I Spent My Weekend High In The Smoky Mountains!

[Ed Hansberry]

Err... wait. That didn't come out right. ;)<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/hansberry/2003/20030329-hemp.jpg" /><br /><br />I took a few days off from work and Pocket PC Thoughts. I spotted the above store within a few minutes of our family pulling into <a href="http://www.gatlinburg-tennessee.com/">Gatlinburg</a>. :lol:<br /><br />I did carry my Pocket PC but not my cell phone as it was getting a ROM upgrade, and after getting it back Saturday afternoon I can't tell a bit of difference in my dropped calls with the T68i ROM. My wife's Samsung never drops a call. :evil: If Verizon accepts phone number transfers this fall, I will probably ditch T-Mobile. It has been a while since I relied on a 56K modem for communications, but it wasn't too bad. Probably better since I only checked email in the morning and evening. :)

[mshanks]

Totally unrelated...but that's a *BEAUTIFUL* area. I live in Oregon, but I had family that lived there for years. The Smoky mountians are a unique wonder of the world.

[Sparkomatic]

Somewhat unrelated but... you mentioned Verizon taking phone transfers. Are you taking about taking your non-Verizon cellphone number and transferring it over to Verizon service? Is this something only Verizon is doing?

[Paul P]

Ed, I don't suppose you can get a case made out of hemp for iPaq there?

[Down8]

"High" in the Smoky Mts, with a picture of a "hemp" store.... Hm... related?

-bZj

[Janak Parekh]

Somewhat unrelated but... you mentioned Verizon taking phone transfers. Are you taking about taking your non-Verizon cellphone number and transferring it over to Verizon service? Is this something only Verizon is doing?
Check the next news post of mine coming shortly... :)

Ed: re the T68i -- sounds like T-Mo's coverage in your area is just subpar. Sorry to hear it. :cry:

--janak

[Omikron]

Hey Ed,

You do realize that the T68i is known for crappy RF performance right? I have a feeling if you just tried another phone you'd have a much better experience. The dropped calls are the fault of the phone and not T-Mobile. Although I myself still have a T68i (Sexy + Bluetooth), I use the other features too often to ditch this phone yet. However, if your phone doesn't hold a good signal in your area, even after the newest flash upgrade, then go to a T-Mobile dealer and ask for a loaner phone to try while your other phone is being upgraded. You may be delightfully suprised.

[Ed Hansberry]

Somewhat unrelated but... you mentioned Verizon taking phone transfers. Are you taking about taking your non-Verizon cellphone number and transferring it over to Verizon service? Is this something only Verizon is doing?
Verizon is committed to accepting numbers from other carriers by November. Of course, they won't let theirs go to other carriers.

All of this is moot if the FCC mandates number portability this fall.

[Janak Parekh]

You do realize that the T68i is known for crappy RF performance right? I have a feeling if you just tried another phone you'd have a much better experience. The dropped calls are the fault of the phone and not T-Mobile. Although I myself still have a T68i (Sexy + Bluetooth), I use the other features too often to ditch this phone yet. However, if your phone doesn't hold a good signal in your area, even after the newest flash upgrade, then go to a T-Mobile dealer and ask for a loaner phone to try while your other phone is being upgraded. You may be delightfully suprised.
And which phone are you going to use if you want BT? There's the new Siemens S55, but it's not sold by T-Mo yet. Neither is the Nokia 3650. I guess you could buy them unlocked...

Besides, the T68(i) is not that much worse, IMHO. It seems to vary on a lot of factors. I've had pretty good results in NYC, myself.

--janak

[ctmagnus]

Heh... They're slash burning across the valley this weekend. Kinda gives "high in the smoky mountains" it's true meaning.

[arjay]

Somewhat unrelated but... you mentioned Verizon taking phone transfers. Are you taking about taking your non-Verizon cellphone number and transferring it over to Verizon service? Is this something only Verizon is doing?
Verizon is committed to accepting numbers from other carriers by November. Of course, they won't let theirs go to other carriers.

All of this is moot if the FCC mandates number portability this fall.

Actually already mandated by FCC...however, the implementation has been delayed for a couple of years as infrastructure wasn't in place to accommodate it. It doesn't look like FCC will accept another delay this year however, and most players are already gearing up for it for November. It will make things interesting. --arjay

[spg]

Not to get away from this wonderful discussion of cell phones, but...

Gatlinburg and that area is a great place for a vacation, the smoky mountains really are wonderful. We went there for our vacation last summer, stayed in a cabin up in the mountains. Quite a place for someone who at that time lived in Oklahoma (flat, windy just about covers it). Hope you had a great time there Ed!

