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I doing some research before purchasing a new PDA and am favouring the O2 XDA mini being released thru Optus retail network.
but am javascript:emoticon(':?')
Confused (easily done I hear you say)
What is the difference between an IMate Jam and 02 XDA 2 Mini as offered to the Australian Market?
If there is a difference, would appreciate some feedback about which is better in this market (ie; features, value, support) and why.
I bought the o2 XDA II Mini on eBay (no contract, outright for AU$945) and the only real difference between it and the JAM that I can tell is the SD card in the box. But, the XDA II Mini costs more than the JAM (JAM appeared on ebay a few days after I bought the Mini for AU$889). If I had the choice, I would have bought the JAM because of the lower price (I have 2x 1Gb SD cards, no need for a $60 256Mb), but they are essencially the same device.
I also purchased a Sandisk SD WiFi (Harris Tech AU$130) and am EXTREMELY pleased with it. My last pda (iPAQ h4350) has builtin wifi/bluetooth and this makes up for it. The XDA II Mini is so small the extra SD card is not a bother (would prefer builtin, but no complaints). If you have WiFi, i recommend you get one.
I am very happy with mine, and it runs great on both Telstra (my plan for calls/sms) and on Optus (prepaid for GPRS only). Optus has better signal though, Telstra sucks. What is the plan (the upfront and monthly costs)?
All I can say is GO FOR IT!!!
I forgot to add, the XDA Mini i received had a dead pixel. I managed to get them to replace it for nothing. I am very happy with the service as well as the device.
G'day,
I'm making the same comparison, and these are the differences I've noticed at the respective product websites ( http://myxda.com/product/XdaIImini/template/Product.vm and http://www.imate.com/index.asp?PageAction=DETAILS_JAM )
O2 Mini bundle list mentions 2 stylii plus the 256MB SD card. Otherwise the bundles for each product are the same.
O2 software:
Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 standard applications: Pocket Outlook, Pocket Excel, Pocket Word, Pocket Internet Explorer, MSN Messenger, ActiveSync, Windows Media Player, Calculator, Terminal Services Clients, Games (Jawbreaker, Solitraire)
Multimedia Album
Picture Editor
Camera (phone and video capture)
ClearVue PDF and PPT
Integrated MMS
Java MIDlet Manager (J2ME)
Photo Contacts
SIM Manager
Wireless Modem
xBackup
Imate software:
MMS
Photo Contact / Caller Id
Photo album
Camera capture utility
Camcorder
40 chords polyphonic ring tones
Support standard MIDI format 0 and 1
Audio format WMA/AMR/MP3 (AAC optional)
SIM Manager
Wireless Modem
xBackup
Whether these two lists are just different ways of saying exactly the same thing I'm not really sure. Perhaps the O2 software list is just more accurate and better written...
Prices etc and a question
Thanks guys for feedback.
Mitchello - Further to your post. From the Optus shop direct - Business Edge One Plan
Price of the phone is $AUD749.00 paid over the contract period of 24 mths at $AUD31.20 per month on top of any plan taken. ie. BEO 33 access fee $33,
flagfall 18.7c, other calls 30.8c.
On data 0.0055c per kilobyte. - No flagfall.
Hope that helps. The cost of the phone is much cheaper than online prices so I guess they must be making money thru the call charges, but these plans are the same for any phone paid off over the contract period..
But why do you have Telstra and optus accounts, one for calls and one for data. Is the price difference worth the drama of two sim cards ??
I dont trust either of them, but we will see.
The only difference between the O2 and the IMATE models is the bundled software on the device. O2 have some extra software included on the Device then IMATE does, but IMATE seem to have a better support base then O2. IMATE tend to release Updates more frequently then O2. But the O2 does come with the 256MB Card aswell.
I have brought the XDA mini and Imate Jam. The only difference is see is the Jam has some Telstra crap and the leather case is different. The O2 case is better if you want to use it.
Otherwise no difference - Jam is cheaper.
Note I believe the Jam has a brighter screen than my O2 mini if that is possible?
