Database Users

WIZARD or UNIVERSAL? wich is the best for you???

Hi all!
I own 1 wizard and I am very happy. Mow my operator made me a proposal to upgrade to the Universal for 150 Euros.
Do you think I must move to the universal or saty with my wizard?
Thank you in advance.

If your wizard is the o2 one, i'd be willing to swap my universal for your wizard for free...

Wow! seams you are not so happy with your Universal. My wizard is a T-Mobile.

I'd stay with the Wizard... the only thing that slightly tempted me to get a Universal was the VGA screen. Other than that it runs the same software as a Wizard, it's been reported time and again that it's slower than the Wizard, it's physically a good bit larger (and the Wizard isn't all that small to begin with, especially in terms of thickness), the hinge mechanism for the screen goes slack so badly that people have had 'repairs' (tightening) twice already.. keep in mind that the Universal wasn't launched that long ago, etc.
Also, the Wizard just looks pretty sexy

ZeBox: I'm almost convinced...

Well, if you really want to be convinced, go to a store that carries the Universal - just be prepared to be lured into temptation by that VGA screen But if you ignore that bit, *shrug*, Wizard all the way

I had a Universal from t-mobile, 3 infact, all the hindges went slack and clicked so they were returned and I left them for orange. Same thing again, clicks, loose so ive ditched that too.
I admit the VGA screen was a luxury, but it felt quite heavy in the pocket and stabbed me in the leg a few times sitting down. It was also quite slow, especially on somthing as simple as making a call.
Ive ended up with the Wizzard, and im very happy with it. Its the closest HTC have come to making a pda device that looks like a phone and its quite fast considering its technically slower than the Universal.
I dont think you'll be happy with a universal once the glory of the first few weeks has passed. The wizzard certainly is a fine little device and im glad I got one in the end.

Thank you guys for your opinions. Now I am convinced. I'll stay with my wizzard (t-mobile with QTEK rom) wich satisfy all my communication and organisation needs.
Thanks again.

I'm not sure I agree. My universal is faster than my old wizard, the keyboard makes a huge difference and it's no bigger than my wizard was with a cover, which you needed to protect the screen, but don't need with the Universal. Also it's more stable I used to have to soft reset my wiz all the time plus my buletooth headset works properly with it whereas it didn't with my wiz after the last ROM upgrade. And it doesn't wipe/corrup SD cards (yet). Also 3G is abig advantage in so far as I travel alot and now I don't need to pay to login to wifi hotspots, at airports for example, anymore.
Remember neither device is really a very good phone, the battery life isn't up to it and the size is prohibitive.
Well that's my opinion anyway!

simple trade off, size vs function
I had a Magician & loved it but then the Universal appeared I "had to get it", today I sold it to a workmate and bought a Wizard (T-mobile) thats a weight off my mind, and my pocket, I could not carry the Universal around with me easily, I found myself dressing in the morning to accommodate my phone (how F****d up is that?). the Wizard is more like a phone GTi and the Universat is like a 7 year old PC, as I normally carry a PSP and a Laptop for work I found the Universal slow, fragile and oversized ( the VGA left me cold, it is not really VGA, well not useable VGA, fonts are too small and none of the apps suit it. I know that there are some amazing people in this forum working hard but its kinda hard to polish a turd.
If you want a laptop, buy one, if you want a phone, buy one but do not expect one to do the others work for it.
I should have learned my lesson when I bought a Sony NZ90 (another huge bulky "PC replacement") but I think that for 99% of the techno-savvy world a phone is a phone & a computer is a computer.
rant over, sorry to the Universal owners out there

I have both and for me it's pretty obvious its all about intended use.
Wizard: small, low power CPU (although this is not so apparnt, it feels pretty quick most of the time), qvga. EDGE (at best, no EDGE here in the UK so 2G speeds only!). Fits in your pocket no problem. usable keyboard. Perfect 'everyday' PDA phone
Universal: Faster CPU (but ****ty ROMs and power schemes negate this benfit to a large extent). VGA screen is LOVELY! (but no hardware 2D or 3D acceleration means playing games or videos is a bit shakey). Really good Keyboard. Funky swiveling screen (double edged sword as the hinges seem to be a weakness). Big and really rather heavy. UMTS! Only fits in your pocket if your wearing combats! Perfect 'mini laptop' (I've composed large docs and loooong emails on mine!). Perfect PDA that happens to be a phone as well (if you see what i mean).
TBH, I have both and I use the wizard every day and the universal at weekends...

How good is Hermes as a phone?

Hey,
I am confused by the number of choices I have of purchasing HTC devices (of course this is a good thing ). I currently have HTC Magician and am looking to upgrade to a newer device. My question is mainly for people who have owned Magician.
How does Hermes compare with Magician as a phone? How is the reception? How is the in call audio quality? Can the person on the other end hear you? This is important for me as this will be my primary phone.
Is weight/size difference noticeable?
Thanks for your help!

at this moment, i think hermes the best phone ever i had. i'm previous owner of magician. with all the improvement features from magician, it also has more features that magician.

I upgraded from the Magician to the Hermes (Vario II) a month ago - and it cost me since my old contract still had time to run.
The Magician is a decent PDA/phone and it convinced me that a combined phone/PDA was the way to go for me. But it was limited (slow, no 3G, no wi-fi, no keyboard etc.) so I decided to upgrade.
As a phone, the two devices are virtually identical. There is no real difference. Both are fine as phones. I've had no problems whatsoever making or receiving calls on the Hermes (or the Magician). But as a PDA/communication device, there is no comparison. The Hermes blows the Magician out of the water.
The form-factors are similar. The Hermes is slightly thicker (thanks to the real keyboard) and slightly heavier (same reason - plus the extra features) but I store both in their cases on my belt and I don't notice any difference.
The Hermes is a next-generation mobile device. There is no comparison with previous models.

