My personal laundry list for the N8.

Question

Notably, the bugs I have experienced thus far are:
1. Inability for Wi-Fi to connect in Offline mode if you have previously gone to Offline mode and said No when activating an app that requires data connection.
2. When you turn on the phone without a SIM card, then hit the Call button, it will stay in an infinite loop in the Dialer screen.  It'll ask you to please insert a sim card, followed by either OK or Cancel.  So after you insert the SIM card, you hit OK, then it repeats the question.  If you hit Cancel, it repeats the question.  You can't get out of this infinite cycle other than turning the N8 off.
3. After a hard reset of your phone, the Ovi Social app is missing the widget for the home screen.  Yes, you can go to the Nokia Messaging OTA site to get the update, but after 2 hard resets, the installation of the update gives me a "Unable to install" error.  Which is a joke, because after the first hard reset it worked wonderfully.  And it never worked for me subsequently.
4. Even after defining a WLAN destination, if you don't have a SIM card, you can't configure any mail other Mail for Exchange.  Yes, the new Mail app tries to use mail routed through Nokia, but at least give me the option to create mailboxes using old traditional direct IMAP or POP3.
5. With my N95 and N97, as soon as I turn on my car (equipped with Nokia CK-100), I automatically get connected to BT HFP and A2DP profiles.  The car kit will tell me, "Phone connected."  A second later, "Player connected."  With the N8, the car kit will only connect to just the phone automatically.  For the player to connect while the car is on, I have to open up the music player and play a music, which will force N8 to make the A2DP connection.  So when that happens, you hear a 1.5 second message saying, "Player connected" followed by music that is already 2 to 3 seconds into the song.  I thought it was perhaps the Car Kit getting full with the list of paired devices (memory is for 8 pairings), but clearing the list doesn't help.  I thought it was the Car Kit firmware, so I upgraded it to 4.401, no luck.  Then when I tried my old N97 and N95, it worked as expected!  But not the N8.
6. Sometimes after a hard reset, even when I respond with selecting my country/city and entering my time, the phone will start with the UK time zone instead.  The UTC time is correct, but for the wrong time zone.  Why does it do that?!?
7. 60% of the time when I turn on the phone (even when it was Normal mode during the previous shut down), I do not get the classic Nokia tone when the iconic handshake video plays.  This is your brand recognition!  Something so valuable that it's impossible to put a dollar value on it.  And you botch that up?!?
List of the reduced functionalities:
1. In previous generations of Mail app, if an email contains what appears to be a phone number, Symbian will make it clickable so that you can call the number.  Not so with Mail app in S^3.
2. In previous versions of Messaging app, if I receive a SMS, I can either click on the call button (no longer exists in the N8) or Options > Call to call the sender of the SMS automatically.  Now, with S^3, the Call option is no longer in Options.  Makes it really hard to call the SMS sender back while you're driving.
3. In the previous generations of Mail app, I can call up the Listen option when I'm either in a Mailbox or have the email open, and it will read the email.  Now, this functionality only exists on the Messaging app, not Mail app.
4. If you open up the Message Reader app, it will be able to playback all your SMS, MMS, Mail mailbox's messages.  Great, right?  But in order to listen to an email, you must first go through all the SMS messages first before it will play back any emails.  So if you have 20 SMSs, you have to click on the FFw button 20 times before you get to listen to your email.  Truly a brilliant design, whoever came up with that.
5. In the previous Symbian web browsers, when I hit the Back button, I can either go back/forward using the left/right gestures, and selecting a page by tapping the page.  I also have the option of hitting the left or right arrows right above the soft keys and hitting Select (left soft key) or Cancel/Stop (right soft key).  In the N8, everything but the Select key is there.  Now it's replaced by a blank?!?  If you want to force me to use gestures and taps, then at least do me a favor and remove the left/right arrows on the screen.  (Surprisingly, if I invoke the web browser using the YouTube "app", the Select soft key appears during back/forward navigation.  Hmmm...)
List of improvement suggestions:
1. Whenever you're in a screen that has a tiny left/right arrow (such as reading an SMS message, or looking at your Messaging Inbox, allow me to swipe left or right to go to the previous/next message or folder.  This functionality already exists in the Calendar app.  So why stop there?  Not only that, but extend it to Settings menu!  Why should gestures be limited to up and down, except for the Calendar application that allows left/right?
2. Allow landscape dialer, like the N97.
3. Uhm, what happened to the Converter application?  It has been a staple of all Nokia phones, and suddenly it's missing from the flagship phone?  Nokia's comeback phone?!?