[Omikron]

You do realize that the T68i is known for crappy RF performance right? I have a feeling if you just tried another phone you'd have a much better experience. The dropped calls are the fault of the phone and not T-Mobile. Although I myself still have a T68i (Sexy + Bluetooth), I use the other features too often to ditch this phone yet. However, if your phone doesn't hold a good signal in your area, even after the newest flash upgrade, then go to a T-Mobile dealer and ask for a loaner phone to try while your other phone is being upgraded. You may be delightfully suprised.
And which phone are you going to use if you want BT? There's the new Siemens S55, but it's not sold by T-Mo yet. Neither is the Nokia 3650. I guess you could buy them unlocked...

Besides, the T68(i) is not that much worse, IMHO. It seems to vary on a lot of factors. I've had pretty good results in NYC, myself.

--janak

Why, the Sony Ericsson T610 of course! (Rumored due out in April)

Official Page at http://www.sonyericsson.com/t610/index.htm?specifications

Preliminary Review at http://www.mobile-review.com/review/sonyericsson-t610-en.shtml

More pics at http://www.dreamsp.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=36

Yes, there's more links: http://mobile.burn.com/review.jsp?Page=1&Id=266

Holy Crap more pictures! http://www.cellularmania.kataweb.it/novita/ericsson/se_2003/index_t610.shtm

[st63z]

^ Oh sweet! Does Krussell or anyone else have a "condom" (not my term) case for it yet (not obscuring the back cam)?

P.S. Looks very nice Ed. I must admit though after a while many of the locale sceneries start to look similar to other places ( http://www.gatlinburg-tennessee.com/presskit/photo.htm )...

[CTSLICK]

Ed,

Love my T68...hate my coverage (T-mobile). Cruising around the Twin Cities...its all good. Go inside a building...hey...where did my signal go. (The exceptions are the malls that have T-mo stores, the Metrodome and the Xcel Energy Center.) Head out of town...hey...where did my signal go.

I used Sprint before this, got similar service around town but in my experience my signal in same buildings and the same areas outside the metro was FAR better.

I blame myself...all the warnings were out there on the discussion forums...but NNNOOOOOO...I just HAD to have a T-68.

My T-mo contract is up in Sept...tick tock tick tock. :evil:

[johnegq]

My wife and I both have the t68i and we always have trouble placing a call. Bluetooth headsets are fun but the phone's interface and reception are terrible. We have resorted to selling them on Ebay.

[Delta737]

You do realize that the T68i is known for crappy RF performance right? I have a feeling if you just tried another phone you'd have a much better experience. The dropped calls are the fault of the phone and not T-Mobile. Although I myself still have a T68i (Sexy + Bluetooth), I use the other features too often to ditch this phone yet. However, if your phone doesn't hold a good signal in your area, even after the newest flash upgrade, then go to a T-Mobile dealer and ask for a loaner phone to try while your other phone is being upgraded. You may be delightfully suprised.
And which phone are you going to use if you want BT? There's the new Siemens S55, but it's not sold by T-Mo yet. Neither is the Nokia 3650. I guess you could buy them unlocked...

Besides, the T68(i) is not that much worse, IMHO. It seems to vary on a lot of factors. I've had pretty good results in NYC, myself.

--janak

Well the T68(i) is that much worse. Mine lost contact a lot, although I was on the best provider here in Holland. And besides, my Nokia 7210 and SonyEricsson P800 didn't loose contact.

So Ed, don't be too hard on your provider, try another phone (other options mentioned in the replys above :D )

[Jason Dunn]

Well the T68(i) is that much worse. Mine lost contact a lot, although I was on the best provider here in Holland. And besides, my Nokia 7210 and SonyEricsson P800 didn't loose contact.

Strange, I've been very impressed with my T68i...haven't had any issues with signal strength at all. So I don't know if it's fair to say that all T68i's are flawed.

[Abba Zabba]

I've had my t68i since Nov of last year and my service provider is with AT&T in the US. I have experienced some service interruptions but for the most part have been fairly happy with the phone. I think it has alot more to do with your GSM service provider more than it does with the t68i (IMHO).

And how did you get the ROM upgrade?

