Database Users

HTC Magician users - what's your next purchase?

Even though I've only had my device for 2 weeks, I'm already looking for the next model. I find that I'll need the SanDisk WiFi/256MB combo as I want to run the Skype, SJPhone, and Network tools from the SD card rather than use up the precious RAM. At the moment I have the Spectre WiFi card but need some extra memory.
I know, I know, someone will ask "why not use BIG STORAGE?" the reason why I won't do that is because I have a full one year's warranty on my device and should I sell my device in 6 months time (if I find a suitable upgrade model), the value would increase given that there are some warranty left for the buyer.
I didn't jump on the WM5 bandwagon yet or the new WM5 devices due to early undetected issues. Usually after 4-5 months, a lot of the early problems will be sorted by firmware releases. But yes, I plan to upgrade to the WM5.0 model in about 6 months time. But I'm starting to really like my mini
I'm getting 4 hours of continuous video play (not streaming) on my mini which I'm really happy. I have bluetooth on all the time as well.
My ideal upgrade would be the Dopod 818 Pro. All the accessories for my mini can be used with the Dopod Pro. But my main concern would be the CPU speed...I've configured my mini to run the software I need including about 5-6 plugins and a concern would be how slow the Dopod Pro would be with the same s/ware config as my mini.
Second on my list is the E-Ten M600 which I think blows the mini away with the Samsung processor which is much faster than the Intel equivalent. The M600 screen is also amazing and better than any PDA screens on the market today. Only thing is that the M600 is slightly bigger than the mini and doesn't look as good compared to the mini.
At the moment both Dopod Pro and the M600 still have early teethering problems but should be sorted in a few months time. But the mini growing so much on me right now, I may just decide to keep using it and upgrade maybe next Christmas.

The M600 is made of plastic from what I know, but also some of the new HTC devices are completely made of plastic so that might not be an alternative. There is the HTC Hermes unofficially said to be released in the first half of this year which offers UMTS and will be similar to the Wizard.
If you need WLan badly, then I would consider changing to another device, otherwise, I wouldn't give away my Magician. I also prefer Windows Mobile 2003 from WM5. The speed is often said to be slower with new devices using WM5, even when they have a faster CPU.

That's true M600 is made of plastic but that's not an issue for a lot of people. The thing I like about the M600 is the Samsung CPU (I tested the Samsung 300MHz CPU on the HP rx1950 running WM 5.0 and it was amazingly fast!) and the new tech LCD screen plus it already has working A2DP bluetooth functions, WLAN, and although camera is only 1.3MP but is comparable with the Nokias. The Dopod 818 Pro (Prophet) camera is the best 2.0MP in any PocketPC but maybe let down by poor CPU performance.
WM5.0 will gradually improve within 6 months time as more s/ware developers improve their s/ware to be WM5 compatible. Initial release bugs bugs will be ironed out of the WM5 devices.
The Magician is truly a striking PocketPC handheld no doubt about that. I won't consider any devices larger than the Magician/O2 mini but M600 is an exception (only a few mm longer and thicker). The whole point of a PocketPC phone is to have it small, light and fits nicely into your pocket like the Nokias not look like bricks in your hand :-D
I think O2 Atom, HTC Prophet (Dopod 818 Pro), and the M600 are the closest to Magician in terms of size and cosmetic features.

On the PPCSG forum people are not experiencing any performance problems with the 200MHz OMAP processor. More clock speed does NOT necessarily mean more performance. Look at the AMD vs Intel scenarion on the PCs for example! It's all about MIPS.
My next purchase will be the Dopod 818 Pro. The camera is amazing, and with a proper task manager that closes programs rather than minimising them, the speed is more than acceptable. More battery life is also welcome!

skype
hi noob,
you also can use skype on your magician after you have synced your jam via bluetooth with your pc.
i use it and there is no problem. you also can use many apps like this if you sync your jam via bt with your pc
greets
serhataga

what do u think about t-mo compact II?

