Database Users

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.

how much are you happy with your trinity?

hi there,
i'm new in this forum and i'm going to get a trinity shortly but i've read here some problems with touch screen or audio problem...
At the end, how much are you happy with your trinity? should you buy it again?
Thanks all
bye

pretty damn happy, best phone I've ever owned.
If I was buying new I would however go for the white version, the black still has issues with flaking paint.

I have a white one, great pda phone!!!

crash98 said:
At the end, how much are you happy with your trinity?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Compared to what? In comparision to my wife the Trinity means nothing to me... Regarding all other things: I am very happy... better battery and this device would be my last phone.

Very good machine
The problems you're referring to are fairly minor; Using the touch screen does slow down the running of the machine whilst the screen is being touched. This doesn't affect generally tapping/dragging/etc, but it only really noticeable when you're playing games that require dragging around the screen a lot. The audio problem seems to be that there's less bass reproduction if you install one of the "GPS fixed" ROMS (although I believe one of the ROMs now has a patch for this).
These are fairly minor issues though, other than that, it's a superb machine. Good size/weight, and very good performance. The added bonus of GPS (if you install the new ROMs) makes it a unique machine on the market.
Lee

for me it is only a cell or pda...
i'm happy for other important thing

wishmaster... yes, i agree with you... but if you are in this forum to read these thread something tells me that it's more than a simple cell (otherway get a 50€ (30£) motorola )...

Best PDA phone I've used. I gave a way my Tytn after getting my Trinity. If you don't need/want a keyboard, it is great.
Black peeling, D-pad and OK button are failing
Failing buttons forced me to use scroll wheel and 2nd OK button. I like the phone even more now
Waiting for HTC to get the bugs worked out before I send it in for repair.

I am really happy with my white Trinity since I installed the second Dopod rom and enabled the GPS feature. I cannot think of anything that my device does not do that is expected of a modern mobile phone.
It is the complete article as far as I am concerned.
It looks cool, is small enough not to look stupid when making calls, and is packed with a great operating system and software, and to top it all it is fully customisable to suit my needs and requirements.
No complaints here at all.
Ok then, just one.....When will Orange release the official rom update for the Gps to work on Trinity's that were purchased before they released them?
That for me would be the icing on the cake.

The phone rocks - can harldy keep my hands off it

It still ok but I'm not really happy.
htc still does not offer a gps update, the black coat is peeling off (already after one week!!!) and it has a bad w-lan adapter (bad signal and no working auto-detection wether the network uses WEP, WPA or WPA2 or a mix)

mikehockenballs said:
I am really happy with my white Trinity since I installed the second Dopod rom and enabled the GPS feature. I cannot think of anything that my device does not do that is expected of a modern mobile phone.
It is the complete article as far as I am concerned.
It looks cool, is small enough not to look stupid when making calls, and is packed with a great operating system and software, and to top it all it is fully customisable to suit my needs and requirements.
No complaints here at all.
Ok then, just one.....When will Orange release the official rom update for the Gps to work on Trinity's that were purchased before they released them?
That for me would be the icing on the cake.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Funny situation. the rom is available in Orange France, but the phone is no more available. And the rom seems to not be available in Uk, but the phone is available.

Happy, but it is my first day
Got my (white) SPV M700 this morning and within 1 hour I:
1- Connected to Activesync & synchronised my contacts, calendar, notes, emails...etc.
2- I went into the favorit > Sat Nav & downloaded Orange's Sat Nav program (It woked a treat - No ROM flashing or anything ) It actually guided me back home.
3- Called Orange & asked them to unlock my phone so I can use my O2 SIM.
It is a lovely piece of kit (Phone, PDA, Camera, GPS, 3G, WiFi) All in one sexy machine that happens to be 100% compatible with my BMW's BT (it downloaded the entire contacts list (500 of them) to the car's computer.
When I got home I've played with it a bit, then put it on my desk and wheeped at its beauty

The PDA part is ok, a little bit slow but bearable. Although I'm having problem with the phone part mainly getting disconnected when trying to answer the phone and sometimes it wont connect even if I have a full bar.

The best phone i've ever had. All in one: Phone, PDA, GPS, Camera.

