Yep, I've done it AGAIN - left the bloody thing on a plane!
Despite being a pretty fair contributor to the early days of solving this newborn's issues, I'm somewhat undecided as to whether it's worth replacing. Hope u don't mind me bouncing my thoughts off you, while I debate degrading to a JAM or PDA2 - I'm pretty sure that my cynicism will be refuted more strongly here than anywhere else:
Downside of JasJar:
Big n bulky meant that I kept on putting it down - and losing it! And if one more cheeky bastard commented on my retro brick...
I pretty much stopped reading eBooks. Read 120 in 1 year on the PDA2 and raved about it, but on the JJ it was tough to hold in bed, and the buttons were too small to page down easily. I just faded on that which is rather sad.
Hinge was definitely working loose. A post I've made covers tightening it up by bending the plate, but I'm not sure where the end game of this falls...
In SA, it's way expensive (given that I lose them every 3 months). However, I'm going to the UK end January, perhaps I can get a cheap one and unlock it? Or is it not cheap given the contract? I think I can use UK addresses and banking details to get a contract, or do they require more than that? Thoughts anyone?
Software: So few games work well! And we still havn't solved the GPRS/3G traffic counting issue
Battery: Daily charging was indeed a ball-ache.
Radio quality: Hell this sucked! Now that I'm using an old Nokia, I'm trully understanding how bad all iMate radio stacks are! And BT gave so much trouble that I wondered if it was better without; crackling, echo, etc etc despite testing 3 top-end BT headsets. Still, the JAM is not that much better.
Stability: Let's face it, despite all our work to free up memory, close apps, run lean-n-mean, the damned thing was still dicky. You had to reset every few days at best, how many times did you look at the screen and see that the call you made 25 minutes ago was still in progress (Hell, what have I just been saying about the dickhead I was chatting to??), and altho I was a storng advicate of it being usable with a little effort, the truth is was that it was never as fast as the PDA2
Upside of JasJar
IIWPO likely to stay in memory. However, JAM allows for ROM hacking to secure this, and my JasJar hasn't phoned home in 3 days. I'm now figuring out that the issue is not whether thieves have the ability to hard reset, but rather whether they are intelligent enough to track down a charger for this new device - I think not!
Persistent storage: But in truth I was better off backing up the PDA2 as at least I could recover when it was lost. Now it's gone, all I have is my Outlook backup - no eWallet, no notes, no s.sht that I spent so long working on to justify my SL55 to the wife (and I was oh-so-close to succeeding...)!
3G! Yep, that was AWESOME. I used mine as a modem frequently, and with data rates in SA being so low, it was a truly workable alternative. However, I didn;t really use it for browsing (IE browser renders SO slowly with bad bad caching), and for email I only d/l headers which can be done on a JAM's GPRS. So, why not a JAM with an EDGE or 3G PCMCIA laptop card?
Keyboard! Loved it! But in truth I didn;t use it as much as I expected. The occasional email where I could nto wait to get back to my laptop, and quite frankly if I'm that desperate, why not use SBP Full Screen keyboard?
VGA: LOVED my slick WAD desktop with oh-so-glossy pic of my CLK55, but in truth I was the only one who ever looked at it and I get to see the real thing every day anyway! VGA browsing via Oz was kewl, but browsing was slow. Terminal Services was AWESOME, and I think that's probably my main concern. Loved getting into my eMule server and seeing how it was doing - or grabbing an eBook within 5 mins of being told about it!
Media player in VGA: Yeah, I liked that. But in truth the PDA2 was more stable for running mp3 playing apps, so it's pretty video vs mp3 - in truth the mp3 got used more - tho neither were used all that much.
Landscape: Naah - this was never a useful thing for me.
Hmm, as you can see I've pretty much convinced myself that it's back to to a JAM or PDA2...anyone able to pull me back from the retro abyss?
PS: There was a post where ppl covred what they were using their JJ for and why it was a worthwhile upgrade. Can't find it now - anyone mind giving me a string to search on?
I have put in some comments below, hih!
Downside of JasJar:
Big n bulky meant that I kept on putting it down - and losing it! And if one more cheeky bastard commented on my retro brick...
---Little difference between this and the PDA2K in size
I pretty much stopped reading eBooks. Read 120 in 1 year on the PDA2 and raved about it, but on the JJ it was tough to hold in bed, and the buttons were too small to page down easily. I just faded on that which is rather sad.
---I have read at the same rate since going from other PDA's to Universal, but I do it in landscape.
Hinge was definitely working loose. A post I've made covers tightening it up by bending the plate, but I'm not sure where the end game of this falls...
---Yeah, the jury's out on this one
In SA, it's way expensive (given that I lose them every 3 months). However, I'm going to the UK end January, perhaps I can get a cheap one and unlock it? Or is it not cheap given the contract? I think I can use UK addresses and banking details to get a contract, or do they require more than that? Thoughts anyone?
Software: So few games work well! And we still havn't solved the GPRS/3G traffic counting issue
---spb GPRS monitor?
Battery: Daily charging was indeed a ball-ache.
---Switch off 3G
Radio quality: Hell this sucked! Now that I'm using an old Nokia, I'm trully understanding how bad all iMate radio stacks are! And BT gave so much trouble that I wondered if it was better without; crackling, echo, etc etc despite testing 3 top-end BT headsets. Still, the JAM is not that much better.
---It's a tradeoff I guess for all the extra tech inside
Stability: Let's face it, despite all our work to free up memory, close apps, run lean-n-mean, the damned thing was still dicky. You had to reset every few days at best, how many times did you look at the screen and see that the call you made 25 minutes ago was still in progress (Hell, what have I just been saying about the dickhead I was chatting to??), and altho I was a storng advicate of it being usable with a little effort, the truth is was that it was never as fast as the PDA2
---Not as quick to the eye, but also seems to be ok in real use. I get about one reset a week at the moment with my minimal install
Upside of JasJar
IIWPO likely to stay in memory. However, JAM allows for ROM hacking to secure this, and my JasJar hasn't phoned home in 3 days. I'm now figuring out that the issue is not whether thieves have the ability to hard reset, but rather whether they are intelligent enough to track down a charger for this new device - I think not!
---Tea leaves only need a mini-USB lead to charge it. Now as they are likely to be on crack I guess they sold their computers already. Might take some time to have it phone home. You can inactivate the device to all through the IMEI number
Persistent storage: But in truth I was better off backing up the PDA2 as at least I could recover when it was lost. Now it's gone, all I have is my Outlook backup - no eWallet, no notes, no s.sht that I spent so long working on to justify my SL55 to the wife (and I was oh-so-close to succeeding...)!
3G! Yep, that was AWESOME. I used mine as a modem frequently, and with data rates in SA being so low, it was a truly workable alternative. However, I didn;t really use it for browsing (IE browser renders SO slowly with bad bad caching), and for email I only d/l headers which can be done on a JAM's GPRS. So, why not a JAM with an EDGE or 3G PCMCIA laptop card?
Keyboard! Loved it! But in truth I didn;t use it as much as I expected. The occasional email where I could nto wait to get back to my laptop, and quite frankly if I'm that desperate, why not use SBP Full Screen keyboard?
---Learn to love landscape. I don't use portrait ever these days.
