Phones

HTC Excalibur on T-Mobile

Our friends at MoDaCo have let us know that the HTC Excalibur will be comming to T-Mobile USA under the name “Dash”. We have also been informed that the firmware for this device will include the ability to scroll down through the program menu instead of having to press the more button!

The HTC Excalibur looks a lot like the Samsung i320 but it’s a couple millimeters thicker than the i320 and 2 millimeters shorter. It’s a Smartphone so no touchscreen though! 🙁 However it does have an innovative touch ‘jog strip’ which is HTC’s latest answer to the Blackberry scroll wheel. The only problem I can see with the Jog Strip is that it’s located just around the right hand edge of the screen. It’ll be a real pain for us left handers. I wonder if HTC realise that 1 in 8 people are left handed?

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, MoDaCo, T Mobile, HTC, HTC Excalibur]

HTC TyTN screen alignment

We discussed touchscreen alignment in an earlier post. However, I just saw this thread over at XDA-Developers.com which has a post containing an email from HTC, confirming that there is a known issue with screen alignment on HTC TyTn devices, and setting out the return / repair procedure:

There have been very few, if any, reports of screen alignment issues on the Orange SPV M3100 and the Vodafone v1605 so the problem may be limited to HTC’s own version of the Hermes. If you have one of these devices and are unlucky enough to be affected by this problem you will have to contact Orange or Vodafone direct to arrange replacement. It will prabably take you half an hour to explain to customer services what screen aligment is and why it’s a problem though!

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100, Hermes Headphones]

Hermes headphone modding service

Since posting details on how to modify the headset the ships with the Orange SPV M3100 to make it in to a headphone adapter so that you can use your own standard headphones I have had a fair amount of feedback.

It would seem that a lot of people want an adapter for their headphones but are either unwilling or unable to do this for themselves.

SO, for anyone wanting their headset turned into a headphone adapter like the one above I have decided to offer this as a service.

All you have to do is make contact with me through my contact form and send me your headset. I will then modify it for you and turn it in to an adapter that will allow you to use any standard headphones.

The adapter will be compatible with the Dopod CHT9000, Qtek 9600, i-Mate JasJam, O2 XDA Trion, HTC TyTN, HTC Hermes, htc Z, Orange SPV M3100 and T-Mobile MDA vario II devices. In fact it will be compatible with all HTC Hermes variants as well as STRTRK and Breeze variants.

I’m only offering this service to my readers, all I ask is that you send me your headset and cover the cost of the return postage and the 3.5mm jack socket.

EDIT: Now that Expansys are offering adapters for sale I’m no longer offering the service. Check out this post for details of the commercially available adapter.

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100, Hermes Headphones]

Docking station for Hermes Devices

Brando have just released a decent looking hot sync/docking cradle for HTC Hermes devices.

According to the website the cradle will fit Dopod CHT9000, Qtek 9600, i-Mate JasJam, O2 XDA Trion, HTC TyTN, HTC Hermes, htc Z, Orange SPV M3100 and T-Mobile MDA vario II devices. It comes complete with the USB cable and features a fetching blue LED to indicate when it’s charging.

I want one!

Check out the full review.

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100]

Mobile phones to be allowed on planes

Ryanair has announced intentions that it plans to allow its passengers make calls on mobile phones and use handheld devices such as Smartphones and Pocket PC’s whilst in flight.

It has signed a deal with Onair, part owned by Airbus maker EADS, to allow mobile use on all its Boeing 737 aircraft.

Passengers will be charged a roaming fee by mobile service provider, with Ryanair taking a slice of the income.

Ryanair shares climbed on the news of the potential extra source of revenue.

I’m not sure that I would be terribly pleased to be sitting next to someone that takes their phone on the plane. I can just imagine how popular that person would be when their annoying crazy frog ringtone wakes up half the passengers on a trans-atlantic flight!

It was only a few weeks ago that NO items of hand luggage were permitted on flights, now there is a proposal to encourage people to use phones in-flight. I guess that puts the myth that mobile phones can ‘interfere with navigation equipment’ to bed once and for all!

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, MoDaCo, Ryanair, EADS, Mobile Phones]

Hermes D-Pad bug update

Just a quick update on the HTC Hermes D-Pad bug that we reported a few days ago.

The bug affects all know Hermes variants including Orange SPV M3100, HTC TyTN and Vodafone v1605.

