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Okay, here is my dilema..... My current contract is up, so i have the option of 3 ways to go next...
I've had various Windows Mobile based devices for several years now, i've had the SPV E200, then the SPV M1000 (Himalaya), then the O2 XDA Exec (Universal), then the O2 Mini-s (Wizard) then finally the MDA Vario II (Hermes)
I've had loads of fun with these handsets over the years and thanks to xda-devs have hacked and flashed to my hearts content..... but now i think it's time for a chance...
Do i....
A) Get the next update in the Windows Mobile range, the MDA Vario III (Kaiser)
B) Get an Unlocked Iphone...
C) Get a Iphone clone
D) Something else - if so, please specify... i appreciate your time and opinion.
What do you thiink
imho iphone clones are like a dragqueen few people are really fooled
and it's not the same thing
same thing with many other ui mods for wm they got their look but when the user
start a program or open a dir your back to the wm look
so imho iphone skins are just that skins the thing one see before starting to use the device
if the cool of iphone is what one likes and one can make do with the limitations of features of iphone then get an iphone
if one needs the features of various wm devices then imho putting a skin on it which makes people think it's iphone'ish will make it just that
i require the access of many 3th party apps which i cant get on iphone so i will make do with wm even if some parts of iphones gui is better and cooler then wm
i will not try to make my wm device with whatever lacking it have look like an undead ½ iphone
Apples and oranges
By the looks you know what WM can do for you. Are you happy with it? Does it suit your needs?
Or do you prefer eye-candy with a very slick UI?
Work or fun?
You have a lot of WM software that you paid for?
The choice is yours, really........
P.S.: I do like the I-phone UI, the screen etc., but for me the present version just doesn´t cut it........maybe the next generation I-Phone.
Do you want "use" or "decoration" ?
Iphone is like flash-dating: the initial 3 minutes thing. But it sure is a dating agent; it will probably pull a lot of partners if they are the kind easily impressed by money and looks; I've seen a 40-some guy on a plane do just that! And the girl did not look more than 17. Now a WM phone would probably scare her away. Too techy.
But I like tech things and am waiting for a really good linux phone.
Cheers.
one think i love about iphone is the album art flipping one can do like in itunes but personaly i use a sdcard reader to put music on my device so it would not sync
plus iphone cant use sdcards at all so that would be a limitation too
It depends on what you do with the device.
Do you want MS Exchange push mail, with corporate lookup and full sync of contacts and calendar?
Do you want 3G speed where Wifi is not avail?
Do you want to teather to a laptop?
Do you want video capture and camera controls (zoom, light adjust, etc)?
Do you want Stereo Bluetooth headset support for streaming music and be able to take calls?
If you answered yes to most of these, you should stick with a WM device.
Otherwise, the benefits you will get from the iPhone will be well worth the it. I often will use my iPhone on Wifi to browse the internet instead of my laptop or desktop - it's that good. Really you will need to get your hands on an iPhone and decide. Some people have a hard time going from all those buttons to the "soft" keyboard of the iPhone. I was using a Touch before going to the iPhone as my main phone so the keyboard was an improvement for me.
My .02
2manyphones said:
It depends on what you do with the device.
Do you want MS Exchange push mail, with corporate lookup and full sync of contacts and calendar?
Do you want 3G speed where Wifi is not avail?
Do you want to teather to a laptop?
Do you want video capture and camera controls (zoom, light adjust, etc)?
Do you want Stereo Bluetooth headset support for streaming music and be able to take calls?
If you answered yes to most of these, you should stick with a WM device.
Otherwise, the benefits you will get from the iPhone will be well worth the it. I often will use my iPhone on Wifi to browse the internet instead of my laptop or desktop - it's that good. Really you will need to get your hands on an iPhone and decide. Some people have a hard time going from all those buttons to the "soft" keyboard of the iPhone. I was using a Touch before going to the iPhone as my main phone so the keyboard was an improvement for me.
My .02
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Click to collapse
Thanks to everyone who has replied so far, your comments have been very helpful in making up my mind on what to get next.... Iphone, just ordered one !
