Guest Blogger: A Hands on with the Treo 750v

Over the past few days, I have been receiving queries on how much "better" the 750v is compared to the 650. My response is usually the same, "I'm new to Windows Mobile, give me time" (and also, "No, I'm not selling this one ok?!"). I am in no position to say its better (yet), but all I can conclude (for now) is that its just "different". Like Windows is to a Mac.

With this, as promised a couple of days ago, I'd like to introduce you to my good buddy, my "guest blogger", the treo-godfather himself.

A little bit about him before I link-up TWO articles of his personal Hands on experience .
I've known him for a number of years now, amongst other things in our friendship, I've learnt alot from him about PDA's and smartphones. At one point at least in our past, we've both owned the same devices at the same time. beginning with the Palm Tungsten E, the Treo 650 and now of course, the Treo 750v. You could say, that my sole allegiance to the Treo now is due to his influence. And because of this, I dare say that no one I know is more knowledged or experienced in "all things" PDA's or Treos. If you want to know about hacking through the devices, changing system elements, experimenting with different softwares or even pushing your devices to its limit, look no further. I don't call him the godfather for nothing.

Without further ado, the links to his articles.

Interested in Treo 750v? Read this.
Third Time's the Charm: a look at the Treo 750v.

Why should you switch from Treo 650 to Treo 750v? Read this.
Palm Qualm.

All I can say is this, "Come.... come join the dark side".

Goodbye Palm, Hello Windows!

I'm excited. A couple of days ago, it was all talk of the Treo 750v. All the contemplations, all the what-if's, all the "feeling" of the unit in hand.... and now, the move to the dark side is complete.

Behold, I am now a proud owner of the Palm Treo 750v. And... I have no regrets. Windows Mobile 5, where have you been all my life?

Not without drama though. I ordered a unit from a local retailer a couple of days ago, but there was one big problem, they did not have any stock! And to make things worse, they could not confirm with me when the new stock would arrive. All I could do was wait. When something that you've been waiting for all year long as finally arrived, then you're told you can't get it yet, and there's no time period to wait before getting it, it was a little frustrating to say the least. (So what did I do? I went to another store that had 2 units left! *whew*)

Sure I waited this long for it, and sure its now running a different operating system than what I originally expected, but hey, a Treo it still is.

I've already filled it up with all my daily essentials to keep me prepared to face each day and its challenges. My PIM softwares, some personal programs, some games, Verichat for IM, some themes, a 1Gb mini-SD card.... yup, I'm good to go. I'm not gonna talk anymore about the features of the 750v, as my buddy the treo-godfather will soon be posting his review on this. So, keep checking for updates.

On a related note though, one of me mates JUST commented that he'll ask me again how the 750v is after 4 weeks time. Where's the faith?? Yes, yes, I know, I have alot to prove.... I think this one will silence the critics, you'll see.

So anyways, yesterday while at the store waiting for the sales assistant to bring out the 750v I was buying, I couldn't help but take notice of the other customers who were there. There were 3 which I remember clearly.
The first customer, a middle-aged guy, was testing out the new SE z610. He seemed pretty keen on getting it, messing around with the ringtones and general feel of it. I was thinking, "Dude! That's a girly phone man!". It does look nice though, you gotta admit.
The second customer, a lady who came in with her Nokia n70, looking to buy a higher capacity memory card for her unit. I was shocked! This store I was in is notorious for CRAZY WHACKED out prices for their memory cards! I wanted so much to shout at her suggesting she visit a shop a good buddy owns nearby, TTCO Enterprise. (People, if you're ever looking for quality products, with quality after sales service, you gotta try this place) Well, I couldn't very well say anything to a total stranger now could I?
The third customer, a guy, came in asking to buy a new Nokia N70. I was thinking, "wow, popular model these days". Unfortunately for him, the store had no stock. Then he asked for a new Nokia 6680. There I was, having this strong urge to ask him (hey, he was standing next to me) if he wanted a 2nd hand unit that I have in my possession. OR even, to visit QQ Store (see my links) as they'd probably have stock for a new N70. BUT, again, I had to control my urges and just zip it.

Good thing though, because by then, my 750v came and all my attention was diverted away from these unknowing customers. Made me think though, one day... I must own my own shop. Then customers like these, will be happier.