The Cingular 8525 I just got has better voice quality for both sending and receiving than my previous Motorola V551 and v557 phones. It is also better at picking up the signal when it is weak and holding onto it.

Agreed. As a phone, the Hermes has superb sound quality, and the speakerphone is top notch!

One thing I have noted though is that the loudspeaker is very loud - a little 'too' loud for me, I wish that sometimes I could turn it down just another couple of notches, especially when using it for handsfree. It always distorts a bit, and that really bugs me.
I'm sure there's something that could be done about that in software, as the in-call volume slider seems to do little if anything at all...
The Hermes blows my last phone (the Alpine) out the water though. Hardware keyboard, slinkier form factor, WM5, all those lovely features - granted I have had problems with mine but I think that was due to it being one of those problematic early model revisions. I had a herm634, my replacement (which I got today) is a new herm643, so hopefully all should be solved now!
One bugbear: no 3.5mm headphone socket. Whyyyyy do I have to use the glorified mini-USB connector headphones (which incidentally are SHOCKING)?! Granted I know I could get some good quality in-ear headphones, do a bit of soldering and homebrew my own headset, but I really can't be bothered.

Hermes is a great phone, slightly too chunky though, but perfectly reasonable for what it does.
I miss my Magician, and frankly would be quite happy with it still, but the keyboard on the Hermes has grown on me. Of the HTC phones on the market right now, it's perhaps the best (Herald might be attractive, Trinity and Artemis have CPU issues I guess, and lack keyboard)...
I also had the problem with the speakerphone being too loud, had to return it. Watch for manfacturing issues - I had a dodgy scroll wheel (sometimes scrolls the wrong way for one click), speakerphone, and there used to be touch screen issues. These have probably all been corrected in manufacturing now, but check...
A great phone. But do check out the new Etens.
V

Not sum of its parts..
I came from Treo 650, as it died and I needed a new PDA/phone. I like the Hermes, but from a comparison point of view I am on the fence.
I like the WM5, better than PalmOS. I like Hermes' speed of operation and its networking capabilities/speed better. But Hermes' accessibility (one-hand dialing, contacts, etc) is nowhere near Treo650/PalmOS. If it wasn't for voice dialing, Hermes would have been returned long ago.
As a phone, I also think Treo 650 is stronger. I had better call hold times with Treo. With Hermes, I think the earpiece volume is low, and I experience fequent call drops, which I didn't have with the Treo. I tried fixing the mode on GSM or on UMTS, but I didn't feel a difference. I also tried at least 4 different ROMs and radio-only ROMs. I am now on the latest HTC ROM (with Cingular in NC USA), using the same SIM card as my Treo had, and I have call drops at least two times out of ~ 10 calls a day.
As a package, however, Hermes is better than Treo 650. Slide-out keyboard alone, is enough for me to live with the other shortcomings.

I also came from the 650.
I was never happy with the reception.
And I needed VC just to get the volume up to a decent level.
Even with the latest Rom Update, it still wasn't as good as my wifes cheap moto 180.
I am even more disappointed with the 650's reception now that I have the 8525.
The 8525 is the best phone I have ever owned. I may even pass on the 750.
Oh, and my speakerphone is too loud also.

I know how you feel about the magician vijay555. Its a terrific phone and wm2003se works so much better than wm2005 imo. BUT the hermes is better, everything I liked about the magician I also like about the hermes, it seems to run a lot faster than the atom and the 3g is very fast (when covered). For me the only thing that could make my dopod better is if it was double the size and vga. I like big screens and it would be more usable for internet browsing or reading.

HTC done good!
I've been thoroughly impressed by the quality of my Cingular 8525 as a phone. Better signal acquisition especially inside buildings where I previously could find no reception, calls are (to my ear) clearer, and the mic is quite sensitive. My speakerphone is too loud in a non-noisy environment and the volume controls are somewhat coarse, but overall, it's a better phone than my old Nokia.
mdf

Also have to mention that the protection for the loudspeaker is much better than on the Alpine - on the Alpine, it's very flimsy: the cover, held in by what appear to be two prongs, can be easily dislodged if you bash or push it, and then it rattles against the speaker all the time. Without totally removing the case and pushing it back in from behind (because that's how it's fitted), or even better glueing it in place, it becomes REALLY ANNOYINg and it makes telephone conversations nigh impossible to understand unless you have it turned up full volume.
Now I have my Hermes, I might take apart the Alpine (I was afraid to while I was still using it as a phone in case I broke it) and try to fix it. Believe me, don't carry one of those around in your pocket for a year (like I did) without some kind of case for it! I feel much safer with having the Hermes in my pocket, though: the screen is recessed more, the speaker is fully protected (just a tiny slot through which you use it to listen, and the actual handsfree loudspeaker is on the back of the device), and it fits in your pocket better (not as wide, a little thicker but meh, works for me). It also doesn't slip out of my hand nearly ALL THE TIME like my Alpine did, particularly when i was using it drunk

christopherwoods said:
It also doesn't slip out of my hand nearly ALL THE TIME like my Alpine did, particularly when i was using it drunk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And didn't you notice that the screen alignment problem miraculously disappeared when you were drunk and it was the chicks that slipped out of your hand. A sad and lonely guy, tapping away in a dark corner, pissed but happily grinning with a Hermes in hand and drool puddling on the beer soaked lino of a dingy Brummy dive. The joint went silent, the seedy creatures of the night; painted drugged up waifs eye the guy with the TyTn and you know they're yours cos you're an XDA developer and quicker than they can ask....got the time mister?, you'd done it again but hard this time yep soft was good but as resets go this was a hard moment. The scene ends as Hermes bursts in a climatic, tinny rendering of "Baile la bamba, baile la bamba" as boyo's girl phones to see if he's been arrested for flashing his ROM again.
The very definition of happiness!!

aarman said:
..using the same SIM card as my Treo had, and I have call drops at least two times out of ~ 10 calls a day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may be worth your while to try one of the new USIMs that Cingular offers with the 8525/3G phones.

