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I’ve done it, I’ve just ordered a T-Mobile MDA Vario, it should be here tomorrow, I cant wait!!!
I’m new to this forum and new to the world of Windows Mobile Devices, however I am far from a novice with SmartPhones.
I have been a big fan of SonyEricsson for many years and am currently looking for a new phone, but lately have lost my feel for SE and have discovered then marvel that is the Wizard!!! Wow, I’m so much going to have one of them!!!
I’ve been reading through this forum and well what can I say, what a fantastic resource, well done!
But what I really want to know is: software? I know the MDA Vario is T-Mobile branded, but what restrictions do they impose on you?
I’m a great believer that hardware developers know what they are doing and Phone Network Operators should leave the software well alone. I have read about unlocking the phone and moving Cab files etc, but what I would really want is to flash it with its “pure” software, is this possible and easy to do and how do I then set up my MMS and GPRS setting?
And am I correct in understanding what I’ve read, that, an out the box MDA Vario wont run ActiveSync?
Thanks in advance
Nick
Nick, an excellent choice of name, and an excellent choice of device
The units ROMs all seem to be largely the same, it's the extended ROM which is different.
T-Mobile's extended ROM installs a load of customisations such as wallpapers, GPRS settings, etc... Nothing seems to hinder you particularly badly , however if you don't want it, hard reset then do a soft reset before it installs the customisations. You then have a virgin machine
The only lock is a simlock, which means that you have to use a T-Mobile SIM with the device. Lokiwiz, a free unlocker, gets around this nicely with thanks to Machinagod, and all those whose work he improved
Oh, and activesync works fine with it, providing you haven't got any weird firewalls running
Welcome to the world of windows mobile
I have had my Vario for about a week and a half now.
If you used the P910 like I did, you will miss the jog wheel utility desperately. A brilliant device that was only let down by the lack of symbian (UIQ) development (it's harder to program.
I used to have a compaq 2210 and ran Pocketinformant. I've just reloaded it on my unit. It's brilliant, you give up a lot for the jog wheel but you welcome back the world of 'drag and drop' and 'double tap'.
If you use a PIM then Pocketinformant cannot be beaten.
Incidently make sure you load activesync 4.1 on your pc, providing you set your catergories in your outlook master list to the same as your device, syncing is superb.
good luck :lol:
I've just switched to Vodafone with an expansys contrct deal after four years with T-Mobile. They (T-Mobile) told me six weeks ago, they'd no idea what a Vario was, and had no information that they were going to get them even though Germany had announced them to the press. Expansys had the 9100 on Voda so off I went. The Vodafone "data" bundle which is SMS or MMS or GPRS out of the same pot is better for me than T-Mobile who would only offer web'n'walk *and* a separate SMS/MMS bundle :-(
Vodafone have been fine, but the SMS voicemail alerts that don't activate the little "tape" message waiting icon really annoys me... ;-)
Dox..
I have also gone from a P900 to XDA mini. Its a bit of a transition and can agree - the wheel on the P900 was a luxury I do miss but there are alot moe benefits
Now - just need to try and work out if I can change the whole ROM from the O2 one
Scott
Thanks for all the info fellas, cant wait for it to be delivered…
Excuse my ignorance, but, the ROM, is that the basic OS and the extender ROM is just the individual network customizations?
I will almost certainly, as a matter of principle, do the SIM unlock, but what is the purpose of the CID unlock?
And, if I do the Hard reset Soft reset trick how will I set up my GPRS and MMS?
Sorry about all the questions, but I’m very inquisitive.
Hopefully this will also be helping fellow novices.
Thanks again everyone.
You can enter the settings manually, which if you have them in front of you is fairly simple. If you need to know what they are (I've entered Vodafone's so often for people at work I can do them in my sleep, but don't know the T-Mobile ones), google is your friend. To simplify the whole thing, Raphael over at BeyondTheTech has the cab file with the settings in here for you to download and install as normal.
