Smartphone Thoughts - Daily News, Views, Rants and Raves

"The new HTC S511 Snap for Sprint is a QWERTY keyboard equipped smartphone that is meant to take on devices like the Samsung Jack that's available on AT&T and the many BlackBerry Curves and Bolds that are on the market. It isn't a device that is going to wow anybody with its specifications, but it knows its place in life, which is heavy messaging duties. We give it a go in this quick hands-on review."

Michael Oryl takes a look at the new HTC Snap from Sprint, and in general his conclusions echo my first impressions of the unit - though with Sprint telling HTC to put the caps button where the "A" key should be, I think this version is going to be just as typing error-prone as the European version that I looked at. It seems only T-Mobile got it right in terms of the placement of that key.

Chris from Mobility Site suddenly noticed that Sprint is offering some great mail-in rebates on many of their phones, including all of their WM phones. Amongst others, you can get the Samsung Ace and the HTC Touch for $99, the brand-new Treo 800w for $249, and the Mogul for $299. Of these, the Touch and the ACE certainly seem like the best deals.

Whether or not this is a response to that new unnamed phone, you guys stand to benefit most. You can get the full details from Sprint's site. Any of you planning to take the leap?

"There's been a lot of chatter the past few days that the Motorola Q9c, a Windows Mobile phone launched on Sprint to little fanfare late last year, has gone up to that great Windows Mobile 6.1 build in the sky now that it's disappeared off Sprint's online store. That'd really be something, considering that Verizon and others have just launched it in the past couple months -- but not entirely out of the question, particularly if it's a dead-slow seller or is earning more than its fair share of tech support calls. For what it's worth, though, we touched base with Sprint on the matter and were informed that it's just "out of stock for direct ship" -- that's the stuff you see on Sprint's site -- but that it should still be readily available in retail stores."



It is nice to see Sprint clearing the air and letting us the Motorola Q9c is alive and well... and from the looks of it, popular! Well it might not be super popular but it is popular enough to out of stock in the Sprint warehouses and that has to say something. In the meantime if you are looking to pick up a Motorola Q9c your best bet would probably be to grab one from your local Sprint store.

"MetroPCS may not have the largest wireless footprint in the States, but they did take a jab at the larger two CDMA carriers by announcing their intention to take on any Verizon and Sprint customers ready to jump ship -- as well as any "compatible" devices they may want to bring along with them. Sprint already supposedly does this (although we've still yet to hear of it actually really happening), but the specifics of MetroPCS's MetroFlash seem equally unclear. It doesn't sound like they'll reprogram just any CDMA device that walks through their doors, though, just the ones they've had a chance to test on their network. Definitely kills the buzz (and the number of devices that can be ported), but a little open is still kind of better than totally closed, right?"

One of the things that have always annoyed be of CDMA devices and carriers is the almost non-existence of openness between them. With my GSM/HSDPA handset I can pop in a SIM card from almost any other GSM network and be up and running with a snap of my fingers. This is something that is almost impossible to do on CDMA networks… heck even switching your current device on the same CDMA network is a hassle. While I give MetroPCS a pat on the back by trying to stand apart from the crowd is it really enough? What benefit is there to being open when the whole process of enabling the handset on the network is so ridiculously cumbersome?

"The Everything Q forums have been buzzing for the last two days about the disappearance of both the Motorola Q and the Motorola Q9C from the Sprint web site. Some forum members have speculated that both phones are just out of stock or have been pulled to apply a WM 6.1 refresh. However more than a few forum regulars have chimed in to say that their local stores are telling them that the Sprint Motorola Q and Q9C are discontinued. Additionally a couple members of the forum have gotten the same 'discontinued' explanation upon calling into Sprint’s customer service desk. So as of now the Sprint Motorola Q and Q9C are not on their web site. Whether they re-appear or are replaced with another model is anyone’s guess. Until then at least we can look forward to the Treo 800W which seems ready to launch on Sprint July 13."



Obviously the phone is an important enough piece of Sprint's and Motorola's profile that it was the first of Motorola's Windows Mobile Standard devices to receive an official Window Mobile 6.1 update. It would just seem silly to discontinue the handset after doing this. I wouldn't be too surprised if this happened though; with the recent rumors of Motorola pulling the Q9h from AT&T sometime soon, and now Sprints Smartphones pulling a vanishing act, it could just mean that Motorola is stepping back from the Windows Mobile business. Hopefully someone from Motorola clears this up soon.

