Database Users

Quick question for Cingular 8525

Does this device have consumer Infrared so as to be used as a tv remote control?

JasjarMan said:
Does this device have consumer Infrared so as to be used as a tv remote control?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is a thread somewere on this. From memory it was not practical due to the very short range of the infra red beam. (could be quite wrong but less than 1 metre??)
Mike

that is pretty useless,
why put IR in a device that has such a minute range. sometimes HTC should just remove some features and make the device more compact.

jasjamming said:
that is pretty useless,
why put IR in a device that has such a minute range. sometimes HTC should just remove some features and make the device more compact.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
maybe it wasnt a question of removing features and making it more compact (im sure you arent going to save much by removing IR) but maybe it was more a question of "we have all this tiny extra space that we cant rid of, lets cram some more in it"

jasjamming said:
that is pretty useless,
why put IR in a device that has such a minute range. sometimes HTC should just remove some features and make the device more compact.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I guess if you can get your devices close to each other it's ok otherwise a bit limiting.
Mike

The fact that the infrared port is on the bottom would make using it as a remote rather akward.
b.d

Not really because there is software that when you launch the app everything turns upside down automatically. I had the ipaq 4700 and I used the remote control that way. Worked really well despite being at the bottom. I could swear I read somewhere this thing does have the consumer infrared but I can not find it. Has anyone tried loading an app and see what range it has? If not can someone please try it, I will get my 8525 soon but would love to know asap.
Thanks.
Baelrun said:
The fact that the infrared port is on the bottom would make using it as a remote rather akward.
b.d
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

don't bother to try. I installed Novii Remote and it works when i'm about 3-5ft (1-1.5meter) away from the TV.

has anyone tried an app called TV-remote version 5.x. it says it imprves range but I question how it will actually do that.

They didnt put the IR there to control a TV and I doubt the creators of the HTC could care less whether they extended the range of the IR. They intended it to be able to beam to another device such as another PDA or printer. It works quite nicely for those purposes.

IR is pretty much outdated these days with RF wireless communications such as bluetooth, zigbee, ultra-wideband.
If a device has IR it most likely wont be used for the original purpose it was built (in my case and view) - instead to explore novelty applications.
No doubt, as you said, that it works quite nicely for IR data transmission from device to device, but the technology is obselete.

IR is useful
I used to think IR was obsolete. However recently I have had a numbeer of occassions when I have been very happy to still have it.
Have you tried going to a trade fair or other venue with a large number of BT devices. Try searching for the particualr device you want to transfer information to. it can take some time to find the device you want.
Now compare how quickly you can do the same exercise over infared.
TB

good point....

There's another possible hardware hack lurking here: replace the IR LED with a more powerful component. I've been mulling over this one a bit...

Sleuth255 said:
There's another possible hardware hack lurking here: replace the IR LED with a more powerful component. I've been mulling over this one a bit...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
replacing the IR led may work.. but is the voltage there to drive a more powerful IR led?

that's exactly what I'm mulling over...
I'm thinking of comparing parts to the LED that's in an 8125 (much better range) then pull specs on both to see what the differences are.

Sleuth255 said:
that's exactly what I'm mulling over...
I'm thinking of comparing parts to the LED that's in an 8125 (much better range) then pull specs on both to see what the differences are.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i had horrible range on my wizard, i had to be no more than 3 feet from any device to get the IR remote to use..

What is by far the coolest thing you can do with your Hermes

I am currently getting bored with my Hermes, I have flashed about 10 Roms in the past few months and I have followed the herd on almost every customized look we can come up with (Black, Custel, iphone lookalike, kaiser lookalike) you name it.
SO I thought I would reach out and see what other people are using their Hermes for. First and foremost I use mine as a phone. Anyone else? I also use Tomtom for Nav and orb for music and videos. Once and a while I stream XM too because I have an account. But thts about it.
I would love to hear about what else I can do and what other people think the best thing they have found on the Hermes is. I'm curious to see how crazy it can get.