4. A much simpler VPN application?  Look at what Apple did in just a little over a year.  A simple process of logging into Cisco VPN.  What's Nokia's way, after having VPN solution for years and years?  Still a mess.
5. Previously, connectivity settings were easier to get to with the N91, N95 and N97.  Now, I have A) Menu > Options > Settings > Connectivity > Wi-Fi, and B) Menu > Options > Settings > Connectivity > Settings > Switch to Wi-Fi?  I can work around it as a power user.  What about those people who make up the biggest market share of iPhone users who are not technologically savvy?  And do you see the irony with Settings buried within Settings menu?
6. Port all functionalities of PC Suite to Ovi Suite, and fix all the bugs in Ovi Suite.  The latest 3.0.0.271 still has bugs and missing functionalities.  Open back up the dual code development pipelines (PC Suite and Ovi Suite) to the N8 until all core functionalites are successfully brought over to Ovi Suite.
Nokia, I hope this thread captures your attention within the developers and management.  Thank you.
John @ Chicago // 5160 (1999.07.20) > 7160 (2001.06.09) > 6340i (2003.04.26) > 6620 (2004.08.24) > 7610b (2005.05.08) > N91 (2006.06.07) > N95-3 (2007.09.28) > N95-3 #2 (2007.12.05) > E51 (2008.03.10) > N97 (2009.06.11) > N97 #2 (2009.09.11-warranty replacement) > N97 #3 (2009.12.10-warranty replacement) > N8 (2010.12.02) > N8 #2 (2010.12.11-retailer replacement) > 808 (2012.12.10) > X2 Dual Sim (2015.01.19-for motorcycle offline maps use only) %gt; 808 #2 (2015.01.26-manufacturer replacement)

Answer 1

Status update after installing PR 1.1 version 013.016 for product code 059DV2 on 2011.02.20, plus new bug reports after testing and using PR 1.1 extensively for 44 days.  I thought I needed to put in this status update before installing PR 1.2, which became available on 2011.04.03 for my market.
1. Inability for Wi-Fi to connect in Offline mode if you have previously gone to Offline mode and said No when activating an app that requires data connection.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Semi-fixed.  After installing PR 1.1, when you're in Offline mode and you use an App that required Internet connection and subsequently say No when asked if you want to allow WiFi in Offline mode, it will still prompt you later on.  But this is semi-fixed because sometimes, when the N8 is in Offline mode and you try to access an app that needs Internet connection, the question "Allow Wi-Fi connections during this offline period?" doesn't even bother to prompt you, other than "Conn. Unavailable" in the upper left corner of the screen.  What da?!?
2. When you turn on the phone without a SIM card, then hit the Call button, it will stay in an infinite loop in the Dialer screen.  It'll ask you to please insert a sim card, followed by either OK or Cancel.  So after you insert the SIM card, you hit OK, then it repeats the question.  If you hit Cancel, it repeats the question.  You can't get out of this infinite cycle other than turning the N8 off.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Fixed.
3. After a hard reset of your phone, the Ovi Social app is missing the widget for the home screen.  Yes, you can go to the Nokia Messaging OTA site to get the update, but after 2 hard resets, the installation of the update gives me a "Unable to install" error.  Which is a joke, because after the first hard reset it worked wonderfully.  And it never worked for me subsequently.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Unknown.  Have not tried to do a hard reset, but now that Social is on 1.3, I'm sure the installer file now includes the widget.  But I also heard that the latest beta version of 1.3 (as of this writing) may require an uninstallation of older versions of Social first, otherwise it may fail.  Other reports indicate Social no longer works after the update.  Follow the discussion in betalabs.nokia.com for the Social 1.3 app.
4. Even after defining a WLAN destination, if you don't have a SIM card, you can't configure any mail other Mail for Exchange.  Yes, the new Mail app tries to use mail routed through Nokia, but at least give me the option to create mailboxes using old traditional direct IMAP or POP3.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still unfixed.  No SIM card, no ability to define a new mailbox other than Mail for Exchange.  You absolutely must have SIM card.  Why?!?
5. With my N95 and N97, as soon as I turn on my car (equipped with Nokia CK-100), I automatically get connected to BT HFP and A2DP profiles.  The car kit will tell me, "Phone connected."  A second later, "Player connected."  With the N8, the car kit will only connect to just the phone automatically.  For the player to connect while the car is on, I have to open up the music player and play a music, which will force N8 to make the A2DP connection.  So when that happens, you hear a 1.5 second message saying, "Player connected" followed by music that is already 2 to 3 seconds into the song.  I thought it was perhaps the Car Kit getting full with the list of paired devices (memory is for 8 pairings), but clearing the list doesn't help.  I thought it was the Car Kit firmware, so I upgraded it to 4.401, no luck.  Then when I tried my old N97 and N95, it worked as expected!  But not the N8.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still broken.  I won't be able to test this out with PR 1.2, since I ripped out Nokia CK-100 and installed CK-600.  I've never used the N97 with CK-600, so I don't know if the A2DP connection is automatic or not, but with N8 PR 1.1 and either CK-100 or CK-600, the A2DP connection is still NOT automatic.