But, don't you just hate it though when you see customers in a mobile shop, asking for advice on certain models/brands they want to purchase, then there you see young punks or pop girly sales assistants attending to them only caring about making their commissions and giving customers crap advice?

You don't? Well, to me, I sure hate it.

Coffee & Tea

Don't you just love public holidays? Wake up late, not have to jump into the rat race, no need to think about work... Just a day (or two in our case) to spend time with the family and also in my case, to contemplate on the move to the dark side. I KNOW I said the move was complete yesterday. Hey, I still got time! Switching allegiances ain't easy ya know!

Incidentally, a couple of hours ago, I just returned from what I call, the Fellowship of the (treo) ring. (I know, I'm gasbagging about treo again) My two mates, TrueBlue and Treo-godfather (decided give my mates names in these blogs since i refer to them most of the time) had just received their new treos from Singapore and decided to meet up at a cafe. Needless to say, the curiosity got the better of me and I decided to join them. In the end, there were five of us at the table, all current or ex-treo owners together at one time. (Me, TrueBlue, Treo-godfather, Fumikane and Frogster) We had enough of seeing it on the computer screen, enough of reading reviews online from users around the globe, enough of wondering how it would feel like in our hands. We knew we had to see it for ourselves. At the expense of the two new owners of course. (Thanks guys!). The feel was great. Slimmer than the 650, more solidly built, and there is was, the Windows Mobile OS.

In the end, Frogster and Fumikane left undecided and not thoroughly convinced. For me however, I left still thinking about the move to the dark side.

You have to understand, we are all Palm OS users and we've all tried and tested what the Palm OS can do. Sure it had its hiccups and occasional resets here and there, but we regrouped, we adjusted, almost just... lived with it. Now, here we are, presented with the same loveable treo form factor, but a different OS inside..... it was.... totally unreal.

Ok let's take coffee and tea as an example. I've been a coffee-a-holic for many years now, then one day I received an email article about some research done which proves that drinking tea, is healthier. (I'm trying to be health conscious). So, I decided from that day on, I'd switch to tea. It was hard at first, but after a while, I got used to it. I drank tea in various flavours, tried it in many ways... and now, I love it. (Especially green tea, but hey, that's another story). Sometimes though, I do have cravings for coffee, but I always remind myself to stick to the guns, I'm a tea guy now.

That's my point exactly.

I'm used to Palm. I know and heard that Windows is better (supposedly), but I haven't tried it yet. I'm sure it gives me the same "high" as Palm would, and maybe better, who knows.... so now, the only thing stopping me is.... the act of literally going to the shops to buy one. (Hey, public holidays are here remember?)

I still have time.....

ANYWAYS, later on this week, I will be introducing to you the Treo-godfather himself, who will be guest-blogging on this blog about his personal review of the new Treo 750v. Take it from me, this guy knows what he's talking about. He started out with various ancient day Palms and HP IPaq PDA's in the early years, then when the Treo 600 was released, he was probably the first one in the country who bought it. After that, the Treo 650 came along (with that, a whole treo community grew, from his influence), then a Dopod 838 (back to WM) and now, the Treo 750v. It will be a good post I promise you.

So, stay tuned.... and meanwhile.... I'm back to thinking. I'd better get myself a drink.

A cup of Tea.

Treo 750v

Today was a day like every other. Work related deadlines, reports to sort out etc. Couple of phone queries here and there. Nothing out of the ordinary. Until.............

Remember my last post when I was talking about two of my mates having ordered their Treo 750v's, (which is due to arrive tomorrow from Singapore), well... there was a discussion amongst us today. The major part of which, revolved around the infamous debate of Windows Mobile (WM) OS vs (the ageing) Palm OS. Being an ardent fan of Palm for a while now, and one of the many remaining "loyalists" around, I was intent on sticking my ground and defending the causes of what the mighty Palm OS could do against the dark (WM) side. Let's just say that my defence was slowly crumbling to the ground, with no light-saber juice left in my arsenal against the onslaught of WM laser beams that some of my mates were shooting. At the end of the discussions, and subsequent numerous emails that followed.... the war was slowly starting to diffuse..... with the winner very obvious.....

Windows Mobile 5. The dark side.

Yup, you heard me. Like traitors, there was no longer any argument that could substantially hold against what WM could do to our lives. We were hit. And left wanting....