Links to the coolest things folks here have done:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1010449&postcount=5
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=672628&postcount=1
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1011991&postcount=10
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1012249&postcount=5
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1209297&postcount=40
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1218608&postcount=17
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1238684&postcount=7
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=1213780&postcount=4
Mike

when I'm bored I use it to mess around with other people's phones and pc's,
funny how so many people leave their bluetooth on nowadays on both phones and laptops
I also use it to surf the net in classes (no laptop policy)
anyone else \()/?

afguard17 said:
I am currently getting bored with my Hermes, I have flashed about 10 Roms in the past few months and I have followed the herd on almost every customized look we can come up with (Black, Custel, iphone lookalike, kaiser lookalike) you name it.
SO I thought I would reach out and see what other people are using their Hermes for. First and foremost I use mine as a phone. Anyone else? I also use Tomtom for Nav and orb for music and videos. Once and a while I stream XM too because I have an account. But thts about it.
I would love to hear about what else I can do and what other people think the best thing they have found on the Hermes is. I'm curious to see how crazy it can get.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Orb is awesome (I was watching Anchorman on my commute home this evening), also I use my Hermes mostly for work, so tons of email (100 a day or so), attachment viewing\editing). TomTom is a life saver, as is GoogleMaps (saves me lots of 411 charges). Besides that day to day stuff, playing with ROMs and using it to wow friends and co-workers ("I forgot my ethernet cable! how am I supposed to get online now?!"..."Oh, please... allow me" along with a million other examples), wardriving, camera, mp3 player etc.

When I am bored I use the cameras three shot panorama mode to do funny things like getting a friend to do different poses in each of the three shots when the photo is finished its pretty cool. Seeing the same person three times in the same shot doing different things can pretty funny and if you have an imagination you can do some wicked stuff, ill have to look around for some of my shots and post them.
Psiodon

haha Mike Channon you smart ass.. lol.
I use my Hermes as a webcam.. .. The guy mentioned above likes to see me naked for some reason..

I know it is stupid, but I find it cool to run old games using ScummVM. Friends are amazed when they see (and hear) Monkey Island or DOTT on this device. (for the same reason, I have DOOM on my Nokia phone )
The Pebbles application (bluetooth remote control) is fun to play around with, as it offers a great deal of controllers (touchpad, scrollwheel, ...). But I haven't got round to making a proper interface for the softwares I use (at the moment, I prefer to use Puppetmaster on my Nokia to control my laptop, is this also displays data from the application on the mobile screen).
From a technological point of view, the internet sharing via bluetooth is IMO one of the coolest features of the device.
Of course, being able to view movies or get some work done on a plane is great too. And then there is PocketFMS: connect the TyTN to a bt gps, and you get a moving map flight management system (yep, for general aviation!); which can be combined with weather data!
It is a cool device... but could be more stable at times.
Jörg

I have a bluetooth to serial device, which means I can run terminal connections over bluetooth.. so I can use it to configure routers etc.. just plug the dongle into a serial port.. connect via the phone and there's no need to carry round a laptop for that anymore.
I also use it as a phone and pda of course for those things.. For a normal day it can practically replace my laptop for dealing with both windows and *nix machines.. Pretty good if you ask me.
If you really are that bored of it send me it I can put it to good use
(oh yeah and I play scummVM on it too )

sambartle said:
I have a bluetooth to serial device, which means I can run terminal connections over bluetooth..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My I ask what kind of bt-serial device? Does it have its own battery, or does it draw power from the serial port?
I have no experience with such devices, but the reason I'm asking is that I wonder if it is possible to connect a bluetooth GPS to a Nikon D200 (this has a serial port for a GPS, to allow for coordinates to be embedded in the exif header). Of course, a setup like this is not supported (I mailed Nikon with this question), but they didn't say it wouldn't work (they hadn't thought of this).
Thanks!
Jörg

sambartle said:
I have a bluetooth to serial device, which means I can run terminal connections over bluetooth.. so I can use it to configure routers etc.. just plug the dongle into a serial port.. connect via the phone and there's no need to carry round a laptop for that anymore.
I also use it as a phone and pda of course for those things.. For a normal day it can practically replace my laptop for dealing with both windows and *nix machines.. Pretty good if you ask me.
If you really are that bored of it send me it I can put it to good use
(oh yeah and I play scummVM on it too )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what can you do on a windows box via serial? on a unix/linux box: that must be pretty hard given its lack of VT100 support i.e. 80x24, and no wrap around lines.

having a satnav system...
me walking like a walking encyclopedia ..
wealth of info related to work.. (medically.. )
oh forgot to mention is i dont have to worry about mespilling something.

Orb is the best

The Slingbox player is always nice to have when there is time to kill.
The "coolest" (geekyest) thing I've done is use it to control my irrigation system. I have several Insteon home automation devices installed and when I needed to check all the different irrigation zone sprinklers, I just used the phone to remote in to the host PC and turn on/off each area while I walked around the yard and made adjustments. I could also use the same process to control all the lighting in the house as well.

+1000 for Orb.