"Sprint and Motorola have released a new firmware update for the Moto Q 9c smartphone, which upgrades the handset to the latest Windows Mobile 6.1 OS (from the old 6.0 version). The updated software can be downloaded either via a PC, or directly on your Q9 smartphone, from Motorola's support web page, found at this address. Windows Mobile 6.1 will bring users a new home screen, a new copy / paste feature, improved messaging features, a better Internet Explorer browser and other productivity enhancements."



Windows Mobile 6.1 updates are starting to trickle out in the US and Sprint's Motorola Q9c is leading the pack. All of you lucky Motorola Q9c users get to be some of the first in North America to get a legal OS upgrade for your Standard based device. To be completely honest with you, I half expected an AT&T based handset to be the first to receive the new ROM. Hopefully the rest of us will not have to wait very long for our updates.

IMPORTANT: Remember to backup all of your handsets data before upgrading as your phone will be wiped clean during the process!

"Reports wafting over the Atlantic Ocean suggest that Deutsche Telekom -- parent company of T-Mobile USA -- is considering Sprint Nextel as a take-over target. And why not? Sprint's share price is below $10, and the euro continues to dominate the dollar. Sprint's spectrum alone is worth it. That would make T-Mobile + Sprint the largest wireless operator in the United States. But could it work without falling to pieces?"

There is further speculation that Sprint is ready to ditch Nextel, the "push to talk" provider it purchased in 2005, which could make Sprint an even sweeter target for a T-Mobile buyout as Nextel's value and subscriber base has been on a steady decline since 2005. The big question is, if it happens, is how do you meld the two networks based on different technologies, T-Mobile being GSM and Sprint being CDMA. In order for the deal to make long term sense, there would have to be one surviving network.

"Sprint's not going out of its way to make a big fuss about it, but its long-standing Voice Command service will soon be no more. The service, which allowed Sprint-Nextel phones to dial two buttons and then give voice commands to place calls, will be discontinued on July 1st, 2008, meaning that all your server-based contacts will soon be inaccessible. Aside from removing the VC fee from your monthly bill, Sprint's advising users to download and print their contact lists, and better still, it's encouraging users to rely on handset-based voice-activated dialing (or pick up a new phone if their current one can't pass muster). So long, Voice Command -- we can't imagine too many folks actually missing you."



I'm not sure if any of our Sprint readers take advantage of their carrier based Voice Command service, but if you do it would be a good time to back up all of your contacts now! It turns out Sprint is pulling the plug on this service on July 1st, 2008 and whatever you do not backup will be sent to the vast CDMA heaven up above. To be honest, I'm surprised they didn't pull the plug on this service a few years back when it started becoming more popular to use the VC services on the handset instead of via the network. Better late than never, huh?

"Since its inception, the Motorola Q has been successful. Versions of the popular slim handheld—originally billed as the "RAZR smartphone" at just 0.4 inches thick—can now be found on three carriers, with the device available in both CDMA and GSM versions. When Motorola revamped the Q, Verizon saw the new model first and branded it the Q9m. AT&T followed with its upgraded version, the Q9h, which bested the Verizon model with its excellent software bundle. Now Sprint finally has a new Q, and I'm pleased to report that the Q9c is a highly capable, inexpensive ($99.99 with a two-year contract, after a $100 mail-in rebate) smartphone, even if a few flaws hold it back from true greatness."



PC Magazine has reviewed Sprints Motorola Q9c handset. Though I'm sure Jerry probably cringed as much as I did at the sheer mentioning of the RAZR, this is still a good read! If you are a Sprint user who is looking for an inexpensive and sleek looking Windows Mobile Standard device, than head on down to your local Sprint-Nextel shop to pick up this bad boy!

"If you think the Samsung Ace looks familiar to you, well, it is. We’ve seen its close cousins, the Samsung BlackJack late last year and the Samsung BlackJack II early this year, both on AT&T. While AT&T customers might think the Ace is old news, Sprint made a safe choice for its own customers by providing a proven and popular device that’s also a world phone. The Samsung Ace sits in between the BlackJack and the BlackJack II feature-wise with Windows Mobile 6, full QWERTY keyboard, EVDO and 1.3 megapixel camera. There is no GPS or Wi-Fi onboard. One thing that Ace is superior to both BlackJacks is the processor: the Ace has the Marvell PXA270 running at 312MHz. This world phone runs on Sprint’s CDMA network in the US with support for Sprint’s EV-DO for fast data; and it also comes with a SIM slot and the technology that allow users to use GSM/GPRS overseas."



