Users can now download the official installer for OS2008 for your Nokia N800 Internet tablet. What can we expect in the new release? Well for starters:

• The sluggish Opera browser has been swapped out for a speedy Mozilla based browser
• If you're on an N800, the processor speed has been bumped up to 400 Mhz
• Built in Flash 9
• FM Radio software
• A Beautiful new UI
• Improved RSS reader
• and much, much more.

The most noticeable difference for us was the speed bump to 400 Mhz. The N800 was a tad sluggish before but is now very zippy. The new browser is a huge plus as Opera was always a problem on the N800.

We love the N800. It's a great device for staying connected when you don't feel like lugging around your laptop or just need to check your email/RSS feeds real quick.

To get the OS2008 update, you'll need to install the Nokia Internet Tablet Software Update Wizard and download the update file from maemo.org.

Note: if you are lucky if enough to have the Nokia N810, you already have OS2008 installed.

Last time we took a look at the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet, we showed how to do some fun, if easy, stuff with it--like setting up custom RSS news sources, placing VoIP calls, and even playing a little Quake 2. Now, we've assembled a new video demonstrating one of the most quirky hacks you can pull off with Nokia's little handheld computer: assembling a functional GPS tracking system using a Bluetooth GPS receiver and freely-available software.

In this feature, we'll show you how to set up Maemo Mapper, the open-source navigation software, and how to obtain and install the map tile images you'll need to equip your N800 with both street maps and satellite imagery. We'll also see how the N800 compares to Nokia's N95 smart phone, which carries onboard GPS hardware and mapping software.

It's been a busy week here at Download Squad headquarters. And we assume you've had a busy week too. So if you've fallen behind on your tech news, here are a few things you might have missed during the week ending September 29th, 2007.

Download Squad interviews Evan Jones of 360desktop - Video

Ever get the feeling that there's just not enough space for all the shortcuts, temporary files, and widgets you need to live a contended life? 360desktop lets you use a panoramic photo as a desktop background. Since panoramic photos don't fit too well on a 1024 x 768 pixel monitor, 360desktop creates more virtual desktop space by letting you scroll beyond the edge of your monitor.

Is the Nokia N800 really an iPhone killer? - Video

Download Squad's Ted Wallingford has been spending some quality time with his Nokia N800, and he has the video to prove it. Sure, the N800 isn't technically a phone like the iPhone, but put that puppy near a Wi-Fi hot spot, fire up the VoIP and anything's possible.

Dear Facebook: May I have my life back please? - DLS commentary

Download Squad's Gordon Finlayson has a few questions about Facebook developers. So he sent e-mails to a handful of said developers. And he was labeled a spammer, his account was banned, and Facebook lawyers told him the immortal soul of his firstborn child was now theres. OK, we made the last part up. But Finlayson does have some interesting thoughts on Facebook's over-aggressive anti-spam policy.

Dev Chair: Keep sharp, stay valuable

Resident developer Alex Hung offers up some valuable advice for honing your skills even when your current job is far too easy for you. Only the strong survive, and one day you're going to be looking for another job. So why not contribute to open source projects, take evening classes, or actually show your bosses that there might be a better way of doing things.

ZoneAlarm ForceField protects your browsing session - DLS interview

Most of the threats to our computers come from the web. So while firewalls, anti-virus, and anti-spyware applications are great, sometimes what you really need is a way to protect your browsing session. At least, that's the premise behind ZoneAlarm's latest security offering.

Preview of Nero 8 - DLS interview

Nero is set to release the latest version of its popular CD/DVD burning suite next week. We got a chance to ask Nero technical director Craig Campbell a few questions about what sets Nero 8 apart from Nero 7. In a nutshell: a few performance enhancements and a whole bunch of visual tweaks.

Here are a few more of our most popular articles from the week:

• DreamScene animated desktop for Windows Vista launches
• Facebook IM launching soon
• Is Gmail getting a facelift?
• Windows extends XP sales
• Excel can't do math (unles 850*77.1=100,000)

Though Nokia's Internet tablet, the N800, has been on the market for quite a bit longer than Apple's iPhone, we here at Download Squad have been thinking about the N800-iPhone comparison since Steve Jobs first demoed the iPhone back in January.

Indeed, there are a few things you can do with the Nokia product that aren't possible on the iPhone. Namely, you can make and receive VoIP calls using Gizmo Project and Skype, choose from a plethora of Debian/Maemo packages to run on the N800 (the N800 is Linux-based), listen to FM radio, and participate Google Talk video conferences.

Of course, the N800 isn't a cell phone, so in some way it seems almost silly to compare the two devices. The N800 doesn't do SMS messaging like Apple's phone. Nor does the N800 support phone calls without going through VoIP software. But both of these devices have great web browsers, newsreaders, and e-mail capability, so the comparison is natural.

We've put together a hands-on video with N800, which includes some tips for better e-mail, moving files to and from the N800 with Bluetooth, running Gizmo, and running Quake 2 courtesy of the open-source Quetoo distribution. You can view the video after the jump and decide for yourself whether or not Nokia's handy tablet is really an iPhone killer.

Okay, it's not really a phone -- but Nokia's open source N800 tablet has a lot of great things going for it, not least of which is it's $100 cheaper than the iPhone and better still, it's not part of the AT&T network.

If you can get past the fact that it is not a phone (or already have a perfectly good cell phone), here are some features that might sway you to a) get over your iPhone envy and, b) purchase a device that some believe outperforms and outfeatures the iPhone:

• Excellent 802.11 and Bluetooth radios.
• Razor-sharp 4.1", 800x480, 225 pixel/inch color touchscreen.
• Built-in stereo speakers.
• 640x480 Webcam.
• FM receiver.
• USB 2.0 connectivity.
• Two full-size SD card slots with a supported capacity of 2GB each.
• A fast CPU (330MHz).
• 128MB RAM.
• 256MB Internal Flash.
• Slated to get mobile WiMAX next year.
• USB and line-in interfaces to record and playback podcasts.
• Supports Flash 9 and Skype Internet calls which allow users to better browse YouTube videos, play online flash games, and make free Internet calls to other Skype-enabled devices.
• Optional equipment: Nokia navigation kit to use the N800 as a navigation device.

Since the N800 is open source, there are many third party applications which extend its usefulness and fun factor, such as:

Pidgin - full-featured internet messaging client, with AIM, MSN, Yahoo and Jabber support
Canola - media player with network streaming
FBReader - e-book reader
Claws Mail - full-featured email client
Obscura Photo Manager

Other than the killer light touch screen on the iPhone, the N800 has all the right stuff. What do you think? Would you rather have an iPhone or geek out with an N800?

WiMax is a long-range WiFI replacement. It lets service providers put out (really) fast network access using radio antennas. In fact, if you're using Cingular Edge or similar data service with your cell phone, WiMax is set to make your current speed limit look downright tortoise-like.

Of course, nobody will benefit from the speed and range enhancements of WiMax until the network gets built (right now, you can't really get WiMax service in 99.9% of the world). And the people who build the networks (that would be your friendly phone company) aren't going to build WiMax networks until some devices that support WiMax start showing up in the marketplace.

Good old Nokia, who was among the first to offer cell phones with VoIP built-in and seems always to be ahead of the curve, has let it slip that their nifty Linux-based N800 Internet Tablet (pictured) is going to be getting WiMax capability some time next year. This is something I could see Apple following suit on with their laptops, especially if cozy partner AT&T rolls out a WiMax network of their own. For some more deets on the N800, check out this video.