Afraid to Upgrade

[piperpilot]

I have been anticipating the arrival of my Windows Mobile 2003 Upgrade from HP for quite a long time now. Well, it arrived in the mail today but I'm having second thoughts. My iPAQ 5455 is running really well right now. I guess I'm not looking forward to all the tweaking and updating applications that's going to be involved in doing the upgrade.

So, help me out. Should I take the plunge with WM 2003 or should I maintain a deathgrip on Pocket PC 2002?

[Jeff Rutledge]

I asked my Magic 8 ball and it said "Ask again later...".

Sorry. :mrgreen:

[xbalance]

I upgraded my Dell Axim a week ago and I had the same questions. I made the plunge and even though I do not regret installing the software, I still am not sure if it was worth the time an hassle. I definitely do not think it was worth the near $40. Hopefully I will change my mind later.

The one thing I noticed is that Windows Media Player is less choppy. Woopee!

[Dave Beauvais]

I upgraded my h5455 to WM2003 a month or so ago and would never go back to PPC2002. Pocket IE is much nicer, Media Player performance is dramatically improved, and as long as you don't need static IPs, the new Zero Configuration Wireless is a nice feature -- though if you use WEP encryption or turn off SSID broadcasting, it's not quite "Zero Configuration".

Another reason, of course, is that you just spent $30 on it. Why would you not use it? :) Seriously, though, I installed the upgrade and am very impressed by it. I had no problems with software compatibility, and setting everything up went very smoothly.

One note since you play Pocket EverQuest: The first time you run the game under WM2003, the touch screen alignment will be way off for some bizarre reason. You have to exit the game by pressing the "iTask" button, align the screen using the Screen Settings applet, then start the game again. Why? I don't know.

--Dave

[delfuhd]

Well I went from a 3850/3970 to a 2215, though I still have my 3850. And all I can say is, WM2003 is MUCH better than PPC2002. When I installed my socket wifi drivers, I inserted the card, and BAM! It found my AP and I was connected! Amazing I must say, it really helps with wireless config. Also it's much less choppy in WMP, as stated before, and WMP9 series runs so muh better. The little fixes, too, make a big difference, like the autocomplete thing for typing, it's just so improved.

Also, I don't know if anyone has noticed, but when you tap+hold, the little swirly icon is the same color as your current theme! Didn't happen in PPC2002 to my knowledge, and it's pretty nifty.

And if you bought the upgrade, might as well use it. It really optomizes the 5455's processor's ability, though how optomized can you get with a MS OS? heh... well anyway that's my two cents. ANd besides, you can always back up the 2002 ROM, so you've got nothing to lose, mate. Good luck!

EDIT: Well I didn't see Dave's post until after I posted my post, so things are repeating, but the point is still there! lol :ninja:

[famousdavis]

I love computers and since getting my first PPC last March, I've really grown to like PPCs, too. I'm still learning new tricks on my hp 1910, which isn't upgradeable, and even if it were, I wouldn't.

I've spent many a sleepless night undoing a software upgrade gone bad. Over the years, I've moved away from wanting to be the first one on the block to have something, to the second guy on the block to have something after the first guy bought the upgrade, had it foul up his system, and worked through tech support to resolve the issue and permitted the software vendor to release a x.1 version. Then I upgrade.

Sometimes.

After reading the improvements made to WM2003, there is no compelling reason for most people to upgrade. Better Pocket IE? I read my AvantGo pages just fine with PPC2002 Pocket IE. Better Windows Media Player performance? I don't notice any skipping or halting playback on my 1910 with PPC2002. As for the under-the-cover changes to the OS, who cares? From an end-user standpoint, there was no good reason for most PPC users to upgrade. WM2003 was, by Microsoft's admission, an effort to build a new code base upon which future enhancements will be made. That's great news -- for WM2004 or WM2005 users! :-)

So I sit happily with my 1910 running PPC2002 and anxious to skip over WM2003-based PPCs to get the to the next-generation PPC devices.

[PeO]

I loved my Jornada 568 and I was fairly happy with the Windows Media performance (what a great novelty watching movies on handheld device) as well as the IE - reading just AvantGo. With my new piece of equipment with the Windows Mobile 2003, I enter a brand new level of experience, suddenly you can watch movies not having the image blured by pixels at fast movements etc - you shall not underestimate the significance of WM8 and WM9 compatibility. Furthermore the improved IE makes it worthwhile to watch other stuff than just the dowloaded AvantGo pages.

My advice is: Upgrade!

[ChristopherTD]

I wavered initially, because my 5450 was settled under PPC2002.

