HTC Star Trek Now on Sale in Taiwan as Dopod S300

[Kris Kumar]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://shopping.pchome.com.tw/dopod/detail.php?pid=AZV00138' target='_blank'>http://shopping.pchome.com.tw/dopod/detail.php?pid=AZV00138</a><br /><br /></div>Folks, looks like the wait for the HTC Star Trek is going to end soon. Dopod has started selling the Star Trek as the Dopod S300 in Taiwan. The price tag in Taiwan dollars is $13,900, which is approximately $427 USD. <br /><br /> <img src="http://www.smartphonethoughts.com/images/DopodS300.jpg" alt="User submitted image" title="User submitted image"/> <br /><br />In case you want to learn more about this stylish flip phone, then check out these two links:<br /><a href="http://www.smartphonethoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=10832">HTC Star-Trek Photo Shoots on the Web</a><br /><a href="http://www.smartphonethoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=10847">More on the HTC Star Trek - Review From Geek.com</a>

[edgar]

Anyone have $13,900 + shipping .tw$ that I can borrow?

[Darius Wey]

Anyone have $13,900 + shipping .tw$ that I can borrow?

Would you like a Chinese-English dictionary to go with that? :P

[Mike Temporale]

Now see, that's the hit keypad - none of those annoying circles. I so want this, just not the Dopod version. I'll wait for i-mate or a nice cheap carrier version. That would rock! :mrgreen:

[Kris Kumar]

Anyone have $13,900 + shipping .tw$ that I can borrow?

Would you like a Chinese-English dictionary to go with that? :P

Anyone remember the Seinfeld episode in which George orders a miracle hair growing head balm from some place in China. :lol:

[Rocco Augusto]

i totally wanted to get one yesterday except i couldnt understand what was going on with that page so i just stared at the phone for a minute drooling and went back to work :)

[edgar]

Anyone remember the Seinfeld episode in which George orders a miracle hair growing head balm from some place in China

How'd you know I had thinning hair?


Darius, well, hmm, are the numbers arabic or are they Kanji too? :)

Ok Ok - like Mike I will wait. I just like Flips. No screen scratches, less length.


-Edgar

Boy I bet my friend dave is ticked at me now :(

[Jerry Raia]

Ok now it is looking much better. The keypad is good. I'm taking it off my UGLY list officially. :D

[edgar]

Jerry,

How do the rest of us get off that list? Or is it that other list of yours that I'm on.

[Rocco Augusto]

Jerry,

How do the rest of us get off that list? Or is it that other list of yours that I'm on.

pfft, im pretty. im sure im already off the ugly list ;) :lol:

[Jerry Raia]

Well I do have quite a few lists. :wink:

[Darius Wey]

Darius, well, hmm, are the numbers arabic or are they Kanji too? :)

Actually, a bit of both. Standard monetary figures, times, etc. will be in Arabic numerals. Others, like months for example, will be in Kanji. For example, April is usually 四月, instead of 4月.

[edgar]

Opti

I tend to think we aren't on his ugly list. More like his "A" list, or some oher letter further down.

[Kris Kumar]

Not sure it this helps but here is Dopod's official S300 page:
S300 Main Page (http://www.dopodasia.com/Dopod/Taiwan/Products/SmartPhone/S300)
S300 Specs (http://www.dopodasia.com/Dopod/Taiwan/Products/SmartPhone/S300/Spec.htm)
S300 Photos (http://www.dopodasia.com/Dopod/Taiwan/Products/SmartPhone/S300/Outlook.htm)
S300 Accessories (http://www.dopodasia.com/Dopod/Taiwan/Products/SmartPhone/S300/Accessories.htm)

Did we find any translators yet? :)

[Mike Temporale]

S300 Specs (http://www.dopodasia.com/Dopod/Taiwan/Products/SmartPhone/S300/Spec.htm)

USB 1.1 - STILL ?! :evil: AAARRRGGGGHHHHHH!! I feel a rant coming on...

[Kirkaiya]

Dopod (and a bunch of other Taiwanese and mainland-China Windows Mobile gadgets you've probably never heard of) stuff is usually on sale pretty quickly in Bangkok's Pantip Plaza and MBK malls.

Since I live conveniently next-door ;-) I'll keep my eyes peeled - I am starting to want one of these the more I see the photos. Yah, USB 1.1 sorta sucks, but really, that only comes into play when dragging music files on/off, and for me, that's not that common anyway. It's fast enough for syncing normal Outlook stuff, etc.