Now my reasons are this, i've had lots of wm devices as i described in my first post and i think i've ran the course with them in terms of what i can do with them and what they can do for me. PLUS i'm not travelling around alot now for work as i'm more office bound now, so don't need the tomtom anymore. I also think the interface on the iphone is exceptional and after using loads of different themes on the xda, nothing comes close to the polished look and feel. Also, i've got to the point where i don't use any of the added programs i used to on my xda, except from the finger scrolling add ons such as pocketcm, s2sunlock and htc-touchflo cube.....
I hope i have many years of fun with this iphone when it arrives and will keep popping in here from time to time to catch up.....
Hello everyone.
My RIZR kicked the bed at work the other day so I treated myself to a T-Mobile MDA on eBay. The auction said that it was already unlocked. Now, I'm a computer science major, so I'm pretty good with computer problems. However, cellphones confused the heck out of me! I've been lurking on these forums trying to read articles on what to do, but I'm just lost...
Basically, I want to have all the downloads ready for when I get the MDA in the mail this upcoming week. I want to do a few things, like only use the WiFi and not the GRPS (I can't afford the extra $). Also, does the MDA worth wire wireless G and/or N? Can you upgrade the RAM from 128MB? What is the biggest MicroSD card we can use on the MDA?
My main concern however is Windows Mobile itself. I have no experience with WM, but I want to upgrade it to the newest version possible. I don't know all the terminology here yet, but for a clean cut and fast version of WM6.X, where should I turn to?
Let me know if you guys need any other kind of information from me. I have a feeling I'll be on these boards a lot.
Thanks,
Ricco
The GPRS data connections can be disabled using a cab called nodata read about it “HERE”.
The Wi-Fi is B/G.
I couldn’t find any place that does RAM upgrades for the Wizard.
The largest SD card that the Wizard is supposed to be able to support is a 4GB NON-SDHC.
For the rest you really need to have the phone so you know exactly where to start.
Thanks. My MDA should be here in a few days, so I'll know what model it is soon enough. I was just looking through the forum and didn't know which WM6.X rom (is 'rom' the right word here?) to pick from.
Also, I went ahead and ordered a case for my MDA that's a black metal case with a Plexiglas screen. I hope its a decent case!
I don't know about that case, but some case is certainly a good idea. The wizard phones don't like to sit in your pocket. First, they are too big to be comfortable. Second, the touchscreen gets wacky. I don't know if it gets too hot or what, but it becomes totally unresponsive.
This Wizard > Wizard Mobile 6 Forum is the right place to lurk.
I'd suggest reading the threads about how to burn a ROM, and those describing how to do it with a G4. Those instructions will say to be careful that the ROM is safe for a G4, but all of the latest ones are. You want to choose a good radio ROM and separately a good OS ROM.
Your choices in OS version are pretty much:
WM 6.1: fast, lots of free RAM, and pretty stable. Look at Final Final Angel, CR96, and X2H, or anything else made in the last six months or so.
or
WM 6.5: a bit slower, less free RAM, and a few unresolved issues, but very touch-friendly. The choices in my opinion are CR96, X2H, or a pre-pre-pre-alpha by Ham3r. None are perfect, but the first two cooks in particular are working hard and making great progress.
For user interface:
barebones, the old wm5 standard home screen (nobody likes this I think)
HTC Home: was popular until about a year ago. I still like it
Manila 2D: more touch friendly, nice for WM6.1 Final Final Angel has a nice customization of this.
CHome: the default for WM6.5. There are two variants of this but I've only used one.
SPB Mobile Shell: I mention it because it is very nice, but is not free.
There are options I haven't mentioned because I haven't tried them.
Many programs and utilities are nice. If you use the barebones or htc home interfaces, look for "home screen plus plus" which has nice features including dynamic over/under clocking.
Good luck! The Wizard is a bit old, but it still has good support via this site as well as others.
Welcome, Ricco.
When you have no experience with WM, I would suggest you leave the device as it is for a short while and give yourself the time to get used to it. Even when WM6.x has advantages, it is not that the Wizard is unusable with the WM5 it normally has.
Be shure to read a lot here and learn enough to make the upgrade a smooth one - remember, a false or hasty decision or action can turn your Wizard into a nice door stopper...
