Database Users

Ok folks,what´s your reason to stick with this wm?

About to sell mine X1 after four weeks,6500 sek and this device really sucks..
It´s not all about wm itself but the device..
It´s buggy,not very advanced in features and dead slow for a start..
Reception,camera and end user experiance is a joke compared to a rather basic nokia these day..
Like the size and looks though but that´s it..
My nokia e90 is far more advanced then this and that device is 18 months old..
So what is it,please tell me?

GASP....BLASPHEMER **points at Micke401**!!!!
Its all personal opinion really. For me, coming from the LG Viewty its like going into the future. I made the official decision to sacrafice the 5MP camera for a QWERTY keyboard. There are also more 3rd party apps than you could download in a life time!

i understand you somehow, i have the device for 2 days and by now i have nothing but trouble with it.
I already have a hardware defect and alot of software/stability issues with WM.
the screensize and resolution is cool, other than that i dont really see why this has been hyped so much all the time...it does the basic stuff but once you try some third party software all you get is alot of problems.
After all the camera is average, video playback is average, no emulator works right, browsing is average, panels are crap slow, most of the third party software i have tested (TouchFlo3d, Slide2Unlock, Batty) cause freezes and other weird behavior...
well maybe its just my phone but in the last 2 days i rebooted the device (which takes AGES) for about 30-40 times and did 2 hard resets.

Another thing I love about this phone is this forum! All of the problems ive had (not many i must say) Have all been sorted out on here. No other phone ive had has had this much end user dedication!

Isn't that fair if you install beta/ known for not working / software for other hardare (e.g. Touch HD) stuff (TouchFlo3d, Slide2Unlock) on the machine and you complaints about it's stability?
For me, nokia (e.g. N95) is great for it's multimedia capacity (excellent camera and stereo speaker). But even it's built-in GPS software crash the phone so often and it's just a piece of ****. Not to mention that they can't provide any touchsceen device until the up coming 5800

Nokia isnt any better...
its just that on my Ipod touch everything just works...but i know that the iphone/ipod all have the same hardware and OS, so its quite easy to get stability going and Apple is reviewing all apps before release.

toxical said:
Nokia isnt any better...
its just that on my Ipod touch everything just works...but i know that the iphone/ipod all have the same hardware and OS, so its quite easy to get stability going and Apple is reviewing all apps before release.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's true. But it also limit and put a big burden on what developers can do "officially". Based on the Apple's SDK, multi-tasking and real-time navigation are not going to happen to 3rd party software and that's suck. And many other killer apps (Skype, Internet sharing) on other platform won't be happen as well. (Well, at least "officially).
WM is no where perfect but it gets most of our jobs done.

The fresh out of the box windows mobile device is a HORRIBLE experience. There's no ifs and or buts. Even the HTC devices with touch-flow are nowhere near the user friendliness of an iphone.
The difference between this and the ultra user-friendly iphone devices is that you can customize it to do whatever you want - which takes a ridiculous amount of patience and research to get to that point.
I can't use the iphone any longer because the e-mail system is horrid and everything is locked. The iphone will destroy the xperia in terms of multimedia capabilities. All depends on what you need in a device.

my experience is exactly the opposite:
i was a bit disappointed because of the slow panels but after installing the "sbp mobile shell" this issue was fixed. i dont use the panels anymore because my personal "usage-profile" fits perfectly with the features of the "spb mobile shell".
additionally i installed following tools to complete the things i need:
- skype
- divxplayer
- gpstoday
- mobipoket
- flash_lite (for flash-sites in opera)
- blackstone keyboard (replaces the popup keyboard)
- blackstone volume control (replacec the volume control)
- total commander (to establish a LAN to my workstation)
- SRS WOW HD for better Sound
- advanced config tool to tweak some options
i have done a few softresets after installing some tools. i have never done a hardreset and my phone works _really_ stable.
the only issue i had was with google maps and gps because of a missconfiguration of my connection settings (my fault).
so far the x1 is the best smartphone i ever had (after nokias and older se-smartphones).
also: this forum helps alot !
- quadword

dunno man... i've had the x1 for a few days and i swear i've had the thing get stuck on me at least 10 times a day.. pressed the reset button under the battery cover god knows how many times.. i dont blame se for this its just windows mobile thats messed up imho.. i've moved back to the iphone for my primary phone i just use the x1 for typing while im driving..

SCtud said:
The fresh out of the box windows mobile device is a HORRIBLE experience. There's no ifs and or buts.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I disagree, ive had winmmo devices (with or without phone capabilities) since windows ce first came out, and ive always found its to be a worthwile o/s. Granted the Iphone interface is amazing especially with its dual touch capability. But i wouldnt (IMO) say the winmo experiance is horrible

I'll take WinMo over multitouch any day.
WinMo gives me all the basic things i need BUT it can actually handle real games like Warcraft 2, Age of Empires, Syberia and so on (sure they're old, but they're my favorite) compared to the acclerometer arcade games of the iPhone...

Windows Mobile is meant for configurability, the sweetness of doing anything you like with your device and tons of 3rd party programs(probably the most than any other mobile platform).
Saying that X1 is crap, is like saying HTC Diamon, Touch Pro and Touch HD are crap too. This is quite silly of course because they have almost the same hardware and OS, and those HTC devices (at least the 2) have done a great job for many users.
X1 is good for its big screen (resolution), hardware keyboard and the standard connectors (audio and USB jack which current HTC devices lack), the rest of the features are already present on other mobile devices, nothing really new.
Summing it up, comparing the iPhone OS and Windows Mobile is like OSX vs Windows. Some users like the shiny clean interface, while others like to get the job done and be able to control their hardware with tons of programs. Some people don't like to mess with the device but others are dying to do so.

I vote xperia!
My first winmo device was a cassiopia. And I've had just about everythin in between. I won a gen1 iPhone in some dev conference and played with it for awhile before giving it to my brother in law. It was horrible to type on and locked up frequently without any additional software. IMHO it's a toy.
The panels are software. They're not quite right yet but I don't find them to be slow on my device. (Without any other large running applications in the background).
If I don't use the panels at all, I can load TF3D and Blackstone cabs and device works very well. Of course if you even hit the panel button it will crash, but if you don't it works fine.
There are some software issues to be worked out but when hasn't that happened with the first production rom on a WM phone?
Except for the annoying bluetooth turning off and the email signature (patchable) issue I think this is the best device I've had. Far better that the TYTNII. (IMHO)
This site is also a major reason...

well thank you for all the input in this matter.. guess it's all about taste and what to expect from a high end device like this.
I am very unhappy with this one going back to my E90 but thats me,more feautures better camera and even flash right out the box suites me fine.
No struggle no hassle just simple and plain usage and everything works..
Any bid is a good bit when i comes to this crap so if in sweden feel free to make an offer..

Micke401 said:
well thank you for all the input in this matter.. guess it's all about taste and what to expect from a high end device like this.
I am very unhappy with this one going back to my E90 but thats me,more feautures better camera and even flash right out the box suites me fine.
No struggle no hassle just simple and plain usage and everything works..
Any bid is a good bit when i comes to this crap so if in sweden feel free to make an offer..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I enjoyed my E90 (before I had my iPhone 2G which I am now tired of hence my silver X1). The E90's camera is better? I haven't really used the X1 camera yet. Would love to see some comparison shots X1 vs E90.

