Just received my Snap this morning. - Dash 3G, Snap General

As the title says - just arrived from clove.co.uk, unlocked.
My initial impressions are very good! The device feels extremely fast in use and the boot-up time is the shortest of any of the 7 or so WM devices I have used over the years. One key issue for me with previous devices is the time taken to initiate a new SMS, particularly from cold (i.e. the messaging application not running in the background). The cold SMS is significantly faster compared with my Vox and TyTn II, and the "warm" SMS is essentially instant. The unlocked HTC ROM is also very clean, which is nice - I guess the network operators will be working out how to install a load of crap on there to slow things down on the locked handsets, perish the though that we actually have a device which operates at a reasonable speed! I've been ENORMOUSLY frustrated with the basic general speed of operation of smartphones over the past few years - I am hopeful the Snap will be a break from the this, it certainly seems that way so far.
The keyboard is VERY nice and easy to use (I would say I have average-sized fingers) and the trackball seems fine (although it will take a bit of getting used to compared to a D-pad). It's a real trackball which actually moves in its socket, rather than an optical one - so it doesn't seem like it will be difficult to use with sweaty fingers. There's a settings application to control the trackball sensitivity too - I set the sensitivity to high for now and am happy with the speed with which you can scroll through emails etc.
Thusfar the only slight pest is that you need to remove both the back cover and the battery to remove the SIM card (I swap SIM cards pretty regularly). You also need to remove the back cover to swap the microSD card, although for me this is less of an issue. It has one of those rubber protector strips over the USB connector, similar to the Vox - hopefully it will be possible to remove this without damaging it.
This is the first landscape-only device I've used - I can see there are pros and cons to this (one con being the more limited vertical space on the homescreen if you use the classic WM homescreen - I'm not so keen on the sliding panels interface).
The ROM version is CE OS 5.2.21048 (Build 21048.1.6.3).
I'll report more later. If anyone has any questions please post and I'll try to answer.

i just got mine and immediately was impressed by the speed and power out of a windows mobile phone (normally all WinMo ive had has had a bit of lag) The only problem i have with the device is that the vibration setting is very low. any ideas on how to raise it up few notches?

Sp33d_Dialz said:
i just got mine and immediately was impressed by the speed and power out of a windows mobile phone (normally all WinMo ive had has had a bit of lag) The only problem i have with the device is that the vibration setting is very low. any ideas on how to raise it up few notches?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) please post NEW relevant questions in a NEW topic
2) please avoid posting the same question in more than ONE topic
3) please... read the rules

Related

Universal vs. Wizard Round II

I've had a Wizard for a while, and thanks to O2's recent bargain offer, I've now got a Universal too. Over the past week I've had a good chance to live with them side by side. I've defended the Wizard in the past against the "it's only 200MHz" soothsayers, saying that with my previous comparison with a Universal, not only was it not slower, it actually felt more responsive.
Well now I lived exclusively with the Universal for a week, to get fully accustomed to its pace and foibles. I've just retrieved my Wizard from the drawer, and boy, I'm amazed at how snappy it really is in comparison!
Every program I open on the Wizard finishes loading before the Universal - Start, Media Player, TCMP, SplashID, Execl, Word. Even keeping apps in memory, and switching between them, is quicker (e.g. Open Messaging, red button back to Today. Open to Messaging (still shown in memory on the task bar) = half a second on Universal, almost instantaneous on Wizard). Both had a soft reset before starting, and have the same number of apps running, and similar PIM database sizes. The Universal is using a Corporate install. The only application that I can find that loads quicker on the Universal (by some margin in fact) is the Camera. Presumably this is because it has been significantly re-written and optimised to cope with the twin cameras and 3g videocalling.
Now I'm not disputing that the keyboard and screen, and the sleek black lines, are gorgeous on O2 Exec. Or that it has 3G, if you use it. Or has minor attractions like standard SD and a 3.5mm jack socket (like they're such a big deal). But I've got to be honest that I'm struggling to find anything else as to why it justifies its price. I appreciate it's more like a mini-laptop, but seriously, apart from providing VGA and the "luxury touch", the Wizard does so many things better!
E.g.
Much smaller
Much lighter
Phone rings first time - and every time
Phone speech path connects immediately on answer
No "Phone acrobatics" to see who's calling
No crashes on incoming SMS
Better Bluetooth range and quality to headset
Excellent one handed usablity
Has 5 more mappable direct access buttons (2x Soft, Messaging, Explorer, Comms Manager)
Doesn't make me look a total d*ck in the street (or even the office canteen) (no more than normal, anyway :lol: )
Better battery life
More available memory
No screen lockups
Faster application loading
Faster application switching
Faster menu responses
I was convinced that once I'd got a Universal with the latest ROM, and removed all the O2 bloat, all those saying the Universal was much faster and quoting benchmark after benchmark would be proved right. But unless you're doing some serious multitasking or gaming, the reverse is true. Even QVGA movies in TCMP aren't that much smoother.
I guess the Universal is the old man's Jaguar of PDAs plodding steadily way. Big, heavy, thirsty, but as comfy as your favourite leather sofa, and built to last. But the cheeky little Wizard is far more street, practical, nippy, and easy to park, even if the flimsy doors go "clink" instead of "clunk"
I still haven't decided which goes on eBay though. Trouble is I like both, in their own way (I like big, comfy cars too). It's just a shame the Universal UI lags so much. It does spoil the whole experience when you know what its little upstart of a brother can do.
Now I know there are others out there who have both devices, especially since the O2 deal. Is my experience typical, or am I doing something drastically wrong?