But have a look here, this will provide a lot of useful information: http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=Wizard Windows Mobile 6 for newbies
Right now there are two utilities I can recommend:
The Wizard Service Tool provides useful information about your device: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=329170
And Homescreen Plus Plus, a nice software that e.g. gives you the possibility to underclock your device to get more standby time, as well as to overclock it for better performance, e.g. with a navigation software. http://www.chi-tai.info
EDIT: Another IMHO very useful program is PIM Backup. It allows you to backup/restore your contact information in seconds, very nice if you try different ROM versions. http://www.pocketpcfreeware.com/en/index.php?soft=1806
BTW: My Wizard stayed in the original condition for a year, until I decided to (successfully) flash WM6.1 on it. So keep cool and do not try to upgrade it without knowing exactly what to do.
Yea i know there are alot of these threads so heres another.
My current phone the G1 is starting to break down so im looking for a new phone. I'm considering the Touch Pro2, Touch HD, Hero, and the Toshiba TG01. I have never used a windows mobile device before with the G1 being my first by HTC. I'm willing to try it as long as it has been prettied up some(TouchFlo or Stripes).
If you have either the Touch Pro2 or the Touch HD can you give me your experiences with them.
HTC in my experience is awefull build quality. After owning four diferent models I have vowed never to own one again. Shame really, apart from the poor camera selection they are designed really well ..... just a shame they fall to bits.
Out of your list, would have to be TG01.
Have you looked at the new Omnia II's? (not the Omnia HD) Theres a full on Iphone/HD lookie-likely and two keyboard models, one a TP2 type and one a blackberry type.
Don't forget the Acer M900 (which is what I currently use) and the more pocket friendly F900.
Touch Pro 2 definetly
Because keyboard is a must for me!
Merge threads: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=4181275#post4181275
wizern23 said:
Yea i know there are alot of these threads so heres another.
My current phone the G1 is starting to break down so im looking for a new phone. I'm considering the Touch Pro2, Touch HD, Hero, and the Toshiba TG01. I have never used a windows mobile device before with the G1 being my first by HTC. I'm willing to try it as long as it has been prettied up some(TouchFlo or Stripes).
If you have either the Touch Pro2 or the Touch HD can you give me your experiences with them.
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I had windows mobile and even though preference is a matter of perspective.... windows might be a step in the wrong direction. Back when I had it windows was ahead of its time... but now it seems like its standing still ... like its been stagnant for the last 3 yrs I haven't seen any major differences...from android to winmo is going Back to resistive touch screens... with not so finger friendly gestures because the screens tend to not pick up on the motion... I would really love to see MS step it up and release a new os or 7.0 which I hope makes a major difference. Dont get me wrong for business i would only use winmo or BB... but at this point Android just seems like a wiser choice... its not an ancient OS that will probably bore you quickly. All the phones sound great ... if you want break down and comparisons then go to infosyncworld.com ... they rate the phones for you.
As somebody who's an advocate of Windows Mobile, my honest opinion is that now isn't a good time to buy a WinMo phone at all, especially not for the first time. The only people I would recommend the current batch of WM phones to are people who already use WM, don't want to learn a different system, and REALLY need a new device.
Here's why: Windows Mobile 6 has a real learning curve, and coming from Android you're probably going to find yourself frustrated at a lot of the inconsistencies and complications. Further, WM7 is already on the horizon and I think we'll be getting our first real peeks at it before the year is out. It should be a massive, fundamental overhaul to the way WM works. There's a lot of unanswered questions right now, ESPECIALLY whether WM7 apps will work on WM6 devices and whether it will be possible to upgrade any current WM6 or 6.5 devices to 7. If not, it's possible that application support for WM6 devices might grind to a halt within a year.
If I were in your boots, I'd try to hold on to that G1 as long as you can. By October or November, I think we'll have a better view of the future of WM and it'll be easier to see whether WM will serve your needs going forward.
Now, all this is completely moot if you're rolling in enough dough to just buy a new phone whenever you feel like it. If so, feel free to buy whatever you like.
Wouldn't all of these phones be able to upgrade to winmo 7 anyway. I really dont care about having to learn how to use windows mobile. Im more interested in the devices themself. My main concern is switching to a device with out a keyboard.
wizern23 said:
Wouldn't all of these phones be able to upgrade to winmo 7 anyway. \\
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Well, that's the problem: we just don't know yet. A lot of people here seem to take it for granted that WM7 will be as "open" as WM6 in terms of porting and the like, but comments from MS make me a lot less confident -- it sounds like WM7 might have much more specific hardware requirements that will keep it from being run on older models. It's POSSIBLE WM7 will be able to be put on, say, a Touch Pro 2, but it's not a foregone conclusion.