V J said:
My I ask what kind of bt-serial device? Does it have its own battery, or does it draw power from the serial port?
I have no experience with such devices, but the reason I'm asking is that I wonder if it is possible to connect a bluetooth GPS to a Nikon D200 (this has a serial port for a GPS, to allow for coordinates to be embedded in the exif header). Of course, a setup like this is not supported (I mailed Nikon with this question), but they didn't say it wouldn't work (they hadn't thought of this).
Thanks!
Jörg
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its one of these (I actually got it cheaper than this - from the manufacturer who also sells them on ebay himself but has none on there at the minute), expansys also do them
It's powered via a USB cable.. But i have a solar charging unit that outputs via USB and works fine with it.. so i dont need usb to use it.. does the nikon proivde 5v on any ports as that would probably work.. (maybe even the usb port if it has one and supports weird configs (not just to connect it to a pc as that wont suply voltage))
I have no idea if it will connect a bluetooth gps to a camera.. the closest i can try is linking it to my bluetooth gps and seeing if nmea flows to the serial port.. ill give it as go for you this week.

frustin said:
what can you do on a windows box via serial? on a unix/linux box: that must be pretty hard given its lack of VT100 support i.e. 80x24, and no wrap around lines.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
depends whats connected to the windows box .. or what software its running.. or what its purpose is.. (i work in telecommunications)
On a desktop theres probably not much point, but theres switches, analysers, ATM's all sorts of industrial windows installations that all have serial diiagnostics and terminals..
on a *nix box its pretty much the same deal.. if its running a serial terminal i can connect to it with mToken or Mobile Putty.. theres hundreds of different bits of serial kit you can connect too.. serial is serial doesnt matter that its sent via bluetooth to the PPC.
Works on routers and all kinds of switching gear.. it's absolutly invaluable to me!!

Cool things with the TYTN
I assigned VJCandela to one of the side buttons, this help locating the key hole to my door (home, not car, I am a responsible person!) when it's pitch dark and I polished a few with the boys!
This phone belongs in a James Bond movie, period.

possibilities are endless!
Orb is great!
The Slingbox pro is awesome!!!
Im was thinking the same think as far as what else is possible via these phones... the quest for home automation is what brought me here (via search)
I think the links in the 2nd post should keep me busy for a bit...
Thanks!
Xtra

frustin said:
what can you do on a windows box via serial? on a unix/linux box: that must be pretty hard given its lack of VT100 support i.e. 80x24, and no wrp around lines.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wuh?
Methinks you didn't read his reply all that thoroughly.
Routers, at least enterprise class routers have serial managmenet ports - hence him specifically mentioning serial in the same sentence as routers and nothing else.
I'm not even sure I know what you're trying to say regarding VT100 support - which is just one of many types of terminal emulation (based on the old DEC VT100 video terminal). Windows itself doesn't provide out-of-band management compatible with textual terminals, but many servers *do* have serial out-of-band facilities which can in turn talk to Windows running on said server...think lights out managmement. Most Sun servers have serial access to both the PROM and running OS, and you can redirect a serial port to a console in Linux.
I'm betting that when the OP mentioned managing Winders boxen with his Hermes he was thinking RDP.
But you knew all that I'm sure. =)

I'm a musician - I use it as a guitar tuner (PhoneTuner), I have a spectrum analyzer (HASA) for finding feedback frequencies when doing sound checks, I use it to record songs I'm working on with an MP3 recorder(AudioNotes), to record lyrics (Word, Notes, or even putting lyrics into a Task item so it will sync over the air with Outlook). I use ORB for streaming media from my server while on the road. I use the LED light as a flashlight mapped to the push and hold button with VJCandela. I use it as a timer for Texas Hold 'em poker to decide when to double the blind (SPB Time). I have an english dictionary, and a spanish-english dictionary on it. I use it to read ebooks (HaaliReader). I use it as an RPN calculator (CalcNOW). I use INAV for GPS guidance with a bluetooth GPS receiver when on tour.

Seeking advice of whether or not to buy a Shift

I am interested in a new latop and have been doing quite a lot of research on the Shift. Voice call functionality is probably the only thing holding me back from making a definite decision right now. I have been purusing about and have come across a few questions as post dates seem intermintent on whether or not a few of the things I am looking for will come true. So if members could give me a point of view on to wait or not, or even to look at another device.
1.) I see that voice call functionality is not there, and am wondering if this is a "yet" or "a maybe" or a "don't get your hopes up".
2.) I have been a frequent user of cooked roms from HTC and was wondering if there is going to be anywhere near the support for the Shift as there is for other devices such as the Tytn II since I am all about making a great device even better.
3.) Is there any reasons why any of you can personally think of why I should seek another UMPC device or small laptop when compared to the Shift. I am going to be using it mostly for travel, media functions (mp3/movies), and of course web browsing/downloading. Things I am worried about... battery life, and never being able to make phone calls, and not having a touch screen. Owning a Tilt I am spoiled to that aspect
4.) Is the range of the bluetooth going to be greater than 33'? I know some types of bluetooth headsets can go much further distances, but am unsure if that is for media only or if that will be an option for voice call for the Shift as well.
5.) I currently have a Tilt running many programs such a mobile shell, poket weather, AT&T Navigator, and things along those lines. What is the likely-hood that I will be able to use such programs on the unlocked side of WM for the Shift. Or is that really going to depend a lot on the software programs themselves?
I have more questions, but have yet to search for the answers before posting, so I will be back soon.
Thank you for all your help and input in advance!
SKy

