Finding a good sports scores app for my precious Nokia N97 has proved to be a real pain in the ass. I want something that shows me the scores for a particular team or sport in a simplified member, and I also need the user interface to be big and finger friendly. So far nothing has really caught my eye in terms of an application, but I recently browsed over to ESPN.com from my N97 and was pleasantly surprised with a beautiful – finger friendly mobile version of the most popular sports site in the world. It features news, scoreboards, stats, just about everything you need. The website looks like it was designed for the iPhone but works perfectly with the N97. If you create an account you can even customize your “favorite teams & leagues” so that you can have them on the first page when you arrive at the site.
Right now it’s baseball season obviously so I’m paying attention to the Dodgers. With the live updates feature I get all the in-game stats including who is up to bat and who is pitching, all the way down to balls and strikes. The use of AJAX (enhanced javascript) is widespread throughout the page and implemented perfectly, making for less need to load another web page.
Enough talk from me, how about some action.
Check out a handful of screenshots I compiled from my N97. Keep in mind they are scaled down a bit so the site will look even better on phone’s huge screen.
Left: Tap any game to reveal more details instantly like I have on the Dodgers game.
Right: View details of a particular game.
The Dodgers page on ESPN.com. Most of those blue bars below “add to favorite teams” are ajax and do not have to load a new page to view. For instance I can tap “scores” and it will be phone instantly.
Batter vs. Pitcher in the current game.
It’s Good, But I Want More
While I’m very happy with the mobile site, oh how I wish this was a real application. I long for a customizable N97 homescreen sports scores widget, where I can see the scores from certain teams or leagues. A ticker would be great, updated at a given interval. I’m still shocked that no developer or company has created something like this for Symbian smartphones, especially with the N97’s homescreen widget feature. I’m surprised Nokia hasn’t assisted a company with creating this application, it would be perfect for commercials and ads for the N97. I want a complete application, with notification sounds (optional) and all when my team scores. I would be willing to PAY for such an application. You would make a killing if you threw it in the Ovi Store and charged $1.99.
For now we are stuck with mobile versions of websites, and ESPN.com is the best I can find. Please let us know your thoughts and if you find a better solution.
Visit ESPN
Update: You must visit this link first from your N97 to make site think you’re on the iPhone.
http://m.espn.go.com/wireless/?w=18p6s&e=AWA&iphone
Visit ESPN.com Now From Your N97 or S60v5 smartphone.
Related Articles:
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- OpenVideoHub: Another Mobile Streaming Media Solution For The N97?
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Mike has written 77 articles for your enjoyment.
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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.
