21 replies to this topic

[tsutton]

I am currently using Orange SPV C500 and found it very good, I am considering upgrading to C600.

However I have noticed that there are more Windows powered mobile phone out there that are much better. But there are too many to choose and I'm not sure which one is suitable for me.

The main feature that is a "must have" for phone is:

* Keypad
* Bluetooth
* GPRS
* HTML browser
* WiFi (can be without if the phone is good)
* Upgradeable memory
* Touchscreen (can be without if the phone is good)

At the moment, the cloest match I can find is the SPV M5000 - is this a good phone? I also saw the M600, and while it looks very nice, it doesn't come with a keypad, which is a shame.

Is there anything else I should be keeping my eyes out?

Thanks all.

[Swampie]

tsutton, on Mar 20 2006, 15:18, said:

I am currently using Orange SPV C500 and found it very good, I am considering upgrading to C600.

However I have noticed that there are more Windows powered mobile phone out there that are much better. But there are too many to choose and I'm not sure which one is suitable for me.

The main feature that is a "must have" for phone is:

* Keypad
* Bluetooth
* GPRS
* HTML browser
* WiFi (can be without if the phone is good)
* Upgradeable memory
* Touchscreen (can be without if the phone is good)

At the moment, the cloest match I can find is the SPV M5000 - is this a good phone? I also saw the M600, and while it looks very nice, it doesn't come with a keypad, which is a shame.

Is there anything else I should be keeping my eyes out?

Thanks all.

As far as I know, keypads and touch screens are mutually exclusive - WM Smartphone edition is keypad based entry, no support for touch screens, whereas WM PocketPC edition is touch screen entry (with no devices I know of which also have a keypad - only the Wizard etc with a full keyboard).

Personally, I moved from the C500 to the MDA Vario (Wizard).  I don't really use the phone more than a few speed dials (so the touchscreen dialing isn't a problem as I can voice dial often), but prefer the ability to have touch screen and better display/WiFi etc.

[xspyda]

All I can say is that I was in your position a short while ago, wondering what upgrade to go for to give me all the features of the C500 plus a little bit more.

I have since tried:

SPV M500
SPV M5000
Qtek 9100 (Wizard)
MDA II Compact

So what did I finally settle on after all this chopping and changing? The C500! For what I want, the C500 blows the competition out of the water in terms of convenience, functionality and ease of use. It does all I need and it does it a lot better than anything currently on the market IMO.

I'm not just a C500 fan saying that the C500 is perfect - it isn't, but it's closer than anything out there currently.

One glaring omission from the C500 is WiFi and if the C600 had WiFi I would have been there like a shot but aside from the higher resolution screen, and a few little bits and pieces, the C600 is no better thn the C500 and to be honest I am struggling to see why Orange even bothered with it. As for the C550 ... well we were all hoping that was a plug between the C500 and the C600 which would include WiFi but no, someone at O had other ideas!

Anyway, save your pennies and stick with the C500 if I were you, you will not beat it for a while yet!

[Alison Astraware]

Judging by the comments of the two guys in my office who have the SPV M5000 (one of them is the O2 version), I'd say it's a great handheld device - brilliant for web browsing, email, games and stuff, but it's not brilliant on the phone call front. Both of them say that they get less signal than they used to with straightforward cellphones.

I guess it depends whether calls or data are more important to you.

[Swampie]

xspyda, on Mar 20 2006, 17:01, said:

All I can say is that I was in your position a short while ago, wondering what upgrade to go for to give me all the features of the C500 plus a little bit more.

I have since tried:

SPV M500
SPV M5000
Qtek 9100 (Wizard)
MDA II Compact

So what did I finally settle on after all this chopping and changing? The C500! For what I want, the C500 blows the competition out of the water in terms of convenience, functionality and ease of use. It does all I need and it does it a lot better than anything currently on the market IMO.

I'm not just a C500 fan saying that the C500 is perfect - it isn't, but it's closer than anything out there currently.

One glaring omission from the C500 is WiFi and if the C600 had WiFi I would have been there like a shot but aside from the higher resolution screen, and a few little bits and pieces, the C600 is no better thn the C500 and to be honest I am struggling to see why Orange even bothered with it. As for the C550 ... well we were all hoping that was a plug between the C500 and the C600 which would include WiFi but no, someone at O had other ideas!

Anyway, save your pennies and stick with the C500 if I were you, you will not beat it for a while yet!