hi serhataga,
what a great idea...didn't think of that one. will give it a go....kinda of using the mini as a headset.... :-D
The T-mobile MDA Compact II is the HTC Prophet (also sold as Dopod 818 Pro). I like to get my hands on one and test it for myself but unfortunately in Australia, O2 and i-Mate are the HTC resellers. No Dopod or MDA brands and buying from overseas will be a headache especially with warranties.
The biggest advantage of the MDA Compact II is that you can keep using your magician accessories with it, your cases, chargers, screen protectors, stylus etc. Also the camera is undoubtedly the BEST on any PPC to date. The CPU maybe a concern especially it's only running at 200MHz. It's fine for some users but for others it's just too slow. Best to test out a shelf display model at your local store before making a decision whether to buy.
If you are in Australia like me, you'll have to wait till i-Mate releases their version of Magician II.

I think, at least in germany, the MDA compact 2 is based on the HTC Charmer, not the Prophet. The Charmer is kind of a bad joke, since it has the (yes, it definitely is) slower 200 MHZ OMAP CPU and no WLan or keyboard. This makes it a very bad choice if you ask me. The prophet hasn't been release in germany as well, same with the Atom, which seems to be the most interesting at the moment (what about the quality of its camera by the way?).

That's right Dandie, the MDA Compact II is not like the Dopod 818 Pro. It is basically the same as the Magician but has WM5 and the OMAP processor. The prophet has more hardware buttons, 2MP camera and WiFi 801.11g! The real Magician II!!

I love my Imate Jam to death. I will not sell it but maybe give it away to my wife cos I want it to stay in the family.
I have only two devices in mind to replace my Jam... it would either be the O2 Atom or the Eten M600.
I would prefer the Atom because of it's size and built-in radio. As for the M600, I would have it compete directly with HTC because of its affordable price and a different interface.
As for my Jam, I am a very proud owner and I am glad about the progress made to it to bring new life into it. From the Big Storage Rom to A2DP and improve BT. Despite being lagged of not being able to be moved to WM5, it sure is putting up a fight and that's what I like about it... being an underdog and coming out shining.

I couldn't resist any longer and ordered a Dopod 818 pro from Expansys HK, in stock and very well priced!
The JAM is a beautiful device and the Prophet is based on it! Plus WM5, Wifi, much better camera and EDGE ...
As a side note, the 02 Atom was very tempting but the initial feedback from the people who bought it is not encouraging at all. On PPCSG forums, people who bought the Atom went back from their decision and changed it with the Prophet. The built quality of the Atom was not satisfactory, buggy software and sloooooow.

kta, give us a review of the Dopod Pro in two weeks time as to its performance. Definitely want to know about the CPU performance.

Sure, no problem

The Magician is the pioneer for a mobile phone/pda combo. You can't help but want it due to it's small size form factor. Forget about the Wizards and Universals...Magicians are the coolest PDA-Phones today
well..until the Dopod 818 Pro and E-Ten M600 take over

Hi mates, i'm going to break the line and will change to Nokia N70, less buggy and with fully funtional BT. ( F.O. Htc)

I only have a Magician now but here is what I found from recent PDA phone
I think O2 Atom is a better replacement for Magician. It even smaller than Magician and has built-in A2DP and wifi. The only drawback is it use mini-SD and we have to give up our investment on SD card.
818 Pro doesn't have build-in A2DP yet (People said they will have it in the future but who knows....) Battery life of 818 Pro is better but people complaints about it's lagginng when running multiple programs. Also, Skype is not running very good on 818 pro.
Here is a benchmark test on various PDA phone: http://forum.mypdacafe.com/viewtopic.php?t=7796&sid=77e4cfd56835b0f3e33dc0da98fd7780 U may found Atom is not very attractive in the test. But for me, the 200mzh CPU of 818 Pro really worry me most....

Only one device will make me change :
The upcoming MIO Mitac A701 !!!
WOW.
Gtot

jackleung said:
818 Pro doesn't have build-in A2DP yet (People said they will have it in the future but who knows....)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A2DP will defintely be available as this was comfirmed by Microsoft. AKU2.0 will have it!
jackleung said:
But for me, the 200mzh CPU of 818 Pro really worry me most....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm surprised you say this. Just look at the your own posted benchmarks, and the 416MHz on the Atom is not really a good alternative!

