If you’re blessed, if you’re a cool kid, you’ve got a Nokia (a decent one) that, when it connects to a data connection, displays a 3G icon.
If you’re ultra cool — Uber-Paris-Hilton-Hot, you’ve got something better. That’s a 3.5G icon, indicating that your handset is connecting at double-hard-bastard speed.
Or HSHSHDPSPSPAPA speed. You know, fast.
Well, I thought when I bought my Nokia E90, that I’d be joining the ranks of the Hiltonesque 3.5Gers. Surely the E90 is HSPDPAPASPAPAPA.
Surely.
Or is it.
I couldn’t be arsed to find out. I just bought it. It was a real-time decision when I was in the Vodafone shop. I considered the N95 8GB… then I remembered that the E90 retails in the Nokia store for 625 smackers. If I’m going to take advantage of a handset subsidy, the E90 will do me nicely.
Challenge. I get it out the shop and there’s no 3.5G icon.
No bother. I carry on my business. Everything is fine.
Until, that is, I get hold of my father’s E90. He bought an unlocked version of the handset and I was exceedingly annoyed to find out that I am the recipient of a substandard E90 version — for his handset has a 3.5G icon and we’re both on Vodafone.
It’s rather disconcerting to find out that, in one fell swoop, you’re not even on the same planet of cool as your father.
Hobbled. I felt hobbled. My E90 is the Kerry Katona of Paris Hilton devices.
Never fear.
I consulted the oracle. I knocked up a Google Talk conversation with Stefan from Intomobile. Knows a thing or two about Nokia.
What gives, I ask. Where is my 3.5G icon, eh?
Stefan does the virtual equivalent of a plumber’s deep toothy inhalation of breath when I explain that I’m using a Vodafone E90 and my dad’s using an unlocked E90.
That there is my issue.
Been hobbled by Vodafone. I’ve been sold a dud!
My firmware on my E90 is obviously years old. I need to upgrade it. I wonder if I’ll be allowed to. When I do that, it will arse my device and all the sodding settings. You can back’em up but it’s far from reliable. Nokia have been working on a fix for all this. The N82 is the first handset on planet Nokia that will let you upgrade it’s firmware without rendering your data Class-F. Not useful for me and my ageing E90 though, eh?
Arse.
I have an O2 E90 – same problem. Nokia have released new firmware, but this has not been tested by O2 and probebley Voda so it is not available via the Nokia updater. The only thing you can do is unbrand your phone and loose your waranty. – ARSE.
I have found the GPS pants, the new firmware would fix this.
All I can say about the E90 is that I’m glad I only took out a year contract – you may even see my E90 on ebay before then.
The one saving grace with my E90 is that O2 do not network lock and I got the E90 for free.
This will most likley be my last Nokia, aside from the GPS and lack of full MS Exchange sync – where is the touch screen? I have ended up using an old Windows Mobile with a 3 PAYG £10 for Gig for Exchange and Tom Tom, crap as a phone but beats the E90 for everything else.
[…] I plugged in my Nokia E90 to see if there was an upgrade available. Remember I wanted to get a proper 3.5 icon — and with it, uber fast mobile […]