All signs point to WM7 being a major upgrade (keep in mind that WM7 has been in development since 6.1 dropped if not longer), and I think it's going to be really disappointing to be stuck with 6.5 once 7 hits.
But if you're looking to roll the dice, the Touch Pro 2 looks like a great phone UNLESS you want to use it as a media player. Lack of a 3.5mm jack is a serious weakness there.
yea the 3.5mm jack is a necessity b/c i planned on getting the Motorola S9s or something along that line to use because all of those except the hero are huge or heavy
I personally don’t believe that WM7 will be ready early 2010. It might take until 2011 that we see any WM7device.
TP2 seams currently best HTC choice if you need keyboard. However frankly speaking after having 2 HTC devices (Hermes and Kaiser) with slide keyboards I am not very confident about the durability (quality) of HTC hardware. Both of the devices had after short time issues with the rails and tilt mechanism.
Just recently I went to a shop to have look on the TP2 and the keyboard rails and the tilt seams same crap as previous devices. You can also read many complain in the TP2 section about screen wobbling. Touch HD has a very nice large screen (love large screens) but it is 1 year old technology and performance wise it did not satisfied many people. Furthermore as you are from USA you would need Australian version to able to use in American 3G. But the Device cost still after 1 year some 800-900$
My personal favoured are currently the Samsung Omnia II/i800 and Samsung Omnia II pro (b7610) Specs on the paper and the current reviews are indicating that those are under best devices on the market. Furthermore Samsung has almost entirely covered with additional software the aged WinMo operation platform. Further positive point is the Price. Both Samsung devices are about 100-200 USD cheaper then HTC devices even though they have better CPU; Camera etc.
I agree with Bulldog -- the Omnia II devices look really excellent. I like the design of the TP2 better, but I trust Samsung's build quality more and, feature-wise, it's fantastic.
Yes but you have to add that with omnia or any other you´ll not have the support of this great site!
That for me is an added value to consider before buying
orb3000 said:
Yes but you have to add that with omnia or any other you´ll not have the support of this great site!
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Yes you do. This site offers Winmob o/s and Winmob App support to all. If you want cooked roms, look no further than omnia.modaco.com where there are plenty! My Omnia (original one) is currently running a great cooked rom of WM 6.5
Lets also not forget the AMOLED screen either on the new Omnias. I really regret buying my Acer M900, not because its crap - its not - but the new Samsungs look simply stunning. And if you factor in the success of the Omnia, widely regarded as the best Winmob all-rounder, the new Omnias should be spanking!
Hello,
I have been recently thinking about changing my HTC Touch Cruise for something newer. To my mind obviously came: HTC HD2, iPhone, Blackberry Storm2.
I know that specifications-wise, HTC wins. BUT...
I have recently experienced the new Blackberry and realized that: the operation system works much quicker and nicer than Windows which HTC uses. It also seems to have less problems -> my current HTC needs a good hard restart once a week or so, because it freezes on more demanding films or some music.
I thought that Windows has much more applications available - well, I am not so sure any more once I realized that thesaurus.com produced their dictionaries for... iPhone and Blackberry. Windows has lost its market and is not taken into account by the newest developers.
I am also wondering whether 4.3'' isn't a little bit too much -> I won't be able to put it into my pocket any longer!
What do you think? HTC seems to have created a very beautiful palmtop, full of great specifications but it has also committed one crucial mistake - it used Windows...
I would be grateful if you could share with me your opinions. Maybe my fear is unjustified and the newest HD2 works perfectly in all the aspects easily beating the competition?
I have to agree with you.
I have been a WM fan for the last 5 years or so and have become disilusioned with the OS. I too was looking for a change and had been watching the LEO. This is indeed a good hardware spec, but imho let down by WM6.5. I decided that I was after a better consumer experiance and opted for the iPhone. Everyone raves about them for a long time now so I decided (after much researching) that I would try one. I have not been let down by it yet. Mind you, I've only had it 3 weeks. I'm taking a punt that in 18 months or so, WM will have caught up or Andriod will have matured, but until then, I'll take a walk on the dark side.