skyfox99 said:
I am interested in a new latop and have been doing quite a lot of research on the Shift. Voice call functionality is probably the only thing holding me back from making a definite decision right now. I have been purusing about and have come across a few questions as post dates seem intermintent on whether or not a few of the things I am looking for will come true. So if members could give me a point of view on to wait or not, or even to look at another device.
1.) I see that voice call functionality is not there, and am wondering if this is a "yet" or "a maybe" or a "don't get your hopes up".
2.) I have been a frequent user of cooked roms from HTC and was wondering if there is going to be anywhere near the support for the Shift as there is for other devices such as the Tytn II since I am all about making a great device even better.
3.) Is there any reasons why any of you can personally think of why I should seek another UMPC device or small laptop when compared to the Shift. I am going to be using it mostly for travel, media functions (mp3/movies), and of course web browsing/downloading. Things I am worried about... battery life, and never being able to make phone calls, and not having a touch screen. Owning a Tilt I am spoiled to that aspect
4.) Is the range of the bluetooth going to be greater than 33'? I know some types of bluetooth headsets can go much further distances, but am unsure if that is for media only or if that will be an option for voice call for the Shift as well.
5.) I currently have a Tilt running many programs such a mobile shell, poket weather, AT&T Navigator, and things along those lines. What is the likely-hood that I will be able to use such programs on the unlocked side of WM for the Shift. Or is that really going to depend a lot on the software programs themselves?
I have more questions, but have yet to search for the answers before posting, so I will be back soon.
Thank you for all your help and input in advance!
SKy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Dont get you hopes up, in fact i dont think we ever get all these functions that some say they are working on. why bother? what do you relly want that big acphone fore?
2. see 1.
3. it is a machine with limited power great for surfing bad for alot else
4. have only used a bluetooth mouse works great, havnt used it far from away lol
5. the stoage is wery limired on the shift, no room for alot of apps

skyfox99 said:
1.) I see that voice call functionality is not there, and am wondering if this is a "yet" or "a maybe" or a "don't get your hopes up".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is between "maybe" and "don't get your hopes up": requires security unlocking the device and changing some NV items in radio, but I'm not sure if the microphone is connected on the SnapVUE side. Bluetooth is definitely not connected, so it won't be possible to call through a headset.
skyfox99 said:
2.) I have been a frequent user of cooked roms from HTC and was wondering if there is going to be anywhere near the support for the Shift as there is for other devices such as the Tytn II since I am all about making a great device even better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ROM cooking is imminent, some of us are already using cooked ROMs.

I use mine for surfing (3G is great), documents, email and the odd movie. It won't cope with much else, which is fine because that's all I want it for. And why would you want voice calling on this thing? Bizarre, but each to their own.
The big thing is it is tiny...and well connected...a bit like Kate Moss

I appreciate the feedback. I was hoping for voice call via 1.2 i suppose for 300' range so i could just walk around with a headset on with the Shift at my desk at work. I am guessing i was expecting a little too much. I really am just looking for a touchscreen laptop that isn't too big and isn't too expensive. Any ideas for a computer along those lines?

If you at work, then you should have internet connection. Some telecom operators offer IP telephony. I am using this on Shift with even better functionality than mobile phone and with BT headset. It is possible to use also Skype for example. You can use the functionality even in move in wifi networks or mobile networks with flat rate package. Of course, 3G networks preferred.

shift
personally id buy which is what im going to do, but since it has windows mobile and a sd slot, it wouldnt be hard for some one copy software from another phone and since it has nothing to do with screen capabilities of processor speed im sure it woul be compatibal from almost any device because it is just a drive for hardware, bluetooth is not so much a hardware issue more sofware which once sd slot made usable might be ale to achive easyer when size is no matter, to addd extra options to handler or driver for blue tooth whichever.. besides if u like videos im sure the screen is somewhat high def being that its 16 million colors (not sure dont have it yet) and most computer screens are like 232k colors it might be like 720p or something not sure i dont know how many colors they can display and whatever but it'll make videos amazing compared to 64k colors of other phones, and some people have developed full xp drivers for it so might get lucky and be abl to get the ultamit device for embedded programing being you coul have embedded on a device which you could make program then test with or without touch screen very fastly and id only take a minute to switch back to fix errors...