Any other clamshell devices???

Does anyone have any news as to any clamshell device that can replace our Universal?
What happened to the IMate Ultimate 7150 or the HTC OMNI?
---

Hope you are enjoying your Fujitsu U810
imate 7150 was cancelled long ago. Also, I m not sure about this news but I guess Omni too is cancelled.
On the brigther side, if you are interested in VGA, Athena II will be lauching this year. It has been confirmed by HTC

how big is it?the athena 2?

kdskamal said:
Hope you are enjoying your Fujitsu U810
imate 7150 was cancelled long ago. Also, I m not sure about this news but I guess Omni too is cancelled.
On the brigther side, if you are interested in VGA, Athena II will be lauching this year. It has been confirmed by HTC
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the response. Sad to hear that. I'll do some searching about the Athena II.
YES, I am enjoying my Fujitsu U810. I even ordered the 2 cell battery to make it even smaller. The 4 cell battery is just too big and ugly as it sticks out on the back.
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Im hoping to replace my uni too.... it's been 3 years now... I'm thinking of the HTC Advantage. What do you think? It's not your typical clamshell but I think it's the nearest to our uni, right?

I was very close to purchasing the advantage from compusa (cc declined - ouch!). I'm glad I didn't.
Spec/feature wise the advantage is amazing. The screen is huge and operating it is a breeze. I just don't think htc got their market right. It's just too big and difficult to carry around. I would think that the max size for a device like this is to fit in your front pants pocket - GOOD LUCK! I'd think women might be the only market for this device as they can fit it in their purse (but what woman that actually wants a device like this owns a purse? ).
I think the uni is fine for my needs, but there's only 4 things that I'd really like out of it:
- Better battery life. This shouldn't be difficult with updates in battery tech from the last 3 years. It's not very reasonable to expect people to carry around extra 1800mah batteries when they're just going out for a 9-5er.
- Soft key buttons + shortcut keys in tablet view. It's just too inconvenient using tablet mode without these keys, hence the fact that I don't ever use this mode on the uni.
- Larger memory. Preferably a microdrive included. What were they thinking only including 64mb of space for us? This is very limiting.
- A way of operating when closed. That imate had it right: putting a display on the outer clamshell. I can imagine looking at that screen and accepting a call on my bt headset without having to open the clamshell up.

http://www.mikenchell.com/handheldpcs/
I dont think this does phone duties though, but it is cool.
http://www.mobilecowboys.nl/mobilerumours/3423
this appears to be a less functional clone of the Universal. Seems kinda bakkerds huh?

axebox, i own a purse (a lot, actually). Im still thinking hard before getting the advantage. Ive been reading the reviews and the comments from the athena thread and seems like it's not a perfect device as well. The speaker's a bit buggy too. I dont really mind the size as long as it meets my needs. I like the screen because I read a lot of ebooks. Im doing that now with my dopod900 and I dropped it a couple of times because I fell asleep while reading. haha. Plus it's using micro sd (not as affordable as sd). And then the magnetic case. I currently use the piel frama case and I use it as a wallet too, i have all my credit cards and other important cards too, plus some cash. Yup, my case is really bulky, especially since I have the thick battery. I managed to stretch the leather to fit the thick battery in. Anyway, Im happy with my dopod now but Im just thinking, if there's anything out there that's gonna be better, faster and maybe even smaller (but not really a priority feature), then I'll get it.
AllanonMage, I'll stick to my dopod.

Not quite what you meant I'm sure but I'm still lusting over it:
http://www.europe.htc.com/en/products/htcshift.html

toshiba g920 seems quite good replacement...negatives will be, probably:
battery life (ahhh...I will really miss 3200+4800mah!)
graphic performance, with wvga you can't expect too much...
smaller display
no rom fun/cooking, superslow updates and patch,no xda support (sigh)
I'm still undecided, though, and even samsung i780 is a pretty good device...but I fear the 320x320 resol., after being accustomed to 640x480....

How big is the athena?

The dimensions don't tell me anything neither do photo's. The thing looks huge. I have the kaiser currently and I am interested in the Athena and the kaiser when I hold it from the bottom of my palm it reaches to the middle of my fingers(the middle ridges). How far would it go, and how practice is it to place a call? Any user experiences that are good bad? pros cons to it? I'm not looking at reviews because they are usually just to praise gadgets. I want real peoples experiences with it.
Thanks
~~Tito~~

the athena is about the size of my whole hand from base of palm up until end of pinky
its a huge phone but i love it...
everyone always asks me why i carry that thing around... but to me nothing else beats it

i didnt like using the bluetooth headset all the time and found talking directly into the mic with the volume turned down led to frequent complaints about sound quality. If you dont mind using an earpiece most of the time then this shouldn't concern you -i like talking into phones because i'm old fashoned and because it saves battery AND means i don't have to worry about TWO devices being charged before i go to work.
There is always the wired headset, but i think wires are a bit awkward and scruffy.
The size is huge, and certainly a talking point. Everyone who saw my athena commented on its size - usually in a derogatory manner - and i think i started to become known as the 'Big Phone Man'. I did love texting on my athena and didnt care too much what people thought but in the end it was the call handling that got me: you can have all the bluetooth wristwatches, earpieces and headsets in the world but nothing beats having a phone pressed against your ear for me.