Okay, another X1 owner here.
I've had the device for 2 days now and what can I say:
THE BAD
- it is slow
- WLAN sucks, the range is very very very very weak.
- No Cisco VPN, only IPSEC+LT2P and PPTP, but a lot of companies use IPSEC+something else from Cisco, which doesn't work on the X1. On the iPhone it does.
- Generally limited connection options to WLAN, I still can't connect to our campus network, but all the iPhone people have no problem.
- panels are crap, the placeholders aren't even updated, they're all in English although I have German (the panel itself is then German)
- Basic WM concepts: for example: Error boxes have a close button (tiny), but can be dragged around (whole box). Why, I ask, why? Who would want to move an error box, instead of closing it???
- Recessed screen.
- Small icons on the top.
- Media player sucks, no gapless playback, no EQ, etc.
THE GOOD
- Amazing touchscreen. Very very precise, and I can do everything with my finger.
- Amazing speed on WM core applications (file manager etc)
- WM basic PDA capabilities: Tasks/Calendar/Mail all work very well.
- SPB Mobile Shell
- Keyboard is usable I think.
- Camera is good, but a tad slow.
- Active sync is okay.
- Office Mobile!!
- PDF Viewer <--- very good
- Sound quality over headphones is good, radio is very fast.
SUMMARY
Panels and WLAN suck. Everything else is okay or good. The X1 is an okay purchase, but waaaay too expensive in comparison with an iPhone.
RECOMMENDATION
- DON'T get it for your girlfriend/wife/grandma. It's utterly complicated to find out how something works, everything is not intuitive.
- GET it if you want to spend A LOT of money on a device which is worse than for example an iPhone in most areas, but has a few missing features you really need (for me it's tasks, screen res and video)

please stop, stop complaining about a thing that you have purchased only because of marketing or shopping compulsion. Next time read (internet, reviews, forums) and think ("is that the thing that I need?") before buying a 600+ euros device that you don't know what really is.
Once again: noob, stay away from windows mobile, use symbian, s40 or iphone, but don't pretend to be a pro with winmobile and then ***** because you can't use it in the way you suppose to

guap said:
please stop, stop complaining about a thing that you have purchased only because of marketing or shopping compulsion. Next time read (internet, reviews, forums) and think ("is that the thing that I need?") before buying a 600+ euros device that you don't know what really is.
Once again: noob, stay away from windows mobile, use symbian, s40 or iphone, but don't pretend to be a pro with winmobile and then ***** because you can't use it in the way you suppose to
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I second that.

guap said:
please stop, stop complaining about a thing that you have purchased only because of marketing or shopping compulsion. Next time read (internet, reviews, forums) and think ("is that the thing that I need?") before buying a 600+ euros device that you don't know what really is.
Once again: noob, stay away from windows mobile, use symbian, s40 or iphone, but don't pretend to be a pro with winmobile and then ***** because you can't use it in the way you suppose to
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have in fact a touch dual and i think even this device surpasses this one.. AND i read the reviews belive me and this was a lot of money down the drain..
I expected at least the feautures my 18 month nokia have in a slick format with a touchscreen but no,it`s so far behind that it is rediculus.. No good for me i want more,i do not want to search this otherwise exellent forum for things that already is done in my E90.
I was just curious about what other think about it,if it suits you thats fine but for me it`s simply no good..

My iPhone experience

I am the proud owner of a HTC touch HD phone, and a very happy owner too. I got it just before Christmas, and it is currently running on Duttys rom, 2.6. All in all my best phone so far.
As many, I have always looked upon the iPhone as one of the absolute best phones ever made, in my opinion it more or less revolutionized how we look upon a phone’s capabilities. However, since I have never had an iPhone, I found it hard to argument for or against it. Therefore I have bought one (used), which will arrive by mail within the next few days. When I get it, I will use it for a month and keep posting here how it goes and how it performs compared to the touch HD. Why do I do this? Because I’m curious, and because I want to see what all the hype is about, and most of all, i hate the fact that everyone is *****ing about which product is the best, but only a few has actually had and used the two phones for a longer period of time.
So far I bought the phone (iPhone 3g), and I am waiting for it to arrive. I must say the wait is long I have downloaded iTunes, so all I’m waiting for right now, is the phone itself.
Besides the normal things you do with a phone (calling, sms), I daily use my touch HD for web browsing, email correspondence and video and music. All of which performs perfectly (thank you coreplayer ). So this is what I plan to use the iPhone for, since touch HD is a windows mobile phone, I rely upon activesync to take care of my outlook contacts and calendar notes, we’ll see how well iTunes does this.
I also like the fact that it is so easy to get what you want with windows mobile, mostly through you guys here at xda.
When the phone arrives I’ll post my first experiences.
Update: 15-4-2009
It'll arrive tomorrow. Thanks for all the replys
Update 17-4-2009
First impressions
So i’ve used the phone for all in all 5-6 hours so far, so I can only tell you about my first impressions. I had some problems getting my music from my pc to the phone, it turned out that you have to enable music synchronization in itunes, in order to get anything transferred to the phone. First thing I did was to transfer my music through explorer (drag and drop), more or less the exact same way as with touch hd, this isn’t allowed, so I had to go through itunes, convert all my music, find out how to get it from itunes to the phone, before I could listen to music. In all in all much more difficult than I had believed, but now I know how it works, so hopefully this won’t be an issue in the future. I can see the problem for those who has many more songs than I had on my laptop, it’s takes a long time to convert to the itunes format, so this would be a major drawback. Why can’t I just put my mp3’s directly on the phone?
This being said, I really like the flow on the phone, the framerate compared to touch hd, is better, giving a better feel. However, I’ve been a bit annoyed by the sensitivity of the screen; it probably takes some getting used to.
Finally, when I used the phone this morning in my way to work, I had some issues with the 3G connection. My touch hd has no problems what so ever when I am using to surf and check mails and so on, the iphone used 3G for 3 minutes, and then I found myself browsing using edge, which is in my opinion is not an option. This is something that will be an annoyance if it keeps up (I’m hoping it was a onetime only).
As for the browsing itself, iphone surpasses the touch hd. Opera is simply to slow compared to safari, but if I can’t get a proper connection, there really is no choice.
One thing that really impressed though was the app store. All though you have to put in your credit card information in order to create an account, it is really easy to browse through all the apps, find what you like and install it. And there really are many different and funny apps, which all in all lifts the overall user value.
I’ll return in next week with more views. Thanks for all the responses
04-05-2009
The first many days.
Hey, sorry for the delay. Been busy at work, but finally found some time to write some more. I have had and used the phone for quite some time by now, it performs as expected. All though I begin to see the small bugs, which most people forget to mention when recommending the iphone. I read somewhere that the iPhone simply “just works”. That is not entirely true, yes I have never had a smartphone that performs as well as the iPhone, it has the least amounts of crashes and so on. However, to say that it simply works, is wrong. When I browse the web, safari hangs on every load, so you have to wait for the entire page to load until you start navigating. Furthermore the video player used in safari has a tendency to hang a lot when you are viewing a longer video, and especially if wifi is turned on. But still, the browser is the best mobile browser so far. Opera hangs/stalls/dies a lot too, and of the two browsers, I prefer safari. There’s still a long way to go until web browsing on the mobile is perfect.
The phone itself has rebooted three times, one time in a game and the two other times it just stalled and went black. Odd… Again if I compare to touch hd, it is more or less the same. My touch hd also died a lot of times, and the one thing that annoyed me most on a windows mobile device, is the fact that the memory isn’t flushed correctly. To many times you have to do a hard reboot, in order to get the memory cleared and to get good performance again.
I mentioned the connection problems earlier, or the lack of connection… Well it hasn’t improved, when you are traveling, the phone looses connection so many times it’s a major problem. Sometimes safari stops working when the connection is lost. Damn, that annoys me… So why don’t you just use wifi? Because with wifi turned on, the battery is used up in no time at all. This brings me to the next issue: The battery. I have to charge the phone one time every day, even with wifi turned off. “Then you use the phone a lot” you might say, and the answer would be: “yes I do, but that’s what the iphone is all about…”. If you don’t use the iphone for all the things that are so nice on the phone, why use it at all. I listen to music, surf the web, check emails, and play games on it daily. And this results in a charge a day. So all in all, the battery performance is poor. Furthermore if you are playing a game, and receive a phonecall, the game is shut down, without save, stupid…
This brings me to the app store, this is the one thing that makes me praise the iPhone. Yes we have the same on windows mobile, but not so approachable and comprehensive. Installing a game or a program could be much much easier on winmo. There is only one big flaw in the app store, if you are connected through 3G, there is a max on 10 mb per download. So if you find a game that’s larger than 10 mb, you have to wait to download it. Why??? 10 mb on 3g shouldn’t be a problem… By the way, you gotta love the facebook app… All though you can’t connect a contact to its facebook profile, it’s still a nice app
The GPS is not entirely accurate, but still usable. I won’t say that much about the gps since I don’t use it allot. And google maps is more or less the same as on touch hd.
The last thing: I saw many movies on touch HD. I have ripped many of my dvd’s and converted them to divx. On touch hd you just transfer the movie to the phone and you can see it. On iphone I have to convert it to some stupid format in order to see it. I hate having movies in so many different formats, and hate to rely upon itunes.
I’ll write a new post in the near future, and as for the guy who commented on my description on to much sensitivity: Sorry, but that’s just my experience of the phone 

