Well, despite the fact that they are available online as of last night- apparently the 7th is a more accurate date for in-store availability.
My local store told me, "Uh, I don't know- maybe a couple of days, maybe next week...?"
A call to another location in the region revealed that they were shipped out on Thursday or Friday and they should arrive today or tomorrow. Yet another store informed me that they were sent an email letting them know that they will be available "shortly".
Another store corrected me twice on the pronunciation of the brand, despite the fact that I've lived in Finland, speak a bit of the language, have been to the upper levels of the world headquarters outside of Helsinki, have flown around the globe for product and service functions- and have shaken hands with OPK, the CEO himself.
Way to roll out a product, AT&T. It's not like they are exactly a mom & pop operation- they should be able to organize the logistics of a single product. :-\
Of course, if the damn thing had either an Apple logo on it or two "B's" in the product name- we'd have been informed of a date and time down to the hour and minute, which would apply to every single location nationwide. What jokers.
In the meantime, Cincinnati Bell is offering the white E71 for FREE on contract and the 5800 for $149. Now Amazon has it for a scrap of copper.
AT&T, you suck. You're a dumb pipe, get over it. Stock handsets and overcharge me for data- that's all you need to do. At least they got one thing right!
lol, can't expect much from the lower support people. A woman at Starbucks corrected me on the pronunciation of the Pike Place brew, insisting that it was "Pike's Place". I've been to Seattle, been to the Pike Place market, and the label clearly read "Pike Place".
At any rate, in effort to prove just how impatient I am with the E71x launch (as if it weren't already painfully apparent to everyone within e-shouting distance)- I'm getting calls from the Detroit metro area that stock is beginning to arrive at retail locations. Hopefully it won't be long (meaning later today, thank you!) before they reach just a bit further north to me. I clearly can't wait any longer. :-)
Looking forward to some hands-on differences between the branded and unbranded. I know that some apps/menus cannot be deleted but haven't heard about other apps I might install like Fring, Nimbuzz, all the good stuff from BetaLabs, etc. And Nokia Maps.
Yeah, I specifically can't wait to verify that the device can tether to my netbook and N810, that the GPS is open to any navigation application of my choosing, and that I can customize the hardware shortcut keys (HUGE fan of the hardware shortcut keys). I too have heard that some applications cannot be deleted nor moved into a junk folder of sorts- but they can be buried in the root menu, which is good enough for me.
The inability to tether will certainly be a deal breaker. Joikuspot or Walking Hotspot are a necessity as well. While VOIP isn't a priority for me, I'd certainly like to know that other consumers will be able to use such software.
What will really be interesting to know is if the mandatory PDA data plan can be dropped down to the unlimited medianet package next month- though that's certainly not something I expect, as it's really breaking the 'rules'. Still- I've been sucking down gigs of data every month for years and years with smartphones... AT&T has just been too stupid to know what a smartphone is for as many years- but I guess they're no longer a dumb pipe. ;)
My N75 was AT&T branded and I could still tether, so here's hoping!
I just saw that about Cincin Bell yesterday and can't believe a carrier (in Ohio of all places) really, really gets it. I don't know what their monthly rates are, but I wish I still lived in Ohio so I had a chance to find out.
Well, not really, but you get my point :)
I don't use VOIP as much as I'd like, but it's kind of a bellweather test for carriers. They are much more afraid of VOIP than they are of tethering (very few people know this even exists) so VOIP apps tend to be the first blocked.
Probably going to hit an AT&T store on Wed and see if I can play with one.
My apologies if anyone has read this tirade elsewhere- I’ve posted pretty much the same elsewhere, and I’ll continue to post my initial experience (as well as the lousy experience with the store manager and other personnel) anywhere I can. This device has been bastardized to the hilt- and much of it is seemingly just ’cause they’re idiots. Eduardo hit the nail on the head right there.
Anyway, I finally scored one, despite the fact that the store manager decided not to call me once the shipment arrived, though she rudely and unwillingly agreed that she would ten AM this morning. Two hours after a friend walked into the store and confirmed for me the E71x was there and set up on display past before I went up there- she still had never called. Thanks very much. You know- in some countries an eager consumer is perceived as a good thing.
To make things even more frustrating right off the bat, I was waiting for someone to help me- checking out the brand new Nokia device that they just put on display. I was looking at it for about three minutes, waiting for the next available ‘associate’.