So far I'm loving the fact that is just seems to work and it integrates with my car hifi perfecly. I can now play music and do hands free over Bluetooth. Under WM I could only do handsfree. Surfing the internet is now almost as easy as on my desktop. Safari browser beats anything else I've tried so far. The on screen keyboard was a worry at first, but it's easy to use, especialy in landscap (I have big thumbs). As a music player, well it beats WM any day of the week.
I know I will eventualy hit it's limitations, and when I do I'll consider jailbreaking, much like using custom ROMs from here realy. Untill then I'll keep an eye on the mobile development and look forward to seeing what happens in 18 months.
Good luck with your search, for now I have found my answer, I hope you find yours.
Mav
Personally I'd go for the HD2, as I rank spec more than software. The iPhone is a but too common and its pricing is a far too high for what you get (mins and txts etc). Blackberry has the same problem its too common, I know loads of people with Blackberrys who only use them for Facebook, but if your the kind of person who send and receieves loads of e-mails get a BB as they do it better than WinMo and iPhone.
Alex
Here we go again..........
Leo of course
Well I have been WM for several years and thought I would give the iPhone a trial. A BIG MISTAKE. Its dredful and im getting a HD2 next week.
I thought i'd add my comments to this, i've been predominantly symbian s60 / win mob for years now due to the fact that they "do" everything. But i think its fair to say that windows in all guises comes with the fact that as soon as you start to ask a bit of it, it sticks it's fingers up at you and stops working (symbian too, but to a lesser degree). Usually resulting in a reboot. I recently had an upgrade to do so i started researching into what i might get. In the end, after a spate with symbian, i v much wanted a win mo device but was ever so curious about the iphone. So many ppl couldn't be wrong, right? I was also deeply tempted by the blackberry bold too. I ended up going for the iphone as the upgrade and bought a TP2 as well. I just couldn't do the iphone thing on its own in case i hated it.
Pleasingly, i don't. The iphone is everything a win mo phone isn't, and vica versa. The iphone is completely dependable, never misses a beat, does what it does do perfectly and apart from some of the crazy apps, completely dull. It is frustratingly good. Even multitasking isn't really much of an issue due to push notifications and the like. I'd love to say the screen res is an issue but it never is. Safari is in a league of it's own. But it is dull. I use it as my everyday phone because it's dependable, but i use my TP2 to mess about with, i've had that many different ROM's on it it's silly, i follow forum progress with different things going on with bated breath, excited to see if they can pull this new rom off, or a linux port. It's exciting, i can modify the hell out of it and personalise it my way. I can send files via bluetooth without having to jump through hoops (unlike the iphone).
So, it comes down to what you want it to do, and if you can put up with less or more customization. There is a lot to choose from out there now and it's hard to decide. Look at the palm pre, and droid, and what about the n900 0n maemo?? Whatever you decide, you'll end up with a really good bit of kit, cos the mobile world it going potty with new stuff at the mo.
Just one last note, in defence of win mo, it may be getting a bit left behind in terms of bling, but it still remains one of the most functional os's out there, it's just that the young guns have caught up now.
Hmmm as I don't like iPhone (because everyone has it) and I wouldn't go Sony Ericsson (because I don't believe in their great ability of doing palmtops), I am personally trying to find reasons for continuing with HTC.
1.Is Windows 7 going to be released "soonish", so that if I buy HD2 now I might get some (hopefully) acceptable o/s?
2.There is also Droid Eris / HTC Dragon / HTC Passion / whatever it is called. If it is "HD2 on Google Android 2.0" then the question arises:
------is it just the case of software? If yes, I assume xda-masters will sooner or later allow easy migration between these two systems, or are there any technological obstacles? If this were true then this would be the best option -> One phone if you get bored - you can always swap to another o/s...
3. What was the market response to Android 2.0? What do you guys think about it, as compared with Windows?
I'm using Android at the moment having used WM for the past few years. It's version 1.5 and I'm loving it. Can't wait for 2.0 to come out for the Hero.
It hardly ever needs a reset - it 'just works'
The HD2 is one bad boy! No one knows when Windows 7 going to be released...maybe 3rd Q of 2010. But WM6.5.1 should be a lot sooner for the Leo...
