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Hey,
just upgraded my MDA Vario to the MDA Vario II (my third HTC phone in less than 18 months, these things are addictive) and wanted to share my thoughts for people who might be thnking of doing the same. To a lot of people there doesn't seem much more to shout about between the two but I believe the upgrade is well worth it.
Form Factor, Appearance and Build Quality:
- The Vario II (from here on referred to as as VII) is slightly longer but also marginally thinner than the VI, the difference is only small but to me the reduction in thickness is certainly welcome. The shape of the VII is very similar to the Magician, less rounded compared to the VI and flatter.
- In terms of build quality the VII is far superior, it feels much more solid especially when the keyboard is concealed (you cannot tell that there is one, feels like one continuous unit). The buttons all have a nice tactile feel to them and the jog wheel is very solid.
- Appearance is obviously a subjective matter but in my opinion the VII looks far nicer, especially the dark metallic red keyboard. It has a much more professional look to it, rather than the plasticy VI.
==> The VII takes this round hands down, it's thinner, better looking and more solid feeling with great build quality.
Ease of Use:
- The VII has more buttons than the VI which is a welcome addition for me. I used to map the top buttons (Messaging and IE) to the Start Menu and OK, there are now dedicated buttons below the soft keys. I used to find that I accidently would hit the camera button, so far have not pressed any button by accident on my VII.
- The scroll wheel wasn't a feature I was to bothered about until I used it and have got to say that it makes one handed operation even easier, especially considering there is a second OK button below the wheel which cleverly acts as the Start Menu button when on the today screen meaning you can launch programs using just your thumb. It also allows you to scroll through documents easily although for making large jumps it is a pain. I would mention the equivelent on the VI but that would be the volume slider which was the tackiest part of that phone.
- Another small but overdue feature is the new layout of the number on the keyboard, they are now arranged in a standard numerical block. This feature really comes into its own when dialing a phone number as you now no longer need to double click circle to access the numbers, when your in phone mode you just use the keys and it automatically recognizes that it should use the numbers instead of the letters (this works with SmartDialer and without).
- Keyboard shortcuts have considerably improved, you can now launch File Manager, turn on WiFi and use PgUp/PgDn using the keyboard. There is also a new input method, Symbol Pad which has common and unusual characters in a list (this can be launched directly from the keyboard).
- The stylus is almost identical to that of the VI, although it is very stiff in the VII.
==> Again the VII has some great improvements, some minor but they all add up to make a more satisfying experience using the VII.
Communication:
- Data transfer is the big change between the two devices, the VI has GPRS/EDGE compared to the VII which supports HSDPA. With the VI I only had 6Mb allowance per month and so my general usage was kept to a minimum (MSN, vgsmail and occasional web browsing) and for this purpose GPRS was generally acceptable. Not trying to sound cheesy but HSDPA is going to completly change the way I use my phone, browsing is now almost instaneous even with pictures set to download and I no longer have to worry about how much data I use. Some people mention that although download speeds are impressive there is a lag between loading pages, I have not found this to be the case. I was browsing xda-developers on my phone today and I wouldn't say there was a noticable difference between browsing on my phone and my laptop (4Mbits/s Cable). I did a speedtest on http://www.bandwidthplace.com/speedtest/ and it rated at 1.2Mbits/s (I'm in Leeds)
- Speech quality, without doing professional tests is subjective but in my opinion has improved with the VII as has reception.
==> This is where you'll notice the biggest difference, I don't think it's an overstatement to say that the VII will drastically change the way you use your phone.
NB: The phone came with HSDPA enabled in software but I had to phone customer services (150 from your phone then options 2 => 6, they have to get through the tech department but don't think there's a direct number)
Hardware:
- You can definitly tell that there is a more powerful processor in the VII, menus load without lag and programs load faster. There is a known issue at the moment which affects video playback (search on the forums) but this would be my only grumble with speed. Overall it is far more responsive than the VI (I always had the latest ROM and not one of them matches the VII in responsiveness).
- The one issue the VII has with speed is the length of time it takes to come out of sleep, there is a gud second lag which can get irritating if you just whipped your phone out to check for mesages.
- The camera has received a much needed upgrade as has the camera software. There does seem to be a noticable difference in quality but I don't use it much so won't comment on differences although it is clear that the VII has a better camera than the VI. One thing the VII has which at first I thought was its most pointless feature has actually turned out to be great, on the main camera theres a little macro slider (lets you focus on close-up objects) and it really works. It is excellent for taking photos of documents or writing and you can actually read the text easily from the photo. There is also a second camera on the front for video calling but I don't know anyone who has video calling so cant test it.
- Yet another memory format yet another damn card to buy, the good news is I can't feasably see how a memory format can get smaller then MicroSD without running the risk of it absorbing into your skin so hopefully this one will be around to stay for a little while longer than MiniSD. Have not yet bought a MicroSD card so cannot comment on any performance differences.
- I'm hoping that the battery life on my phone is still being misread as I have only charged it once now but if not then it is awful. I left the house this morning at 9 with a fully charged battery, as I'm still in the honeymoon phase with it I used it constantly until 2pm (webbrowsing, live messenger, no calls, 2 texts, imap idle) and the battery was down to 10%!!!! Another known issue at the moment is that the battery level goes down in 10% blocks, apparently a lot of early ROMs for HTC have this issue and it then gets corrected so fingers crossed. Something else to note is that the VII battery capacity is 100mAh higher (1350mWh vs. 1250mAh).
Update on battery life, it has indeed improved but not as much as I had hoped. My VI is still sitting in my draw, turned on waiting for messages and with no exageration its well over a week between charges. My VII on the other hand needs charging every couple of days, but I do use it a lot.
==> Apart from the battery life the VII beats the VI
Software:
- For the stock ROM unlocking the extended ROM is simply a case of running fit4cats registry tweaker, there seems to be far less less applications in extended rom as well (total ~ 3Mb). For the first time I'm not bothered about letting the extended rom as it doesn't install anything instrusive or bloating.