I am also lucky that I have been able to obtain an Exec and then due to the fantastic offer O2 have had in January I also picked up a Wizard.
And a lot of what you say is quite correct. The Wizard has amazed me at the speed at which it does things and the general overall feel of using it. Even the keyboard (the one area I was suspicous of) has proven to be very good.
The Exec suffers from having a VGA screen. That is what is causing a lot of the lags I expect. For users who have moved on to the Exec from previous Windows Mobile / PocketPC devices, especially VGA ones, this is so not much of a surprise. Before I got the Exec I moved from a QVGA based HP 2210 PocketPC to a VGA based HP hx4705. The slow down on the device was quite something for screen redrawing etc and was widely commented on by users on sites such as PocketPCThoughts. I think that is why you / we are seeing the Wizard act so much more smoother than the Exec, simply due to the machine having less detail to move on the screen so things happen much quicker.
But for me the upgrade to the Exec was a Windows Mobile upgrade - I wanted a new PocketPC based device that was fully connected. I doubt I will ever use it for calls and for that reason I have it on a data only tariff.
The Wizard was only bought due to the price I could get it for and is now my main phone.
I love both devices for very different reasons. I also got them for very different reasons. When I need full connectivity with emails etc. I will carry both - yes the Wizard can do both but the Exec is better for tapping out documents on the road, has a better screen that is easier on the eye. But when I want to carry only one device and travel light the Wizard will always win.
Thanks acetuk, at least I know the Exec's working as it should. I'm not anti-Exec, I have had several situations this week where the Exec won hands down - typing up meeting minutes while I remember what's been said, doing an urgent document review with a colleague (although he did have to squint a little), and checking these forums over WiFi at home So it does come into its own as a business tool, which is how it is marketed after all.
And if you're using the data package in anger then the equation does swing a bit the other way - although the data 5 is a very expensive way of doing it!
I just thought it was interesting to see how well the Wizard performs in hindsight - and how marked the speed difference was on the Wizard, once I'd been using the Exec for an extended period. I knew the screen slowed it down, but I was still expecting some turn of speed given the 524MHz CPU and previous comments by people saying how it really was much faster. But I saw the spinning disc this far more this week than I ever did with the Wizard - and had to reboot more frequently as well.
It also proves how irrelevant to real life reviews and adverts based on "benchmarks" and CPU clock speeds, really are, and that anyone who treats those as gospel is going to be sorely disappointed. :lol:
I fully agree - I started skipping benchmarks about three years ago. If I see them in a review I go straight pass them.
In the real world the device is as good as you can make it work for you. If a device doesn't cover your basics then so be it but that doesn't make a device bad. My Exec is slower than my hx4705 for loading PlanMaker and for general feel. But it is so much quicker for data entry. So what I lose in load time I gain in usability. So I win overall as far as I am concerned, regardless of any benchmarks stating overwise.
But the Wizard is an amazing piece of kit. Having PocketInformant running on both, syncing via a hosted exchange server, is a major productivity step forward for me. Pick up the device most useful for the moment, run a sync over wifi or GPRS and get to work. Today I updated all of my tasks and appointments on my Exec using it's excellent keyboard, sync'd to exchange, picked my Wizard up and sync'd again. In less than a minute both devices were fully up to date.
As for the data side of the Exec you are again quite correct. That is why I signed my Exec up for the Data36 tariff with O2 - that's 1mb a day with 5-6mb spare for when I need it. So far that is working very well for me combined with my wifi network at home. I'm paying for it but not too much at £18 / month approx but with no voice calls on top.
Now, if I can only understand better how to get two Windows Moibile devices, two PCs (one private, one work) and one exchange account syncing together better I will be happy!! That might need to go in to another post!
Again I have both thanks to O2 generosity but although I love my wizard for its size and the fact it can do anything the universal can do I would dispute the speed issue.
I find the universal to be the speedier of the two and the screen is amazing.
I love em both is the fact. Why compare them ? Just feel the love
knowsleyroader said:
I find the universal to be the speedier of the two and the screen is amazing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you quantify this? Are you saying the menus, program loading, application switching and screen refreshes are quicker on your Universal? I'd be intersted in finding out why that differs from the comparisons above. Unless your Wizard is slower than it should be, or you're not using an intelligent task manager?
By the way, my current view is that I will keep both, for maximum love
Ineedtoys said:
knowsleyroader said:
I find the universal to be the speedier of the two and the screen is amazing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you quantify this? Are you saying the menus, program loading, application switching and screen refreshes are quicker on your Universal? I'd be intersted in finding out why that differs from the comparisons above. Unless your Wizard is slower than it should be, or you're not using an intelligent task manager?
By the way, my current view is that I will keep both, for maximum love
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using a basic install on both with exactly the same apps and I do feel the universal is faster although I havent benchmarked this or even run them side by side. It just seems faster to me.
However I dont have an issue with either. Its not something im bothered about, just an observation. Im sure you will find others that thing the uni is faster.
Stability
Hi,
Before JasJar I own an IpaqHW6515. Generally JJ is much better that 6515 but using this device as unique device for communicate is not confortable as 6515 because:
1. battery life. my jj can't run for one complete day. With 280 grams devide, increasing of 20/30 grams using a much better battery would be appreciate.
2. BT: 6515 was much better in quality and range. and with a such big and havy device quality of BT would be a MUST because I don't know others but I try to use as much as possible handset because after a while with phone in my hand, I feel tired.