Tong Zhang from Mobile Tech Review has given us a pretty good review of Sprint's newest Windows Mobile Standard device, the Samsung Ace. I'm not a huge fan of the Sprint network, or any CDMA network for that matter, but I do love the fact that this handset comes equipped with a SIM card slot for overseas travels. Unfortunately, those hoping to pop in their US carrier based SIM cards will be disappointed as the device runs off of the 900/1800 MHz GSM frequencies which is more popular in Europe and Asia than it is on our side of the pond.

"After spending some quality time with Samsung's ACE for Sprint the past few days, yep, we can now say with confidence what we've suspected all along: it's essentially a BlackJack in Sprint clothing. Actually, it's more accurate to say that it's 95 percent BlackJack and 5 percent improvement, with a more inward-slanted, square d-pad that makes it considerably harder to accidentally hit the surrounding controls, and angled keys that offer an embedded numeric pad in the proper configuration... The Windows Mobile 6 Standard software load is fairly typical, albeit mildly Sprint-ified with a yellow theme and shortcuts to access On Demand, Sprint TV, and the like. The phone seemed reasonably snappy, and the EV-DO modem hauled butt when we downloaded the Sprint TV client..."



This phone looks incredibly awesome. The only downside that I can see is that it is on the Sprint-Nextel network. Now I don't mean to bash the Sprint network for those of you that are on it and are happy with their service, though as someone that use to work for Sprint behind the scenes, I can tell you first hand that it is one of the most dysfunctional networks on the planet... but at least they now have pretty phones. I do have to admit, the though of a dual CDMA/GSM Smartphone does give me goosebumps. If any of our readers happened to pick up this ultra sleek handset, we would love to hear your thoughts and input on how well it performs!

Sprint has released their version of the Motorola Q for sale on their website earlier this week. If you're on Sprint and have been waiting for a good Smartphone, then this is your time to act. ;) Check out the full unboxing video over at EverythingQ.com and tells us what you think. I like the black version better, but not enough to give up what I already have.

"Slim and stylish, the MOTO Q offered from Sprint operates on the Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone Platform with the Messaging and Security Feature Pack and gives customers easy access to mobile email, Web, calendar, music, video and phone functionality in one pocket-sized device."

It looks like we are still only looking at a CDMA Q. The news says it will be released in the business channel later this month and to the general consumer market in mid February. OK great, so where is the GSM Q?

"Sprint launched today Sprint Movies, the first �pay-per-view� service for mobile phones in the U.S. that streams full-length movies, including recent box-office hits and timeless favorites from Buena Vista VOD, Lionsgate, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and Universal Pictures. Sprint Movies offers a growing list of more than 45 titles, including �National Treasure,� �Spider-Man 2� and �Scarface.� Sprint Movies is powered by mSpot, which is responsible for video production and ongoing operations of the service. Sprint Movies features many of the same conveniences as a DVD player. A movie can be seen in its entirety all at once, or it can be divided into chapters and watched over time. Customers can play, pause and skip forward or backward to different chapters. They can also resume a movie at the exact point where it was last shut down."




It is about time this happened! We have seen mobile television for years from services such as SmartVideo and MobiTV and with the availability of 3G networks popping up all over the US, one has to wonder, "When will we be able to watch movies on demand?" Well, that time is now thanks to Sprint! Granted, this service is only available on select handsets but it is a defiantly a step in the right direction. :)

"Sprint Nextel Corp. expects to add Motorola Inc phones from the popular Razr family to its line-up in the fourth quarter this year, its Chief Operating Officer said on Thursday. The No. 3 U.S. wireless provider plans to sell phones such as the "Q" and the SLVR from Motorola, Len Lauer told investors in the company's quarterly earnings call. Some analysts attributed Sprint's disappointing quarterly growth to the fact that it did not sell phones from the Razr lineup."