Yep when I purchased my O2 mini the chap in the shop said the only real defference was some of the preloaded software/programs. He said the mini had more stuff pre setup for Oz.
I've had mine for a couple of months and just can't get over the potential this thing has...awesome.
So much to learn which is why finding forums like this has been great.
8) marto
get the imate jam (black), that's with 128Mb internal memory, 64 more than the original version of jam or o2 XDA2 mini. do not get optus bundle, get the phone, and get the $30 recharge with $120 credit.
if you average it out, it's only AUD0.001375 per kbyte (40K SLOT)
That's 87Mb for 30 days since credit expire in 30 days.
or just wait for the O2 atom? but it's not a HTC product...
Arrh just looked at the "atom" specs on the O2 site.... if you can wait, then do so... looks sweet.
Wonder what the price will be?
hmm was hard enough talking the wife into the mini so think the Atom is gonna be out of the question for some time
Is there a Blackberry Connect solution for the Magician?
On the T-Mobile sites in Germany
Is a BlackBerry Client for Qtek 9090 if i;m right...
Think it wuold not work, the GPRS and TCP IP stack must allway's be running, your battery won;t last for 4-5 hours...
Regards Tom
Oops found it with google http://www.t-mobile.de/business/blackberry/software
The Magician is the Qtek s100
Same OS you could guve it a spin and post you findings
Re: On the T-Mobile sites in Germany
onedutch said:
Is a BlackBerry Client for Qtek 9090 if i;m right...
Think it wuold not work, the GPRS and TCP IP stack must allway's be running, your battery won;t last for 4-5 hours...
Regards Tom
Oops found it with google http://www.t-mobile.de/business/blackberry/software
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've got my GPRS always on running MSN Messenger, which should also keep TCP/IP running. Lasts at least a day if it is mostly in standby and the reception is good.
Re: On the T-Mobile sites in Germany
I tried to upgrade with the MDAiii Blackberry s/w fromt-mobile.
I first got a country id error that I worked around
Then got a device data error that I again worked around ut thi sgave me error: 116 general error so I had to give up.
Need some more help on this one.
I got this from HTC directly:
"The new product with Blackberry Connect S/W will lunch to the market later. Due to contracts with our customers, we can't to disclose further information and details. As soon as product launch to market, you will find more info on that for sure."
So it looks like we need to wait!
Interesting posting. I am also VERY VERY interested in using BB for my MDAc. Are there any news regarding the "right" .exe which will run with our "Baby"? At the T-Mobile page are too much that I really don't know how to handle the right one. Maybe any User Guide available, please?
Very interesting
Very very interesting....
But I have a look at the t-mobile link and I couldn't see any mention of blackberry in that new rom - is it there?
I too eagerly await the arrival of BB connect for the Jam. I hate swapping my sim card back and forth between the JAM and Blackberry.
Any news or progress on this? I'd also like to install Blackberry Connect on my Magician.
I'm a little confused with Blackberry. I know it's concept as I used to sell it very briefly for Vodafone. If I set my Pocket Outlook to check for mail every 3 minutes and keep my GPRS on, what is the advantage of Blackberry besides saving me 2 and a half minutes of waiting for my e-mail?
the battery of blackberries last at least 10 times longer with gprs on whole day etc
BB Connect for Magician
Yes it is going to be finally out, most of the parties have already reached an agreement with RIM and Nokia would be launching BB Connect for their N9300 and N9500 later this month. From what I understand, BB connect for magician is currently undergoing testing by the telcos in Singapore.
FYI, the current BB connect that we are testing in Singapore is currently very secure as there is a global system wipe which can be sent via sms to your device to hardreset unit just in case it is lost.
o2techie, that is great news! Please keep us informed once an install is available.
Hi folks,
i found on a T-mobile Site in Austria the following Software for the magician: the long awaited blackberry connect software update
http://www.t-mobile.at//business/mobiles_arbeiten/download/bbconnect/index.html
Now I have the following question: Does this software work also for the German verison. I am unable to ask T-Mobile Germany, since I do not have an T-Mobile phone number.