Here in the states VOIP on a mobile phone really isn't there just yet, our networks are too slow on 3g I think. Although I don't really know much about it. Is skype VOIP to VOIP only, or can you call any phone number? I don't really want too much of a hassle having to hack this thing to get it to do what I want. I am actually getting tired of doing all that for now after flashing rom after rom to my tilt to get it to work the way I want. As is now I am unable to connect to my exchange server at work and am unsure as to what the problem is and really just want something to work ideally out of the box, but I know that won't happen.

dinscurge said:
personally id buy which is what im going to do, but since it has windows mobile and a sd slot, it wouldnt be hard for some one copy software from another phone and since it has nothing to do with screen capabilities of processor speed im sure it woul be compatibal from almost any device because it is just a drive for hardware, bluetooth is not so much a hardware issue more sofware which once sd slot made usable might be ale to achive easyer when size is no matter, to addd extra options to handler or driver for blue tooth whichever.. besides if u like videos im sure the screen is somewhat high def being that its 16 million colors (not sure dont have it yet) and most computer screens are like 232k colors it might be like 720p or something not sure i dont know how many colors they can display and whatever but it'll make videos amazing compared to 64k colors of other phones, and some people have developed full xp drivers for it so might get lucky and be abl to get the ultamit device for embedded programing being you coul have embedded on a device which you could make program then test with or without touch screen very fastly and id only take a minute to switch back to fix errors...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's amazing - one sentence....

Personally I would strongly advise you against buying this device. FOr the price you could get a small convertible tablet PC that would do far, far, far more than the Shift ever will. I bought a Fujitsu t2010 for $1100 US. I then spent $200 at NewEgg buying stuff to upgrade and i now have, for the same price as a shift ($1300):
12.1" active digitizer, no comparison to a passive digitizer (touchscreen) for taking notes, drawing, or anything else. active is 100x better
4GB RAm
250gb SATA HDD
1.2ghz ULV Dual Core cpu
WiFi/BT
5 HOUR BATTERY LIFE RUNNING VISTA WITH STANDARD BATTERY
TOTAL WEIGHT 3lbs
3g pc card modem- lets me use 3G data AND make phone calls AND send sms, slips into PC card slot and has retractable antenna
BT headset
Nice screen protector
nice webcam
Soooo, for what I spent on my Fuji I could have a little shift that has a crappier screen, shorter battery life, crippled hardware, etc. Why would anyone do that? Don't like a 12.1"? No problem, get a Fujitsu U810 (5" screen, $800), or a Fujitsu p1620 ($9", about $100 more thanthe shift). Don't like the Fuji's? OK, google convertible tablet and you'll get a ton of various little machines that can outperform the shift with a similar form-factor.
I know that there are some people who love thier Shift, and i am not trying to bash them. I just think that the Shift is an INCREDIBLY niche product and that most users would be much happier with a convertible tablet that is the same price, better battery ,processor,screen,etc. Some of the sacrifices we make in mobile devices is for the phone functionality, and if shift can't (and most likely won't ever) do that, why make those sacrifices? Especially when adding a cheap peice of hardware to a much more powerful platform (tablet pc) gives you everything you need?

am sorry but i have to said
no i have many proplem then i sale it
and buy sony ux37gn its more powerfull than the shift
and with no proplem " made in japan "
the only proplem is the price

Buy one. They are fantastic!

scopy60 said:
buy sony ux37gn
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They have much smaller display, are bulky and have no Windows Mobile (ARM) subsystem.

devictoria said:
They have much smaller display, are bulky and have no Windows Mobile (ARM) subsystem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't think they even have built in 3G do they?