Woohoo..E-Ten M600 killed 'em all at benchmark....
Atom's slowness could be a firmware issue but expect it to do better in tests 6 months time.

http://msmobiles.com/news.php/4190.html
Wow the Mio PDA-Phone is to die for but only thing isthat it lacks Wi-Fi, but GPS is a good compromise.....it's also around the size of a Magician

HTC Hermes/Tytn or HTC Universal?

Alright, Quite a while ago I dropped my MDA Pro, and it was total loss.
Luckily my insurance covers it, and I can now buy a new phone for the same price.
The problem is that there's a new phone on then block, the HTC Tytn, and I'm not sure wether I want another Universal or rather a new Tytn.
As far as I can see, the advantages for the Universal are:
Universal has bigger screen
Universal has 640x480 (while Tytn has 320x480)
Universal has normal SD cards (thus 4GB, and probably faster), Tytn has MicroSD which have only just reached 2GB. (And I've recently bought a 4GB SD card)
Universal has a larger keyboard.
Universal has a proper headphone jack, whereas Tytn needs a converter from the MiniUSB thing (that will probably let loose very easily)
And the advantages for the Tytn are:
Tytn has 2.0mp camera, while Universal only has 1.3
Tytn has Bluetooth 2
Tytn has Quad-band and all those extras (EDGE, HSPDA etc)
Tytn is (supposedly) faster
Tytn is smaller
Another problem is that all the stores currently have the HTC Tytn in stock, yet noone seems to be able to sell me a HTC Universal/QTek 9000
Anyway, I was hoping for some feedback as to which phone to buy, and possibly some differences I didn't take into account yet...
So basically, which one should I buy ?[/list]

Difficult decission. If you can wait, at the end of 2006 will arrive the Universal successor. But if you cant i prefer Universal. For me, VGA and large keyboard is critical.....
Cheers

I don't know how often you travel or the places you carry your phone to but size plays a big factor. I often find myself grabbing the HW6515 or a Wizard device over the Universal to take to places because they're more pocket friendly and are easier to use. But my biggest concern is damaging the Universal, not only is it expensive and sexy, parts and a replacement for it here in the US is scarce. 8)

The only way for me to recommend the Universal is if you also have a smaller device you can switch to when its size will be a problem. I really don't use my Qtek 9100 much now that I have the 9000, but when I need it I have it, with pretty much the same capability. If this is your only phone, I suggest getting the TyTN or Hermes (same thing).

I'm currently testing hTc Z, a variant of Hermes100 for Japanese market, and I tend to agree with those recommending Hermes. It's probably the best WM5 phone edition device you can get at the moment. TyTN is Hermes200 but it shouldn't be much different.
Having said that, the big difference is the keyboard. Not only is the size smaller, the key touch isn't as robust as Universal's and I really can't type fast as I can with Universal. I almost hate typing with Hermes.
If you don't need to type much with your device, I recommend getting Hermes. Otherwise, Universal should be better or you should wait for its successor.
My 2 cents...

I had then universal, then I sold it and I replaced it with the hermes (my current pocket pc phone).
I miss the great great great screen.... but now I download files on hsdpa network at 1.2 mbit / sec, and if an area it's not covered by umts/hsdpa I can count on edge (190 kbit /sec). Imho the Universal is tooooo slow and too bigger. It bought Hermes for its dimensions! It's just a bit longer then wizard but if you hold it in one hand (with wheel) you can do everything (except typing on keyb, you need two hands)! However I found the micro-sd a lot slow when I paste mp3s from my pc, and it lack 3.5mm jack!!!

Regarding the universal, all I can say is that it is BULKY BULKY BULKY. If you are going out, last thing you want is this phone in your pocket. I end up carrying it in my hand which actually sucks. Also, its not too fast and the battery will last you a maximum of about 7 months or so.
On the other hand, the screen is gorgeous and it looks really cool
So guess you have to weigh your priorities.
If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't have bought the Universal and would have been much happier with a smaller phone.
Cheers.

