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02/07/2006: "Russ Nelson is a crank"

In 770 should be USB master, not slave Russ Nelson shows that he doesn't know how to run Google

The Nokia 770 should be a USB master by default, not a USB slave. And it should supply power (as every USB master must). Before you get started, I understand the drawbacks. Whenever you have something which can suck your battery down, it WILL suck your battery down. However, as it currently stands, any 770 peripheral device (e.g. mouse, keyboard, or GPS) whether USB or bluetooth must have its own battery. The most desirable case is when both batteries run down at the same speed. If one battery lasts longer than the other, then you are carrying around a battery which is either more expensive or heavier than necessary. I call this problem "battery life mismatch".

Solutions for putting the 770's USB controller in 'host mode' exist, but Russ either can't find them, or can't be bothered to look for them. The links also explains that the USB controller in the 770 has to see 5VDC from the device it is plugged into before it wakes up and responds to the USB bus.

You can make a cable to do this, of course.

What really irks me about this is simply that Russell "I'm an economist" Nelson here is just complaining. Rather than allow his precious "free market" principles to ruin his day (by requiring that he purchase products that work as he desires), he chooses to berate Nokia for not designing *his* optimal product.


Somebody could also make a thumb keyboard whose top half was shaped like the 770's case. When you slide the 770 into the keyboard, the USB connector is automatically engaged, and the keyboard is immediately usable.

This would also be possible over Bluetooth, of course, and likely would have at least as much battery life as a USB solution.

USB master would also allow you to create a docking product, which would consist of a powered USB hub and slide-in case which holds the 770 at a slight angle. Into the USB hub you would plug a keyboard, mouse, hard drive, Ethernet, or any one of a hundred other USB devices.

Russell appears to want to recreate the PC in the image of the 770, completely ignoring the simple fact that the 770 was not designed as a PC replacement. The USB port on the 770 is there to make the 770 act like (and appear to be) a USB "mass storage" device. From what I can tell, Nelson will soon complain that he can't find PS/2 ports or a PCI slot on his770.

USB master would let you exchange files using a USB thumb drive, which are widely available at whatever capacity or price point you want.

While there are larger USB thumb drives, RS-MMC cards are available up to 1GB in side, and bear a no greater than 10% price "penalty" from what I can tell. Given just a little time, the RS-MMC market will likely 'catch up' to the USB thumb drive market in terms of price and capacity.

But of course, Nelson doesn't want to wait for the free market to react, he wants it his way, and he wants it *now*.