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Hi all,
I am at the end of my contract term with T-mobile and was potentially waiting for the Compact V (HTC Dimond 2) or the N97 or Iphone 3GS, currently have a Nokia 5800 which was bought on PAYG.
I went past a vodafone shop in town and played with the HTC Magic they had on display and it was really fantastic! I was really suprised how smooth the WEB experience was, the screen was super sharp. I tried typing a text message and the keyboard seemed alot better to use then the Nokia 5800 with a built in spell checked (5800 doesnt have that).
So what do you guys think of the HTC Magic? I can get the phone free on a £30 a month tarrif with 600min and unlimited text which is a pretty good deal.
My main usage for my phone is Music (a2dp) at the Gym and WEB browsing and email. Oh and also as an alarm clock to wake me up (which is actually VERY important!).
I really like the way that Nokia have the today screen which shows Calendar appointments but i dont think this is possible on the HTC Magic right?
Any comments or recommendation would be greatly appreciated
If you use Gmail as your main email account, then the email experience on Android is as good as it gets. If you use something else, then the email experience on Android is pretty second rate. Not horrible, but definitely not among the best experiences out there.
The Web Browser is great, on par with iPhone and Palm Pre. I've got no complaints, just don't expect to watch videos other than YouTube because the browser doesn't support Flash yet.
The music player is pretty bare-bones but I don't have any complaints about it. It obviously doesn't have robust desktop syncing software like iTunes or Zune Marketplace, but if you're just listening to albums and simple playlists then it gets the job done just fine. Just keep in mind that you're going to have to supply your own storage for music. I got a 16gb card for about US$50. Vodaphone may include a memory card with their version, I'm not sure, I'm using the unlocked Google version in the US.
The A2DP compatibility, in my experience, has been really great with a newer set of headphones. When I tried to pair it to an older set (about 3 years old) I had a really bad experience, it was difficult to pair and playing music through them rendered the rest of the system nearly unusably slow. I'm honestly not sure what the difference is between them, so your mileage may vary on A2DP depending on the headphones you're using.
The virtual keyboard is pretty great, I've seen a few reviewers who think it's better than the iPhone, so it's definitely about as good as it's going to get right now. I think the screen is a tad too small to use the vertical keyboard comfortably, but the horizontal keyboard (available almost everywhere except the home screen) is fantastic. It's also super-easy to teach the automatic spell checker new words, just type it in and long-press on the word until the "Saved" message pops up.
Just keep in mind that getting an Android phone without a physical keyboard means certain applications aren't going to work, including a lot of games and game system emulators that require more buttons.
The alarm clock is fine, the speaker is nice and loud and you can set multiple alarm times.
There is an included widget for the Home screen that shows your next calendar appointment, but as far as I know there isn't one that shows multiple upcoming appointments yet. There may be something in the Market, I haven't checked.
Overall, I love mine. I don't have considerable experience with any of the other devices you're considering, but I think you really can't go wrong with the Magic, especially if you're a Gmail user.
thanks for the info, i have a few more questions.
Does the alarm vibrate? As in can you make the device vibrate while playing the alarm?
With Nokia devices, you can set the alarm and turn the phone off and the phone will come on automatically, can this be done with the HTC Magic?
The next question is quite important. I am a GMAIL user however, at present, i sync my 5800 with two Outlook accounts. My home outlook is used to store my contacts (i guess the device will sync this with google contacts) and my work outlook is used to sync work calender appointments. I have read about some issues with syncing outlooking, so can my work laptop be synced automatically with google calendar and thus getting the appointments on my Magic?
Are there any turn by turn navigation softwares out for the HTC Magic? I guess this isnt a deal breaker but would be nice to have some navigation
Oh, one last thing, my Nokia 5800's browser vibrates slightly everytime a URL is clicked, can this featuure be present on the HTC Magic?
Thanks
-c
You can easily sync your Outlook Calendar to Google Calendar (2-way if you want) with the Google Calendar Sync tool.
chefgon said:
There is an included widget for the Home screen that shows your next calendar appointment, but as far as I know there isn't one that shows multiple upcoming appointments yet. There may be something in the Market, I haven't checked.
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Click to collapse
Well, I have checked, and there is only QuickCalendar that, while nice, is far from being a complete solution.
The lack of possibility to show upcoming appointments on Home screen is what still keep me away from Magic, otherwise a great device.
Sad thing is that I read quite a few people, most coming from Windows Mobile, missing this very same feature.
It should be implemented by default, but nonetheless I would pay to have it and get a Magic.
ceanth said:
thanks for the info, i have a few more questions.
Does the alarm vibrate? As in can you make the device vibrate while playing the alarm?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you can make it vibrate with the alarm if you want to.
With Nokia devices, you can set the alarm and turn the phone off and the phone will come on automatically, can this be done with the HTC Magic?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It goes off when the phone is on silent. Not sure about turned off though.
Are there any turn by turn navigation softwares out for the HTC Magic? I guess this isnt a deal breaker but would be nice to have some navigation
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes there are free ones in the Market. Try AndNav (and AndNav2) and Nav4All.
Oh, one last thing, my Nokia 5800's browser vibrates slightly everytime a URL is clicked, can this featuure be present on the HTC Magic?