Samoht2003 said:
I am the proud owner of a HTC touch HD phone, and a very happy owner too. I got it just before Christmas, and it is currently running on Duttys rom, 2.6. All in all my best phone so far.
As many, I have always looked upon the iPhone as one of the absolute best phones ever made, in my opinion it more or less revolutionized how we look upon a phone’s capabilities. However, since I have never had an iPhone, I found it hard to argument for or against it. Therefore I have bought one (used), which will arrive by mail within the next few days. When I get it, I will use it for a month and keep posting here how it goes and how it performs compared to the touch HD. Why do I do this? Because I’m curious, and because I want to see what all the hype is about, and most of all, i hate the fact that everyone is *****ing about which product is the best, but only a few has actually had and used the two phones for a longer period of time.
So far I bought the phone (iPhone 3g), and I am waiting for it to arrive. I must say the wait is long I have downloaded iTunes, so all I’m waiting for right now, is the phone itself.
Besides the normal things you do with a phone (calling, sms), I daily use my touch HD for web browsing, email correspondence and video and music. All of which performs perfectly (thank you coreplayer ). So this is what I plan to use the iPhone for, since touch HD is a windows mobile phone, I rely upon activesync to take care of my outlook contacts and calendar notes, we’ll see how well iTunes does this.
I also like the fact that it is so easy to get what you want with windows mobile, mostly through you guys here at xda.
When the phone arrives I’ll post my first experiences.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looking forward to hear your experinces

Yep look forward to it!
Not sure it was revolutionary... the LG Prada was a full touch screen phone before the iPhone.. Apple just packaged it well... Steve jobs could box a turd and sell it. pretty much like Apples claim on the mouse! That was actually Xerox's baby!

Looking forward to your experience and an honest review / comparison between the 2!

I actually have both (HTC Touch HD and iPhone 3g), too

Yeah, waiting to see your comments...

We are talking about Apples & Oranges here!!! Arent we?

the real great things on the iphone are aps! they are realy cool, good looking, running smooth... but only one at a time with a verry bad cam and no mms... (yet )
if it had a better cam, MMS (soon) eand a real GPS (and GPS software) i would defintly forget my HD!

way to go pal, will be glad to read your reviews.

bouyaka said:
the real great things on the iphone are aps! they are realy cool, good looking, running smooth... but only one at a time with a verry bad cam and no mms... (yet )
if it had a better cam, MMS (soon) eand a real GPS (and GPS software) i would defintly forget my HD!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh my.
Jesus phone has a lot of shortcomings, but MMS? Who cares? It's the silliest thing since plastic toothpick. Why do you want to pay your operator for this surrogate email?
And do you really consider HD's camera usable?

daraj said:
We are talking about Apples & Oranges here!!! Arent we?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really.... I'll explain...
I've just sold my iPhone 3G and bought a HD. My reasons were...
1) I get bored and I had the iPhone since last July and fancied a change
2) I wanted expandable memory
3) I think the iPhone is looking dated now. Controversial I'm sure...
4) I now want stereo Bluetooth streaming for a new iO Play car kit I have had fitted
I used to change phones far too often and had 13 in a year once, but the iPhone is the longest serving handset I've had for a while. Despite not being bleeding edge when it comes to the specification, the way you interact with it, the simplicity, the fluidity and the Apple ecosystem all added up to make it a revolutionary phone. There is a reason why every new touch-screen phone is an iPhone killer.
The email client is superb, web browsing superb and media playback superb. And the text inputs auto-correction is very intelligent and doesn't just look out for spelling mistakes, but patterns in typing which it relates to possible words.
The App store is great, but getting full of rubbish making the genuinely useful stuff harder to find. Rumours are there will be a premier store soon. The O2 contracts are great, as the free data and free WiFi access are superbly implemented, switching between seamlessly. And once you've authenticated with the free WiFi once that's all you ever have to do. I could walk into a Starbucks, McDonalds, Costa, Hotel, Airport etc etc and it would connect to the WiFi before I even realised I was in a hotspot.
But it's not the Jesus phone everyone seems to think. And I hate, really, really hate the fan-boy love affair some people have with it... to the point I was embarrassed by it sometimes.
"No, I don't want to talk to you about your iPhone, stranger...."
The limitations in the iPhone are 75% software based, most of which will be corrected in version 3 of the software. Things like additional Bluetooth profiles, landscape text input in all apps, MMS, tethering etc will be welcome additions.
And that's one of the things that bothered me. These are simple things that really should be included as standard.
Things like the poor camera didn't bother me. I mean, Sony Ericsson have been putting rubbish cameras in phones they didn't market as imaging devices for years. If the camera is the main focus, there are much better options (like buying a camera).
The lack of expandable memory is a big deal for a multimedia phone though. I can understand the marketing / product reasons behind it, but even that seems to contradict the 'one device to do everything' approach Apple take with this.
Now to go back to my original point, Apples Vs Oranges, the HD and the iPhone aren't that different. Both have huge strengths, both have huge weaknesses, both have massive amounts in common. The thing that differs between them is down to the person buying it. What do you want from a phone....?
Out of the box usability and slickness? iPhone.
Endless tinkering, customisation and free reign of what you do with your phone? Touch HD
But both have the capability of matching the other in every single aspect. There is pretty much nothing that you can do with one that you can't with the other. Exactly the same can be said for Windows PC operating systems Vs Apple Mac OS X. Funnily enough, most of what I have said above can be applied in some way to that argument too.
So, the other downsides to the iPhone.... (some of this is entirely personal opinion).
Text input needs work in it's current form. The keys are just too small. This is made up by the excellent auto-correction, but it's still poor. And you can't add in new keyboards without jailbreaking, which brings me to..
Restrictive approach to third party applications. Apples closed-door approach has no benefits. I originally thought it would be good as it would ensure reliability and stability, but there are some terribly shaky applications in the App Store. I see no benefit in this for consumers and the only way around involves invalidating your warranty.
Hardware restrictions - No expandable memory, as above. Screen size Vs chassis size and screen resolution are falling behind the competition. Poor build quality is another factor that's not uncommon either.
If you are the kind of person who enjoys Windows Mobile, I predict you will get frustrated with the iPhones shortfalls and will be jailbreaking it within a day.