- Live Messenger Beta runs fine, any problems being related to the software bugs rather than the phone (all my contacts appeared to be offline, had to "Switch User" option to fix that). The voiceclips feature works flawlessly and combined with HSDPA makes for a useful method of communicating when you cant type. Live beta is currently not working
- VGSmail works fine as expected
- Resco Explorer 2005 is fine
CONCLUSION:
The Vario I was a great phone but not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, on the whole it worked but had too many annoyances for me. The Vario II I believe corrects almost every single one of these as well as providing new features. I would not consider this to be a necessary upgrade for those who don't use data communication and can live with the Vario's flaws. For the heavier users I could not recommend this phone more, as I mentioned before I have had the Magician, Wizard and now the Hermes. I'm sure it comes as no surprise that for me this is the best out of the three, but it also the first time I have considered a Pocket PC to be a worthy substitute for a dedicated phone. It truly is an amazing piece of hardware and could not imagine anyone who takes the plunge being the slightest bit disappointed.
Pros:
- HSDPA
- More responsive
- Better keyboard, buttons and general buil quality
- True one handed operation may now be a reality
Cons:
- Battery life (under very heavy usage on new battery)
Hope this helps some people when deciding whether to go for it or not, I will keep this post updated if I think of anything and don't hesitate to post any questions.
When your battery went down that quickly, where you in an area that was spotty with its UMTS reception? (sorry I'm not familiar with your area) I know I am almost on the line of UMTS and no UMTS and when I am on either side of the line I am fine, but when I am close to the line my battery drains ridiculously fast.
after some charges the battery do the best... my Tytn now as about 3days of autonomy...
not comparable with the 2 days of my magician!
great recension...
many thx
bubu
With regards to the battery I know that they take a little while to be worn in and the OS usually takes a while to learn the battery as well so I'm not to worried. I think I was in an area of spotty coverage yes, as I was only getting 3G 75% of the time.
I think this is a great summary so bumping it up for other potential buyers to read.
The new keyboard is rarely mentionned as one of the improvements over the wizard but it really is a big step forward in that department.
cheers for the bump, just a few updates:
- the keyboard issue has corrected itself, it seems that when fresh from the box some of the contacts need to be worn in. all the keys are now as responsive as each other.
- battery life has also improved considerably but that could well be down to me using it less.
- the stylus is now feeling a lot smoother going in and out of the device.
- unfortunatly the screen alignment issue has cropped up on my phone. this is by far the biggest problem people have with these phones. this should not hinder potential buyers as operators are recognizing this as a factory hardware flaw and replacing/repairing it free of charge.
people looking to buy this phone should not be put off by the screen alignment issue. most newer models aren't having this problem but if they do it's just a case of getting it replaced (on that note, make sure you buy from a reputable supplier with good customer service).
hope this helps those looking to buy this great phone.
Great comparison! I'll link it on the PPC Magazine blog!
(BTW, as far as "- Data transfer is the big change between the two devices, the VI has GPRS compared to the VII which supports HSDPA." is concerned: the VI supports EDGE with speeds up to 240 kbps under good circumstances. See http://www.pocketpcmag.com/blogs/index.php?blog=3&p=518&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1 for more benchmarks.)
Guys, hears sweet stuff abot the tytn - but how about tytn vs universal - my current pda . . . i am due an upgrade in like 6 months . . what you guys reckon???
cheers
lr
Thanks Menneisyys for the link and also the correction, have edited the post to include VI having EGDE. The reason I didn't mention it is that tmobile uk doesn't support EDGE so I never got to use it.
I bought a 1Gb Sandisk Transflash/MicroSD card, just stuffed it in the slot and rebooted (for some reason wouldn't appear until I reset, I've noted that other people have also experienced this)... But it just works.
Copied over some xvids via my LAN (PC wired to router, PDA on wifi) using Opera as it's more effective at handling large files than PIE... The files just went. I kept an eye on my upload and I was sending the file to the device at around 550-600kb/sec, which I guess is about the max that 802.11g can handle minus overheads, and the file just wrote without any lag, delay or pauses to the SD card, so I'm very happy with its performance
Not run (or installed) TomTom on it yet, so I've not really had a chance to do a long-duration endurance test of the SD card's throughput performance, but I doubt I'll have many problems compared to the issues I had with my Alpine I know there's apps available which can benchmark your storage card, but I reaaaally can't be bothered to get them right now.
I'm having a continued issue with not being able to sync my device with my computer (just doesn't recognise it at all), but I'm thinking that's a problem with my PC as it's a bit... 'touchy'... anyway All in all, a great device. That is, great device provided you get one without a screen alignment issue! I wish there was an adaptor available to convert the mini USB slot to a standard 3.5mm headphone jack for when you want to listen to music though, that's my only wish - I have some WAY better headphones which I'd love to use with my device say when I'm on the bus going into Uni in the morning, now it can stream live TV over the HSDPA... The included headset is a bit of a waste really.
I hope that the video playback issue in TCPMP is to be resolved soon, because I've had to implement my own workaround for that, but it's just one of those things with any new piece of hardware... You get it soon as it comes out, there's bound to be software bugs. As pleased with my Hermes as I was when I got my Alpine, if not moreso - it's a real all-rounder, and, like a previous poster commented, with the Web 'n Walk tariff, it has also really changed the way I use my phone when I'm on the go.
Brilliant comparison, glad I cancelled my contract with O2 now as they don't have the latest Compact XDA, instead signed with Vodaphone on a better tariff and got the phone FREE (VPA Compact III) instead of having to pay the w*nkers at O2 £150 for the older model!!!
Having been an Exec user previously, this little thing is speedy, compact, neat, modern and has a very 'well designed' feel to it - my Exec in comparison just looks old fashioned and clunky, not to mention a bit creeky with old age!!
Just about to purchase a MicroSD for it, they seem to be about £45 for 2Gb, very good value, I do hope that microSD becomes a standard for memory storage, sick of having to upgrade my desktop Card readers!!!!
Cheers, Ash
Hi there. I've had the MDA Pro/o2 Exec for over 8 months and am very happy with it (except of course it's size which can be uncomfortable). I have an upgrade due in about a week and was wanting to know how the resolution compares to the Pro? I got the MDA Vario and ended up keeping the Pro as the resolution was excellent and the sound quality was better. Just wondering how the Vario II compares to the Pro.
ashleyhall said:
Brilliant comparison, glad I cancelled my contract with O2 now as they don't have the latest Compact XDA, instead signed with Vodaphone on a better tariff and got the phone FREE (VPA Compact III) instead of having to pay the w*nkers at O2 £150 for the older model!!!