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Click to collapse
No. The browser has a lot of settings but that isn't one of them!
yes it has widgets for weather calender stock etc that you can download from the android market and put on your homescreen...but if you want to get the best out of your magic..root and put the superhero rom on it..it has a flash player, multitouch (yes pinch zooming like the iphone), custom htc widgets that look brilliant, great music player (alot better than the default android one and much more
Are you still considering this phone ?
You can get, I think, a cheaper offer if you get it online.
Also note that this phone has only 192Mb of RAM compared to unbranded HTC Magic that has 288Mb of it!
This could severly impact the Sense UI if it ever comes out for this phone.
Non-Sense UI ROMs run very nice, though...
You can have the alarm vibrate.
But it looks like it doesn't work when the phone is off, which is a real shame!
Aniello
ceanth said:
My main usage for my phone is Music (a2dp) at the Gym and WEB browsing and email. Oh and also as an alarm clock to wake me up (which is actually VERY important!).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Be aware that Vodafone currently has a 500Mb Fair Use Policy on their 'unlimited' internet package, which makes using it for streaming music somewhat impractical
I'm thinking of getting an i9000, but have a few questions. I'll be honest from the start: I'm not much into tech.
My main purposes for this phone will be: 1. reading e-books, 2. a secondary internet device at home, 3. making phone calls and sending text messages. What makes me even stranger is that I don't want a data plan or any 3G services. Most of what I plan to do will be WiFi at home (although the option is there to get a data plan should I change my mind or find some use for it). I know about the GPS problem, but I don't think I have use for a GPS anyway. Music is not important to me, so I doubt I'd have more than a handful of MP3s I'd ever want listen to; movies and TV shows are a must; games are of no interest to me; photos are more of a perk than a necessity. I love, Love, LOVE the Super AMOLED screen, which is why I'm leaning towards this one rather than the HTC Desire.
1. The 8GB version is 2,000TWD (approx. 60USD) cheaper, which is worth it to me. Given my intended usage and the extra cost, why should I realistically consider the 16GB version? I'll have to buy an SD card anyway, won't I?
2. I still don't understand that thread about the device not having or not being able to see the full 512MB of RAM. How does this impact the performance? How does Froyo address this issue? Am I likely to notice any impact given my intended usage?
3. What is Launcher Pro, and why do some people feel it is better than TouchWiz?
4. I'm in a geographic area that doesn't have access to paid apps (Taiwan). However, there is a workaround. Given my intended usage, what paid apps would you suggest?
5. I'll have to hook up wireless internet at home (I'm running Windows XP on my PC). Without going into too much detail, what equipment and services will I need to set this up for both my PC and phone to share?
I know this may be a lot to ask. Feel free to just address one question if you like. I appreciate any help you can give me.
Thanks.
the SD card is optional, but definitely wort it to have more storage, if you plan to have a large MP3 and Video collection on the road with you
then leave the internal 8 GB SD for application use.
if you ever install a GPS software, it will automatically eat up 2 GB in one shoty
the 8 GB is really 6 GB, because 2 GB is used for ROM software, the remaing is aprox 5 GB of usable space
if you load a GPS software that goes down to 3 GB of free space, and some games downloads a few Hundreds of a MB to play, so games require a full 1GB... anyways it adds up really quickly.
Thanks. GPS is not important for me, nor are MP3s. Any video I watch will most likely be uploaded, watched, and removed within hours. I'll be reading on it if I'm ever on the road.
Looks like I'll be leaning towards the money-saving 8GB one.
SlowRain said:
Thanks. GPS is not important for me, nor are MP3s. Any video I watch will most likely be uploaded, watched, and removed within hours. I'll be reading on it if I'm ever on the road.
Looks like I'll be leaning towards the money-saving 8GB one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I were you, I'd almost definitely go with the 8GB. I think the main reason is that, my plan would be to store my e-books on the external sd card, so if my battery or device died I could easily move them to my pc or next device.
Besides that, I'd suggest, as much as I love my device. Thinking about iPhone 4 or the Dell Streak (if you can get them wi-fi only) and/or a Kindle (not great for internet, #2 on your list, but you'd also save money). IPhone 4 will, probably, be a better reading experience, I can't be sure. Dell Streak has 25% more screen real estate, it also has gorilla glass. Downsides being it's not Super AMOLED, I don't think it's wirelss N, probably has less battery life and is currently stuck on 1.6, though I think 2.1 is imminent.
Not trying to convince you to get a different device, I wouldn't trade my phone for either of the two devices mentioned above.
To answer your other questions, I'd think about:
E-book software...I'm not sure if this is your first e-reader. Kindle, Aldiko might be the two most popular (doesn't mean best).
I'd get brut maps because it'll cache Google Maps pages to your SD card so you won't need data but can still use Google Navigation, My Tracks (I think? can't remember), and Google Maps if you ever have the need (you'll need to look at the areas from your wifi first to get the pages to cache).
I'd probably get a wi-fi analyzer, wi-fi analyzer works well for me.
For your case, thats the majority of what I'd get. I'd think about looking into getting Flash enabled instead of waiting for FroYo if my phone's second functionality would be web surfing.
SlowRain said:
Thanks. GPS is not important for me, nor are MP3s. Any video I watch will most likely be uploaded, watched, and removed within hours. I'll be reading on it if I'm ever on the road.
