Nokia Belle has become officially available for a list of smartphones for a week, but there was one handset similar a “white crow” — the Nokia 500. Now Nokia corrects its mistakes and this smartphone can download the Nokia Belle update like others.

So if you want to update your handset, connect it to Nokia Suite via USB and check the availability of Nokia Belle. If it is absent, do not get upset because Nokia has also announced the update is being pushed out in phases, gradually for different carriers and countries.

As for the Nokia 500, it’s one of the most affordable handsets, that’s why it is very popular in the countries where the company managed to launch. Initially the Nokia 500 was powered with Symbian Anna, which was the OS to change user attitude towards Nokia’s native operating system. However, Belle is welcomed by all Nokia users and it gives another look to the handsets — the Nokia 500 is not an exception.

You can also watch the video below and see the main differences between Anna and Belle.

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The Nokia 500/Fate is the cheapest smartphone running Symbian Anna. You probably think it’s mid-range and is not capable of doing many things. I have to disappoint you, because the Nokia 500 doesn’t yield many other handsets in terms of hardware, especially the camera.

The Nokia 500 is packed with a 5MP camera, which even though doesn’t come with a single-LED flash and the maximum megapixel you can use is 5MP, the widescreen aspect ratio is at 3.6MP 2560x 440 pixel resolution. Moreover, the videos can be recorded at up to HQ 640×480 pixels and the aspect ratio is 360p.

You think all these features are not enough to snap high-class pictures and videos? Vain, because  for your viewing pleasure we’ve grabbed several pictures and videos, where Nokia 500 shows itself.

The only weak point of the Nokia 500 camera is that it’s very slow to zoom in/out using the keys on the side. So we recommend that you use touch zooming for faster zooming.

Well, get acquainted with the pictures and the video below and let us know what you think of the Nokia 500 camera.

Nokia N8 sample photo

Nokia 500 sample photo

Nokia 500 sample video

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A few months ago when Nokia’s future seemed gloomy and geeks didn’t believe in Windows Phone, Nokia announced that before the end of this year it’s going to launch several new Symbian-powered smartphones.

During previous months Nokia kept its promise and unveiled 4 awesome handsets absolutely different from other smartphones that are currently rocking. It refers to the Nokia 500, 600, 700 and 701. Each of these handsets is popular for a particular feature — one has the brightest screen, the other one is the thinnest handset in the world, the third ensures the loudest sound performance and so on. Now it seems the fifth smartphone from this line, the Nokia 603 will be unveiled at Nokia World that will take place in London on October 26-27.

If we believe in the rumors circling all around, the Nokia 603 will be packed with a 1GHz processor and a 5MP camera with fixed focus on the usual 360×640 resolution. Other than that it’ll be a pentaband device ensuring 14.4Mbps speed and NFC. Though there is no much information about the phone’s features, it’s expected to be a mid-range device at an affordable price.

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Great news! At least two online retailers are willing to offer the Nokia 700 in the UK. And now you can make your pre-orders to be able to pick up one of the first Symbian Belle smartphones from Nokia sometime soon.

Play.com is offering the handset for £259.99 (about $440) and it’s release is expected to take place by the end of October, at they state the device is “due for release on October 21.”

MobileFun is also taking pre-orders for two versions of the Nokia 700 — White or Gray. The only disadvantage here is that you will be required to pay £279.99, that is around $32 more.

The Nokia 700 comes with a 3.2-inch AMOLED display with ClearBlack feature and a resolution of 640 × 360, a 1GHz processor, a 5MP camera shooting 720p videos, 2GB of internal memory, HSDPA, Wi-Fi, GPS and NFC support.

Another piece of news is about Nokia 500. This handset has identical features with the Nokia 700, only instead of the Symbian Belle OS the handset uses Symbian Anna. The smartphone is expected to get released in Portugal in two weeks. The official statement also includes the price of the Nokia 500 — it will be sold for €229.90 ($317). Most likely the release in Portugal will be followed by the release in nearby regions.

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If you own a Nokia smartphone and use its full power, this post is for you, because I am sure your device has begun to work slower. So I have grabbed eight tips making the phone work faster. These tips don’t make miracles, vice versa, everything is based on a well-known logic — clean up the storage space.

It doesn’t matter what class of smartphones we are dealing with, as Nokia’s devices always show high-class performance. Take the Nokia 500 as an example — it’s a mid-range smartphone but it sports a 1GHz processor. Or remember the Nokia N8, which is one of the flagships of the company but is packed with a 600MHz processor. Anyway, regardless the smartphone’s  model, here are eight ways to make your phone perform faster.

• Save messages on the microSD card instead of the phone memory
• Remove the live wallpapers
• Delete the apps you do not use anymore
• Upload on social networking sites or just delete those casual photos and videos you have taken while out
• Don’t run many apps at a time
• Clear up the cash of you browser
• Keep only those emails that are important, the others must be deleted to keep your mailbox slimmed down
• If you have a large mp3 collection, you have to lower the bitrate or delete the files you are not listening to anymore.