Thanks for your help.
What benefit would Blackberry provide, except for the push email concept we already got through the latest Exchange server update?
me_phisto said:
Hi folks,
i found on a T-mobile Site in Austria the following Software for the magician: the long awaited blackberry connect software update
http://www.t-mobile.at//business/mobiles_arbeiten/download/bbconnect/index.html
Now I have the following question: Does this software work also for the German verison. I am unable to ask T-Mobile Germany, since I do not have an T-Mobile phone number.
Thanks for your help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The long awaited answer, at least for me is yes, Yes YES! it works!!! BUT there are a few drawbacks. Read the rest of the post before downloading the software.
Firstly the website warns very specifically to download only the German update for germany and the austrian update for austrian mdac's. otherwise the compact could break and they probably wouldn't refund.
As far as I know it only works on the t-mobile system, i have no idea about Vodafone or O²
The compact gets a new rom:
Rom Version now is 1.13.01 GER and ROM date is 08/18/05
ExtRom becomes 1.13.130.
Installing the client software is easy setting it up not quite so easy, (at least for me). The Blackberry (BB) Client software then gives the compact its own blackberry id which you have to register at www.instantemail.t-mobile.de. - Again this only works for the German T-mobile system (as its a german website).
Also don't forget to have the blackberry push service set up for you by t-mobile. I messed around with this for a week before getting it to work properly. The T-mobile support couldn't help because the software has not been released here yet.
I am so pleased that this works. I, like alot of others, have been waiting for this since the beginning of the year. Finally the Compact is the all round machine that it was meant to be.
HBK said:
What benefit would Blackberry provide, except for the push email concept we already got through the latest Exchange server update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think people want this cos it's the only thing some other people have over us magician owners. Honestly I can't see how it would be any improvement.
What's annoying me, though, is that Vodafone Australia have stopped charging their GPRS by the kb and are now charging $1 every 5 minutes you're online! I guess this is better for all the kiddies downloading new games and stuff to their nokias but it means I can't automatically check for e-mails every 3 mins like I was.
When I rang them, they tried to sell me a blackberry handset and put me on their blackberry data+calls plan which isn't available for smart phone users. I told them to shove it cos my phone's heaps better than a blackberry and then asked them when they were bringing in the service for PDA/Smartphone users like Vodafone Germany's website has.
I swear, if I could see the girl at the other end of the phone line she would've had the most stupid, blank, glazed over look on her face! She had no idea!
there is already also an bb update on the german t-mobile site, i found it yesterday night surfing trhough the T-Mobile Site: http://www.t-mobile.de/business/blackberry/software
have fun...
About to buy a Universal .. currently with Orange ..but.. are there any strong reasons for moving to O2? Obviously hardware is the same, but is running the exec in corporate mode going to be significantly different to Orange?
Thanks!
just prefer the black xda exec, and i got a better free minutes deal with O2 (500mins free xnetwork)
In a post somewhere on this forum someone asked a question about the M5000 and installing software that suggested to me that Orange locks their machines to stop you installing unapproved (unsigned?) 3rd-party software.
I may have got the wrong end of the stick, of course :roll: but if it's true then that would be one major reason to steer clear of the M5000 IMHO. :shock: This user's post seemed to imply that Orange have sold other handsets with the same lock applied, so if you're already with Orange then you may know the answer to this question already.
my experience with orange is this....
been with them for a couple years, had a spv e200 then a m1000. i switched to o2 last week because :-
1) had terrible signal at home
2) the m5000 is bloody expensive on orange, paid 90 quid for the exec on o2 business tarrif, 35 quid pm
just my 2 cents
interesting about locking it from 3rd party software .. only ever had standard phones through orange so not come across this before .. currently got an ipaq and want the same freedom to install what I want!
The thing I do like about orange is their customer service .. has always impressed me, and they have always given me good tariffs to keep me with them..
