[SumitB]

Navin Sir, for you I recommend a Windows Mobile phone since you are already used to using the Sony P990i and will be used to a little bulky device. I would recommend the HTC TyTn II. HTC - Touch Phone, PDA Phone, Smartphone, Mobile Computer

For your wife, I would go with the Nokia N95 or the N96 (if available).

Originally Posted by navin

OK guys we need 2 phones.

My phone:
Must be capable of Blakcberry email
Must have numeric keypad (I use the keypad a lot for dialing numbers) and touch screen
Must be able to read PDFs, XLS, and DOC files
Must have a decent camera
Prefer a bar phone
Previous Phone; Nokia 6230i
Curent Phone: Sony P990i
looking at: Sony G900 (with Blackberry client).

My Wife's phone
Must have a numeric keypad (SMS is her lifeline)
Must have a great camera (with good flash)
Must be capable of about 8GB of Music in addition to the 200 or so photos
Prefers a slider
Previous Phone: Nokia 7610
Current Phone: Nokia N73
Rejected Nokia N82 as the keys were too small for fast SMS.
Options (not yet seen) LG Secret, Nokia N96, Nokia N95 8GB
Is the N96 going to be a real upgrade from the N95-8GB?

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by navin

OK guys we need 2 phones.

My phone:
Must be capable of Blakcberry email
Must have numeric keypad (I use the keypad a lot for dialing numbers) and touch screen
Must be able to read PDFs, XLS, and DOC files
Must have a decent camera
Prefer a bar phone
Previous Phone; Nokia 6230i
Curent Phone: Sony P990i
looking at: Sony G900 (with Blackberry client).

Why Blackberry Email specifically? Why not a Nokia Intellisync or a Microsoft Exchange pushmail solution?

If you HAVE to have Blackberry email and no other solution, buy a RIM Blackberry and not a Blackberry Client compatable device. Try the Blackberry Bold when it is out - should do all of the above.

[given2fly]

Originally Posted by Steeroid

Why Blackberry Email specifically? Why not a Nokia Intellisync or a Microsoft Exchange pushmail solution?

If you HAVE to have Blackberry email and no other solution, buy a RIM Blackberry and not a Blackberry Client compatable device. Try the Blackberry Bold when it is out - should do all of the above.

Are you sure, Steeroid? If there is no real use of Blackberry beyond emails, I think Sony G900 is a perfect solution. 5MP, Blackberry/Exchange Compatibility, Good Music Player.

As long as mail goes, i think some security measures have to be there to do Remote Wipe and Encryption. Can anyone tell us if that is indeed the condition.

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by given2fly

Are you sure, Steeroid? If there is no real use of Blackberry beyond emails, I think Sony G900 is a perfect solution. 5MP, Blackberry/Exchange Compatibility, Good Music Player.

As long as mail goes, i think some security measures have to be there to do Remote Wipe and Encryption. Can anyone tell us if that is indeed the condition.

Your first statement was true upto a couple of years back, but BB have evolved beyond email devices. Try one - you may be surprised. I know I was.

For the business user I would recommend HTC or other Pocket PC phones first, BB next and all others thereafter.

Finally, there is a huge difference between a Blackberry Compatible device (supporting BB Client) and a RIM Blackberry device.

[manveet]

Hi Guys,

I am looking for a PDA phone (primarily for business use) and need a few quick inputs. Following are 2 important criteria ..

1. QWERTY Keyboard
2. Windows OS

Windows OS since (a) have been using it for 3 years and am comfortable with it; and (b) like to keep my Contact List neatly categorized and in sync with my Outlook Address Book.

As of now I have shortlisted the following in order of preference ..

1. HTC TyTn II
2. HTC P4350

I have not seen these in person but people have told me that the TyTn is bulky .. is it true?

If any other OS (Symbian etc.) permits seamless integration with Windows Vista, I could look at them.
- How is the Communicator?
- I have heard Nokia has come out with a phone on Windows OS, true?

Please help me decide by the weekend !! .. Thanks

[nishantgandhi]

Nokia today officially announced the next generation Eseries devices - Nokia E66 and Nokia E71.

It came as now big surprise since rumors & leaks about these long awaited devices have floated around for months now. Here’s a brief overview of the device specs for the two devices:

* HSDPA, wireless LAN and 3G connectivity and Assisted GPS (A-GPS)
* 3.2 megapixel autofocus camera with flash, video recording in QVGA
* Core of the device made of stainless steel
* Two colors - grey steel or white steel
* Up to 20 days standby time for Nokia E71, 14 days for Nokia E66 on WCDMA
* Support for up to 8 GB expandable memory
* EUR 350 before applicable taxes and subsidies
* Predictive text input
* Available in July

Click here for pics and videos
Nokia Conversations's Nokia E66 channel on Share on Ovi
Nokia Conversations's Nokia E71 channel on Share on Ovi

[nishantgandhi]

Has anyone successfully configured Gmail and Yahoo POP email on Nokia E51 (or other Symbian S60 devices)?