For me, the size of Athena is the most optimal one could ever have. The 5 inches screen makes it practical to run realVGA at 96 dpi. (In 96dpi, the fonts are already very very small, but most people -not all- still find the screen big enough) If it is say 4 inches, I believe 96dpi would be quite impractical to use, and I believe most people would find the screen way too small to be used in 96dpi. It fits into standard size shirt pocket without any problem, and is not heavy enough to pull your shirt down too much. I would not buy it if the screen is say just 3.5 inches.
I use the phone as it is without bluetooth, sometimes with wired headset. Sound quality is very good with any wired headset. It is not in the same category of "bigness" as the shift. Athena is truly "body portable", which means you can bring it with you everywhere 27/7. I recommend a good belt pouch for this. I feel that Athena has managed to stay within the very limit of "body portability". Shift, on the other hand, is only "travel friendly" but you would leave it in the hotel once you reach your travel destination, unless you want to carry a backpack or briefcase in your hand all the time.
If you are unsure on how big it is, do what I did before I bought Athena. Measure the dimension and make model of it yourself and hold it to get a feel. (I actually carried the model in my pocket for a few days before acquiring mine). But it is also important not to think of this as a phone. It is a data first, phone second device. The size is superb for GPS, pictures, video playback, internet browsing, spreadsheets, word processing, etc. Smaller screens are just not as useful for these. I would be very very sad if the future model becomes say 4 inches screen only.

I agree with most of your points, though tito stressed call handling and size in his thread and made no mention of data-centic use. I would've disagreed about the Athena's browser capabilities until a few weeks ago but now Netfront 3.5 is here the Athena is a lot more desirable.
I agree about the 'body-portable' statement, though if you're used to very 'pocketable' phones then I wouldn't recommend the Athena, since without a protective case the screen is VERY vulnerable and nigh-on impossible to find a replacement for, even if you can squeeze it in my pocket - which I did, with the occasional scary moment! I like things in my pocket, not in pouches or fanny packs but Tito might be more like you Eaglesteve ;-)
The screen isn't transflective either so not great to view in daylight, though i believe you can buy screen covers to improve this.
I wouldn't disagree that wired headsets work great in terms of sound quality, but I just didn't personally like having wires trailing from my body, nor did i like having an earpiece in at work. I liked the 'feel' of the Athena and thus liked to pick up and hold it when taking calls. This was just my personal preference, and despite having every variation of headset I invariably held the phone to my ear.
The problem was that with both of the Athenas i owned - and indeed my Hermes which has a faulty embedded mic and necessitates loudspeaker use when handling calls - call quality was terrible when holding the device to my head - not from my end but for the other party. Held at the recommended distance as a voice conferencing aid it worked fine, but I didn't want everyone to know what I was saying!
I also disagree about video performance - not great in my experience, but perhaps graphics accelerator support is around the corner which would make a big difference.

If you also intent to use it as an MP3, you would have wired headset if you want the best possible quality sound, so I assume you would carry it with you somehow in your pocket most of the time anyway. (How else do we listen to music on the go?) Actually my version of wired headset is designed such that it hangs like a neckless over me all the time so I simply pick up the earbud and stick it into my ear when needed, and let it hang down like a neckless when not needed. The headset is inside my shirt with only a bit of the earbud wire coming out from the collar. So, it is really quite inconspicuous.
Yes, we do have some very nice browsers coming up. It has made hell of a difference in the past few weeks. It will get even better with Opera Mobile 9.5 and Netfront's final version. Not to mention the Skyfire. We'll be spoilt for choice.
Also, you might want to try Softmaker Office 2008, which is sensational on Athena's big screen. It is available for free download and will be free until end of March. Get it. I just LOVE this on Athena's screen. Read more about softmaker office here: http://www.mobilehornet.com/archives/1078
I do not have any problem with my videos. All my videos play very well. They're mostly download from the net, so they might have been converted already though.
I don't have issue carrying the device in the belt pouch. It is very well protected already as I put the screen facing my body. That's how I carried my past devices as well, and had never had any problem. Athena's is not that fragile. Of course, please don't put it in your back pocket and sit on it.

eaglesteve said:
If you also intent to use it as an MP3, you would have wired headset if you want the best possible quality sound, so I assume you would carry it with you somehow in your pocket most of the time anyway. (How else do we listen to music on the go?) Actually my version of wired headset is designed such that it hangs like a neckless over me all the time so I simply pick up the earbud and stick it into my ear when needed, and let it hang down like a neckless when not needed. The headset is inside my shirt with only a bit of the earbud wire coming out from the collar. So, it is really quite inconspicuous.
Yes, we do have some very nice browsers coming up. It has made hell of a difference in the past few weeks. It will get even better with Opera Mobile 9.5 and Netfront's final version. Not to mention the Skyfire. We'll be spoilt for choice.
Also, you might want to try Softmaker Office 2008, which is sensational on Athena's big screen. It is available for free download and will be free until end of March. Get it. I just LOVE this on Athena's screen. Read more about softmaker office here: http://www.mobilehornet.com/archives/1078
I do not have any problem with my videos. All my videos play very well. They're mostly download from the net, so they might have been converted already though.
I don't have issue carrying the device in the belt pouch. It is very well protected already as I put the screen facing my body. That's how I carried my past devices as well, and had never had any problem. Athena's is not that fragile. Of course, please don't put it in your back pocket and sit on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't fault music playback on the athena - it's really very good, and obviously while listening to music i used my sony bluetooth earbuds which use a necklace design as you describe eaglesteve. I dont think the athena is the most user-friendly mp3 player about though - not for on the move certainly since it is very precarious and fiddly to use the device one-handed. I wish someone would release an iphone thin 5 inch tablet - no keyboard but intelligent autorotate and scroll with a screen just slightly wide.r and just slightly narrorew than the athena. Id get one straightaway, but then nothing's ever perfect is it?? I think if anyone were to make such a device it would be LG

I have an unlimited data plan so data is not a problem. I do not use a case for my kaiser I let it sit naked in my pocket.
Is it faster than the kaiser? Has there been an in depth look to see if it indeed was missing the drivers also? I would like to know this, I would use this as a PC mainly, and my kaiser as an away phone(like using it at school, places where you don't really use the phone that much). How practical is to use data? Does it work well with reception, call quality? How useful is it with games and emu's? How well is it in pockets(naked)? What is the 8gb memory all about, and how is it used?
Please provide some of your experiences and your tips, I would like to know now because I am very reckless with things sometimes. .LOL)
Thanks guys!

