here the test and review by GPS PASSION
http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=105771
energy59 said:
here the test and review by GPS PASSION
http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=105771
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Click to collapse
This device, as attractive as it may be, is starting to rack up some real negatives:
1) the confused (for consumers) situation with the Qualcomm chip and the US Court injunction (what effect may that have on overall sales and consequently warranty, quality control etc ?)
2) variations in build quality (sliders, screens unglued etc)
3) constant WWE ROM supply problems and high prices
4) the ongoing argument over video drivers (may not be a real issue, since it seems unlikely to me that any class action will actually occur)
I'm getting a small amount of "sand in my shoes"
I wonder: why are we bashing this device more and more lately? The more we bash, the less people buy, the worse TC sales are, the less support we'll get and eventually we might wind up with NO software updates at all..
So let's try to think about the positive things shall we
ianl8888 said:
1) the confused (for consumers) situation with the Qualcomm chip
2) variations in build quality (sliders, screens unglued etc)
3) constant WWE ROM supply problems and high prices
4) the ongoing argument over video drivers
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Click to collapse
1: is a non-issue, by the time in 2009 when HTC will need to use a new chip, this device will have been replaced in all likelihood, or will have a slightly different chipset. No problem.
2: I've not heard of any problems, slight noise from a screen and concerns here and there, but no issues with previous build so why this one? Anyway, you get a defective one, you return it!
3: supply will level in a month or two, place an order now and you should have it early Feb. The fact that it's popular should tell you a lot.
4: again is a non-issue - either you want a multi-purpose phone like this or you don't. The video will be as released, I don't believe anything more will happen with it. It's fine as released for general purpose stuff...
Essentially, if you wanted a high-performance video device this one was never for you; if you want a great PDA phone it is. Make your choice. For me build quality is excellent and the rest is of no importance.
If you want great video performance buy a Cowon iAudio A3 (I got the A2), great rendering to high resolutions too in widescreen format, bigger and heavier than the TC but good for all your video/audio/FM radio/pictures/document needs. No input possible of course. That's why I needed the TC
SabbeRubbish said:
I wonder: why are we bashing this device more and more lately? The more we bash, the less people buy, the worse TC sales are, the less support we'll get and eventually we might wind up with NO software updates at all..
So let's try to think about the positive things shall we
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Click to collapse
Simple.
Post cognitive dissonance:
http://www.ciadvertising.org/sa/fall_03/adv382J/mbabbott/advertising.htm
There have been high expectations from the device for a long time, combine that with the difficulty in actually getting hold of one and a couple of new models from other manufacturers on the horizon, and those expectations will change. Cognitive Dissonance is a much more difficult problem for companies to manage these days, mostly because of the internet.
I must say, truly interesting! And indeed I've caught myself luring to Eten and LG devices, but none are up to the TC challenge imho.
All i can say is i am right with rickgillyon.
Everyday, i am happy to have TC.
GPS, sound, screen, weight, radio, phone are perfect.
A lot of Applications are available.
I haven't buy this device for video but if it works well, i will use it some times.
Ziggy
fishes234 said:
Simple.
Post cognitive dissonance:
http://www.ciadvertising.org/sa/fall_03/adv382J/mbabbott/advertising.htm
There have been high expectations from the device for a long time, combine that with the difficulty in actually getting hold of one and a couple of new models from other manufacturers on the horizon, and those expectations will change. Cognitive Dissonance is a much more difficult problem for companies to manage these days, mostly because of the internet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True enough, although I have not yet made a decision to dissonate about. I had been somewhat interested in the ETEN X800 until some independent tests showed a slowness in its response - some people report it is now improved with some ROM changes, others don't think so.
My decisions tend to be based on the actual experience of the product - paper specifications simply weed out those that do not interest me to start with.
It's also interesting that the optimists here discount issues - eg. one reply to my "sand in my shoes" post suggested that by 2009 the Qualcomm Court injunction will be irrelevant as HTC will be using a different chip. But I don't really intend to change devices annually, so for me it is a potential issue, particularly as the outcomes cannot be easily predicted.
Supply is an issue - we've been given way too many false dates since August to believe "the next one". And there has been no real attempt at an explanation - but given the seemingly unglued screens and flimsy controls reported on some units, quality control on production issues may be a factor. Simply returning it is a very last resort, especially from O/S. It's far better to avoid the problems to begin with.
But then, without the optimists life would be dull I suppose. Even when they quote posts selectively ...
ianl8888 said:
It's also interesting that the optimists here discount issues - eg. one reply to my "sand in my shoes" post suggested that by 2009 the Qualcomm Court injunction will be irrelevant as HTC will be using a different chip. But I don't really intend to change devices annually, so for me it is a potential issue, particularly as the outcomes cannot be easily predicted.
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The outcome is already known, replacement chips are ready according to Qualcomm, and you won't have to change your device - they won't make us hand our phones back in...
As I say, it's a non-issue for the end user.
rickgillyon said:
The outcome is already known, replacement chips are ready according to Qualcomm, and you won't have to change your device - they won't make us hand our phones back in...
As I say, it's a non-issue for the end user.