VGA: LOVED my slick WAD desktop with oh-so-glossy pic of my CLK55, but in truth I was the only one who ever looked at it and I get to see the real thing every day anyway! VGA browsing via Oz was kewl, but browsing was slow. Terminal Services was AWESOME, and I think that's probably my main concern. Loved getting into my eMule server and seeing how it was doing - or grabbing an eBook within 5 mins of being told about it!
Media player in VGA: Yeah, I liked that. But in truth the PDA2 was more stable for running mp3 playing apps, so it's pretty video vs mp3 - in truth the mp3 got used more - tho neither were used all that much.
---PDA2K has a 'pop' on MP3 playback - the reason I couldn't stick with it.
Landscape: Naah - this was never a useful thing for me.
---Learn to love it.
here's the other topic
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=35069&highlight=
iiwpo
I have a universal (qtek 9000) with the latest o2 rom. I have read that iiwpo works on the universal, but have not been able to do it. I edited the cab file exactly as per the instructions. The guide then says to edit the config.txt file from the rom. I opened it in text editor, but there is no reference to '
5. just before the line
EXEC:\Extended_ROM\TPEnable.exe
insert a new line (provided the name of the CAB is "IIWPO.CAB")
CAB: \Extended_ROM\IIWPO.CAB
My config.txt file contains no such line 'tpenable.exe'
I tried the other method described in the forum by just putting the iiwpo.cab file in 'my documents' and executing it. It installed itself into windows and the windows startup folder. Changing the owner name and resetting does nothing. Any ideas would be much appreciated.
I'd add your Q to the IIWPO thread in here as this is OT to this thread.
Thank You.
craigiecraigie4
maybe you might want to wait for new models that will be launch this year? Perhaps there will be more better models launching soon like this loox T800 model ? IMHO.
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...or try the K-Jam in the meantime:-
Smaller, more convenient, more responsive, more buttons, better radio, much better battery, more stable, better bluetooth, more free memory.
If you don't need the VGA screen, the bigger keyboard and 3G, you can do more or less do everything you did on the JasJar on the K-Jam, and much of it works better - especially as a phone, despite the price.
Let me put it this way:
"If you don't need the VGA screen, the bigger keyboard and 3G, you can do more or less do everything you did on the JasJar"
You can do it in any other htc device since the himalaya.
ncruz said:
Let me put it this way:
"If you don't need the VGA screen, the bigger keyboard and 3G, you can do more or less do everything you did on the JasJar".
You can do it in any other htc device since the himalaya.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Read it again. I said need "the bigger keyboard", not "a keyboard". Last time I looked, the only HTC devices that have keyboards are the Blue Angel (which he used to have), Universal (which he lost) and the Wizard. Unless you include the Treo and the Ipaq Messenger of course
Related
Im just about ready to jump for one of these babies but am finding that as soon as you settle for one device you have a doubt and see something else and your like ohhh whats that ...
The next phone I get I want to stick with for at least a couple of years so you can imagine im taking this decision very seriously.
I have a home wifi network and really want this to be able to surf the net with wherever I am in the house. I have an ipaq 2215 which I never use as its always somewhere where I am not and I really want the benefit of always having my device with me because its my phone.
Whats the browsing software like on the mini and the signal on the wifi ? I have used a nokia 9500 in the past and thought the browsing was superb. Full page web sites across the screen and all you had to do was scroll down, no scrolling across to the other side of the page.
Does the mini do full screen browsing in landscape mode ? I use a lot of forums. Would this suffice ?
Is wm2005 the same as you would get on an ipaq or is it a special phone edition ?
Are there any websites I can check out to see what software is available ?
Im sorry for all the questions, but am going out of my mind trying to make this decision. Found the phone for £99 and £19 month on 02 which seems reasonable.
Any help or tales of glee about this phone would be most appreciated.
Fantastic forum btw.
Could anyone take some screen grabs of a few web pages in Landscape mode so I can see how it looks ?
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Hi,
Have you ruled out the exec? Seems an all road better option for you if you are gonna have it as your main phone and device for a couple of years, mainly due to its superb screen and laptop style mode and screen protection when folded in on its self etc?
Bryson
bought xds mini s aftercomparing with exec.
excellent device. clear screen, small (exec is tonne), good keyboard. v.fast browsing using wi-fi. also good on gprs. wm5 good update over wm2003. this seems to be a good implementation of it as other first implementations were not so good (xda exec/universal and dell x50v upgrade). IE is also much improved on wm5, you can now set it to shrink text and the web page to minimise horizontal scrolling. this works very well on the xda mini s in landspace.
points to watch out for, apps start slower then on wm2003 due to static ram being used. minisd - any old sd cards you have will not work. some people report cpu is slow, I have not found this at all, like any pocket pc you don't want to keep lots of things running. I use the 'magic button' software which has just been updated to wm5 to kill apps after use. only gripe is that latest version of skype for_low_cpus (1.2.0.91) doesn't work well. I understand skype know of the problem and are releasing a new version soon.
in summary, if you want a small and light pda for web browsing, or a full featured pda to use as a phone as well, this is probably the best. if you want 3G or a vga screen look elsewhere.
what is the xda mini s like when using tom tom and watching divx/xvid?
I have been using the 9100 since it came out and have been happy with it so far. I debated getting a Universal but lack of a 3G network in the US, size, and the fact that the Universal is not a quad band pushed me towards the 9100. My previous phone (PDA2K) was on the edge of being too big for me to carry everywhere so I suspect the universal would have proven too big in the end in any case.
So I have a few gripes with it but overall it is nice.
Gripes:
If you get a Wizard, get an external stylus. The Stylus silo is probably the single largest flaw I know of at the moment. It will not last 6 months of normal use, much less years. Already mine is a little loose, I only use the built in stylus in emergencies. I suppose I could ship it back under warranty but that would be annoying.
There are no really good cases for it either. The case that comes with it will do but it is hardly great. If I had the time and a shop I would make a rotating clamp style csae, but seeing as I have neither I'll make do with what I have.
I have had a couple instances where the radio stopped working but gave me no indication, this might be restricted to the 9100 or me though since I have seen no other reports of this problem. (has happened about 1-2 times a month since I got it.)
When not plugged in I have problems keeping a constant connection on my wifi with WPA. I use IM+ from my PDA and would like to be able to rely on wireless at home, but I can't. It works well but drops me for a second every once and a while dumping me off my GTalk, AIM, ICQ, etc... Hopefully a ROM update will help this.
On the positive side:
Browsing is as good as you are going to get at QVGA. I have problems logging into some forums from it though. Might try your forums on such a device before jumping.
Keyboard is great and the sliding mechanism seems to be holding up much better than the silo. Time will tell.
Bluetooth is good, though not excellent. Unlike the PDA2K it is usable and reliable.
WM 5 has been more stable for me than 2003SE was. I still end up soft resetting every day or so, but have not had the stability problems I had with 2003SE. I install and use quite a few applications though (53 by counting in remove programs but some have multiple parts.) so my stability issue might have nothing to do with the OS itself, which seemed stable if boring before tweaks.
One handed operation is possible. I make heavy use of MortButtons to allow me to switch/launch/close tasks. Even without though one handed operation is getting there.
In conclusion it is a rough decision. Right now I think this device is the perfect compromise of size, performance, and functionality for me. The hard part is there is always something newer and better on the horizon so when you decide to bite the bullet is a tricky question. My feeling and impression of the Wizard is that it is not a device made to last. A year, prehaps two, but if the desire is for a real commitment to a device I would wait a generation and see what it coming out next.