Unfortunately a guy walked in off the street, walked right to the iPhone display- what do you know, guy walked right past me and asked the prospective Apple consumer if they needed help. Probably a higher commission for selling a phone with an Apple logo on it. Real classy.
I don’t believe you can change the hardware shortcuts- wtf is the point in disabling that? The shortcuts on the standby screen can be changed, but let’s say you want to change the messaging hardware key to Nokia Email, because you know… that’s WTF you use- sorry. AT&T didn’t want you to do that. Also, the long keypress for the alternate shortcut… no.
W(here)TF is the positioning app? I haven’t installed Sports Tracker (that is, attempt to install it at least!), but I’m not seeing the basic position app. Not a good sign. Maybe it’s hidden in a FP2 menu that I’m not seeing yet… let’s hope. :-\
No ‘Download!’. Not a huge deal, and expected out of AT&T… but I hadn’t thought about not having this. I guess it’s out. Figures- AT&T has their own app store, and has already flipped Nokia the ol’ middle finger on this whole “Ovi” business.
Switch application is gone? Seriously? This makes setting up a new device so nice, I believe I’ve used it every time I get my hands on a new S60 device- probably 7 or 8 times in the past year… it’s gone? Is that a FP2 thing, or is it AT&T just being stupid?
Just checked- it’s there on my S60 5th handset, in two different places- so it’s not likely to be on Nokia’s end. Nice. Again- how does this threaten AT&T?
FM Radio is MIA. Why in the ** would that be?? Does AT&T sell transitor radios now or what?!
A quick install of Nokia Email doesn’t look good. It tells me that my Gmail account has been setup in the messaging folder after setup. Clicking on the Email icon in the daftly named “Games&Apps” folder simply flashes the screen. Nokia Email doesn’t load. Stellar.
Really looking bad so far. Just about time to start looking at the 30 day return policy and think about just spending the extra dough on the unlocked handset. The gray E71 looks better anyway. This thing is starting to look like a Samsung.
Nokia, I can’t believe you let AT&T jerk you around again. Such a shame. :-(
Nokia needs to grow some balls, and AT&T needs to realize they are a DUMB F**KING PIPE.
This pretty much sucks- even worse than the AT&T store manager, who has been just short of a complete bitch to an eager, informed and knowledgable consumer. AT&T and Nokia are both getting lengthy emails regarding the staff at my local store.
Oh yeah- one other thing… they tried to charge me $197 for the handset before the 50 dollar mail in rebate until I informed them that the price should be $99 after rebate. The store manager looked it up and, with a grudge, changed the price. She then stated, “Oh, well- the price just went up. I’ll do it now, but you’re lucky.”
Yeah, I’m a fortunate sonofabitch to have walked into an AT&T store today. I’ll count my blessings to help me fall asleep tonight. :-\
Heh- that's funny... Jaiku reordered my numbering, repeating 1 and 2- despite the fact that they were numbered 5 and 6. My penalty for forcing a wall of text in front of you nice people, I must imagine. Anyway- I'm kinda pissed off right now.
Good news is that while I was waiting for all of the iConsumers to be serviced before me I was able to tether the display model to my N810. Can't lose them all, I guess!
For setting up Nokia email, my 5800 does the same thing unless I use the SMS config message. If I use the "Email setup" icon, it creates a new profile in the default S60 mail app.
Can you install Shozu? Share Online 4 (i hear it is not on there by default) or the betalabs location tagger app?
Well, hopefully the Nokia Email install was just an operator error. I don't have the heart to go any further with this thing tonight. It's going back tomorrow morning, and yes- I'm buying the unlocked version just as soon as I confirm that they'll return the E71x and cancel the 2 year contract with the 30 dollar data plan. It's cheaper in the long run, and Destinations is the only big deal with FP2 that I can think of right now. There are third party applications that can take care of that.
This E71x is a freakin' joke. Stupid, stupid things like disallowing us to change the assignment of the hardware shortcut keys is absurd.
Shame on AT&T, yes- but shame on Nokia for letting AT&T bully them again because their phones don't have an Apple logo.
Enough for tonight! Tomorrow will be a better day, with a better looking and functioning E71(-x!). :-)
Pseudofinn, I completely agree with all your feedback and as I wrote up on my Nokia Experts site it is even worse the more you dive into the device. All the great Ovi stuff is missing and there are some major limitations. How can I not even install Nokia Podcasting? If this is how it is going to be to get Nokia S60 devices on US carriers then better for Nokia to stick with unlocked and give people full Nokia experience.
