51 replies to this topic

[PaulOBrien]

Quote

As such, I'd argue that the C500 is still the most impressive handset on the Windows Smartphone platform given that Orange/HTC/MS addressed a lot of the shortcomings of the previous OS and devices.

Agreed, it was revolutionary.

Look at the C550 to see how you can screw up after such a good handset as the C500, then look at the C600 to see how it can be done right.

I'd be interested to hear from C600 owners as to whether they agree with me...

P

[Dark Horse]

Paul [MVP said:

,Jan 31 2006, 11:00]But the seal of approval isn't for being revolutionary... it's for the fact that - at last - it's a Windows Mobile handset that works exactly as it should, in the function that it provides.

i.e. you buy the handset knowing it doesn't have 3G etc., but the things it DOES do, it does well.

Of course, it's all IMHO

P

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The C500 does all of this as well and works exactly as it should too! The impact coming from an SPV original to a C500 was "wow", both hardware and software were revolutionary. Can you honestly say that you had the same reaction when migrating from a C500 to a C600?

Regards,

Dark Horse

Edited by Dark Horse, 31 January 2006 - 11:17 AM.

[PaulOBrien]

No,

Quote

But the seal of approval isn't for being revolutionary

I'd describe using the feeling of using the C600 for the first time more as warm-fuzzy-familiarity but with noticeable enhancements (e.g. screen and WM5).

P

[dearsina]

No WiFi
No 3G
No Flash
No external miniSD slot
No thank you

[sepecat]

C550 is great phone , in my opinion better than C600.

First of all the price , its great , and we are getting 512 MB card.

Second , watching movies , play snes games (Breath of fire rules) and listening music is a real pleasure in this phone.

Third , maybe it has old OS , but for now it doesnt mater.

And again about price , C550 cost little bit more than C500 and it is much better. U cant buy for now C600 pay as u go , so for many people its imposible to buy it.

[bongo_king]

shadamehr, on Jan 31 2006, 01:18, said:

But since I got my SP5, I am amazed at how much I have my wi-fi used.

....

If so, I urge you, if the option is open to you (I I fully appreciate that for a lot of you it's not, but I number ported from Orange onto a great tariff, and got a free SP5), to forget all about the C600, and get a Qtek or i-mate tornado with wi-fi in - its the best thing I ever did.

I don't have much to add to this but applause - I love my sp5 & use WiFi loads, reading the news when I'm waiting for my tea to brew in the kitchen, or going on Wikipedia from the sofa to settle a stoned argument. For me the C600 is a missed opportunity; smartphone is an amazing platform, but to exploit it to it's full potential it needs maximum connectivity, the faster the better.

I know Paul, you've been doggedly defending Orange throughout the speculation for the best part of a year of whether the C600 would have Wi-Fi, but from where I'm sitting they just want a situation where you are paying them for all the data traffic to and from your phone. It's stupid to be in a hotspot but have to send everything through Orange on a pitifully slow GPRS connection. It's difficult and expensive, so you don't use it as much, just like when you could only get dialup on your pc - once you have a better connection, all these uses suddenly become viable. I just think it's daft to have a small computer in your pocket but choose one where it's connectivity has been intentionally restricted by the manufacturer.

I want all of my technology to connect to everything else, and it's going to happen one day, but as far as I'm concerned the C600 is a regressive step in that direction. I'd recomend anyone who's weighing up to look elsewhere. UK customers looking at SP5s might want to wait though - you will be able to get a Vodaphone trademarked one with a proper warranty soon - http://tinyurl.com/72sca

I've yet to get a smartphone that didn't have hardware problems - so that's quite an important factor, but for me the fact that you can get onto Orange to deal with it, rather than i-mate is the only thing in the C600s favour

Edited by bongo_king, 01 February 2006 - 03:13 PM.

[moonshot]

Paul, good review, I agree with almost all of it. I had a c600 for a few days but it had to go back (long story) but I`m sure that in the next few weeks I will get another one and e-bay my c550.
Wi-Fi, it would be nice to have but for now I could get along with out it. The reason Orange have not included it, is because it would cost them in revenue.
I used my c500 and now my c550 as a PDA Phone. Not for playing games or music nor as a camera or video player, (although the camera is ok in a limited way). My main complaint is that the contacts and calendar is still very limited in what it can do and this needs to be improved. For its size the c600 is the best we have got....at the moment.

I have just read a review for the o2 Atom (similar to the M500, but smaller and lighter) Its only 35grams more than the c600. Since the c500 was only 100grams I thought the c600 would have made its debut at say, 95 grams.

[Sonicr360]

After carefully reading this review, the first thing that comes to mind is "PANTS" !!!
I used to own an Orange SPV E100 and coming from the O2 Network I was quite reluctant to move to Orange and the Smartphone. Here is my story.....