I guess you have your own tips that help to improve your phone’s performance, so let us know how you deal with this problem.

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Several days ago I tried to compare the upcoming Nokia 500 with the HTC Wildfire S, and it came out that in many aspects Nokia’s entry-level smartphone is even better than HTC’s mid-range device. Now I want to compare the Nokia 500 with the Samsung Galaxy Ace, and I have personal interest in this comparison, since I’m an owner of a Galaxy Ace.

So, let’s see which phone is better – the Nokia 500 or the Samsung Galaxy Ace.

Design

As I said in my previous post, the Nokia 500’s design is at least original and recognizable. The Samsung Galaxy Ace, on the other hand, looks like a typical Android smartphone, but a very stylish one for sure (I bought it only because I likes its design, and only later I found out it that has good specs, too). Both smartphones have interchangeable battery covers, the only difference is that the Nokia 500 offers a wider range of color choices, while the Galaxy Ace comes in two colors only – black and white. Besides, the Nokia 500 is 1mm shorter, 6mm slimmer and 20g lighter than Samsung’s device.

So those who prefer more original smartphones with different colors will most likely choose the Nokia 500. And those who like the sleek shapes of Android phones will give preference to the Samsung Galaxy Ace. Design is a matter of taste anyway, I personally like the Galaxy Ace more.

Display

The Samsung Galaxy Ace is larger, so it offers a larger screen size – 3.5-inch (the Nokia 500’s screen is 3.2-inch), but at the same time its resolution is lower — 320 x 480 against the Nokia 500’s 360 x 640. On the other hand, the Nokia 500 is an upcoming device yet, so we can’t be sure it will really appear with such a display (and will it really have a high quality?), but I can touch and see Samsung’s display, and I say its quality is good.

Processors

The Nokia 500 is going to have a 1GHz processor, while the processor of the Samsung Galaxy Ace is only 800MHz. However, I think Nokia’s CPU has yet to be tested, while as an owner of a Galaxy Ace I can say its processor is rather good, and I’ve never experienced any problem with it.

Platform

The Samsung Galaxy Ace runs Android, while the Nokia 500 runs Symbian Anna. Of course, Symbian Anna is much better than the previous Symbian^3, but still it’s Symbian… Android is the most popular platform now, and almost half of all smartphones work on Android; this means it has many useful apps and a huge community… I don’t know, maybe there are people who will prefer Symbian, but I prefer Android anyway.

Camera

Both smartphones have 5MP cameras, but Samsung offers auto-focus and LED flash with its device. Nokia always makes very good cameras for its smartphones, and I’m sure the one for the Nokia 500 will be good, too. As for Samsung, maybe this company isn’t known for its cameras, but the Samsung Galaxy Ace’s camera is already tested – at least by me – and takes quality pics, really quality ones.

Other features

The Samsung Galaxy Ace has only 158MB of storage, and it’s a big shortcoming – even I have to admit this. And 2GB of internal storage is the big plus of the upcoming Nokia 500. However, a microSD card can even the odds. On the other hand, the Galaxy Ace comes with some features the Nokia 500 lacks (DLNA support, Wi-Fi hotspot and others).

So…

Both smartphones have their stronger and weaker sides. The Nokia 500’s display has a higher resolution, its processor is stronger and it has a bigger amount of internal storage. The Samsung Galaxy Ace runs Android, the most popular OS, has a camera with LED flash and auto-focus, it also has some features the Nokia 500 doesn’t and is more beautiful (IMHO). I think those who love testing new devices will surely buy a Nokia 500, and those who love older but tested devices will prefer the Galaxy Ace after all.

So it’s up to you to decide which one is better for you. But I would like to add that the Nokia 500 is yet to come (some of its features can still change before it’s released), and the Galaxy Ace is real, it can be touched, felt and bought right now. I have always thought that a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. And the rest is up to you

A mysterious Nokia phone called the RM-750 was noticed on FCC’s website recently. Most likely it’s the same Nokia 500 (also known as the Nokia Fate).

We already know that the Nokia 701 Helen is the same RM-774, the Nokia 700 Zeta is the same RM-670 and the Nokia 600 Cindy is the RM-701. Only the Nokia 500 Fate remained with its codename unknown. That’s why I tend to think RM-750 is the Nokia 500.

FCC’s website says the mysterious RM-750 will have Bluetooth, WLAN support, a built-in navigation system, a BL-4U 1000mAh battery, AC-8E Battery Charger and WH-102 headset.

We also know that the Nokia 500 has a 1GHz processor, a 5MP camera, Wi-Fi, Symbian Anna OS, a 3.2-inch toughscreen with a resolution of 360 × 640 pixels and 3G UMTS / HSDPA. Ah, and its browser version is 7.3. It’s also going to have 2GB of internal memory (expandable up to 32GB via microSD card slot). The phone will also support HSPA 3G 850/900/1700/1900/2100MHz bands. And don’t forget about the cool and original design of the smartphone.