@palmsolo- Yeah, it's really a shame on so many levels. I'm upset with my experience- but I'm more so upset that AT&T consumers who are likely new to S60 Nokia devices are going to get the wrong idea and, as you say, not get the full Nokia experience. I don't know if I'm more angry with AT&T for neutering the device, or with Nokia for letting themselves get bullied once again- but what choice is there really to get in the door? Because yes, Nokia ain't really made it through the door over here, have they? Well- at least the door was slammed shut sometime in the last decade and Nokia forgot how to knock, or something... :-\
I think better than ever before I understand Nokia's apathy towards the North American market- but who's fault is that? Is it AT&T's fault for being a bully, is it the consumers' fault for being uneducated, Nokia's fault for not educating them (because really, who else is going to educate the masses- what we do is great, but does that really reach the masses?), or is it again Nokia's fault for not caring how things are done over here as they attempt to apply the same 'one size fits all' method to carriers here- which clearly works everywhere else (Ahem-40%marketshareeverywherebutNAM-ahem)? Advertise! Market! Take a f'ing lesson from the Apple marketing machine FFS! The entire population of Michigan thinks that Nokia sells 15 dollar Pay-as-you-go handsets in their factories in Japan- and from what I see, it's not even just the hard to reach midwest that belives this to be true.
This is so typical of AT&T, completely customizing the OS to the extreme. However, way back in the day, my Cingular-version S40 6230 was still somewhat a genuine 6230, aside from the Media-Net icons that could not be removed.
Yeah, but as I decided that I need to come up with the extra loot for the unlocked model- I wasn't going to take the $150 gamble on the unauthorized fw update. ;-)
23 comments so far
Amazon has it for $.01
6 months, 1 week ago by iamnotdrtran
That is amazing. I wonder if I can qualify after 1.5yrs on my current 2yr contract. Or, more importantly, if my father can.
6 months, 1 week ago by bogart
Well, despite the fact that they are available online as of last night- apparently the 7th is a more accurate date for in-store availability.
My local store told me, "Uh, I don't know- maybe a couple of days, maybe next week...?"
A call to another location in the region revealed that they were shipped out on Thursday or Friday and they should arrive today or tomorrow. Yet another store informed me that they were sent an email letting them know that they will be available "shortly".
Another store corrected me twice on the pronunciation of the brand, despite the fact that I've lived in Finland, speak a bit of the language, have been to the upper levels of the world headquarters outside of Helsinki, have flown around the globe for product and service functions- and have shaken hands with OPK, the CEO himself.
Way to roll out a product, AT&T. It's not like they are exactly a mom & pop operation- they should be able to organize the logistics of a single product. :-\
Of course, if the damn thing had either an Apple logo on it or two "B's" in the product name- we'd have been informed of a date and time down to the hour and minute, which would apply to every single location nationwide. What jokers.
In the meantime, Cincinnati Bell is offering the white E71 for FREE on contract and the 5800 for $149. Now Amazon has it for a scrap of copper.
AT&T, you suck. You're a dumb pipe, get over it. Stock handsets and overcharge me for data- that's all you need to do. At least they got one thing right!
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Dang- was about to pull the trigger on the Amazon deal... they don't expect stock until the 6th either. :-(
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
lol, can't expect much from the lower support people. A woman at Starbucks corrected me on the pronunciation of the Pike Place brew, insisting that it was "Pike's Place". I've been to Seattle, been to the Pike Place market, and the label clearly read "Pike Place".
I was annoyed, no tip for her.
6 months, 1 week ago by bogart
@bogart- No doubt, sir! :-)
At any rate, in effort to prove just how impatient I am with the E71x launch (as if it weren't already painfully apparent to everyone within e-shouting distance)- I'm getting calls from the Detroit metro area that stock is beginning to arrive at retail locations. Hopefully it won't be long (meaning later today, thank you!) before they reach just a bit further north to me. I clearly can't wait any longer. :-)
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Looking forward to some hands-on differences between the branded and unbranded. I know that some apps/menus cannot be deleted but haven't heard about other apps I might install like Fring, Nimbuzz, all the good stuff from BetaLabs, etc. And Nokia Maps.
6 months, 1 week ago by bogart
Yeah, I specifically can't wait to verify that the device can tether to my netbook and N810, that the GPS is open to any navigation application of my choosing, and that I can customize the hardware shortcut keys (HUGE fan of the hardware shortcut keys). I too have heard that some applications cannot be deleted nor moved into a junk folder of sorts- but they can be buried in the root menu, which is good enough for me.