I followed Gmail's directions and tried to setup my account. However, I keep getting a time out message when I try to connect thru GPRS. I am yet to try that on WiFi so cannot comment. Please help if there are certain special tweaks required.

[shyamhegde]

After using my new phone Asus P526 for nearly a month's time, I thought of writing this brief review of the phone. Here is an attempt to write my personal experience with the phone.
There are many features which I am yet to explore and experience. Please get the full spec and feature list searching in internet .

I had to buy a new phone when my daughter finally managed to break her mother's handset in to pieces (I tried putting everything back but poor Nokia 3250 never switched ON ). It was our agreement that we will invest on a new mobile phone for ME only if and whenever any one of our mobile dies.
I already had short listed my priorities - sub 15K, Windows OS, touch screen and GPS! I knew I was asking too much for the price but still....
Incidentally the next morning I saw the advertisement in Times Of India for Asus mobile phones and some offer prices at selected outlets. Visited Sangeetha at Indiranagar and found this model which meets my requirements and still falls in the budget. I knew Asus is not a known or popular brand in mobile phones but still decided to go for Asus P526. GPS feature is what made me to stick to the model.

Quoted price with offer was 12.9K and finally settled to Rs.12,800/-
Buying experience at Sangeetha was without any issue and smooth, but they never look up to you if you visit them for any assistance later. (I learnt this when I went to them to ask about warranty card . There was only the BILL given. Warranty card was not stamped). So avoid them if you can.

The package came with windshield mount (suction cup) holder for mobile, car charger, ac mains charger adapter, extra stylus, carry case, headphone and couple of utility software from SPB in a CD.

I had been a Nokia mobile phone user since beginning and took a while to get adjusted to Windows Mobile 6 OS and it's menu system. (I had similar experience when I bought N72 - my first Symbian OS phone but that was more easy for me compared to 'starting with Windows mobile'). Touch screen is a good and new experience (I am a first time user of touch screen so can not compare with any other) and I am slowly getting used to stylus and keyboard on screen. The extra joystick and 'close' button on the side of the phone is also quite an utility. Allows you to work with phone using single hand for normal phone operations.

Screen size and resolution is excellent and easy to change to landscape mode using the icon on 'today'/desktop screen.

Speed - the phone is a bit slow when many programs are running in the background. But otherwise for normal phone features and operations, it is quick enough - I feel it is faster than N72 at least. I am now using Spb Pocket Plus and it keeps the memory free as much possible and I see improvement in performance.

Reception - No issues faced so far. Speaker volume is adequate. Earpiece volume is a bit loud at full, so I keep it to half way mark.

Keypad - Large keypad is easy to dial numbers and also to type text message etcetera. However I use the touch screen for typing messages. (just to get used to it LoL)
It also has character recognition feature which I have not used much. But I tested it and works fine.

Status indication LED is quite easy to read and I do not have to switch the LCD on or wakeup the mobile to see if I had missed call or any other alerts/notifications.

GPS - this is the capability I always wanted to have with me either built in the phone or external. Cost factor was holding me back from going for standalone unit. Yes practically in India GPS is not essential and can not be so accurate in our cities. So difficult to justify that expense on this gadget. But now, I got it with my phone! Whoa happy
I used Google Navigator, google maps, Mapking and destinator.
Google maps is good and free. I did not like Google Navigator somehow (it was a cracked version I guess).
Mapking and Destinator are professional GPS packages and they are excellent. Destinator is a heavy application on this phone I guess, as it causes other programs and phone to respond slowly if running in background. Mapking is lighter and no difference I felt with phone performance while running it in background. Destinator's maps are with more graphics compared to mapking. Both the maps were equally accurate for my home-office route. Those who have used them extensively can tell us about this. Already there are many reviews by experts on our forum.
GPS fails to acquire fix while at indoors. Works perfectly on road. I suppose external/bluetooth GPS boxes score better in this department compared to GPS built in a mobile phone. There is an option to connect an external antenna to the phone, probably which is why they have given!

Battery - It lasted for a day without having to charge when I tested. Otherwise since I keep it connected to USB of my laptop many hours at office, it keeps getting charged. Now I do not charge it at home. I charge it either in the car or at office using the USB cable.

Office features - I used it just for checking and have not used it for professional use yet. So can not comment on it. Yet to have email configured.

Camera - Mobile scores poor in this department. Video and still snaps do not come good. I am okay with this as I do not use phone camera much. But probably they would have made the mobile 'cameraless' instead of a poorly built feature. Hope you got me on this.

