Continuing with the Nokia N810 Internet Tablet review, we are discussing the most important aspects of connectivity of the device.

The very highlight of any Internet Tablet is its connectivity. The N810 has WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS, although GPS does not count for internet in any way.

The web browser has Flash 9, Javascript, advanced bookmarks management, and fullscreen mode. You can zoom in or out using the dedicated ‘+’ or ‘-’ keys. We would prefer using a navi-wheel to zoom in or out, like the HTC Touch Diamond, as we said in the previous parts of the review. The biggest disadvantage of the web browser is the lag when it finds Flash content, and not only videos.

Picture: Bookmarks application

In terms of internet connectivity, once again Bluetooth proves being useful. I tested both WiFi and Bluetooth connections through a Nokia N95. WiFi was tested using Joikuspot, while Bluetooth was the default application. HSDPA to GPRS fluctuations aside, it was obvious that the N810 performed much faster using a N95 through Bluetooth connection instead of WiFi. Even I was surprised!

Picture:Joikuspot on my N95

Moving on to the GPS, I was looking forward to enjoy the large touchscreen for navigation, but I was disappointed. I could barely get a GPS lock. This is common on first times, but half an hour is just too much After playing around with the device, I figured that you have to keep it standing up. Of course this is not comfortable, but Nokia designed it like that as it’s supposed to remain in that position when in the car-holder. If you’re going on hiking or another form of trip that needs GPS, forget about it, you rather use a different GPS unit. Just after we sent the review unit back, an A-GPS patch was released, and this should change things, and provide GPS locks under 15 seconds.

Picture: N810 car-holder

From what concerns to software, the GPS maps application isn’t perfect. Unfortunately you can’t keep it updated with Nokia Maps for S60, otherwise it would be great. There is no maps OTA downloads, which means that the application downloads maps on the radius of your position, and  there are no satellite views or RTTI (real time traffic information), It is better to use Maemo Mapper, as it atleast provides maps OTA download. I’m hoping to see the same treatment for Nokia Maps Maemo, as the one S60 gets.

Picture: Maemo Mapper default view

Maemo Mapper also features a lot of different views and information, such as detailed triangulation information, compass, and it lets you change the map to different perspectives and zoom levels. Unfortunately I failed to discover any navigation method or voice guidance for this application.

Picture: Maemo Mapper fullscreen view

Picture: Maemo Mapper options

There is always room for improvement on such device, and with the AGPS patch, there should be a variety of GPS applications, especially the ones more focused on Location-based Services.

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