Nokia N97 Firmware 2.0 Will Feature Full Kinetic Scrolling; Due In October

by Mike Macias on September 2, 2009

Well well. It looks like Nokia has heard our calls and the next N97 firmware will sure be a dandy. If you have heard Nokia is putting on a huge event this week in Germany where they announced many new devices including the N900 and the N97 Mini. While that news is huge, for N97 users nothing is bigger than this news that Mark from The Nokia Blog has captured over at his Youtube channel. Mark was one of the lucky bloggers to get invited to Nokia World.

On video, Mark managed to get a Nokia representative to give him a small demonstration of the upcoming firmware and what it will bring. After watching this video I can honestly say I’m extremely excited and so glad I decided to buy the N97, even though it was first released with crappy firmware.

Sit back and enjoy the video:

Incase you can’t see it for some reason, here are the main points…

  • full kinetic scrolling throughout the entire UI, including the menu.
  • 25-30mb free phone memory added (estimate, not exact figure).
  • a whole set of new widgets including ESPN Soccer (why not just ESPN in general?) and CNN video.
  • Upgraded Facebook application.
  • general stability performance upgrades.
  • Bigger album images in song lists.

Sadly we will have to wait until October for the N97 firmware 2.0 to come out.

What I’m Hoping For

I’m also hoping we get multiple homescreens, better UI transistion effects, and RAM improvements.

Keep following The Nokia Blog to stay updated with all the latest news from Nokia World.

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Mike has written 84 articles for your enjoyment.

On The Web: http://twitter.com/mikemacias

About: Mike is the editor-in-chief of N97fanatics.com and a huge mobile fanatic. He also runs MaemoFanatics.com and the popular E71fanatics.com. Contact him via email at contact@n97fanatics.com or at his Twitter page.

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  • http://twitter.com/keppie3 Kevin van der Veer

    Really nice this new features. This makes the #N97 much better then it now is !:D

  • putualbertolee

    Nice fixes, very much appreciated, but…. (sorry for the nagging)… where's the native SIP client?

  • Tom

    Can you ask about Skype integration? Nokia originally claimed Q3 for this on the N97, but have gone all quiet…

  • talv

    is the new facebook app likely to be the one you guys blogged about yesterday do you know or is it just an updated one of the garbage one that came with the n97?

  • danieldevon

    Nokia N97 is a most attractive 3G Smartphone comes in black and white colour casing. It designed nokia, for many business & entertainment users suit today's mobile phone users. If you plan to buy this phone you can compare various nokia N97 contact deals http://www.askphone.co.uk/nokia-n97-contract.html and buy cheapest.

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    That's a good question. I'll ask around and try to find out.

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    It looks like the one that came with the phone originally, we shall see over time. If they can give that a big performance update I would be happy. It also sucks I can't see comments to a status update.

  • http://phoneomenon.com/ Timi

    I think performance is the main thing Im concerned about with this update. I could care less about kinetic, if it isnt a making the N97 faster !!!! (well I do care about kinetic :P , I just want a faster phone)

  • http://twitter.com/benjezzy Amir B

    We just started Q3, give them some time :)

  • MajorDouble7

    Well this is absolutely fantastic. Glad to see the people getting what they want. Kinetic Scrolling is key, and I'm also happy about the album artwork shown in the music player while scrolling through songs/albums. All in all, great news.

    Thanks for letting me know first, Fanatics.
    MD 7

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    yeah hopefully they fix the RAM too. For me the phone is fast enough with the latest firmware. Maybe they'll do something like add virtual RAM

  • alexismil

    Can't wait to have that update!!!

    Hey Mike, I have been enjoying on my N97 the 3 beta applications from beta labs for a few hours , which are these ones:

    OVI Lifecasting
    OVI Maps Beta for mobile
    Nokia Messaging (Social Messaging Beta)

    I have to say, they are great, even for a beta, I really hope Nokia to give more apps like this ones!

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    Oooohhhh look who shows up with the n97. So you finally got it huh?

  • Ian

    I'm glad they're updating the phone with additional features, however I really want nokia internet radio on my N97, and for nokia to give us threaded sms.

  • wolverine2031

    how about correcting the problem where it will not recgnise people who are phoning you when you have duplicate entries on the sim and phone memory, even though its just set to read from phone memory only.

    and why not when it copies from sim to phone memory-cant it check to see if there are any duplicate names or contact numbers and flag them for you or ask you to confirm detials……

  • http://phoneomenon.com/ Timi

    Good reminder I have to download these applications as well..

