Nokia Developer Newsletter

Nokia recently announced the arrival of new Nokia Music Stores, more Comes With Music launches, and two new music devices: the Nokia 5730 XpressMusic and Nokia 5330 XpressMusic.

The Nokia Music Store, available in 15 markets across three continents, adds Mexico as the latest country. Additional markets — including Portugal, Norway, and South Africa — are joining soon. Nokia Music Store lets mobile consumers browse and purchase music, get music recommendations, and search for artists, songs, and albums directly from their devices. Accompanying software makes it easy for consumers to organise and transfer the music between a PC and compatible device, rip and burn CDs, and discover, stream, and download directly from the Nokia Music Store.

Comes With Music, currently available only in the U.K. and Singapore, will launch in Australia later this month. Additional launches, including Italy, Sweden, and Mexico, are planned for the coming months. Comes With Music offers millions of music tracks on the Nokia Music Store to browse, plus unlimited music downloads for either 12 or 18 months (though consumers can keep the downloaded tracks indefinitely). Also, the two new additions to the Nokia XpressMusic range — the Nokia 5730 XpressMusic and Nokia 5330 XpressMusic — will be offered as Comes With Music-compatible devices in selected markets.

The Nokia 5730 XpressMusic is Nokia's first music-optimised device to offer a full messaging keyboard. The heart of the device is its Homescreen for XpressMusic, which provides access and dynamic information on music, people, games, e-mail, and calendar. The Homescreen also features an improved contacts bar with up to 20 friends and family members; it also provides direct access to music, N-Gage™ and other applications including Facebook, Photos, Ovi Contacts, Maps, and messaging. The new device also features dedicated gaming keys, direct access to the N-Gage Arena community, and preloaded N-Gage games. Based on S60 3rd Edition, Feature Pack 2, the device also includes a 3.2-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, integrated (A-GPS) and Nokia Maps, and stereo FM radio. The Nokia 5730 XpressMusic will retail for 280 euros, with shipments beginning in the third quarter.

The new Nokia 5330 Xpress Music sports an edgy, top-sliced design and illumination effects, and is designed for playing music and keeping in touch with social networks. Based on Series 40, 6th Edition, the device features XpressMusic touch keys alongside the display that provide instant access to music, and extended battery life provides more than 26 hours of music-playback time. The Nokia 5330 XpressMusic also offers access to sites that include Ovi, Facebook, and MySpace. Other features include integrated A-GPS and Nokia Maps, Flash Lite 3.0, FM radio, 3.2-megapixel camera, and the WebKit open source browser. The Nokia 5330 XpressMusic will retail for 160 euros, with shipments starting in the third quarter.

Learn more about Nokia's expanded music services.

Check out technical specs for the Nokia 5730 XpressMusic.

Check out technical specs for the Nokia 5330 XpressMusic.

The first Nokia Developer Summit is coming on 28 – 29 April in Monaco. For developers looking to get a jump on the competition, the 2009 Nokia Developer Summit is a must-attend event

The Nokia Developer Summit has been designed to make the most of your time and provide tremendous value, whether you want to learn about the latest go-to-market opportunities with Nokia or just sharpen your development skills. During the two-day summit, attendees will be able to:

• Learn about the business opportunities offered by Nokia's new unified media-distribution channel, the Ovi Store
• Discover how to preload applications on millions of Nokia devices
• Hear directly from some of Nokia's leaders and visionaries, and enjoy one-on-one meetings with Nokia experts, operator partners, and providers of application-development tools and services
• Get the latest technical information on Nokia technologies and development platforms, including Ovi, Flash Lite, Web Runtime, Qt, maemo™, and the S60 touch-screen interface
• Join hands-on lab exercises using the latest technologies
• Discover opportunities to partner with Nokia and obtain funding through Nokia Growth Partners

Registration for the Nokia Developer Summit is limited. Plan now to attend this premier event and register today.

The full version of the S60 5th Edition SDK for Symbian OS is now available from Forum Nokia. This release offers many new and updated features, including:

• Touch UI support: The S60 5th Edition SDK supports touch UI emulation
• Tactile feedback in the emulator in the form of sound
• Standard three softkeys in the emulator's keypad-off display
• Support for Chinese, Arabic, and Urdu languages (Arabic and Urdu are provided by plug-ins)
• Start-up progress indicator, visible when the emulator is minimised
• JavaScript™ Console support for debugging widgets

Also, a number of issues have been resolved and deficiencies removed; in other cases, workarounds have been provided.

The new SDK supports development of applications for the following runtimes: Symbian C++, Open C/C++, Java technology, Web Runtime (WRT), and Python (using the Python for S60 SDK plug-in). Integrated development environments (IDEs) for both C++ Java are supported, including Carbide.c++ and Eclipse. Also included in the SDK are new example applications for WRT, C++, and Java Platform, Micro Edition (Java ME).

Download the S60 5th Edition SDK for Symbian OS.

Read the S60 5th Edition SDK release notes.

Explore all S60 platform SDKs.

Thanks to the recent expansion of Forum Nokia's relationship with mobile operator Orange, developers have a sweet new opportunity to reach millions of consumers worldwide. Forum Nokia has agreed to identify applications from mobile developers that can be made available to more than 100 million Orange customers worldwide.

Here's how it will work: Orange, on an ongoing basis, will provide Forum Nokia with requirements for specific types of mobile applications it wants by country or region. Forum Nokia, in turn, will identify mobile developers who can meet those needs. Then, once a month, Forum Nokia will provide Orange with a selection of Series 40 and S60 mobile applications from its developers. Orange will review the applications and select those it wishes to distribute.