Having seen a friend's new C600 and having used a C500 for a year - I'd have to say - the C600 is a much nicer phone display wise.  The QVGA screen is wonderful - makes the C500's look very dated.  The C550 has stupid music buttons - so the C600 is what I would replace a C500 with - but as you say, lack of WiFi is an issue.

The fact that C600 is WM5 is another benefit over the C500 in my eyes - as I do software development with it, being able to use the WM5/.NetCF2.0 is a benefit to me.

[tsutton]

Thanks for the interesting feedback.

Would your feedback be different if I said that I am deaf and use texting a lot more and none on phone calling? (hence needing the keypad/keyboard)

Thanks

[xspyda]

tsutton, on Mar 20 2006, 20:18, said:

Would your feedback be different if I said that I am deaf and use texting a lot more and none on phone calling? (hence needing the keypad/keyboard)

Personally, I found the c500 far easier to text on than any of the above mentioned models - and yes, that includes the Wizard with the slide out keyboard.

Having said that, it's what you get used to really. I can comfortably write lengthy emails on the c500 and do so regularly. Better still is to link it up with the PC and use the keypboard and mouse for input with software such as True Connect.

[sporkguy]

I would personally recommend the MDA Vario - the keypad on the one I tested was very easy to use, two thumbs and I was flying away texting quite fast (not as fast as T9, but you get it with practice).

If you didn't want to switch networks, you could always upgrade to the most expensive phone available, unlock and sell it - then buy a simfree Vario from eBay or similar? Might be an option perhaps

[Swampie]

I think the T-Mobile SDA II has WiFi - although when I last checked, T-Mobile appeared to stop advertising it/out of stock or something.  As sporkguy said - maybe upgrade to the most expensive (for selling) but cheap (to you) handset, and then flog it on eBay to finance a SDA II or similar sim-free or 2nd hand handset?

[Alison Astraware]

I have a Vario. I wanted a converged device. I use my phone for email and data much more than for phone calls (hence I went with T Mobile Web N Walk 100). I didn't think I'd use the keyboard as I've always used writing onscreen, but I'm using it quite a lot and it's very easy and quick. I chose the Vario over a Treo because I've got longish girly nails and the keys on the Treo were too close together for me. The Vario is just perfect in that respect.

Best thing is probably to pop down to a T Mobile store and try one. Unfortunately, they're not available from Orange though, so you'd need to change service providers or get a sim free version (www.qtekuk.com).

[tsutton]

sporkguy, on Mar 21 2006, 00:12, said:

I would personally recommend the MDA Vario - the keypad on the one I tested was very easy to use, two thumbs and I was flying away texting quite fast (not as fast as T9, but you get it with practice).

Would that be Qtek 9100? If so, yeah I've seen it and it's nice. Shame it's expensive to buy sim free.

Quote

If you didn't want to switch networks, you could always upgrade to the most expensive phone available, unlock and sell it - then buy a simfree Vario from eBay or similar? Might be an option perhaps

I'm on the lowly ?20 a month for 3,000 text a month (plus ?4 for 4MB GPRS)... don't think I can get the best phone for free as I am a low paying customer.

Thanks,

[sporkguy]

Perhaps its time to think about switching networks?

(PERSONAL OPINION WARNING)
Maybe the one of the tmobile Flext tariffs would be better for yourself then tsutton - as you can spend your allowance purely on Text messaging - and if you go for the Flext 30 you can get the Vario for something silly like ?9.99 PLUS the 25% discount on the line rental for buying online
oh and that ?7.50 GPRS bundle come April 1st.

[tsutton]

Hmm... what's their network like? My Orange signal works great in Wymondham (Norfolk), but not too sure about T-Mobile?

I had a look at the coverage map and it's covered.

I'm not sure why I'm a little concered about switching network, maybe because I have been with Orange for the past 6 years.

Anyone on T Mobile? What is their online billing like? Can you find out how many GPRS & text left? Can I download the billing by PDF file format?

Thanks.

[xspyda]

I have just switched to T-Mobile from Orange (2 handsets) and am very glad I have. The value for money is FAR better, the flexibility of the plan is ideal for my use and the customer service so far has been excellent.

Orange used to be the network of choice, and I have also been with O for longer than I care to remember but to me at least it's plain and simple - Orange are not the company they used to be and their way of running their business has changed dramatically over the years.