If you're not going to let the rest of the extended ROM install, put this on a memory card in case you want to run it again after a hard reset..
Dox.
I too like to have a fiddle (I had an original O2 XDA and this site was fantastic for upgrading to later version OS) but so far I can't see any compelling reason not to use the T-Mobile UK custo ROM as shipped.
The only addition I've made is MS Voice with the associated Reg change to allow use with BT headset.
Obviously if there is a superior ROM out there please let us know what is recommended?
Thanks
Nick, check out the wiki which has loads of info about roms, extended roms, radio roms and all that good stuff. Not a huge amount is specific to the Wizard yet, but the information applies all the same.
Has it arrived yet, or are you sitting by the front door like an eager puppy waiting for the postman or newspaper boy (or girl, thank you Stan)
Unfortunately I’m at work today and they would only deliver to my home address
AND they need a signature, so first thing tomorrow morning I’ll be stud outside my local Postal Depot waiting for it to open…..
Oh I hate waiting!!!
Welcome to Vario-ness !
Not coming from a previous PPC platform, you won't suffer the same way i did, by installing all the apps i used on my MDA Compadt some of which may not have been compatable with WM5. That ended up with me having a poor view on the Vario.
Fear not though, i've since seen the error of my ways, thanks to the fine folks on this forum...
I have an XDA II, and would like to update if there is a significant improvement.
I have read from the t-mobile site that the Vario does not have vibrate or voice dialling. Is this true, can Fonix be installed?
The most vital things I use are the outlook contacts, calender, isilo reader and avant go. I guess all standard apps that work on windows mobile 2003 work on 5 right?
How big is the screen?
Thanks for any help.
Well, that just goes to show that T-Mobile don't have a clue, really, doesn't it? I thought you must be mistaken, but sure enough it says that it doesn't support voice dial, and doesn't vibrate either.
It does. On both counts. The vibrate is a lot better than the xda2s in that it almost dislocates a hip when it goes off, and voice dialing works very well. With a quick registry hack, voice dialing works with bluetooth headsets too
Some have found the vario sluggish in comparison to the xda 2; i find it to be comparable to the blue angel (2s) that I had running wm2005 - bear in mind you're reading/writing all files from flash rather than RAM, and that explains the performance.
The screen is 2.8 inches diagonal.
Have any of you got vibrate working on M3000 (Orange)?
I have an M3000 from Orange Switzerland, and cannot get my vibrate to work at all.
Not to get 'off topic' but T-Mobile Czech republic were about to sell me a MDA Vario and at the last moment I noticed a sticker on the box saying it doesn't support character recognizer or transcriber .. anyone know if this FOR ME huge negative can be reversed so I can handwrite sms as MDA II let me .. (perfect solution for me)
kgary said:
Not to get 'off topic' but T-Mobile Czech republic were about to sell me a MDA Vario and at the last moment I noticed a sticker on the box saying it doesn't support character recognizer or transcriber .. anyone know if this FOR ME huge negative can be reversed so I can handwrite sms as MDA II let me .. (perfect solution for me)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Both work fine for me on a UK MDA Vario, I don't know why the czech would be different. I must say however that I rarely use them because the slide out keyboard is SO sweet.
On a side note, my brother just picked up the same phone on O2 and personally I like the O2 customisations a lot better than the T-mobile ones. Especially the multiple today screen functionality.
Is it possible to install O2 extended rom and keep t-mobile comms settings? I've only just started to look into this so does anyone with any experience with this have any tips?
Thanks
I got a T Mobile MDA for a great deal even though i have the old Cingular/ AT&T service. I was wondering am i losing any features or benefits since i am using a T Mobile device with the different carrier. As in am i losing benefits of not having T Mobile or not purchasing a Cingular 8125 or even the Qtek or K Jam version.
If you were in my position would you just sell the unit and purchase the Cingular or other Wizard version available?
I appreciate any tips.
I would just reflash it with a cingular rom from the ftp site, It will work perfect.
would the cingular rom be better than the tmobile rom?
obviously it makes sense since i have cingular, just wondering if i would notice anything different or useful
I have the MDA also on Cingular Blue...