Having been an Exec user previously, this little thing is speedy, compact, neat, modern and has a very 'well designed' feel to it - my Exec in comparison just looks old fashioned and clunky, not to mention a bit creeky with old age!!
Just about to purchase a MicroSD for it, they seem to be about £45 for 2Gb, very good value, I do hope that microSD becomes a standard for memory storage, sick of having to upgrade my desktop Card readers!!!!
Cheers, Ash
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I'm out of my contract with O2 and am looking at the Vario with T-Mobile (their web n walk looks very good) but they're advertising the vario (as opposed to the vario II) how do I know which they're dishing out?
http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/Dispatche...phones_ews_overview&menuid=ctl_phones_details
MarkyMark7890 said:
I'm out of my contract with O2 and am looking at the Vario with T-Mobile (their web n walk looks very good) but they're advertising the vario (as opposed to the vario II) how do I know which they're dishing out?
http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/Dispatche...phones_ews_overview&menuid=ctl_phones_details
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The Vario2 is out of stock currently. When it's back in stock, it will be listed as the Vario 2. Meanwhile as your link shows, they're still selling the original.
Ah haaaa, that'd make sense.
I rang them yesterday and the best they could say was sometime towards the end of next week.
Is it safe?
Hi friends.I want to buy an mda vario 2 on ebay.Is it safe.What do i need to search before buying an mda vario 2?Can it be unlocked to be used in any country in the world?Can someone sell one which has screen alignment problems?
Is it safe?
Hi friends.I want to buy an mda vario 2 on ebay.Is it safe?I mean i won't know if it wil be in good condition n i wil also not know if it suffers from the screen alignment problem..What do i need to search or ask before buying it.Can the mda vario 2 be unlocked to be used all round the world?
eBay is a dangerous place to buy this kind of thing from, apparently there are quite a few scams going on relating to this phone. If you ask a seller about the screen alignment problem it is very unlikely they will tell you the truth as they can just claim afterwards that it developed after they sent it to you. You could obviously ask for the serial number but that is no guarentee that it won't develop the problem (as far as I know there isn't a single serial number that hasn't had some duff units).
You will have to use your own judgement but personally I think buying this phone from a private seller at this point is dangerous. Plus if the price on eBay is ludicrously low, it's almost certainly a duff listing.
Good luck
Thanks for your advice.I searhed for the mda vario 2 on tmobile.co.uk but it seems that it is out of stock.Could you tell me what is the cheapest price plan concernin this phone?Thanks.
T-Mobile UK are having serious stock issues with this phone, I've been waiting a month for my local T-Mobile shop to get some Vario IIs in so that I can get a replacement. Personally I think their flext packages are very competitive when combined with W'n'W. I currently pay about £38 per month and I get unlimited browsing and £180 worth of texts and calls included. Probably a tad too much but it means I get to use my phone without worrying about usage as I know I'll never go over my allowance. Also going for the bigger package meant I got the phone cheaper (I only paid £40 for the handset), plus I can downgrade my package after 6 months.
My advice would be to go to your local T-Mobile shop and haggle with them, there's a fair few deals that they can do for you. Obviously it would help if they had some stock.
I'm currently the owner of a launch day Touch Diamond - which cost me about £465 back in June from Devicewire.
Prior to that, I had a 16gb iPhone - which I really liked, but missed the features of a regular phone like picture messaging etc.
I'm running one of Dutty's last ROMS on the Diamond, it works perfectly and does pretty much everything I want. The only downer for me is the size of the screen. I go on 3 or 4 holidays abroad a year and the iPhone was ideal for filling with videos and watching them on the plane. I'm just back from my New Year break and borrowed a friends iPod Touch to use rather than watching videos on my Diamond for the bigger screen.
I have the HTC 1340mah battery in too which makes the battery a good bit better than the stock one, but its still needs a charge most nights. I also have the HTC charging cradle...
Has anyone here upgraded from a Diamond to a Touch HD? How do you find it in comparison? Bearing in mind I've spent about £500 on this phone, cradle and extended battery - is it worth paying another £550 for the Touch HD? Obviously I can eBay my Diamond and maybe get a few quid for it - but with heaps of them on just now they're not going for that much!
yes
I had the touch pro for three weeks and hated using it. Ive had the Touch HD for four weeks now and love it. the Touch Pro was just painfull entering text or surfing.
I switched from Diamond to HD about 6 weeks ago and I don´t regret it. I still have the Diamond but never use it (I like to have a spare phone..just in case). The HD runs slick right out of the box, I don´t think I´ll flash it anytime soon. The screen is just awesome, not only because it´s big but it´s also more responsible. And you have quite a bunch of MB´s more free RAM + a Micro SD card which is included in the box. I´ll say go for it
I also had a Touch Pro and now much happier with the HD.
The HD is really great !! The Touch Pro was good but I found I did not need the keyboard so often and it was a heavy price, sic, to pay for it. The screen quality on the Touch Pro is very good but it's small compared to the HD.
The HD fits very well to my ideal device - very thin but large. The Touch Pro was too fat and had a too small display.
I upgraded to a Diamond but sent it back cos I wasnt getting on with it. Upgraded to a HD but yet to receive it.
Seriously considering just selling it on ebay and cash in. Upgrading from a nokia n95 which is all I need.
Do you think if i didnt get on with the diamond id struggle with the hd?
Hamudi2000 said:
I switched from Diamond to HD about 6 weeks ago and I don´t regret it. I still have the Diamond but never use it (I like to have a spare phone..just in case). The HD runs slick right out of the box, I don´t think I´ll flash it anytime soon. The screen is just awesome, not only because it´s big but it´s also more responsible. And you have quite a bunch of MB´s more free RAM + a Micro SD card which is included in the box. I´ll say go for it
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Click to collapse
Same situation and opinion
i havnt had a diamond , but i did use my ipod touch a lot for movies and music so the main reason for me to upgrade from my n95 was to have an all in 1 device .