Robster83 said:
Not really.... I'll explain...
I've just sold my iPhone 3G and bought a HD. My reasons were...
1) I get bored and I had the iPhone since last July and fancied a change
2) I wanted expandable memory
3) I think the iPhone is looking dated now. Controversial I'm sure...
4) I now want stereo Bluetooth streaming for a new iO Play car kit I have had fitted
I used to change phones far too often and had 13 in a year once, but the iPhone is the longest serving handset I've had for a while. Despite not being bleeding edge when it comes to the specification, the way you interact with it, the simplicity, the fluidity and the Apple ecosystem all added up to make it a revolutionary phone. There is a reason why every new touch-screen phone is an iPhone killer.
The email client is superb, web browsing superb and media playback superb. And the text inputs auto-correction is very intelligent and doesn't just look out for spelling mistakes, but patterns in typing which it relates to possible words.
The App store is great, but getting full of rubbish making the genuinely useful stuff harder to find. Rumours are there will be a premier store soon. The O2 contracts are great, as the free data and free WiFi access are superbly implemented, switching between seamlessly. And once you've authenticated with the free WiFi once that's all you ever have to do. I could walk into a Starbucks, McDonalds, Costa, Hotel, Airport etc etc and it would connect to the WiFi before I even realised I was in a hotspot.
But it's not the Jesus phone everyone seems to think. And I hate, really, really hate the fan-boy love affair some people have with it... to the point I was embarrassed by it sometimes.
"No, I don't want to talk to you about your iPhone, stranger...."
The limitations in the iPhone are 75% software based, most of which will be corrected in version 3 of the software. Things like additional Bluetooth profiles, landscape text input in all apps, MMS, tethering etc will be welcome additions.
And that's one of the things that bothered me. These are simple things that really should be included as standard.
Things like the poor camera didn't bother me. I mean, Sony Ericsson have been putting rubbish cameras in phones they didn't market as imaging devices for years. If the camera is the main focus, there are much better options (like buying a camera).
The lack of expandable memory is a big deal for a multimedia phone though. I can understand the marketing / product reasons behind it, but even that seems to contradict the 'one device to do everything' approach Apple take with this.
Now to go back to my original point, Apples Vs Oranges, the HD and the iPhone aren't that different. Both have huge strengths, both have huge weaknesses, both have massive amounts in common. The thing that differs between them is down to the person buying it. What do you want from a phone....?
Out of the box usability and slickness? iPhone.
Endless tinkering, customisation and free reign of what you do with your phone? Touch HD
But both have the capability of matching the other in every single aspect. There is pretty much nothing that you can do with one that you can't with the other. Exactly the same can be said for Windows PC operating systems Vs Apple Mac OS X. Funnily enough, most of what I have said above can be applied in some way to that argument too.
So, the other downsides to the iPhone.... (some of this is entirely personal opinion).
Text input needs work in it's current form. The keys are just too small. This is made up by the excellent auto-correction, but it's still poor. And you can't add in new keyboards without jailbreaking, which brings me to..
Restrictive approach to third party applications. Apples closed-door approach has no benefits. I originally thought it would be good as it would ensure reliability and stability, but there are some terribly shaky applications in the App Store. I see no benefit in this for consumers and the only way around involves invalidating your warranty.
Hardware restrictions - No expandable memory, as above. Screen size Vs chassis size and screen resolution are falling behind the competition. Poor build quality is another factor that's not uncommon either.
If you are the kind of person who enjoys Windows Mobile, I predict you will get frustrated with the iPhones shortfalls and will be jailbreaking it within a day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What I meant by that is the fact the HD is highly customizable to the bones, heck you can even run an Android OS on it. Iphone is a very closed OS with very little tweaks allowed by Apple ( Not talking about Jailbreaking) From the usability to the screen to the memory to the GPS vs A-GPS.. from the camera to almost everything in both phones are different. I consider the Iphone a weekend phone While the HD is a very business oriented phone that gets the job done and good.
Not sure If I can really say they are very similar. Just my 2 cents

daraj said:
What I meant by that is the fact the HD is highly customizable to the bones, heck you can even run an Android OS on it. Iphone is a very closed OS with very little tweaks allowed by Apple ( Not talking about Jailbreaking) From the usability to the screen to the memory to the GPS vs A-GPS.. from the camera to almost everything in both phones are different. I consider the Iphone a weekend phone While the HD is a very business oriented phone that gets the job done and good.
Not sure If I can really say they are very similar. Just my 2 cents
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's fair enough. But when you sit the two side-by-side and ask them to do the same task, there isn't much difference. If you think about what you do with your phone, I'd bet the HD does things in a very similar way to the iPhone. There are only so many ways to construct a text message, make a call or browse the internet on a touch screen mobile
The one big thing I didn't mention that you have just reminded me of, is the touch screen. The capacitive screen on the iPhone is much more responsive in use.

Robster83 said:
That's fair enough. But when you sit the two side-by-side and ask them to do the same task, there isn't much difference. If you think about what you do with your phone, I'd bet the HD does things in a very similar way to the iPhone. There are only so many ways to construct a text message, make a call or browse the internet on a touch screen mobile
The one big thing I didn't mention that you have just reminded me of, is the touch screen. The capacitive screen on the iPhone is much more responsive in use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup. WVGA on HD and VGA on Iphone ( Not sure if its even VGA)

pretty much it boils down to what you do with it. I have both devices. I use the HD and the iphone sits on the desk. I am an admin at my company and we are windows based the windows mobile device it the best phone for us. While I like the Iphone it is not praticle for me to use. I hav not found any thing that I do on the iphone that I gave not been able to find an app that works on the hd doing the same or better. I really like being able to change the rom on my phone and customise it. Can't really do that with the iphone. And I think the display on the HD is much better.

daraj said:
Yup. WVGA on HD and VGA on Iphone ( Not sure if its even VGA)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Capacitive Vs Resistive is a bigger aspect than the resolution which, I agree, the iPhone falls short of. It is HVGA (320x480).

You have to be crazy to think that the iphone hasnt changed the mobile industry. It is an amazingly capable, intuitive and beautiful device to boot compared to these piece of lard htc OS's (the stock ones).
I owned about 15 HTC/Winmo devices starting with the SPV c500 and culminating in the Diamond as soon as it came out and got an iphone 3g at around the same time. None of the roms could come close to the intrinsic slickness, speed and support for the iphone, I jailbroke it, and was blown away and it became my primary device. However the iphone is currently mediacentric and not a buisness/professional phone and I needed an OQO UMPC to carry around as well but it doesnt claim to be anything else in fairness.
I have been quite impressed by the cooked Win 6.5 roms and skyfire recently though, and I am going to buy the HTC Touch Pro2 when it comes out as I need to use programs like word with a built in keyboard and tv out facility and perhaps retire my UMPC/laptops. This forum is also a great feature in choosing a HTC phone for customisation.
And for people who say the iphone doesnt have microsd, poor camera etc... How many crippled HTC devices have we seen? The iphone has been in a class of its own untill recent catch up devices.

imperiallight said:
And for people who say the iphone doesnt have microsd, poor camera etc... How many crippled HTC devices have we seen? The iphone has been in a class of its own untill recent catch up devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Expandability is (in my opinion) essential for any electronic devices. I have an 8GB card in my HD now, and I plan on upgrading to a 32GB soon by simply inserting a memory card. iPhone...can't do that. You have to buy a new phone to do so. I also have a spare battery which I can swap out when I am on the road and can't charge my phone...like camping perhaps. Iphone...can't. I like to copy and paste text from one program to another (multitasking). iPhone...can't. The HD 5MP camera takes great pictures which can be geo tagged with great accuracy. iPhone (until v2.0 comes out)...can't. Sure, there are some HD's out there that are crippled or bricked. Why? Because people that have the mental capacity to appreciate a multitasking device/computer actually like to open the hood and tweak it. Sure, iPhone apps may seem to run smoother. But that's because of the lack of multitasking! My HD (or any other Windows Mobile device) runs processes and applications in the background so you can do more and be more productive.
Honestly, do a side by side comparison of the HD and the iPhone. And I am not talking software, I mean hardware. We can debate applications all day, but it's the hardware that defines the capabilities. If you want a list of HD hardware features then I will post them for you.

*double post*

DerrickD2,
You have misunderstood the thrust of my post, that the iphone was/is a trailblazing and revolutionary device in the mobile sector. It seems anywhere bar this 'nerdy spec-hugging' forum that its not too hard to accept. The Touch HD is a better device in my opinion too as like I already stated, other companies have played catch up. There is no need to tell me its hardware specs.
But to pick up on a few points:
* Upgradeable SD is important, it annoys me to only have 16gb but I can stream content off free iphone optimised filestores available, some providing 10gb a go. Not ideal but workable.
* Spare battery, well the iphones battery is pretty decent and lasts for many years. If you want to keep the battery charged you can do it on the fly by adding these 'double your battery' packs and their ilk/cases when you are running low and you dont even 'have to swap the battery':
http://us.kensington.com/html/15462.html
* You can cut and paste text in jailbroken phones within the app. You can mulitask too, to an extent on JB phones although I dont know if it's sytemwide cut and paste (prob. not)
* Megapixels aren't everything on a camera. Its about the lens too. The 2MP camera of the iphone image quality is known to be quite decent, better than most 3.2MP HTC offerings but I agree it should have a better camera.
* Like I said the iphone isn't productivity centred and its probably why they dont consider multitasking a crucial feature but from what I understand its processor is faster than any HTC phone. Jailbroken iphones can run background apps too but obviously native apps dont support this.
We can debate applications all day, but it's the hardware that defines the capabilities.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is so contentious! Hardware can define the capabilites and software/OS/User experience can define the capabilties! It depends on what the consumer needs. Horses for course's!