I'll put it this way: I can't think of a better phone at the moment... It's got ALL anyone could ask for, in a very decent size. It's not perfect but keep in mind that it's a fairly recent model, and I have no doubt we'll get there.
The only thing I could wish for that's not there yet is a multi-touchscreen (cf. iPhone but not only), and as far as I know there's nothing on the market yet with that feature.
Thumbs up for you guys too, I discovered this site through a friend (just making my first posts, hi everyone) and I'm amazed by the quantity (and quality) of hard work you've all already put in to solving the existing problems and making things better for all. Keep up the good work, and big cheers...

My comparison is with a BlueAngel which I recently lost. Small form factor, brilliant display, noticeably faster wireless, great camera. IMHO the Trinity is a serious device...only problem now is what to do with my external GPS!

Its Awesome
I've had mine for about a week, I have the white, its so cool!!!!!
I had the 838pro before this which made it a bit bulky and heavy with the keyboard which I don't miss.
All in all, its a great PDA/Phone
Now next challenge, setting up Push Email.
R.

I am newbie in this forum, in general i am pretty satisfied with my HTCP3600i! However, i sometimes find it a bit lagging...just you know it's Samsung CPU not Intel.....i once had a thought of go for Atom Life in place, but ended i chose HTC, the reason is i've heard a lot negative comments about Atom's product batter life in a word Short!!

Has some flaws : No wm6, no minisdHC, no standard audio jack. wm6 and minisdhc I hope they'll correct

Nokia E90 user considering a Touch HD

Hi all,
I have a Nokia E90 and I am considering getting a Touch HD.
I really like my E90 screen, its fantastic for viewing ebooks and the internet but I am finding the email client quite awful and I fancy a change.
Things i like about the E90 - Screen, keyboard, camera (it meets my needs), internal screen is always protected, battery life,
Things i hate about the E90 - Awful email client, no spell checker, default browers is extremely slow (resolved by Opera Mini but no flashlite support).
So how much of an improvement will the Touch HD be from my E90? I have read about GPS lag issues and no support for flashlite with the default browser. The Camera is 5pm, but how will that compare to my E90 considering that the HD doesnt have a flash.
My current contract is up at the end of March so i have some time to decide.

Hey!
I had an e90 a while back when they were just out and i did love the keyboard!
I have a touch HD now and it just feels a better phone, the only problme i can see you having is giving up the keyboard. the HD's does have a decent keyboard and you can get quick quick with it with, but for really long emails 1000+ words it may be annoying, you could aloways buy a b/t keyboard if this will be an issue
The screen is very good for reading pdf's and does scale them quite well, the camera is ok, nothing spectacular, however there may be improvemnts with a new progrma so if camera isnt an issue you wont be wowed but you wont be dissapointed,
As for Flash, some roms have it installed already so that you can watch youtube vids direclty in opera and there is also flashlite avaliable to satisfy your needs
Thanks

can you view embedded videos from the BBC website with these roms?

ive just tried and it says that i dont have teh correct plugins, this may be an easy thing to solve though
Iplayer does work but you need to change a few things so thats always a plus

silly question time.....how do you lock the screen when your in touch flo? I have seen older windows mobile devices before the invention of touch flo and i could have the screen lock option on the today screen.
What about the LED notification, i believe its a very small light by the power screen, is that sufficent enough? Does the device wake up from standby when you receive a new email/sms?
Can outlook mobile read HTML emails?
Finally, what is the alarm function like? On my E90, i can set the alarm and power down the device. The phone then turns on automatically to sound the alarm.

you can pretty much lock the screen by pressing the power button on the top, then the devices doesnt do anyting till you tap the power button again,
there are popular programs like slide2unlock which gives this process a bit smoother iphoneesque look.
the LED is small but it doenst particulary bother me since i hear or feel it when a new message arrives anyway, i beleive tehre is a fix so that the device wakes up on email/message
Not sure if outlook mobile read HTML emails but i would assume so being a microsoft phone!
Yeah the alarm is teh same as the e90, you can even make it sound the alrm tone if the device is in silent mode, again there are 3rd partsy apps on here avaliabel for free which allow more customisation

excellent. Now my options are to stick with T-mobile and get the Touch Pro or move over to O2 and get the Touch HD.
Touch HD looks like the better of the two devices especially as i am going from the large E90 screen.
How does the pictures from the HD look? Im alittle worried as there is no flash.

in daylght there very nice,
sometimes in the dark the focus doenst work great, but is still ok
Its prob on par with the e90 if my memory serves me correct

sounds like the HD has all the ticks in the right place for me.
Oh, another question. The Touch HD supports HSDPA at 7.3 odd, im sure this is faster then the E90.
Is the internet on the Touch HD considerably faster then the E90?

yeah it supports HSPDA up to 7.2 mbit, so you get roughly 850k a sec actual download speeds, browisng is pretty nippy on the device, much faster than the e90 which used to take an age to start,
Opera mini is best for mobile surfing as i has quite a nice interface,
It depends weather 02 actually offer and allow you to use 7.2mbps though!

so opera mini on the HD is better then the supplied opera brower? I have mini on my E90 and it doesnt support flashlite.
Thats a good point, i will need to double check with O2 about the speeds!