Not much to note here other than Verizon's exclusive lock on the Motorola Q looks like about a six month window. This is exciting to see for the Windows Mobile platform because it means another big carrier will be promoting this phone to their customers, and that means more Windows Mobile users, and potential Smartphone Thoughts readers. ;-)

"Sprint Nextel Corp., the No. 3 U.S. mobile service, on Thursday introduced a wireless service to help parents find their children, as it makes a bid to expand its presence in the family market. The service lets parents look at maps on their cellphones or computers to locate their children who also carry mobile phones. Parents can also program the service to automatically send them text messages at specific times each day to confirm that their children have arrived at home or in school. The so-called Family Locator service aims to bring in revenue from a location technology Sprint and its rivals are required by law to put into cellphones so that safety workers can pinpoint the location of 911 emergency service callers. Sprint's service shows data such as street addresses to which a child is close and the estimated accuracy of the reading, which could range from a radius of 2 yards around the child to a radius of hundreds of yards."

This sounds like a pretty cool application. It will also notify the child, via a text message, that you have checked up on their location. We just need more GPS's built into devices so we can really start to take advantage of this technology. If there was a Windows Mobile version, you could run this across carriers. So everyone doesn't have to be in the same country. ;)

"Sprint has released the results of the Sprint U.S. Consumer Wireless Usage Study, a US wide survey of wireless phone users. The findings show that more than half of American wireless phone subscribers (56 percent) rely on their mobile phones for features such as cameras, clocks, calendars, messaging, music and as a substitute flashlight for seeing in dark places. Nearly two-thirds of respondents (63 percent) said they would use their wireless phone to retrieve maps or directions. Cameras remain popular with wireless users, with 55 percent expressing interest in the product. Walkie-talkies and ring tones are also popular with consumers, each cited by 48 percent and Internet access garnered 43 percent interest."

I have to admit that I use my SP5m as a flashlight almost every night. It's not one of those features that get listed on the box, but it just works so well. :D Anyway, I found this to be an interesting study. Mainly because it actually deals with US consumers and not some other country (as per most of these studies), and also it shows that some people out there actually like their camera phone! ;) :lol:

The folks over at Sprint-Nextel were kind enough to send us the Motorola i930 for a review. Before I plunge in to the review process, I decided to do a quick photo shoot. The i930 is the first Smartphone to sport the Walkie-Talkie feature and a ruggedized body, both of which are Nextel trademarks. :-) This Smartphone runs on Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition and lacks Bluetooth connectivity. I have had this Smartphone in my hands for only a couple of hours now, yet on the positive side I noticed that this Smartphone has a couple of user interface improvements that everyone will appreciate and it also includes a built-in GPS sensor.


Figure 1: Click on the image for the full size image. (791 KB)

Enjoy the photo shoot and stay tuned for a detailed review. :-)

Figure 2: Presenting the first rugged Smartphone.


Figure 3: Check out the glossy finish. I wonder if it is scratch resistant? :?


Figure 4: The i930's cousin, the Motorola MPx220 (left).


Figure 5: The cab-yellow home screen catches your eye the moment you flip open this Smartphone.


Figure 6: I haven't installed the screen capture utility and this photograph doesn't do justice to the home screen. Notice how for the highlighted icon, it shows the text label underneath the icon. In this case it reads "Contacts." This simple feature improves usability. 8)


Figure 7: The buttons are small compared to the overall size of the Smartphone. :(

Feel free to ask any questions related to this Smartphone. I will try my best to answer them here or in my review. ;-)

"There are wack lawsuits, and there are wack lawsuits, but what the hell do private citizens John and Christina King think they�re suing Sprint and Samsung for? Well, according to the Inq, it�s apparently over the i500 � yes, they may have two patents in the USPTO system filed in December of 2002 for a �Foldable wireless communication device functioning as a cellular telephone and a personal digital assistant�"

You know this could be a big money maker. Just patent a bunch of ideas rolling around in your head. Then sit quietly and wait until some company actually makes one of your ideas and sue them! Ha!

"Comcast, Time Warner, Cox Communcations and Advance/Newhouse Communications plan to bundle wireless phone service from the new alliance with their existing high-speed data, voice and video packages. Cable companies have used bundles of services effectively to compete against telephone companies like Verizon Communications and SBC Communications, which are each starting to enter the video market."

Sprint/Nextel isn't exactly the crown jewels of the wireless industry but I guess they are the only ones left to pair up with. I suspect this will help them more than the giant cable companies.