Wanting.... the new Treo 750v. The same 750v I mentioned yesterday.... the same 750v I blogged on 06Oct06. And how humiliating / timely (same difference) that it was also TODAY, that the 750v became LOCALLY and officially available at a major telcom supplier!

Beaten, together with the hand that held the sword, the treo godfather himself, I dragged my palm-storm-trooper feet to the showroom where the champion beheld. The Treo 750v. And boy were we blown away! The size, the lack of antenna, the unfamiliar-yet-supposedly-stable OS (to me anyway), it was enough.

The move, to the dark side, was complete.

Ok, enough of gasbagging about treo in every blog. You get the picture. I love Treos. I will own one soon. If you haven't tried one, get out there and make one of the best financial decisions of your life, Get a Treo. On mytreo.net, I read a news header that caught my eye. "Vancouver Sun: 1 in 10 would rather lose their mother in law than their Treo". Now THAT, says it all.

Moving on, I have to add this. I was watching TV earlier on this evening, and an interesting advert came on. It started with this guy who saw a reflection of this girl in the mirror. But when he actually tried seeing the "real" girl, she wasn't there. It was only inside the mirror she existed. What followed then, was a chase between them with a whole kaleidoscope effect of them running here and there. Then the product came on, the Motorola KRZR. I was like, WHAT GIVES!? All that running and kaleidoscoping, the ad's about a phone?! Moto had cool ads with the RAZR, but this one, it takes the cake.

Sorry, but I'm not a fan of (any) Motorola. They just don't work in my books.

Frodo

Why Frodo you ask? A buddy of mine commented the other day, I'm Frodo. Puzzled me at first, but he reminded me of my recent post with regards to a certain "PRECIOUS" I once owned. Ahhhh.... I see. If I do start having a weird gleam in my eye, salivating when I talk about phones and eating raw fish... please, someone... hit me.

The reactions I have received the past couple of days have been nothing short of expected. Most of them have been, "What?! You sold your.....". Sure I miss it, but in this line of business, you gotta be tough. No emotions, no loyalties. "What 8800?"...

I must say though, it has been a while since I've been intrigued by a phone that's held my interest longer than... a month? The Treo 650 was that magic phone for me. I'm hoping the new Treo 680 will do the same.

Ah well, back to the waiting game AND using a huge Nokia 9500 for the time being. What a weapon.

Anyways, incidentally, at work yesterday, one of the managers said to me on my way to a meeting on his floor, "What phone are you using now?" I yanked out the 9500 from my pocket to his surprise and laughter. (He uses one too) He then asked, "Have you used the p990i yet? I'm thinking about getting it". He had been using his nokia 9500 for the past 2 years (almost) and had been itching for a change. I told him, basically, the SE p990i sucks big time (sorry Sony Ericsson! Your fault really) and that I've already heard of so many complaints about it, and of people selling it off too because of the laggy OS interface. Sad but true. So anyways, I told him, since he is familiar with the Nokia symbian OS, wants / needs a keyboard AND would like the office email to sync with his device, then the Nokia e61 would be the best Nokia device currently which will suits his needs. He was even more pleased when he heard the price of a new one now. ($628 only from QQSTORE). I emailed him all the good reviews from My-symbian.com and allaboutsymbian.com, AND even found him a 2nd hand unit that I heard about recently too. Now, the ball is in his court.

(Of course I'd still recommend a Treo anyday..... )

Speaking of Treos, a couple of mates decided yesterday to purchase the new Treo 750v, the Windows mobile version of the Treo. It will be arriving in a few days time from Singapore. I told em, they'd definitely be the first in the country to own it for sure, since its not locally / officially launched here yet. All that talk about it with them, it made me very curious now about how the "feel" of it will be. I'll try post my first impressions of it next week.

But Windows on a Treo? That's like.... like.... Windows on an iMac. Something's weird about this picture isn't it? We'll see...

C'est la vie!

Let's think geography for a while shall we? I remember when I was in high school, there was a lesson about ox-bow lakes. How slowly, through all the erosion on the bends and edges of the moving waters, it slowly gives way and cuts right thru, making a whole new channel and leaving a little "bow" as illustrated here. I remember at that time, it was like totally useless information. Just "another dumb fact" I had to learn for the exams. Who cares about these rivers anyways! Little did I know, alot from life could be learnt from these geographical formations. (Oh no, my first philosphical point in my blog! Darn it!)