I play my movies using core player which i find very good (no jerkiness during playback etc)
And playing music is also fine , so while id say if i was just going to use it as a phone id have stuck with my n95 but if your going to use it for multi media id say Go for it
Recently there were a few threads that covered this topic a lot. Browse through the past 3 or 4 pages.
g4orce99 said:
I upgraded to a Diamond but sent it back cos I wasnt getting on with it. Upgraded to a HD but yet to receive it.
Seriously considering just selling it on ebay and cash in. Upgrading from a nokia n95 which is all I need.
Do you think if i didnt get on with the diamond id struggle with the hd?
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Hard to say mate since we are not aware of what you where struggling it functionality wise... all I can tell you is that ive had a few windows mobile devices and always liked them due to suiting my lifestyle just fine...the hd is by far the one is use even more of its achievable function on such as web (most pages can be fully viewd without side scrolling and still looking pretty much as seen on your desktop and pages are readable without zooming in) and general digging into the menus without the need of the stylus!! but windows mobile is like marmite...you either love it or hate it
agent003 said:
windows mobile is like marmite...you either love it or hate it
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That should be a tagline here, it's the perfect answer!
I also traded in my 16GB iphone for a first release diamond which was great at first but had me craving the speed and the screen of the apple product despite it's limitations.
Moving up to the HD was, for me, the perfect blend of the two. With a few tweaks i have considerably better speed than the Diamond and a bigger better screen than the iphone.
iphone movie playback and touch is still better but being able to copy text from websites and send in an email via exchange to work colleagues when researching stuff is invaluable.
the camera indoors and at night is a pile of poop tho
my diamond sits in a drawer, the HD does everything better and faster.. what DPad?!? Don't even miss it
2unique said:
the camera indoors and at night is a pile of poop tho
my diamond sits in a drawer, the HD does everything better and faster.. what DPad?!? Don't even miss it
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I bet the camera is still better than the iPhone's measly 2mp camera in the dark though.
To be honest the only time I ever use the D-pad on my Diamond is to zoom in / out on links that are too small to hit with my fingers!
How do you mean the movie playback isn't as good on the HD as the iPhone?
Another good reason for changing it to save carrying a stupid USB headphone adapter about with me!
I've been watching a couple of Dimonds on eBay - and I can probably get about £200 for it - plus another few £'s for my dock and extended battery.
I was hoping that some people would tell me not to bother changing as they were very similar - but it seems everyone prefers the Touch HD! Looks like my wallet is going to take another battering!!! I think play.com seems to be the cheapest at £500 inc delivery?
I might have a look in my Orange store today and see what they can give me on a contract - as I currently have no ties.
Thanks for all the input though...
p3eps said:
How do you mean the movie playback isn't as good on the HD as the iPhone?
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allow me to retract that as of today http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=467112
ask in the diamond forum, might get a few reasons to save your money !!
Heck yea its worth it I am with sprint....about to cancel to jump ship to T-mobile. I had the TOUCH, DIAMOND, and TOUCH PRO. None of them compare to the Blackstone. The vogue was ok, which i kept as my back-up phone. The diamond, I hated the bottom buttons, kept freezing up and not responding. The TOUCH PRO let me down because i thought i could convince myself that the whole "Slide out keyboad" was ok for me, but after a week, i realized I was a touch screen person. So now when i cancel my sprint plan in a day or two, i will be selling the TOUCH PRO, and Vogue. Trust me, the HD is worth it
agent003 said:
Hard to say mate since we are not aware of what you where struggling it functionality wise... all I can tell you is that ive had a few windows mobile devices and always liked them due to suiting my lifestyle just fine...the hd is by far the one is use even more of its achievable function on such as web (most pages can be fully viewd without side scrolling and still looking pretty much as seen on your desktop and pages are readable without zooming in) and general digging into the menus without the need of the stylus!! but windows mobile is like marmite...you either love it or hate it
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Good post!
It's coming at some stage on Monday but as i said i'm questioning even opening the seal as I could sell it on ebay as a sealed box and make a few quid on it.
The way I look at mobiles I always ask myself could i answer a call or send a brief text message while im driving? like I can with my Nokia N95. (Not that i use my phone when driving but to me thats classed as "easy usage".
With the Diamond I found that calls were being answered in my pocket which was pissed me off something cronic. I found the touch screen un-responsive and after I installed tomtom it slowed the whole phone down and made touch flo very blocky and slow.
That was pretty much it and I wasnt 100% that I could live with these problems for 18 months so took advantage of the 7 day return policy.
Can anyone name another phone that has:
-The same size screen as the HD
-An accelerometer
-7.2 mbit HSDPA
-GPS
-Front facing camera for videophone
-Video recording capabilities
-Expandable ram to 64gb
-5+ megapixel camera
-Hotswap SD cards
-User removeable battery
Afaik there is no other phone with this functionality.
gold333 said:
Can anyone name another phone that has:
-The same size screen as the HD
-An accelerometer
-7.2 mbit HSDPA
-GPS
-Front facing camera for videophone
-Video recording capabilities
-Expandable ram to 64gb
-5+ megapixel camera
-Hotswap SD cards
-User removeable battery
Afaik there is no other phone with this functionality.
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Yes stats are great. But as much as i hate saying it the iphone has something unrelated to stats. It has the (make up some word) WOOOOOWZER factor to it. The touch screen is the best, the web browsing is the best so i keep hearing & (nothing todo with the phone) it has REAL unlimited internet. Swings and Roundabouts my friend.
+ ive gotta be honest Id rather use a 2mp cam with a flash than a 5 without. I goto a lot of parties!
g4orce99 said:
Yes stats are great. But as much as i hate saying it the iphone has something unrelated to stats. It has the (make up some word) WOOOOOWZER factor to it. The touch screen is the best, the web browsing is the best so i keep hearing & (nothing todo with the phone) it has REAL unlimited internet. Swings and Roundabouts my friend.
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I got unlimited internet for less on my HD, cause I don't pay apple tax. I pay 24 euro a month(18 months) which includes 200 min calling and unlimited internet access, Iphone starts at 35 euro a month(24 months) here and only 150 min. No matter how I look at it, iphone was a bummed deal(especially not able to do whatever you want unless you jailbreak).
edit:
PS. Iphone doesn't have flash either last time I checked. But I do have to say I was thoroughly not amused by the 3 seconds autofocus/shutter time on the HD. Other than that I love my HD more than any phone I owned previously.