3. I need to soft reset few time a day. This because I start missing calls as device crash without reason while in standby.
4. I ALWAYS have problems (calling mainly) when I need something urgent. And I get crazy because I have to soft resent loosing precius minutes.
For this reasons, I confirm that JJ is best business device (i should not come back to 6515) but I've decided to buy a very light a small phone for make calls and use JJ only for Emails, web....
At least till a new rom will make stable the device.
Ciao
Stefano
Well, this bites. Not only is my JJ slow thanks to WM5, but also thanks to its big screen. I have gotten sick of my constant resents, and I've gone back to my WM2003 device. I feel eBay a callin' my name.
Morning all....
I dont wish to be a fish out of water here, but can i ask if anyone of you have flashed the rom and upgraded...??
I'm now running with the following :-
Rom ver.........1.13.82 WWE
Rom date.......11/30/05
Radio ver.......1.04.02
Protocol ver...1.13.188 WWE
Having had both the XDA II and the IIi, it sure seemed slower than both of them....then I flashed it !!
It is both faster and smoother than my previous XDA's, I haven't once had to soft reset yet....and my battery last more than a day :lol:
For those of you who haven't done so yet.... it's a must !!
http://www.my-xda.com/xdaexec_soft.html
The magman
it's true
The Magman,
I flashed my JJ to o2 ROM and in effect looks more stable faster. I've done during this quite week end and therefore I cannot say solved until I've tried JJ during a complete work week.
Ciao
I've had the XDA, XDA2, 2i and now the Exec - though I also had a play with a mate's Wizard whilst installing some software for him overnight a few weeks back.
I found the Wizard to be a lovely bit of kit, though I wouldn't necessarily say any faster (he had a basic install on, which is what I have on the Exec). The screen on the Exec is absolutely fantastic, the first times I noticed this was on opening the unit for the first time, and when I started whipping files to the Wizard via BT: there is absolutely no comparison between a QVGA and a VGA screen.
I think if the Exec hadn't arrived, then I would have gone for the Wizard, it's a good phone. However, I don't think I would find it easy from the 2i to Wizard, given the smaller screen and the somewhat cheapish keyboard.
Cheers
Ant
the magman said:
Morning all....
I dont wish to be a fish out of water here, but can i ask if anyone of you have flashed the rom and upgraded...??
I'm now running with the following :-
Rom ver.........1.13.82 WWE
Rom date.......11/30/05
Radio ver.......1.04.02
Protocol ver...1.13.188 WWE
Having had both the XDA II and the IIi, it sure seemed slower than both of them....then I flashed it !!
It is both faster and smoother than my previous XDA's, I haven't once had to soft reset yet....and my battery last more than a day :lol:
For those of you who haven't done so yet.... it's a must !!
http://www.my-xda.com/xdaexec_soft.html
The magman
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The O2 Exec came with the same versions as yours out of the box, so already using the latest.
Have been having too much fun with my mini s and exec so far to even think about flashing the roms

Xda Excalibur vs Hermes comparison

Just let you know my comparison of the two units after 5 days with the Xda Cosmo after having the Trion for the last 4 months. My Girlfriend brought me the Excalibur as a pre Christmas gift 8)
After 4 months my Trion main speaker stopped working and I have currently sent it back to get it replaced. All in all I was quite happy with the Trion except for a few quirks.
1. Media Player was buggy with the storage card
2. Never got WM5orage working properly (either had to stopo all my programs running on the storage card which included removing items from the Today screen).
3. Screen alignment problem.
I got the Hermes originally as it looked like a device which I didn't have to use the stylus much to access most of the functionality and in 90% of cases I got by with just using the jog wheel and a couple of presses with my thumb (I had the very first xda device and was turned off by the need to use the stylus to do simple things such as dialing and looking up contacts )
I had noticed due to the operating system PPC vs smartphone the PPC needed much more processing power and hence battery life was preety much limited due to the power from the CPU 400mhz vs 200mhz ( maybe of the extra functionality needed for the touchscreen ).
Differences in the devices
1. Xda Excalibur is more responsive even with the slower CPU. Contacts work instantly on typing on the keyboard. On the hermes there is always a delay in searching for contacts.
2. Excalibur supports multiple languages in its rom and therefore there no need to reflash the rom with the rom with your appropriate language.
3. A2DP works flawlessly on Excalibur being aku 3.2. No need to install cab files to get it working and no sound quality issues and no need to get somone to write a bt stack driver to get around the microsoft one.
4. Programs in general for smartphone seem to be running better than on Pocket PC. Tomtom 6 Navigator doesn't run on the Cosmo but Tomtom 5 work just fine and performance actually seems better on the smartphone even with the lower CPU. Same is notice with other PPC vs Smartphone progams I have eg Skype and Fizz Traveller
5. Cosmo has 128 MB flash ram which is really useful as I was always trying to install everything on the SD card with the Trion to get as much memory possible for standard stuff such as emails, ringtones etc. Yes I know you can tweak the Hermes to get ringtones from the SD card but it just a hassle changing the registry settings.
6. For some reason Windows Live Beta works on the Cosmo. It stopped working on the Hermes about a month ago and never worked since. The smartphone version looks really nice as well and functions much better as I have noticed with all smartphone vs ppc programs.
7. WLAN works much better on the Cosmo compared to the Hermes eg handling of connection settings when WLAN is turned on. On the Hermes I always had to go through the process of changing my connection settings every time I switched by WLAN on an off.
