. 9 Comments

Hi, My name is Eric John. I’m based in the US and I head up product marketing for Ovi Store. I’m excited to tell you that it’s official… the Store is now open! Thanks to a dedicated, admittedly over-caffeinated team of Nokians and the creative efforts of hundreds of developers big and small from around the world, we are now open and the shelves stocked with apps, widgets, ringtones, videos and more.

Ovi Store is – at the end of the day – all about what’s inside. Our number one goal is to enable you to discover all that’s possible on your device. Below you’ll find highlights of some of my favorite content and apps currently installed on my own Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. But first, a couple of quick tips on how and where to get Ovi Store on your Nokia.

Start by opening your Nokia device browser and go to store.ovi.com. Once there, you can immediately browse content, and begin downloading and personalizing your device with games, tones, videos, location-based apps and more. If you live in one the following countries – Australia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Russia, Singapore, Spain, the US or the UK – you can also update your device with the Ovi Store mobile application by selecting the Ovi Store icon in the Download! folder on your device. You can purchase content with a credit card globally from our mobile website as well as from the mobile client in the US. Operator billing is available in all countries except the US, where credit card billing is available. In the US, AT&T will be offering Ovi Store to its customers later this year.

More countries, languages and devices will be added in the future! And now, here’s just a few of my favorite apps available today on Ovi Store, and running on my Nokia 5800 XpressMusic.

Gravity: If you tweet, this is a must-have app! With its wonderfully intuitive interface, Gravity lets you quickly login and manage your Twitter posts, track and stay connected to the fast-moving world of Twitter. (search Ovi Store: Gravity)

Trapster: For the lead-footed drivers amongst us, here’s a handy app to help you avoid another speeding ticket. On a GPS-enabled Nokia, like my 5800, I can give it a quick view before I jump in the car to see where the hot spots are. It crowd sources the information from other commuters and is 100% legal (no radar required). Try it out and you may find as I have, that the process of looking for hotspots encourages you to slow down in general, (good for the gas budget). (search Ovi Store: Trapster)

AP News: The world’s largest news network, the Associated Press, fits in the palm of your hand! When you need a chuckle, choose the “Wacky” category for the best in “strange but true” news. (search Ovi Store: Associated)

WorldMate: This Swiss Army Knife for the road warrior just got better. The version for the Nokia 5800 is nicely designed with all the features we love: flight schedule and tracking, weather monitor, currency converter and world clock. Lots of great features even without the upgrade!

Fodors: This widget by Mippin offers a deep-dive into the world’s best travel destinations with articles, guides and pictures optimized for your Nokia. (search Ovi Store: Fodors)

EarthComber: Should I end up vacationing in North America, this app will use the GPS on my Nokia to help me find great things to do from restaurants, movies, nightlife (great band listings!), events, and stores. (search Ovi Store: Earthcomber)

Be sure to check back for updates on future roll-outs of operator billing supported countries as well as more devices with Ovi Store pre-installed. If you have recommendations for content we should know about or thoughts on how we should improve the service, please let us know in the comments. And if you’re a developer and are inspired by the apps I’ve highlighted above, head to Forum Nokia forum.nokia.com for tips on how to develop applications on Nokia. When you’re ready, go to the self-serve publishing tool Ovi Publish at publish.ovi.com

We look forward to hearing from you and working together to evolve the Ovi Store experience!
Enjoy! – Eric