However, after reading reviews (or the E100) and some opinions on this site, I took the plunge!

MY GOD, what a mistake!!! Not only was the phone almost unusable as a Mobile (not telling me I had voice messages, poor signal, poor battery life, constantly hanging even after an upgrade), it was 12 months of hell!!

Even the Orange coverage was poor, making my work life very hard indeed.

12 months on, I bought a Samsung D500 on Vodafone! FANTASTIC, its a phone, it works and great signal, great bluetooth and more importantly, NEVER crashed, hung or died after 2 days due to a dead battery. Apps are ok, and can sync with Outlook on the fly - great!!

In late 2005, I started to read reviews of the O2 XDA EXEC. In my mind, this appeared to look like a great device, offering bluetooth, Wi-Fi and even better 3G. After there was many reviews rating this device, I took the plunge.

Result? FANTASTIC!!!!!   Its a great pocket mobile laptop device (in my eyes) and even better, I could use it as a Laptop without taking my own Dell Laptop to client sites. Even better, it came with TOMTOM!!! Never had SatNav, but boy do I enjoy it now   (Bought this on eBay BTW).

My only criticism has been the lack of apps working correctly, however I now have alot more programs, and have turned this into a Mini Laptop, able to access Network resources, shares and printing factilites!! Use Notepad to open system files, connect to Exchange, connect to my own TS Server, it truly is the device I have been eager to get!

Any regrets? Not at all! And the best part is, its a phone!! Although I still use my D500 at the moment mainly because its small, light and handy!

Anyhow, back to the review - Personally, if anyone decided to buy this so called upgraded Orange phone, I would seriously think twice! Not only does it appear to LACK several good qualities (and features!), but in my mind, this is simply a stop gap that should NOT have been reliased! And how many are just going to upgrade to this model when we all know a potential new version is on the horizon!

Seal of approval?? I think people need to judge by themselves!
Paul, appreciate that you may be on the "Orange" side, but I personally feel this is not the phone to buy.

If you want connectivity on the go, either 3G, GPRS or Wi-Fi, then something along the lines of the XDA EXEC is definetely the way to go!

Yes, its big, large, but its got huge potential and a fantastic screen; And it replaces my Laptop with a 1GB Card installed, I am able to perform my job with it and still use a Desktop PC if the needs require it!

Just signed up to BTOpenzone on a great fantastic introduction deal too  8)

My opinion is to avoid! Sorry to disagree, but you are not going to please everyone!

[sporkguy]

dearsina, on Jan 31 2006, 19:32, said:

No WiFi
No 3G
No Flash
No external miniSD slot
No thank you

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

quoted for emphasis.

[PaulOBrien]

Quote

Seal of approval?? I think people need to judge by themselves!
Paul, appreciate that you may be on the "Orange" side, but I personally feel this is not the phone to buy.

Absolutely, it's only my seal of approval, not anyone elses.

And I am definitely NOT on the '"Orange" side', and have no problem criticising Orange where I feel it's appropriate (GPRS Charging, Wildfire, Orange Gatherings, Everyphone, 0800 numbers etc. etc.)

P

[a.greig]

bongo_king, on Feb 1 2006, 15:10, said:

I don't have much to add to this but applause - I love my sp5 & use WiFi loads, reading the news when I'm waiting for my tea to brew in the kitchen, or going on Wikipedia from the sofa to settle a stoned argument. For me the C600 is a missed opportunity; smartphone is an amazing platform, but to exploit it to it's full potential it needs maximum connectivity, the faster the better.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you are in the house why not just use bluetooth access instead of WiFi to access the web? I do it all the time with my C550. No paying Orange for the data charges and it's much faster than GPRS

[rsearley]

a.greig, on Feb 3 2006, 17:13, said:

If you are in the house why not just use bluetooth access instead of WiFi to access the web? I do it all the time with my C550. No paying Orange for the data charges and it's much faster than GPRS

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

i guess because unless you have a BT access point then you need the pc to be on to access the net through BT

one of the ideas of having a phone/pda is it makes it eaiser to turn the pc off, and leave it off

and still have the ability to have a quick look at something

[Dr Who]

Does the screen on the C600 still turn itself off after 60 seconds or eat battery life? The missus just got a C550 and I had forgotten about the screen/battery problems. I know when I first got my C500 and it was set to power off the screen it drove me beserk very quickly. If the C600 does this there is no way that I would consider getting one.

[sporkguy]

Paul [MVP], on Feb 3 2006, 17:12, said:

Absolutely, it's only my seal of approval, not anyone elses.

And I am definitely NOT on the '"Orange" side', and have no problem criticising Orange where I feel it's appropriate (GPRS Charging, Wildfire, Orange Gatherings, Everyphone, 0800 numbers etc. etc.)

P

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why should Orange be criticised for 0800 numbers when other networks have been charging for calling them for years?