~~Tito~~ said:
I have an unlimited data plan so data is not a problem. I do not use a case for my kaiser I let it sit naked in my pocket.
Is it faster than the kaiser? Has there been an in depth look to see if it indeed was missing the drivers also? I would like to know this, I would use this as a PC mainly, and my kaiser as an away phone(like using it at school, places where you don't really use the phone that much). How practical is to use data? Does it work well with reception, call quality? How useful is it with games and emu's? How well is it in pockets(naked)? What is the 8gb memory all about, and how is it used?
Please provide some of your experiences and your tips, I would like to know now because I am very reckless with things sometimes. .LOL)
Thanks guys!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know you don't really believe in review, but I've done a post review which is after 10 months of actual use instead of initial impression. These articles might help you to decide:
Athena's storage: http://www.mobilehornet.com/archives/962
Athena's screen: http://www.mobilehornet.com/archives/1011
Athena's keyboard : http://www.mobilehornet.com/archives/1031
Athena as a phone: http://www.mobilehornet.com/archives/1063
More aspects of Athena will be published in due time.
Hopet this helps.

Thanks!! I will look at that!

leoni1980 said:
I can't fault music playback on the athena - it's really very good, and obviously while listening to music i used my sony bluetooth earbuds which use a necklace design as you describe eaglesteve. I dont think the athena is the most user-friendly mp3 player about though - not for on the move certainly since it is very precarious and fiddly to use the device one-handed. I wish someone would release an iphone thin 5 inch tablet - no keyboard but intelligent autorotate and scroll with a screen just slightly wide.r and just slightly narrorew than the athena. Id get one straightaway, but then nothing's ever perfect is it?? I think if anyone were to make such a device it would be LG
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually I use the music player very easily. It sits in my pouch while I use it on the road or when doing shopping. I have assigned the joystick to control it. The four joystick direction will allow me to volume up, volume down, next song, previous song. On rare occasion, if I want to jump to other song, I press the OK button to bring up the playlist, then just touch the desired song. So, there's even no question of one handed or two handed operation.
Anyway, I'm very used to operating Athena one handed. I mentioned many times that I have mastered this artform when entering my golf scores with one hand while pushing my golf buggy with the other hand. I have very small hand so most other people should be able to do better than me. How small is my hand? Well, where our hand joints the forearm there is a wrinkled line. From there to the tip of my middle finger my length is 175mm only. Most of my friend's hands are bigger than mine. It is obviously not as easy as a very small phone, but it is still possible, with some practice.
I agree that the device could be thinner, and do without the keyboard. But I'm not sure about changing the aspect ratio. I've confirmation from users of such devices that there are software compatibility issues. One users mentioned that the compatiblity issues between 800x480 and 640x480 is more severe than between QVGA and VGA based on his experience. I have not used it myself, so I don't know, but I think it is not so problem free.

What exactly does it come with when you buy it?

Different seller package it differently. In my case (or rather my relative's case as they bought my device as a gift for me), I got a wired head set with the ability to accept phone call and change volume, extra stylus, a 3 in 1 stylus (laser, normal pen, and stylus), screen protector (not very good one though, leaves the gap around the edge), usb cable, VGA out cable, car windscreen holder (for using GPS while driving), leather case (a very nice one, I should say, although I never use it since I don't use the hardware keyboard), CD containing the ROM, CD for a Mapking GPS software with one free map of your choice, CD for Sprite backup, GPRS monitor, WorldCard Mobile (a software that lets you use the camera to automatically capture name card details into your contact database), CE-Star (a chinese input software).
Some other retailer gave away iPod or a 17 inch LCD monitor, but I did'nt manage to get that. Earlier buyers also got a bluetooth headset instead of wired one.

Search "smartphones show 31" on youtube, which has some comparisons between an e90 and htc advantage, along with giving a good idea of the size of the device.

cool, whats so different about the x7501? I mean, what would be the benefits of getting it, is it worth it?

X7501 is cheaper i believe. It was brought out with windows mobile 6 pre-installed and does not have a video conferencing camera on the front as it is designed for the u.s. market. I think that's pretty much the only difference.

leoni1980 said:
X7501 is cheaper i believe. It was brought out with windows mobile 6 pre-installed and does not have a video conferencing camera on the front as it is designed for the u.s. market. I think that's pretty much the only difference.
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Click to collapse
Oh, so, its better since I don't need the front camera anyways? I really want it, but I am just narrowing down which version and how it would play out to my standards of a tablet like that( I know what I said, I consider it a tablet because of its size and functionality).
What other perps are there to the device? Other than the screen and camera.

If I live in US, no doubt I'd buy X7501, as I would get local warranty and servicing. It's also cheaper than X7500. It is my understanding from one of the more knowledgeable posters in this forum that Telco in US are not allowed to offer video conferencing services (those in the know might like to confirm this), so it is pointless having 7500. The only issue now is 7501 versus a SSD model that is still unavailable, but may be available in the future in US. Against that, is the possibility that folks here might succeed in finding out how to upgrade X7501/7500 to a SSD drive. Like I said, if it can be done, then the X7501/7500 would certainly be superior to 7510 in my mind because we have all the hardware buttons, which are extremely useful.

I used to love the X1, but now I have re-accessed my opinion. Here is my new review.

