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I have said it over and over and over that I love my Nokia N800 Internet Tablet and I love having such a powerful devices where ever I go. One of the best parts of the Maemo operating system is that there are hundreds of Applications that you can install to turn you Maemo tablet into an even more useful tool and can make you more productive. I will list my favorite applications that I use on my N800 and after having the N800 for 1 year, I cannot live without these tools, because they make the N800 so much more powerful!

1.    Pidgin Instant Messenger-
Pidgin is the best free and open source instant message client for Windows and the version for Maemo is just as great. It allows you to communicate with all the major Instant message proticals like: AIM, MSN, GTalk, IRC and much more! This is one of the best communication tools and is great for instant messaging when on the go!
2.    Skype
Skype is amazing voice over IP (VOIP) application that I use a lot on my desk computer and it is great that I can make calls and chat from anywhere with a WiFi connection and make calls to all my Skype Contacts.
3.    GFTP
For people like me who run websites and run web servers I love having access to my FTP sites to manage and upload files wherever! GFTP is a great FTP client and I recommend it to all webmasters with an Internet Tablet.
4.    Maemo WordPY
Along with FTP WordPress is in my opinion the best Blogging CMS out there and it is Free and open source! Last year, I wrote my 2008 Technology Predictions using my Nokia Internet Tablet using a Mobile Admin Extension on WordPress. But, with Maemo WordPY, I do not need to have any extension installed on WordPress and makes writing posts on your Internet Tablet a breeze!
5.    Egg Timer
Egg timer is a simple and easy timer to time anything from tea, or exercise or anything else you need to time!
6.    Tip Calculator
One application that seems necessary on every mobile device is a tip calculator for when you are eating out at a restaurant and need to calculate how much you want to tip your server.  This calculator does not stop at calculating tips, it also allows you to split the bill among a group of people as well! I recommend this for all tablet owners that like going out to eat!
7.    Maemo Recorder
Maemo Recorder is a nice and simple application for recording quick voice notes to remind yourself of things you need to do and dictate reminders.
8.    mNotes
Similar to Maemo recorder mNotes is a great application that lets you take quick written notes and helps you get organized!
9.    mCalendar
mCalendar is probably my favorite Maemo application of all time! mCalendar is a great calendar applications that also allows you to synchronize with your Google Calendar which, if you are like me, and use Google Calendar as your primary calendar, then you know that this is a killer app!
10.     Tasks
Tasks is just what its name suggests it is a simple task list that allows you to organize what you need to get done. I use it as my primary task list and does it’s job great!
11.    Gnumeric Spreadsheet
Gnumeric Spreadsheet is a very powerful spreadsheet application on the Maemo tablet. It is compatible with Microsoft Excel Spreadsheets and lets you edit and modify them wherever you go!
12.    TiEmu
For any student that needs a Texas Instruments Graphing Calculator TiEmu is a free emulator of Texas Instruments calculator and save $100 on buying a calculator when you can just use your Internet Tablet.
13.    FBReader
FBReader is a ebook reader that allows you to load electronic books onto your Maemo tablet and use it to read books. This is a must have for students and avid readers alike!
14.    Publishr
Publishr lets you take pictures from your digital camera or from your Internet tablet’s built-in camera and post them directly on Flickr without transferring them over to your computer! The built-in memory card is great to transfer the best pictures to the web!
15.    Diskusage
Diskusage simply shows a graphic of how much disk space you are using and how much you have free. This is great to manage internal memory and any SD cards you put into your Internet Tablet.

Many people have fallen for Apple’s iPod Touch which is the iPhone without the phone. It gives people the option to have all the features the iPhone has to offer without having to get an AT&T contract or going through the process of canceling your current cell phone plan. The only thing the iphone has that the iPod Touch doesn’t is 3G Internet, phone capability, and a fully plastic case.  Personally, I had wanted to get an iPod Touch as a replacement Media player until I realized that my Nokia N800 Internet Tablet can actually do almost everything the iPod Touch does and more for less money.

The fact is the N800 isn’t a iPod Touch, it doesn’t have the sleek UI or design but it has a lot more options and  is way more open. The Nokia N800 starts around $200 and comes with a 2 GB internal memory card and 2 GBs of RAM. The N800 also has an additional SD card slot easily accessible and great for transferring files and storing media files.  Plus, application on the iPod Touch must be acquired through the official Apps Store and have to be approved by Apple before going on the market. The applications for Maemo can be acquired either through repositories and installed through there or they can be downloaded as a .deb, install, or source code file from any website and installed on your device. Of course they aren’t guaranteed to work but, you will just have to go through some trial and error testing. Then for storage you can go to Newegg, Amazon or any other retailer and buy a SD memory card and simply fill it with your media files and what ever other data you would like to have on your device. I was able to find a 16 GB SDHC card for $30 on Newegg and that combined with the cost of my N800 makes it $230 while an iPod Touch of that capacity is $299.

Also realize, that with the N800 you can do almost anything you want with your N800 as far as installing software and lets you do what you want with it. I was also considering comparing this to the iPhone but the fact is, that the N800 does not have a cell phone or 3G Internet although it does have Voice Over IP like Skype and Gizmo that lets you make calls to landlines over the Internet for a small fee.  But it still is relying on Wifi being available so it is still not able to compete. All-in-all before spending on a iPod Touch think about the N800 as an option it could do everything the iPod Touch does and can be used for almost anything you can imagine.