I just reflashed to the Dopod rom when I got it... just set the data settings and I was good to go (couldn't stand the pink)... even took the T-Mobile logo off.
If you are not using data then I don't think it'll affect you at all using the T-Mobile rom.
Help
How do I flash the Tmoble mda to the Cingular 8125 firmware. I tried to run the firmware update from cingular and I get a message that says unable to update check PDA. My tmobile mda is unlocked. I need to flash to the cinguarl firmware in order to use all of my media net options
I'm looking to purchase one of these devices but not sure which one. I belong to Cingular but I like the look of the T-mobile MDA. Is there anything majorly different from a hardware/software point between these two?
If I get the t-mobile mda will I have any issues using it with Cingular? I know I need to sim unlock it first. My main use of this phone is for calls and text messgs. I rarely use the internet but may do so more later on. Just want to make sure the T-mobile softeware will not interfere with cingular settings. Can someone enlighten me? How about flashing it to a non branded rom? Or a cingular rom if thats possible. lol
Great forum my da way!!!
i bought a tmobile mda for use on cingular because of the keyboard design and general asthetics od the thing. i did unlock it then flashed it to the 217.7.2wwe cingular rom found on this sites ftp section. it works great with text, internet, has great rf reception. only thing i havent tried with it is mms.
rest easy; it works. if you have more questions there are people here much more experienced than i.
hardwares deep inside, they are the same machine. Once you have it (either 8125 or MDA) you can do SIM & CID unlock and put in any ROM for wizard you'd like; if you get MDA you can put 8125 rom on it and has all the cingular settings (which you can set it up manually also with other ROMs)
The main concern is the warranty. You are with Cingular and if you get 8125, whenever you have problem with it within 1 year of purchase, you can get warranty exchange (cingular will send you a new one, and you send the bad one back to them after you recieve the new one, all free)
But if you have MDA, you will have to send it to HTC for repair which might take a long time to come back.
jdub71 said:
i bought a tmobile mda for use on cingular because of the keyboard design and general asthetics od the thing. i did unlock it then flashed it to the 217.7.2wwe cingular rom found on this sites ftp section. it works great with text, internet, has great rf reception. only thing i havent tried with it is mms.
rest easy; it works. if you have more questions there are people here much more experienced than i.
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Click to collapse
Great! just what I was looking for. I did not know you could install a cingular rom over another brand. soo cool. Did you use the lokiwiz program (which version??) to unlock both the sim and cid? Or another program? Same here I like the rounded corners and two tone keyboard. I wish t-mobile online would sell w/o contract since its a decent price. At the store its almost 100 more.
New to PPC coming from the Motorola camp....
Know to search for a MDA....
Be Careful
Be careful, some of the newer Wizards (MDAs & 8125s) have a newer chip inside referred to as the G4 chip. It is my understanding that lokiwiz will SIM unlock the device which will allow you to use your Cingular SIM card. However, lokiwiz won't CID unlock the MDA with the new chip. So you won't be able to use all the new custom ROMs on ths site.
It is pretty easy to manually configure the setting so the MDA will work fully on Cingular. I have the 8125 and am using T-mobile. The internet, text messanging, and MMS work great.
Check out the threads on the Wizard Upgrading forum for more info. on how to tell which chip your phone has.
Thanks for the tip. I've read some threads about the dreaded G4 chip. Hopefully someone will crack it soon. There is a website that can unlock the G4 chip both sim and cid but it costs like 40 bucks. Worst case I can send it to them.
jdub71: How is the ear piece sound level on the MDA when on a call? how do you rate it? loud, med. or could be louder despite on full volume.
rambo6: Same question. How is you're ear piece volume level on the 8125?
PC mag suggested that the MDA had a lower ear piece volume than the 8125. I wanted to hear from actual users. Louder the better for me. Is there a reg. hack to make the ear piece volume louder? Thanks
I'm running an MDA on Cingular with no problems. Got it a week ago with every intention of flashing to 8125 cingular, but it seems to have figured out most Cingular settings automatically.No problems.... yet.