Internet speed - As per specification it is a EDGE enabled phone. I use it with AirTel Mobile Office at Bangalore and it always shows me "G" icon and no "E" icon. I have asked Asus support about this and yet to get a reply from them on this. Called up AirTel callcentre and they said it is automatic, whenever EDGE is available, mobile will use EDGE without having to change any settings, no matter what the icon shows. Though not convinced, I hope so!
With default internet explorer, I used to see lots of delay in loading pages or page not found errors. After installing and using Opera, I am quite happy. It is smooth and faster to access web pages now. I even can open webmail of my company with Opera. With internet explorer, RSA tocken authentictaion used to get time-out or used to fail in re-directing the page after the auth.

Cons of the phone as per me:
1. No memory card is bundled with the phone. They would have given atleast 1Gig card in the box itself. I bought a 4GB MicroSD card. Had to apply a patch to detect 4GB card (SDHC). When I installed the memory card, it did not detect. I was worried. I searched the net and found the patch on Asus support site finally.

2. No GPS software and maps were bundled in the offer I got.

3. Poor camera

4. GPS does not work while inside a building.

5. Since this is not a popular brand, very less information on internet forums. Also this model is quite old in the series, there are less updates on internet forums related to the phone.

There are many freeware utilities I installed and am having good time with the phone. (Few of 'cracked' ones too, available on www too.. he he)
They all add more value to the already 'Value For Money' phone!

Overall I am happy with the decision to buy this phone.

Thanks!

[SumitB]

Shyam, congratulations on the phone. The P526 is a very good phone and you need not worry, Asus is slowly but steadily making inroads in the PDA phone market. If you are comfortable with using Google Maps, then try MGMaps (Mobile GMaps - View maps from various sources on your mobile phone!)

[hrag]

Originally Posted by manveet

Hi Guys,

I am looking for a PDA phone (primarily for business use) and need a few quick inputs. Following are 2 important criteria ..

1. QWERTY Keyboard
2. Windows OS
Please help me decide by the weekend !! .. Thanks

Take a look at the Motorola Q8 and Q9 models. They don't have touch screens and have not-so-great cameras. No Wi-Fi either. As a business phone, the Q8 meets my needs.

[cooldude1988765]

How much can I expect for my used n70. Its not in that great condition externally (lot of scratches). The phone works fine and i am not selling it in a store but to an acquaintance.

[mail4ajo]

Originally Posted by nishantgandhi

Has anyone successfully configured Gmail and Yahoo POP email on Nokia E51 (or other Symbian S60 devices)?

I followed Gmail's directions and tried to setup my account. However, I keep getting a time out message when I try to connect thru GPRS. I am yet to try that on WiFi so cannot comment. Please help if there are certain special tweaks required.

I use the mobile versions of Gmail and Yahoo on my E51. works perfect. Just download the software. Very fast and easy to use.

[nishantgandhi]

Originally Posted by mail4ajo

I use the mobile versions of Gmail and Yahoo on my E51. works perfect. Just download the software. Very fast and easy to use.

@mail4ajo - Yes, even I use the Gmail app and Yahoo Go. However, I have heard that the native POP/IMAP email client of E51 is very well made. So wanted to try that out.

EDIT - I got it working on the WiFi connection.Strangely it is not working on Vodafone Live GPRS. Any clue why? For other data related applications, my GPRS works perfectly well.

[kunaldhami]

Originally Posted by nishantgandhi

@mail4ajo - Yes, even I use the Gmail app and Yahoo Go. However, I have heard that the native POP/IMAP email client of E51 is very well made. So wanted to try that out.

EDIT - I got it working on the WiFi connection.Strangely it is not working on Vodafone Live GPRS. Any clue why? For other data related applications, my GPRS works perfectly well.

I guess for POP/IMAP you need to activate full office GPRS..It will not work on Vodafone Live..

[aZa]

Originally Posted by manveet

Hi Guys,

I am looking for a PDA phone (primarily for business use) and need a few quick inputs. Following are 2 important criteria ..

1. QWERTY Keyboard
2. Windows OS

Windows OS since (a) have been using it for 3 years and am comfortable with it; and (b) like to keep my Contact List neatly categorized and in sync with my Outlook Address Book.

As of now I have shortlisted the following in order of preference ..

1. HTC TyTn II
2. HTC P4350

I have not seen these in person but people have told me that the TyTn is bulky .. is it true?

If any other OS (Symbian etc.) permits seamless integration with Windows Vista, I could look at them.
- How is the Communicator?
- I have heard Nokia has come out with a phone on Windows OS, true?

Please help me decide by the weekend !! .. Thanks

Manveet i think TYTN II or Kaiser would be purrfeckto for you, but i think there are reports of a bad battery life, that was kinda obvious due to the huge feature list of the phone. Steeroid could tell us more as he has used it.

Symbian OS does allow integration with OUTLOOK, not problems in that.

E90 The Communicator has a new "black" version out, all the problems of the older version has been addressed in this new "black" edition. And there is NO WINOS phone from nokia ...yet.