Hi
I am currently using a O2 Mini S / HTC wizard and love it.
For the past few years, I have just upgraded and sold the phone on Ebay... now I have been offered this :
600 mins + 1000 texts (dont care about)... and unlimited internet! for £20 a month.
I have been offered a variety of phones including the Nokia 5800 and LG renoir... or if I spend £100, I can get a x1.
I just have no idea.
I went to a shop to take a look and find it generally ok, but I think the keyboard feels a bit... bad...
My wizard only has a 1.3Mp camera, but I am very happy with it. It does not lie... if I see a picture on the screen, I press the button and it takes fast. Is the camera here better than the wizard?
Anyway, I have an Exchange server, and just love the way it syncs.
The other thing I was thinking of is getting the nokia and selling it, then using the sim card in my wizard, however it is not 3g, and obviously really slow.
All I read here is people upgrading / reflashing their X1, is it really that bad?
I am just in two minds and have no idea what to do. What would you do?... should I wait for HTC touch Pro 2?
Thanks
William
MY PERSONAL OPINION
Hated the X1 at first, was all hyped up and everyone was raving about how good it will be and it just wasnt so
It WAS slow, USED to crash all the time, and the ui was appauling. I mean i nearly got rid of it several times and even through it across the house once cause it crashed during a very important call.
Now its awesome!
The update has made a huge difference, the software, tweaks and addons supplied by the users of this site along with other sites have made the X1 into a really powerful piece of kit.
YOU CANNOT get it out of the box and fall in love it takes some tweaking to customise it to your exact spec and needs.
Trust me its not easy at first but it will get better as you use it more. Plus more updates and tweaks from all users that i am VERY GRATEFULL for will make it even better.
just my opinion
I dont think the x1 keyboard is bad, it takes time to get used to any small keyboard - and/or the keyboard beds in - either way I find the keyboard fine now.
The camera has never been much good on my X1 - loads of lag and blurred pictures in low light, that could be a hardware problem - there are some roms with a new leaked cam from the R3 firmware which SE has not released yet, I dont know if this is better or not - any others comment?
I like everything else about the X1.
I'm another one that hated the phone....but it was my first smartphone.I had used Sony Ericsson phones for years and couldn't wait for it.
Was sooo disappointed until I found XDA....and then learned about flashing, and then....YOU WILL PRIZE MY X1 OUT OF MY COLD DEAD FINGERS!!!
I'm using Jack's ROM which I love (Mainly because TFL3D fitted my personality)
My only complaint is that it can't play Xvid's natively (They require conversion).
I will hang around and get an X2 (Whatever it may be) as long as they keep the same size phone and resolution. (Iphone is too large width wise)
I think X1 is good WM phone, if not the best.
But I realized WM is poor operating system for phone, if not the worst.
I bought X1 2 weeks before Palm Pre announcement. If I could decide now, I would leave my old stupid phone and unconnected PDA .. and I would wait.
THJahar said:
Was sooo disappointed until I found XDA....and then learned about flashing, and then....YOU WILL PRIZE MY X1 OUT OF MY COLD DEAD FINGERS!!!
I'm using Jack's ROM which I love (Mainly because TFL3D fitted my personality)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have heard so many people say this and I am just thinking, I should wait for the HTC touch pro, that would require no hacking to get this working...
The only real positive I can see for having the X1 is the screen, but the HTC pro 2 is also a high res screen... and being newer, it is more likly to have WM 6.5 in the future.... I know there are so many hacks here, but I would prefer to go via the manufacturer.
At the end of the day, a X1 will cost me £460 in 18 months time, where as having a 5800 or renoir will cost £360, or if I choose just to take sim only, probably around £40... I think I will not take a phone and in a years time, I will probably be able to get a HTC touch pro 2 or x1 on ebay for a fraction of the price.
Thanks to the guides here, I opened up my Wizard and was able to fix the vibrator so it really is perfect for me... I would LOVE to have 3g and check my email on the moove, but I have survived years without it... oh well!
I am still in two minds, but anyway...
If I remember correctly, the Wizard has Edge, right? If your operator (or another one) provides it, I think this is a good option in the mid term. It's almost as fast as the first version CDMA, only the latency is much higher.
Regarding the Touch Pro 2, it will be larger than the X1, quite a brick actually. It's actually a Touch HD with the thickness of the X1 - you can get an idea of it when you compare the two devices in a store. The Touch HD has quite a large screen area, but is not as thick as the X1. The X1 has a smaller area though. Combine the two, and you will get the Touch Pro 2. If you think you can put that into your pocket (together with its weight), then it may be the most powerful device that is upcoming. My impression is, that the Touch Pro 2's keyboard will be great and lot's better than the X1s.
The X1 keyboard is bad by the way, but you can learn how to write with it at acceptable speed. My Hermes keyboard was way better though.
Is it just me or everyone had a problem with X1's keyboard? When I push a button I either can't get any character or I get triple... where can I change the repeat rate and/or sensitivity?
Jasand said:
MY PERSONAL OPINION
Hated the X1 at first, was all hyped up and everyone was raving about how good it will be and it just wasnt so
It WAS slow, USED to crash all the time, and the ui was appauling. I mean i nearly got rid of it several times and even through it across the house once cause it crashed during a very important call.
Now its awesome!
The update has made a huge difference, the software, tweaks and addons supplied by the users of this site along with other sites have made the X1 into a really powerful piece of kit.
YOU CANNOT get it out of the box and fall in love it takes some tweaking to customise it to your exact spec and needs.
Trust me its not easy at first but it will get better as you use it more. Plus more updates and tweaks from all users that i am VERY GRATEFULL for will make it even better.
just my opinion
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You threw it across the house and it's still working!? Well, so someone has tested that the X1 can survive a big drop.
Fully agree with the first reply: Used to have Symbian business-phones like P1i, all Communicators which came perfect out of the box, I thought after unpacking the X1 and started it first time that X1 is a peace of crap. But never give up too early:
Found this wonderful site and started learning, tweaking and flashing my X1, and after several mistrials I ended up with cHarOns fast&lite rom, adding MS-voice command, Sprite backup, XTract and several nice apps, and it is now running like a charme. No reboots, no dropped calls, and everybody who gets a hand on my phone is really impressed.