I Like Shift!
FWIW, I really like my Shift....
Didn't buy it to be a computing powerhouse, but a take with me everywhere device.
I like the flexibility to use it as a slate (tablet), a laptop, or a slider.
Overall, works great...

mlalahoi said:
Personally I would strongly advise you against buying this device.
Soooo, for what I spent on my Fuji I could have a little shift that has a crappier screen, shorter battery life, crippled hardware, etc. Why would anyone do that? Don't like a 12.1"? No problem, get a Fujitsu U810 (5" screen, $800), or a Fujitsu p1620 ($9", about $100 more thanthe shift). Don't like the Fuji's? OK, google convertible tablet and you'll get a ton of various little machines that can outperform the shift with a similar form-factor.
I you need?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, but cannot buy Fujitsu P1620 in Holland for some reason. Not happy with my Shift at all!
Huib

ArchiMark said:
FWIW, I really like my Shift....
Didn't buy it to be a computing powerhouse, but a take with me everywhere device.
I like the flexibility to use it as a slate (tablet), a laptop, or a slider.
Overall, works great...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too - it seems those that aren't happy really should have asked what they really wanted first up. I don't find performance an issue - battery life is OK for surfing etc - it's not an 8 hour music/video player though, and not meant to be. That's what iPod's etc are for. In my case, what my HX4700 is for. To me the WM6 with keyboard and 3G is extremely valuable - I am involved in music when not working and I can keep an eye on those related emails during the day (cannot log into mail from work), respond where necessary etc. No boot ups. If something needs more, or a big file attached, then I can boot to Vista.
Office 2003 is the way to go tho. 2007 is like Vista - bulky and slow.
I suspect the sales pitch of the Shift may have led people to believe it was going to be something other than what it is. I did the homework first, so knew what I was getting, especially around performance. Anyways, not sure whether HTC are actually going to sell many of these given the late arrival, seemingly little support (drivers, XP etc) and some polarised view points on it.

HTC SHIFT Rocks ....
for those un-happy with shift i would say u guys never really understood the essence of this device ... according to me this device is closest to the ideal device for a mobile person that HTC could make keeping in view today's technology and price limitations ...
I travel a lot very frequently and often all of a sudden need to spend nights over at a new place etc... but with shift along i am relieved of the hastles i used to face earlier ... its size is just ideal for it to be carried around everywhere and its functunality is well thought off ... and all the more important is that after liberation it gives u the power of two devices in one! A quick use WM side and a full fleged windows vista to substitute ur laptop for "work related" needs.
I normally use the WM interface when i am really mobile or dont need to access too much stuff.. or just need to use skype to chat with a supplier, etc ... but when i am either back in my car or in the hotel room or when i have some spare time or when i need to access bank website (our bank websites dont open in WM due to security concerns) ... I use the VISTA side ...
There are some annoyances off and on like - i cant multitask as well i can on my PC etc .. but those were known to me before i shelled out cash for this device.. the keyboard is smalll but what better u think HTC could have stuffed in such a device ...??? It's usable and its pretty neat too .. i have used it for typing long letters and reports with absolutely no problem ... no doubt u have type with a finger but its comfy once u get the hang of it! Also i can tell u with my practical experience that someone who's gonna shift after using a very powerful computer will feel it to be a bit slow but we have to understand these limitations to bring the best out of this device! So buy a HTC Shift , but plz be a bit just a bit patient while using it and it will be ur friend in need.
Keeping my kind of a multitasked life style in view (a medical doctor, a business man, a GPS System's Consultant, etc) - i would suggest u all to buy a Case Logic HDC-2 case ... it fits the shift well in it's original cover, fits in its charger, usb hub, a portable laser mouse, my stationary kit, my digital camera, a portable DVD writer, my mobile travel charger, candys to give me instant energy if reqd. and small nit bits like my 3 types of visiting cards, etc.). I normally carry the bag around with me in my car or on travel. Let the bag primarity lie in the car/hotel room as the case maybe and take only the shift in its leather case along while going for a meeting or to meet a client etc. and use the other bag contents as per need. But let me tell u that carrying this small kit has helped me out in so many conditions that i just cant thank HTC for making such a good device and to Case Logic for unkowingly creating such a good case to carry my stuff. (Case Logic HDC-2 is actually a HDD carrying case... but it fits the shift and it's accessories just right!) (see the pics)
For me carrying the shift in a harddisk carrying case gives me all the more comfort because i feel if a case is designed to protect a HDD, it can protect my Shift well!
And another thing: this bag fits perfectly and tightly in the space between any car's front seats ... so it stays there intact inspite of any bumps or pits on Indian Roads during the rainy season! ;-)

skyfox - did you have a bsquare powerhandheld once?

I am also planning to buy this machine. I need this device for simple, not so powerful development machine, where I can open up a text pad and run mysql on it. Can you run mysql on this machine and how responsive is running small dev mysql server there?