Ok, what's my point in all this mumbo jumbo? No, I'm not switching from blogging mobiles to lessons in geography...

Ok I'll say it now... I've crumbled..... Call it the unthinkable.... whatever....

I've sold my PRECIOUS.....

*GASP*

Its actually been a whole month of use. Yup, one month. Thats four weeks, 30 days, 720 hours, 43200 minutes and 2.592 million seconds of using it. Not bad eh? All the offers I've been receiving throughout this time.... the last one made an offer I just couldn't refuse. I had been debating it for a while already. Thinking it through... What a good deal!..... No! its your precious...... But the treo 680's coming soon...... No! you'll never find another perfect unit like it again!....... But its a good offer!......

The torment....

In the end, I made my decision. I now stand by that decision too. Painful or not, you'd understand if you were me. The buyer was thrilled needless to say. He was an owner of a totally used Nokia 8910. He told me he doesn't believe in all these fancy smancy phones that are out these days, he just likes the 8 series. He bought his 8910 when it was limited edition, so he knew this one was for him.

Sigh... its gone to a new owner who will take care of it as much as I had....

Well! Thats the way the cookie crumbles as they say! Righto! Time to move on in life.... time to forget about the PRECIOUS. (We'll meet again.... one day.....) For now, its time to look ahead into the sunrise and not dwell too much on the past. *egad! Another discreet philosophical point! In the same post too!*. I KNOW I'm gonna get crap from me mates about this post soon, but its ok. Most of em have come to an understanding, an acceptance if you like about my love-hate relationship with phones. C'est la vie!

Moving on... At work, a couple of friends have purchased the new SE w850 (as I blogged before). This time round, having been able to play with them and go through the whole layout and features.... I've reached my conclusion: -
- Its like the SE k800 in terms of usage, just minus the amazing camera.
- Walkman's cool, with the new flashing lights that light up according to the music you play.

In all honesty though, I wouldn't get it. Its like the w810i, just in a slider form factor. The w810 has a better camera too, with autofocus! BUT, if you're into 3G and like sliders with cutesy flashy lights, then its the one for you!

Update 1.03

"d3x second chances" updated!

Check it out!

"Express" yourself.

Weekend.... finally here.

I must admit, all my attention has been diverted to the Treo 680 as of late. (Treonauts just updated their blog, check it out) My patience is wearing thin as time goes by. You have to understand, this is the one model I've been waiting for since... hmmm.... forever? (earlier this year). Here's a pic of the Arctic and Copper next to each other.

I had lunch with one of me best mates today and we were talking about the Treo. (He's a current Treo 650 user... still. Another person highly deserving of a change). With the now many colours, it give more options for us new buyers to "express" ourselves. We both contemplated on getting the "copper (orange)" versions, just like the my other mate, the Treo Godfather. But, for fear of being seen as "unprofessional" or "kiddie", orange might not be a very corporate colour to own. Arctic would be a safer bet, though it kinda resembles a certain white iconic product that has taken over the world. Graphite is just too plain boring (reminiscent of the treo 650) and crimson is just... well.... too much. Having said that, copper would be a shout of your identity and "couldn't-care-less-about-what-others-think" attitude. IF you can pull it off.

Sigh... tick tock tick tock..... back to the wait.

Update: Another phone for sale, the Nokia 9500 Communicator. Will be picking it up tomorrow from seller. I used to own this model some many moons ago, so it should be interesting to road-test it again. Almost 2 years back, I thought the 9500 was "da bomb". Its somewhat primitive now sad to say, amidst all the other smartphones out at the moment. Will update more on it in the next few days.

Also in the next few days, I will recommend a few other blogs that I have gathered inspiration from, on starting this blog. One day, I hope to be able to run a blog just like theirs. Will keep you posted.

Treo 680. Add colour to your life.

Last night was a late night for me. I stayed up till about 2am waiting anxiously for the official announcement from Palm at the Digital life conference in New York. In the true spirit of Treo fans around the world, every editor / blogger from treonauts, treocentral, everythingtreo etc were all at the launch, waiting to hear about Palm's new (and last) treo release for the year.

And boy, did they release a shocker. Here's the official announcement at Treocentral.

Everyone, meet the new Palm Treo 680. That's right, you see 4 colours here. From left to right: Graphite, Rusty Copper (orange), Arctic White and Crimson Red. Read about the specs here at palm.