Looks like I'll be leaning towards the money-saving 8GB one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Also, spend money on your saved 8GB into extra 2-3 batteries, it's more important for your purposes than 8GB. I can nearly guarantee.
ALL I CAN SAY IS DEFINITELY GET ONE...
I have been using mine constantly for the last few days or so since I sold my Iphone 3gs and before that came from a touch HD2, windows phone.
I can't believe I didn't go across to the android world sooner to be honest and I think I have at last made the right choice of phone, this galaxy S is simply a joy to use, I love it.
I have 7 completely customisable screens that you can scroll between I bought beautiful widgets (highly recommend this) just simply because I am hooked to these widget things. I have Beautiful Live weather wallpaper which displays some grass waving about at the bottom of the screen and clouds with sun, rain etc..moving perfectly acrosseach of the 7 screens, I know this is all old hat to some of the longer Android users, but for me I Love it...I have also bought the Pure calender widget which displays all your up and coming appointments etc...this again is completely skin-able, brilliant...seconds screen has some of my shortcuts to applicaitons, live UK TV guide, market, appbrain market, maps, zedge, calc, youtube and mail, my third screen has all these toggle widgets to quickly turn on airplane, wifi, bluetooth, sound controls, volume and battery, Screen number 4 has my Days dairy which I quite like, screen number 5 has my feeds and updates which automatically updates my facebook and twitter stuff, then onto screen 6 with the BBC news and History widget, number 7 is blank so I can stare at the weather...
I can't seem to stop type , the Swype keyboard is just so easy and quick to use, I actually enjoy typing on a small screen these days, not that the Galaxy has a small screen in fact its the perfect screen and if your into reading books like I am, I am using the free Laputa ereader, simply import all your epubs into it, Aldiko comes already installed which is equally as good, but without the funky page turn effects. the screen is so clear reading books is very nice.
Will continue on later, got to get back to work for a bit....
no no no... if you moved to Android sooner, you would have not enjoyed it.
I was also waiting for the Perfect Phone, before moving to Android
If you moved to Android when it was Android 1.5 you would have most likely ended up hating it.
It was Raw, not many apps, phone hardware were rather not at part with the HTC hardware, etc.
THUDUK said:
ALL I CAN SAY IS DEFINITELY GET ONE...
I have been using mine constantly for the last few days or so since I sold my Iphone 3gs and before that came from a touch HD2, windows phone.
I can't believe I didn't go across to the android world sooner to be honest and I think I have at last made the right choice of phone, this galaxy S is simply a joy to use, I love it.
I have 7 completely customisable screens that you can scroll between I bought beautiful widgets (highly recommend this) just simply because I am hooked to these widget things. I have Beautiful Live weather wallpaper which displays some grass waving about at the bottom of the screen and clouds with sun, rain etc..moving perfectly acrosseach of the 7 screens, I know this is all old hat to some of the longer Android users, but for me I Love it...I have also bought the Pure calender widget which displays all your up and coming appointments etc...this again is completely skin-able, brilliant...seconds screen has some of my shortcuts to applicaitons, live UK TV guide, market, appbrain market, maps, zedge, calc, youtube and mail, my third screen has all these toggle widgets to quickly turn on airplane, wifi, bluetooth, sound controls, volume and battery, Screen number 4 has my Days dairy which I quite like, screen number 5 has my feeds and updates which automatically updates my facebook and twitter stuff, then onto screen 6 with the BBC news and History widget, number 7 is blank so I can stare at the weather...
I can't seem to stop type , the Swype keyboard is just so easy and quick to use, I actually enjoy typing on a small screen these days, not that the Galaxy has a small screen in fact its the perfect screen and if your into reading books like I am, I am using the free Laputa ereader, simply import all your epubs into it, Aldiko comes already installed which is equally as good, but without the funky page turn effects. the screen is so clear reading books is very nice.
Will continue on later, got to get back to work for a bit....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i love this new phone and new os but some things are really annoying and i hope they will be fixed in a future software update
no custom ringtones and no seprate volume control for ringtones this really sucks cause if i turn down the game or music volume it turns down the volume for everything.
playing a game like need for speed and hitting that stupid search button will kick u out of a game ur playing.
setting wallpaers u cant set a full wallpaper u always got to crop the image first i hate this.
no turn by turn directions for maps.
the dialpad and message theme kind of sucks i hope this can be changed
i would like to be able to set a wallpaper for the main screen just not the lockscreen
headphone volume output need to be way louder
the phone tile when u miss a call or get a message would be cool if it would show u who u missed a call from and if u got a text message it would show who text u and half of the message or something like that kind of like what the me tile does when u post something new
putting contact tiles if it would show messages and misssed calls alerts on there tiles that would be great
the top menu bar should always show battery lift signal if u get a txt message etc.
improvment on loading time for games etc..
cant think of anything else i want changed right now
other then that i love this new os i been using iphone since the 2g iphone and this is just way diffrent i also use a android device
I'd like more options within text messaging. I'd like the ability to initiate a call from a text message, and the ability to add a contact from a text message.