Two out of Five stars. (Amazon Review)
"This phone was a nightmare! I hate it with a passion", May 31, 2010
Here is a review of the Xperia X1. I have owned the X1, HTC Touch Pro2, HTC HD2, Nokia E90, Nokia E72, Nokia N95 and Apple iPhone. Other than the iPhone, I really hate this phone.
1) Build Quality - the plastic on this phone peeled off everywhere! The finishing on this phone is very susceptible to friction. The plastic chrome will peel off. The paint on the metal battery cover will scratch or peel off. The internal housing will crack. It's like the device had an earthquake and cracked itself. I didn't even sit on the device or drop it on anything. There is no way to prevent the plastic from cracking and peeling. All of this happened within 6 months.
The keyboard will also loose sensitivity. Over time, you will have to press on the keys harder and harder when you want to type something. The keyboard will only satisfy you for a year. And on top of that, the keyboard sucks. Don't even think about speed typing on this bad boy.
2) Efficiency - the phone is very inefficient. The terrible feedback on the keyboard forces me to use the virtual keyboard on the phone. On top of that, the screen is so small that using the virtual keyboard is a nightmare. This prevents me from being efficient with contact management and note taking. In deterred me from actually using the calendar and responding to text messages and emails. Unlike on the E72, I was not motivated to be organized with the software.
The phone is also very, very slow. Even with the latest firmware, it is very slow. This made me abhor using this phone for any reason. Don't even think about installing software that runs in the background, because it will eat your battery and retard your phone. The only way to make the device run at decent speeds is to minimize the software and the ROM.
3) Battery - the battery life is terrible. It only lasts 12-15 hours on standby without 3G enabled.
4) Camera - the camera doesn't beat the N95, but it's alright. The camera software is sluggish and is very uncomfortable to use. The camera has bad auto focus and weak flash LED.
5) Multimedia - the speakers on the phone is very weak so don't even bother watching movies or listening to music. Since this is a touch screen device, the screen isn't big enough for me to enjoy videos or web-browsing.
The sluggishness of this device also applied to it's Wi-Fi. That's why I avoided web-browsing altogether. It was just plain terrible. In fact, I prefer the Nokia E90 or Nokia E72 for web-browsing (they are non touch screen phones).
6) Phone - the call quality and loudness was at least better than my Nokia E72. However, the X1 speakerphone can't even compare to the E72 speakerphone. Please recall that phones usually have two separate speakers: the speakerphone/loudspeaker and the normal speaker. Well, the X1 has a very bad speakerphone/loudspeaker.
8) Internet - the internet is slow, the screen is small, and the CPU needs an update. This should conclude everything.
9) Price - at 800 U.S. dollars, it was an expensive piece of junk. But now that it is sold for 400 dollars brand new, it's a little more forgiving.
10) Something to consider - regardless of all of the cons I have provided, I enjoyed using the phone because it was highly customizable. Unfortunately, it lacked everything I expected from what was advertised: an awesome keyboard, perfect build quality, fast processor. I tried to make the best of it by customizing it with software and 'tricks' and that alleviated some of the pain. Also, so many people complemented on the beauty of my X1.
11) History on X1: When the X1 first came out, all of the reviewers gave the phone high marks for it's amazing build quality. Within a year, everyone noticed that its cosmetic and physical condition deteriorated greatly. The phone reviewers returned the X1 to the 'lenders' before they got the chance to witness the true nature of this phone.

I recently bought a X1 to use instead of a HD2 I also own, for emails etc. because of the hardware keyboard. I bought the X1 on ebay for £150 mint boxed condition, the HD2 was about £450 new. So far I am really loving the X1 vs the HD2 and wish I'd not bought the HD2 really.
I probably wouldn't be so happy with the X1 if I'd paid full retail price for it though!

Something is wrong with your particluar X1 if it cant last more than 12 hours in standby - leave mine on standby over night not charging at say 50 percent, wake up and its usually about 49 percent so maybe a problem with your battery.
Obviously its not perfect and it has many many problems but i've had it since it came out in the UK and i'm still with it (different one obviously since its been sent back so many times) but it works for me, its does what i want and how i want so its great, and internet browsing is greate and easy! Have you tried Opera Mini Beta? download it from their website - can easily look stuff up on the go!

Hey if i wasn't so much in a rush, i'd post a solution for almost every problem your facing. iv'e had my x1i for a month now and although it took me quite some time searching and posting throughout this forum! iv'e maximized as best as i could,My phones super fast,super stable,not to mention the internet. made mine alot louder both in speakerphone and music without any distort or damage,and all while having a look so good that makes peoples mouth water! anyone else agree?

Zeyn Karim said:
Hey if i wasn't so much in a rush, i'd post a solution for almost every problem your facing. iv'e had my x1i for a month now and although it took me quite some time searching and posting throughout this forum! iv'e maximized as best as i could,My phones super fast,super stable,not to mention the internet. made mine alot louder both in speakerphone and music without any distort or damage,and all while having a look so good that makes peoples mouth water! anyone else agree?
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Click to collapse
I agree with everything you said . I've had my phone for 8 months now and have never had to send it in to get repaired for anything?

I agree with the second poll option but i'm not supprised that this was XDA's #1 device, at the time this device was awesome and sleek.