I don't see how one Wizard could be louder than another.
Have turn it down on both my plantronics bluetooth and wired earphones.
Couple of other quality control concerns with the MDA versus the 8125, I've heard that the MDA is more prone to having the paint come off the keys and that they are also more prone to having the stylus come loose after prolonged usage.
Don't have a MDA, only a 8125, but that's what I have gathered from reading the forums.
[double post]
How do you go about finding out what ROM version you have and also how do you tell if you have successfully unlocked your MDA?
Also how do you tell if you have the "G4" chip?
Thanks
Good question. I want a custom rom too.
8125ppc (and htc just updated)
You can go to the thread below to learn how to tell which chip is in your Wizard.
Also, I have great sound through the 8125's earpiece. Sometimes I have to turn it down.
My suggestion is buy whichever phone you want. The MDA has keys that are a little closer together. I'd suggest you look at both in person. You can buy either in the US through letstalk.com without a contract but the phone will be set up for either Cingular or T-mobile and you'll need to unlock it to use another carrier.
If you can hold off a few months, the TyTN or some UMTS form thereof should be offered in the U.S.
T-mobile is great but it will be at least a year before they get a 3G network going. Cingular is the only carrier in the U.S. with a 3G UMTS network in major cities. It's significantly faster than Edge but not as fast as Verizon's evdo.
I hope that HTC offers some phone to work on both the US and European UMTS/HSDPA networks soon. Some form of TyTN or the Trion would do it.
Once you start surfing the web and texting with a Wizard, you'll get addicted and want more speed. Verizion's evdo is so damn fast. I miss verizon's speed but love my Wizard and hope to have the newest HTC phone soon
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=54030
After read many many threads on these it does seem like the 8125 has a better build quality than the MDA. Sound quality may also be superior since alot of MDA owners are complaing about sound issues. I was going to get the MDA but now I'm leaning on the 8125. Main reason is availability. Its easier for me to get the 8125 since I'm on cingular. I'm just worried about the sound volume being too low. I've read about the slider not working and such.....many requests to boost the sound but no real answer.
Hmm. New phone called the TyTN? Made also by HTC? May look into that also.
My friend has a T-Mobile MDA and I have the Cingular 8125. He has the original rom that came with the phone and I have the latest one 2.25. We were at my friends basement he had 3-4 bars of connection while I had non or 1 bar. He always has better connection then me.
ZzFDKzZ said:
My friend has a T-Mobile MDA and I have the Cingular 8125. He has the original rom that came with the phone and I have the latest one 2.25. We were at my friends basement he had 3-4 bars of connection while I had non or 1 bar. He always has better connection then me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay,let's see here.....
1) Are you both using the same carriers ?
If yes to above, it is a Rom issue.
If no to above, then it is pretty obvious as to the reason for the different signal levels!
I have a Qtek 9100 Wizard with the summiter custom Cingular 2.24 rom and can tell you for a fact that different roms DO act differently.Even roms from the same carriers, I might add! LOL
Later........
Yeah like I said he has T-Mobile and I have Cingular. He has the original rom and I have that new one http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=54726 Even with summiter 2.24 rom that I had last month he still had way better connection in my friends basement.
ZzFDKzZ said:
Yeah like I said he has T-Mobile and I have Cingular. He has the original rom and I have that new one http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=54726 Even with summiter 2.24 rom that I had last month he still had way better connection in my friends basement.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's just to compare Cingular v.s. Tmobile signal, NOT 8125 v.s. MDA.
If your 8125 is SIM unlocked, try put in your friend's SIM card and see how is the signal on your phone; should be much better than your SIM.
.....Like I said, different carriers= different towers =different signal strength. As was said above, if sim unlocked, swap sims and see what happens.
Later.......
I never tought about that, I'll try the sim change next time.