8. Battery life on cosmo is much better. 3.5-4 days use compared to 1.5-2 days use on Trion. Probably because of CPU (I also changed the Hermes to GPRS only to try and save battery life due to UMTS draining the battery)
9. Not to sing all praises for the Excalibur. The only drawback I have found so far for my purposes is the Microsoft Office editing functionality is not possible on the smartphone.
10. 2MP camera vs 1.3 MP camera but I really cannot see much advantage in the quality as the 2MP wasnt that great to start with. Yes the Hermes has a led light but I doesn't really help with indoor photos. The 1.3 MP camera seems to be better quality than other 1.3 MP cameras before and for emails, web photos and MMS quality seems fine for my purposes as I wont ever print out photos from a camera handy.
11. Lack to UMTS/HSDPA on Excalibur. Loose the speed but you'll gain heaps on battery life.
12. Microsoft Media Player works with the SD card. No disappearing songs 8)
13. Price. The excalibur is less than 1/6 the price of the Trion on contract. My Girlfriend brought the Cosmo on contact for 60 Euro. I got the Trion for 320 Euro on the same contact.
14. and I think this is the killer. The excalibur have looks to die for. The Hermes is thick and although many people would say it is solidly built after using the Excalibur it makes the Hermes look like a oversized flimsy machine. The Excalibur is thin and compact with a large screen. Fits in your shirt pocket or even slide it into your jeans!!! HTC have outdone themselves with the build quality I haven't seen any phone build as solid including the razr. I fells like the device is made out of titanium or magnesium with a soft feel rubber all along the back of the device and for the keys as well, ( I cat't stop touching the device it feels sooo.. good ). My Girlfriend who is really fashion concious absolutely loves the look of the device. Photos on the net do not do it justice you have to see it in real to appreciate it's looks for me one look and it was love at first sight. (I first got a look at it from a female collegue who got the phone)
It took me a day to get used to the smaller keyboard and maybe bigger thumbs might have some problems but with rubber keys feel beautiful and make each key feel distinct during typing. The excalibur really is a one hand device even with the d pad and keys only. The touch slider is just a added bonus with flexibility.
After writing this I have noticed that this is more of a sales pitch for the excalibur than a comparison of the two devices but I have found my perfect device which does everything I need without any problems ( performance, bugs and quirks ). If you dont need the UMTS speed I must say Excalibur is the way to go. If you really need UMTS and 2MP camera then wait for the Calivier ( the UMTS /2 MP / 300Mhz version of the excalibur, rumoured to release in Spring next year ).
For me the excalibur seems to have a quite launch compared to the expectations of the Hermes maybe because on paper the Hermes looks better in terms of specifications but for usability it's excalibur all the way.
Now what to do with my Trion when it gets back?
excalibur is a smartphone right ?
Yes it is a smartphone but I think that is why it is much more responsive. Microsoft has done something right with wm5 for smartphone. Theres not much a smartphone cant do now compared to the pocket pc now. except for the microsoft office editing capabilities. I tried skype today and for some reason it was much more clearer than the pocket pc version.
it depends what you use it for..
if youre like me who has to do Office work, watch movies and play tradewinds then the touch screen is VITAL.. personally i dont have any issues with my hermes as the ones youve mentioned above..
and ofcourse there is the touch screen
I just got myself a smartphone (samsung i607) after having the wizard for a year. I was thinkign the same thing you are about smartphone functionality. i was wrong though. There is an extreme lack of third party programs for smartphone. In particular, there aren't any good web browsers whatsoever for wm5smartphone. not a single one. You also cannot customize the homescreen without downloading predefined ones online. I never found one i liked. I like to use data instant messaging programs. and there is a flaw in all of them for smartphone. They don't have homescreen plugins and there is absolutely no onscreen display that you have received a message when the program is in the forgroud. In fact, i hated the lack of flexibility on the smartphone so much that 24 hours after buying the i607, i bought the hermes. I'm still waiting for it to come, and cant wait to start doing everything i used to do with the wizard only faster.
k2snowboards88 said:
I just got myself a smartphone (samsung i607) after having the wizard for a year. I was thinkign the same thing you are about smartphone functionality. i was wrong though. There is an extreme lack of third party programs for smartphone. In particular, there aren't any good web browsers whatsoever for wm5smartphone. not a single one. You also cannot customize the homescreen without downloading predefined ones online. I never found one i liked. I like to use data instant messaging programs. and there is a flaw in all of them for smartphone. They don't have homescreen plugins and there is absolutely no onscreen display that you have received a message when the program is in the forgroud. In fact, i hated the lack of flexibility on the smartphone so much that 24 hours after buying the i607, i bought the hermes. I'm still waiting for it to come, and cant wait to start doing everything i used to do with the wizard only faster.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I Have both, S620 to work and TyTn for play, and I had Wizard.
Try opera mini... better than IE and I use it also on HERMES
I've found a LOT of home screens (motorola Q has many of it) but also I like to play with XML, using just notepad and I have now my PERFECT , tre pages (scrolling), Home screen!
Office problems? try the new DATAWIZ suite, much better than office embedded in TyTN
Great as navigator and fits in my jeans pocket (the BACK pocket) and in my shirt pocket!
I 've sold the wizard believing the HERMES was the empowered Wizard. It Is the STUPID WIZARD'S BIG BROTHER believe me!
I've tried opera mini, and i dont particularly like it. I consider it to be a step down from the standard PIE with the reg edit to make PIE identify itself as a desktop computer. I guess i just miss the adaptability of my wizard. My hermes will be here soon though. I'll never make the mistake of selling my old phone before getting a new one again. If i dont like the hermes, i'll still have my blackjack. After a week, i'll decide which one to keep.