poetryrocksalot said:
Two out of Five stars. (Amazon Review)
"This phone was a nightmare! I hate it with a passion", May 31, 2010
Here is a review of the Xperia X1. I have owned the X1, HTC Touch Pro2, HTC HD2, Nokia E90, Nokia E72, Nokia N95 and Apple iPhone. Other than the iPhone, I really hate this phone.
1) Build Quality - the plastic on this phone peeled off everywhere! The finishing on this phone is very susceptible to friction. The plastic chrome will peel off. The paint on the metal battery cover will scratch or peel off. The internal housing will crack. It's like the device had an earthquake and cracked itself. I didn't even sit on the device or drop it on anything. There is no way to prevent the plastic from cracking and peeling. All of this happened within 6 months.
The keyboard will also loose sensitivity. Over time, you will have to press on the keys harder and harder when you want to type something. The keyboard will only satisfy you for a year. And on top of that, the keyboard sucks. Don't even think about speed typing on this bad boy.
2) Efficiency - the phone is very inefficient. The terrible feedback on the keyboard forces me to use the virtual keyboard on the phone. On top of that, the screen is so small that using the virtual keyboard is a nightmare. This prevents me from being efficient with contact management and note taking. In deterred me from actually using the calendar and responding to text messages and emails. Unlike on the E72, I was not motivated to be organized with the software.
The phone is also very, very slow. Even with the latest firmware, it is very slow. This made me abhor using this phone for any reason. Don't even think about installing software that runs in the background, because it will eat your battery and retard your phone. The only way to make the device run at decent speeds is to minimize the software and the ROM.
3) Battery - the battery life is terrible. It only lasts 12-15 hours on standby without 3G enabled.
4) Camera - the camera doesn't beat the N95, but it's alright. The camera software is sluggish and is very uncomfortable to use. The camera has bad auto focus and weak flash LED.
5) Multimedia - the speakers on the phone is very weak so don't even bother watching movies or listening to music. Since this is a touch screen device, the screen isn't big enough for me to enjoy videos or web-browsing.
The sluggishness of this device also applied to it's Wi-Fi. That's why I avoided web-browsing altogether. It was just plain terrible. In fact, I prefer the Nokia E90 or Nokia E72 for web-browsing (they are non touch screen phones).
6) Phone - the call quality and loudness was at least better than my Nokia E72. However, the X1 speakerphone can't even compare to the E72 speakerphone. Please recall that phones usually have two separate speakers: the speakerphone/loudspeaker and the normal speaker. Well, the X1 has a very bad speakerphone/loudspeaker.
8) Internet - the internet is slow, the screen is small, and the CPU needs an update. This should conclude everything.
9) Price - at 800 U.S. dollars, it was an expensive piece of junk. But now that it is sold for 400 dollars brand new, it's a little more forgiving.
10) Something to consider - regardless of all of the cons I have provided, I enjoyed using the phone because it was highly customizable. Unfortunately, it lacked everything I expected from what was advertised: an awesome keyboard, perfect build quality, fast processor. I tried to make the best of it by customizing it with software and 'tricks' and that alleviated some of the pain. Also, so many people complemented on the beauty of my X1.
11) History on X1: When the X1 first came out, all of the reviewers gave the phone high marks for it's amazing build quality. Within a year, everyone noticed that its cosmetic and physical condition deteriorated greatly. The phone reviewers returned the X1 to the 'lenders' before they got the chance to witness the true nature of this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have had my Xperia for over a year (since feb 2009) and I am still happy with it,
1 My Xperia is the silver version so no paint to scratch off. Usually I carry it around in a case so no real scratches. It does have a couple of the notorious cracks though, (Just under the volume control and above the camera) but they are not noticible unless you look for them and they do not affect the functionality of the device.
2. The keyboard is mostly good for me. It seems to have a few rare times when it is being tempramental but on the whole no issues. I use the onscreen keyboard occasionally and can type relitively well without using the stylus if I have to.
3. My batttery life with the R3A rom was over and around 3 days with light use. My current rom (Christians full rom) requires charging around once a day so I am going to change to a lighter rom.
4. The camera is a bit slow, and the LED flash isnt the best, but I find it does what I need it to do, I use it as my main camera since I cant be bothered carying around two devices and have no complaints. It takes scenery and people quite well, for dark scenes it may take a bit of playing around.
5 Yes the loudspeaker is bad, But I watch movies and play multimedia with the headphones, sound quality is great then. I only run into problems when I want loud speaker for phonecalls in noisy environments, which isnt often.
6 I manage web browsing fine, yes its true I would use a device with a larger screen if I bought one along, but I often dont because the xperia is extreemely portable and web browsing is no problem for me.
7. I haven't run into any problems with the wifi, the wifi seems to operate as well as anyone elses phone.
8. Yes I agree that when it was released it was overpriced, but arnt most devices? the age old lesson is that you should wait a bit before buying somthing, Dont get caught in the hype.

Their is a simple fix for the sound on the Xperia X1. It's called "optxperiabeta02". I've been using it for 7 month's now.

hungry81 said:
I have had my Xperia for over a year (since feb 2009) and I am still happy with it,
1 My Xperia is the silver version so no paint to scratch off. Usually I carry it around in a case so no real scratches. It does have a couple of the notorious cracks though, (Just under the volume control and above the camera) but they are not noticible unless you look for them and they do not affect the functionality of the device.
2. The keyboard is mostly good for me. It seems to have a few rare times when it is being tempramental but on the whole no issues. I use the onscreen keyboard occasionally and can type relitively well without using the stylus if I have to.
3. My batttery life with the R3A rom was over and around 3 days with light use. My current rom (Christians full rom) requires charging around once a day so I am going to change to a lighter rom.
4. The camera is a bit slow, and the LED flash isnt the best, but I find it does what I need it to do, I use it as my main camera since I cant be bothered carying around two devices and have no complaints. It takes scenery and people quite well, for dark scenes it may take a bit of playing around.
5 Yes the loudspeaker is bad, But I watch movies and play multimedia with the headphones, sound quality is great then. I only run into problems when I want loud speaker for phonecalls in noisy environments, which isnt often.
6 I manage web browsing fine, yes its true I would use a device with a larger screen if I bought one along, but I often dont because the xperia is extreemely portable and web browsing is no problem for me.
7. I haven't run into any problems with the wifi, the wifi seems to operate as well as anyone elses phone.
8. Yes I agree that when it was released it was overpriced, but arnt most devices? the age old lesson is that you should wait a bit before buying somthing, Dont get caught in the hype.
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Click to collapse
I owe and use every day my X1 as a main and only
pocket computer since December 2008.
Use is heavily.....
And I must say basically it still rocks.
Regarding the problems from the first post:
I agree that a keyboard gets a bit worse after that time. I didn't happen to SE P990 which I've also used for 1,5 years.
Now I owe also X2 and THIS IS THE KEYBOARD!!
The paint on the black back cover got scratched but
this is what happens to every device.
Plastic peeled off only on the 4 direction pad.
The rest is perfect.
The one crack I have is only be because it dropped badly and nothing else happened actually.
Battery is perfect. If not used heavily it's like 2 days.
The speed: that's interesting.
I don't know what did you do with your X1
@poetry
My X1 is still on R1 firmware (!!!!!)
and it is lightning fast!
I mean really fast....
I also saw lately Omnia I who somebody owned:
that was a crap man......