I think its funny that every ppc that htc release, we seem to have this debate "blah" vs iphone, or is "blah" the iphone killer, this has been going on since the touch diamond, personaly i dont think any ppc can be compaired to the iphone, as ppc's are tools with functionality where as the iphone is a toy, it has no real functionality, yeah it looks good and there are lots of apps availble for them but how many of them are useful? and as for "killing" the iphone its clear by now that it has a far too big a fan base to be killed off, anyway thats my 2 cents lol
mancsoulja said:
I think its funny that every ppc that htc release, we seem to have this debate "blah" vs iphone, or is "blah" the iphone killer, this has been going on since the touch diamond, personaly i dont think any ppc can be compaired to the iphone, as ppc's are tools with functionality where as the iphone is a toy, it has no real functionality, yeah it looks good and there are lots of apps availble for them but how many of them are useful? and as for "killing" the iphone its clear by now that it has a far too big a fan base to be killed off, anyway thats my 2 cents lol
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Well said!
+ 1 for this!
Every new phone and threads start with comparatives...
Very, Very UNFAIR comparison!!!
Seriously, HD2, go against someone ur OWN size (aka Xperia X10, i8910 HD, Motorola Milestone, N900, Acer F1)!
Leave iPhone alone! It's NOT even a smartphone (moreover not even a basic phone as it still lacks some basic phone functionality that people had for over a decade) as it doesn't even do multitasking...
What's "blackberry"?
bye
Ive been using HTC phones since forever.... Ive had the Canary, Tanager, Voyager, Hurricane, Polaris (Touch Cruise) and am currently using the Touch Diamond. Ive enjoyed Windows Mobile but never really took to TouchFlo3d. I liked Windows Mobile because I have CoPilot and used to do quite a bit of geocaching.
Now im up for contract renewal and soooo much has changed in the last two years.
Im wondering what the score is with windows mobile? Has it been overtaken by Android? What about my CoPilot, geocaching programs and Bejewelled Blitz game?
Im assuming the HTC HD2 is considered the best WM phone at the moment but should I be looking at Android phones.... if so, which one?
And how does the iphone fit in. I dont like the look of all though little boxes of "apps"! Im a minimalist kinda guy! Im considering an iphone because I have been forced into using a mac cos my partner has run off to uni to do a post grad course and taken the family laptop!
Any help of choosing between the HTC HD2, the android phones and the iphone would be great.
Here you can see what is considered the best device by XDA members:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=5391877#post5391877
As for Android, I prefer to stay with WM, android is too young and immature for now, I´m sure in the future can be a good OS option, but not by now.
Just my opinion
Good luck,
p.d: Never consider yourself an old!!, as a Mexican saying says: Old? old the mountains and they are still green!
rikpotts said:
Im wondering what the score is with windows mobile? Has it been overtaken by Android?
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Click to collapse
That depends on whether you are normal, healthy human being or an extreme technology geek. The most important thing to understand about Windows Mobile is that when you first start up a WM phone, it really doesn't work very well. It can be made to work reasonably well, but it takes a great deal of tweaking to do it. If you're the sort of person who actively enjoys tweaking, hunting down applications and .cabs to customise the phone to make it behave in exactly the way you want, then WM is a good choice. If you simply want it to work, it's a terrible choice.
Android is already well ahead of WM in terms of usablity for normal people, but hasn't yet caught up in terms of programmability or customisability.
The iPhone is effectively two completely different devices in one, depending on whether or not you go through the "jail-breaking" procedure. (This is a bit like installing a cooked ROM on a WM phone, only rather less drastic and easier to reverse; like flashing custom ROMs it does void your warranty, though). Without jail-breaking the iPhone is very much a "black box" - you only do what Apple has chosen to let you do. That said, it's the best piece of user-interface design I've ever seen, beautifully intuitive, and it has far more applications than every other smartphone platform put together (and what's more they're all in one place so you can actually find them - WM apps are scattered all over the Internet with no catalogue).
By contrast, a jail-broken iPhone is as flexible as an Android phone, and very close to Windows Mobile.
If you don't want TouchFLO (a.k.a. Sense) then investing in a high-end HTC phone is probably a waste of money. You get the support of this website, and (in the case of the HD2) a capacitive screen, but neither is worth the price premium over rival devices - Sense UI is what you're paying for if you buy an HD2. Obvious WinMo equivalents are the Toshiba TG01, or the Acer NeoTouch. On the Android side you should check out the Google Nexus One, Motorola Droid, and Acer F1.