is everyone happy with touch hd?

Never & ever be the case, I guess.
I just got touch hd last week and personally I am not that happy with it.
Previously I used Axim x51v for some years for navigation with external bluetooth based gps reveiver.
#1. I miss the hard key to turn on/off the bluetooth/wifi
#2. I miss the led indicator of the wireless status
#3. for touch camera, I also miss the hard key to trigger it.
Maybe I am old fashioned. For touch screen, I should use the on screen button. But I do feel a bit inconvenient.
#4. The touch screen doesn't respond to touch. You must press with some strength. It is even worse than Axim 51v.
#5. difficult to plug in/out sd card
#6. I soft reset axim once/twice a week to get best performance. But to access soft reset button is not convenient.
#7. I miss the D-pad.
Apart from that, I got a bad pitch on the upper left screen.
My axim x51v doesn't have any bad pitch after years of heavy use.
Should I keep it or return it?
im playing with it for about 7weeks and hmm...
1. Useless
2. ye i miss it too but hm.. i wasnt look at it anyway.
3. yup its a very bad. to aim focus and shoot. but it a pda not camera.
4. no, no, no I didn't have x51 but thd screen is I think very good with response.
5. dont tell me you changeing card every 5 mins
6. this is becouse you dont need to reset it. (htc thoughts) IMO is not so hard to get to it.
7. hmm in first week I miss it too then i realise its not nessesery.
i think you can keep it one more week and then ask yourself. shoud i sell it or not.
Most of your issues are things that you should have known about before you bought it. If they bother you then why did you buy it?
As for the soft reset button being hard to access - you don't need to use the soft reset button to do a soft reset. Just press and hold the power button for a few seconds. Easy!
It depends on how you see it.. Compared to my other touchscreens telephones the Blackstone rulez!
But then the downparts..
1. Its slow and laggy
2. Its buggy and unstable but I guess and hopes that this is the windows version and that some cooked roms makes it more stable..
3. Crappy sound quality with the 3.5 headphone output
4. Got damn I will NEVER EVER have a phone without a REAL hardware keyboard!
5. Did I mention that typing on the screen SUX?
And yes I still have the default ROM, since Im running Windows 7 Beta 1 I havent been able to hax0r the phone so I can try other ROMs..
henrik.dk said:
Never & ever be the case, I guess.
I just got touch hd last week and personally I am not that happy with it.
Previously I used Axim x51v for some years for navigation with external bluetooth based gps reveiver.
#1. I miss the hard key to turn on/off the bluetooth/wifi
#2. I miss the led indicator of the wireless status
#3. for touch camera, I also miss the hard key to trigger it.
Maybe I am old fashioned. For touch screen, I should use the on screen button. But I do feel a bit inconvenient.
#4. The touch screen doesn't respond to touch. You must press with some strength. It is even worse than Axim 51v.
#5. difficult to plug in/out sd card
#6. I soft reset axim once/twice a week to get best performance. But to access soft reset button is not convenient.
#7. I miss the D-pad.
Apart from that, I got a bad pitch on the upper left screen.
My axim x51v doesn't have any bad pitch after years of heavy use.
Should I keep it or return it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I too was disappointed slightly with the HD when I first bought. But I stuck with it, tweaked it and I'm now a lot happier than I was.
#1. I miss the hard key to turn on/off the bluetooth/wifi. To navigate to Comm Manager and use on/off function is very straight forward. Takes 3 buttons presses at most.
#2. I miss the led indicator of the wireless status. You can download different task bar icons, countless available if you search whoch have better wireless status indicators
#3. for touch camera, I also miss the hard key to trigger it. You can use apps like HD Tweak or AEB Plus and remap soft keys so camera is one click away
#4. The touch screen doesn't respond to touch. You must press with some strength. It is even worse than Axim 51v. Again use HD Tweak and change sensitivity of touch press
#5. difficult to plug in/out sd card. Gonna have to live with this one. Not as bad as you think compared to some other phones
#6. I soft reset axim once/twice a week to get best performance. But to access soft reset button is not convenient. Try using Touch Off. Easy app for soft reset/trun off etc
#7. I miss the D-pad. Use 3rd party apps. Can be found in Themes, Applications and Software forum
To improve performance I'd recommend reading up on the wiki for some tips. HD Tweak & Advanced Config shoould also help. Also, there our countless cooked roms out there which have been tweaked for performance. All you need to do is search!!
my X1 is better...
Thank you for all these information.
The capability to adjust touch sensitivity is really super. I will definitely try it.
Do you have any recommendation of wireless tools also?
Regarding D-pad, I really cannot image it can be implemented by 3rd applications.
But your response had made me think that I should keep it ....
Fallen Spartan said:
I too was disappointed slightly with the HD when I first bought. But I stuck with it, tweaked it and I'm now a lot happier than I was.
#1. I miss the hard key to turn on/off the bluetooth/wifi. To navigate to Comm Manager and use on/off function is very straight forward. Takes 3 buttons presses at most.
#2. I miss the led indicator of the wireless status. You can download different task bar icons, countless available if you search whoch have better wireless status indicators
#3. for touch camera, I also miss the hard key to trigger it. You can use apps like HD Tweak or AEB Plus and remap soft keys so camera is one click away
#4. The touch screen doesn't respond to touch. You must press with some strength. It is even worse than Axim 51v. Again use HD Tweak and change sensitivity of touch press
#5. difficult to plug in/out sd card. Gonna have to live with this one. Not as bad as you think compared to some other phones
#6. I soft reset axim once/twice a week to get best performance. But to access soft reset button is not convenient. Try using Touch Off. Easy app for soft reset/trun off etc
#7. I miss the D-pad. Use 3rd party apps. Can be found in Themes, Applications and Software forum
To improve performance I'd recommend reading up on the wiki for some tips. HD Tweak & Advanced Config shoould also help. Also, there our countless cooked roms out there which have been tweaked for performance. All you need to do is search!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
complain - as it worth to complain.