Some good sites to read blogs on the Treo 680 are Treocentral (above), Treonauts and Engadgetmobile. There are many others, but these were the ones I've been following up closely on since last night.

Now, if you're an existing Treo 650 user, you're probably going to realise that this new 680 isn't exactly a tremendous upgrade from the 650, and you'll probably wonder what's the big deal anyway. Well, after having read many reviews and forums, I now understand Palm's vision on this. Its basically a model meant to expand their user base. The rumoured release price is estimated to be (locally) around $500-$700. Compare this to the Treo 650's 1st launch price of $1,250 almost 2 years ago. For a smartphone like the 680, being priced at this range will definitely attract many into the treo fold.

For me personally, just seeing it without the antenna, reading about the increase in memory and some minor adjustments in the user interface... that's all the convincing I'll ever need. To top it off, it now comes in 4 colours! Awesome! (I've mentally narrowed it down to either Arctic or Copper. Helps to be prepared sometimes you see)

For those of you non-Treo-believers out there, you have GOT to try out a Treo. Don't diss it until you've dabbled. I used to be a hardcore Nokian for many many years, until my recent dabbling with SE, but once I tried out the Treo 650. That was it. I was hooked. It ran my life. It held ALL my contacts, ALL my appointments, meetings and reminders, acted as my daily alarm clock, served as my storage device for my photos (taken from my 6.3mp digicam), became my mp3 player, movie player (compatible with avi, 3gp, mpeg files) and so much more! If this still doesn't convince you, then maybe the idea that you can msn on the treo (through EDGE, GPRS) might appeal to you!

Don't diss it till you try it.

In any case, it's not in Asia yet. To be shipped in November only. So the earliest we might get it could be end-Nov or early Dec. Nuts! More waiting.

On a separate note, today has also been a good day. Both Nokia 6230i and Nokia 6111 as advertised on my "d3x second chances" blog has been sold! Success!

Coming attractions

Over lunch today, my mates commented that its my 4th week with the 8800. Quite an achievement they keep applauding me.

Sarcasm.

Although, there was a technicality, as I was using a Nokia 6230i the past couple of days. Someone had asked me to sell it, so as part of my service, I did the usual road-testing thing, just to make sure its in working condition before I recommend it to anyone. (Yup, its working perfectly fine)

I'm back to my 8800 now. Missed it. You can really feel the difference between the two models, albeit both have the same softwares. Ah well...

Anyways, treonauts has just published the coming announcement of the worst-kept secret of the Palm Treo 680 on 12Oct06, in U.S, which means its tomorrow! Oh the joy of knowing there's an upgraded Palm OS treo out soon! Although, from the "rumoured" specs, as I mentioned before, the 680 seems to be no better than the current 650. Hey, with no antenna, improved cosmetic changes and an improved memory, thats a worthwhile upgrade to me! Just look at it! C'mon! What a beauty! Crikey! (respect to the Crocodile Hunter).

Well anyway, before i start jumping around, in any case, it's definitely one device I'm waiting for in the next few months.

There is another mobile out that is causing quite a reaction amongst many, especially at my workplace. The long awaited Sony Ericsson W850i!

One of SE's first slider phones. Coupled with their trusty 2mp camera and famous Sony walkman features, this one is probably going to be another top seller. Its retailed locally at about $758-00 or $715-00 from Singapore.

Its not a model I'd get, as I foresee it being very similar to the w810 I used to own once upon a time. Well, to each his own.

Speaking of SE though, during the same lunch with the mates, I played with the new SE k800 one of them owned. Decided to mess about with the camera feature and the "frame" shots. Amongst k800's selections were "frames" of an angel, an astronaut, an Elvis impersonator and a fluffy bunny. Yup, just imagine the amount of fun we had taking the piss out of each other.

Well, would you expect anyting less from a Sony Ericsson?

Jaywalking

A couple of hours ago, I was mindlessly flipping through the channels on telly as usual, almost about to switch it off, when I came to CNBC's channel with "The Jay Leno show".

