E71 Firmware Update 300.21.012
July 6th, 2009 | 
Author: There has been much reporting of the new E71 Firmware update version 300.21.012 which became available to download in certain parts of the world (Europe, I believe) for a select few handset types. Despite numerous reports of problems with the Firmware upgrade, the big rumour seems to have come from the E71 Fanatics forum, where a post seems to suggest that the firmware update comes with greatly improved images from the camera. Due to the different angles, subjects and lighting conditions in the two photographs, there has been much speculation over the actual comparability of the images, so I decided to upgrade my phone in the name of science and report back on the findings!
The before shot
I took the following image before updating my E71 firmware, so this used the 210.21.006 release. I tried to be helpful and put out a watch, cigar case and an empty Diet Coke bottle on my mouse mat to give an idea of detail, and before I took the image, I hit “T” to focus on the silver band of the bottle. Here are the results:
Image taken before the firmware upgrade - click for full, un-edited resolution
As you can see, there is a fair amount of blurring and a lack of detail – a lot of noise is present, especially on the wall and door in the background. If you zoom in, the watch face is not easily read.
The After Shot
I upgraded the firmware (which involved installing an updated version of Nokia Software Updater, backing up my device in Nokia PC Suite, downloading the 108.4Mb Firmware file, installing it then restoring my data) which took around an hour all-in (see the watch face), and then took another photo of the same “scene”. The results are shown below:
Image taken after the upgrade to 300.21.012 firmware. Click for full-resolution, un-edited image.
While the angle of the shot isn’t exactly the same, the camera was again focused on the silver label of the Diet Coke bottle using the “T” shortcut. If you zoom in, it’s clear that there is less noise in the background and the image appears to be much sharper. You can read the text on the cigar tube and the watch face is far clearer when you zoom in compared to the previous image. The lighting is exactly the same as in the previous image too – a desk lamp (giving off a slightly orange-tinted light) is on the desk above, and natural light is coming in a window opposite the desk. On the basis of these photos, I’d say that the imaging from the camera is slightly improved, but it doesn’t show anywhere near such a strong improvement as in the cans of Coke in this test. I’ll put a disclaimer up and say that there may be camera shake etc involved in the above since I didn’t use a tripod, so it’s up to you as to how many pinches of salt you take with this test. But I’m going to say that I’m pleased with the resulting apparent quality increase.
General update issues
Generally, the update has been a positive experience for me. I’ve noted that another bug has been fixed (you can now mute an alarm when the phone is off and the snooze will actually work) and the image quality increase is a bonus. It would also appear to be worthwhile for the security and stability fixes for the web browser and the phone software generally. I didn’t have any problems with the GPS, language or other settings.
However (and this is always the case with an E71 Firmware Upgrade), all the data was lost on my phone. No biggie, I backed it up with PC Suite before I started, but I did have to reinstall a load of my applications including Nokia Messaging, Psiloc World Traveler, Birdstep SmartConnect and Free iSMS to name only a few. It’s something I was expecting to have to do, but it’s a major problem if you don’t have access to the original install files. Before you go ahead with the update, make sure you have copies of everything that you consider to be critical to your use of the E71 (for me, this is SmartConnect and Free iSMS).
I like to keep my phone as up-to-date as possible, but if you’re nervous about performing the update yourself, always remember that Nokia will update your software for you free of charge if your phone is under warranty – just take it to your local care centre and have a chat with them about it.
Posted in E71
As a quick note, I’ve found a website with the full changelog for the 300.21.012 firmware. Click here for all the details.
Only difference on the 2 images are that one is properly focused and other not, noise level same. If you desperately do want to see something, you will.
@23fre: I take your point – there does seem to be a bit of a difference in the focus, and noise levels are similar. However, as I described, the focus was made by pressing “T” while pointing at the label of the Diet Coke bottle and the phone reported that it had focused correctly. The light levels were virtually identical, and the location of the phone was similar, although admittedly not identical (I don’t have an E71-capable tripod!)
This was far from a scientifically perfect test and I’ve never claimed that it was one, but I think it’s reasonably indicative. I’d be the first to admit that despite any improvement that may or may not have been made to the camera quality in this firmware upgrade, the E71 is still not appropriate for regular detailed use. I put this test together after hearing several other E71 users reporting a slight improvement in the camera performance, and it would be fair to say that I wasn’t looking to either prove or disprove this. I rarely use the phone’s camera feature anyway so it’s certainly not that I “desperately wanted to see something” as a result of this test.
Interesting test, but I wasn’t convinced – the main difference I see is in the exposure. Its the brightness adjustment that the camera does depending on the ambient light. So even though the area focussed is approximately the same, the slight difference in amount of light has caused the phone to alter its exposure calculation. If u just open a photo in an editor like Picasa and play around with the contrast settings you’ll know what I mean (and a digital camera does exactly that in an automatic way).
Otherwise, I’m in general convinced its worthwhile upgrading, and thanks for the list of apps you have. I will soon publish a post of the list of apps I have as well, I’ve got a lot. Esp interesting is the one that switches on the camera flash, allowing me to use my phone as a torch (just like the inbuilt feature in the E63)