Question for People who have upgraded from Wizard to Hermes

How much faster is this new processor compared to the Wizards? Is noticably much faster, or not much?
Is it worth the upgrade?

yes it is, video streaming, usege of phone, bootup all faster but i must say t-mob rom has som glitches. not obvious but still there

The speed increase wasn't as fantastic as I had hoped, but it makes the device definitely more usable.
I'd say if you are a heavy user of the device and have the "Spare" cash, GET ONE, If not, wait for the next Vario III or whatever its gonna be called.

Re: Question for People who have upgraded from Wizard to Her
dangerous_dom said:
How much faster is this new processor compared to the Wizards? Is noticably much faster, or not much?
Is it worth the upgrade?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you want to use Skype and 3G, then yes. Other not really. Don't get me wrong it is the best device for me, but unless you can get a good deal then as has been said already the speed difference isn't onticeable from the latest Wizard ROMs.

TyTN vs Wizaed? No Contest!!
C'mon guys you gotta be kidding!!??!!
The TyTN/VarioII/SPV 3100...and its other guises, is far superior to the Wizard, even with the latest ROM!
Compare:
Does the Wizard have a commendable 2MP camera worthy of taking on SE K750i?
Does the Wizard have A2DP & AKU2 out the box?
Does it Multitask like the TyTN without lag?
Is it as varied in operability i.e. one-handed navigation plus many buttons?
Does it have HSDPA compatibility?
Is the screen as bright and clear?
Does it even have 3G?
Can it Video call?
NO!
The Wizard is good an everything but the TyTN is Great in comparison. Just my 2 cents worth.

Aye but unless you're wanting to use 3G, want to run lots of apps or use the camera then it's not noticeable better than the Wizard. I still have to see the difference in speed between the latest Wizard ROMs and the TyTYN.
As I said it is better, but not worth taking out a new contract to run against your existing one like a lot of people are doing.

Allow me to step in with a related question: The 3rd party compatible battery charts from Hongkong manufacturers show the HTC batteries from the Wizard and Hermes to be compatible. Can you confirm this?

@Lucas0511
The batteries are completely different.
The Wizard one is much smaller than that of the Hermes.
See attached picture
Cheers,
Drifter

The Wizard was Okay, but not close to the Tytn. I found the Wizard keyboard (Qtek 9100) somewhat unusable, the annoyance of constantly hitting the camera button a nuisance, and the constant speed degredations because it was doing some housekeeping unacceptable, all of these issues are gone with the Tytn. The ability to use Skype on the phone, important to communicate overseas, and other features made this an easy choice. Plus, don't ask me how I did it, but broke the spring holding in the memory card on the Wizard, which made it ready for retirement.

The Vario is a Good Phone, The vario II is definitely a better phone, but the newer version is still very expensive SIM free at the moment and So in my opinion the bottom line is if you use it to its full potentional AND if you have the spare cash.
The Vario II isn't as brilliant as I would have hoped, the 400Mhz processor is FASTER, but you still see abit of lag which I wasn't expecting.
UMTS and HSPDA make the device MUCH faster for downloading, but its still quite slow with internet browsing.
The camera is better but not even in its wildest dreams can it take on the SE K750.
Video calling - How often do people use this ?
You also need to keep in mind that will the pace that phones are being developed and released that the Vario III is possibly going to be released within the next 12 months or less.
So, the bottom line I would say is ..... do you need it and have you got the money.

Hi all,
I've been running the Wizard for almost 9 months now - clocked at 264 MHz thanks to omapclock - without any problem.
I got a TyTN from my job at the end of July and could not see any noticeable difference in terms of latency or execution speed.
The battery lasts only 24 hours when I am under UMTS coverage (48h at least with the Wizard with Edge).
I seriously think I'll get back to the Wizard until a decent french ROM version is available :?
_________________________
HTC TyTN French (HERM200)
ROM: 1.18.256.2 (05/30/06) - ExtROM: 1.18.256.103
Radio: 1.03.03.10 - Proto: 32.34.7010.01H

I think i will stick with my Wizard for now. From what i have read on these forums and elsewhere, the differences, while nice, are not compelling enough for warrent the spend.
Thanks for you input.

