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I decided to get a dopod 838 because Expansys HK was being a bitch again. Besides I figured that it would be better supported since dopod has been making a major move in the asia pacific market. I believe my unit has Singapore warranty.
Specifications:
dopod 838 (HTC Wizard WIZA100 variant)
TI OMAP 830 195mhz Processor
64Mb RAM / 128Mb ROM
2'8 in 65K TFT Touch Screen 240 x 320 (QVGA)
Bluetooth Class 1.2 Microsoft Stack (no A2DP)
WiFi 802.11b
USB 2.0
Infrared port
Slide out QWERTY keyboard
miniSD slot
Quadband GSM (850/900/1800/1900) EGPRS Class B
1.3 megapixel camera with photo assist light
1250 mAh Battery
Windows Mobile 5.0 OS 5.1.70 (Build 14406.1.1.1)
109mm (L) x 58mm (W) x 23.7mm (T)
160gms with Battery
I didn't bring my notebook and wasn't able to install my applications yet. I did however allow for a full installation of dopod's Extended ROM. I'm sure I'll be modifying the install once I get home. So how does the device fair OOTB (out of the box)? Well it feels solid no creaks when holding the device. The screen is gorgeous no complaints. The buttons on the face of the device seem small in photos but are actually ok. The slide out keyboard is a joy to use (I'm writing this on Word Mobile using it). I wish though that HTC used the Treo's or iPAQ's number config. IMO it would be easier to input numbers that way. The keyboard is backlit so you wouldn't have trouble in dark places. Also unlike the other Wizard variant (k-JAM and Qtek9100) which have rounded and separated keys the 838's are square, flat and connected to each other. The keys are big and I rarely press two keys at once I do however have small hands. It feels a bit heavier than my I-mate JAM but with the improved specifications I don't mind. It is however thicker than my previous PPC again I think it's a fair trade off. When the keyboard is extended the device still maintains good balance and it isn't top heavy at all. It has stereo speakers but the volume still could be louder... The miniSD format is something I would've liked to avoid but have accepted since majority of the PPCs coming out are using this. I transferred all 497 contacts from my I-mate via Bluetooth in a matter of minutes. This unit like many doesn't support A2DP which means no bluetooth streaming of audio... Hopefully dopod releases a patch or ROM to address this soon. I did not get a chance to use WiFi for long (only tested it in the shop), Hong Kong has tons of hot spots but they don't have pre-paid services most of them are tied in to their home service. Anyway I beamed my tasks via IR just to test if it works and (unlike the ETEN m600 which has non-functioning IR port) it does work. Haven't experienced any lag or hanging as of yet... But then again as I said this is a bare PPC. Battery life is good IMO but then again HK has pretty good signal strength almost everywhere... I was using a pre-paid 3 (formerly Orange) dualband SIM. No GPRS with this service though. And maybe battery life will be slightly less when I'm in Manila. The dopod has an auto config application which sets up GPRS and MMS settings for Asian Telcos it takes awhile and requires a soft reset but beats inputing these manually. I will test GPRS back in Manila I am however sure it will be really slow as Globe has lousy lousy GPRS. So WiFi and GPRS are to be tested back home. So what about this new Windows OS? If you're coming from older versions you'll experience some speed differences most people think it is because of the new memory handling scheme implemented with this OS. So far so good the thing that jumps out to me the most is the improved navigation using hardware buttons, to me it is a definite step up from previous incarnations of the platform. Basically with the 838's keyboard extended you barely need the stylus. Oh speaking of the stylus don't bother with it unless it's an emergency, go get yourself a stylus/pen combo. From what I've read online the stylus silo is easily damaged when you keep on pulling out the stylus and the stylus will become loose and fall out. So you've been warned. So far I have no complaints about this unit. I will report back when I've installed my usual repertoire of applications am still uncertain if these are WM5.0 compatible already. If you are new to the pocket pc platform and don't really install any apps I think the dopod will still serve you well. But if you're like me you'll probably itching to install some apps. The camera is so-so but is better than my I-mate's, not really a deal breaker for me as I barely use cameras on mobiles. The 838's audio jack is the small kind 2.5 mm kind (no suprises there).
What's in the box?
Dopod 838
USB Sync and Charge cable
AC Charger
Extra Stylus
Stereo Wired Headset
Holster type carry case
CD and Manual
A pretty lame package don't you think? Anyway that is all for now. Check back soon for more updates on my dopod 838... Oh yeah I named my device bean838
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