The program started in early February when Forum Nokia sent the first set of 20 applications to Orange. Of these, Orange selected eight for its Orange Partner Program. The eight developers will be invited to join the Orange Partner Program. Ultimately, all the selected applications will be made available to Orange customers worldwide.

Although most Orange customers are based in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), Forum Nokia developers anywhere in the world are eligible. In fact, among the first batch of applications sent by Forum Nokia to Orange, several were created by developers in the Americas region.

Also, in instances where Orange wants a specific application preloaded on a new Nokia device, Forum Nokia will help. 'We can make the application available on the Orange variant of the Nokia device', says Kari Salo, Forum Nokia's director of professional services. 'And we will ensure that it will work.'

Meet mobile operator Orange.

For more information or to submit your applications to Orange contact Benjamin Roszczewski or Teemu Auvinen.

Nokia is now offering discounts to developers and resellers on selected Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled devices. This limited-time offer makes it more affordable to acquire these devices for use in creating and field-testing applications and content. The promotion applies to the Nokia 6131 NFC device and the Nokia 6212 classic. North American developers can purchase devices at a 15% discount directly from Nokia. European developers will purchase their discounted devices from ToP Shop, a Nokia distributor.

Start getting your NFC-enabled devices at a discount.

Get technical specifications on Nokia's NFC devices.

Forum Nokia challenges mobile and Web developers worldwide to submit their best applications for Nokia devices to the 2009 Calling All Innovators contest. Developers can submit applications in any of three categories: Internet innovation, Flash, and emerging markets and mobile necessities. Finalists for Calling All Innovators will be announced on 17 August, and the winners will be named at Nokia World in September.

These winners will share cash and prizes worth more than $250,000, including premium placement in Nokia's Ovi Store and paid travel to demo their applications at an industry event later this year. Also, the top 10 submissions in all three categories will receive the Judge's Choice Award, which includes a one-year membership in the Forum Nokia Launchpad premium service (a 300 euro value). In addition, all winning applications will be reviewed by Nokia for possible preload on future Nokia devices. And in the Flash category, an additional prize of $10,000 will be awarded to an application that has also received money from the Open Screen Project Fund earlier this year.

The judges for the Calling All Innovators contest will review all applications according to four criteria:

• Quality and functionality: Is the application fully functional? Does it run successfully on Nokia Series 40 or S60 devices and platforms?
• Uniqueness, novelty value, and innovation: How creative is the application? Does it use established technology in unique ways?
• Usability, Creativity: leverage latest technologies to demonstrate superior design and ease of use (UI, graphics, etc.)
• Commercial Viability: ability to fulfill users' needs, customer adoption

Do you have a winning idea for a new mobile application or widget? Are you mobilising your website? Then don't delay. Entries for the Calling All Innovators 2009 contest are due before 12 midnight EDT (GMT -4) on 30 June.

Discover the types of applications being considered for the Calling All Innovators 2009 contest.

Ready to enter the Calling All Innovators 2009 contest? Submit your application now.

Get a piece of the $10 million Open Screen Project fund for Flash development.

Qt Software, a unit of Nokia, recently introduced a cross-platform IDE called Qt Creator and a new, complete Qt SDK. Qt is a cross-platform application and UI framework that lets developers write applications once then deploy them across desktop and embedded operating systems without rewriting the source code. The new Qt tools help make it even easier than before to program cross-platform rich GUI applications on Windows, Linux, and Mac OS. Once a developer installs the Qt SDK onto his or her preferred platform, the entire developer environment, including the Qt libraries, is ready for use.

The new Qt Creator IDE includes an advanced C++ editor, integrated GUI layout and forms designer, project- and build-management tools, and visual debugger. And the Qt SDK gives developers the complete software development kit in a single install; it also includes Qt Creator. Both the IDE and SDK are free downloads.

Explore more about Qt, Qt Creator, and the Qt SDK.

Explore and download Qt Creator.

Explore and download the complete Qt SDK.

Nokia Energy Profiler v1.2 is now available on the Forum Nokia site, adding support for the S60 5th Edition platform. The NEP application enables developers and device users to examine power consumption and several other parameters on S60 devices. Version 1.2 adds touch UI support, capture of WLAN received signal strength and 3G cellular network T1 and T2 timers, new graphing features, and new CSV output features.

To help developers get more from NEP, Forum Nokia is sponsoring a Webinar on 19 March. Entitled 'See the Power of Software with Nokia Energy Profiler', this one-hour presentation will cover power consumption fundamentals, Nokia Energy Profiler features, basic tool usage, and bad application behaviour. Two sessions will be conducted: one at a time convenient to developers in Europe, the other timed for those in the Americas.

Explore the Nokia Energy Profiler and download v1.2.

Register now to attend Forum Nokia's 'Power of Software' Webinar on 19 March.

The new Forum Nokia Champion of the Month Sittiphol Phanvilai, is an award-winning freelance developer based in Thailand who combines hardware design with software skills to create fun and engaging work. Several of his applications have won awards. His NeuScreen application, for example, won second place in the Calling All Innovators competition, Technology Showcase category; it is a touch-screen engine using the Nokia N95 multimedia device. Sittiphol's MobiTubia YouTube client for S60 devices won the Grand Prize in the 2007 Forum Nokia Open C Challenge, the first global competition he ever entered. And his MobiTubia application, a Flash video player for S60 3rd Edition devices, won grand prize in the Forum Nokia Open C Challenge. Sittiphol also blogs on Forum Nokia, contributes to the Forum Nokia discussion boards, and hosts the Neuvex site. His motto: 'Experience is the best teacher.'

View Forum Nokia Champion Sittiphol Phanvilai's Forum Nokia personal profile.

Visit Sittiphol's YouTube channel to view his application demo videos.

Check out Sittiphol's Forum Nokia blog.

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