I've been a Windows mobile user for quite a while, and made a switch to Android, now to Windows Phone 7, it's great, but I agree with everything you posted, but adding a file explorer it a must. The ability to select or hide different photos that show on the picture tile, an option to hide/show the keyboard while typing (so you can see the whole screen), and the ability to turn on/off wifi, Bluetooth from the main screen instead of digging into the settings each time. Plus a few more settings, like wifi rules, (turning off Wifi automatically after unused, if you like). It would also be nice to be able to remove that little white arrow in the upper right corner of the main screen, it takes up so much real estate on the main screen. Landscape mode on more screens would be nice too.
Oh, and the option to remove an account, I already have a Windows Live account that I don't use stuck on the phone. I don't see a way to remove it, and cant' change the email address or log in id info, only the password.
I'm sure updates will be rolling out to resolve some issues, or possibly apps.....??
surround
you can just add a second windows live acccount and disable the first one by unchecking everything effectively disabling it. I wish you could delete the main one too. However, I posted this somewhere else, the phone got corrupted and after i did a hard reset and connected to my computer, the Zune software restored all my programs (in the backgrouind without my knowledge) and all was good again. There are some bad reveiws of this phone on youtube, but some of the reviewers got it all wrong. For instance the screen resolution for movies is EXCELLENT. It takes the zune software a long time to convery and copy some movies but worth the wait. There are some bugs and some things could use improving. I would say the one thing that bugs me the most is when you zoom in on a net page...the text could be sharper. But I can live with it. All in all the phone is a pleasure and I look forward to the updates.
Thing i dont like about video watching is Netflix over 3G is good quality.. but youtube is crap over 3G. There NEEDS to be a setting for this. Its just a hub extension, but hopefully something gets fixed.
A lot of your suggestions are for the OS, not the physical phone.
It would be nice if the OS could utilize the awesome speaker on the phone a bit more. For example, speaker phone is pretty weak. I also dislike how if the speaker is not slid out, everything is muffled. I guess they expected the sound to reflect better, but it just doesn't.
That's really all I can think of besides the lack of a microSD slot that's visible anyway. I'd take my phone apart to see if there is one, but I don't have a torx bit small enough.
Besides the OS limitations, I think the phone is awesome.
I want to be able to set the notification LED to blink for new texts, emails, etc
dccorona said:
I want to be able to set the notification LED to blink for new texts, emails, etc
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Click to collapse
I second this. One of the things I miss most from my Tilt2 and all other winmo phones have been the blinking notification light.
Need more from microsoft
I want to be able to block unwanted call, more options in the settings menu and better functions for the camera.
definitely need to be able to explore the phone. more wifi options would be nice as well. also the speaker seems to be a bit lacking. ( sure thumps when i hook it up over the cd deck in my truck though!) I had the htc tp2 prior to this and i became completely addicted to the wifi router utility, so for me personally that would be the most important thing. if anyone knows about anything like this under development let me know. i'm always willing to donate to a good cause.
One of my teens got his old LG upgraded to a Surround for Christmas yesterday. I'd been thinking when my Tilt 2's upgrade time comes this summer I'd do the same -- but not after spending a frustrating afternoon helping him with it!
We played with it in the store several weeks ago. I think the slideout speaker is a gimmick but he's 16 and thinks it's great. We both agree the WinMo 7 tile thing is a bit silly but is FAST, and he loves the HTC Hub UI. The hardware is very good (though I'm not sure I agree with no micro-SD slot).
But using Zune software to sync is a PAIN!!! My Vista laptop took 1/2 hour to download the device drivers, then insisted on a reboot before downloading the Zune software (another 20 minutes). Then the Zune install insisted on checking for an upgrade (yet another 20 minutes) before going thru a rather painful 10 minute install.
Once installed, it was very unhappy when I changed the monitored folders, and took several attempts before it would sync with the folders I'd copied off the kiddos old micro-SD card. Of course what I was most amazed about was the lack of drag-n-drop support in Windows! What kind of lame-brained, Steve Jobs-style of engineer would nix that? (I did find the reg hack to renable that just a few minutes ago, but haven't verified it yet.)
Lots and lots of lockdowns in WinMo 7 that I don't like, as have been mentioned by previous posters. This whole thing reminds me why I disklike the iPhone's OS so much!
Maybe my next phone is gonna have to be an Andriod phone instead...
I kind of agree with all of you. Microsoft might have come into this having windows phone shut a little too tight.
However, that only means that there is more room for improvement.
Multitasking would be nice, especially ones that resonate when you dont have to see them, like streaming music. or at least faster app switching.
File Explorer is kind of important and Bluetooth file sharing too.
Tethering is not that important, but on my fuze I used to use it whenever I went on trips and the hotel tries to give me wifi for $30 a day...but eh... the screen is so much bigger, and it goes a lot faster too that I dont see any need for it, (besides plugins like java, or flash)
Oh and a definite must is the camera settings STAYING THE WAY I LEFT THEM. Whenever you exit the camera, it goes back to default. and on my phone at least, video recording goes to vga, so i would have to set it to 720p if i wanted it.
would love the call blocking and please a flash player!!!!!!!