Is this the phone we all been waiting for?

Well got my Hero today on t-mobile and all i can say is this is by far and away the bet phone i have ever used it dose what it say on the tin. It is sexy looking phone easy to use and fat to boot. God it this was a woman id never get out of the sack lol .
All i have to add is if you not got a Hero you need to get on NOW not tommorow NOW, apple should expect to kiss the ass good bye HERO and ANDROID a marrige made in heaven

I had one and did not feel at all like that. Bored in 2 days. The phone was sent back on the third.
Certainly a nice piece of tech but nothing special.

Its nice to read that you like the handset, its not everybody's cup of tea.
I also find Android a joy to use, but I think the phone could of been better. What I miss from the Diamond is a timeout on the display so it reverts back to the today screen (home). Hopefully 2.0 will be out soon with even mor improvements

Android can only get better and were definitely going to see improvements, I prefer it over WM 6.1 and the lipstick on a pig WM 6.5.
What would have been great is if HTC had used a better processor, I mean they have been using the same/similar one for ages, however it seems Android isn't as resource hungry as WM and the processor is working fine, so no problem there really.
When HTC bring out an android phone with either Tegra or Snapdragon and good camera with flash, I will literally empty my wallet for that.

If it was the phone we had all been waiting for it would hardly have a weak processor (HTC, why do you consistently make stupid design choices) and an absysmal camera that can't even manage half decent video recording, would it? In this day and age HTC REALLY need to get their act togather to encourage anything but fanboys to buy their hardware or defekt from other brands. They have great software but the hardware just isnä't up to scratch, and that is a critical failure. I'll be waiting for the next revision methinks...

I had the G1 so i was use to android system. I love the hero given i have only had it for 5 days atm but liking every moment.
I prefer android over WM anyday of the week. I used WM on my omnia and found it poor, laggy and just not a good experience. (even though it did have its moments)
I feel the market place is probably a defining factor in my decision on android. The market place is a great part of the system, similar to the appstore for iphone.
It was either the android phone or iphone. I chose the android because it has the ability to run apps in the background which i find a great advantage over the iphone among other things.
And the Android system can only get better.

Is it just my handset, but the "People" app really lags badly, which is quite a concern given it's perhaps one of the most important aspects of the phone. (My contacts are Google-synced and have Facebook-applied profile pics, but even so...)

My phone handles 'people' fine. No lag
You might have a number off apps running an taking up memory. Try holding home key for about 3seconds.
Maybe you should download a task manager program off market place see if that can improve anything?

maikie said:
My phone handles 'people' fine. No lag
You might have a number off apps running an taking up memory. Try holding home key for about 3seconds.
Maybe you should download a task manager program off market place see if that can improve anything?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Holding home key shows recently used applications, not the running applications.
btw, my "people" works fine

my bad.
So a task manager is the answer then.

OK can I ask a couple of questions to you who people who are saying People works fine:
1) Are you using Google-synced contacts?
2) Do you have Facebook integration for these contacts enabled, including getting their picture from Facebook?
(I'm just trying to isolate the source of this issue...)
Also, when I talk of lagging, I mean that the scrolling is very far from smooth...

I use only google synced contacts (no sim or phone contacts) and am linked to facebook.
Scrolling works fine.
Dare I say almost perfect.
I have about 180 contacts synced from google.

[jon] said:
OK can I ask a couple of questions to you who people who are saying People works fine:
1) Are you using Google-synced contacts?
2) Do you have Facebook integration for these contacts enabled, including getting their picture from Facebook?
(I'm just trying to isolate the source of this issue...)
Also, when I talk of lagging, I mean that the scrolling is very far from smooth...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here... Google, Facebook & Twitter are sync'd for me and the scrolling from time to time is bad. ALmost every time I check the weather the animation is choppy! What is causing this? As the video from HTC shows smooth & flawless!

It probably is what i've been waiting for. Ok, its not as fast or fluid than the iphone which most use as a bench mark, but its more intresting to use. I've had an iphone 3g and 3gs and got a bit bored of them and sold on. Sure they are great, but the lack of customisation makes some people like me lose intrest. With the Hero that is not a problem.
With all the other Android phones coming out this and next year, just think how good the marketplace will be too.

Thinking of returning my HD2

As stated in the thread title, I am seriously considering returning my HTC Touch HD2, because I find it almost completely unusable compared to the iphone that I owned previously.
Pros
- Amazing screen
- Everything else that has been highlighted in all the positive reviews that persuaded me to buy the device in the first place (spec, camera, connectivity etc.)
Cons:
- Touchscreen keyboard is unusable and not accurate, even after calibaration (compared to an iphone)
- Web browsing using Opera is frustrating due to the unreliable touchscreen - I find it impossible to click on links; particularly on sites such as this one (with small page numbers etc.) - even when I zoom right in I still can't click the link - there is a huge delay before anything happens, without any feedback to show the link has been clicked - this stuff just worked on the iphone, depsite the smaller screen
- Random app switching, erratic behaviour (screen moving on its own) and regular freezes in all modes/apps
For those who think I am some kind of Apple fan-boy, that couldn't be further from the truth - my iphone developed a dead strip of icons, which forced me to sell it for peanuts, so I vowed to never buy another! The truth of the matter is that the UI of the HD2 just isn't in the same league as the iphone - it's just a cheap imitation.
Maybe if it had Android instead of WM it would stand a chance, but as things currently stand, I find the HD2 completely unusable and will probably be returning it on Monday and getting an iphone, assuming I can persuade Mobile Phones Direct to adhere to the distance selling regulations that provide a 7 day cooling off period (according to their T&C's this only stands if the box is unopened, which is wrong)
Please note that I am posting this for the benefit of others, to provide my personal feedback after using the phone for the last few days. If anyone has any suggestions for how to rectify the problems noted above, I will happily try them.
Catman

I feel your pain...
Hi,
I know how you feel - I've only had it a day and i'm already getting that dreaded feeling! On the plus side I'm delighted to be away from that Stalin 'Jobsie' and his locked down iPhones - on the down side this HD2 is about as user friendly as the space shuttle compared to the jesus phone, and I sued to be so impressed with the iPaq from 6 years ago!!
I do think that I can live with it - just it's not going to be the long winded love affair type relationship - more the 'throwing at the wall' one minute, loving it the next!
Luckily, mines through o2 so i'm going to run with it for 10 days and see how we get along - if all else fails then there's always the 3GS to fall back onto. Although I wasn't for Android on this handset to begin with - from where i'm sitting now it does make more sense!
Good luck figuring it all out!

Look here :http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=583638
For some handy tweaks including, haptic feedback in Opera and the abiltiy to click links without zooming in!!!
But I do feel your pain, a little let down with the OS on this phone, everything else is excellent..... build quality, screen, asthetics, CPU, RAM, etc.. Just the OS is a pile of poo! lol

The truth of the matter is that the UI of the HD2 just isn't in the same league as the iphone - it's just a cheap imitation.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot. You just proof yourself wrong ^^. Whether its better or worse is another question, but imitation? You mean the shortcuts on home screen? You're just *****in'. Pls close this thread we dont need that destructive posts.
Advice: Sell the HD2 and dont complain. I can click even the small ugly boxes in Windows Mobile itself. I dont know how long you've tried to click somethin', but if you really feel that it is impossible for you go back to resistive screen, on the Touch HD it wasnt that bad IMO.