Anyway - I need to get a real Windows Mobile phone soon to test out a new version of an Exchange-like mail server software I'm running (the new version has beta of "over-the-air sync" with WM2005 of calendar, contacts, and (via IMAP) email. Hmm...... good excuse to ditch my Axia A108 (which has WinCE 4.2, but not the PPC/WM GUI)

[nskgti]

I'll be in Thailand next week. I'm spending 3 weeks over there. Hopefully I'll be able to grab one if they are available.

On a side note, drop me a PM as I'm interested to get some suggestions on stuff to do in Thailand while I'm there. I really have needed this vacation.


Dopod (and a bunch of other Taiwanese and mainland-China Windows Mobile gadgets you've probably never heard of) stuff is usually on sale pretty quickly in Bangkok's Pantip Plaza and MBK malls.

Since I live conveniently next-door ;-) I'll keep my eyes peeled - I am starting to want one of these the more I see the photos. Yah, USB 1.1 sorta sucks, but really, that only comes into play when dragging music files on/off, and for me, that's not that common anyway. It's fast enough for syncing normal Outlook stuff, etc.

Anyway - I need to get a real Windows Mobile phone soon to test out a new version of an Exchange-like mail server software I'm running (the new version has beta of "over-the-air sync" with WM2005 of calendar, contacts, and (via IMAP) email. Hmm...... good excuse to ditch my Axia A108 (which has WinCE 4.2, but not the PPC/WM GUI)

[Rocco Augusto]

I tend to think we aren't on his ugly list. More like his "A" list, or some oher letter further down.

:lol:

[Kris Kumar]

USB 1.1 - STILL ?! :evil: AAARRRGGGGHHHHHH!! I feel a rant coming on...

That is awesome; not only do they have microSD slot which is under the SIM card, but they also put a USB 1.1; double trouble. :twisted:

[Jerry Raia]

MicroSD eh? How big are those now? 5mb? 10mb? :rotfl:

[Kris Kumar]

Believe it or not, Sandisk has a 1GB card for $51 something (on NewEgg.com). And it comes with an SD card adapter to convert the microSD to standard SD card. So far so good.

[Jerry Raia]

$51???

[Kris Kumar]

$51???

A non-believer? This (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820171115) should satisfy your doubts. :lol:

[Mike Temporale]

Believe it or not, Sandisk has a 1GB card for $51 something (on NewEgg.com). And it comes with an SD card adapter to convert the microSD to standard SD card. So far so good.

Why not a microSD to miniSD adapter? That would seem like a better step. Then you can put it in your existing miniSD devices and use another adapter to put it in an SD device. :mrgreen:

[Kris Kumar]

Why not a microSD to miniSD adapter? That would seem like a better step. Then you can put it in your existing miniSD devices and use another adapter to put it in an SD device. :mrgreen:

I would have preferred that myself.

[edgar]

You can put the Mini-SD adapter into the SD Adapter, then into a CF adapter - which goes into your PC-Card adapter.

All that goes into your circa 1998 Laptop which you then have connected to your desktop with LapLink via a parallel cable. Now's THAT'S backwards compatible! :rotfl:

Wow, sound's like a Nick's garbage plate being built! :wink:

-Edgar

PS it also sounds a bit like that Fred Armisen skit on SNL where he was Steve Jobs announcing ever smaller Ipod's.

[Kris Kumar]

PS it also sounds a bit like that Fred Armisen skit on SNL where he was Steve Jobs announcing ever smaller Ipod's.

I saw it, it was f-u-n-n-y. :rotfl:

[Mike Temporale]

Then you can put the SD adapter into a CF adapter - which goes into your PC-Card adapter.

I know, it sounds extreme. But if they had an adapter from MicroSD to MiniSD then I would run out and buy a microSD card today because I know I could use it today and moving forward to my next phone. But, the way it is now, I'm not buying any memory cards until I know what my next phone is and takes. :?

[sheltem]

Then you can put the SD adapter into a CF adapter - which goes into your PC-Card adapter.

I know, it sounds extreme. But if they had an adapter from MicroSD to MiniSD then I would run out and buy a microSD card today because I know I could use it today and moving forward to my next phone. But, the way it is now, I'm not buying any memory cards until I know what my next phone is and takes. :?

Smart thing to do!

[lowey]

Resist resist resist!
Just because it looks great don't buy it.

We need to make a stand here.
We need Wifi, we need SD or miniSD support accessible
we need USB 2.
Don't settle for this rubbish.
Don't buy it and the manufacturers will be forced to "upgrade" to standard features in WM5 phones.
When will the manufacturers WAKE UP.
We want all the functionality - look at the XDA atom it has everything in a really neat package not much bigger than this thing.
HTC make the atom anyways so just make the atom a flip phone.