I find the external stylus fine. it is telescopic, and I read a magazine review where they didn't work this out and said it was too short! (PDAEssentials UK - although they give the wizard a top rating)
My wifi works excellently. WPA is choppy on some routers. I always used to have problems with many devices using encryption. now i don't use any encryption but just register mac addresses so no one else can use my router.
There are some great cases just coming out for this new device:
http://www.proporta.com/F02/PPF02P05.php?t_id=302&t_mode=cat
It feels very solid to me. this was also verified by cnet and pdaessentials review. it is plastic, that really keeps the weight down. Metal would appear to feel more sturdy but i think this is an illusion.
for the question about tom tom, version 5.21 works, see here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=29277
betaplayer is not yet optimised for the omap 850 although it seems to work for most (the 850 has a 2d accelerator with 384k, but no one in the open source community knows how to use it yet. I am sure there will be plenty of software over time as this is a new device):
http://www.corecodec.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=29&expv=0&topic=2155.0
pockettv runs ok.
The best performance is encoded wmv files played through the internal windows media player.
when you get one, on first boot it asks which install you want. pick basic as the full install puts on active apps that really slows things down.
enjoy
Thanks for all the info. Im so close to jumping for one of these I can almost touch the screen ;o)
I notice on the second web browsing pic ( This is reaaaaaaaaaallly important to me as I will be doing a whole load of browsing at home via wifi ) that there was no horizontal scroll bar. Will IE automatically resize any webpage so you only have to scroll up and down ? I hate it when to read everything you have to scroll horizontally as well.
Also does it give you full websites or does it detect your on a PPC and give you a mobile version ? What if a website doesnt have a mobile version ?
The only other thing that concerns me is that there is obviously a massive amount of things to do with this phone ... but is the cpu up to it ? I remember reading about the nokia 9500 being slow but when I used one I really didnt have problem with it.
Will it be noticably slower than using my old ipaq 2215 ?
Anyway thanks for the info.
Also as a last point, the deal I am going for, the exec is only £49 extra and the tarrif is exactly the same. I really prefer the mini size, but is the exec far and away better than the mini apart from the size ?
knowsleyroader said:
Thanks for all the info. Im so close to jumping for one of these I can almost touch the screen ;o)
I notice on the second web browsing pic ( This is reaaaaaaaaaallly important to me as I will be doing a whole load of browsing at home via wifi ) that there was no horizontal scroll bar. Will IE automatically resize any webpage so you only have to scroll up and down ? I hate it when to read everything you have to scroll horizontally as well.
Also does it give you full websites or does it detect your on a PPC and give you a mobile version ? What if a website doesnt have a mobile version ?
The only other thing that concerns me is that there is obviously a massive amount of things to do with this phone ... but is the cpu up to it ? I remember reading about the nokia 9500 being slow but when I used one I really didnt have problem with it.
Will it be noticably slower than using my old ipaq 2215 ?
Anyway thanks for the info.
Also as a last point, the deal I am going for, the exec is only £49 extra and the tarrif is exactly the same. I really prefer the mini size, but is the exec far and away better than the mini apart from the size ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its mostly personal opinion. I played with both the exec and the mini before I chose the mini. The main thing that swung it for me was the 3g browsing didn;t seem to be much faster then the gprs browsing. the exec screen was ok, but could have been bigger given the device and the exec was really heavy. the other thing that swung it for me was speaking to the o2 guys. they are selling loads of minis and none come back. they sell fewer execs but some are returned (can't tell the %age though). Also if you read the faults in the universal thread of this forum and then compare them to the wizard thread. At the end of the day, i really suggest you go into the shop and try both.
In direct answer to your questions:
1. IE in WM5 has more options for screen formating then Wm2003. (a) One column - minimises side scrolling and converts web sides to single column. (b) default - shrinks web sites to eliminate or minimise horizontal scrolling (I like this one bests), (c) desktop - shows full size for horiz and vert scrolling.
2. Not sure how it notifys web servers. Yahoo email seems to think it is IE 4. But I think it sends a mobile code as well and some websites automatically show you the mobile formatted version.
3. I had and axim x50v (624 mhz) and i don't notice any difference. however apps are sluggish to start up, but this might be a wm5 thing to do with static memory. the cpu is slow (200mhz) but is not an intel, and seems to process better. there is a very interesting description on the ti website. Its actually a triple cpu. but despite what people say on the web, it only has 1 generic cpu. the other two are a comms cpu (for gprs, wifi, etc) and a 2d accelerator with 384k of onboard memory. This explains why web browsing over wifi and gprs is so fast (well for gprs, as fast as it goes). some apps do not take account of these other 2 cpus, so run slow. but as the omap 850 is a new cpu, perhaps more software will take account of it over time. tcpmp (divx) player works very fast, no troubles there., and other software seems fine. I run the 2003 version of gs+ and tre and they work fine. the only software that annoys me is skype. the latest low_cpu version does not work very on the xda mini s. reading the skype forum it seems they know about it and might write a version that will use the omap 850 better. In summary it runs pretty fast, but the flat out rate of the cpu is slow and some programs may not run as well.
enjoy!
Many thanks for all the help. I will post here what I plump for and my thoughts
colonel. Just to clarify, my problem is not with the stylus but with the silo in which the stylus resides. Over time the retention mechanism gets loose, and sometimes breaks.
Thanks for the link to the cases by the way. The two leather ones appear to use the plastic sheet in between keyboard and screen trick, which is no good ot me. The aluminum case has potential though.
knowsleyroader, have fun with whichever you choose. If you can I would try and see both in person before making your choice.
I've had a Wizard for a while, and thanks to O2's recent bargain offer, I've now got a Universal too. Over the past week I've had a good chance to live with them side by side. I've defended the Wizard in the past against the "it's only 200MHz" soothsayers, saying that with my previous comparison with a Universal, not only was it not slower, it actually felt more responsive.
Well now I lived exclusively with the Universal for a week, to get fully accustomed to its pace and foibles. I've just retrieved my Wizard from the drawer, and boy, I'm amazed at how snappy it really is in comparison!
Every program I open on the Wizard finishes loading before the Universal - Start, Media Player, TCMP, SplashID, Execl, Word. Even keeping apps in memory, and switching between them, is quicker (e.g. Open Messaging, red button back to Today. Open to Messaging (still shown in memory on the task bar) = half a second on Universal, almost instantaneous on Wizard). Both had a soft reset before starting, and have the same number of apps running, and similar PIM database sizes. The Universal is using a Corporate install. The only application that I can find that loads quicker on the Universal (by some margin in fact) is the Camera. Presumably this is because it has been significantly re-written and optimised to cope with the twin cameras and 3g videocalling.
Now I'm not disputing that the keyboard and screen, and the sleek black lines, are gorgeous on O2 Exec. Or that it has 3G, if you use it. Or has minor attractions like standard SD and a 3.5mm jack socket (like they're such a big deal). But I've got to be honest that I'm struggling to find anything else as to why it justifies its price. I appreciate it's more like a mini-laptop, but seriously, apart from providing VGA and the "luxury touch", the Wizard does so many things better!
E.g.