I really cannot live with phone+axim+gps when I go outdoors.
Moandal said:
Most of your issues are things that you should have known about before you bought it. If they bother you then why did you buy it?
As for the soft reset button being hard to access - you don't need to use the soft reset button to do a soft reset. Just press and hold the power button for a few seconds. Easy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i came from X1 I LOVE THE HD
I bought mine in Dec 08, and so far ive been real disappointed.
* constant lag
* battery sucks
* non standard USB port
* Flaky paint work
but the biggest critism is the lack of structured apps compared to the iphone and android phones. I'll gladly pay for apps that are easy to download and install, hell even nokia have their own store.
Seems to me HTC just rushed through these phones without thinking of after sales products.
Ive always disliked Apple but im seriously going to have a look at the new iphone this summer....anyone wanna buy my HD
henrik.dk said:
Thank you for all these information.
The capability to adjust touch sensitivity is really super. I will definitely try it.
Do you have any recommendation of wireless tools also?
Regarding D-pad, I really cannot image it can be implemented by 3rd applications.
But your response had made me think that I should keep it ....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Go to themes, Applications and software and type in D-Pad and see whats going on. They're is currently threads on this where some have acheived a simple D-pad and others are still trying to implement more advanced ones. Also search under mortscript and a game pad similar to the nintendo gameboy has been created for your gaming needs.
For every fault which the HD has, someone in this excellent community has either fixed it or is trying to fix it. You just have to know where to search mate.
Only things which can't be fixed are hardware ones like increasing camera quality or flashlight. Otherwise, happy searching!!
sthapa said:
......but the biggest critism is the lack of structured apps compared to the iphone and android phones. I'll gladly pay for apps that are easy to download and install, hell even nokia have their own store.
Seems to me HTC just rushed through these phones without thinking of after sales products.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
iphone approve every game which appears on their device. Because the HD is WM they cannot approve every game as anyone can basically create games for windows. This is the main reason my HTC do not provide one web site for all apps & games.
Typical websites for apps and games would be:
www.handango.com
www.pocketgear.com
http://www.spbsoftwarehouse.com/?en
henrik.dk said:
Do you have any recommendation of wireless tools also?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You could try these 2 amongst others
but spartan, why do HTC need permission to sell games/app that run on WM ?
Sometimes people just complain for the sake of complaining
sthapa said:
I bought mine in Dec 08, and so far ive been real disappointed.
* constant lag
* battery sucks
* non standard USB port
* Flaky paint work
but the biggest critism is the lack of structured apps compared to the iphone and android phones. I'll gladly pay for apps that are easy to download and install, hell even nokia have their own store.
Seems to me HTC just rushed through these phones without thinking of after sales products.
Ive always disliked Apple but im seriously going to have a look at the new iphone this summer....anyone wanna buy my HD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Constant lag? Mine is as fast as I need, and that's quick.
Battery sucks? I have no problem going a full day using virtually everything, and talking a few hours on the phone. After that, I recharge it through my USB port and up-date everything via ActiveSync. Perfect!
Non-standard USB port? Oh, please. The standard USB port fits perfectly. I use a standard USB port to connect my computer to the HD.
Flaky paint work? I haven't had a single flake of paint since I bought it four months ago. Perhaps you have a bad batch.
Don't paint every HD with the same brush. Your complaints are irrelevant to me because they simply are not true when you apply them to my HD.
Peter
sthapa said:
but spartan, why do HTC need permission to sell games/app that run on WM ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you may need to re-read his post
sthapa said:
but spartan, why do HTC need permission to sell games/app that run on WM ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think what spartan was referring to is the fact that the iphone is locked (unless you JB it) They control what you can and can't have whereas WM you are free to have anything you like.
There are millions of apps/games/etc for WM phones so all you need do is search on forums like this and on the net to get what you want. HTC don't need get any permission because ultimately they don't control the phone. It's up to you to install what you want. HTC are in the business of providing phones not the 3rd party programs you run on them.
As regards the thread: I'm very happy with my HD. I'm not a camera user so this aspect of the phone has never bothered me, I just look at it as an extremely handy extra feature.
Soft reset - just install a program as has been said
SD card - Not needed to swap the 8Gb card as yet and can't see any real instances where I'd be constantly needing to swap it with any frequency.
Dpad - never used it on my trinity so not missed it on the HD
Battery life is amazing - I have watched all 3 Pirates of the Caribbean films on 1 charged battery (that was one hell of a long day waiting round for people i can tell you!)
After about 2 months of constant (reasonably heavy) use there are no visible marks or scratches on the phone and people are constantly amazed at it's looks.
So all in all I'm happy but perhaps I'm less fussy than most people here.
The phone Rulez. Period
Sure, a D-pad would be nice and it would be even better if you could attach the car battery to it (consumes like a bloody ($*T%(#$*^). Yes, for a plain phone it is both big-ish and a bit heavy
Nonetheless a) It is not merely a phone b) Rulez (see above)
If you want to compare crappy WM devices, just have a try at LG KS20
@sthapa - Think both dao & Aaronc1978 answered you query efficiently
I tried the hd tweak and the sensitivity adjustment is just for touchflo
but not for the touch screen itself. I used phatpad a lot for note taking in axim. But for HD touch, it is almost imposssible to draw a continuous line
since the strengh required to press the stylus is way too bigger.