O2 hands down. Orange even puts more crap software and all sort of locking into their phones than O2. I always avoid Vodafone and Orange like plague.
currently with am orange, upgraded from the m1000 to m5000
they give 1000mb data a month for the next tree months and 30 video calls
I paid nothing for my upgrade and am on a £25.00 amonth tariff.
I currently have tomtom 5.1, battary pack pro, pocketweather, tcpmp player
audio recorder, adobe reader, etc
all installed with no problems apart from tomtom 5.1 which involved some twicking.
i have installed all kinds of games for testing and %90 pesent of them worked ok.
i use my pda 80% of the time for Live emails, podcast stuff, downloaded tv episode watching and 20% making calls.
:wink:
toucam said:
O2 hands down. Orange even puts more crap software and all sort of locking into their phones than O2. I always avoid Vodafone and Orange like plague.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What software does Orange put on? I thought it was just their wheat theme.
Has anyone managed to dump the M5000 rom?
Southern_Man said:
What software does Orange put on? I thought it was just their wheat theme.
Has anyone managed to dump the M5000 rom?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the M5000 - I really want to upgrade my ROM, or at least do something that will speed up my Universal! It has dog-slow response rendering it useless for 50% of the time.
Surely there can't be any software that prevents ROM upgraded? The whole point of a ROM upgrade is that software is wiped. And unless there's any weird SIM interaction, this sounds impossible.
Anyway, I'm slightly worried about doing it, as it would void Orange warranty, and there's no Orange ROM available to put it back on if it goes wrong!
Anyone with more info on the M5000 - come forward, it would be great to hear from you!
TIA
Mat
Disable the orange plugin from the today screen, and also error reporting (if not already)
The orange plugin slows it down, and with it diabled, my m5000 is marvellous!
That sounds good - if Orange only use a plugin, is nice and easy to disable. Sounds better than having to install the O2 EXEC into corporate mode??
Thanks
I’ve done it, I’ve just ordered a T-Mobile MDA Vario, it should be here tomorrow, I cant wait!!!
I’m new to this forum and new to the world of Windows Mobile Devices, however I am far from a novice with SmartPhones.
I have been a big fan of SonyEricsson for many years and am currently looking for a new phone, but lately have lost my feel for SE and have discovered then marvel that is the Wizard!!! Wow, I’m so much going to have one of them!!!
I’ve been reading through this forum and well what can I say, what a fantastic resource, well done!
But what I really want to know is: software? I know the MDA Vario is T-Mobile branded, but what restrictions do they impose on you?
I’m a great believer that hardware developers know what they are doing and Phone Network Operators should leave the software well alone. I have read about unlocking the phone and moving Cab files etc, but what I would really want is to flash it with its “pure” software, is this possible and easy to do and how do I then set up my MMS and GPRS setting?
And am I correct in understanding what I’ve read, that, an out the box MDA Vario wont run ActiveSync?
Thanks in advance
Nick
Nick, an excellent choice of name, and an excellent choice of device
The units ROMs all seem to be largely the same, it's the extended ROM which is different.
T-Mobile's extended ROM installs a load of customisations such as wallpapers, GPRS settings, etc... Nothing seems to hinder you particularly badly , however if you don't want it, hard reset then do a soft reset before it installs the customisations. You then have a virgin machine
The only lock is a simlock, which means that you have to use a T-Mobile SIM with the device. Lokiwiz, a free unlocker, gets around this nicely with thanks to Machinagod, and all those whose work he improved
Oh, and activesync works fine with it, providing you haven't got any weird firewalls running
Welcome to the world of windows mobile
I have had my Vario for about a week and a half now.
If you used the P910 like I did, you will miss the jog wheel utility desperately. A brilliant device that was only let down by the lack of symbian (UIQ) development (it's harder to program.
I used to have a compaq 2210 and ran Pocketinformant. I've just reloaded it on my unit. It's brilliant, you give up a lot for the jog wheel but you welcome back the world of 'drag and drop' and 'double tap'.
If you use a PIM then Pocketinformant cannot be beaten.