After upgrading I am very much in favour.

Cleartype everywhere makes it all a lot easier on the eyes.

The WiFi/BT/Dial up is less of a pain than with PPC2002 (though still a bit quirky). At least I now have it so that I can sync and surf via WiFi without having to change any settings.

Performance is a bit better in most areas, and certainly not noticeably worse.

All of my apps still work.

I would go for it at once!

[piperpilot]

Based on your feedback, I decided to do the upgrade. It's about half way done now. I will post later and let you all know how I fared. I'm still uneasy about it, but I know that eventually I will be glad that I did it. Besides, as a couple of you pointed out, I did spend $30 on the upgrade so I might as well use it.

[piperpilot]

It's finally done. I spent much of the day yesterday doing the upgrade and loading all my applications back on to my iPAQ. The installation went pretty much without a hitch. I must say, however, that so far I'm not blown away by WM 2003. I haven't noticed any increase in speed or performance. In fact, web pages seem to load slower over the WLAN than they did with PPC 2002. I will give it some time though--I haven't really used the iPAQ much since finishing the upgrade. Right now, however, while I'm happy to have the latest OS installed without too much heartburn, I am largely disappointed :(

[Myrddin]

It's finally done. I spent much of the day yesterday doing the upgrade and loading all my applications back on to my iPAQ. The installation went pretty much without a hitch. I must say, however, that so far I'm not blown away by WM 2003. I haven't noticed any increase in speed or performance. In fact, web pages seem to load slower over the WLAN than they did with PPC 2002. I will give it some time though--I haven't really used the iPAQ much since finishing the upgrade. Right now, however, while I'm happy to have the latest OS installed without too much heartburn, I am largely disappointed :(
I too just received and complete my upgrade. I have found everything to be much much faster. Pocket IE is miles ahead of the PPC2k2 version and WMP receives a much needed upgrade. I too will report back my finds :)

[piperpilot]

Myrddin: What specifically about IE do you like better? Other than better page sizing, I didn't notice anything different, although as I said in my previous post, I haven't used it that much since the upgrade.

[Myrddin]

Myrddin: What specifically about IE do you like better? Other than better page sizing, I didn't notice anything different, although as I said in my previous post, I haven't used it that much since the upgrade.
Hey,
I love the CSS support, also, pages load faster and render 'nicer' than they did in PPC2002. At least for me...

[piperpilot]

Forgive me for my ignorance, but what is CSS?

I agree with you about the page rendering. That does seem to be improved.

I wonder why my pages are loading so slowly? You have a 5450, right? Did you install either or both of the WLAN firmware update and driver update from HP's web site? I did, and maybe that's why I'm experiencing a decrease in performance. These updates are supposed to enhance performance, but you know how these things go sometimes.

[Myrddin]

Forgive me for my ignorance, but what is CSS?

I agree with you about the page rendering. That does seem to be improved.

I wonder why my pages are loading so slowly? You have a 5450, right? Did you install either or both of the WLAN firmware update and driver update from HP's web site? I did, and maybe that's why I'm experiencing a decrease in performance. These updates are supposed to enhance performance, but you know how these things go sometimes.
CSS is a design... code (for lack of a better word) that allows web designers to lay out their websites easily and with better control. It makes the web look better ;) The previous IE didn't support it (at all? not sure...)

I haven't installed any updates other than the upgrade to WM2003.

[piperpilot]

It sounds like I should have left well enough alone with the WLAN. Live and learn, I suppose. With the new OS, how do you find out the strength of the signal that you're getting from your wireless router? I can't seem to find anything that allows me to check the settings and signal strength.

[Myrddin]

It sounds like I should have left well enough alone with the WLAN. Live and learn, I suppose. With the new OS, how do you find out the strength of the signal that you're getting from your wireless router? I can't seem to find anything that allows me to check the settings and signal strength.
I haven't quite figured that one out yet either. I'm using Cirond's PocketWinC to check and connect to different AP's at the moment though. :)

[ChristopherTD]

It sounds like I should have left well enough alone with the WLAN. Live and learn, I suppose. With the new OS, how do you find out the strength of the signal that you're getting from your wireless router? I can't seem to find anything that allows me to check the settings and signal strength.

If you tap the connection arrows on the title bar it will pop up a "speech bubble" that lets you turn the wireless off - there is also a strength of signal indicator there, though it is pretty small...

[Jer]

piperpilot,
Install PocketWinc. It is so much simpler then wm2003. It will tell you the signal strength of all access points around you. A must have for anyone on wifi.