Much smaller
Much lighter
Phone rings first time - and every time
Phone speech path connects immediately on answer
No "Phone acrobatics" to see who's calling
No crashes on incoming SMS
Better Bluetooth range and quality to headset
Excellent one handed usablity
Has 5 more mappable direct access buttons (2x Soft, Messaging, Explorer, Comms Manager)
Doesn't make me look a total d*ck in the street (or even the office canteen) (no more than normal, anyway :lol: )
Better battery life
More available memory
No screen lockups
Faster application loading
Faster application switching
Faster menu responses
I was convinced that once I'd got a Universal with the latest ROM, and removed all the O2 bloat, all those saying the Universal was much faster and quoting benchmark after benchmark would be proved right. But unless you're doing some serious multitasking or gaming, the reverse is true. Even QVGA movies in TCMP aren't that much smoother.
I guess the Universal is the old man's Jaguar of PDAs plodding steadily way. Big, heavy, thirsty, but as comfy as your favourite leather sofa, and built to last. But the cheeky little Wizard is far more street, practical, nippy, and easy to park, even if the flimsy doors go "clink" instead of "clunk"
I still haven't decided which goes on eBay though. Trouble is I like both, in their own way (I like big, comfy cars too). It's just a shame the Universal UI lags so much. It does spoil the whole experience when you know what its little upstart of a brother can do.
Now I know there are others out there who have both devices, especially since the O2 deal. Is my experience typical, or am I doing something drastically wrong?
I am also lucky that I have been able to obtain an Exec and then due to the fantastic offer O2 have had in January I also picked up a Wizard.
And a lot of what you say is quite correct. The Wizard has amazed me at the speed at which it does things and the general overall feel of using it. Even the keyboard (the one area I was suspicous of) has proven to be very good.
The Exec suffers from having a VGA screen. That is what is causing a lot of the lags I expect. For users who have moved on to the Exec from previous Windows Mobile / PocketPC devices, especially VGA ones, this is so not much of a surprise. Before I got the Exec I moved from a QVGA based HP 2210 PocketPC to a VGA based HP hx4705. The slow down on the device was quite something for screen redrawing etc and was widely commented on by users on sites such as PocketPCThoughts. I think that is why you / we are seeing the Wizard act so much more smoother than the Exec, simply due to the machine having less detail to move on the screen so things happen much quicker.
But for me the upgrade to the Exec was a Windows Mobile upgrade - I wanted a new PocketPC based device that was fully connected. I doubt I will ever use it for calls and for that reason I have it on a data only tariff.
The Wizard was only bought due to the price I could get it for and is now my main phone.
I love both devices for very different reasons. I also got them for very different reasons. When I need full connectivity with emails etc. I will carry both - yes the Wizard can do both but the Exec is better for tapping out documents on the road, has a better screen that is easier on the eye. But when I want to carry only one device and travel light the Wizard will always win.
Thanks acetuk, at least I know the Exec's working as it should. I'm not anti-Exec, I have had several situations this week where the Exec won hands down - typing up meeting minutes while I remember what's been said, doing an urgent document review with a colleague (although he did have to squint a little), and checking these forums over WiFi at home So it does come into its own as a business tool, which is how it is marketed after all.
And if you're using the data package in anger then the equation does swing a bit the other way - although the data 5 is a very expensive way of doing it!
I just thought it was interesting to see how well the Wizard performs in hindsight - and how marked the speed difference was on the Wizard, once I'd been using the Exec for an extended period. I knew the screen slowed it down, but I was still expecting some turn of speed given the 524MHz CPU and previous comments by people saying how it really was much faster. But I saw the spinning disc this far more this week than I ever did with the Wizard - and had to reboot more frequently as well.
It also proves how irrelevant to real life reviews and adverts based on "benchmarks" and CPU clock speeds, really are, and that anyone who treats those as gospel is going to be sorely disappointed. :lol:
I fully agree - I started skipping benchmarks about three years ago. If I see them in a review I go straight pass them.
In the real world the device is as good as you can make it work for you. If a device doesn't cover your basics then so be it but that doesn't make a device bad. My Exec is slower than my hx4705 for loading PlanMaker and for general feel. But it is so much quicker for data entry. So what I lose in load time I gain in usability. So I win overall as far as I am concerned, regardless of any benchmarks stating overwise.
But the Wizard is an amazing piece of kit. Having PocketInformant running on both, syncing via a hosted exchange server, is a major productivity step forward for me. Pick up the device most useful for the moment, run a sync over wifi or GPRS and get to work. Today I updated all of my tasks and appointments on my Exec using it's excellent keyboard, sync'd to exchange, picked my Wizard up and sync'd again. In less than a minute both devices were fully up to date.
As for the data side of the Exec you are again quite correct. That is why I signed my Exec up for the Data36 tariff with O2 - that's 1mb a day with 5-6mb spare for when I need it. So far that is working very well for me combined with my wifi network at home. I'm paying for it but not too much at £18 / month approx but with no voice calls on top.
Now, if I can only understand better how to get two Windows Moibile devices, two PCs (one private, one work) and one exchange account syncing together better I will be happy!! That might need to go in to another post!
Again I have both thanks to O2 generosity but although I love my wizard for its size and the fact it can do anything the universal can do I would dispute the speed issue.
I find the universal to be the speedier of the two and the screen is amazing.
I love em both is the fact. Why compare them ? Just feel the love
knowsleyroader said:
I find the universal to be the speedier of the two and the screen is amazing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you quantify this? Are you saying the menus, program loading, application switching and screen refreshes are quicker on your Universal? I'd be intersted in finding out why that differs from the comparisons above. Unless your Wizard is slower than it should be, or you're not using an intelligent task manager?
By the way, my current view is that I will keep both, for maximum love
Ineedtoys said:
knowsleyroader said:
I find the universal to be the speedier of the two and the screen is amazing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you quantify this? Are you saying the menus, program loading, application switching and screen refreshes are quicker on your Universal? I'd be intersted in finding out why that differs from the comparisons above. Unless your Wizard is slower than it should be, or you're not using an intelligent task manager?
By the way, my current view is that I will keep both, for maximum love
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using a basic install on both with exactly the same apps and I do feel the universal is faster although I havent benchmarked this or even run them side by side. It just seems faster to me.
However I dont have an issue with either. Its not something im bothered about, just an observation. Im sure you will find others that thing the uni is faster.
Stability
Hi,
Before JasJar I own an IpaqHW6515. Generally JJ is much better that 6515 but using this device as unique device for communicate is not confortable as 6515 because:
1. battery life. my jj can't run for one complete day. With 280 grams devide, increasing of 20/30 grams using a much better battery would be appreciate.
2. BT: 6515 was much better in quality and range. and with a such big and havy device quality of BT would be a MUST because I don't know others but I try to use as much as possible handset because after a while with phone in my hand, I feel tired.
3. I need to soft reset few time a day. This because I start missing calls as device crash without reason while in standby.
4. I ALWAYS have problems (calling mainly) when I need something urgent. And I get crazy because I have to soft resent loosing precius minutes.
For this reasons, I confirm that JJ is best business device (i should not come back to 6515) but I've decided to buy a very light a small phone for make calls and use JJ only for Emails, web....
At least till a new rom will make stable the device.
Ciao
Stefano
Well, this bites. Not only is my JJ slow thanks to WM5, but also thanks to its big screen. I have gotten sick of my constant resents, and I've gone back to my WM2003 device. I feel eBay a callin' my name.
Morning all....
I dont wish to be a fish out of water here, but can i ask if anyone of you have flashed the rom and upgraded...??