I use Slingplayer. Will the tytn make a difference? I also live in Dallas where umts is active.

Compare the TyTN and the Wizard - (performance)

I posted this on the TyTN thread, but wanted the input of readers on this thread as well.
What would the major differances be between the TyTN ie Qtek 9600 model phone in the performance area as opposed to the Wizard model phones ie.. cingular 8125/T-Mobile MDA phones? Does the processor speed of the two model greatly affect the running of the phone or is it reduced due to the fact that they really arn't apples to apples on the processor as one is a samsung processor and the other the omap.
Also am considering the HP hw6945 model as well. If any one has any insight on that.
Thanks for any insight.
pschmidt

pschmidt63 said:
I posted this on the TyTN thread, but wanted the input of readers on this thread as well.
What would the major differances be between the TyTN ie Qtek 9600 model phone in the performance area as opposed to the Wizard model phones ie.. cingular 8125/T-Mobile MDA phones? Does the processor speed of the two model greatly affect the running of the phone or is it reduced due to the fact that they really arn't apples to apples on the processor as one is a samsung processor and the other the omap.
Also am considering the HP hw6945 model as well. If any one has any insight on that.
Thanks for any insight.
pschmidt
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apples and oranges, I'd say. While, in cases, overclocking the Wizard may result in great speed increase (which can help in, say, loading Opera Mobile), I use it witout overclocking and am absolutely happy with it.
That is, don't be afraid of the "slow" 195 MHz Wizard. If you do find it slow, you can always overclock it.

I've had the k-jam since december of 05. I've never been so thilled with a phone in my life (and I've had several hundred easily).
I've never had a time where I really wished the k-jam had more processor. Sure, if offered I'd take it, but I've never had an issue without. I don't overclock at all.
A friend has the TyTN and he loves it (he went from the RAZR to it and it was his first PPC phone). Compared to my k-jam, the menus are a little snappier but all the apps run the same speed. While I'm dying to have a device with UMTS, the TyTN isn't worth the price of upgrading for me.
But, if you don't have either and you're looking for one, ALWAYS get the latest and greatest. Simple rule. But if you have the wizard, hold off because there's much better stuff coming soon. There always is.
-Mc

Features Comparison of Trinity with HTC P3300 and HTC TyTN

Features Comparison of Trinity with HTC P3300 and HTC TyTN :http://www.mypocketpcmobile.com/HTCP3300HTCP3600HTCTyTNFeatures/tabid/151/Default.aspx

so in terms of performance wise, reliability n all which device wld u pick? i am personally looking at either the p3300 or p3600

Dopod 838 Pro (Hermes) or Dopod D810 / HTC P3600 (Trinity)
Which should buy?
Beside the QWERTY that Hermes has, what are the difference?

definitely Trinity, the 838pro doesnt really interest me at all, good sound quality thats all other then that still the Trinity coz been a Magician user for quite some time already and really like to get a replacement similar to that of my current device so will definitely sway towards the Trinity

just my 2 cents.
Trinity comes with AKU 3.01 meaning better BT stack and WPA2 suport.
Having said that, Trinity feels much snappier in terms of device speed. I do not know if that hardware or software related issue.

Your signature shows a lot of experience with the devices! Is trinity really the capo of them all?

@victoradjei
ok. kind of difficult to judge when you have all of them at the same time
Hermes - a bit ... thick.. for my taste and slooow in comparison with Trinity.
Trinity has _very_ consumer look. IPODesque...
Artemis - I hate Rollr
star trek - nice phone, clam shell form factor is not for me though. My wife loves it
Breeze - just another phone. nice feature set ....
Oxygen - stable, great battery life, very nice entry level Smartphone. We love it.
Excalibur - ladies and gentlemen, we have winner here
I have to say : I absolutely love it.

I think the HTC Tytn is the best device.

Hermes 200 has _VERY BAD_ d-pad.( HTC TyTN)
you phone seems to be Hermes 100. Yes, it is very good.
PPCNUT said:
I think the HTC Tytn is the best device.
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