Improvements
After Multi-tasking and copy and paste are added in the soon to be released update, I would like to see a few more additions. Flash player, Pandora, LED indicator light options for notifications, ringtone options beyond what they have allowed so far, the ability to send videos as MMS messages and a battery % remaining would make me ecstatic.
heh.... guys you will never see multitask like it was on 6.5 ..
as multitask they say - future CLOUD infrastructure update .. which will allow run signed apps on cloud infrastructure .. that means = you will be allowed to create ICQ client .. part of client will run on MS servers . that part will collect ALL YOUR ICQ EVENTS .. and then send to phone via PUSH notify .. on phone side nothing will be rly changed ..coz multitask goal does not collaborate with main WP7 idea - ISOLATED ENVIROMENT FOR APPS
Keyboard directional arrows
Is anyone missing keyboard up, down , left and right arrows? I sure miss them. Lifting your fingers off the keyboard to position the cursor on a particular spot in the sentence is really time consuming and not very precise.
Correct, I will really appreciate arrows in the keyboard
Sent from my Samsung Focus using XDA Windows Phone 7 App
My only feature request for all WP7 devices is gapless music playback. I really, really hate the two seconds silence between tracks, especially on electronic music or The Dark Side of The Moon (man, I love that album.)
Wi-Fi Router
The most important thing that is missing on Windows Phone 7, no doubt, is the wi-fi router function. Today I have to walk with two phones, because of the missing of wi-fi router.
Another important things are:
- File Manager
- Send photos/files via bluetooth
- Outlook Notes synchronization
- Office docs synchronized on the Windows Live could be open on a computer and vice-versa
Main software that I wish to be developed for WP7:
- Log Me in
- SQL Server Client
- Olive Tree Bible
- Google Maps (Oh Google Maps, you don't know how I miss you and your amazing Latitude)
- Auto CAD WS
- Skype
- MSN Messenger
I agree with everything else you published.
MMS Settings
Be able to customize the MMS Settings, some carriers have differnt tier's of internet with different APN's and it is a Necessity to have that option!!!!
Hi, I wanted to know what you guys think of the Focus and is it a worth getting?
What are the ups and downs of windows phone 7?
Is there any major hardware issues that I should consider before getting one?
Thanks in advance
I bought the phone outright from Rogers for $630.00 and I don't have a single regret! I think WP7 is gonna be a VERY strong competitor against ios and android by the end of the year. Microsoft needs a few updates to give the devs more control to create better apps, it needs some more user customization, and as most complaints would be it doesn't have copy & paste (which I dont care about at all)
All these are coming in updates soon and once the ball really starts rollin' I think WP7 will be a major success.
Is it worth buying the Focus? ABSOLUTELY! I love the phone, its so fast, fluid, and feels great.
I have new hopes for MS now, and I think Im currently leaning towards WP7 more than android and ios.
just my opinion,,,,hope this helps.
Sweet! You won't regret it IMHO.
My top 5 tips for the Focus (extra important for someone like me outside US warranty cover):
1. TAKE TREMENDOUS care clipping on/off the rear plate-phone back. It is plastic, with a couple of tiny plastic clips holding it in. Break these.....replacment back plate or blu-tac required!
2. Think long and hard over a case (I got a body glove - review on this site). This can be a slippery little sucker once the back plate gets some natural body oils / sweat / humidity etc on it. It has such a small form factor – cases do not weight it down too much in my opinion.
3. Add expandable memory at your own risk until MS offer a certified list / approved card process. If you do – load up the phone above the 8GB limit ASAP to test stability over a week or so. If you add heaps of apps and custom info and then need to hard reset, you've wasted a decent amount of time.
4. Use the Samsung Profile app (marketplace) to move the MMS capability over to your preferred carrier if outside US (eg Telstra Australia = worked for me).
5. Remove the AT&T bloat/software if outside US App support.
From one very happy Aussie Focus owner.
Thanks guys I'm see about getting one in a few weeks.
So no custom roms for this device yet, no ones working with this or any of the WP7 phones?
Think again
Noz85 said:
Thanks guys I'm see about getting one in a few weeks.
So no custom roms for this device yet, no ones working with this or any of the WP7 phones?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are, like me, a former WM 6.5 guy who liked to flash custom ROMs and are thinking about a WP7 device, you are on the wrong path my friend. Custom ROMs on a WP7 device? Have you not read anything in these threads? I went to the Focus from a FUZE with a 6.5.5 Energy ROM, and tweaked and upgraded constantly, including my apps. I did this becuase I wanted to and thought I needed to. It was insanity and I realize this now that I have the Focus. I no longer need to do that, and no longer want to do that. My apps update on their own, the OS will too, and I would like to see some OS updates but don't need them. If what you want to do is tweak, customize and burn new custom ROMs, look elsewhere than WP7.
While we're on topic, how is the call quality?
Call quality
mcorrie1121 said:
While we're on topic, how is the call quality?
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Click to collapse
The best of any smartphone I've ever used - Kaiser, Rhodium, iPhone 1st gen and 3GS. It REALLY sounds good. MUCH better radio than any of the other mentioned phones, as well, in terms of reception and coverage on AT&T in my location.
wspaw said:
The best of any smartphone I've ever used - Kaiser, Rhodium, iPhone 1st gen and 3GS. It REALLY sounds good. MUCH better radio than any of the other mentioned phones, as well, in terms of reception and coverage on AT&T in my location.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
that I can definitely agree with! Excellent call quality!