I'm now running with the following :-
Rom ver.........1.13.82 WWE
Rom date.......11/30/05
Radio ver.......1.04.02
Protocol ver...1.13.188 WWE
Having had both the XDA II and the IIi, it sure seemed slower than both of them....then I flashed it !!
It is both faster and smoother than my previous XDA's, I haven't once had to soft reset yet....and my battery last more than a day :lol:
For those of you who haven't done so yet.... it's a must !!
http://www.my-xda.com/xdaexec_soft.html
The magman
it's true
The Magman,
I flashed my JJ to o2 ROM and in effect looks more stable faster. I've done during this quite week end and therefore I cannot say solved until I've tried JJ during a complete work week.
Ciao
I've had the XDA, XDA2, 2i and now the Exec - though I also had a play with a mate's Wizard whilst installing some software for him overnight a few weeks back.
I found the Wizard to be a lovely bit of kit, though I wouldn't necessarily say any faster (he had a basic install on, which is what I have on the Exec). The screen on the Exec is absolutely fantastic, the first times I noticed this was on opening the unit for the first time, and when I started whipping files to the Wizard via BT: there is absolutely no comparison between a QVGA and a VGA screen.
I think if the Exec hadn't arrived, then I would have gone for the Wizard, it's a good phone. However, I don't think I would find it easy from the 2i to Wizard, given the smaller screen and the somewhat cheapish keyboard.
Cheers
Ant
the magman said:
Morning all....
I dont wish to be a fish out of water here, but can i ask if anyone of you have flashed the rom and upgraded...??
I'm now running with the following :-
Rom ver.........1.13.82 WWE
Rom date.......11/30/05
Radio ver.......1.04.02
Protocol ver...1.13.188 WWE
Having had both the XDA II and the IIi, it sure seemed slower than both of them....then I flashed it !!
It is both faster and smoother than my previous XDA's, I haven't once had to soft reset yet....and my battery last more than a day :lol:
For those of you who haven't done so yet.... it's a must !!
http://www.my-xda.com/xdaexec_soft.html
The magman
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The O2 Exec came with the same versions as yours out of the box, so already using the latest.
Have been having too much fun with my mini s and exec so far to even think about flashing the roms
OK , I used to love my streak, it was cool , unusual , it made a bold statement but over the last few months I've grow increasing frustrated with the device which has now reached boiling point. This include the following points:-
1)Damn Dell Streak PDMI connector, the connection on my phone is duff. Many a time I put the phone in my pocket and the connector has got debris stuck to it. The phone then refuses to connect up to my PC via USB I’ve used compressed air to blow the crap out of the port and this sometimes brings it back to life. However recently its given up the ghost, the port still charges up when connected but the phone does not recognized that its hooked up to the PC. My workaround has been to install dropbox to upload pics etc but there’s no way of me doing anything else. Also the pins on the connector are really flimsy.
I think that either the port or the cable pins are bent and thats why they are not joining up correctly.
2)Low on space message – Phone storage space is low. Somehow I’m using 1.6GB of phone space and only have about 140MB left? I’ve deleted all but the essential apps like whatsapp, google maps, swiftkey etc. Everything else has been moved to the SD card, all my videos and pics are on my SD card. I’ve even deleted all my sms messages but the bloody phone still complains about lack of space. WTF is taking up all the space, is there any way to find out, can I compress or remove the junk?
3)Battery life or the lack of it. Basically I cannot keep my phone running for a full day. I have to reduce the brightness so its barely readable outside, switch off gps and bluetooth. Throughout the day I change the battery like 3 times. One solution that I’ve tried and failed is getting a bulkier battery for ebay that also acts like a stand. The problem is that the hinges on the battery keep sliding off whenever I take the phone out my pocket. The stupid sensors detect that the phone cover has been removed and shut the phone off
4)Lastly I accidentally dropped my phone today, it only fell like 2 foot from the table onto the marble floor, the glass seems to be fine, but there’s inky liquid flowing across the top half of the screen, slowly black lines have appearing that run vertical down the phone.
I used to love my streak but its just become too much a pain in the arse to use. My options are to try and get the phone fix , which is not easy as I’ve working out of Saudi Arabia at the moment and will not be back in the UK for a few months. If the Samsung note was release today I would of jumped for it..
So is its worth the hassle to fix the phone or just bin it and buy something new? Any suggestions.
Don't forget the video recording quality it's awful even old Nokia phones have better quality
And slow in loading games comparing to other 1 GHz phones like Galaxy S series
Man, you have the same hatred I have for yours as I do for mine. I use to love this so much at one time it was the best device I have ever had. Now its more problems and headaches then anything. I can't stand the thing anymore and can not wait till the galaxy note becomes available. Lets just hope its out when I'm able to upgrade and they don't slap some ridiculous price tag on it. I can't imagine spending more then about 200-250 on it. I wish I could help you or had some words of encouragement but I feel the same way about this POS as you do dell dropped the ball on this one I find it funny that instead of trying to work with it and fix the dang thing they essentially tucked their tail and ran by just ending the life of it. I said it before I'll say it again I will never buy another dell product again
Sent from my Dell Streak using XDA App
I must be about the only one that loves mine.
2.2.2, pretty much straight from the box. I use mine for business, not games, video or music. Got mine because it has a huge screen, which I use for web and email.
Regarding the 'low on space message', have you tried to do a factory reset?
p51d007 said:
I must be about the only one that loves mine.
2.2.2, pretty much straight from the box. I use mine for business, not games, video or music. Got mine because it has a huge screen, which I use for web and email.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're not the only one.
OP, I understand the frustration regarding battery life, but to have the GPS chip running all the time is ridiculous unless you use external power. Most apps work fine with cell tower triangulation, such as Google Earth and Google Maps. If you actually navigate using Google Nav or a GPS app, then you turn on the GPS.
For the display, in direct sunlight no display will be bright, even if it's a transreflective one. However, I do find that in most situations, setting the brightness to automatic does wonders.
I can't comment on your PDMI port problems because I haven't encountered any. But for your other gripes I believe your expectations to be a bit unrealistic.
ardkor2thebone said:
2)Low on space message – Phone storage space is low. Somehow I’m using 1.6GB of phone space and only have about 140MB left? I’ve deleted all but the essential apps like whatsapp, google maps, swiftkey etc. Everything else has been moved to the SD card, all my videos and pics are on my SD card. I’ve even deleted all my sms messages but the bloody phone still complains about lack of space. WTF is taking up all the space, is there any way to find out, can I compress or remove the junk?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can try my app SD Maid it may free up some space for you.
Streak5 Android 2.2.2 KO Constant & random boots
Hello gentlemen,
I really wish I had your problems to contend with.
However, I seem to be in much much worse shape with my steak android 2.2.2:
After forays in Blackberrys & Iphones I decided to take the plunge into Android.
As a first droid device I got a Dell Streak 5 with android 2.2.2 from Ebay. Thought it would be a good little tablet with secondary uses as a phone.
However, after receiving it I quickly noticed the bugginess of the whole device. Without warning the streak will flash the navigator buttons 3 times & then power off. Sometimes it'll happen while browsing the net, other times by launching the pre-installed apps & in many occasions even when I just dial a number in the phone.
Now I've checked the battery/battery cover issues, but all is in order and the flashing buttons prior to reboot do no seem like electric contact related.
The phone is stock Dell issued with the factory installed android 2.2.2 & all apps are the standard pre-installed ones. I have reset to factory settings & recalibrated the screen without any joy.
