10 July 2009

Compass Application For Nokia N97
Use The Built-In Compass To Get Directions!

As you may well already know, Nokia has equipped their latest GPS enabled phones such as Nokia 6210 Navigator, Nokia 6220 Classic as well as Nokia N97 with digital compass that using Earth's magnetic field for improving accuracy of determining the azimuth.

The built-in digital compass is used to improve accuracy of determining the azimuth and helps the default mapping applications to automatically orients any map to the direction you are facing.

Such compass can determine how a user is turned toward north direction. With geographical coordinates of a target point, the device itself (fixed by satellite navigation) and direction in which the user is turned, the device can determine direction in which the user should go. Magnetic compass also reacts immediately to changes of direction when the user is walking.

Unfortunately, compass is only used with default Maps application but now thanks to the folks over at ThinkChange who managed to locate the compass API we just got the handy stand-alone compass application for the Nokia N97.

Application indeed lacks some of the visual polish we'd like to see but it certainly gets the navigation job done and simply tells you which way is north and that’s the basically only function this cute application has to offer.

How To Use:

You need to "Calibrate" -- Rotate the device around all axes in a continuous movement to get a good signal before using, before you get signal strength GOOD or BEST, the data might be incorrect!;-)

Electronic compass usually contains two magnetometers which measure magnetic field in two perpendicular directions. Measuring Earth magnetic field requires very sensitive sensors. These are magnetoresistive sensors, which use material where resistance changes under external magnetic field .