  • talv

    threaded sms thats what i was thoinking of blackberrys and iphones both have it we need it too!!

  • putualbertolee

    A glimmer of hope for those who are dying (and b*tching) for SIP client in the N97's october firmware update: http://s60blog.com/2009/09/nokia-n97-firmware-v…

    Someone commented:
    —
    You asked, “Where's Skype” – and yet there it is, in a way, on the “Consumer benefits” slide.

    There are 3 major bullet points, look at the last line of the second major bullet point, “Voice UI Improvements, including support for Voice over IP”.
    —

    I hope it is SIP (too)…..

    :D Do I sound obsessed? From time to time I google with keywords: +N97 +October +Firmware +SIP

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    Thanks for posting this. Hopefully this answers some peoples questions.

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    Threaded sms is possible with an app called iSMS, although it must be signed. I haven't figured that part out yet.

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    I am praying they update Internet Radio for S60v5, but it's not looking too promising.

  • alexismil

    Oh Yeah, Finally Got It!!! (two weeks ago, i guess they thought mexico and spain are the same thing, as i got a spanian N97, so for worst of luck, no 3G support for me.

  • http://twitter.com/benjezzy Amir B

    I'll tackle the “signing part” of applications in a very near future post!

  • http://twitter.com/benjezzy Amir B

    Same problem here, only solution is to make sure you have a clean set of contacts. One alternative Nokia should consider is to give us a list of all the name a particular phone number is tied down to, hence making it easier to update & delete them!

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    Cool. So howa are you liking it?

  • http://www.n97fanatics.com Mike Macias

    Can you believe I've never signed my own app or hacked my phone? All my apps are signed already – sometimes I use symbiansigned but not all work with that. I've never tried isms – help me! lol

  • Pingback: N97 Firmware 2.0: Did Nokia Listen To tehkseven? | Nokia N97 Fanatics

  • Sofia

    If i get my n97 soon, will i be able to download from nokia.com this new firmware?
    yesterday i checked the site, and it seems to be possible…am i wrong?
    thanks…

  • aussieraw

    OK, so they've got performance improvements down, they've got kinetic scrolling down, along with a few other useful changes, all good news… but the Three Big Things I want are not mentioned with enough hype and attention that I believe they should be (!):

    * 100% Fixes to the FREEZING and RESTARTING problems.
    * Built-in SIP support
    * Built-in Skype support

    If those 3 things were in, I'd have a perfect phone :)

    I'm sure with putualbertolee and the SIP support, god damn I really need that — I could have 8cents untimed calls Australia-wide, and using the WiFi from my house, all through Adelaide city, and all my friends places — that is cool. I need that SIP support!!! Listen up Nokia!!! :)

  • zenguppy34

    its octobers guys! firmware 2.0 should be out anytime!

  • nokiaphilippines

    hey guys its now the month of October. Any idea of the exact date of the release?

  • mb723

    its gna be out on 10/10

  • gordy2008

    hi can any 1 tell me if i can change the set up of my n97, can i change it so that when i get a message it says who its from without goin into the message. just got the phone and dont really know how to work it or whats good to have on, any info would be welcome

    thanks in advance

  • alexisdover

    my n97 randomly decides to play the nokia tone when i have general profile activated with bob marley set as the ringtone. then i test it and it works, then suddenly i get a phone call and its the (annoying) nokia tone. I have a similar problem with vibrate in the silent profile: sometimes it vibrates and sometimes it doesnt even when i re-set it and test it. i turn the phone off and on and it works fine, then i test again and no vibrate. i dont get it. anyone know what the problem is?

    p.s. does anyone know if the version 20 will be available in october for a vodafone branded phone, i know it takes longer for branded phones, but duno exactly how long vodafone take.

  • jack

    The nokia N97 V20 firmware is a hoax and will never be released, I would recomend to never by Nokia again, as the firmware is just an attempt by Nokia to stop people from taking the phone in for a refund. That is why they redisigned the phone all together as a mini, because the n97 is an epic fail.

  • jack

    The nokia N97 V20 firmware is a hoax and will never be released, I would recomend to never by Nokia again, as the firmware is just an attempt by Nokia to stop people from taking the phone in for a refund. That is why they redisigned the phone all together as a mini, because the n97 is an epic fail.

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