I have now spoken with HTC about the bug and they fully acknowledge that it is a problem that they are able to replicate. They are looking into possible solutions and will get back to me when they can.

We hope that the issue can be fixed with some kind of firmware update but even if that’s possible it could take some time for this to filter through. However, it is encouraging that HTC have spoken to us about the problem.

Please see the original bug report HERE

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, MoDaCo, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100]

HTC Hermes bug confirmed

Yesterday we told you about a bug that we had discovered with the Orange SPV M3100 joypad. As an update to that post we have had a few people contact us to confirm that this isn’t just a problem with our devices but one the affects the HTC TyTN and the Vodafone v1605.

Now that the bug has been confirmed on multiple HTC Hermes variants we assume that it’s a problem with the physical hardware as each operator will have different ROM implementations. However it is possible that the problem could be fixed with a firmware update, we hope that this will be the case.

We have made contact with HTC about the problem and they said that they will get back to us about the bug shortly. We will report back soon!

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100]

Orange SPV M3100 bug identified

Muff and I have been playing more with the Orange M3100 today and have identified a bug in the hardware!

The bug that we have seen affects the Joypad on the SPV M3100. To put it simply, if you press and hold the joypad in any direction, then whilst the joypad is held down you press and hold ANY other key, once you release the joypad button the device ‘thinks’ that the joypad button is still being held down. Even changing direction quickly is not always recognised.

This may not sound like anything to worry about but it does mean that something as simple as ‘rolling’ around the joypad can produce undesired results. For a real world example, imagine playing a game where you use the joypad at the same time as other keys (say a shoot-em-up or a platformer) on the M3100 and not being able to fire at the same time as moving OR changing direction quickly to avoid getting hit, but things still move in the same direction on screen.

From a developers point of view it does mean that the M3100 will be almost impossible to write action games for.

This seems to be another example of the Pocket PC/Smartphone platform going backwards rather than forward. The first SPV device had a 9 way joypad but later models went down to just 5 way pads. Inconsistent hardware design is a nightmare for developers!

We believe that the problem is not limited to the Orange version of the HTC Hermes device. If anyone wants to confirm this or test it for themselves then do the following: Open the Start menu and start scrolling down using the joypad, as you see the selection bar moving downwards roll the joypad to the left or right and then roll it upwards. Do you notice that the scroll bar is still moving down?? Imagine that within games!!

EDIT: Confirmed on the HTC TyTN too!

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100]

Orange SPV M3100 stability issues?

I’ve had my Orange M3100 for about ten days now. Since I published the SPV M3100 review I have been using the M3100 as my primary phone.

On the whole, I really like the Orange M3100. The processor is pretty fast and the 3G internet connection works really well, even better since I changed the DNS settings courtesy of Paul’s DNS Tips. This device is also MUCH better than my old HTC Wizard phone when it comes to the touchscreen. I’ve not had any of the alignment issues that have been reported with other HTC Hermes Variants.

The problem I’m having with the M3100 is that it seems to be a little unstable. Over the past few days its has crashed completely forcing me to poke the stylus up it’s reset button. The crashes have happened whilst doing different things. The first time I was opening Opera. Assuming this was a one-off I reset the M3100 and carried on. The next time it happened I was trying to pick up my voicemail. The display said ‘connected’ but nothing was happening, reset and was fine again.

Overall my SPV M3100 has crashed while using Opera, Agile Messenger, the Phone and Email. I don’t think these applications have anything in common, and on a couple of occasions there has been nothing else (that I know of) running in the background.

I’m wondering if I’m alone here and if the SPV M3100 that I have is a rogue device or maybe I have just been unlucky. Whilst my HTC Wizard had its faults, stability was not one of them. I would love to hear from any other Orange M3100 owners, are you having the same problems?

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100]

512mb MicroSD for £14.00

I posted yesterday about the potential sortage of 512mb MicroSD memory cards and asked people to cantact me if they were interested in purchasing them through me.

I’ve had loads of emails from people saying that they are interested so I’ve decided that I will offer them to my readers for COST PRICE of £14.00 plus £1 p&p! (UK only).

I bought a load of these to get a good price so please drop me a line if you wish to purchase, and we’ll arrange something via PayPal. These cards come with a handy SD Card adapter and plastic case.

Matt

[Technorati tag(s): smartphone, Pocket PC, Tracy & Matt, Orange, M3100, HTC Hermes, HTC TyTN, SPV, Orange SPV M3100, Orange SPV M3100 Review, MicroSD]