End of rant.

[nskgti]

Honestly,

I could care less about Wifi
I don't mind MicroSD
I could care less about USB2

I want a thin, flip, WM5 Smartphone with a stable OS.

I will buy this if I find it in Thailand on Sunday. NO questions asked.



Resist resist resist!
Just because it looks great don't buy it.

We need to make a stand here.
We need Wifi, we need SD or miniSD support accessible
we need USB 2.
Don't settle for this rubbish.
Don't buy it and the manufacturers will be forced to "upgrade" to standard features in WM5 phones.
When will the manufacturers WAKE UP.
We want all the functionality - look at the XDA atom it has everything in a really neat package not much bigger than this thing.
HTC make the atom anyways so just make the atom a flip phone.

End of rant.

[jfran]

htc didnt make thee xda atom, it was quanda / quarta ?? anyway another taiwanese manufacturer

[Kirkaiya]

I got it (the HTC StrTrk, in Thailand available as the Dopod S300). I paid 17,500 baht, or about $445 or so.

Oh - no chinese characters on the keypad, only the standard english ones, and the user's guide is in English (and it's a friggin BOOK)

[Kris Kumar]

I got it (the HTC StrTrk, in Thailand available as the Dopod S300). I paid 17,500 baht, or about $445 or so.

Oh - no chinese characters on the keypad, only the standard english ones, and the user's guide is in English (and it's a friggin BOOK)

Coolo! 8) Would like hear your first reaction comments.

[edgar]

Yea, me too - I'd love to hear first impressions - good and especially the bad.

I'm looking at this as a replacement device for my MPX220. Wish the I320 was quadband - cause I'd look at it too.

[Kirkaiya]

Okay, this is only after not even a full day of using it - but so far, so good.

First - the good:

- Screen is really bright (although there is a light-sensor, which you can disable, that like all past Pocket PC light-sensors, sometimes seems a bit arbitrary in how it adjusts the backlight). That said, the screen is really clear, and much brigher than the same-sized (2.2") screen on my previous phone, the Axia A108.

- Since I'm moving from stylus-based PDA's (various iPaqs, etc., and again the Axia A108), this is my first time using Microsoft's "SmartPhone" edition - but without consulting the manual (so far!), I've set up my email, the background image for the today screen, the "home" screen style (I actually like the Windows Default, with Guava Bubbles as the color theme). I'll install some today-screen plug-ins later... I won't go into the general WM 5.0 otherwise, since you're probably all more familiar with it then me.

- The EDGE speeds seem quite good (I'm in Thailand, so EDGE is about as good as it gets for now), especially compared to the very pokey GPRS I was using before. I installed AvantGo (first my normal PocketPC version, which worked fine, and then I uninstalled that and put on the new Avantgo "SmartPhone (Beta)" client, which makes it easier to change options, etc. I synced both versions "over the air" using EDGE, and it wasn't too bad.

- I love that I can pull my Hotmail into pocket Outlook, and treat it just like normal mail.

- It's thin, THINK, beautifully THIN!!!

- Sound quality is good, it gets better signal strength than my Axia did, and the exterior screen is very cool, although I wish it would stay on longer (I know that would kill the battery). Seeing my wife's pic on the exterior screen when she calls is cool, and the default analog clock looks very cool and is useful also.

- I had used the built-in cam a few times, then installed a 512 MB micro-SD card. I was mentally prepared to go figure out how to change the camera software to store photos there - but [i]when I launched the camera, it actually said, "You have installed a storage card, would you like to use that as your default location?", which was both smart, and nice. Way to go, MSFT!!!

- Keypad is quite easy to use without looking at it (big advantage over the O2, etc, for me). It's not quite as 'stiff' as the Razr, but still nice, thin and usable with one hand.

Things that I wish for, that annoyed me, or that hopefully will make it into the next release:

- At first I couldn't figure out how to get to T9 to work (or most of the input options) - I ended up deciding to uninstall the Thai-language "G-Thai" program, and voila - the input method selector suddenly worked. Plus that freed up some precious storage space.

- Ditto on uninstalling some bar-code reader software it came with (which can scan bar-codes via the phone-cam).

- NOT ENOUGH internal storage RAM. I ended up re-installing AvantGo mainly to install it to the 512 MB Micro-SD card I bought ($19), because otherwise when I synced all my channels I once again got the "you are low on storage space, remove some stuff, blah blah" warning (which keeps popping up until you make room). Even now, with nothing extra installed in main memory, there is 4.4 MB free of storage space. I miss the "slider" in PocketPC where I could adjust the storage/program-memory ratio (or maybe I just didn't find it yet).