@poetryrocksalot: I do not agree with you. So far I have only made the best experiences with my Xperia X1.
Build quality: Like I stated on various occasions here at XDA the build quality of my Xperia X1 is absoluetely ok. Ok the paint of the baterry cover comes of but this is only a minor issue. In fact every phone has it's weak points and this one is really not serious. What's more my phone is completely free of cracks.
Battery: Are you kidding me? I have not seen many smartphones that have better endurance with one battery than the X1. I have got two batteries and if I mind how often I use the phone those two batteries easely last 4 days and there is still some power left after those 4 days. There are only a few smartphones out there that last more than a day with one charge.
Screen: What influence has the fact that the X1 is a touchscreen phone on it's performance when it comes to multimedia features (such as playing videos). Would the screen be big enough so you could enjoy your videos if the screen wasn't touchable? Where is the context in this statment? I consider the screen still among the best on the market as long as we talk about quality. It could be bigger that's true but SE never claimed to sell the phone with the biggest display. Show me all phones out there that are capable of playing 800 * 480 movies fluently. There aren't many and the X1 was launched in 2008.
Internet: What makes you think the X1 is bad for webbrowsing? I use Opera 10 and it's by far not sluggish. Normally the speed of webbrowsing depends on the connection whitch itself depends on your provider and the network coverage. Even the HD 2 is slow when using GPRS Once again my phone is not slow neiter on WLAN nor on HSDPA/ UMTS.
Price: It's true the initial price of 800 $ was too much. Thats why I did not get it when it came out. I bought my phone back in November 2009 and I paid 570 Swiss Francs. In $ that is approximately 450. And that was without a contract. It's an old story: Early adopters will always pay the price.
I could go on like this for several lines but I think I have already made clear my attitude. The X1 has its flaws like every product but it's by no means a bad product.

Some remarks from me below. I've had my X1 since september 2008.
Build Quality
Seems to differ a lot from batch to batch, and from color to color. I have a black X1. Noting have peeled off anywhere, but a letter in the SE logo. Almost no scratches on the battery cover. No cracks in the usual places although I've dropped it rather frequently.
However, I do have a crack in the metal surrounding... but the hit the phone took when that appeared made me surprised the phone is still alive at all.
Keyboard. No issues whatsoever. Might need a little cleaning soon.
Cooling of LED bad. Made my vibrator stop working... 'til I dropped the phone the next time. Plastic lens cover broken. Got squeezed into a table corner when I moved.
2) Efficiency
Software updates from SE... sucks.
3) Battery
Not as good as when it was new, but it's ok. Always on 3G.
4) Camera
Can live with it. Not good.
5) Multimedia
Speaker utterly rubbish. The lack of xvid support is crap.
6) Phone
Ok. Nothing more. Nothing less.
8) Internet
Always using Opera Mini 5, way better when Opera Mobile IMHO. Fast and stable.
9) Price
Eh... I don't know. The discounts here in Sweden are very, very, very, very good if you sign up for two years. I pay about the same price as seven Big Mac & Co a month for flat rate data and I can still use all those money to make calls with. Phone was free of charge.
Conclusion: Will probably go for a Desire in two months. Or Iphone 4G. Or something else. Not a Win Mob phone.

Build quality isnt soo good - i noticed the black paint comes off so i got some cheap carbon fiber looking tape and covered it, its protects it well.
i hate the silver parts on it - thought it was metal till one day i noticed there was a crack and i haven't dropped yet,so i attached a piece of string on the bottom to decrease the chances of cracking on its own.
the battery is good in my opinion lasts 3,4 days for me
camera sucks because you have to press down on the button to take a picture which may put the phone focusing out of place, but htc sense roms with touch focus to take a pic is alot better
speaker is weak when outside.
i still think its a great phone, but i dislike the O\s when it comes to efficiency
the processor and its hardware should be fine for a phone.

I acquired a second-hand semi-broken X1 very recently, after owning, testing, repairing or playing with most WM phones on the market. My own conclusion - not bad at all, most impressed by the screen.
Got Nuts ROM and sound optimizer loaded - like it even more, can't say I would ever be happy with the original ROM, but with TF3D ports I got everything I needed. Every device will have its own little quirks and bogies, none will ever be perfect, my only gripe with X1 is the keyboard, but only because I also keep my old trusty 128Mb HTC Universal as a second device and its QWERTY simply can't be beaten. Even Wizard has better keyboard!!!!
X1's keyboard is miserable and next to useless - button feedback is misleading, general inconsistency in pressure requirement and double-typing is common, buttons are fiddly, even for my small and adept fingers - all leading to slow and deliberate usage, which is counter-productive.
No issues whatsoever with anything else. From past experiences with X1s brought in for repairs, main issue is, of course, flex. But that is simply called 'all-slide desease' and should be expected regardless of the make and model.
I do believe the silver version is a much better option, silver metallic parts can be lightly polished and be as good as new, I have no peeling paint or other obvious cracks, apart from tiny, barely noticeable ones here and there. The battery door opening could be better thought out design-wise, even a simple spring lock would be preferable to peeling it off with your fingernails.
Optimizations, tweaks and various add-ons are out there - don't complain about lack of this or that - find the solution!

Almost forgot - those complaining of lack of playback support for this or that - find the solution and you will be surprised how well everything will play. As far as browsers are concerned - nothing beats Opera 10 for me (well, for now anyway), got Opera mini 5 running on my LG Arena - had gutsful, but had no choice, so glad I don't have to on Xperia