Not bad for an entry-level smartphone, hm? If it has really passed FCC, it means it’ll be released soon. And before that you can read more about it from my previous post where I tried to compare it with the HTC Wildfire S.

The Nokia 500 was announced only several days ago, but it has already caught the attention of many geeks with its Symbian Anna OS and low price. HTC is also offering quite an interesting device – the Android-based HTC Wildfire S, which isn’t very expensive and has good features, too.

Let’s try to compare these two entry-level smartphones and see which one is better.

Design

The HTC Wildfire S looks like all the other HTC smartphones based on Android, nothing new or extraordinary. The Nokia 500 is more recognizable, if I can say so, and you’ll never mix it up with any other device. Besides, it has two interchangeable back covers of different colors – you can choose the one that best suits your mood. Do you like it? I do!

Display

Both Nokia’s and HTC’s smartphones have 3.2-inch displays, but the Nokia 500’s screen is more narrow and tall, and its resolution is higher — 360 x 640, while the Wildfire S’s resolution is only 320 x 480. I can’t say which display’s form factor is better – Nokia’s long and narrow one or HTC’s “square” one – it’s a matter of taste. But the higher resolution is always better, so the Nokia 500 is surely a winner in this category.

Processors

The Nokia 500 has a 1GHz processor (it’s Nokia’s first smartphone with such a CPU, by the way!), and the HTC Wildfire S’s SPU is only 600MHz. And no matter how much we say that the number of “MHz”s is not that important (once we compared the 1GHz processor of the Motorola Atrix 4G with the 800MHz processor of the Nokia N8, and the Nokia smartphone won, remember?), this 400MHz difference will surely play its role and affect the smartphone’s performance.

Platform

The Nokia 500, as I mentioned above, is running Symbian Anna, and the HTC Wildfire S is based on the most popular OS nowadays – Android. I can’t say which OS is better – it’s also a matter of taste. I myself prefer Android, but I can’t help mentioning that Symbian Anna is not worse at all – it also has a big number of great features, and Nokia’s Ovi Store offers many good apps and services.

Camera

Both smartphones we’re trying to compare have 5MP cameras with VGA video recording capability. Since the Nokia 500 isn’t released yet, we haven’t seen its camera in work, so we don’t know what images it can provide. However, everybody knows that Nokia has always equipped its smartphones with great cameras (remember the Nokia N8), which HTC has always failed to do. So I guess the Nokia 500’s 5MP camera will be cooler than the HTC Wildfire S’s one…

Other features

I guess we should also try to compare the connectivity features of these two smartphones, though there isn’t much to compare here. Both have microUSB, Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth (though the Bluetooth version of the Wildfire S is a bit newer – 3.0 against 2.1). On the other hand, the Nokia 500 has HSDPA connectivity support up to 14.4Mbps, which is two times more than the Wildfire S’s speed.

So… what can I add? These two smartphones seem to be similar in many aspects, but if I were to choose, I would choose the Nokia 500, since it looks better, it has a stronger processor and higher screen resolution. The rest is up to you…

Before Nokia will completely switch to Windows Phone, it continues to produce Symbian-powered smartphones. Yesterday the company officially announced the Nokia 500 that was rumored back in June. Now we know this budget handset will be available later in Q3, and it can be a good choice for those who can’t afford expensive phones.

The Nokia 500 comes with a standard sport design and measures 111.3mm x 53.8mm x 14.1mm while weighing 93g. The phone will be available in two colors — black (in Q3) and white (in Q4), but the box will contain three back plates of other colors.

The smartphone is the first Nokia handset packed with a 1GHz processor. Moreover, it runs Symbian Anna and sports a 3.2-inch touchscreen, a 5MP camera, 2GB of internal memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card slot and a standard 1100mAh battery providing up to 7 hours of talk time or 19 days of standby. Generally, this is a penta-band device supporting HSPA 3G 850/900/1700/1900/2100MHz bands.

The Nokia 500 will cost 150 EUR ($216), so it can easily replace expensive smartphones for those who don’t want to waste much money on glamorous handsets.

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Sometimes it’s rather hard to keep track of the devices released by manufacturers, including Nokia, since most of them have similar names.

In the past we had various series of Nokia including many smartphones and feature phones. Most typical namings of high-end devices consisted of the series number of the device and the series name it belonged to, e.g. the Nokia N95 or the Nokia E65. The rest of the mid-range devices used to get 4-digit numbered names (like the Nokia 6320).

After releasing a number of interesting low-end devices based on Symbian, Nokia decided to move up to a new version of namings — it split the devices into categorized series getting the name that used to mention this or that spec presence and added a single digit to the smartphone. The higher was the digit number better was the device. But then the system went out of control, and the one-digit naming of the smartphones became impossible.

And finally, to deal with all this mess, Nokia decided to get rid of the series codes and to stick up only with numbers. The new naming with come up with a 3-digit system. The first digit will mention the price of the device: the higher number assumes a higher price. The following two digits will be used to identify the device among the range of the same-cost devices.

Let’s hope that at least this time the naming or even let’s say numbering of the smartphones will work better for Nokia.

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