- I upgraded to ActiveSync 4.1 (and now 4.2) and I can no longer sync AvantGo thru activesync. Now, for the new "SmartPhone" version, that seems to be a feature, but the exact same version of AvantGo that synced via AS 3.7 from my Axia doesn't put a "conduit" in ActiveSync 4.x. Who's to blame? I dunno. But having to go into AvantGo in order to sync over the PC is annoying.

- No WiFi (but with EDGE, that's not such a huge issue for me)

- USB 1.1 is slowwww, after using 2.0 on my Axia. But, once my music is all over there on my card, well, syncing just doesnt use that much bandwidth.

OVERALL: Rarely have I felt that I had such a really good phone, overall, on the first day. It came with a case (see pics below), but I like the little camera-style strap thing it came with, the case makes the whole package all fat again!!

Taken feature-by-feature, it would seem like it should be a mediocre phone. But it's not. Once you are holding it and using it.... the form-factor seduces you, the screen is beautiful, and for what it's meant to be - a SmartPhone - it seems to excel, in my opinion.

Here are some pics of the phone, the box, and the case it came with, etc.:

http://www.nulogik.com/kirk/PICT1400.JPG

http://www.nulogik.com/kirk/PICT1401.JPG

http://www.nulogik.com/kirk/PICT1402.JPG

http://www.nulogik.com/kirk/PICT1403.JPG

http://www.nulogik.com/kirk/PICT1404.JPG

[/img]

[Kris Kumar]

Thanks Kirkaiya 8)

Awesome amount of information.

Surprised that you removed the bar code scan application; do remember who made the application. I would like to get my hands on one.

[tsahnocub]

I also have a Dopod S300.

Love it.

The barcode program that came installed on it is called QuickMark by SimpleAct.

I haven't gotten around to uninstalling it yet, but have no use for it myself.

I don't know if it's available or just oem.

[Kris Kumar]

The barcode program that came installed on it is called QuickMark by SimpleAct.

It seems like an application made by a Taiwanese company for the Taiwanese market. Also from the product website it seems like it works with some special barcodes not the standard bars.

[encece]

Loving the phone myself. (QTEK 8500).
Feels more like a phone than a PDA. Isn't that what a Smartphone is supposed to feel like?! It's the first time I've ever had that feeling! Without compromising any smartphone functionality.

[encece]

I was also surprised at how small MicroSD cards are. As big as my pinky nail. I bought a 1GB card with the phone. Good thing you need to bury it under the SIM or you could easily lose it! I wish they used MiniSD as I have a 2GB card collecting dust right now...but I'm sure I'll find use for it eventually.

Not really happy with QTEK though. I could find no way to register my phone. IMATE seems to have a much better support system with easy to find update downloads. I'll need for the first time to resort to using illegally posted ROMS when the time comes.

ONE BAD POINT ABOUT THE PHONE:
I think I'm missing calls. Not the ocassional one here and there but a few so far in a few days time. The phone never rings and no Missed Calls show but I then get a Voicemail. Not Good. Seems to be mentioned by others at HowardForums as well.

[tsahnocub]

Interesting, the only time I've had any missed calls were times that my phone didn't have good signal strength (on T-mobile here, great service, but the apartment gets poor reception with everyone, it's the construction of the walls).

Currently, I don't think there are any updates available for the HTC StarTrek (any rebranding). Hopefully, once some do become available, HTC will make them available on their site (since they're Qtek now) as well as with Dopod on theirs. Of course, at this point, all we can do is wait and see what happens when the time comes.

I do agree that it is a great phone though, and very much more phone feeling than the last few I've had. It certainly made my MPx200 with WM5 look like a Fisher-Price kids toy lol.

Kris: yeah, the barcode is for special barcodes not used here in the US, I doubt they're going to be making it here anytime soon either.

[Rocco Augusto]

you know, im mostly excitied that they give you an actual book instead of pdf of the manual. i have so many friends that i sell smartphones to and the biggest annoyance they all have is that they have to load the pdf file if they can't get ahold of me if they have a problem or question about their handset :D

[Jerry Raia]

I don't think I've ever had a Moto that didn't come with a hard manual. I like it. On the other hand you can copy and read a pdf file on the device.

[Rocco Augusto]

I don't think I've ever had a Moto that didn't come with a hard manual. I like it. On the other hand you can copy and read a pdf file on the device.

that was the first thing i tried doing after installing clearvue on my 2125 the first day i got it... frooze the whole phone up since it was so large :lol:

[Jerry Raia]

Yeah that is a downside. :lol:

[egarayblas]

I really like this phone and I'm looking at purchasing one! However, I do have some questions which maybe you guys can shed some light on.