Incidently make sure you load activesync 4.1 on your pc, providing you set your catergories in your outlook master list to the same as your device, syncing is superb.
good luck :lol:
I've just switched to Vodafone with an expansys contrct deal after four years with T-Mobile. They (T-Mobile) told me six weeks ago, they'd no idea what a Vario was, and had no information that they were going to get them even though Germany had announced them to the press. Expansys had the 9100 on Voda so off I went. The Vodafone "data" bundle which is SMS or MMS or GPRS out of the same pot is better for me than T-Mobile who would only offer web'n'walk *and* a separate SMS/MMS bundle :-(
Vodafone have been fine, but the SMS voicemail alerts that don't activate the little "tape" message waiting icon really annoys me... ;-)
Dox..
I have also gone from a P900 to XDA mini. Its a bit of a transition and can agree - the wheel on the P900 was a luxury I do miss but there are alot moe benefits
Now - just need to try and work out if I can change the whole ROM from the O2 one
Scott
Thanks for all the info fellas, cant wait for it to be delivered…
Excuse my ignorance, but, the ROM, is that the basic OS and the extender ROM is just the individual network customizations?
I will almost certainly, as a matter of principle, do the SIM unlock, but what is the purpose of the CID unlock?
And, if I do the Hard reset Soft reset trick how will I set up my GPRS and MMS?
Sorry about all the questions, but I’m very inquisitive.
Hopefully this will also be helping fellow novices.
Thanks again everyone.
You can enter the settings manually, which if you have them in front of you is fairly simple. If you need to know what they are (I've entered Vodafone's so often for people at work I can do them in my sleep, but don't know the T-Mobile ones), google is your friend. To simplify the whole thing, Raphael over at BeyondTheTech has the cab file with the settings in here for you to download and install as normal.
If you're not going to let the rest of the extended ROM install, put this on a memory card in case you want to run it again after a hard reset..
Dox.
I too like to have a fiddle (I had an original O2 XDA and this site was fantastic for upgrading to later version OS) but so far I can't see any compelling reason not to use the T-Mobile UK custo ROM as shipped.
The only addition I've made is MS Voice with the associated Reg change to allow use with BT headset.
Obviously if there is a superior ROM out there please let us know what is recommended?
Thanks
Nick, check out the wiki which has loads of info about roms, extended roms, radio roms and all that good stuff. Not a huge amount is specific to the Wizard yet, but the information applies all the same.
Has it arrived yet, or are you sitting by the front door like an eager puppy waiting for the postman or newspaper boy (or girl, thank you Stan)
Unfortunately I’m at work today and they would only deliver to my home address
AND they need a signature, so first thing tomorrow morning I’ll be stud outside my local Postal Depot waiting for it to open…..
Oh I hate waiting!!!
Welcome to Vario-ness !
Not coming from a previous PPC platform, you won't suffer the same way i did, by installing all the apps i used on my MDA Compadt some of which may not have been compatable with WM5. That ended up with me having a poor view on the Vario.
Fear not though, i've since seen the error of my ways, thanks to the fine folks on this forum...
I have an XDA II, and would like to update if there is a significant improvement.
I have read from the t-mobile site that the Vario does not have vibrate or voice dialling. Is this true, can Fonix be installed?
The most vital things I use are the outlook contacts, calender, isilo reader and avant go. I guess all standard apps that work on windows mobile 2003 work on 5 right?
How big is the screen?
Thanks for any help.
Well, that just goes to show that T-Mobile don't have a clue, really, doesn't it? I thought you must be mistaken, but sure enough it says that it doesn't support voice dial, and doesn't vibrate either.
It does. On both counts. The vibrate is a lot better than the xda2s in that it almost dislocates a hip when it goes off, and voice dialing works very well. With a quick registry hack, voice dialing works with bluetooth headsets too
Some have found the vario sluggish in comparison to the xda 2; i find it to be comparable to the blue angel (2s) that I had running wm2005 - bear in mind you're reading/writing all files from flash rather than RAM, and that explains the performance.
