Apps Reviews, Reviews - Written by Mikey Bee on Thursday, January 21, 2010 13:05 - 14 Comments

Nokia Ovi Maps 3.03 Review (First Impressions)
Rating: 4.5

Tags: Apps, location-based, Ovi Maps, Ovi Maps 3.03

The new Ovi Maps 3.03 has gone live, you know, the one where you no longer have to pay for features like turn-by-turn and traffic updates. There are also some neat integrated features. The software is free to download right now so we’ve done exactly that with our Nokia 5800. Find out how we got on with our Nokia Ovi Maps 3.03 review…

Before you can start making the most of Nokia Ovi Maps 3.03 you need to download the 7.8MB file from the Ovi Maps site. You can have it sent straight to your handheld or you can download it to your PC or Mac and install it from there.

The update only took a couple of minutes to install itself on our Nokia 5800 smartphone and immediately sets about making itself felt. The new user interface is fresh and clear and works well in both Landscape and Portrait mode. There is a taskbar that allows you to define your connection, as well as manage your maps and drive preferences as well as how you want to sync the information in the app with your PC or Mac.

However, most of the every day functionality can be had direct from the main screen. The standard array of features we’re used to in Ovi Maps is still there but the first thing we noticed was how much smoother the interface runs. Checking your location and getting routing information is a whole lot quicker and scrolling around maps is easier too.

What’s more, the UI really feels as though it has been optimised for touchscreen devices like the Nokia 5800 and Nokia N97 Mini. The Share Location feature is there to let people know where you are by linking through to your Facebook account.

New features include the Weather and Events app that allow you to pull up information on your current location as well as anywhere you wish to search out. Making full use of location-based services you’ll find that as soon as you fire up the app it’s populated with your location and the latest information to hand. The Events tool not only allows you to see what’s on but you can also push through to the relevant site and book tickets.

Nokia as done a great job with this update of Ovi Maps, bringing with it a far more intuitive interface, what genuinely feels like a speed boost to sat-nav location-based services and a far more intuitive feel to the whole package.

We’ve not had a chance to check out the turn-by-turn and ‘on-road’ experience with Ovi Maps yet but we’ll be doing so over the next few days. In the meantime, if you’ve not downloaded Nokia Ovi Maps yet we’d suggest you do so right now and discover a whole new way of getting around!

DOWNLOAD: Ovi Maps

Check out our Nokia Ovi Maps 3.03 review image gallery:

: It’s a quick 7.8MB install that takes a little over a minute

: The UI looks fresh and works great in Landscape and Portrait modes

: Drive mode: plotting your route has never been easier

: Events: It’s location-based so is ready to go as soon as you open it

: Map search is quick and scrolling is smooth

: Weather: Find out what it’s like at home or your destination

Share and Enjoy:

14 Comments

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David
Jan 21, 2010 13:27

No Download link for the Std N97 ?
or Update via the phones SW Update
or No Download in Ovi Maps 3.0
or Download in link above for mobile ….

Where can I get the update?

Mikey Bee
Jan 21, 2010 14:14

There will be an official Nokia N97 update in the next week or so, or so we were informed at the launch this morning: http://noknok.tv/2010/01/21/is-your-nokia-free-ovi-maps-friendly/

Tom Rees
Jan 21, 2010 15:04

Yay!

David
Jan 21, 2010 17:34

I suspect it to be because of the n97 compass? further programming?

But seriously… why not launch on all devices together?

C Tukel
Jan 21, 2010 18:25

I downloaded and installed on my 5800 XM (firmware 4.0). When I go to routing and It shows briefly and ask me go online to update licence. is subscription still required? And how can I switch to 3D look and sattellite map mode in this version?

yitwave
Jan 22, 2010 8:34

N97 is delayed 1 week because of lack of C:\. This means its integrated in the new firmware. Which also means there’s a new firmware, v.21 is coming out next week!

c
Jan 22, 2010 10:16

What about N86 8MP? Anyopne know when will compatable maps be available?

bbennfam4
Jan 25, 2010 19:38

once again, the new ovi maps not compatable with the n900.this is becoming a pain its the best nokia ive seen but everything that is created by nokia is not compatable

G Man
Jan 27, 2010 6:14

Just downloaded it on my 6710 Navigator via SW Update and it works great.

steph
Jan 30, 2010 19:10

It’s a great news that navigating became free, with all the guides. I find a little confusing its user interface however. In all applications, there is an Options button in the lower left corner, to set program behaviour, get help, etc. But not in Maps, this button goes back to the opening screen. I quitted the navigation several times because of this. Also, I find the Share option useless for me, as it only shares on Facebook, as this article mentions. By the way, the 3D and satellite mode can be switched on by touching the gear-wheel icon (and not the button where in all Symbian applications the Options button is).

Statham
Feb 1, 2010 18:44

I think people don’t realise what the implications of this are. I was a long time Nokia user but made the switch to the iPhone 3GS last June, due to the pretty poor handsets such as the N97, my contract is ending in November this year and I’ve got a feeing I’ll be getting a Nokia device again because of this decision, as long as the hardware on Nokia phones improves. Hopefully once the new Maemo devices are released this summer, I’ll probably make the jump as it looks far more interesting than Android and even the iPhone OS

Graham
Feb 12, 2010 0:05

What a bizarre marketing approach. Sure, it makes sense to appease long standing users first, but to have a new device (N900) that is supposed to be clawing back users from a competitor and not to provide upgrades ASAP seems dumb.

I totally agree with David – they should have launched this on all platforms simultaneously.

Hulcoteman
Mar 5, 2010 11:37

I acquired a new 5800 a couple of weeks ago. It came with Ovi Maps 3.01. Pretty impressive but took a while to learn. I also paid £16.99 to subscribe to Traffic updates which gave a very comprehsive list of traffic problems in my area and also marked them on the map view. Have now upgraded to v 3.03 and had to relearn everything by trial and error. Still good but my subscribed for traffic updates have disappeared. Has anyone else had this problem or, better still, does anyone know how to fix it?

Hulcoteman
Mar 9, 2010 14:32

Further to my post above: I\’ve had email discussions with the Nokia support people who responded commendably quickly. However, their suggested fix was not relevant. More emails thanked me for bringing it to their attention (!) and more or less admitted that they will be working on a new release. Meanwhile my subscription to Traffic Updates goes down the pan. At least it didn\’t cost much.