NetDwarf said:
Thanks a lot. You just proof yourself wrong ^^. Whether its better or worse is another question, but imitation? You mean the shortcuts on home screen? You're just *****in'. Pls close this thread we dont need that destructive posts.
Advice: Sell the HD2 and dont complain. I can click even the small ugly boxes in Windows Mobile itself. I dont know how long you've tried to click somethin', but if you really feel that it is impossible for you go back to resistive screen, on the Touch HD it wasnt that bad IMO.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everyone's entitled to their own opinion...even one sided twerps like you.

It's kinda strange for me to read your feedback, I had chance to play with the test version of the HD2 and things worked pretty well, most of your "cons" I could not find on my preliminary experience!?

Catman3146 said:
assuming I can persuade Mobile Phones Direct to adhere to the distance selling regulations that provide a 7 day cooling off period
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
(hollow laugh)
Good luck with that.

I hear you man. I have the same considerations..
I don't have freezes or random app switching though. and I don't really care about the UI since I use spb mobile shell which runs excellent and so god damn fast on this thing.
but the screen is a problem when browsing. it's not accurate enough for my taste. and using the keyboard is also more cumbersome than on my Topaz...
it really is a beautiful and fast device. sometimes it feels like using a computer more than a phone and that's pretty cool too.
I'm still thinking...

Your poor experience seems to be the result of a faulty handset. For the first 4 days of receiving my HD2, the phone's touchscreen kept making its own decisions, even when left idling on the desk. The touchscreen registered wrong inputs and I had the same impressions of the phone as you have now. It was the final straw when the phone just kept registering the 2 option in Phone mode and refused to stop until I hit the soft reset button.
I took it down to the shop I bought the phone from, had it exchanged after explaining the situation (it did take a threat of wanting a full refund when they initially refused to classify the phone as faulty) and the replaced new handset is a complete different phone to the first one I had, the touchscreen does what suppose to do!
Before throwing all hopes away on the HD2, trying getting it replaced first. It is a genuinely good product, it's a shame that quality control has let some of us down.
Your experience with Opera should be resolved by Karlos G's link.
[EDIT] My phone was also purchased from Mobile Phones Direct. They are rather poor when it comes to refund and exchanges, trying to make up excuses as to why you cannot refund or exchange the phone (lies, lies and more lies... just don't go with the flow). State your case and don't let them push you around.

I guess your are one of the unlucky people to get a "monday"-device. mine has none of the problems you have. my screen is accurate, opera is sometimes picky when you don't zoom in, and I have never experienced any erratic behaviour. the only problem I can recall is the camera issue (pink teint).
I applied Karlo G's link but I still have problems clicking links when zoomed out. maybe I have to get more accurate I'm still getting used to a capacitive screen.

chronicle said:
Everyone's entitled to their own opinion...even one sided twerps like you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think NetDwarf has a point... an imitation? Hello? on the iphone you've got hundrets of icons and THAT'S IT!... but this beautiful Sense UI. an Imitation? omg

I agree about the keyboard. I don't understand why they couldn't just have made it the same as the one on the Hero, which is excellent.
Maybe in the next software update they will sort the problem. I have tried some other keyboards and they are even worse than the stock one IMHO, so I'm starting to think it's partly to do with the screen sensitivity. I have tried the sensitivity tweak .cab which purports to help the issue but still it frustrates me.
The word prediction algorithms on the iPhone are infinitely superior, and the screen sensitivity is balanced just right. I have both phones in front of me right now and so have a good balanced perspective on this issue.
Here's my opinion on what is better and what is worse of the two based on a year's ownership of an iPhone and a week's ownership of the HD2 (just based on my USAGE, not pure spec!)
iPhone 3G Pros
More balanced screen sensitivity compared to the HD2 - fewer mistakes with the keyboard or onscreen selections.
More efficient and reliable browsing experience
Transflective screen.
Built in podcatching client. I'm yet to find one to compare with iTunes on the iPhone, although Google Listen comes close on Android. Hopefully they will port it to Windows Mobile soon. iTunes finds even the most obscure Podcasts, most other podcatchers require going online to find feeds that are not well known as their database doesn't have the same span as Apple's iTunes store.
Comparatively small in the hand
Better loudspeaker - clear and resonant.
Better Facebook client (by a HUGE margin)
Better BBC iPlayer experience/general online multimedia experience. Many sites tailor their output to iPhone.
Easier to quickly send/reply to a text (I use iRealQuickSMS and I dont think anything similar is available on WinMo)
Built in App Store with 100s of thousands of apps at very reasonable prices (yes I know a lot of them are crap)
Better Youtube app with full sign-in option which includes subscriptions' newest videos
I prefer the iPhone email client.......the Windows one is horrible for HTML content (sorry guys)
Much better IM client in the form of Beejive than anything Windows Mobile currently has on offer. IM+ is slow and ugly.
More tightly knit development and modding scene (XDAs is split over multiple handsets)
iPhone 3G cons
Inconvenient for quickly adding music - iTunes can be a bit of a cludge
Conversion of Video content is almost always required and takes so long that I don't usually bother unless I'm going on a long journey.
Comparatively low screen resolution, screen isn't as bright and clear as the HD2
Limited bluetooth support (although I don't GENERALLY need bluetooth
No option to buy an extra battery so I often have to carry an external one with me.
Low RAM so things often slow down with heavy usage.
Processor not as powerful as that of the HD2 (although it does have hardware acceleration)
HD2 Pros
Gorgeous, huge screen
Multitasking (although I only use it for IM and the iPhone has push notifications which don't use anywhere near as much battery as having an App constantly running in the background and connected to the internet.)
1ghz processor and plenty of RAM means few slowdowns
Video playback without conversion (through Coreplayer)
Nicer weather integration than the iPhone
Better camera than iPhone 3G (but not 3Gs), dual flash.
Great built quality, slimmer than the iPhone.
More comprehensive browser, similar speed but greater screen real-estate and download support. More browser tweaks available.
Open operating system....supports third party skins such as Touchflo and PointUI
Better sound quality through the same Apple headset as the iPhone (in my opinion). Richer, warmer sound.
Easily customisable ringtones and message tones through the device itself, with no jailbreaking required.
Once unlocked, stays unlocked. No worries about device baseband update causing SIMlock.
Facebook and Youtube account/upload integration.
Expandable memory, easier to add files than the iPhone.
HD2 cons
Fiddly UI generally compared to iPhone.
Oversensitive keyboard. Poor prediction algorithms that seem to rely too heavily on getting the first letter right.
Tinny and poor quality speaker. Sounds like an old AM radio on full blast. Awkward positioning on the back.
Paltry 2g card included in box. iPhone comes preloaded with 8gb minimum
Battery charges a lot slower than iPhone
Poor App store - overpriced Apps, too few innovative ones....most of the best ones such as Coreplayer just aren't there. This is not the HD2s fault, it's just that it has a big effect on the user experience when an App store has such a lame selection. Hands up the man who'd pay £5.99 for Pacman, or £18.14 for SPB Wallet!!!
Youtube app is limited and doesn't support account subscriptions. For such a socially-orientated device this is poor show for HTC, and I'm disappointed.
Inbuilt Twitter app is inferior to most iPhone freebies such as Echofon, and a million miles away from being as good as Tweetie. The nearest Windows Marketplace Equivalent TouchTwit costs £3.99 (Tweetie is £1.79 and still a lot better). Microsoft need to get their arse in gear and sort out the Marketplace.
Rubbish Facebook app, browser is better.
These points are just what came to mind for me based on MY WANTS AND NEEDS.
I do like the HD2, I'm not saying it's rubbish. Most of the problems are just about the software, and if Microsoft step up and get the Marketplace right, and HTC release a new ROM with some upgrades and tweaks then who knows.....things might be ten times better.
Aside from it's **** speaker and the slightly dodgy camera tint issue I cannot fault the HD2's hardware. It is really lush, and I love holding it. It is a joy to have in the hand.