The screen is 2.8 inches diagonal.
Have any of you got vibrate working on M3000 (Orange)?
I have an M3000 from Orange Switzerland, and cannot get my vibrate to work at all.
Not to get 'off topic' but T-Mobile Czech republic were about to sell me a MDA Vario and at the last moment I noticed a sticker on the box saying it doesn't support character recognizer or transcriber .. anyone know if this FOR ME huge negative can be reversed so I can handwrite sms as MDA II let me .. (perfect solution for me)
kgary said:
Not to get 'off topic' but T-Mobile Czech republic were about to sell me a MDA Vario and at the last moment I noticed a sticker on the box saying it doesn't support character recognizer or transcriber .. anyone know if this FOR ME huge negative can be reversed so I can handwrite sms as MDA II let me .. (perfect solution for me)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Both work fine for me on a UK MDA Vario, I don't know why the czech would be different. I must say however that I rarely use them because the slide out keyboard is SO sweet.
On a side note, my brother just picked up the same phone on O2 and personally I like the O2 customisations a lot better than the T-mobile ones. Especially the multiple today screen functionality.
Is it possible to install O2 extended rom and keep t-mobile comms settings? I've only just started to look into this so does anyone with any experience with this have any tips?
Thanks
Could some nice X01HT owners help answer some questions about the limits of Softbank’s Flat Rate package? (PC Site Direct)
Bought a XDA Exec before and would like to look BEFORE I leap ;-)
Can I use IM with it? (thinking live messager or IM+ )
POP3 Mail is ok?
Is Skype ok with the flat rate?
MMS Mail?
Are any sites blocked?
Using the X01HT has a Bluetooth modem?
What am I looking at for a total bill? – Without calls
( I seem to get lots of different answers from the 2 softbank shop and they didn’t seem to know about the Flat rate package too )
(I see that they have extended the price cut for the package Max 5,700 instead of 9,800)
If any X01HT owners can help me out that would be great. I have been undecided about getting the phone since I cancelled my old Softbank contract and the staff couldn’t seem to answer my question even about pricing
What I`v heard for a Softbank foreing staff is that the 5,700 yen package is for G3 or regular phones and 9,800 for the xo 1HT. Of course in order to check our email WE MUST log on into internet so ....
As for the above mentioned programs
Can I use IM with it? (thinking live messager or IM+ ) YES
POP3 Mail is ok? YES
Is Skype ok with the flat rate? Check the per bite rates one softbank packet is 128 Bites to log on to Skype is maybe 50 kb..? so it is 30 yen only to log on!
MMS Mail? Do not know
Are any sites blocked? Not that I know
Using the X01HT has a Bluetooth modem? Bluetooth
All in all is very good looking device but I will not recomended for the faint of hart or for people who do not like to install unistall sofreset hardreset too buggy and ustable if you ask me.
i`v had experience with ppc foe 5 years (soory guys if is not that much) and never had to hard reset my device more than once a year!
After one month with this ..tytn.. I soft reset it maybe 10 times a day an Hard reset it every 2 days becose I cannot find the right programs configuration YET! It freezes all the time!
There a a lot of users saying this is a great device..I think they are just trying to justify the price the payed!
Another point is that as of January 25 2007 a 2 year contract with softbank will cost you 2980 yen a month (for the device only).
Before that (and thats what I pay) was 690 yen a month.
WHY?
I think they want to discurage people in buying this device since they receive complaints everyday!
Sorry for the not so good review but thats my point of view.
Yes it’s sad to say that most of the Softbank staff doesn’t know what the packages are or the costs for that matter
So Skype is a no-go for flat rate then?
I have a M3100 but it was always stable for me I’m really a PDA junkie just looking for the prefect product so far I have tried Hx4700 /MDA Exec/M3100/Sharp Zauaris
Still using my old Hx4700 and thumbpad with PDA card works great just a little slow
Hoping that someone can find the open access password so I can keep using my MDA exec and X01HT with the same Simm
Rob