(1) I've been using my first smartphone (O2 Xphone II) eversince Jan 2006 and my only complain is that I could not create "subfolders" inside the Messaging application so that I can sort my text/email/MMS messages into folders like "Jokes, From XXX, etc.". Is this possible on a WM5 smartphone now?

(2) How is the camera on the Dopod S300? My O2 Xphone's camera isn't that good (I was a Nokia user before this and their camera phones are way way better).

(3) Does the Dopod S300's front screen show whom the message is from if you receive one?

(4) Do you know of any online stores that will ship to my country (the Philippines)? I have tried emailing Expansys Hongkong but I never got a reply.

Thanks in advance! :D

[Kris Kumar]

It certainly made my MPx200 with WM5 look like a Fisher-Price kids toy lol.

:lol: :rotfl:

Kris: yeah, the barcode is for special barcodes not used here in the US, I doubt they're going to be making it here anytime soon either.

Thanks for confirming. For those who are interested, the details [if you can read the script ;-)] are available on this site:
http://www.quickmark.com.tw/

[Kris Kumar]

I think I'm missing calls. Not the ocassional one here and there but a few so far in a few days time. The phone never rings and no Missed Calls show but I then get a Voicemail. Not Good. Seems to be mentioned by others at HowardForums as well.

encece, what kind of email delivery mechanism are you using? Are you using the new direct push? If so I wonder if the Internet/data activity is causing the voice call to be dropped. I am forgetting how the voice and data prioritization works in GSM (the whole class thing and whether there active data transfer etc).

[TopDog]

I've had my Qtek 8500, as it's called here in Norway, for three days now. And I love it!

I've had all kinds of PocketPC's the last six years, a Qtek 7070 (the first MS SmartPhone) and last a Qtek 8020 before this one.

I have to say, this is the first SmartPhone that I've REALLY liked. It's finally small enough and sexy enough to be taken out in public without having a "nerd" sign over your head.

And it works great. I don't miss WiFi, as I usually have my laptop with my when I have a need for WiFi.

The only downside for me is the USB 1.1. WHY??? The phone is promoted as a "media-phone" with WMP buttons on the front, so why the slow transfer? Transfering 512MB of music on a USB 1.1 link takes forever. I'm used to my ultra-fast iPod, so this is a reall down'er!

[tsahnocub]

(1) I've been using my first smartphone (O2 Xphone II) eversince Jan 2006 and my only complain is that I could not create "subfolders" inside the Messaging application so that I can sort my text/email/MMS messages into folders like "Jokes, From XXX, etc.". Is this possible on a WM5 smartphone now?

I just double checked, as far as I can tell, there is no way to create folders in WM5. After a little bit of playing around, SMS messages you can move around between the default folders (not a lot of help, I know). Emails, you can move between any folder that is on the device and any that are created from syncing with outlook. That would mean you'd need to create folder on your desktop in outlook and make sure they sync, and then you can move emails into them. Just not SMS.

(2) How is the camera on the Dopod S300? My O2 Xphone's camera isn't that good (I was a Nokia user before this and their camera phones are way way better).

It's an average phone camera I'd guess, I've used it a few times, the software is really easy to use, the picture quality isn't that great though. Don't use it in low light situations, it just doesn't work, and expect near white areas outside to get all washed out. Even changing the white-balance settings, I haven't been able to get rid of the vast over bright areas that it takes in pictures.

(3) Does the Dopod S300's front screen show whom the message is from if you receive one?

When you recieve a text message, the external display shows an envelope icon and says "Text Messages (#)". It does not say who the message is from. The external screen is nice and usefull for a lot of things, but unfortunately, it doesn't give details on notifications, which I think is it's one poorly implimented area.

(4) Do you know of any online stores that will ship to my country (the Philippines)? I have tried emailing Expansys Hongkong but I never got a reply.

Not sure about online stores that specifically service the Philippines, but I got mine off of eBay, you might be able to find a seller that will ship there.

Hope that helps. It's a great phone, I just love it.

[edgar]

I'm not sure the USB 1.1 is that big of a deal for me - I use a card reader for large transfers anyways. Fast, more reliable and only takes a moment. Same with IR - I dont think I EVER used it on my MPX220.

I'll have to keep my eyes on this device. I prefer flip phones over candy bars and I carry a wifi enabled PPC (HX4700) to run all my work apps and to do any heavier style stuff when sans laptop.