Anyone tried to use phatpad in HD?
Fallen Spartan said:
Go to themes, Applications and software and type in D-Pad and see whats going on. They're is currently threads on this where some have acheived a simple D-pad and others are still trying to implement more advanced ones. Also search under mortscript and a game pad similar to the nintendo gameboy has been created for your gaming needs.
For every fault which the HD has, someone in this excellent community has either fixed it or is trying to fix it. You just have to know where to search mate.
Only things which can't be fixed are hardware ones like increasing camera quality or flashlight. Otherwise, happy searching!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Deflated

Got my new HD from Uk Mobiles. Was really looking forward to it. What a let down. Is this really the phone that is raved about? What does it give me that my Tytn didn't apart from a bigger screen, welcome but not essential, and built in GPS?
It is no faster in real use, the volume is so low when using Tom Tom that it can't be heard (unlike my Tytn which needed turning down and could be used in my old diesel Transit with no problems) and the lag on the GPS is so bad that you need to stop on roundabouts for a cup of tea and a biscuit so that it can catch up and show you which exit to take (if the sound worked I would have known because Jane would have told me).
It only changes orientation automatically in one or two items of software and it came with a rubbish little carry bag instead of the very usable belt holder that came with the Tytn.
Most of the software that is available was available on the Tytn, it seems to be only the extra screen real estate that makes a real difference.
It has no external buttons, something I didn't realise I would miss.
It's just as crap at syncing over bluetooth as the Tytn, I know that's a software issue but it just adds to the frustration and disapointment.
edit: Orange have identified a fault using a flow chart questionaire and have given me a fault code, Uk Mobiles are replacing the phone. If I can't come up with fixes for my issues, or rather the phone's issue my own are to deeply ingrained, before the new one arrives it's up on ebay.
What am I missing? Can it be turned into a usable phone or should I sell it on ebay, seek out a second hand TytnII and accept that I can't handle change?
Volume on mine is too loud actually,
Get HDTweak to enable the louder volume
Orientation can be changed in almost every app.
I use Mobile Magic to manage my Orientation apps
I have also fully tweaked my phone and I love it also coming form a Tytn.
I also miss the hardware buttons and most of all the slide out keyboard but I can now type just as fast on the softboard.
Your right about the speed not being any quicker but I can cope as can the phone.
My advice is if you feel like you say then sell it. however as with all HTC phones they have to be tweaked to get the most out of them.
That's why this place is such a god-send, Without this forum I doubt that many of us would own a HTC device.
Graeme, I know you're pain. When I got mine last November I struggled for a week to get it to sync with my exchange server and I had bluetooth issues as well. The stock rom seemed unstable and slow. I don't have any of those issues anymore and haven't for a long time. May I suggest trying a cooked rom. There are some great chefs in this forum that have refined and tweaked things such that, in my opinion, allow the HD to run the way it was intended...smooth and fast. My HD is solid. My point is, before you put it up on ebay, give one of these roms a look.
I'm sorry to hear you feel this way. I know others feel the same and similar threads have been created. Would recommend sticking with phone and trying to become adjusted to it. Read up opn other threads andpossible use software to improve phone. Plenty available on thjese forums if you search.
No need for another thread is similar ones exist.

Initial Comments - Got Mine

Wow! It is fast....
I know others have said this but I must reinforce that. I have been running WM6.5 on my (old!) HD for a while and with the new manilla 2.5 (sense) UI it is clearly struggling a bit. I am sure that Dutty and co will improve on that but the HD2 is clearly much more able to handle this impressive UI.
Just got mine from T-Mobile UK so here is my initial feedback to those still drooling over the videos and pictures:
Appearance - Looks great, actually feels slimer than the HD - I know it is but you will see what I mean when you handle one. The curved back (like i-phone) makes it even slimmer at the edges than the 11mm measurement would make you think. The screen looks great - you can see the dots across the screen in certain light reflections (directly across the screen) but I have not noticed any at all in use - just with bright light at shallow angle across the screen. The screen is noticeably bigger than the HD, same brightness. The screen edges are also (as reported) closer to the edge which adds to the impact of screen real-estate on offer.
Only adverse comment on design is the sharpness of the edges to the camera lens surround - the lens edging is sharp enough to damage furniture so beware. HTC need to fix this one. It is minor on the scale of things but completely at odds with the rest of the device which oozes quality.
Branding. T-mobile have put their mark on the phone - nothing externally but the boot-up and shut down splash have T-mobile branding. There is a T-mobile (Web & Walk) spalsh screen that pops up when you start Opera (otherwise completely standard) and there is a T-Mobile IM tool that has failed to work so far.
Unboxing - my box (standard green HTC box just like the videos) had no pouch (leather case). I called T-Mobile and they will be sending one but according to their list they have no mention of either the pouch (that is what HTC call it) or the (miserly) 2Gb miro SD card. There is no (micro) CD like you see in some videos and apart from standard HTC stuff there is a T-Mobile folded sheet about something - was far too busy plying with my new toy to read the paperwork...
Software - all the usual stuff is there. Notes is in 'Outlook' and there is no Co-pilot software to test for 15 days (unless its on the micro SD card (not checked), just ordered and downloaded Co-pilot 8 because it looks great on the HD2.