The only thing I would have considered staying with O for is my Line 2 ED50 contract but as the airtime can only be used in the evening and to Orange phones or landlines, even that is becoming less useful as more people see the light and move over to T-Mobile.

Believe me, I looked VERY thoroughly at the TMob Flext contracts for a catch before switching but aside from a few little niggles, there isn't one!

As for the site, yes you can view your allowance in near real time (including GPRS) and I believe you can download your bill for archiving.

Even though I have 8 months left to run on my O contract with TWO phones, I am still glad I made the switch!

[tsutton]

Thanks.

I had a look at Flext pricing plans and it does look good. I use MMS sometimes but with it being not included with my plans, it's costly. With Flext one price to pay monthly and the plans flexs around with the amount of usage I do with it, which works really well for me.

I think I will wait until April to see what they can come up with GPRS - I use web and email a lot on the move.

[Swampie]

tsutton, on Mar 21 2006, 12:21, said:

Hmm... what's their network like? My Orange signal works great in Wymondham (Norfolk), but not too sure about T-Mobile?

I had a look at the coverage map and it's covered.

I'm not sure why I'm a little concered about switching network, maybe because I have been with Orange for the past 6 years.

Anyone on T Mobile? What is their online billing like? Can you find out how many GPRS & text left? Can I download the billing by PDF file format?

Thanks.

T-Mobile online billing is great!  You can see your minutes and GRPS usage in near real time (well, certainly same day I think, unlike Orange which only gives you a copy of your last bill - no good if you want current data).  This includes dates and times of data connections and amount transferred - unlike Orange which just gives you a flat figure at the end of the month, no idea when the data was used - great if you bill your company for data usage.   No idea about PDF bills.

One single problem I've had with it is that since my number port went through on Monday, I can't log into my account - it says it's been locked and I need to call 150 to sort it out.  As I'm on Self Serve, I don't want to pay 50p per minute to sort it out, so emailed them.  Their automated reply said it could be up to 5 days for a reply.  As it's not an urgent problem for me, I can wait.  I'm guessing my login was tied to my number, not account number, and therefore as my number has gone, my account is locked.  Hopefully they'll be able to switch it, I like my current username.

[Swampie]

Well, I just got a phone call from T-Mobile, who whilst I was on the phone, updated my details and got it all working again.  As I suspected, the My T-Mobile was attached to my number, which when changed caused a problem.  They updated my number associated with my account and hey-presto - all working again.

(and she was a nice northern lass too - so no foreign call centres so far!)

[sporkguy]

in my experiences the callback CSRs are usually English - it helps because they dont have to read off a script like the foreign ones

Glad you got it sorted - indeed it looks like Tmobile's account management system is top notch - obviously by having such a great system in place it has saved them an arm and a leg in employee costs for Call Centres etc.. think we could all learn something from TMob

[Swampie]

A friend at work was given as part of his (Orange) upgrade deal, a ?60 credit.  He didn't see it on his bill he just received so phoned up to ask.  Person who he got to spoke to said the credit wasn't on his account, and no details were on his account saying it should be.  He asked to speak to the person he spoke to before, and was told, without that person's ID number (can't remember - but it sounded like a computer system ID) the person could not put him through to them - even though he had the guy's first name, and it was a pretty uncommon one!  Apparently his account had no details as to who processed his upgrade (it was done via Orange direct btw).  He asked "So you have no idea who dealt with my upgrade, and you have no idea who was the last person to alter my account details etc?" - to which he was told - "Yes, there's nothing on your account showing this, and without their ID, I cannot put you through".

Apparently the supervisor wasn't available.

After realising he was getting nowhere, he hung up and dialled again.  This time the (different) person was far more helpful, put him through to the guy who processed the upgrade, who confirmed the credit would only appear 7 days from upgrade date, and gave him his direct extension number if there were any other questions in the future.  Apparently he'd been there over 6 years, and said that many of the people who hadn't been there as long weren't quite as helpful.

So, only required 2 calls to get the answer he was looking for.  Obviously Orange has improved from the much reported 3 attempts.

To be honest though, Ive not had any real problems with Orange when I was with them.  Just their offers aren't as good as T-Mobile for me - hence the switch.

[pd.ryder]

I'm waiting for the MDA Vario II to turn up on T-Mobile. It sounds ideal with 3G, WiFi b/g, BT 2.0 etc, etc and a faster Samsung processor too