After his usual stand up comedy act, he introduced one of his regular features, Jaywalking, where he walks around the streets doing impromptu interviews with the public depending on his show's topic for the night. Tonight's was, "Ringtones. Regular or annoying!?". (Regular = those tones that come as default in the phone. Annoying = those tones that were saved into the phone by the user) He'd walk around, interview anyone he sees, asks them about themselves like occupation, what cellphone they use etc.... then just before they answer what ringtone they use, the show would PAUSE, with the live audience shouting out whether they think the person is using Regular or Annoying, before the ringtone is played. He interviewed a Marine, a school disciplinarian, a casino dealer etc... and they all had annoying ringtones! It was pretty funny.

Made me think, I think everyone uses Annoying ringtones now. Think about it, try name 5 people you know who use Regular ringtones now. (NOT counting those whose phones are so ancient that its monophonic, or even, dare I say, polyphonic). I sure can't think of 5. Probably 3 is hard enough. These days, even kids and teenagers are using fancy smancy mobiles with mp3 enabled features. That's life huh.

Well, to me, know what REALLY takes the cake? This %#@!$ creature's looks and (especially) sounds. Arguably the WORLD's MOST ANNOYING SONG / RINGTONE ever made!! Its EVERYWHERE now!!! Started off as a song, then now EVERY song has incorporated it... christmas songs, modern songs.... darn it! Pisses me off when I hear ANYONE (loser) using it! What are people thinking? Does it ooze coolness?! GEEZ!

Incidentally, one of the members of public Jay Leno interviewed.... the Marine... he used this tone. *No further comment*

How about you? What ringtone do YOU use? Regular or Annoying?

Tick, tock, tick, tock.....

I was just casually going through my regular sites to see whether there were any updates on latest phones out etc, and I came across the Palm Singapore site. Officially announcing, the new Palm Treo 750v.

Its finally arrived in Asia. Retailing at SGD1,268. (More details here) Its impressive. But what MOST impresses me is the removal of the antenna! I doubt I'd ever get this, being a windows OS, which I have to admit, I'm not a fan of. The screen resolution alone isn't much to shout about. C'mon, 240 x 240 and 65,000 colours? Treo 650 has 320 x 320 with the oh-so-gorgeous TFT screen. Windows devices, in this regard then, are just pathetic. (I bet I am striking a hornets nest of debates with that statement. Who cares. Palm OS still rocks)

Ok, why am I shouting about this new Treo then? Because this is perhaps the first ever official "leak" of the long awaited new form-factor of the PALM OS version Treo (some sites report it being called Treo 680), which is what alot of people are waiting for. We just HOPE that the specs will be something to shout about though. The Treo 650 has been around for quite a long time (2yrs?), so this new Treo better be worth it. It is rumoured to be out in Dec06 (the earliest), so all I/we can do, is wait. (And this wait alone is killing me)

Anyways, today, at work, I bumped into a colleague who was using the Nokia 7710. Being the phone freak I have become, of course I kindly asked if it was ok to have a feel of it. (I only know of 2 other friends who actually USE this model) Lets just say I wasn't impressed. Took me a good minute or so to figure out how to "unlock" the keypad. And those who use Nokias KNOW how EASY it is to Lock/Unlock keypads. Once I figured that out, I then tried messing with the menus. (Hey, its Symbian, how hard can it be?) I couldn't, if my life depended on it, figure how in the world to navigate around! Needless to say, I gave up after a couple of minutes. I did ask my colleague whether he liked it. He answered that he's not really a phone person, the Nokia 7710 was a hand-me-down from his wife. Well, there went my oppotunity of asking him how it worked. Well, this is one Nokia PDA I KNOW I will NEVER own. The E61, in my opinion, still represents Nokia's best attempt.

Anyway... enough about smartphones, before I start itching again. C'mon TREO 680! Although, reading this blog on Treonauts is making me excited!

Take aim

A buddy of mine commented today, "hey, 3weeks with your 8800". Wow, time sure has flown by. I didn't even realise it. Gosh... work must have been busy... keeping my mind off stuff. But really, once you have the premium, "everything else is just a toy" isn't it?

And back to the fantastic clunking of my precious I go....

Just today, I had a request to recommend a phone to a friend... She's getting rid of her N80, and now wants a cheaper-but-reasonably-functionable Nokia to replace it. I won't mention what I advised for her (mainly because there are so many out there within her budget anyway). But I do understand why she made that decision though. If one is basically a simple Category 2 user, then all these frills and fancy smancy features you might have in phones like N80, SE p990i, Treos etc... would just be an overkill. I am even willing to go to the extent of saying its likely that at least 80% of users out there don't use even half of the killer features in their phones. What a pity.