Samsung Focus WP7 pros and cons
Check Youtube video: "The Dark Side of the Samsung Focus"
I am hearing some a mono tone noise in the background while using my Bluetooth headset, such as Jawbone Icon, Sound ID5 etc.
The App store is still at its infancy. The interface is sometimes sluggish and crash without response especially on 3rd party apps. There is no VOIP applications yet because MS hasn't released the API. The screen of the Focus is sometimes way too sensitive that I have to do a factory reset or complete shut down of the phone.
CONS:
- Bluetooth + 3G call interfere with WiFi signal.
- Camera Settings are Not Saved after usage. I have to re-set 720P for video everytime!
- No video upload to social network nor Youtube yet.
- No dedicate Youtube app beside the mobile web interface. I really like the latest Youtube app in Android where you can have full screen in landscape and a small video still running on top with comments and related links at the bottom.... too bad it's only limited to Froyo or above version.
- Bluetooth Remote Control Protocol (No track change, No Volume Control)
- No Hidden WiFi SSID
- No native multilingual input support such as Chinese text and voice input yet.
- Voice control sometimes forces you to quite to the home page and need to press and hold the Windows Button again.
- No HTML5, Text rendering engine is sometimes very slow which results in unreadable pixelated form when zoomed in.
- Lacking confirmation before shut down when press and hold the power/sleep button. Both iOS and Android prompt for shut down not WP7.
- Charging time is very long. Sometimes it takes 8 Hours to charge from 0 % to 100%.
- Volume Button sometimes gets stuck depending on the surrounding temperature such as too cold at around 56ºF.
- Capacitive Buttons at the bottom are sometimes too sensitive which causes quitting a game and need to be restarted all over again.
- No Multitask or limited multi-task yet.
- A lot of games need to start from the beginning instead of pausing the state when quitting the app accidentally.
- No free turn-by-turn Navigation system.
- No Skype, fring, not even official Windows Live Messenger client yet (Zune HD has Windows Live Messenger already).
- No Front Facing Camera for video call
- Cannot change theme by default (without jailbreaking)
- Only Vibrate twice then ringtone instead of vibrating and ringtone simultaneously.
- No Threaded email
- Hard to manage tons of apps if MS still keep the same Metro UI without implementing some kind of folder system.
- Apps only sorted in Alphabetic order
- Text Message does not show nor highlight the phone number of the contact. I often get confused on which number did the caller call from, Google Voice, Mobile, Office, or Home??
- Cannot SMS to pager, home, and other category number except Mobile. Unless you type it in manually or go through the contact list.
- SMS doesn't use two colors or styles to distinguish you or the person you are trying to SMS to.
Pros:
- (Just Discovered) Able to record HD video with voice during any phone calls! No other Operating System can do that well and smooth. iPhone blocks the video capture during phone call, Symbian doesn't allow voice but video, Android camera is totally disabled, while the iOS allows you to take picture at least but not video.
- Thinnest and lightest WP7 phone
- 4" Super AMOLED screen
- Nice and loud speaker
- Chrome bezel and back cover.
- in-line and in-ear headphone with mic and volume control included
- Pin Apps, Songs, Website, People, etc to Home screen
- Large icons for touch
- Fast loading for MS's native interface
- Great Start for version 1.0 of the WP7. There are plenty of improvement and I'm sure MS will tackle the above issues in future updates.
Nice review, squarejp - thanks for sharing that.
User experience on the Focus is somewhat varied, I would say. Some prefer the plain glass "feel" versus having a third party screen protector like Zagg's InvisibleShield (my preference) on it, for example.
My experience with the Focus is that is an awesome phone. WP7 has some challenges ahead but I am optimistic (even if naively so) that most, if not all, of the issues will get hashed out over time. I'm very pleased with this phone and can't wait to see what the future holds for it!
Thanks guys looks like a solid device. I wasn't really looking to mod it just figured I'd ask. I got the aria for Modding anyways.
sent from my HTC Intruder
squarejp:
Some of Your cons seem to be a matter of personal preference, not an actual limitation of the phone. two colour sms? c'mon, if you can't tell that the bubble on the right is you and the bubble on the left is your sms partner, then Metro is obviously lost on you.
The best thing about this phone is what JamesAllen has said. it just works, you don't have to dicker around with it (that is unless of course you're taking it from one network to another).
If you want something to enable you to use the features most people expect in a smartphone while being able to enjoy an unlimited data plan, this is definitely a great phone.
Check out the Real CONS on Youtube.
Search "The Dark Side of The Samsung Focus"
Bluetooth + 3G interfere with WiFi signal.
Highly recommend this device and OS.
Put my nightmare X10 right back in the box.
can I chime in
the ONE thing that drives me crazy about the phone is the small landscape keyboard. I can live with almost all of the other nuances. My captivate keyboard spread accross the bottom of the screen and was really easy to type on. the landscape keyboard on WP7 is just too small.
After playing around with the 10.1v for a couple of days, here are the problems I've come across.
