Turn on, tune in - and drop your jaw to the one of smartest little S60 apps we’ve seen, Nokia Internet Radio.
This tiny application (it’s just 380KB in size) turns your Nokia into a genuinely wire-less wireless, picking up over a thousand radio stations worldwide at the touch of a button.
After a quick and easy install, and after accepting Nokia’s usual grumpy warning about data charges, you choose your phone’s access point. Naturally, you’ll get the best audio quality (and the lowest data bill) using a Wi-Fi connection, but Nokia Internet Radio works seamlessly on 3G and even (whisper it) GPRS.
Head into the settings and you can tweak the quality recommended for your connection – ‘Standard’ (48Kbps) for GPRS, ‘High’ (up to 128Kbps) for 3G and ‘Best’ (over 128Kbps) for 802.11b/g. Of course, you’re limited to the bitrate at which the radio station is streaming, but even 32Kbps sounded pretty good on the Nokia N81 we used for the test.
Unlike your phone’s built-in FM radio, you don’t need your headset for an aerial, although it’s worth plugging in to give a touch more bass and clarity.
Like most standalone internet radios, you can browse stations by language, genre and country, or choose from the most popular broadcasters. This is where Nokia Internet Radio can disappoint. The limited selection of stations features just one or two in most countries, while even popular nations lack some major broadcasters. You’ll look in vain for any of the numbered or local BBC stations, for instance, and I couldn’t find any of my favourite broadcasters in France, Australia or the USA.
Searching through the stations that are there is easy enough, though, with the list sorting itself as you type in letters. It’s also simple to add stations as favourites, pause programmes and check station information.
Nokia Internet Radio may not be perfect but for a small, free application it’s hard to fault.
Basically, Nokia Internet Radio is a must-have for any S60 owner with a decent data connection.
Details
Size: 0.3MB
Price: Free