I believe WinMob is NOT and will never be best for phones or handhelds, but if you like to fumble and make experiments, you jumped on the right train.
Huhh, experiments with a business phone? Yap, that is what gives you xperiance!
let me see... lousy camera
special keyboard producing triples or spaces or no spaces
slowness
high price
poor support (at least for my area )
N O
leobox1 said:
let me see... lousy camera
special keyboard producing triples or spaces or no spaces
slowness
high price
poor support (at least for my area )
N O
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I loved it to begin with but hated windows mobile. Flashed the touch it rom and the phone is so much better, wouldn't trade my x1 for anything
You don't even need to tweak your phone to get touch flo 3d, you can install it as a cab and it becomes just another today item.
I love the phone so much. I definitely would have got the touch pro 2 if I could because I used to be used to the universal so a chunky phone was not a problem for me! However, having experienced the X!... its just a beautiful piece of hardware! Aethetics rarely interests geeks but once you get used to how it feels, the way it slides open, etc. I just love it. The keyboard is not great but definitely looks amazing and you can put it in your pocket and forget about it.
Definitely getting the x1 again if I am starting all over again...
There is no other phone on the market now that could think of to replace it with...
With the new roms I love it even more.
Have been using it since Oct, no regrets.
I think owning this phone just proved to me that 1. convergence is a very bad idea -- definitely carry separate devices for everything; and that 2. I'd be much happier with an iPhone.
So no, I'll probably just sell my three-month old X1 for 1/3 of the price I paid, because people are already refusing to pay anymore for a used one.
Did I mention the headphone jack left unsightly scratches on the plugs of every pair of headphones I own?
First I liked it... did loads of research and then went to a shop picked it up and played with it... loved the display...
Now I love it... never leaves my side and its simply indispensible... The keyboard does take some getting used to and I did have to upgrade my sim to a 3g one as they didnt send me one but its awesome...
I use the R2AA 10 ROM (very very good btw)and will upgrade to the R3AA when its here... as yet I have had no urge to flash different ROMs from the guys here... ok I have had the urge but as exams are coming up and I have a couple of dissertations to right I just dont have the time... sigh..
Finally where are you getting this deal? if you pay less up front (ie free phone or £50) is the deal more expensive?
I'd buy one again, though i'd be very tempted to wait for the Touch Pro 2 instead. A few months ago i was wishing i went for the Touch HD instead, but now i've got in to the Office side of things the keyboard is proving invaluable. I planned to buy a netbook, but it's really not needed because i can surf the web and run Word/Excel on the X1
One thing i do regret though is not putting a case on it straight away, it's scratched to bits. I'm actually tempted to "accidentally" drop it down the loo before my insurance runs out...
Thank you everyone here,
I have decided not to get it...
I really do love the look of it, however I went to the shop again, and I just can not stand the keyboard... I have so many small devices, but I just find the feedback so... soft (is that the word?) I like to know I pressed the key, and it just didnt seem to feel right to me.
At the end of the day, I would be on a 18 month contract, and in 18 months time, I will be £460 down on a phone that (By reading from here) may have cracks... not supported by SE, lousy camera, and general annoyances.
So many people talk about flashing their phones... imho, it should be perfect to begin with.
I know winmo has its flaws, but I really love it... the moment I am in wireless range of my network, I get all my emails and sync with exchange... or just link via USB or bluetooth to my laptop.
I love having one calander, contact list, notes and more... I know other phones can do this, but I just dont think it is as flawless or as simple.
Right now, I was offered a retentions deal which after credit, works out at around £45 at the end of 18 months... by then, hopefully I can pick up a older touch pro, or x1 from ebay for a fraction of the price, or a new x3 or whatever is out by then!
I would love any new smartphone, but frankly, I am happy with what I got... why spend a extra £415 (over 18 months).
Thanks everyone,
Wil
wilhil said:
Thank you everyone here,
I have decided not to get it...
I really do love the look of it, however I went to the shop again, and I just can not stand the keyboard... I have so many small devices, but I just find the feedback so... soft (is that the word?) I like to know I pressed the key, and it just didnt seem to feel right to me.
Wil
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I felt the same as you did about the keyboard when I first bought the phone (I order it over the net and never have the chance to test the device before buying it). And it took about 2 weeks to get used to. Now this keyboard is completely fine for me to type with
I used to use a iMate JASJAM and like the x1, the keyboard just feels alot easier to type than the x1 when I first bought it.
However after getting used to the X1 keyboard, I can't type on my JASJAM anymore haha............
Absolutely Yes, I would get one. I haven't had a single moment of regret. It's simply the best phone I've ever had.
Although I must say I waited enough to be sure that the software issues (lagging etc) were fixed.
Would like to have a thread where people gave their thoughts and stuff why they bought a D2 instead of some other device and so on. So let me start of here:
I upgraded from Diamond to Diamond 2 because the screen is bigger, it got memory card, it got 4 much better hardware keys and the D-Pad is gone (I hated it on my Diamond). Also because it got more RAM and memory built in than the Diamond.
my first winmo phone was an O2 Flame. massive bulky thing, though it sported a nice big 640x480 screen.
id briefly used a touch pro through work and i loved manila and also the great aesthetic design of their phones... well most of them. after pouring over the specs of the phones in my budget it came down to 2 devices, the HD and the D2.
in the end i went with the d2 as the main difference was screensize. having previously done the whole GIANT PHONE thing, i turned to the D2 as it packed the same punch in a slightly more compact and classy frame. dont get me wrong, the blackstone looks sharp, but with its all black design its a bit plain for me. nothing compared to a little brushed metal here and there.
i'm mighty impressed with the phone so far, extremely clean and crisp screen, fast fast fast, great video playback etc. and although it sounds funny, it feels like you get your moneys worth because its a solid little brick to hold. none of this flimsy plastic nokia stuff. not only does it feel good but its taken a beating. ive dropped it countless times during my drunken shenanigans and so far its got a slight split in the digitiser between the 'H' in the htc logo in the top left corner and the frame, and a few dints in the metal casing. still works a treat.
another good thing, which should also apply to the blackstone, is that the two devices are similar enough that alot of community built software that will work on one, works on the other with minimal or no tweaking. this gives us access to much more apps/customisation/themes than we could normally expect from a device that has unique hardware/software
I've been using a Dell Axim x50 for years and symbian phones (Noika's).