The inability to tether will certainly be a deal breaker. Joikuspot or Walking Hotspot are a necessity as well. While VOIP isn't a priority for me, I'd certainly like to know that other consumers will be able to use such software.
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
What will really be interesting to know is if the mandatory PDA data plan can be dropped down to the unlimited medianet package next month- though that's certainly not something I expect, as it's really breaking the 'rules'. Still- I've been sucking down gigs of data every month for years and years with smartphones... AT&T has just been too stupid to know what a smartphone is for as many years- but I guess they're no longer a dumb pipe. ;)
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
My N75 was AT&T branded and I could still tether, so here's hoping!
I just saw that about Cincin Bell yesterday and can't believe a carrier (in Ohio of all places) really, really gets it. I don't know what their monthly rates are, but I wish I still lived in Ohio so I had a chance to find out.
Well, not really, but you get my point :)
I don't use VOIP as much as I'd like, but it's kind of a bellweather test for carriers. They are much more afraid of VOIP than they are of tethering (very few people know this even exists) so VOIP apps tend to be the first blocked.
Probably going to hit an AT&T store on Wed and see if I can play with one.
6 months, 1 week ago by bogart
My apologies if anyone has read this tirade elsewhere- I’ve posted pretty much the same elsewhere, and I’ll continue to post my initial experience (as well as the lousy experience with the store manager and other personnel) anywhere I can. This device has been bastardized to the hilt- and much of it is seemingly just ’cause they’re idiots. Eduardo hit the nail on the head right there.
Anyway, I finally scored one, despite the fact that the store manager decided not to call me once the shipment arrived, though she rudely and unwillingly agreed that she would ten AM this morning. Two hours after a friend walked into the store and confirmed for me the E71x was there and set up on display past before I went up there- she still had never called. Thanks very much. You know- in some countries an eager consumer is perceived as a good thing.
To make things even more frustrating right off the bat, I was waiting for someone to help me- checking out the brand new Nokia device that they just put on display. I was looking at it for about three minutes, waiting for the next available ‘associate’.
Unfortunately a guy walked in off the street, walked right to the iPhone display- what do you know, guy walked right past me and asked the prospective Apple consumer if they needed help. Probably a higher commission for selling a phone with an Apple logo on it. Real classy.
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Anyway- here’s my experience so far….
I don’t believe you can change the hardware shortcuts- wtf is the point in disabling that? The shortcuts on the standby screen can be changed, but let’s say you want to change the messaging hardware key to Nokia Email, because you know… that’s WTF you use- sorry. AT&T didn’t want you to do that. Also, the long keypress for the alternate shortcut… no.
W(here)TF is the positioning app? I haven’t installed Sports Tracker (that is, attempt to install it at least!), but I’m not seeing the basic position app. Not a good sign. Maybe it’s hidden in a FP2 menu that I’m not seeing yet… let’s hope. :-\
No ‘Download!’. Not a huge deal, and expected out of AT&T… but I hadn’t thought about not having this. I guess it’s out. Figures- AT&T has their own app store, and has already flipped Nokia the ol’ middle finger on this whole “Ovi” business.
Switch application is gone? Seriously? This makes setting up a new device so nice, I believe I’ve used it every time I get my hands on a new S60 device- probably 7 or 8 times in the past year… it’s gone? Is that a FP2 thing, or is it AT&T just being stupid?
Just checked- it’s there on my S60 5th handset, in two different places- so it’s not likely to be on Nokia’s end. Nice. Again- how does this threaten AT&T?
FM Radio is MIA. Why in the ** would that be?? Does AT&T sell transitor radios now or what?!
A quick install of Nokia Email doesn’t look good. It tells me that my Gmail account has been setup in the messaging folder after setup. Clicking on the Email icon in the daftly named “Games&Apps” folder simply flashes the screen. Nokia Email doesn’t load. Stellar.
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Really looking bad so far. Just about time to start looking at the 30 day return policy and think about just spending the extra dough on the unlocked handset. The gray E71 looks better anyway. This thing is starting to look like a Samsung.
Nokia, I can’t believe you let AT&T jerk you around again. Such a shame. :-(
Nokia needs to grow some balls, and AT&T needs to realize they are a DUMB F**KING PIPE.