Getting serial out of the USB port to control a robot

Hi,
As most of you have, I am getting a growing collection of old mobiles now, and I want to do something cool.
I have just bought a robosapien V2 and AXON robot serial controller. What I want to do is use my old XDA exec to replace the 'brain' of the robot, so to this end, I need to be able to squirt serial data out of the phone on a wire, of which the easiest would be the usb snyc/charge port.
I am using NET 3.5 as my dev language, and the idea being is to take advantage of the wifi chip to be able to, firstly send commands to the robot from anywear (cool huh?) and to be able to stream video & audio (using the skype SDK) from the robot back to the network.
Anyone have any ideas on how to go about doing this?
And if any of you are interested enough I can post my progress here, go on, you know you would all love a robot you could send down the road on its own

sounds nice, i have no guess what it needs to control the robot nor i know anything about serial ports but i really would LOVE a small gizmo that i can control this way to do important things like rolling here, rolling there and then rolling back here, following the cat and piling it on the floor, talking through the speaker to the neighbours or affront those selfinviters ).
i'm waiting for your progress
best regards, pucki

Bluetooth
bhermer said:
Hi,
As most of you have, I am getting a growing collection of old mobiles now, and I want to do something cool.
I have just bought a robosapien V2 and AXON robot serial controller. What I want to do is use my old XDA exec to replace the 'brain' of the robot, so to this end, I need to be able to squirt serial data out of the phone on a wire, of which the easiest would be the usb snyc/charge port.
I am using NET 3.5 as my dev language, and the idea being is to take advantage of the wifi chip to be able to, firstly send commands to the robot from anywear (cool huh?) and to be able to stream video & audio (using the skype SDK) from the robot back to the network.
Anyone have any ideas on how to go about doing this?
And if any of you are interested enough I can post my progress here, go on, you know you would all love a robot you could send down the road on its own
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I suggest you take a look on BT to RS232/485 adaptors. There are some small nice ones out there. I think it'll be even cooler being all wireless, isn't it?
For example this ones here (from google, don't know the brand. Only used industrial ones until now on my projects):
http://www.alibaba.com/catalog/100402141/Bluetooth_To_Rs232_Adaptor_10m_Converter.html
This one can't be used because the phones are not class 1 devices (~100 mW , ~100m range) but just for the information:
http://www.alibaba.com/catalog/100402139/Bluetooth_Rs232_Adaptor_100m_603004.html
Good luck with your project!!
shmilson

shmilson said:
I suggest you take a look on BT to RS232/485 adaptors. There are some small nice ones out there. I think it'll be even cooler being all wireless, isn't it?
For example this ones here (from google, don't know the brand. Only used industrial ones until now on my projects):
http://www.alibaba.com/catalog/100402141/Bluetooth_To_Rs232_Adaptor_10m_Converter.html
This one can't be used because the phones are not class 1 devices (~100 mW , ~100m range) but just for the information:
http://www.alibaba.com/catalog/100402139/Bluetooth_Rs232_Adaptor_100m_603004.html
Good luck with your project!!
shmilson
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this is the better way. Unless the phone has a USB host controller (I don't think a lot of them has, most the USB port as client. We can sync because it was the active sync from the PC that initiate and control the session, not from the phone), this bluetooth to RS232 converter seem to be the best solution. I've been looking for something like this for a while.

Thanks for the comments guys, for some reason XDA dev isnt emailing me when comments were placed!
Blue tooth seems like a cool idea, would be better able to hide the bt dongle in the robot! will get hold of one and have a play when I get more than a bunch of wires will post some pics

HD2 (x2) or Touch HD as rear view mirror...

Please be gentle with me, it's my first time, etc etc...
I have a tandem bicycle, and me and the g/f often go off on longish daytrips. It is in the design of most tandems that the shorter person has to go on the back. This means that they can see nothing forwards at all. As she does the navigating this means I have to keep up a constant commentary of what junctions and landmarks are coming towards us while she tries to tally that with the OS map.
I have a pair of HD2s and an old Touch HD with plenty of spare batteries, car holders etc.
I would love to find a way to use a remote camera on the front of the tandem and let her use one of the HD2s as the screen, especially as it has CoPilot live on it which would make the navigation much easier. (I know I said rear view in the title, but I suspect fewer people would look at the thread if I tried to put what I really want up there, and it's no different really.)
I understand that the 'phone's usb ports don't have the required hardware / software to allow me to plug a usb webcam into them.
I suspect that the way forward is to use one HD2 on the front as a bluetooth camera and give her the other as the display, but I doubt that this will be easy, and it will use way more power than a hardwired system which is an issue on a 'bicycle. It already weighs 1/5 tonne with the two of us and some touring gear, so adding a big central power supply would be a shame but is probably inevitable.
There was a brief thread on this on XDA dev in about 2005:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=243337&styleid=15
but it never went anywhere and will now be completely out of date.
Hopefully someone can help or point me in the right direction. Sadly I have no coding skills at all, so it needs to be off the shelf h/w or s/w...
Thanks for reading
ed.