Android Ver. : 3.01
Kernel Ver. : 2.6.36.3-00558-g7c1c334
[email protected]#1
Build number: HRI83.BUKD9
Here goes:
Video playback is pretty choppy [alt. thread]
So far I haven't got any 1080p .mkv files to work. Heck most of my 720p .mkv stutters or doesn't play at all anyway. All are H.264/x264 .mkvs played using either MoboPlayer (with the ARMV7VFP codec update installed) or the default player. I know the literature mentioned that only H.264 Main profile is supported, but come on, my SGS plays those videos fine (except one which has an AC3 track - fair enough).
I'm guessing this is due to the lack of NEON hardware in Tegra 2. Nice job nvidia.
Update: After googling around it seems like there's no built in support for Tegra 2's h.264 decode hardware acceleration in the native Honeycomb libraries (--devs correct me if I'm wrong). There is however, this youtube video showing an unreleased Cyberlink media player doing hw acceleration. Although note that the device he's holding is a Galaxy Tab 7" (which of course, runs Hummingbird, and AFAIK there's no Tegra 2 version in the wild).
Apps have problems with plugged in headphones
This is really weird and annoying. If I plug my headphones to the jack in the middle of a video/audio playback (using both the default player and MoboPlayer), the sound would get routed to the headphones just fine. But when I, say, switch apps, or change media files using the gallery, sometimes the sound would get routed to the speakers even though my headphones are still plugged in. I can fix this by unplugging the headphone (which pauses the video/music) and plugging it back in - but it gets irritating after a while.
No proxy server settings
Important since I'm behind a server which I would really like to be removed but that's beyond my power. The XOOM guys have the problem as well. Just used Proxy Settings from the marketplace and most things would work.
App downloads fails sometimes
Sometimes if I put the marketplace into the background, downloads would continue to 100% but fail to install. Not sure if it's just me though. *Edited*
Browser ALWAYS fails to download stuff through the proxy
Weird really. Every time I clicked "save link as" or a site would try to download something it would fail - but only if I'm behind a server. I try to browse using WiFi as often as I can since I don't have that much quota with vodafone. Note that I am behind a Squid proxy with plaintext authentication (I just hate those stupid admins!) - without the username/password you'll just get HTTP error 407. I can browse using the exact same ports and protocol (HTTP) but can't download through the proxy. I still can't figure that out at all.
The only way I can get around this is by using Opera, and setting the proxy server in manually using opera:config.
No way to force the browser to use a desktop UAString
There's a solution to this apparently, and it works: link.
Contact imports sometimes gets stuck
Importing contacts from a .vcf file sometimes hangs (not force close) the contacts app. I exported my contact list from my SGS (had about ~112 contacts with disp. photos and multiple numbers in some of them) and put them in the Tab, and had to import 3 times. What's worse, I ended up with duplicate copies of the same contacts. So I figured out the easiest way of doing this is to delete the whole contact list and start again, but---
---There's no way to delete multiple contacts at once. I spent like 2 mins deleting contacts one by one.
Update: Solution: Sync contacts via your Google account. Thanks pegaxs for pointing this out.
Marketplace automatically switches screen to landscape mode
This annoys the hell out of me since I usually browse in potrait mode - the device feels a lot nicer that way. Whenever I launch the market, it rotates itself. Minor thing, but annoying. Okay, I'm nitpicking.
On top of those - only 1 usb cable (which wouldn't be a problem if it can be charged using USB ports in the computer), and a short cable at that. wtf.
Fyuh. Rant finished. For now.
Can someone confirm these on their tab as well? I can't seem to find any updates at all.
There's also no WhatsApp, Adobe Reader (the QuickOffice HD works, so not really a complaint), or a text messaging app (but curiously you can send an SMS to it and read it by sending it to your broadband number - it'll appear under Service Info. I haven't tried MMSing yet, but I tried calling to it. It just hangs up (with a busy tone).
Add to that list "backlight bleeding". Watched some videos last night for the first time (re-encoded some 720p mkv because they wont play) and noticed a lot of back light bleeding along the lower edge and along the right hand edge. Probably would not have been as bad or noticable if the video played at full screen. It only plays up to the limit of the buttons in moboplayer. The built in player plays full screen... BUT... wont play native divx/xvid.
And yes, have to agree... that USB cable could have been a little shorter... OMG! how bad is it. I know the size of the battery wont allow it to charge off the computer USB, but i have to put my tab on the floor to reach. Going out to buy a USB extension today...
The SMS thing seems to be a honeycomb issue, as all the Xoom guys are complaining as well... I cant find any settings for it anyway, as there is on say, the phone version of android. It is a bity sad that apps like "whatsapp" cant be used in it's place. I have seen a post somewhere saying "textfree" might work, but it is most likely restricted to US markets as it gives you a US phone number to SMS to.
As for importing contacts, i just sync them to the Google account and they come up on all my devices. No moving files around, or importing/exporting... just sync to gmail and on the next sync, any device you have linked to that account will be updated with the contacts list.
I hope a lot of the issues OS wise, like adobe acro reader and mkv/divx support will be updated in the next version of Honeycomb, like it has been developing on phone android. Maybe when twiz is released for the samsung tab, it might bring with it more of the same functionality as the Galaxy S phone does. The phone seems a better candidate as being a tab then the 10.1v does
interested to see where it goes from here... I can see it's not perfect, but i can see it isnt a bad start and it has so much more potential to improve
I feel like the volume up/down buttons are the wrong way around? i.e. the volume control button nearest the unlock/lock button is volume DOWN and i feel like it should increase volume?