6. Sometimes after a hard reset, even when I respond with selecting my country/city and entering my time, the phone will start with the UK time zone instead.  The UTC time is correct, but for the wrong time zone.  Why does it do that?!?  Status as of PR 1.1:  Unknown.  I've only done 1 hard reset since upgrading to PR 1.1, and it didn't misbehave.  But during PR 1.0, the behavior wasn't constant, but half the time.
7. 60% of the time when I turn on the phone (even when it was Normal mode during the previous shut down), I do not get the classic Nokia tone when the iconic handshake video plays.  This is your brand recognition!  Something so valuable that it's impossible to put a dollar value on it.  And you botch that up?!?  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still a problem.  Now, it seems like 90% of the time when I turn on the N8, the Nokia tone doesn't play during the hand shake.
8. [New bug in PR 1.1] Light time-out:  I never had a problem with this in N8 PR 1.0, but only started noticing this in PR 1.1.  When you have a browser up and running, and you leave the N8 alone, like no movement or screen activity such as leaving it on a table, the screen doesn't black out after the allotted time setting in Settings > Phone > Display > Light time-out.  It will go dim, but the screensaver never kicks in.  This happens 75% of the time, and is quite annoying.  This behavior seems to manifest itself when you're in an app that requires Internet connection, such as the browser or email application.
9. [New bug in PR 1.1 or possibly in PR 1.0 as well] Apps dependent on operator even on unlocked and unsubsidized Nokia phones:  I am not sure if this is a new problem with PR 1.1 or existed in PR 1.0, but it appears that some apps like Social, Email and Ovi Maps are dependent on operator permissions, even if the device is unsubsidized and purchased unlocked.  I don't know if this is a problem with PR 1.0 because when I traveled from 2011.02.25 to 2011.03.10, I already upgraded my N8 to PR 1.1.  But basically, after I popped in a pre-paid SIM card at another country, starting Social and trying to log in will tell me something along the lines of checking with the operator and then telling me I cannot use Social.  (I traveled to China.)  But I could kind of work around it by exiting, then tapping the Social widget.  Sometimes hitting refresh will somehow allow me to get Facebook updates in China, and sometimes it will tell me Service Unavailable.  Likewise with Ovi Maps.  When I was back home in the USA, I had many other online services, like Time Out, Lonely Planet, Trip Advisor, etc.  But once I popped in a Chinese SIM card and go online with the operator (3G or Edge), all my online services disappeared, and replaced with Chinese services which was totally useless as my USA N8 cannot render Chinese characters.  Mind you, I did not connect to 3G or Edge for a few days, so during those few days when I was just using WiFi, I was still able to look up things in English in Trip Advisor, such as nearby restaurants or hotels.  But as soon as I connected online via SIM operator network, features started disappearing.  Same with email behavior.  No SIM inserted, can't configure new email mailboxes.  No SIM card, Social displays "Service is not available" even if I have WiFi AP connected.  The important question here is, why are unlocked and unsubsidized S^3 phones even checking with the operator if I can run whatever services?
List of the reduced functionalities:
1. In previous generations of Mail app, if an email contains what appears to be a phone number, Symbian will make it clickable so that you can call the number.  Not so with Mail app in S^3.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still a problem.
2. In previous versions of Messaging app, if I receive a SMS, I can either click on the call button (no longer exists in the N8) or Options > Call to call the sender of the SMS automatically.  Now, with S^3, the Call option is no longer in Options.  Makes it really hard to call the SMS sender back while you're driving.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still a problem.
3. In the previous generations of Mail app, I can call up the Listen option when I'm either in a Mailbox or have the email open, and it will read the email.  Now, this functionality only exists on the Messaging app, not Mail app.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still a problem.
4. If you open up the Message Reader app, it will be able to playback all your SMS, MMS, Mail mailbox's messages.  Great, right?  But in order to listen to an email, you must first go through all the SMS messages first before it will play back any emails.  So if you have 20 SMSs, you have to click on the FFw button 20 times before you get to listen to your email.  Truly a brilliant design, whoever came up with that.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still a problem.