This pretty much sucks- even worse than the AT&T store manager, who has been just short of a complete bitch to an eager, informed and knowledgable consumer. AT&T and Nokia are both getting lengthy emails regarding the staff at my local store.
Oh yeah- one other thing… they tried to charge me $197 for the handset before the 50 dollar mail in rebate until I informed them that the price should be $99 after rebate. The store manager looked it up and, with a grudge, changed the price. She then stated, “Oh, well- the price just went up. I’ll do it now, but you’re lucky.”
Yeah, I’m a fortunate sonofabitch to have walked into an AT&T store today. I’ll count my blessings to help me fall asleep tonight. :-\
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Heh- that's funny... Jaiku reordered my numbering, repeating 1 and 2- despite the fact that they were numbered 5 and 6. My penalty for forcing a wall of text in front of you nice people, I must imagine. Anyway- I'm kinda pissed off right now.
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Good news is that while I was waiting for all of the iConsumers to be serviced before me I was able to tether the display model to my N810. Can't lose them all, I guess!
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
For setting up Nokia email, my 5800 does the same thing unless I use the SMS config message. If I use the "Email setup" icon, it creates a new profile in the default S60 mail app.
Can you install Shozu? Share Online 4 (i hear it is not on there by default) or the betalabs location tagger app?
6 months, 1 week ago by bogart
Well, hopefully the Nokia Email install was just an operator error. I don't have the heart to go any further with this thing tonight. It's going back tomorrow morning, and yes- I'm buying the unlocked version just as soon as I confirm that they'll return the E71x and cancel the 2 year contract with the 30 dollar data plan. It's cheaper in the long run, and Destinations is the only big deal with FP2 that I can think of right now. There are third party applications that can take care of that.
This E71x is a freakin' joke. Stupid, stupid things like disallowing us to change the assignment of the hardware shortcut keys is absurd.
Shame on AT&T, yes- but shame on Nokia for letting AT&T bully them again because their phones don't have an Apple logo.
Enough for tonight! Tomorrow will be a better day, with a better looking and functioning E71(-x!). :-)
6 months, 1 week ago by PseudoFinn
Pseudofinn, I completely agree with all your feedback and as I wrote up on my Nokia Experts site it is even worse the more you dive into the device. All the great Ovi stuff is missing and there are some major limitations. How can I not even install Nokia Podcasting? If this is how it is going to be to get Nokia S60 devices on US carriers then better for Nokia to stick with unlocked and give people full Nokia experience.
6 months ago by palmsolo
So, neither Shozu nor ShareOnline 4 will install onto the E71x?
6 months ago by bogart
@palmsolo- Yeah, it's really a shame on so many levels. I'm upset with my experience- but I'm more so upset that AT&T consumers who are likely new to S60 Nokia devices are going to get the wrong idea and, as you say, not get the full Nokia experience. I don't know if I'm more angry with AT&T for neutering the device, or with Nokia for letting themselves get bullied once again- but what choice is there really to get in the door? Because yes, Nokia ain't really made it through the door over here, have they? Well- at least the door was slammed shut sometime in the last decade and Nokia forgot how to knock, or something... :-\
I think better than ever before I understand Nokia's apathy towards the North American market- but who's fault is that? Is it AT&T's fault for being a bully, is it the consumers' fault for being uneducated, Nokia's fault for not educating them (because really, who else is going to educate the masses- what we do is great, but does that really reach the masses?), or is it again Nokia's fault for not caring how things are done over here as they attempt to apply the same 'one size fits all' method to carriers here- which clearly works everywhere else (Ahem-40%marketshareeverywherebutNAM-ahem)? Advertise! Market! Take a f'ing lesson from the Apple marketing machine FFS! The entire population of Michigan thinks that Nokia sells 15 dollar Pay-as-you-go handsets in their factories in Japan- and from what I see, it's not even just the hard to reach midwest that belives this to be true.
Hard day to be a Nokia supporter. :-s
6 months ago by PseudoFinn
This is so typical of AT&T, completely customizing the OS to the extreme. However, way back in the day, my Cingular-version S40 6230 was still somewhat a genuine 6230, aside from the Media-Net icons that could not be removed.
6 months ago by merlin3212
I guess its too late now, but I would have tried flashing it with E71-2 firmware before sending it back.
6 months ago by iamnotdrtran
Yeah, but as I decided that I need to come up with the extra loot for the unlocked model- I wasn't going to take the $150 gamble on the unauthorized fw update. ;-)
6 months ago by PseudoFinn