Like if you have a camera phone, sure you'd snap away like a tourist in the first few weeks, but after that, it's just "nice to have". Or you might have the earphones plugged in listening to your mp3's, but after a while, it'd surely become cumbersome to bring those pesky earphone wires out and you'd probably end up not even bothering about the mp3 player on your phone.

However, its always also rare to see people actually using their phones to their FULL potentials. 2 examples come to mind.

This afternoon, I saw a guy all decked out in a business suit actually pulling a Nokia e61 out of his pocket.... there was just sthg about that image that cries out to me, he's a business user. No nonsense, no playing. (Hey, what nut buys an e61 just to make calls and sms's anyway!) Having used one before, I must admit, it is an awesome business phone indeed. Business people don't need camera phones anyway. And for what?? Take photos of their meetings and bosses? Take self portraits to send to friends? Geez...

Another example. One of my good mates who owns a palm treo 650. We both purchased one about the same time, almost 2yrs ago. Obviously, being the phone pimp I am, I had long turned my back on it and moved on to (many) other phones, but my mate has faithfully stuck on to his treo 650. No other person I know has messed with all the softwares, tried all the flash patches, (not to mention dropped it countless times...) and his latest experiment, take it apart to "respray" its casing. (Now it looks totally unique I must admit). Now if anyone ever deserves more respect for reaching their phone's capacity, its him and on that note too, if anyone ever deserves to change his phone (by now) its him too!

Now THAT's truly something to aim for.

Update 1.02

Latest phone on offer! Nokia N80. More details soon on my "d3x 2nd chances" site.

The art of talking

I've been quiet lately. Life has been testing the past week. Few things going on, mostly with disappointments.... took the air out of me to even think about phones.... must be serious huh?

Well, the show must go on, as they say....

The past couple of days have been buzzing, nevertheless. Let's see: -
Friday - Tried sorting out a buddy's LG Chocolate (for the sensitive types, in my opinion) for MMS settings, to no avail. LG's are not like Nokias or SE's, where you can download settings from their sites. Well, I wouldn't ever own one.
Saturday - A sale for an O2 Xda IIs I was pushing for a week ago, not falling through (nuts!). Then a request to source for a new orange Motorola v3x (orange???? They do that??!) (Apparently so... check it out. Hmmmm...)

Today - another offer for my 8800 Titanium (I'm still standing firm... keyword "still"). And also some treo support for a friend.

Anyways, I'd like to briefly comment on the quality of the 8800's camera. 0.5 megapixel. Probably the ONLY phone with that spec in the world today. Seriously. (Try looking it up if you don't believe me). Whilst I ain't gonna comment on the greatness of it (c'mon, its 0.5mp! Want proper pics? Use a digicam), I'm including a photo I took just earlier today. In the early evening.

Yup, horses! I'm no expert on whiteness, color clarity or stuff like that.... but I will admit, the photo's not exactly print quality. But at LEAST you can tell they're horses. If anything, I just use the photos taken for MMS's.

These days, I use my MMS features quite extensively. A good buddy discovered that texting through MMS's are the best way to send large volumes of text (along with an image/sound of your choice of course) since it is charged as just one MMS. Makes sense. Since then, I've been sending MMS's instead of normal SMS's, to the right category of people of course.

With this, I conclude with another add-on to my previous post on "which category of phone user are you". For texters, there are only 2 categories of users. Very simple and easy to identify them: -
1. Addicts - These are the types who text on a daily basis, most of the time filling "whole daily journals" in their SMSs/MMSs, making sure they fill up every letter possible, not wasting any of the sms capacities. They are also the ones you can definitely rely on to read your SMS and reply almost instantly, if not within an hour. However, the art of actual talking seems lost with this category.
2. Quickies - These are the types who just reply "Ok" to anything you send to them. They are also the ones who sometimes take forever to reply your SMSs/MMSs. Sometimes, you're not even sure if they READ your SMS in the first place. But in their defence, they're also the most likely to ACTUALLY call you to reply. So, they're not all bad afterall...

For me, I'm definitely an Addict, evidenced with 95% of my monthly bill comprising of SMS/MMS costs. Talking is something I can / will do, but only if I really must.... c'mon, its WAY more fun to text!

So, which one are you? And why?