Any ideas?
Would this be a brutal hardware issue, would switching back to previous os levels help?
Any hints/insights will be greatly appreciated.
Baseband version: GAUSB1A135100-EU
Build number: 15609
As additional info, this behaviour happens with or without SIM/SD Cards.
With or without wi-fi connection.
Does this strange instability I am encountering make you suspect hardware of software issues?
Would downgrading to previous levels OS levels help?
Will now try getting some logs out of the thing & post them hoping someone may help.
Really love this device's phone-tablet form & i'd be a shame to throw it out because of these issues.
However, if it turns oit it is some hardware issue I see a trash can in it's future.... unless some one can refurbish the thing at a decent price. Any thoughts?
Thank you
Beppe
You got your Streak used off ebay, meaning used, correct?
Try upgrading the ROM. Version 360 is available, and may solve your issues. Not because of bug fixes, but because the previous owner may have had a bugged flash when they put 351 on the device, or removed the wrong stuff when rooting it.
In short, for some reason the ROM is unstable, and installing a ROM can fix it.
i agree with most of your points... I am running a Dell Venue Pro with wp7 on it and I can't get over how much of a better experience I am getting off of that phone then android and my streaks... I have pretty much retired my streaks and only going off the dvp now.
I was able to easily load mango and I am really digging the phone with the keyboard. I don't think Android is primetime.. I will wait for jelly bean before I go Android again.
I had used the streak just for gps for a few days, and it still had issues... Using Garmin for WP7 now.
I only had necessary apps running on my streak, no games, no widgets, no updating backend programs. It was so frustrating...
Ohh and all that time waiting for a damn website load on the streak...wtf. Everything comes up right away on the dvp.. only issue it has is no flash.. but i don't really use flash on the phone anyway.
Strephon Alkhalikoi said:
You got your Streak used off ebay, meaning used, correct?
Try upgrading the ROM. Version 360 is available, and may solve your issues. Not because of bug fixes, but because the previous owner may have had a bugged flash when they put 351 on the device, or removed the wrong stuff when rooting it.
In short, for some reason the ROM is unstable, and installing a ROM can fix it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Strephon,
Tnx for the reply & tip.
Yup, got it used. The guy I got it from (on the cheap side so I guess I shouldn't complain too much...) claims he used for 6 months & then had Dell update it in july. According to his story they did & they found no hardware faults on it. He's supposed to send me some official docs to prove those claims.
Also says he's not techy & never messed around with the roms .... but the superuser app is on it so I'm a bit sceptical.
I'm in the process of documenting myslef so I can do a proper rom install, will try 351 then 360 as you suggest. Wanna get all the info right as this is my first dab into android - nice OS but gives u so much wrope to hang yourself with!
However, before flashing I was checking out the phone & services; I noticed some notifications about GPS & OVOO errors. I turned the services off & removed a few extra apps I found lying arround. After this step It's been going for an hour of use without the berserk ultra frequent boot cycles. Gonna dig a bit to figure out if one of those apps disagrees with this version of 2.2.2 that is on.
Will see what I can do & post the results here. Hope I can sort it out, such a sweet phone & fab 5 inch screen. If I have to surrender, gonna sell it to those phone recyclers on the net, get ye olde Bblackberry out of storage & patiently wait for the Samsung Note. Can't go back to sub 5 inchers after the brief experience with this Streak.
Bye & tnx again for the tips.
p51d007 said:
I must be about the only one that loves mine.
2.2.2, pretty much straight from the box. I use mine for business, not games, video or music. Got mine because it has a huge screen, which I use for web and email.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you used it for music, you'd hate it more than you now realize. It has one of the worst audio playback systems I've ever heard in ANY media device. The radio noise and signal noise is so terrible that it's almost beyond words.
Using it with headphones, it's about on par with my old iphone 3g.
But I dont use the bundled ones (i havnt ever tried them)
I use my Streak for music nearly everyday. Mostly over BT in my car and with the bundled headphones. I find both methods to work fine for my. I am no audiophile but I find the Streak's music performance fine.
The speaker on the back is pretty dissappointing as far as music and sound. But seriously who would use it like that and expect for it to be good/great.
It can put out a fair amount of power and at lower volumes it's pretty acceptable. It's a matter of being it's nearly physically impossible (for it's price range) to make great sound come out of a single speaker it's size.
Over bt it should be all digital until it finally hits the headset so it's merely the quality of the media player.
My point still stands about headphones, I have no complaints at all with my current earbuds. Though as mine are in-ear, normal ones might be a bit quiet.
For the back cover problem i have done this and now i can remove the card with the phone turn on.
Awwwwwwe! C'mone now... Dont go hate'n on the Dell Streak like that. Putting it in the pocket and getting lint in the port aint the Streaks fault... You gotta give it a little credit there. I get good pics and vid quality from my baby!
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marvin02 said:
I use my Streak for music nearly everyday. Mostly over BT in my car and with the bundled headphones. I find both methods to work fine for my. I am no audiophile but I find the Streak's music performance fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Marvelous Marv, I do the same! Plug my Streak into aux in the car. Which mp3 app do u use? Anything better than PowerAmp?
My main problems have been the earpiece not working from new, intermittent then finally didn't work at all, has had to go to hungary for repair, and the battery cover seems to come off quite easily even when in my Otterbox Defender case.
Rico ANDROID said:
Marvelous Marv, I do the same! Plug my Streak into aux in the car. Which mp3 app do u use? Anything better than PowerAmp?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Player Pro and PowerAmp are the two that I like best. I like the internal interface for Player pro better, but the lockscreen widget for PowerAmp is better. I am using Player Pro right now. Also, IMO, the response to the BT buttons seems to be better with Player Pro. They are very close overall.
Staying on topic - I hate my Streak because I don't have two of them.
Hey guys, I recently acquired a ZGPAX S28 and figured I'd share it with you. Some of you may have been around for my development work on the MotoACTV and the Omate TrueSmart smartwatches, among various other phones and tools, so I figured it was time to try my hand at a product review for something that not too many of you have heard of yet.
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Let's get down to business! What is it? Well, it looks an awful lot like a Gear 2, but it doesn't run android. However, that's not a bad thing, when you consider its $50 price tag from http://www.gearbest.com, where mine came from. It shipped in a generic "smartwatch" box, as shown in the unboxing video below:
Specs:
- CPU: MTK6260 360MHz
- 1.54 inch Touch Screen 240x240
- MicroSIM slot
- MicroSD slot
- Bluetooth 3.0
- 450mAh Battery 3.7V Li-ion (Reported: 72 Hrs Standby, 6 Hrs Talk, 8 Hrs Music)
- Micro USB port
- Size 58x39x12.5mm
- Weight 55g
- Accelerometer
- Vibration
- Microphone
- Speaker
- MicroUSB Earphones Included
Features:
- Pedometer
- Anti-Lost Alert (both for connected phone and watch)
- QWERTY keyboard with both T9 and handwriting prediction
- MP3 Player
- Sleep Monitor
- SMS
- Phonebook
- Music Player
- Remote Camera
- FM Radio
- Calendar
- Ringtones
- Multiple Language Support
You can either watch the video (I'm not a thespian or read the review right here. I decided to wear it for around 5 days prior to writing this, to get a feel for how I'd use it in the real world and how it stacks up to the competition that I have at my disposal. The watch is surprisingly comfortable, as well as stylish. It's very similar in design to the Gear 2, which I enjoy. For reference, I very much dislike wearing my Omate TrueSmart because it is so uncomfortable, but sometimes forget that the S28 is even on my wrist. I plugged it into the wall to let it charge for a little while, with the included microUSB charger, and then connected it to my HTC Desire 610 via bluetooth. I then downloaded the free companion app to my phone, which was also painless due to the QR download code being right on the watch. I basically scanned it with barcode scanner, then sideloaded the APK after it downloaded onto the phone.