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Click to collapse
I've discussed this out in another thread - so repetition is pointless. If you believe Qualcomm's rationalisations (after they have been convicted of knowing patent infringement), then I have some shares in the Sydney Harbour Bridge for you. Cheap, too. Such chips need to be fabricated, then assembled in new devices for testing. Qualcomm's "new" chips are also subject to a further Court examination next February before design release- the time and results of that are not predictable.
I'm not suggesting that the devices already sold will be recalled - do you understand the term "straw man" ? If world wide sales of the P3650 are repressed through this issue, HTC will reduce development and support for this model as fast as it can ... that's the core of my comments.
It's racking up real negatives. The only defence to this is cool examination of potential outcomes, or risk wasting money.
Chips need to be fabricated? Really? I'd never have guessed...
Fact is that Qualcomm, naughty as they undoubtedly are, have been working on this problem for some time as they knew they would lose. I see no reason to doubt that chips will be ready, and will be available. The reason Qulacomm will be hurrying out a replacement is to avoid the punitive commission they are paying right now.
HTC support? Surely you're kidding?
If, as you say, the issue stretches beyond early 2009, and supplies stop in early 2009, what's the difference? How often have you seen real support or development of an HTC product after the first few months? IME that support and development only comes in the cooked ROMs.
This still looks to me like the best device available right now, and with Qualcomm and HTC able to use the chip until 2009, not much of an issue for us. What's the alternative?
I am surprised at the amount of stick this device seems to be generating. I bought it as a replacement for my original Touch as I missed 3G and I have to say it's a fairly stunning device. Build quality on my unit is excellent, the slider and the scroll wheel are firm and responsive. The unit itself performs what I expect of it: PDA, email, fast internet. I fully expect this to be my longest lasting phone for quite a while, easily until end of FY 2009/2010. Problems like video drivers etc I don't really understand, it's adequate for a phone. If I want to watch videos I tend to use a full video capable device (eg PSP) rather than try to watch them on a phone.
SabbeRubbish said:
I wonder: why are we bashing this device more and more lately? The more we bash, the less people buy, the worse TC sales are, the less support we'll get and eventually we might wind up with NO software updates at all..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But if we don't bash them, they think everyone's happy with the current performance and they don't bother improving it or doing anything about it.
andyturner said:
But if we don't bash them, they think everyone's happy with the current performance and they don't bother improving it or doing anything about it.
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Click to collapse
No no, I do insist we bash them PERSONALLY, but not on the sales websites, as potential future customers may be scared in the future, even if the issue is already resolved, and therefore make the release of TC a fiasco, which would make HTC not distribute any sw updates...
Just a question:
How much would an external antenna help to get a better signal?
I would like to use the TC to track a short hike. Due to the test mentioned above, I would be forced to take the TC in my hand all the time. So I thougt I plug in an external antenna and fix the end somewhere to my clothes/backpack. Would that help?
Straputsky said:
Just a question:
How much would an external antenna help to get a better signal?
I would like to use the TC to track a short hike. Due to the test mentioned above, I would be forced to take the TC in my hand all the time. So I thougt I plug in an external antenna and fix the end somewhere to my clothes/backpack. Would that help?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on the satellite coverage... My country has only 8 satellites covering it, so we couldn't utilize it fully even if we wanted to. (I don't know the background but thats the max number of lockons everyone gets around here)
But if your TC performs well in the city, i don't see any need for an external antenna, but an extra battery is a different story. And I hope you have other tracking softwares in your arsenal than the included TomTom...
gnick666 said:
...And I hope you have other tracking softwares in your arsenal than the included TomTom...
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Click to collapse
With TomTom it would be a very short trip.
No, I plan to use TrackMe which was created by someone here in the community. It allows you to turn of the display, so the device consumes less power.
The problem is, that the TC didn't perform that good and I was thinking if it performs better with an external antenna. Especially in wooden areas I hope to gain a significant better signal.
Straputsky said:
...Especially in wooden areas I hope to gain a significant better signal.
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Click to collapse
You'd definitely get a better reception, but that would increase battery drainage. Bigger external antenna, heavier the drain on the battery.
But you can always pack the external antenna, and use it if needed. You won't loose anything, and we'd get some fieldtest results from the woods in Germany
@rickgyllion
Wot, no Harbour Bridge shares ? I'll even lower the price ! Oh well ...
"If, as you say, the issue stretches beyond early 2009 ..." I never said that, I simply pointed out that Qualcomm still faces unpredictable Court examination of its new designs. An inconvenient fact ...
"How often have you seen real support or development of an HTC product after the first few months?" Since the 1st non-English ROM devices have now been out a few months, one might think that stage has already been reached.
Between Qualcomm and HTC, it's a real stuff-up.
My attempt at resolution is that I have pre-ordered both the P3650 and an alternate non-HTC device. Both are due "in February" or "real soon now" or whichever comes first. When one or the other finally makes it to the retail market, then I'll make a decision.
I'll be moving to Japan because of a job (very) soon and I'm trying to get an idea of what phones I want to look for when I arrive. Usually, I'd put a good amount of time into researching devices and narrow down my choices after looking through specs and reviews, but time is kind of tight and I have a lot of other preparations to focus on.