wow...thats one big project you are thinking off...ok, all things cut short, your best bet will be a Bluetooth camera or a wi-fi camera/webcam. for the former, it can be done, but there arent custom drivers that you can just download to support it. even Bluetooth keyboards only recently started working with the HD2. However, what you can do, that will definitely work is a wi-fi based camera. im sure you are familiar with these. these camera have their own IP address and transmit the feed live via a wireless connection. from my experience, it works quite well, but it really depends on the gear you are using. if you are using a good wifi camera(im not familiar with the brands,but obviously the mid ranged ones will be considered good. If you cant find standalone cams, then buy a small wifi surveillance cam), then there will be a stable and lag free transmission. However, to get smooth feed, you need a good network connection. It will be best if you have a fast data or broadband connection on your phone. 3-4MBPS+ will be fine. Then of course, u need to enable your phone as a modem to connect to the camera. I have tried wifi cameras using a wi-fi connection, both on my PC and my HD2. It works smoothly. The cameras were fixed on R/C helicopters and worked at a range of 20m from the modem. Then again, i really have no idea how well it will work for your case. It should be ok, but not sure about 'good'. You can try!
Alternatively, a more compact method will be to disassemble your HD2 right down to the camera and remove the lens cover. Then, disconnect the actual camera from the phone. Get the correct ribbon cable from your local store. I do not know the specifications of the particular cable, but you try going to a smartphone repair shop that sells replacement cameras for the HD2 and take a look at the ribbon cable. Then, you can search for longer ones or manually solder low resistance jumper wires from the connections(there a alot of connections mind you). If you want to do this, please get info on proper disassembly instructions and do alot of research!.
i really admire your endeavor and although it may be hard, best of luck to you and hope you succeed, should you undertake this. Nevertheless, just some small advice...If you are also considering about the budget factor, i think it could be equally expensive or cheap to buy a purpose built remote camera which can connect to a screen.
-cheers

A wi-fi camera on a helmet would give flexibility as to what you were able to view ie could move head to point camera in the direction that one wanted to view
Good luck

Thankyou both!
Sorry I've been a bit slow replying, home internet connection has been intermittent for a week or so...
Kawshigan, can you clarify something for me, when you talk about "fast data or broadband connection on your phone. 3-4MBPS+" are you saying that I should be sending the data via the cellular network? If so that is not going to happen. I don't know where you live but here in Canterbury, a small city in the most populated part of the UK about 50 miles from London, 3G is a dream. There is a 3G service of course, but it is so weak that it is unusable even in the town centre, so trying to use it away from the town for my project will be impossible (and would be very very expensive as we get only 500MB / month here cheaply.)
If you mean forming a wifi connection between the two phones, which I suspect IS what you mean, then surely the speed of the connection is whatever hardware can do, allowing for distance which is about 3' in this case.
I agree that a ready-made system should be a similar price but they do not seem to exist. There is something in the US but it is very expensive ($600?) and is intended more for recording accidents really. certainly it has no nav function. I'm too new here to post links but if you Google on "cerevllum.com" you'll see it, beautiful, expensive & only half the tool I need.
It seems such an obvious thing to do with a smartphone (the rear view camera I mean) as mirrors on bicycles don't work well, and most of the components seem to exist, it just needs someone to tie them together.
I suspect that putting an external camera on my Touch HD is beyond me. My soldering skills are ok, but surface mount stuff is beyond me, not least because I'm 45 years old and my eyesight isn't up to it anymore...
But then again, even as I type this I realise what you actually mean, is to mount the HD2's own camera remotely at the front of the bike and run a long ribbon cable to the rear handlebars. Now THAT is a GOOD idea. Probably I'd start with the Touch HD as my HD2 is still my everyday 'phone and I hope to keep it that way for ever. When I get some time I'll pull the Touch apart and see if it is possible. How long could the cable be before s/n & voltage drop problems etc became too much, I wonder?
The helmet cam doesn't really work as the problem is not so much positioning a camera, (I can do that on the handlebars) but how to get an instant display of what the noggin-cam is seeing onto the screen of a smart phone? The problem with the helmet cam is that I think the viewer would have the same problem that you get watching YouTube videos where the camera is bouncing around and rarely pointing in the right place all the time. The Tandem has good suspension at both ends so it would be ok on the 'bars I think. ( Google on "VCA 2010 Race" for an amazing video that shows this problem a little, and no, we don't do that on the Tandem...)

So when you remoted the CMOS sensor...
Did you end up giving the "extra long ribbon cable" idea a try and if so how did it work (or not. Interested in how it came out.