I look at it as, surprise!, a phone not a PPC. The extra apps I put on it are for convience not so much high end (ewallet, basic browsing, contact lists, PIM, conversions, world clocks, etc).

Does it allow a PPC or Laptop to tether to the EDGE network? And does that work well?

-Edgar

[tsahnocub]

So far I haven't had any problems with USB 1.1, granted, I don't copy a ton of music at one time to the device, I don't use it as my primary music player.

And I agree with Edgar on the IR, my last 2 smartphones had it, and I never used it, nothing else I had used IR (ie laptop) to make it even available or a need for me.

I also don't have T-Mobile's GPRS/EDGE internet access. I use the phone just as a phone and I text message. I don't get online with it at all. I don't miss wifi, the only places I would use it, I have my laptop with me anyways.

As far as I know, you can use it as an EDGE thether for your PPC or laptop, but again, since I don't have that service (can't justify $30/mo) I have no way to test it.

Out of random curiosity, has anyone that has one of these phones already discovered where the backgrounds for the external screen are located? I've been looking through the filesystem and I can't seem to find it yet.

[Kris Kumar]

Out of random curiosity, has anyone that has one of these phones already discovered where the backgrounds for the external screen are located? I've been looking through the filesystem and I can't seem to find it yet.

I believe it is in a sub-folder under the My Documents folder. At least that is true in case of the clam-shell Moto MPx220. I hope that HTC is also using the same place. I don't have the Dopod S300/Qtek 8500, just making a guess. :wink:

[tsahnocub]

Yeah, it seems to be pulling images from all the same places as the home screen wallpaper, interestingly enough, the default image I can't find anywhere.

I was actually wondering if I'd be able to find the external screen layouts, see if there was a way to customize them (especially on the date/time color on the default wallpaper layout).

I'll let everyone know if I find them eventually or not lol.

[edgar]

I thought it was "\Storage\My Documents\ExtLCD'"

But that would just be the background Image - not sure where the XML file for layout and plugins is kept.

[Kris Kumar]

I have only seen the background wallpaper, I have never seen the layout file. I thought the external screen layout was hardcoded in to the ROM image.

[tsahnocub]

That's the impression I'm getting, it doesn't look like anything customizable, which is too bad, would be nice to be able to at least change color schemes and stuff.

Sigh, oh well

[Kirkaiya]

Does it allow a PPC or Laptop to tether to the EDGE network? And does that work well?

-Edgar

Hey Edgar - it does have a "wireless modem" mode, which (according to Dopod's manual) allows a PC/Laptop to use the phone as an EDGE modem, with the PC connected to the phone via either the USB cable, or Bluetooth.

I haven't tried it out yet - I'll do that sometime :oops: I'll do that tomorrow sometime.

For the people who responded with the barcode reader software details - thanks! I left that last post (with the pics) just before leaving for a 3-day weekend trip to the countryside (waterfalls, waterfalls, and my hands feel like prunes).

One thing I *did* manage to do was to do an OTA (other the air) ActiveSync of calendar and contacts to a Zimbra collaboration server I run (it acts just like an exchange server), which synced about 300 contacts and a dozen appointments over EDGE in under 2 minutes, which was cool. I just put in the URL of my Zimbra server as the "Server Source", and it said it was syncing with Exchange, while actually talking to Zimbra :wink:

I was also to pull email from a POP3 mail account, and send one back, send/receive multiple SMS messages, listen to music (both on headphones, and on the decently-loud speakerphone).

EDGE may not be WiFi, but it beats the pants off of the GPRS I was using before.

Question for anyone else using this phone: I went into settings, and changed the selected image for the external display background, but it still just has the red "Dopod" whenver the phone is open. Do I need to pick a 128x128 image, or is there something else going on?

[Kirkaiya]

Hey, for the tweakers and serious hardware gurus out there - I just stumbled upon an "Engineering Mode" for the HTC StrTrk (at least, for my Dopod S300 it works).

I found it in the registry (of the phone) at \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\HTC\EngineerMode

Basically, at the home screen, just start dialing the following (check your own registry if this doesn't work, maybe it varies by batch number or something):

*#*#364#*#*

After the last "*", the phone instantly goes into some egineering test mode. I don't have a screen-capture utility installed, but what shows up (on the phone) is a list of settings, in black text on white background, title-bar still visible and says "GSM" at top-left, with battery &amp; signal icons still visible, and the softmenu has "Done" and "Menu" visible (pushing "Menu" shows the options, "GSM", "AMR", and "GPRS").