[Rob Alexander]

A beautiful place for a vacation, Ed. We used to live about 40 minutes away in Maryville, TN and made ventures into the Smokies a regular part of our lives. Since moving to New Zealand, I've travelled all over the world and have to say that there's still nowhere that I find more beautiful than the Appalachians--and the Smokies are the jewel of the range. :sunny:

In fact, we love the area so much that later this year, we are leaving New Zealand (after 10 years) and moving to the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia. I look forward to a visit to Gatlinburg and to your favorite store when I return! :hippy:

[TopDog]

Seems that you US-people generally have bad coverage on GSM!? Here in Scandinavia we have many high hills/fjords/unpopulated territory, but still I have NEVER experienced bad coverage as long as I'm not far out to sea or in nomans-land...

As the matter of fact more and more scandinavians, both privat and at work base their speech-communication only on GSM, no more phonelines... I haven't had a "regular" phone for years...

Even when I was here (it's me to the right) on the top of Hemsedal:
http://www.topdogs.no/pictures/image/2002/alte_gaute_paasken.jpg
I had full coverage on my GSM-phone! And I took this picture with a digital camera, transfered it to my PPC and sent it by mail to my boss while on the top ;-)

[bostonnerd]

--janak[/quote]

Well the T68(i) is that much worse. Mine lost contact a lot, although I was on the best provider here in Holland. And besides, my Nokia 7210 and SonyEricsson P800 didn't loose contact. So Ed, don't be too hard on your provider, try another phone (other options mentioned in the replys above :D )[/quote]

Agreed!! I've had the T68m for about 6 months and just bought the Motorola T720i. What a differance! In areas that had _no_ coverage with the T68, I'm now getting decent RF with the 720. The T68 used to go from 2 bars to zero signal by just wrapping my hand around it. Yes, I gave up Bluetooth/GPRS but the differance in voice quality and signal capture was well worth the tradeoff. BTW, I live in the Boston area, and while Tmobile is very solid around the city, it becomes quite variable in the western 'burbs.

[Janak Parekh]

Why, the Sony Ericsson T610 of course! (Rumored due out in April)
Yes, but it's not out either. Like the S55 or the Nokia 3650. :evil:

In areas that had _no_ coverage with the T68, I'm now getting decent RF with the 720. The T68 used to go from 2 bars to zero signal by just wrapping my hand around it.
Actually, this brings up an important point about using this phone correctly. If you've held the T68(i) against your ear, make sure you're not holding it by putting fingers against the top back part of the phone. That little area, right above the battery, is the antenna, and covering it will worsen reception noticeably. Also, when keeping it in your pocket, keep the back to the outside. These two little tricks make the T68(i)'s reception quite a bit more tolerable.

In any case, I've used a P280, a T68m, and a Pocket PC Phone on the T-Mo GSM network in the NYC metro area (and a few others while traveling). The T68m was about a "half-bar" less, receptionwise, but in most cases was able to make calls wherever the P280 and PPCPE can. I know people have been blown away by the P280's reception, but perhaps it's an NYC thing -- it's been better, but not really that much better, for me. I've never had the "doesn't work at all with T68 but works with other phones" symptom, myself.

Strange, I've been very impressed with my T68i...haven't had any issues with signal strength at all. So I don't know if it's fair to say that all T68i's are flawed.
This is the #1 complaint about the T68(i) - and it's very common - so I don't think it's a hardware defect. My suspicion is that it's dependent on the "kind" of signal weakness you have, if that makes any sense (and, of course, the way people hold the phones).

Seems that you US-people generally have bad coverage on GSM!?
Correct. GSM is the least built-out of all digital networks here in the US, although that's changing. CDMA (Verizon, in particular) is the most extensive digitalwise, with AT&T's TDMA being very close. Analog still reigns supreme in non-urban areas - and that's largely due to the US's geography and population density. I'd stick with Verizon, but I can't get the features I want (either BT or a Pocket PC Phone). If they release the Samsung SPH-i700, I'll seriously consider switching back.

And how did you get the ROM upgrade?
Sony Ericsson offers it now, I believe; there are also third parties, but they're relatively rare in the US.

--janak

[Weyoun6]

I'm suprised at all the complaints about T-mo. T-Mobile has the best coverage here, probably because its a new network, while ATT has the worst here.

I think it probably a combination of phone, service and user that are causing the problems.

GSM is the smallest service in the states, although ATT is trying to covert to GSM/GPRS from TDMA.

Even when I was here (it's me to the right) on the top of Hemsedal

We dont usually get coverage on mountain tops, because of laws protecting nature, etc. Scandinavia is much smaller than the entire united states. We have more area to cover. I bet the coverage in upper canada is awful (because no one lives there).