[a.greig]

rsearley, on Feb 3 2006, 19:00, said:

i guess because unless you have a BT access point then you need the pc to be on to access the net through BT

one of the ideas of having a phone/pda is it makes it eaiser to turn the pc off, and leave it off

and still have the ability to have a quick look at something

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

True but the cheapest bluetooth access point is no more expensive than any other kind of wireless access point if that's what you want to do. I'm not putting it forward as an ideal solution if you already have wireless access but it is a workable home solution for devices with only bluetooth connectivity and the requrement to access the net at decent speed.

[rsearley]

a.greig, on Feb 3 2006, 19:16, said:

True but the cheapest bluetooth access point is no more expensive than any other kind of wireless access point if that's what you want to do. I'm not putting it forward as an ideal solution if you already have wireless access but it is a workable home solution for devices with only bluetooth connectivity and the requrement to access the net at decent speed.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

True,

before i got the SP5m i was in 2 minds whether to get the Treo650, the C600 or pay and get the SP5..  so i looked into the cost of BT as an option, but i spend a lot of time out of the house, and BT just would not make the distance

and to be honest, i have always found BT to be quite flakey, and wouldnt trust it as a solution

[morpheus2702]

It constantly amazes me how much of a positive spin the C600 is given in comparison to the C550 on MoDaCo.  

Sure you can argue that the QVGA screen being a couple of microns nearer the glass is so much better, but so many of the 'improvements' heralded as C600 'wows' we already saw 7 months ago in the C550.  Joystick. Camera.  Nice touches like the LEDS: been there, seen it, seemingly skimmed over.

I get the impression that when it came to upgrade time, many people were still tied to their C500 12 month contracts when the C550 came out and hence couldn't get it without forking out major dosh.  So better just to write-off the C550 as 'a minor upgrade' and wait for the super-duper C600?

But of course I'm going to say all of this - I have a C550 after all?

[rav1patel]

I've had my C600 for a week and I love it. Won't be going back to my M500 anytime soon. I'd forgotten how nice it is to have such a small device, and one with a keypad. Makes regular tasks so much easier.

I wouldn't say its revoloutionary. It just like my C500, but nicer. But then thats pretty much what I want.

Lack of WiFi is a bit annoying. Would have been a useful addition but I know I'll end up getting the next C700 or whatever it is when it come out with WiFi.

[Harp]

Good review and one of the reasons I now have one.
Apart from Activesync problems , my shiny new C600 is great.
I suppose if you want bells and whistles you have to be prepared to pay for them. I upgraded from a C500 (and MPX200 before that) for free and even got a £50 airtime credit from both the old phones. There are plenty of other phones out there to choose from but this one is perfect for me at this time. I've never used the C550 and the C600 seemed the natural upgrade.
Yes, I think they possibly rushed it's release considering the few niggles but it still does what it does well and is a great looking phone. It's much better looking than my girlfriends cheap toy like Samsung D600 which, as with many of the other "popular" models, also has a pants GUI - in my opinion (and also my girlfriends)!
Wifi/3G/Flash/External miniSD slot etc might have been a bonus but not at the expense of a larger phone or a higher price tag. And as soon as they sack the guy that made Activesync 4 and make an upgrade that works properly, I'll be extatic.
I'll definately be sticking with Windows Mobile phones and for the next year my C600 will do just fine. I'm really looking forward to the possibilities in my upgrade next January though.

[Sonicr360]

Harp wrote "I suppose if you want bells and whistles you have to be prepared to pay for them"

Disagree - There are phones out now that offer 3G, WiFi and bluetooth as standard. In my view, this is simple a "stop gap" and Orange know this!

It also has nothing to do with size either - Coming from an SPV background, I found nothing but trouble and the size was a problem for me. I do use my XDA EXEC as a Business Tool, so being able to properly use TS, browse Web and talk to my Exchange Server is great, plus the addition of Wi-Fi is truly great.

But if you do not require these features, then stick with it.

Paul, I am glad to see you are not one sided on Orange. Perhaps a point should be made that their next model should have 3G connectivity, a better camera (2.0 MP seems to be the norm now a days) and Wi-Fi. Bringing this out now is clearly good for some people, but I bet in the next 6 months or so, their latest model will have maybe 1 or 2 of the features that can be found in the XDA EXEC

It would be EVEN better to get a device on O2 or Vodafone too by default

I have a D500 Harp, and may look to go for the D600 - I certainly would not say its cheap, especially as I believe it won an award for best overall phone in a Mobile Magazine (Phone of the year award consumer choice I believe but do not quote me on this!).

Its a phone and it works exactly as it says on the tin! Plus a decent 2.0 camera, great bluetooth, expandability for memory and TV output if you want it! Oh and document reader, quad band, integrated image editor, plus all the usual phone standards you expect!

But.... each to their own as I stated before.