Catman3146 said:
As stated in the thread title, I am seriously considering returning my HTC Touch HD2, because I find it almost completely unusable compared to the iphone that I owned previously.
Pros
- Amazing screen
- Everything else that has been highlighted in all the positive reviews that persuaded me to buy the device in the first place (spec, camera, connectivity etc.)
Cons:
- Touchscreen keyboard is unusable and not accurate, even after calibaration (compared to an iphone)
- Web browsing using Opera is frustrating due to the unreliable touchscreen - I find it impossible to click on links; particularly on sites such as this one (with small page numbers etc.) - even when I zoom right in I still can't click the link - there is a huge delay before anything happens, without any feedback to show the link has been clicked - this stuff just worked on the iphone, depsite the smaller screen
- Random app switching, erratic behaviour (screen moving on its own) and regular freezes in all modes/apps
For those who think I am some kind of Apple fan-boy, that couldn't be further from the truth - my iphone developed a dead strip of icons, which forced me to sell it for peanuts, so I vowed to never buy another! The truth of the matter is that the UI of the HD2 just isn't in the same league as the iphone - it's just a cheap imitation.
Maybe if it had Android instead of WM it would stand a chance, but as things currently stand, I find the HD2 completely unusable and will probably be returning it on Monday and getting an iphone, assuming I can persuade Mobile Phones Direct to adhere to the distance selling regulations that provide a 7 day cooling off period (according to their T&C's this only stands if the box is unopened, which is wrong)
Please note that I am posting this for the benefit of others, to provide my personal feedback after using the phone for the last few days. If anyone has any suggestions for how to rectify the problems noted above, I will happily try them.
Catman
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
for me the HD2 is the best. I agreed with the keyboard but i found a solution.
Install Touch Pal and a cab in order to reduce the sensentive leval of the screen (the cab you can download on this forum). Now i can write even better as on the pro 2 - its really great. Forget I-Phone now.

I always find, the best thing to do with a new phone, is try some tweaks etc and then if it doesn't work out, return it. The tweaks usually fix most of the issues that people have. Without this site I would have really regretted getting my X1 for example. But XDA made it amazing.
I love the HD2, and the only problem I have had so far is getting used to the capacitive screen. Any of the other things (like task manager) have been fixed using tweaks from here.
We are so lucky to have all the amazing guys here on XDA developing and discovering all these tweaks for us, and keeping them all in one place.
I suggest you try some of these (they should fix most of your issues).
I would agree, the keyboard can be crazy. But I think it is a case of getting used to it. Every phone is going to be different. That's the nature of the world we live in.
Even then, I think the cons you have mentioned (most of which are fixable).
I hope you do try those tweaks and that they work for you.

Thanks for all your helpful suggestions and comments. I think it is important for people to get a balanced view about the device (particularly compared to the iphone), after reading so many unilaterlly positive reviews that fail to mention many of the flaws I have highlighted.
I will try the tweaks suggested and see how I get over the next couple of days before making a final decision (I'll post an update here), but HTC really should have done a better job with the initial release (the iphone had none of these problems - I bought one of the very first handsets in the US way before it was released here in the UK).
I am still hopeful that the issues are primarily software-related rather than dodgy hardware, but I will try to get a replacement out of MPD to try if this proves to not be the case.

I think you will find Catman, that most of the issues are related to the way the ROM is setup.
I think the tweaks should fix some of them. Have a read through the tips and tweaks list, and see what you can find. Some of them should help. Also, the CABs from smaberg here should also help.

If you sell it, contact me asap !
I am ok to buy !

For anyone struggling with the keyboard, go to the hints and tips thread and install the referenced CAB to reduce screen sensitivity. My keyboard was basically unusable but installed it and it works about the same as the iPhone maybe slightly better because errors are still corrected with the dictionary a lot better...

Catman3146 said:
but HTC really should have done a better job with the initial release (the iphone had none of these problems - I bought one of the very first handsets in the US way before it was released here in the UK).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow if you think the iPhone had no problems at launch, you really are living in backwards land.
BTW, I don't think any HD2s have exploded yet either. I'm not sure if you think incendiary injuries are a positive or negative feature? To be "balanced" we should agree that it is both.

Wow, I find the keyboard excellent, I wonder whether its a ROM-version thing...
Regards browser - have you tried Opera Mobile 10?

The layman's HD2 review

Now that the initial hype has died down, and t-mobile employees are officially advising against purchasing an hd2 it’s time for an educated and thorough review that new buyers can actually use. I’m not going to include any technical information, because 1) it is widely available 2) most people don’t choose a phone based on technical specs and 3) we all know this sucker is super fast. What I will do is offer up my opinions along with some tips and tweaks –NO HACKS—should you decide the HD2 is right for you.
To start with, what about the Galaxy S?
Yes, at least one t-mobile employee tried to steer me away from the hd2 and to the galaxy s. And yes, the screen on the Samsung, while a bit smaller, is also a bit more impressive. Darker blacks and more vibrant colors. If screen resolution is the only thing you care about, even over size and price, then stop reading now, because the galaxy s definitely has a superior screen. Holding the galaxy s in my hand though, I didn’t give it a single thought. Here’s why. To start with, I prefer the slightly boxier build of the hd2. Also I feel more comfortable with a couple hard keys, and for me at least, a slightly bigger screen is desirable over a slightly better one. The real decision factor however, was that I was replacing a Samsung touch screen phone which had become intermittently non responsive to touch and after three straight Samsung phones (sgh r210 - t909 - behold) I figured I’d give HTC a chance, after all Google did.
The early days were dark.
This was my first data plan with t-mobile, so the extra 25 bucks a month was a hard pill to swallow. I was really expecting the hd2 to blow me out of the water, thus making it easy to rationalize a 50% increase in my monthly bill. It didn’t. I won’t list all the issues I had with this phone because they are well documented through out the web, but also because that’s just the start of the story.
A happy ending.
Bottom line, Microsoft is great because you can customize the **** out of it. The hd2 doesn’t suck HTC Sense sucks. IT’S HORRIBLE. A waste and an annoyance, but, easily removed. That’s right disabling HTC sense is the first and most important step to loving your hd2.
Settings > today > items (bottom tab)
Then just select windows default (HTC sense is at the bottom, but who cares)
On to the tweaks…
I read a lot about hacking the hd2 registry, but seeing as I was still contemplating returning the phone, I didn’t want to do anything drastic. So I kept it simple. Here are the apps (cabs) I installed to perfect my HTC hd2 experience. Just search the web (and Microsoft marketplace) and you can download all these apps for free. Also, to install a .cab file, just drag and drop it from your computer (connected via USB) to your phone. Then unplug your phone from the computer and browse to the file.
Start menu> file explore> storage card
Click on the .cab file you just dropped onto your phone and the app will install. Then go back to the start menu and at the bottom there should be an icon for you newly installed app. Here are mine:
GYRATOR 2 - Brins0.net
-a simple rotator. A lot of the screens on the hd2 won’t go into landscape without this app
RESET ME - Y.K. Ying
-I think I downloaded this one from the market place. I was messing around with my phone a lot in those early days, and this app cam in handy for settings that required soft reset.
HOMESCREEN CUSTOMIZER - Danny Su
-Another marketplace free download - this is the MOST IMPORTANT app I downloaded for the HTC hd2. It removed that horrible HTC Sense crap, and replaced it with a simple, one screen option.
SHOWCASE - e-natives
-for some reason, when you hit the ‘X’ in the upper right hand corner of the screen, whatever app or function is running simply minimizes. The phone is so fast though, that launching applications takes just as long as switching to them, so there’s really no point in having a bunch of apps running, sucking up battery and processor resources. This app makes that X actually close a program and not just minimize it.
So What about the camera, what about the battery?
As for the battery, it takes just a couple hours to loose half your battery power, then the phone seams to operate for another 10-15 hours on the remaining power. I read that this is a snapdragon issue (the powerful 1 GHz processor running the HD2). So while those quickly dwindling bars cause much stress, the phone will operate for almost two days without charge.
I am still looking for an inexpensive camera app to replace the HTC camera, but I have managed to tweak the settings enough (contrast, saturation, white balance) to get some decent pictures in well lit situations. The fact is, the Samsung Behold has an amazing camera in it, and the hd2 just isn’t as great. Oh well.

