Maemo Bluetooth Connectivity Plugin

This plugin allows you to connect Bluetooth keyboards and GPS modules to the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet.

Download the plugin

Maemo Bluetooth Plugin version 0.6.1
Requires the Internet Tablet OS 2006, release 2.2006.39-14 (or later)

Installation: Download the above software package either directly to the 770, or transfer it on a MMC card. Use the Application manager, or simply double click the package in the file manger. After restarting the device you should see a new Bluetooth icon in the statusbar area of the desktop.

Version history

0.6.1, December 10 2006

Full latin character set usable in all of the applications (å,ä,ö,ß etc. available with the included German and Scandinavian layouts)
Possibility to include "dead" keys in the layouts, for composing accented characters (é,á,ç etc.)

0.6.0, November 19 2006

Improved keyboard usability in several applications, including the browser and the Google search applet
Added Italian Stowaway layout, by Lele Forzani
Added Spanish Stowaway layout, by Andreu Rigo Gost
Added French Canadian SU-8W layout, by André Fiorilli
Other minor bugfixes

0.5.0, July 30 2006

Updated for use with the Internet Tablet OS 2006
Minor bugfixes

0.4.0, March 30 2006

GPS device support added by Tenhunen Jari
German ThinkOutside Stowaway keymap provided by Ronald Jones

0.3.1, January 25 2006

Fixed a crash situation and a memory leak
Added a notification when the passcode should be entered on the keyboard
Added an US English layout for the ThinkOutside Stowaway that fix garbage characters in Opera

Connecting a Keyboard

While not an officially supported input method, the Nokia 770 is capable of accepting input from hardware keyboards. Both wireless Bluetooth keyboards and USB keyboards have been tested to work with the device.

Install the plugin as described above and restart the 770.
Switch on your Bluetooth keyboard.
Click the Bluetooth icon in the desktop statusbar and select Settings.
Choose the Select keyboard from list option, this makes the 770 search for your BT keyboard.
Your keyboard may require you to press some keys to enter the discovery/pairing mode, (Stowaway: Press and hold Ctrl, blue FN and green FN)
Once found, click Pair with device, note the passcode and click OK on the pairing dialog.
When prompted, enter the same passcode on your keyboard (Stowaway users, note that you need to use Blue FN key when entering the passcode).
If the pairing is successful, click OK to close the settings.
Click the Bluetooth icon once more, selecting Connect and Input device.

Once the keyboard is paired with the 770, simply turning on the keyboard will automatically establish the connection.

Connecting a GPS module

This plugin allows you to establish a connection with a Bluetooth enabled GPS receiver. In order to make use of your GPS module you will also need to install some third party GPS software, such as the Maemo port of GPSDrive.

Install the plugin as described above and restart the 770.
Switch on your Bluetooth GPS receiver.
Click the Bluetooth icon in the desktop statusbar and select Settings.
Select the GPS tab and choose Select GPS device from list, this makes the 770 search for your GPS module.
Once found, select your receiver from the list and click OK.

Starting GPSDrive

The Maemo port of GPSDrive (version 0.0.3 and later) and the Maemo Bluetooth Plugin (version 0.4.0 and later) have been designed to be compatible with each other.

Switch on your Bluetooth GPS receiver.
Click the Bluetooth icon in the desktop statusbar, selecting Connect and GPS device.
The pairing starts. Depending on your GPS module, you might be prompted for the BT pin code.
When the device is successfully paired, you will receive a notification and the statusbar icon will turn solid blue.
Start GPSDrive from the applications menu. GPSDrive will start the necessary GPS services automatically.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Which Bluetooth keyboards are supported?

A: Any keyboard supporting the HID Bluetooth profile should work with the 770. If the device is advertised as working with normal desktop systems, such as Windows and OS X, it is often likely to work.

The following keyboards have been tested to work with the 770: Nokia SU-8W, ThinkOutside Stowaway Universal Bluetooth Keyboard, I-Tech Virtual Laser Keyboard.

Q: Are the Freedom range of keyboards supported?

A: The regular Freedom is not a Bluetooth HID compatible device and can not be used with the plugin. The Freedom Mini and the Freedom Universal however do work.

Q: Which GPS modules are supported?

A: The software has been tested with the Nokia LD-1W GPS module, but you should be able to use any standard NMEA compatible Bluetooth GPS module.

Q: Is my regional keyboard layout X supported?

A: Currently the Bluetooth plugin comes with support for only a few layouts. With a bit of hacking it's not too hard to produce a custom layout (see the hacking section below). You can then send your layout to me for inclusion in the next version if you think others would find it useful.

Q: Can I use the on screen keyboard when I'm using a BT keyboard?

A: No, sorry. The on screen keyboard is currently not compatible with hardware keyboards.

Q: How can I use an USB keyboard with the 770?

A: The good news is that no software at all needs to be installed for USB keyboard support, the 770 detects when you plug in a keyboard and does the right thing automatically. The bad news is that the 770 is not capable of supplying power to the USB devices you attach to it. In practice this means you are limited to Bluetooth connectivity unless you have a special voltage-modified USB hub or a self-powered USB keyboard.

Hacking the input method

Interested in hacking the 770 input method? Some details to get you started:

The X server on the 770 does not have XKB support, in order to support different keyboard layouts xmodmap can be used. The plugin installs xmodmap and xev into /var/lib/install/usr/bin. Use xev to determine what keycodes your keyboard is sending, then use one of the existing keyboard maps in /var/lib/install/usr/share/kb-maps/ as a template for your own layout.
The Bluetooth connectivity is provided through the BlueZ stack. If you use a terminal on the device you can access the hcitool, hidd, etc. utilities directly.
The source code to the bluetooth plugin can be downloaded here and is licensed under the GPL. For the latest version, use the Subversion code repository. Patches are welcome.