[Janak Parekh]

I'm suprised at all the complaints about T-mo. T-Mobile has the best coverage here, probably because its a new network, while ATT has the worst here.
It varies tremendously throughout the US. Here, T-Mo is an evolution of VoiceStream's network, which is an evolution of the old OmniPoint network. Not terrible, but much spottier than one would like - especially in the suburbs.

--janak

[Ekkie Tepsupornchai]

I did carry my Pocket PC but not my cell phone as it was getting a ROM upgrade
Ed, did you verify the software version on your phone (version R7A013, viewable by pressing ">*&lt;&lt;*&lt;*")? I've heard some horror stories of people sending their phones in and getting their phone back with a lower software revision!! 8O

Overall, SonyEricsson support in the US is horrible. In Munich, I was able to walk into an authorized 3rd-party dealer, hand over my phone and get it back fully upgraded 25 minutes later without paying a cent (as they were able to determine with one glace that my phone was still under warranty). Why can't we have that kind of support here?

[Janak Parekh]

Overall, SonyEricsson support in the US is horrible. In Munich, I was able to walk into an authorized 3rd-party dealer, hand over my phone and get it back fully upgraded 25 minutes later without paying a cent (as they were able to determine with one glace that my phone was still under warranty). Why can't we have that kind of support here?
It's improved, though. They actually offer "m -> i" upgrades now. You won't see the dealer-like solutions until the exchangeability of phones becomes pervasive here. Right now, the notion of a carrier, account, and phone all being closely tied together is very pervasive here.

--janak

[Jimmy Dodd]

Thanks to all for the kind words about my mountains, and a particular hello to Rob Alexander in NZ for mentioning my hometown of Murvuhl.

Ed, you should have dropped me a line before visiting, I would have dragged you out onto the hiking trails, rain or no rain. :D

[brianchris]

I have to tell you, I have had a T68m on AT&T Wireless ever since they first became availible in my town (May, 2002), and since then, I have had a *tremendous* amount of signal problems. Specifically, despite having good coverage, incoming calls would go straight to voicemail......no ringing on the phone, no missed call indication, no voicemail waiting indication :evil: Interestingly enough, outgoing calls mostly seemed to go fine, given the limited GSM coverage area in the USA.

In trying to solve my incoming call issue above, I tried practically everything, including making sure at least once a day the phone was power cycled (on AT&T's recomendation), and keeping the GPRS radio off for a period of time for testing (on Sony Ericsson's recomendation). Nothing worked, and so it went until last last month, during all of which time my wife became quite upset that she couldn't reach me. She argued that what good was a cell phone if it can't make and recieve calls (who cares what else it can do), and I couldn't argue with that. I just wanted to exhaust all options before I gave up my Bluetooth / GPRS capabale phone.

Finally, I decided to insist on a replacement T68 from AT&T wireless, and recieved that (as I said above) in the middle of February. While the new phone was still a T68m (where I had hoped it would be a T68i), it seemed to have extremely new firmware on it, perhaps even the same firmware of the T68i. Regardless, the phone seemed to make and recieve calls much better.

However, just two days after I recieved the new phone, on a hunch I sprang for a new type of case. You see, I'd previously been using an old Nokia horizontal laether case that was designed for the Nokia 8260 (my previous phone), but fit the T68 perfectly. After such a long period of roblems, I realized that if the phone was out of that case, it had preformed better. The problem was, it was almost always in the case on my belt.

The new case I bought was this one:
http://www.sonyericsson.com/us/spg.jsp?page=start&Redir=template%3DPS1%26B%3Die%26PID%3D9908%26LM%3DPSM_V

This new case had a belt clip and held the phone horizontally on my belt (two requirements for me). However, it really isn't a traditional case at all. Indeed, the clear plastic sheath stays on the phone all the time, whether its on your belt, in your desktop charger, or even while your talking on it....the sheath part just securely clips on and off of the belt clip portion which stays on your belt at all times. The key here is that the sheath holds the T68 phone antenna out (away from your body) while on your belt, AND there is little to nothing covering the actual antenna portion of the the phone at all times.

The result is I've never missed a call since recieveing the new phone and the new case. I never tried just the new phone out long enough without the case to tell which actually made the real difference, but believe it or not, I feel the case had more to do with it than the phone. Bottom line is, everyone's happy: my wife can reach me now, and I still have a small, bluetooth and GPRS capable phone.

My only reason for posting my saga (which I've actaully shortened quite a bit) is because I had so many problems. Perhaps what I had learned could help others.

-Brian