Quanta/O2 loaned us a unit of their brand new GSM communicator, the O2 XDA Atom. The phone is a GSM 900/1800/1900, GPRS class B, multi-slot class 10, EDGE phone running Windows Mobile 5.1 (the unit arrived loaded with the latest ROM). Dig in for more info about this interesting smartphone, mostly aimed at the Australia/Asian and European markets.
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Member since:2005-06-28
>1. battery life - very short, less than a day, some only for 6 hours or so
This is not true. Windows Mobile 5 is amazing on battery life. Look some of the newer HTC models and you will see that battery life is just fine, as long as you use the right hardware parts.
>2. ease of use - phone is a PITA to access, dial, etc
I didn't have any problem with that.
>3. form factor - bulky as a phone
Not this phone. This the first Windows PDA/phone that is actually not bulky at all. It's smaller than my Linux-based Motorola one.
>4. stability - Windows Mobile is not stable and has to be reset frequently
Well, depends what you run. Windows Mobile has 20,000 apps out there, some of them are old or bad enough to bring down the OS. Same goes for PalmOS' 28,000 apps. Compare that to 500 apps of Nokia's Symbian and you will see that it will fair better with stability in that regard.
>5. poor screens - extremely hard to see outdoors
This is not true. It all depends what screens the hardware manufacturer is buying to use for their product. It has nothing to do with the fact if something is a Windows PDA or not.
Member since:2005-07-10
Kyle, i have Sprint PPC-6700 and here is my review:
1. Battery life is awesome almost 3 days if you don't use it and almost 5 hours with wireless. Remember wireless drains the battery life like anything.
2. ease of use - i find it quite easy to use, what is your specific complain?
3. form factor - i agree here but with all the features, phone has to be bulky. My phone has 802.11 interface, infra-red, blue-tooth etc.
4. Stability - In last 6 months it froze on me only once so whats your point?
5. Poor screen - Totally disagree, PPC-6700 rocks and its screen is crystal clear.
Edited 2006-02-23 05:42
Member since:
2005-07-06
Windows Mobile based phones are simply not very good phones. They are okay as PDAs.
Why are Windows Mobile based phones bad?
1. battery life - very short, less than a day, some only for 6 hours or so
2. ease of use - phone is a PITA to access, dial, etc
3. form factor - bulky as a phone
4. stability - Windows Mobile is not stable and has to be reset frequently
5. poor screens - extremely hard to see outdoors
My experience comes from developing and testing on multiple variations of the pda (cell and non-cell based) and smartphones. These things have lots of issues, and that's before our applications are being tested!