5. In the previous Symbian web browsers, when I hit the Back button, I can either go back/forward using the left/right gestures, and selecting a page by tapping the page.  I also have the option of hitting the left or right arrows right above the soft keys and hitting Select (left soft key) or Cancel/Stop (right soft key).  In the N8, everything but the Select key is there.  Now it's replaced by a blank?!?  If you want to force me to use gestures and taps, then at least do me a favor and remove the left/right arrows on the screen.  (Surprisingly, if I invoke the web browser using the YouTube "app", the Select soft key appears during back/forward navigation.  Hmmm...)  Status as of PR 1.1:  Still a problem.
6. [New reduction of functionality in PR 1.1] This is truly a new one for Nokia - Breathing Light Notification:  In the N8 PR 1.1, when you go to Settings > Phone > Notification lights > Notification light > Events notified, you can now enable/disable 2 events:  "Missed call" and "New message".  But in PR 1.0, you had a third choice:  "New email".  Uhm...  **bleep**?!?  Why would Nokia remove a notification event type?!?  Is the business justification that nobody cared enough about the breathing light that having some extra lines of code for notification of new emails would be a waste of precious firmware C:\ drive space?!?
7. No ability to specify which drive to use for Mailbox repository:  In the previous iterations of Symbian, I could tell the mailbox which drive to use, the C:\ drive or the mass storage or even the memory card.  Now, that flexibility is gone.  Why is this a problem?  Recently, I was sending a bunch of emails with big attachments, and suddenly, I was notified that C: drive was running out of memory!  What do you know?  The Sent mail is stored in C:\ drive!  That's real smart, considering real estate in C:\ drive is already little to begin with.
List of improvement suggestions:
1. Whenever you're in a screen that has a tiny left/right arrow (such as reading an SMS message, or looking at your Messaging Inbox, allow me to swipe left or right to go to the previous/next message or folder.  This functionality already exists in the Calendar app.  So why stop there?  Not only that, but extend it to Settings menu!  Why should gestures be limited to up and down, except for the Calendar application that allows left/right?  Status as of PR 1.1:  Nokia is still ignoring me on this one.
2. Allow landscape dialer, like the N97.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Added!  Kudos!
3. Uhm, what happened to the Converter application?  It has been a staple of all Nokia phones, and suddenly it's missing from the flagship phone?  Nokia's comeback phone?!?  Status as of PR 1.1:  Nokia is still ignoring me on this one.
4. A much simpler VPN application?  Look at what Apple did in just a little over a year.  A simple process of logging into Cisco VPN.  What's Nokia's way, after having VPN solution for years and years?  Still a mess.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Nokia is still ignoring me on this one.
5. Previously, connectivity settings were easier to get to with the N91, N95 and N97.  Now, I have A) Menu > Options > Settings > Connectivity > Wi-Fi, and B) Menu > Options > Settings > Connectivity > Settings > Switch to Wi-Fi?  I can work around it as a power user.  What about those people who make up the biggest market share of iPhone users who are not technologically savvy?  And do you see the irony with Settings buried within Settings menu?  Status as of PR 1.1:  Nokia is still ignoring me on this one.
6. Port all functionalities of PC Suite to Ovi Suite, and fix all the bugs in Ovi Suite.  The latest 3.0.0.271 still has bugs and missing functionalities.  Open back up the dual code development pipelines (PC Suite and Ovi Suite) to the N8 until all core functionalites are successfully brought over to Ovi Suite.  Status as of PR 1.1:  Technically this isn't a problem with the firmware on the N8 but rather a problem with PC Suite in disallowing N8 connectivity.  Anybody wants to give me an update on the latest version of PC Suite 7.1.5X.X?  Since the Nokia "Download software" support site no longer has a link to PC Suite but just Ovi Suite, I suspect PC Suite will never be opened up for N8.
Nokia, I hope this thread captures your attention within the developers and management.  Thank you.
John @ Chicago // 5160 (1999.07.20) > 7160 (2001.06.09) > 6340i (2003.04.26) > 6620 (2004.08.24) > 7610b (2005.05.08) > N91 (2006.06.07) > N95-3 (2007.09.28) > N95-3 #2 (2007.12.05) > E51 (2008.03.10) > N97 (2009.06.11) > N97 #2 (2009.09.11-warranty replacement) > N97 #3 (2009.12.10-warranty replacement) > N8 (2010.12.02) > N8 #2 (2010.12.11-retailer replacement) > 808 (2012.12.10) > X2 Dual Sim (2015.01.19-for motorcycle offline maps use only) %gt; 808 #2 (2015.01.26-manufacturer replacement)