Just got sick of carrying two units around (and I could get a sim free TD2 from work for 100 quid, I'd be daft not too).
Getting tomorrow morning and I've got the afternoon off to play with it, flash a few cooked roms and load lots and lots of pointless software I'll never use (as usual...)
Love this WM
I have used S710 before and lost that. Also used HTC Touch for few days . Since then I am in love with WM phones.
I opted for TD2:
1) One of the BEST WM phone that I could get in my budget.
2) Bigger screen
3) Better touch
4) Upgrade for WM 6.5 will be FREE (May be WM 7 will work on this )
5) Better H/W (CPU, RAM, Available Free space etc)
6) GPS is inbuilt + has 3G + FM Radio
7) Last but NOT last, it is from HTC
Upgrade from P3400
I had an HTC P3400 Gene for 2 years and the time came for an upgrade.
My criteria were:
It had to be HTC
It had to have GPS, WIFI, 3g, Touchscreen
The Diamond 2 was the right solution at the right time at the right price!
This is my first handheld device
I think this one includes every new technology, including the ones mentioned above this post
I cant wait for the new free 6.5 + manila 2.5 update
... because it told me to.
I went backpacking around Europe for 5 weeks (great fun!), but before I left I wanted a new phone with Wifi & GPS.
I watched some Touch Diamond 2 reviews and I really liked the interface and some of the stuff you can do with WinMobile. I was sold!
- Bored on a 13 hour flight? Watch some TV shows!
- Lost in Spain at 3am? Use TomTom to find the hostel!
- Want to share photos from Croatia? Find a wifi hotspot!
- What does that sign mean? Use Google Translate!
- Lost a printed copy of your booking? Open the PDF backup!
This phone made backpacking too easy
Best winmo phone I've ever used!!
I had the original HTC Touch (ELF) and really liked its form factor but it was kinda slow.
I then bought the Samsung Omnia but was really disappointed with it's performance. Really bad lag on the Omnia.
I then saw the review for the D2 and was really impressed with the performance. Just had to have it. Takes great pictures too.
Beats the Omnia by a mile.
previous previous phone is nokia 7610 which sucks because of it physical keypad.
previous phone is htc touch (elf) which attracted me because it is mainly touch screen and windows mobile has a wide selection of applications.
it served me well although little internal disk space and ram.
upgraded to topaz, because of xda-developer community, which has selfless cooks like NRGZ28(EnergyROM), windows mobile 6.5, good hardware, good battery(can last around 1.5 day), and time to trade in my old phone for a new one.
Before I had the htc P3300 a very good and complete pda, but my actual htc D2 is better than P3300 for all points of view:
- camera
- display (size, sensibility and risolution)
- rom e ram size
- general performances
- 3g connectivity
- form factor
- software included.
Actually I started to love D2 because of its default wallpaper. It's a pic of fire and at the first look it looks like a phoenix. Really beautiful! And then I started to know this phone. Big touch screen, GPS, WIFI, 3g, and more beautiful than Diamond. So I got it.
TD2 or Ominia 2? Ominia 2 actually has got better specs.
Bought TD2 as I used to own a Himalaya which lasted 4 yrs. But I was dead wrong as my TD2 earpeice died within 2 weeks.
Ckth said:
TD2 or Ominia 2? Ominia 2 actually has got better specs.
Bought TD2 as I used to own a Himalaya which lasted 4 yrs. But I was dead wrong as my TD2 earpeice died within 2 weeks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Omnia may have better specs, but HTC has always been a clear choice for me, I never liked Samsung or any other carrier. And who uses the original headset anyway?
I had 5 or so Palm organisers, but left Palm behind and jumped to Windows Mobile about 3 years ago when Palm were unable to offer a reasonably compact phone/organiser. Never needed a keyboard, but wanted wi-fi, bluetooth and hi-res screen in a compact package. HTC with TouchFlo seems the best ergonomics so went for the TD2 (Topaz).
My first smartphone was the Diamond 1 and it's possibilities and this forums really blew my mind.
TD2 was the natural upgrade, more screen size, ram etc. and overall SMALL SIZE. I still miss a good camera with flash and TVout, those two features would make the phone perfect.
my td2
i had the htc touch, like it, but went onto the sony p1
loved the p1 but it was getting old (i still use it every so often)
but liked the look of it
was going for the pre, but the constant delay, annoyed me so i got this and love it
Because i liked the Elf, Polaris, Diamond, and now the Diamond2
Had qtek 9100 previously and after that I had Hermes for almost 2 and a half years -that got old (and I got it paid) so I searched for a new phone. Looked at Touch HD but it was way too expensive compared to TD2 (altough I would have liked the 3.5mm headphone plug).
the reason i bought a TD2
I was naive
honestly...it's the worst phone i've ever had
Ever since getting one, i always hated the Iphone and would always slag people off if they had one...but you know what...I bow my head in shame and confess that i should've got one.
Iphone waste too much money on tv adverts...they should just make that says
''The Iphone....Atleast it works'' because it does.
My TD2 is absolutely useless...I've had it for about 4-5 months
It just doesn't work most the time. Or it crashes loads. Or just does stupid things that i don't tell it too
The battery is also useless...
If someone says their battery lasts longer than 1 day with normal usage...they are LYING! and lots of other people will agree.
At first, when they said the battery would last 4-5 days, i was teasing all the iphone users because they get max 2 days...but now i keep the fact that my battery is useless a secret. because theirs is better.
I've tried TF3d and SPshell but at the end of the day a pig with make up on is still ugly.
It's really the worst phone i've had (and i've had a lot) and i will never be going back to HTC
now that iphone has hspda...i can't think of a reason why not to get one. At least it works!
Hello,
i've been a "reasonably" happy user of my x1 since it's launch day and
was wondering if the HD2 is a worthwhile replacement as I'm used to using WM and not a great lover of the iphone.