Also when i press unlock the screen takes roughly 1 second to light up
(not huge issues, but little things that would seem easy to fix)
How bad is the backlight bleed? I haven't seen anybody else mention it on the Samsungs. I did just learn that Samsung doesn't always use their own panels in their products. They also seem to use different parts in the european products vs. the US counterparts.
Considering all the hoopla over the iPad 2 and the backlight bleed, I would think manufacturers might be a bit more cautious. Apparently that problem was due to LG, who Samsung sometimes uses.
I hope this doesn't turn into another iPad 2 and Asus Transformer problem where it takes fifteen tries to get a decent product.
bbeelzebub said:
How bad is the backlight bleed? I haven't seen anybody else mention it on the Samsungs. I did just learn that Samsung doesn't always use their own panels in their products. They also seem to use different parts in the european products vs. the US counterparts.
Considering all the hoopla over the iPad 2 and the backlight bleed, I would think manufacturers might be a bit more cautious. Apparently that problem was due to LG, who Samsung sometimes uses.
I hope this doesn't turn into another iPad 2 and Asus Transformer problem where it takes fifteen tries to get a decent product.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't notice this on a European unit.
pegaxs said:
Add to that list "backlight bleeding". Watched some videos last night for the first time (re-encoded some 720p mkv because they wont play) and noticed a lot of back light bleeding along the lower edge and along the right hand edge. Probably would not have been as bad or noticable if the video played at full screen. It only plays up to the limit of the buttons in moboplayer. The built in player plays full screen... BUT... wont play native divx/xvid.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didn't really notice much of the backlight bleed, but then again I might be too tolerant on that. I've got the display set at like 30%-40% brightness most of the time anyway. I personally think that the bleed is about the same as the Galaxy Tab 7".
pegaxs said:
And yes, have to agree... that USB cable could have been a little shorter... OMG! how bad is it. I know the size of the battery wont allow it to charge off the computer USB, but i have to put my tab on the floor to reach. Going out to buy a USB extension today...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I need to get an extra one, since I charge mine next to my bed and the computer is on the other side of the room. I don't want to keep switching cables. I'll give a visit to the vodafone store to see if i can get one. Or just grab one off ebay.
pegaxs said:
As for importing contacts, i just sync them to the Google account and they come up on all my devices. No moving files around, or importing/exporting... just sync to gmail and on the next sync, any device you have linked to that account will be updated with the contacts list.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
:facepalm: why didn't I think of that
I'm pretty sure the problem is mostly software (well, apart from the backlight bleed), so I'm hoping a future update would clean this up for us. So far I've got the I8000 (good for nothing except playing movies) and the SGS. I9000 and both are excellent PMP devices.
Oh for those curious, there's a way to force the native browser to use desktop UA strings to sites: link It's for the XOOM but I've tried it and it works.
market apps no link
after downloading certain apps when i went back to the market those apps are showing free or $ amount instead of installed is that happening with everyone or just me. dosent look like market is registering my installed apps.
I noticed the same within the market app.. thought it was a feature
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App
When the screen is black and on full brightness it looks horrible about 10% off the screen is lightgrey at best.
When using the device you don't notice it. Unless the edges of the screen are (supposed to be) black, while the brightness is close to Max...
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App
gjroeleveld said:
I noticed the same within the market app.. thought it was a feature
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, I think it is a "feature" of the Honeycomb Market. If you go to the "My Apps" section of the Market - everything you have downloaded or purchased will appear there, but they just show as "Free" or "$x.xx" when casually browsing for apps - which I find annoying.
My tab works great, the only issue is that I've got extreme backlight bleeding at the bottom and at the right side of the screen, the right side is not much of an issue but the bottom is extremely annoying due to the black. I'm about to return it.
Yes, the backlight bleeding is a serious issue.
I've seen 3 of these devices now and they all have the same extreme case of it.
I'm going to start to start a new thread soon when I have a chance to take some good photos, unless someone beats me to the punch
Heres mine, Vodafone got a new one ordered for me which can take up to two weeks for whatever reason. If it has the same issues I will claim my money back and wait for the thin version.
As to the OP for HD video playing, i was testing the HD capability and found that even with a Xoom its unable to play full 1080 and 720 without recoding them. Thankfully a xoom owner has already done his bit of testing and all you need to do is download HandBrake and import his settings Settings Link. Encoding takes a while but i have tested on 1080p and 720p and they play just fine. File size i took from 1080p was about 15gb and it was reduced to about 2GB or so. You'll still need to get rockplayer as it does HW decoding to make the video play smoothly. alternatively you can use moboplayer but i prefer rockplayer's quality decoding for some reason
I also have some backlight bleeding issue, but only when i turn my brightness all the way up, i generally leave it on auto now and there's no bleed what so ever. I believe someone on WP has already mention that he checked all the 10.1v available in the Vodafone store in his location and they all have backlight bleeding issue and i believe it to be a batch and QA issue.
Other than that its more towards apps not compatible with honeycomb and they tend to force close a fair bit. Even the app market and app list drawer tend to crash often and the uptake to produce 3.0 compatible apps have been very slow from what i see, but hopefully those 5000 people that receive the new 10.1 sexy tab will be motivated to make apps and widgets.