1. What PDA and/or mobile phone do you use today?
PPC-6700 with Windows Mobile 5. I hate it. I liked it at first but that was before I got to know it. I hate that this is version 5 of Windows Mobile and it still has problems with basic things like not being able to shut off reminder alarms and no decent built-in backup system and really crappy predictive text. I know that Mobile 6 is allegedly available for the 6700 but I have so little faith in Windows Mobile that I can't imagine it's anything more than a facelift and not worth the bother of upgrading.
Before that I had a
Kyocera 7135 Palm which I loved. It worked well, I liked
Palm fine, the only problem was that when the battery died, or a
Palm program randomly decided to reset the phone, it lost everything, and I mean everything. But this problem was reduced from a huge drawback to just an inconvenience thanks to the great
Palm Desktop which restored practically everything to how it was the last time I made a backup.
2. Are you locked into a mobile carrier (i.e. Verizon Wireless, Sprint PCS, etc.), or do you prefer a particular carrier? Do you know if one carrier has better coverage in places that you need to be? (PLEASE SEE THE CARRIER NOTE BELOW)
I am not locked in. However, I live out in the country and don't get a great cell signal. I've installed a booster antenna but it doesn't help a whole lot. I'm with Alltel and the signal is barely adequate, okay to good near the booster antenna. People who come to the house with Verizon seem to have an even worse signal. I've never tried T-Mobile or Sprint or AT&T. However, since Sprint has the worst customer service ever conceived, and since I've never had even an ounce of respect for AT&T, those two are my bottom two choices.
That's not to say I wouldn't give them a try. If they have the phone features & quality I need, I'd consider putting up with bad service. I can annoy the crap out of a cell phone company if I have to. Anyway, I'd be willing to try a phone from any carrier on a fifteen-day trial (assuming they still offer that) to make sure the signal would be usable for me.
3. Where are you based? Do you stay in one place or travel a lot? Do you travel internationally... how much and where? Do you intend to use your PDAPhone there?
North Carolina, Triangle area...fairly frequent trips in the Southeast, occasionally to the north. An international trip once in a while, but I don't insist that my cell phone work internationally, although it might be nice if it weren't terribly expensive.
4. Do have a preference of Palm, Pocket PC, Symbian, Smartphone OS, Blackberry, etc.?
I want the best. I don't know what that currently is. If it's
Palm, so be it. Blackberry, so be it.
iPhone, so be it. If you guys think Windows Mobile 6 is now the holy grail of phone OS's I will certainly be willing to give it another chance.
I used to limit myself to Smartphones because I like the stylus and writing/drawing on the screen, but if the tradeoff for getting a phone with a stylus is getting a phone no better than the 6700, fine, I'll use buttons.
5. Are you likely to run it the way it came out of the box, or do you intend to load a whole lot of extra applications and stuff on it? Do you know of anything now that you will need to run?
Yes, I would definitely tinker with it. I like to find helpful freeware and the occasional retail program, so having third-party options available and lots of freeware available are definites.
6. How important is wireless data access, and for what would you use it? (i.e. Web browsing, VPN, Remote termnial Access, Instant messaging, etc)?
A data plan is a must. Currently I tether my 6700 and use my $40 Alltel data package as the internet connection for my whole house. I live out in the country, no cable or DSL available, and without tethering I'd be stuck with dial-up. With it I can get speeds on the Alltel EVDO network up to around 400 Kbps (thanks to the weakness of the signal).
If tethering just won't work, I might be willing to get satellite TV with a data plan. This would have the advantage of giving me an always-on internet connection, but I don't really know what real-world speeds for satellite internet are, and I haven't heard glowing reviews about satellite internet, plus it's more than $40 a month. But if the speed and reliability were at least comparable, I might could do away with a cell phone data plan.
7. Will you need to view Microsoft Office documents on the PDAPhone? Will you need to edit them?
Yes, love to be able to create simple spreadsheets and rich text documents with formatting and coloring and such. (Doesn't have to be Microsoft Office necessarily.)
8. Will you need access to an email system?
I'd love access to an email system. I have access now, but I don't use it because Windows Mobile email sucks. So if it worked, I would use it.
a)Is it corporate (Exchange, Groupwise,Lotus, Other?) What Version? Do you want email wirelessly or do you want to do it in the office with a sync cable/cradle? Can you get your Corporate email configured for mobile access or do you need to run a desktop redirector?
I think I can get my corporate email configured for mobile access, I know others at work do. I'm pretty sure it can be done wirelessly.
b)Is it Pop3/Imap? Who is the service provider?