On GSM, some of the settings are:

AFRCN: 275
LAC: 2767
RAC: 1
MCC: 520

and a bunch of other stuff (Cell ID, RSSI, AFRCN2, RSSI2, TPL, LRN, TMSI, PLUV and other stuff).

There are other cryptic acronyms that show up if you select GPRS, or AMR>

So anyway - maybe this is of some use to somebody :)

[tsahnocub]

Question for anyone else using this phone: I went into settings, and changed the selected image for the external display background, but it still just has the red "Dopod" whenver the phone is open. Do I need to pick a 128x128 image, or is there something else going on?

My Dopod doesn't show anything on the external screen when the phone is opened, regarless of what I'm doing. Only time anything shows up on the external screen is when it's closed and I either press one of the buttons or an event happens.

The wallpaper settings for the external screen just adjusts it for the wallpaper layout (ie, not the analog or digital layouts).

I only get the red Dopod logo when I boot up the phone.

[EDWARREN]

Does it allow a PPC or Laptop to tether to the EDGE network? And does that work well?

-Edgar

Yes. I have connected it via bluetooth to my laptop and was able to connect to Cingular's Edge network in Atlanta, GA. Having only used Edge on a phone i was impressed with how fast it seemed on my laptop.

Hey, for the tweakers and serious hardware gurus out there - I just stumbled upon an "Engineering Mode" for the HTC StrTrk (at least, for my Dopod S300 it works).

I found it in the registry (of the phone) at \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\HTC\EngineerMode


That trick also works on my QTEK 8500. Do you know a good registry editor that will write to the phone's registry? I get access denied with Mobile Registry Editor when i try and write to the phones registry. The reason I want to know is because I want to put custom ringtones on the storage card. Does anyone know if moving the sounds folder to the storage card and changing the Registry to point to that is able to survive the phone being restarted? If not, are there any other solutions for putting custom ringtones on the Storage Card?


Over all I really like this phone. The only problem I have had has been using voicing dialing over my motorola headset (bluetooth) to call people has caused the phone to refuse to hang up approxamately 4 times so far. Pressing end on the phone or the headset will not terminate the call. I have had to wait for the persons Voicemail to finally hangup on me before the call would end. I have made probobley hundreds of calls this way and it only does it sometimes. Anyone else had this problem?
Thanks

[Kirkaiya]

Question for anyone else using this phone: I went into settings, and changed the selected image for the external display background, but it still just has the red "Dopod" whenver the phone is open. Do I need to pick a 128x128 image, or is there something else going on?

My Dopod doesn't show anything on the external screen when the phone is opened, regarless of what I'm doing. Only time anything shows up on the external screen is when it's closed and I either press one of the buttons or an event happens.

The wallpaper settings for the external screen just adjusts it for the wallpaper layout (ie, not the analog or digital layouts).

I only get the red Dopod logo when I boot up the phone.

Very very strange indeed - on my Dopod, as soon as I open the phone (ie, unfold the clamshell), the external screen turns on, and the red "Dopod" logo is shown.

I found the actual file used - it's the Dopod128x128.jpg file, it's in the something/home folder (don't have time to check it again just now). I even replaced the stupid file with another, keeping that same name, but Dopod logo is still there. Even after turning off then on the phone (ie., soft reset).

Maybe later I'll try hunting in the registry. What's wierd is that for you, it doesn't come on at all, while for me, it's always on when the phone is open. Did you go into Settings->External Display, and change the background from "Default" or something? Hmm... I can't remember, do you have the Hong Kong version? (with chinese chars?). Mine is the "Thai" version, although I uninstalled the thai-language program.

[tsahnocub]

That trick also works on my QTEK 8500. Do you know a good registry editor that will write to the phone's registry? I get access denied with Mobile Registry Editor when i try and write to the phones registry. The reason I want to know is because I want to put custom ringtones on the storage card. Does anyone know if moving the sounds folder to the storage card and changing the Registry to point to that is able to survive the phone being restarted? If not, are there any other solutions for putting custom ringtones on the Storage Card?

I use the Mobile Registry Editior with my Dopod S300. I did find however, that at first, certain areas of the registry were locked out. I ended up having to use the HTC Application Unlocker program to fully unlock the registry to edit everything (this was how I was able to get cleartype enabled on my phone). I can't quite remember where I found it, but if anything, a google search should turn it up.

Very very strange indeed - on my Dopod, as soon as I open the phone (ie, unfold the clamshell), the external screen turns on, and the red "Dopod" logo is shown.

I found the actual file used - it's the Dopod128x128.jpg file, it's in the something/home folder (don't have time to check it again just now). I even replaced the stupid file with another, keeping that same name, but Dopod logo is still there. Even after turning off then on the phone (ie., soft reset).