Once up and running, you can select which apps from your phone you wish to display on the watch. I used everything from LINE Messenger to my iSmartAlarm home security system. Everything came through to the watch perfectly, and at the settings I selected. If you don't want an app to show up anymore, block it. Simple as that. I found myself blocking Facebook after receiving many many notifications at once and being distracted at work when I didn't need to be. Again, it was all very painless and I was pleasantly surprised. This is something that many Android based watches have problems with. They try to be both a watch and a phone, and can't be the best at either one. I've also had many issues with them not receiving notifications properly, or not receiving ALL notifications that you want to receive, which was not at all the case with the S28.
The watch itself is hard plastic with a metal faceplate and capacitive touch screen that's very responsive to touch, despite what my clumsiness in the video may lead you to believe . I LOVE that it's capacitive for only $50. I was actually expecting much less than I got for my money, to be honest. The screen is bright and relatively easy to read outside. It's not the greatest in direct sunlight, but to be honest, I've yet to find one that is. The only things I noticed myself really wishing for were a shake-to-wake feature of some kind, so I didn't have to press the button every time I wanted to see the time, and a way to remove the analog clock, or at least change it. I much prefer digital myself.
However, again, for the price, you simply can't beat it. My friends were in awe as I showed them the differences between this watch and my usual daily drivers, and I may have even convinced a few of them to give it a try. The watch has 2 functions in particular that I'd not used before, the remote camera and the "anti-lost" function. The first lets you use your watch to actually control the camera on your phone. You can see the viewfinder through the watch and walk around the room to take a picture. Not going to lie, I took a few full body selfies, and no, you can't see them. It worked well, and if you weren't taking a picture, it was also neat just watching the phone's viewfinder through the watch, like a remote security camera. The other feature was called "anti-lost", but is essentially a "find my watch, find my phone" feature, that will let you find the other if you have one of the two.
It has many features you'd find in a typical feature phone, such as SMS, phonebook, calendar, mp3 and mp4 player capability, and an FM radio. The pedometer works well, but you have to physically start it before walking, similar to most fitness apps you'd find on your phone. Again, I was spoiled with my MotoACTV's always-on pedometer. It has a sleep monitor, but I've yet to play with it. Soon, friends, soon. The on-screen keyboard is small, but works well and has many options including predictive text (T9) and handwriting recognition.
I did have one issue with the watch or the phone disconnecting and reconnecting with my bluetooth every so often, but in all honesty, I'm blaming that on the phone more than the watch. It was a cheap phone after all. I will be doing some more testing on that part when I replace the power button on my GS3.
3 things this watch has, that everyone else making watches out there needs to take note on: Built-in microphone, built-in speaker, and vibration function. It's literally a mini phone on your wrist, with decent battery life and talk time. Color me impressed.
If you want to order from the same people I did, here is a direct link. And after speaking to their staff (who are also very nice by the way), they gave me a coupon code for you guys: S28GM, which brings the price down to just under $44. I hope you guys liked the review, and again, if you need to know anything else about it, don't hesitate to shoot me a message! Thanks for reading/watching!
ClearD said:
Hey guys, I recently acquired a ZGPAX S28 and figured I'd share it with you. Some of you may have been around for my development work on the MotoACTV and the Omate TrueSmart smartwatches, among various other phones and tools, so I figured it was time to try my hand at a product review for something that not too many of you have heard of yet.
.....
If you want to order from the same people I did, here is a direct link. And after speaking to their staff (who are also very nice by the way), they gave me a coupon code for you guys: S28GM, which brings the price down to just under $44. I hope you guys liked the review, and again, if you need to know anything else about it, don't hesitate to shoot me a message! Thanks for reading/watching!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the review. There's a review for it already by st7ler, but its good to get a second look, how many days battery are getting from it? Its similar to the U8 Pro, not sure which to buy.
I keep mine turned off at night, and I got 4 days before I recharged it. Not sure exactly how many it'd last though, because I never let it run completely down lol
Thanks. And your typical use for the 4 days was...?
Could you do me a favour and try bluetooth tethering please? [emoji106]
I used it for between 12 and 16 hours each day. And tethering how, specifically? It doesn't do internet pass through, if that's what you mean, but it does receive all notifications through bt tethering. And receives them rather well at that lol
Thanks for the review. Looks good smart watch. Its app connection is stable?
It was stable for the most part, and if it disconnected, it quickly reconnected all by itself. I think my phone was the unstable part.
ClearD said:
I used it for between 12 and 16 hours each day. And tethering how, specifically? It doesn't do internet pass through, if that's what you mean, but it does receive all notifications through bt tethering. And receives them rather well at that lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Shame it can't do bluetooth tethering, it would have not needed a data plan.
http://vifocal.com/zgpax-s28-watch-...-1-54-inch-screen-smart-bluetooh-sync-fm.html $43 and $3 off if you like them on farsebook or google+
ClearD said:
I used it for between 12 and 16 hours each day. And tethering how, specifically? It doesn't do internet pass through, if that's what you mean, but it does receive all notifications through bt tethering. And receives them rather well at that lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@ClearD - are there any functions to control the phone from the watch?
I don't believe so, it's sort of like a standalone watch phone that also reads notifications from your primary phone
It's possible to add new analog look? Or change shortcuts on descop?
Hello everyone,
I've placed an order of the R-Watch M26s and all I've found about it is that it's an upgraded version of the R-Watch M26. I've bought it at Gearbest as they were having a coupon for it, and it'll arrive in the coming days. The specs for the watch is the following:
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As there's very little info about the watch itself, so I'm interested to know if anyone else have it here and wants to share their experience about the watch?
I'll be posting a full length review once the clock itself arrives, and I'll also post the coupon I used to get it at a lower price if the item is good and worth it's price
The watch came today, and I've just been having a initial look at it. I must say that it's better than I expected, but the thing that keeps the band in place could've been better and the band itself is big. Other than that, it's a good watch for the price. Full review incl. video coming up in the next few days so stay tuned
Review of the watch (Will update with pictures )
I've now used the watch for a week or two, so here's my thoughts about said watch. The watch itself is built out of mostly plastic, that's chromed and slightly dark colored. The plastic feels sorta solid, but I must say that there's one downpart of the watch being made out of plastic and that is it's extremely hard to put the watch strap back on if it falls off or if you remove it.
The screen at the front seem to be covered by glass, as I've not been able to scratch it with keys. With that said, I should add that the watch has a capacitive screen with a LED screen. It's not the sharpest screen I've seen, and there's quite a bit of color change when looking at the screen at angles. However, this is expected for such a cheap product and it's not too bad at all.
The software on the watch is a custom OS by Mediatek, based on Nucleus. It's easy to navigate and there's quite a bit of builtin apps in the watch, but there's some disadvantages with the OS. One of the disadvantages I can see is there's a lack of third party apps. This can be said about most affordable smartwatches so it's not unexpected.