I have several accounts I might like to track, I think they're all POP3.
9. Do you do SMS messaging a lot (telephone to telephone messaging)?
Sure, texting a good amount. Picture or video messaging I haven't messed with because, again, Windows Mobile 5 sucks.
10. Do you want to use a GPS with the PDAPhone for mapping and navigation?
I do. Right now I have a separate bluetooth GPS receiver which I use with IGuidance for Windows Mobile. But I don't mind buying a new GPS program if I change platforms, it's time for an upgrade anyway. If the phone can do GPS without my GPS receiver, that's fine with me, but it has to be good enough to direct me in traffic.
11. What is your size preference.. very close to the smallest cellphone, or you don’t care.. function over size?
Prefer a small phone of course, prefer a clamshell, but function is definitely the most important thing. If the phone does what I want it to, I don't care if it's a candybar or weighs a bit more or takes up more space.
12. How will you carry it... pocket, belt, purse, etc.?
Prefer a belt clip, so I can always have it.
13. Do you prefer a particular form factor… flip-phone, candy bar, etc?
Flip-phone's best, but again, I really just want a phone that does what I need it to and does it well.
14. Do you prefer a QWERTY keyboard, numeric dial-pad, or stylus?
I much prefer to type text and numbers using actual buttons, but it has to be comfortable and intuitive and easy to use or I'll end up using the on-screen keyboard instead. The 6700 has a slide-out keyboard which I'm not the least bit crazy about, I use it maybe 2 days out of the year. I don't like the way you type alt characters and you certainly can't do it one-handed easily, so despite the full keyboard I use the stylus to type. I'd rather use a keyboard, but it has to be a good one. I've tried the
iPhone keyboard and I'm not crazy about it, but maybe you get used to it.
15. Do you want to play a lot of video games on the PDAPhone? What kinds - puzzles, strategy, action adventure, etc.?
A fair amount...to be able to run ROMs of vintage arcade games would be ideal. So a decent 8-way joystick or equivalent button system would be swell if it were usable. The 6700's no good in this respect either.
16. Do you want to listen to music on the PDAPhone? What kind... mp3, streamed, etc.?
Music is the least of my concerns; however, my dreamphone would be a 100 GB combination PDA and cellphone and MP3 player with radio and recording capability. I don't expect they've reached this point yet though, so until then I'll keep using a separate MP3 player.
17. Do you want a camera on the PDAPhone?
Heck yes, a good one. Or at least a decent one. With the ability to record a good amount of decent video, and even a flash would be nice.
18. Do you have any other hardware you intend to use with the PDAPhone? Do you intend to use any Bluetooth devices? What types of devices?
The only bluetooth I've used so far is my GPS receiver, but I might want to use a bluetooth earpiece or bluetooth headphones.
19. What kind of battery life do you need?(Always near a charger, battery life is not an issue or Need the battery to last several days) How many hours do you expect to spend talking on the phone? How many hours of data?(Web browsing, push email, VPN, IM etc)
I need decent battery life. This doesn't seem like it should be so impossible what with all the lithium batteries everywhere. But my 6700 with its stock battery barely lasts through the day----doesn't last through the day if I get even a short phone call. And this is with the extended battery I bought, which doubled the life, and for a long time was adequate, but now that battery is pretty much near the end of its life and I can't see investing the price of a new one into this 6700.
I don't talk on the phone much at all, an hour a day is my maximum. Data I would use more often, but still not very much (unless I'm tethering). Email, the occasional web page search. Call it an hour and half a day. Tethering I would do a lot, but the phone would be connected by USB when I tethered, so hopefully that wouldn't affect battery life.
It should also have non-volatile memory. Do they all have this now? This should be standard. Although I hate my 6700, I have to say that it's never lost any of my data, and that is a good thing. If it doesn't have non-volatile memory, it should have a great backup system (that I don't have to buy separately).
20. What are your budget limits (PDAPhones range in price from below $100 for older used models to nearly $1000 for high end models without a carrier subisidy)?
Well I have a budget limit, but let's just say I don't. I realize how freaking picky I am and at this point I'm willing to pay to be. If there's one that's just perfect for me, and really does work the way I want it to, I'd pay a grand for that.
Thanks guys...I don't ask for a lot, do I? Sorry for the long-windedness. But at least I know what I want.
Now hopefully you'll tell me it exists. Oh, and PS? A 640x480 screen or thereabouts would be nice.
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