Maybe later I'll try hunting in the registry. What's wierd is that for you, it doesn't come on at all, while for me, it's always on when the phone is open. Did you go into Settings->External Display, and change the background from "Default" or something? Hmm... I can't remember, do you have the Hong Kong version? (with chinese chars?). Mine is the "Thai" version, although I uninstalled the thai-language program.

I've noticed a lot of the Dopod images and settings also are duplicated inside the Windows folder, most likely in ROM. I'm sure that's so "system important OEM files" don't get deleted accidently. I'd have to double check, but I think that image might be one of them.

The version I have is the Hong Kong one. It came already set to english. I'm starting to think there's some fairly major differences with the software between various versions of this phone. For example, mine came with ClearType disabled and the external screen turns on but shows a blank black screen when the phone is open.

I'm wondering if there's a couple different Dopod ROM versions floating around out there. Mine came in a retail box with everything (although I didn't get any handstrap like you did, and no indication that I should've either).

What version numbers is your phone running?

[tsahnocub]

Here's a link to the Application/Registry Unlock program that I did use (and worked fine) on my Dopod S300. Mind you, the page does say that they recommend it only for the C550 phone, due to potential problems on other models. I found it to work ok with my phone, but as always, your mileage may vary.

You're probably safer just doing the manual instructions they say to.

Either way, both the automatic program and a link to the manual process are here:

http://www.spv-developers.com/forum/showthread.php?p=3803

After doing that, I was able to use Mobile Registry Editor to access the entire registry.

Hope that helps (just don't yell at me if it breaks something :wink:)

[EDWARREN]

Thanks tsahnocub,
I followed the manual instructions on the site which gave me a working Reg editor on my phone and made the one on my computer able to edit the phone.

I also finally figured out that if you want to put custom ringtones on your storage card all you have to do in Windows Mobile 5 is put them in the root directory of the storage card &amp; they can be in mid, mp3, wav... foramat. You don't have to do any registry edits, but it did require a soft restsart for it to load them properly. You also may be able to put them in /Storage Card/My Documents/.

Doing all this searching I also came accross a good website with many helpful tips that I thought I'd pass on. http://research.microsoft.com/~jamesrh/SmartPhone/SmartPhoneTips.htm

[Kirkaiya]

tsahnocub - My Dopod S300 Rom versions, as reported in Settings->System Information and Settings->About, are:

OS 5.1.195 (Build 14955.2.3.0)
ROM Version: 1.32.707.0
Radio Version 4.1.13.14_02.26.31
RIL Version 2.002

ROM update versions:
Operator: 5.1.195.14955
Manufacturer: 5.1.195.14955

(Microsoft, Language, and File System are all the same as Operator/Manf).

You can check the Dopod website to see if there are any ROM updates (the last ones they have posted are ROM version 1.32.707.0, Radio Version 4.1.13.14_02.26.31, which match what is on my phone already).

Thanks for the link to the unlocker, by the way!!! :P

[tsahnocub]

Interesting, mine doesn't report a ROM version, and I have a lower Radio version: 4.1.13.11_02.22.31

I'll look and see if I can find that rom version on dopods website, although, I'm hoping language doesn't become a barrier.

Looks like I might have ended up with a possibly pre-release ROM image on mine.

[tsahnocub]

After doing some searching, I've found a download for the ROM version you have, apparently some other people have an older ROM like I do.

I'm downloading now, hopefully I can get it to work.

This certainly explains a few *ahem* quirks that I've had with this one (like lack of cleartype when I got it). So we'll see what happens.

I'll keep you all posted.

[tsahnocub]

Well, it won't let me use the Taiwan ROM update because the CID on my phone is for Hong Kong.

Dopod hasn't released an update for the Hong Kong version yet.

So, until they release that, or there's a way to CID unlock the S300, I'm kinda SOL

[EDWARREN]

Interesting I have the QTEK 8500
ROM versin 1.02.251.1
Radio Version 4.1.13.17_02.32.31
and I am not sure where my hone originated from. The biggest problem I am having now is that the phone will not allow me to hang up occasionally after I initiate a call. Let em know if you have any luck upgrading your ROM, even though I think you have the DOPOD version.
Thanks Ed

[tsahnocub]

Yeah, I have the Dopod S300. I've heard that Qtek is supposed to bereleasing a ROM soon to fix some of the issues with their version (ie the missed call bug everyone on howardforums is complaining about).

I've also heard the SPV-Devs are working on getting CID unlock and stuff for the StarTrek, it's taking a little tim because the rom format changed.