From what I understand, au might be a better choice for pricing and service quality in the area I'll be located. Other carriers have not been ruled out, but I'm currently leaning toward au based on the recommendations from some people in my area.
Obviously I know about the common, international devices from companies like Samsung and Motorola, but I'm wondering if other brands like Sharp, Fujitsu, Panasonic, etc., are worth looking into. There are some nice looking devices that have the specs behind them, but that doesn't really help me understand build quality and generally how well the device actually functions.
If anyone with some actual experience or knowledge on the market there can help me out, that would be great. Preferably, I'd like to get a top tier device or something reasonably close. I may get there and end up picking something from the previous generation. I'm hoping for at least a 4" screen, dual core, and running gingerbread. If the specs are better than that, then that's even better!
Thanks in advance for any help!
OK, we've been complaining about this for several months and nothing's happened yet. I have officially given up on Samsung doing anything to either address it's customer base concerns or update the watch in the US. So lets get proactive and screw Samsung.
First, what do you want fixed? I'd like to get reliable weather, reliable step count, and stronger vibration for notifications. More battery life is always good but not essential, I can live with 2 days. Does anyone out there have a work around for these things? If so please publish for all to see.
Second, many just want to get the new firmware update that the rest of the world got. OK, does anyone know how to download from a non-Samsung site and if that even works on US watches? If so please publish for all to see.
Lets see if any of you smart guys out there has figured this out. Otherwise lets embrace the suck and enjoy what we have.
My suggestion is either align your expectations with Samsung's approach or buy other products. They have never been good with updates and getting worked up about it won't change that. Regarding workarounds for the issues you raise:
- reliable weather: I have never had an issue what that, but have seen some others report that problem. If you have a Samsung phone, make sure the TW weather widget is running.
- reliable step count: mine is reliable and consistent. Don't know what to suggest here.
- stronger vibration: I agree. I wish it were stronger. But I've not heard that update addresses that. That may be a limitation of the hardware. May sure you have vibration set to high intensity and long buzz enabled.
GeorgeP said:
My suggestion is either align your expectations with Samsung's approach or buy other products.
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Click to collapse
If Tizen works like Samsung's adaptation of Android you can't simply swap ROM installs across regions; unique model numbers are assigned by region. Tools like Odin (does it even work with Tizen?) which are simple and safe to flash with will fail at the first step which is a region/CSC check. Even if you could get another region's ROM on your Gear it'll probably bork access to Gear Apps which does a device ID/CSC check.
As you said, people expecting regular updates and enhancements bought the wrong wearable. At least if history repeats itself from earlier Gears.
As far as vibration....this is across the board. My moto 360 had very weak vibration
cufd440 said:
As far as vibration....this is across the board. My moto 360 had very weak vibration
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Pebble has a strong enough vibration to wake me from a dead sleep. If they can do it...
rogerperk said:
Pebble has a strong enough vibration to wake me from a dead sleep. If they can do it...
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True enough, but overall I just don't think that smartwatches are there yet in general. We all want something small and thin that looks like a real watch, but we also want strong vibrating mechanisms, long battery, nice screens, tons of apps, speakers, gps, compass, sleep tracking, step counting, etc etc etc. Some devices do many of these things, some only do a few. To do them all and do them right? Maybe by the Gear S3 or S4...
If you search Google for "Gear S3 Teardown" the results return various websites detailing a single set of internal components with different cases (Classic and Frontier) for the Gear S3.
Does this mean that ALL variants of the Gear S3 contain an LTE modem and embedded sim?
Could it mean that the LTE modem has just been disabled in the BT/Wifi model or is the hardware actually missing from that model?
Did you actually found some teardown, or you`re referring to Samsung`s commercial images showing Gear S3`s internal layers...?
Anyway, while I would really hope for a *possibly working* LTE modem and eSIM inside my bluetooth version, I`m not sure how likely is that. I`m emphasizing "working" here as sometimes companies do really include some parts that are not in use, as parts themselves might be overall cheaper than making a separate production flow to exclude them, but it also happens that not really all the parts needed are there.
For example, I remember reading that many phones that do not have (plain old) radio signal receiving ability actually do have the receiver inside their internals (as it`s simple and cheap, and integrated into some bigger chip), but the wire/line that should finally connect it to something in order for it to be useful is missing (as that is easy to omit, in comparison to integrated circles).
Also, something that you don`t advertise as available (even if it might be present in a way) doesn`t need to be tested/supported, which cuts down some costs, too.
So, I wouldn`t really be surprised if LTE modem or eSIM are really in there in bluetooth versions as well, but I would be a bit surprised if all the accompanying hardware is in there, too, making it possible to be enabled through software only... but we can still hope
Yes I am just reffering to Samsung's commercial images. I have not found another website where they actually performed a real teardown of the Gear S3 range and listed the details of the internal parts.
Well, the R765A rom is available in the Roms Forum. A brave soul could try flashing that to a Bluetooth model and WATCH (pun alert) what happens.
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