Camera - the pictures are great and it takes photos immediately - it really has no lag at all on almost anything. The flash is actually quite bright.
Performance - did I say it was fast? Vista sync with PC was faultless, everything just happens immediately - this is also enhanced because apps are never actually closed. There is, as reported, no HTC 'X' task manager to close apps so they are just minimised. So when you start them up again in fact all you are doing is lttbbing back to the app that may already be open. The result is near instant response and when you select, for instnce, Google Map, it is not only already loaded but has maps present too (albeit the last maps). Opera is much faster than on the HD. IE is still very poor by comparison (BTW - Opera is called 'Web & Walk' in the start menu on this T-Mobile phone). The "My location" function just works - on GPRS, HSDPA, WiFi ann PC sync. Weather looks really neat!
Initial Software Loading and trials - just had to hard reset! I installed Monocube Safemode and could not then start-up the handset in other than safe mode!!! Not impressed - wonder if that is something to do with the capacitive screen.
Resco Explorer 2008 - great
Coreplayer - installed OK but noticed that 700Mb DivX film had audio sync problem. This film and this coreplayer version on HD seemd to have no problem.
more to come when I have re-loaded the software and re-synced - don't use Monocube Safe Mode.
I cannot rule out something else having cause the need to hard-reset but it only occured after my first power-up after installing the sotfware. I will report this to Monocude (who make it) and report back if I get anything.
Love the phone - very happy.
This is my first HTC and to be frank, I LOVE IT. Maybe because it replaced my SEX1?
Playing music is a delight, the speaker is amazing. Had to reduce the sound to 50% as it was too loud.
Picture taking, could be better, but as I'm used to SEX1, I can say its impressive.
Fast? Fast? It's lightning fast. This device changed my opinion towards WM. I was appalled, but now I'm extremely happy.
Only one annoying thing, when there is no data connection I get this pop up every time I turn on the phone, which is quite annoying.
Overall, I give it a 8/10. It could very easily be improved with ROM updates.
But why did they make sms notification so small?
I got mine yesterday. (Donated by a certain someone, you know who you are . )
Gotta say it truly is one of THE most amazing pieces of mobile tech I've seen in all my years as a technician. For the 1st time I can finally say winmo users finally have something that knocks the socks of the (in my opinion) now defunct iPhone and indeed any others available to date The speed of everything on this is just amazing, never did I think winmo could achieve this. Of course HTC did an amazing job covering over winmo you really never see it for anything.
I've been reading reviews online and in papers (ya I know, paper, im so old-fashioned sometimes lol ) and all the reviews say the HD2 still couldn't beat the iPhone etc so I was holding off buying it. But don't listen to the reviewers they're just too critical, this phone really is the biz, go get it.
Also, as this phone has no Hardware Keyboard it can be a bit tricky at first. I used to refuse to own a phone without a physical one but replacing the default HTC softKB with Fingerboard and everything is perfect Some minor tweaks and videos, battery etc are all working above and beyond any media smartphone I've used (and Ive even used the iphone for 5 weeks).
Anyways enough of my wild ravings about the phone. If anyone wants to know anything about the HD2 gimme a shout, happy to answer anyone
Just got mine today from.... Vodafone!!! Can you believe for once they've got it out with everyone else????
It's every bit as good as I'd hoped (not surprising as I'm stepping up from an early Tytn).
As tony wheeler found though, you can be too clever.... I originally had an XDA 2 with TomTom Nav 5, forced my Tytn to load it years ago and long before TomTom supported it (in fact I'm not sure they ever did). Tried to force it on the HD2 and all I got was a corrupt screen and it froze. Only needed a soft reset to get it going again, but a bottled out at that point.
I noticed that my favourite game (Bubblet) is missing (I'm a simple soul) and so far I cn't get .tsk skins to load properly, but hey - it's only day one.... plenty of time yet.
Update: sorted Bubble using hints and tips at the top of this forum, thanks TB!! Also, got my skin working by pasting it into the windows folder. It then appears in the advanced Today edit screen.
Lag in messaging
Guys,
people have been complaining about the messaging application being laggy especially for contacts which have long message trail...is this correct? Are you experiencing it?
anshkhanna said:
Guys,
people have been complaining about the messaging application being laggy especially for contacts which have long message trail...is this correct? Are you experiencing it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Eh, not really.
Ive already got 113 messages (+25 on my SIM) on mine and not noticed any slow down or lagg. Also have loads of emails and no slow down on the email tab either.
Mine arrives tomorrow via DHL, looking forward to it.
Moving back to WM from iPhone, been playing with iPhone for the last six months. I have always been a WM believer, but I always look and test the competition in the real world. Then I have a opinion based on first hand experience.
While the iPhone has many nice features, when it comes to business it isn't as flexible or useful as a WM device.
That's not to say WM doesn't have issues, it does. That's for another thread though.
iphone switch
I will be interested to hear your honest opinion of the HD2 compared with iphone.
The IP screen and nav functions are very fluid, but I think the HD2 is equal or better.
The HTC Shell makes a huge difference.
Without it I would have bought an iphone myself, and that is saying something!
Nighthawk said:
Mine arrives tomorrow via DHL, looking forward to it.
Moving back to WM from iPhone, been playing with iPhone for the last six months. I have always been a WM believer, but I always look and test the competition in the real world. Then I have a opinion based on first hand experience.
While the iPhone has many nice features, when it comes to business it isn't as flexible or useful as a WM device.
That's not to say WM doesn't have issues, it does. That's for another thread though.
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Click to collapse

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