I'm glad you're here to tell me how to use my HD2.
This is probably one of the most redundant reviews I have read, and about ten months too late at that.

Go and tell someone who gives a feck... Surely, Jeremy Beadle is dead?

wow, someone actually chooses the hd2 over the android galaxy and y'all are ripping him for it???
get a life already.

Wow...uhm...k thanx for the tutorial there...and the REALLY craptastic review. You where trying to help people.....how?

ashasaur said:
Wow...uhm...k thanx for the tutorial there...and the REALLY craptastic review. You where trying to help people.....how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can see what he is saying. The phone runs ALOT better without sense slowing it done. Sense is a memory hog. It caches a lot of memory. Those out of memory errors that some people get, do not happen with sense gone.
I never had a SOD on my tp2 when I started flashing my own ROMs minus sense.
Now, I've learned to appreciate what sense does add to the experience, but on my tp2, it was unbearable, even when optimized.

They're mocking him because it's a poorly done review. Get past the part about the Galaxy and read the rest.

apallohadas said:
They're mocking him because it's a poorly done review. Get past the part about the Galaxy and read the rest.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in his defense, he did call it a layman's review. In other words, someone who doesn't live on here 24/7, and doesn't want to flash his phone 3x a day.

nrfitchett4 said:
I can see what he is saying. The phone runs ALOT better without sense slowing it done. Sense is a memory hog. It caches a lot of memory. Those out of memory errors that some people get, do not happen with sense gone.
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Click to collapse
The out of memory errors don't happen if you know how to use the phone. People KNOW Windows Mobile is absolutely **** out of the box, but still years and years on people still complain about it, it's bewildering.
Sense is a very good base platform for CoOkie and ROM developers alike to work with and as a result make Sense a far more powerful platform for the end user.

Sense is the Cosmetics on the Zomby,and of course you know what the legend says,zombies live forever,LOL,so cheer up.!!

Wow,
Sorry but that was a disappointed review.
It was your first post on this forum and you only joined this month, so I am not sure what you were trying to advise us of to be honest. No disrepect intended.
People like me have had this phone since the November 2009 release and know all there is to know about it.
HTC Sense does not suck or slow down when you are using the correct ROM, either the lastest official ROMs, or better yet, a custom ROM like Artemis.
In interface of WM is best left in the background until you have something geeky to tweak, although WM6.5.5. is a big improvement.
Anyway, my 2 cents worth.

I agree with the last person staing that sense does not (dramatically) slow down the HD2, an I am still using Stock ROM.
The snapdragon is so powerfull.
The thing I notice however, especially with people complaining about battery life:
Most people think of the HD primarily as a Phone.
This also explains the complaint of a lot of poeple that there are no applications for it.
Given the HD2 has a big screen, which has an unusual format (like the touch HD had), there are still a lot of old apps around which run on the HD2 (some somewhat crippled, others do not run at all)
But, I came from Palm iV (monochrome) via Ipaq to p330o, Touch HD to HD2.
For me the primary use for this machine is: PDA with phone capabilities.
And not like for a lot of people, phone with PDA capabilities.
All phones of the latter category (Like eg. Nokia E71) lack a grat deal of PDA capabilities. This is where Windows Mobile has made a big heap of programming with a lot of open ends.... The PDA community jumped on top in order to improve the PDA experience.
The PDA community slowly moved to phone.
In my opinion, all die-hard tweakers / modders / programmers use the HD2 primarily as PDA. Most complaining users use the HD2 primarily as phone.
Yes, as a phone it lacks stamina (batterylife), Yes as a phone it is higly adaptable, but you will have to adress the HD2 as PDA.
On a PDA, one would tune applications (run this, kill that, beware of sync etc) Most ROM cooks still use the what I call PDA approach (load only what is nessesary, not what could eventually ever be needed, kean and mean) thus saving powerconsumption.
As to my past experience, I switch on things only when needed (wifi, bluetooth, activesync etc), except for push mail. This gives me after a normal day of use more than 50% battery life left (on a stock ROM).
For a PDA (except for the PALM iV, which did not have (serious) backlight and colour display) this is quite good.
A PDA should at least sync daily..... so this is acceptable in my opinion, and do not forget Older machines had wordse battry lives.
If one starts navigating, power consumption is incredible, and a good car-loader is almost an obligation, but then again, most navigation units need a powersource. Even the Nokia E71 drains the battery very quickly if navigating without loader attached.
As for sense/manilla:
I am an winmo addict, even an experienced user (ppc2002, ppc 2003, ppc2003SE, Winmo 5, winmo 6.1, winmo 6.5), and I seem to miss a lot of functionality in sense, so I use a lot of quicklinks to the original WinMo apps (eg. Outlook contacts, WinMo settings), yes WinMo is a bit cumbersome, but if you know your way..... Beats sense a lot of times in functionality.
On the other hand, for the quick "thingies" I still use Sense, but as soon as Sense does not live upto the functionality I need..... WinMo!!
All in all:
I can understand the review, seen from the perspective of a phone user, and I agree with it, but with a twist
For me the HD2 Rocks in a major way.
Currently I am sticking to stock, as the phne/pda does what I need and fulfills all my needs. (and more)
For apps: goto www.windowsmobilesoft.net, www.freewareppc.com, www.handango.com, www.wm6software.net, www.pocketgear.com, www.mobiletopsoft.com, pocketpcfreeware.com, pocketpcfreeware.org, freewarepocketpc.net, pocket-pc-freeware.com and many others....
IF one adds up all apps I believe there are a multitude of apps available for our winmo device even more than for any android, iOS or symbian phone all together. Agreed same apps exist 100s of times.....
Moreover even a lot of old ppc2003 software can run on winmo 6.1 (and perhaps also on wm6.5, but I have not had any time or need to experiment)
Concluding:
I am very happy with my HD2, still on stock,
Superfluous speed, no lag from Sense, but one need to use it with a lot of sense (but that has grown on me from ppc2003 on )
Battery life could be better, but I cradle it whenever I can, thus my batterylife is more than sufficient. (As an early adopter from pDA, I am used to cradeling )
Later on I will start experimenting, mainly because of Android (need to experience that too.)

For me the HD2 Rocks in a major way.
Currently I am sticking to stock, as the phne/pda does what I need and fulfills all my needs. (and more)
For apps: goto www.windowsmobilesoft.net, www.freewareppc.com, www.handango.com, www.wm6software.net, www.pocketgear.com, www.mobiletopsoft.com, pocketpcfreeware.com, pocketpcfreeware.org, freewarepocketpc.net, pocket-pc-freeware.com and many others....
IF one adds up all apps I believe there are a multitude of apps available for our winmo device even more than for any android, iOS or symbian phone all together. Agreed same apps exist 100s of times.....
Moreover even a lot of old ppc2003 software can run on winmo 6.1 (and perhaps also on wm6.5, but I have not had any time or need to experiment)
Concluding:
I am very happy with my HD2, still on stock,
Superfluous speed, no lag from Sense, but one need to use it with a lot of sense.
I could never agree more!!
In my opinion; the latest stock rom + CHT & its editor + apps = a master piece!!
All the respect for the OP's review!

i'm glad i could help spark a couple pages of discussion. I recently purchased my hd2, and i spent a lot of time on these forums learning all about it. i think my review bridges the gab between the xdadevelopers forums and those of tmobile
and to the second person that claimed my review had nothing new to offer the hd2 community, i think your actions speak louder than your words.

kyle_hd2 said:
and to the second person that claimed my review had nothing new to offer the hd2 community, i think your actions speak louder than your words.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not that that saying makes any sense in the context that you used it, but all this thread did was mull over old news. But on reflection, what do I care? Welcome to XDA.

Kyle mate.. waiting your review on WM5.