I am due an upgrade in May next year, but my x1 was damaged in a motorbike accident and it's taking ages for the third party insurance to sort payments out
and I miss my x1 (for emails/music/web browsing etc)
I was thinking of ordering a HTC HD2 from devicewire and hopefully get some money from the insurance to pay towards it eventually.
but
will i not be overwhelmed by it or will a better phone be out come may.
thanks
Joe
Forget about buying it, you can just look at pictures of the HD2 and it's already worth it over the X1.
It's funny to be worried about being overwhelmed by it and then be concerned if a better phone will be out next may, to may be overwhelm you even more.
I have a friend who went from an X1 to a Touch Pro 2 and he say's it so much better than his X1. If your gonna to miss the keyboard then don't get the HD2 but a 1GHz processor with a 4.3" capacitive screen will should be the best WM experience to date.
yosagojimbo said:
Hello,
i've been a "reasonably" happy user of my x1 since it's launch day and
was wondering if the HD2 is a worthwhile replacement as I'm used to using WM and not a great lover of the iphone.
I am due an upgrade in May next year, but my x1 was damaged in a motorbike accident and it's taking ages for the third party insurance to sort payments out
and I miss my x1 (for emails/music/web browsing etc)
I was thinking of ordering a HTC HD2 from devicere and hopopefully get some money from the insurance to pay towards it eventually.
but
will i not be overwhelmed by it or will a better phone be out come may.
thanks
Joe
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still have a working x1. Since my hd2 arrived it's just been lying on the corner of a shelf. Thanks to the snapdragon, the fast and snappy response is more than enough to compensate for the keyboard. And the screen.. its just majestic. You can also touch type pretty decently on it. The battery life is some what a downer. Well, if I remember correctly; during the early days, the x1's battery life was not all that impressive. Hoping after some time and effort from the xda-dev communi thts i issue will be solved to some degree. Try to go to a store to see if you can get a live demo and play with it to see if the size and etc are ok with you.
thanks,
i've been into my local o2 shop and they've not even heard of it (shrugs..lol)
I know that teething issues etc can be sorted using the wonderful help from xda-dev, and my main point of concern was loosing the keyboard
(but considering the keyboard on my x1 was not he most responsive then I guess that shouldn't be a deal breaker).
I know a few people are concerned about the HD2 having problems/issues
but i imagine a high percentage of people are really happy with theirs
as you normally only see posts regarding problems, not "I happy with mine and it works great" posts.
sounds like i've sold it to myself anyway....lol
I'll have to buy it soon as VAT goes up in jan so the prices will go up
Hi, I went from the X1 to the HD2 and haven't looked back at all.
I was very unsure about buying a WM phone without a d-pad, i had the TP2 and didin't like it at all, but the HD2 is soo much better, it is so instantly fast and the screen is great that you really don't need a d-pad or physical keyboard.
There were some games that I couldn't use anymore, so there are some sacrifices to do.
I still miss a d-pad here and there (specially when I use the phone and I want to call someone who I previously called) but not enough to make me go back to the X1.
Overall very happy with the HD2 for me it's a keeper. At least until the next one comes around
Same here, from X1 to HD2 never looking back.
Faster, better reception. The screen is huge, looking back at the X1 it's like looking at a mini minor.
I love this phone, never going back.
erosennin said:
Same here, from X1 to HD2 never looking back.
Faster, better reception. The screen is huge, looking back at the X1 it's like looking at a mini minor.
I love this phone, never going back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too. Everything you can do on the X1 can be done better on the HD2.
kinnyfaifai said:
Me too. Everything you can do on the X1 can be done better on the HD2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...and in most (if not all) cases, it dare to say even *much* better.
Just an example:
Next to all the advantages of the huge screen, some really practical issues are
extremely obvious: With X1, I never had a satfix like with HD2. The reception
is as good as my external Holux receiver, navigation works for me as if I had
a PNA unit.
As a frequent flasher of different ROMs, I must say the "real thing" feels so
much better...
well blokes,
I ordered one in the early hours of the morning and it should be in my hands tomorrow
yosagojimbo said:
well blokes,
I ordered one in the early hours of the morning and it should be in my hands tomorrow
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've done the same as you ..ordered sim free del'd tomorrow by 12pm
My X1 is shaped like a banana now it has that many cracks
I've still not got mine from devicewire yet
yosagojimbo said:
well blokes,
I ordered one in the early hours of the morning and it should be in my hands tomorrow
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you got it yet?
And there's not just blokes on here
johncmolyneux said:
Have you got it yet?
And there's not just blokes on here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oops
although I'd think johncmolyneux was a blokes id ....lol
anyway, still not got it
tictac0566 said:
...and in most (if not all) cases, it dare to say even *much* better.
Just an example:
Next to all the advantages of the huge screen, some really practical issues are
extremely obvious: With X1, I never had a satfix like with HD2. The reception
is as good as my external Holux receiver, navigation works for me as if I had
a PNA unit.
As a frequent flasher of different ROMs, I must say the "real thing" feels so
much better...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally agree.
Haven't missed my X1 at all since I've had my HD2. I too thought that the lack of keyboard would be an issue (my main reason for getting the X1) but the on screen keyboard is at least as good as the hw keyboard on the X1.
Combine that with the fact that everything you do on an HD2 just happens as soon as you click it - no more waiting for the camera to eventually take a picture or wondering if you clicked to pick up an incoming call or not
As for the GPS - it's brilliant. Last night, indoors, it took six seconds to pick up nine satellites - even my TomTom external receiver can't match that.
yosagojimbo said:
although I'd think johncmolyneux was a blokes id ....lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm just trying to look sensitive in front of the girls in here lol
yosagojimbo said:
anyway, still not got it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Gutting. Don't worry about it - I've got mine, so at least one of us is okay
Got mine
just gotta back up my x1 before i try to transfer everything across
i killed my x1 because of the keyboard. i am happy with my HD2
I passed from x1 to HD2 (still have my x1 though) but is way different, no regrets at all
I have also gone from an x1 to a hd2. when I look now at my x1, the screen is so tiny! When I got the X1 i definately felt like it needed some modifications, and I couldn't wait to start flashing newROMs but I don't feel like that with the HD2 at all!