I dont' know about the camera of the E90, but my wife has got an N95 and it takes WAAAY better pictures than the HD...

I've also owned the E90 before switching to the HD. The only thing I missed was:
- camera on E90 is better (better shuttertime settings)

One of the things that I didn't consider was battery life. I use push Exchange email, and my E90 (and E71) lasted me about 1.5 days. With the Touch HD I get around 18-20 hours (not even 1 day!). If I use browsing or calling a little more than what I normally do, the battery lasts me about 15 hours. Hence, please look at your usage pattern as well.
This is the only negative on an otherwise very good phone based on my utilization pattern. The other nice-to-have would be that the power button is currently too small and too flush with the phone. Either it could have been larger, or it could have been placed to come out of the phone like a button.

Those are very low numbers, my E90 lasted as one of the longest of all phones I've used, sometimes over 4 days.
For the HD, the battery life is far less. However, i've installed SPB PhoneSuite, which enables you to switch of connections at night and saving a lot of battery life.

I had an e90 before the hd and have to say atm its the better device,particularly out of the box.
take away the obvious selling point of the hd screen its a lot less work to enjoy the nokia.
im really enjoying the hd but the e90 was the superior device for me. battery, camera,operation and speed were all way ahead for a business phone. in fact the only drawbacks for me were the weight, no 'cool' touchscreen, and as you say, certain email restrictions.
if you're willing to put the time in I doubt you'll regret the hd but it could depend how well you can adjust without a great physical keyboard and currently a poor camera.

Guys i have some more questions regarding the Touch HD.
I really like my current alarm system on the Nokia E90. I set my alarm and then turn the phone off, the E90 then turns on by itself and sounds the alarm (which is pretty dam loud and vibration is VERY strong).
Question: What is the alarm like on the Touch HD? Will i be able to turn the device off and have it turn on by itself to sound the alarm?
Another question i have is in relation to the calendar nofication on touch flo. How many advanced calendar notifications are displayed on the first tab of touch flo? Can this be changed or altered? Also are tasks displayed?
Third and final question, my brother let me take a look at his HTC Kaiser and the camera application was just awful. It was extremely slow to refresh and it was jerking all over the place. Is this the case with the Touch HD?
Thanks,
c

The camera on the touch HD is really lame. There's no hardware button, so when you push the button on screen there's up to a 3 - 5 second delay before the picture's actually taken!! By that time the subject of the picture has far gone lol.
I've got a Touch HD and i'm thinking of going to the E90. I know the nokia is 2 years old now and it does bother me to "downgrade" but i really like the look of the e90!
Are you in the UK? Maybe we could organise a week swap or somethin?

I would go for the E 71 if I were you ,it has a good keyboard,excellent battery and is much easier to use and smaller than the E 90.I have one as a replacement for an HTC Diamond ,the battery lasts 3 times more and the hard keys do everything ....maybe in a not so cool way but they are far more practical.

Gatecra5her said:
The camera on the touch HD is really lame. There's no hardware button, so when you push the button on screen there's up to a 3 - 5 second delay before the picture's actually taken!! By that time the subject of the picture has far gone lol.
I've got a Touch HD and i'm thinking of going to the E90. I know the nokia is 2 years old now and it does bother me to "downgrade" but i really like the look of the e90!
Are you in the UK? Maybe we could organise a week swap or somethin?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait for the N97! Very E90 like but much improved and new features.
I also own a E90 and Touch HD. Touch HD felt first pretty sluggish and not so business oriented. But now with cooked rom and manilla disabled (I use Spb Mobile Shell, imho much better for business use), its a much better device than before.
I hate the text input, i think its propably 3x slower and 5x more fustrating to write emails with it. Also camera sucks and its pretty much useless inside buildings, compared to E90.
Im eagarly waiting for the N97, will propably swap my E90 to that one.

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.