Many Thanks for the replies. I was worried my question didnt get to the point but the answers covered my confusion.
So windows mobile still has some life left in it yet!
I had no idea about where Android was up to... now I know.
"you only do what Apple has chosen to let you do."
This is what I feared. Despite flashing phones for a large portion of my spare time I dont actually like doing it. I agree with what you said about WM phone not working well out of the box but can be good if you spend a few days googling and messing about. My diamond is a hand me down from my partner cos she hated it... but like the look of my old orbit 2. I spent many weeks tuning that one. Ive just left the diamond as is..... except disabling TF3d (I have actually started to use it for the last 2 days only!)
I find the iPhone appealing, especially after reading that it has more application around for it. Plus I only have a couple of ibooks now. Ive even done away with the pc at work! (only cos I do the bookkeeping at home on the mac, its easier to throw it in the back of the car and take it with me!)
I know the like of high street banks etc are making "apps" for it but ive also waded my through WM Smartphone, 2003SE and WM6 applications for years. It sound iike the iphone has made good ground.
I think its gonna be a HD2. Though ill have a quick look at how people have customised the iphone. Ill bend arms in the call centres to get either one for free!
Once again, thanks for spending the time in answering my questions. You have saved me a long evening in front of the laptop!
Well, make sure you demo an iPhone before buying, and do some serious reading in some of the jail-break community forums. In my experience a good rule of thumb is: if you can't think of any specific reason not to buy an iPhone 3GS, you should buy one. By contrast, anyone who is any doubt about whether they want an HD2 or not should definitely not buy one; and I say that as an HD2 owner who has no intention of selling it. It's a great device for some, but its appeal is deep rather than broad. In my case the things I use it for most are web-browsing and video playback, and a big, hi-res screen helps a lot with both of those. Even there it was a close thing - Apple's "Safari" browser is superior to the HD2's Opera in several ways.
There's a recent survey from Gartner which found that Apple currently controls 99.4% of the smartphone app market.
Demo a couple of the high-end Android phones, too - HTC Hero and Motorola Milestone are good places to start. And try an HD2 before you buy as well - see whether or not the keyboard drives you nuts!
Shasarak said:
That depends on whether you are normal, healthy human being or an extreme technology geek. The most important thing to understand about Windows Mobile is that when you first start up a WM phone, it really doesn't work very well. It can be made to work reasonably well, but it takes a great deal of tweaking to do it.
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IMO that's not exactly true. I had bought a Touch Diamond 2 in early 2009 and with the stock ROM it was awesome. I used it for couple months without facing any problems. After few months I switched to custom ROMs but only because I needed to have newer OS builds (6.5, 6.5.x) on my phone.
Android is so superior in few years? You better wait few years and see if Android is still running so smooth when supporting more than 5 different phones.... Probably you'll switch back to WM 8 then because it's supposed to run so stable.
I just went to the Apple Store in town for an iPhone demo only to be told they don't sell them, or have demo versions.
So I asked for the lead to plug my iBook into the telly. He gave me a DVI Macbook one. "no, I have an iBook"
"Sorry mate, you cant get em"
I said "yeah you can, £18.99 + del on the Apple Store website.
He clicked around on his iPhone for 5 mins until I gave up and found one myself in the shop.
I gave him my Visa card only to be told that they dont accept Visa Debit!
Im not surprised Apple stuff is so expensive.... they have to markup to cover the loss of sales for reasons similar to my first ever contact with Apple!
RAMMANN said:
Android is so superior in few years? You better wait few years and see if Android is still running so smooth when supporting more than 5 different phones.... Probably you'll switch back to WM 8 then because it's supposed to run so stable.
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How exactly is any of this in any way connected to a purchase decision? Are we supposed to say "well, WinMo may not be very good, but there's a good reason why it's not very good (has to support so many different phones) so we should buy it anyway out of sympathy"? Or are we supposed to buy a WM6 phone now on the grounds that in three years time the next-but-one version of WinMo will, in your opinion be superior to the next-but-six version of Android? Even if your prediction turns out to be accurate, nothing you say here can possibly be relevant.
rikpotts said:
I just went to the Apple Store in town for an iPhone demo only to be told they don't sell them, or have demo versions.
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Ouch. Well, try a mobile phone shop. Here in London you'll find a demoable iPhone in O2 or Carphone Warehouse stores. Probably Orange and Vodafone too these days.