The app for the watch that's supplied (Mediatek Smartdevice) is decent and does the job just fine, it's stable but it's not as good as the Android Wear app but it's decent enough.
The watch have sorta decent battery life, and it lasts around 3-5 days depending on use, and I've only charged it 2 times since I got it.
The main disadvantage with this watch is that it does have a built-in speakers - that's poor and will redirect your phones sound through it and it's far from a ideal solution. I would rather see the watch not having a speaker, as it's far from useful and it's not the best implentation ever.
I bought my watch here with the coupon "GBM26S":
http://www.gearbest.com/smart-watches/pp_149274.html
Hey friends, I have just ordered another watch from this site.
How long it will take to USA?
Sophia Lee said:
Hey friends, I have just ordered another watch from this site.
How long it will take to USA?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
My watch arrived within 2 weeks but that's because I ordered it with NL Post as courier. Usually I would say it takes around a month atleast.
GethPrime said:
Hello,
My watch arrived within 2 weeks but that's because I ordered it with NL Post as courier. Usually I would say it takes around a month atleast.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you
How about the watch? You will upload a full review?
Is it used well with Iphone? I have ordered an M26, it is pretty cool, but no iphone~
It doesn't work with iPhone !
I received the watch last week and have been trying to use it with my iPhone 5S (IOS 8.3).
I was able to pair it but it disconnects for some mysterious reason (sometimes after a minut, sometimes after a few minutes) and it does not automatically reconnects. This issue makes the watch useless for me.
The only thing that seems to work is the notifier, so I'm able to see the notifications on the watch.
But no way to receive/answer any calls or even place a call.
I bought it at banggood.com and have contacted them and supplied them all information (a video that shows that it doesn't work).
Now I'm waiting for an answer/solution...
jgeert1 said:
I received the watch last week and have been trying to use it with my iPhone 5S (IOS 8.3).
I was able to pair it but it disconnects for some mysterious reason (sometimes after a minut, sometimes after a few minutes) and it does not automatically reconnects. This issue makes the watch useless for me.
The only thing that seems to work is the notifier, so I'm able to see the notifications on the watch.
But no way to receive/answer any calls or even place a call.
I bought it at banggood.com and have contacted them and supplied them all information (a video that shows that it doesn't work).
Now I'm waiting for an answer/solution...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you installed the app on the phone? I'm sure Banggood.com will provide a solution for you, as I've bought stuff there in the past and have had a great experience there
I got my today, everything works awesome, very easy to setting up with my Nexus 4, phone calls work nice too.
GethPrime said:
Have you installed the app on the phone? I'm sure Banggood.com will provide a solution for you, as I've bought stuff there in the past and have had a great experience there
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Click to collapse
Yes, I did install the app. As the iPhone is already supporting bluethooth v4, no additional apps are needed to use the dialer, phonebook and the call log. The app is only needed for the additional functions (like the notifier and that one works very good).
Personally I think the issue is related to the fact that Apple changed the code in IOS 8.3 to support their own Smartwatches and as a result disabled or changed the protocol to support the "cheaper" (read non-Apple) smartwatches.
Banggood came back to me and is now sending a new (the same model!) smartwatch to me to rule out hardware issues (they think the watch is defective). So I'm waiting on the delivery of it.
To be continued...
SmartBlue
jgeerts said:
Yes, I did install the app. As the iPhone is already supporting bluethooth v4, no additional apps are needed to use the dialer, phonebook and the call log. The app is only needed for the additional functions (like the notifier and that one works very good).
Personally I think the issue is related to the fact that Apple changed the code in IOS 8.3 to support their own Smartwatches and as a result disabled or changed the protocol to support the "cheaper" (read non-Apple) smartwatches.
Banggood came back to me and is now sending a new (the same model!) smartwatch to me to rule out hardware issues (they think the watch is defective). So I'm waiting on the delivery of it.
To be continued...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, iOS devices have to dl "smartblue" to use the push and sync ..
https://itunes.apple.com/app/id948624905
.... but it's iOS
kanzi83 said:
Hi, iOS devices have to dl "smartblue" to use the push and sync ..
https://itunes.apple.com/app/id948624905
.... but it's iOS
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I know. That's the app I'm running to be able to receive notifications.
Meanwhile I received a new watch (replacement) and that one works as a charm with my iPhone (all issues are resolved).
The only difference I can see with the previous watch is the version of the firmware. The new one is running V03, the one that doesn't function runs V01.
So it might be a firmware issue (I can't test it as I do not have V03 firmware files to upgrade the watch - So if someone knows where to find it, I would greatly appreciate it).
jgeerts said:
.../...
The only difference I can see with the previous watch is the version of the firmware. The new one is running V03, the one that doesn't function runs V01.
So it might be a firmware issue (I can't test it as I do not have V03 firmware files to upgrade the watch - So if someone knows where to find it, I would greatly appreciate it).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
and find the way to flash it ...!
Hi, have a couple of questions about this watch. Does it work with Spotify? Can I get notifications from whatsapp and Gmail?
Thanks
I received tha watch yesterday, and I'm not able to have notification.
I can make a call and receive it, but if I want to go to messages it says "failed" and write empty. ...
The firmware is the v004.
Please help....
Can you reply to messages on it or you can only read messages but cant reply. also does whatsapp work on it or just wechat as advertised?
i am starting to feel like the watch is a bit useless if you can only answer calls and the speaker is not great so you probably cant hear a thing and you can only read messages and cant reply. so whats the use?
am considering getting this but is it worth getting? or what would be a better smart watch to get compatible with a samsung.
i got the watch from ebay, my m26 doesn't read Hebrew (other than that i like it). At gearbest.com it says that their watch support Hebrew thou.
i'm guessing they have a newer version than i do or they added it manually.
can enybody check their gearbest m26 for hebrew support and if you have it pleas save your firmware and post it, i know there is a way to save the firmware and flash it to a different device (but i dont know yet how to do that).
there even might be a difference between having a hebrew UI and being able to display hebrew characters (i need the display only, dont care about the ui).
Quick tip for those that are unsatisfied with battery life - do a battery swap. It's cheap and straight forward.
I have M26, not M26s with 200mAh battery which struggled to last a day, even on Energy saving mode. I opened the watch and found out the battery was very small compared to the available space in the compartment (I'll attach an image later). After some research it turned out there are a lots of Li-Po batteries in AliExpress for around 5$ with various sizes and capacity (just type the size you want in the search bar). The original size of the battery was 402030 (4mm height*20mm width*30mm length) and managed to squeeze in 602040 (6mm*20mm*40mm) with 500mAh capacity, however the height was a bit much as now there is a slight gap between the lid and the body on one side. Probably 502040 (5mm height) would be ideal, which typically is 380mAh. The soldering job is pretty straight forward - unsolder the old battery and solder the leads of the new one after trimming them to the appropriate size. Just detach the ribbon cable that is located nearby. Now the watch lasts 2 days connected to the phone, pedometer and no energy saving.
Regards
I have one and I'm quite happy with it. I use it with a Windows Phone 10 (Lumia 950 dual SIM). The disadvantage is that there is no control software like with Android phones, but most functions nevertheless work: only camera and music don't work. Otherwise it works rather well -when you have figured out how to use it, because the user manual is close to useless (it took me some time to figure out how to set the clock).. It doesn't disconnect unless you veer too far from the phone, but reconnects when you come closer.