Smartphone Thoughts: Small, Sleek, and WiFi Enabled: The iMate SP5m Smartphone Reviewed

It's What's Inside That Counts
Inside the SP5m you'll find Microsoft's latest version of Windows Mobile 5.0. At the time of this writing, there is no Messaging and Security Feature Pack, and we don't know what i-mate's plans are with regards to this. It is in i-mate's best interest to release this update, and hopefully they will. Only time will tell for sure.


Figure 12: By now, we've all seen pictures of the new Start Menu layout. I have found it to be faster and easier to navigate and launch any given application.

In Windows Mobile 5, the start menu looks a little different. I'm sure that most of you have already seen a screen shot showing this feature and a lot of people have wondered about putting things back the way they used to be. i-mate has bundled a little application in the accessories folder that will toggle the start menu layout so you don't have to edit the registry. Personally, I like the new layout. The larger icons make it easy to quickly locate your program. Plus, the More button is located on the left where the start menu was. So without even taking your finger off the button you can quickly navigate to the correct menu page. 8)


Figure 13: The Comm Manager makes it a breeze to setup and use the different wireless functions. In case you're not sure, #1 is WiFi, #2 is Bluetooth, #3 will toggle your phone between its current profile and silent (Note: Silent is different than Flight mode ;) ), and #0 will launch ActiveSync. The Comm Manager can be quickly launched from the hardware button located on the top left of the phone.

The new Comm Manager makes managing your phone very easy. You can turn WiFi and Bluetooth on and off. As well, you can toggle in and out of Silent mode, and even launch ActiveSync. The Settings button takes you into the Bluetooth and WiFi settings so you can add or remove devices and networks without having to go back to the start menu and then into Settings/Connections.

Overall, I give the Comm Manager a 9 out of 10. This is something they have needed in the OS for a while. I dislike how awkward it is to manage Bluetooth under Windows Mobile 2003 on the Smartphone, but on the iPAQ Pocket PC, it was a breeze. For that progress alone, this feature gets an outstanding grade. It looses a mark because of one simple little bug. In your WiFi settings you can tell it to disconnect after so many minutes of inactivity - to help save your battery. This is a good thing. The problem is, if you go into the Comm Manager after it has disconnected, it shows WiFi as being off and technically, yes, it is off. However, it will automatically come back on when the phone attempts to make an Internet connection. If a valid WiFi network is found, it will connect and do its business. If not, it will use GPRS. So, in order to physically turn off WiFi so that it doesn't actually turn itself back on, you have to catch it while it's one and then turn it off. Is everyone confused yet? ;) Comm Manager is a great tool, and with a little polish, it will be truly amazing.


Figure 14: Check out that shiny new progress bar! It's a very nice addition to IE Mobile.


Figure 15: Just so you are not left wondering, the progress bar will automatically hide once your page is loaded. :)