Hi I'm new in this field so sorry if I will ask stupid questions
I want to bay Cingular 8525 and use it in Orange (Israel). I want to Know what I have to do to make it happened????
Also what is different between TyTN and 8525? (hardware, software...)
What is better?
I saw in ebay sellers write about 8525 that it has GPS is that right?
A quote from: http://www.mobiletechreview.com/phones/Cingular-8525.htm
"What's different between the Cingular 8525 and the HTC TyTN? The Cingular 8525 is a HERM100 and the TyTN is a HERM200 (there is also a HERM300 variant). The 8525 has a darker finish, slightly different button arrangement around the d-pad and lacks the TyTN's front-facing VGA camera for video calls since Cingular doesn't currently promote that feature. The excellent keyboards on each are identical. Of course, the TyTN lacks any carrier customizations and is unlocked. Cingular hasn't gone overboard customizing the phone's software however, and you'll note their splash screen on boot, the usual bright blue Cingular Today Screen theme, XPress Mail software, MobiTV (added since the 8525 doesn't support Cingular Video) and a shortcut to get TeleNav (a subscription mapping service that requires a separately purchased GPS)."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should read the whole article.
Also 8525 has one of the buttons reserved for PTT and is not available for remapping .. you need to get Sleuth255's hack for unlocking that ..
Also, whatever Cingular puts in can probably be installed from the 1.35 ExtROM ..
The key differences I wud say are listed well above .. and then how much would it cost .. locked 8525 is around 400$ with 2 yr contract, unlocked TyTN would come around 700$ ..
Glad I found this post!
So, the 8525 is 549.99 [without contract] and the TyTN is ~ 700.00 [unlocked]. I see that the TyTN has a Web camera and the 8525 does not [I also think the TyTN looks nicer]. I have also seen posts about Cingular Video not working [not sure what that is about].
Some questions:
Is it better to play the extra $150.00 for the TyTN? Since the TyTN is unlocked - is it also SuperCID too? While with a little work I believe the 8525 can be unlocked/SuperCID but there also may be issues [I guess pending on the ROM/Radio installed]. I guess also working for buying a TyTN is I rather not give Cingular any $$$, since they never been helpful with my Siemens SX 56/66.
I am guessing this will be a hard question to answer, unless someone has had both.
TyTN is not SuperCID, but it is unlocked allright..
So, last week I dropped my SX66 and broke the screen [damn it to hell] so this week I'll need to buy the Hermes.
Any additional input on why I should get the Cingular [~648 with tax] instead of a HTC TyTN[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT] [~694 with shipping]?
I'll end of flashing either one once I get the unit....
Why wouldn't you just get one off ebay for 350-400? (for the 8525)
I mean, just asking... I knew in my case that I was going to mod the heck out of it and likely void the warranty... besides I've dealt with Cingular in the past on warranty issues, and the service is slow if they fix the phone at all. Next day there and next day back (on my dime of course) and I never got a phone back in under 2 weeks.
Heh, i got the 8525 off ebay for $350 US (shipping included), arriving tomorrow.
Also, you can do all the unlocking and SuperCID work using free software available in these forums. I would not pay extra for unlock/SuperCID. Check out the Hermes Upgrading forum, the Hermes WM6 Forum and the Hermes Wiki and you will get everything you need to do this all yourself.
Ya, I know all about MOD'ing your phone, it just you are never to sure what you may get on Ebay.
But I'll take a look to see whats currently on the site. Thank you guys for your replies.
Hi Everyone,
I have just literally purchased a T-Mobile MDA Vario. The only thing I don't like is the fact that it will no doubt arrive full of T-MObile sh*t.
I have browsed the web and from what I can tell, it looks possible to install the Qtek 9100 ROM on this device if I want to?
Does anyone/everyone have any recommendations as to whether one ROM is better than the other?
I am looking for a simple, stable functional ROM, I don't want anything jazzy or customised by the operator (like my T-Mobile SDA II was!!!!)....
Thanks!
Mike