I would at least consider looking at Android handsets that are currently on the market. Windows Mobile is an alright OS, but Windows Mobile 6.x is on its way out, with WM7 coming in towards the end of this year, so you might not want to buy a WM device until WM7 ships, or you may get stuck with 6.x. I've used Android extensively through ports and emulators, and I can safely say that it's a very good mobile OS. Either a Windows Mobile or Android device would work fine, but I would recommend waiting until the end of the year if you want Windows Mobile. The best Android and Windows Mobile devices on the market are probably the Nexus One and HD2, respectively.
As for the iPhone, I don't really get what's so special about them. I own a first generation iPhone and a first generation iPod Touch, and while they're both nice devices, I wouldn't say they're the Jesusphone that everyone claims them to be. Maybe it's just because I like an open OS like Android (Linux kernel, open source) or WM (proprietary yet infinitely customizable), but the iPhone doesn't seem that great to me. And while Jailbreaking makes things a little more bearable, it still doesn't make the iPhone worth using to me
Shasarak said:
How exactly is any of this in any way connected to a purchase decision? Are we supposed to say "well, WinMo may not be very good, but there's a good reason why it's not very good (has to support so many different phones) so we should buy it anyway out of sympathy"? Or are we supposed to buy a WM6 phone now on the grounds that in three years time the next-but-one version of WinMo will, in your opinion be superior to the next-but-six version of Android? Even if your prediction turns out to be accurate, nothing you say here can possibly be relevant.
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I'm not saying "WM may not be very good". I think it kicks ass. Honestly! I already ran Android on the emulator to check it out but I don't see anything special that I don't have with WM. And besides that on Android you can only code applications in Java despite the Linux kernel. I stick to my C/C++ and I see no f'kn reason to downgrade to Java just because of Google.
I think the best way is to go to the store and play a bit (like 15-30min) with the competing phones. I would suggest that you pay a bit more attention to HD2, iPhone 3GS and in march the Bravo will be out, if you can wait that long. I would also suggest the Nexus one, however you can't see before you buy, and people are reporting numerous problems. You can see the nexus in action on youtube.
What works for me, won't necessarily work for you, and vice versa.
Don't let the sales rep tell you that google maps is navigation, it's not.
Have in mind that iphone and some android devices don't support BT file transfer, if you use that.
If you like multitasking don't go for the iphone.Another "glitch" is that its browser doesn't support download.
If you use exchange, it works best on winmo and blackberry
If you use the phone as usb stick go for android or winmo.
There are of course other differences. It all depends on what you use and what you need.
For satnav winmo has the widest range of apps. However there are nice apps for android and iphone.
rikpotts said:
Ive been using HTC phones since forever.... Ive had the Canary, Tanager, Voyager, Hurricane, Polaris (Touch Cruise) and am currently using the Touch Diamond. Ive enjoyed Windows Mobile but never really took to TouchFlo3d. I liked Windows Mobile because I have CoPilot and used to do quite a bit of geocaching.
Now im up for contract renewal and soooo much has changed in the last two years.
Im wondering what the score is with windows mobile? Has it been overtaken by Android? What about my CoPilot, geocaching programs and Bejewelled Blitz game?
Im assuming the HTC HD2 is considered the best WM phone at the moment but should I be looking at Android phones.... if so, which one?
And how does the iphone fit in. I dont like the look of all though little boxes of "apps"! Im a minimalist kinda guy! Im considering an iphone because I have been forced into using a mac cos my partner has run off to uni to do a post grad course and taken the family laptop!
Any help of choosing between the HTC HD2, the android phones and the iphone would be great.
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wait for the 4th gen iphone, if you can't, i recommend you jailbroken iphone 3gs.
you'll fly, if you try iphone.
When I went to the Apple store and asked to look at the iPhone the first thing the chap said was "wait til mid 2010"
Thankyou for the great replies.
In the end....!! I got a Sony Ericsson Naite. And a laptop! Samsung N130.
I love my iBook but ive just enrolled with the OU to finish a couple of Uni quals I never actually finished and need windows. Plus I can synch my Diamond properly now. I run a shop on an ind est and have just setup a website and my orders come through to the phone. I need to synch.
Once again, many thanks for the time spent.
Rik