What Mobile OS Are You Using?

[Ed Hansberry]

Windows Mobile 5 has been available now almost a year and I was wondering how many of you had moved to it. I know some of you have multiple devices, so when answering the poll, answer which mobile operating system you use most, and if you can't break a 50/50 tie if you have two devices with differing operating systems, then answer telling us which one you <i>prefer</i> to use.

[Rod3]

I've got 'em all. I have everything from my Jornada 568 to the Cingular 8125, plus several old Palms. I can't vote. However, until I got the 8125, I hated WM 5 (I had a Treo 700W) and blamed all the screwups on it. Now I find that was just Palm's implementation of it, and my 8125 does almost as well as the other devices. However, I actually prefer WM2003SE to WM5 at this point. And nothing pleases me more than my Jornada.

[CESkins]

I'm waiting for WM5 SE to come out and a new crop of PDAs w/ faster processors or GPUs to handle VGA. Until then I will stick w/ my Loox 720. MS never gets it right fully on their initial implementation of any new WinCE OS.

[Darius Wey]

Using Windows Mobile 5.0 on my M600 and lovin' it. On the other hand, I'm also using it on my X50v and it sucks like a vortex. It's a shame that while most of today's Windows Mobile 5.0 implementations are great, there are still a couple that leave much to be desired.

[OSUKid7]

Using WM5 on my Axim X51v and Cingular 2125... although, I hate to admit it, I'm barely using my Axim any more, since my Smartphone can do most things I need while away from my PC.

[KTamas]

WM5 on my MDA Vario. I'm lovin' it.

[Tierran]

I just started using WM5 this week on my new MDA Vario and I really like it.

[PhilH]

Stuck on WM2003SE with my Orange SPV M500, but I'm not too unhappy about it.

Would love a JASJAR, though, as I really miss a VGA screen.

[saru83]

Using WM5 on my Axim X51v and Cingular 2125... although, I hate to admit it, I'm barely using my Axim any more, since my Smartphone can do most things I need while away from my PC.

Glad to know that its working out for somebody this way, as i want to get a Qtek 8500 instead of my Atom but still a lil bit skeptical about it.. any suggesions :idea:

[alese]

I love my two WM5 devices. While not perfect WM5 is just great on a Phone Edition, compared to WM2003.

[bystander]

After the updated OS Upgrade for my HP 4700 (just released in the last 2 weeks), I must admit that I like WM5 better than the SE which preceeded it.

I also have an HP 2795 with WM5 from the OEM, that would be my most liked except for the lack of VGA.

Once you have a VGA device, you can never go back or least you will kicking and screaming.

:)

[Apoc]

I still use my iPaq h6365, win mobile 2003(non SE), it is still a nice device with wifi, bt, gsm, ir, and good battery life. having tried a few win mobile 2005 devices i find them not to be worth the upgrade cost.

HTC TyTn looks nice because of the HSDPA hardware support, and other advantages inherited from its predecessors, the form factor, keyboard, 802.11G, BT 2.0, i'll wait a little more to see if anything better comes out.

btw, someone forgot about UIQ on that list, although it is symbian-based, it has nothing to do with the nokia symbian branch, nothing at all, and in many ways it surpasses WMobile, the hardware cap has somewhat been lifted with the new SE P990.

[Silver5]

The 6315 was a pretty good device. I liked all 5 of them that I had. You know, I should revise that and say that it was pretty good while it worked, and it did work quite well for nearly three to four weeks at a time. The battery life was really almost a revelation for the PC phone world. Only my Qtek 9100 had gotten better battery life and that is two years later!

I really do like WM5 now, though I really was not convinced initially, as the little changes really have made the devices using this OS more useful. However, much more important than just the OS, since WM 2003 was still pretty good as far as I am concerned, is the hardware that is now available. The Qtek 9100 is absolutely the best thing that has happened to PPC phones. It is small and provides everything that any PPC can be expected to provide while still having impresive battery life. True, it isn't for the game players or movie watchers, but the battery life justifies that. Plus, gamers should be using playstations or something...these devices are about comunication. I don't even need to explain how good the HTC Universal is. Aside from its size, the Universal has it all, and I am surely enjoying using it.

[bacchus_3]

I have my ETEN M600 with WM5 back from repair. It's slick and quick, no worries about batteries getting drained. It was worth the upgrade from a stand alone PPC WM2003 to WM5 Phone Edition. Will have to see if AKU2 servers well when I go home from international roaming.

[buckyg]

I'm enjoying WM5 on my Ipaq hx4705, now that they put out that fix recently. The biggest plus is not worrying that a dead battery means a hard reset. Under WM2003SE, it did bug me the way that RAM was split between Program &amp; Storage and changed randomly. That is, until I read about the "NeverDorkMemory" trick on this site. So if they hadn't fixed WM5 for this Ipaq, I wouldn't have minded 2003SE too bad...

[JesterMania]

I'm using WM5 on my hx2790 and have no problems with it at all. Since I jumped into the PPC scene just about half a year ago, I've never used WM2003 SE and would like to give it a try one day (on someone else's device :wink: ). My friend says it's faster, but I've never had speed problems with WM5. Furthermore, I really don't like the idea of sharing storage and program execution space together. The only lag time is when I press the "Start" button the first time, or go into "Settings" or "Programs" and it attempts to load all the icons the first time. Once up it's pretty smooth sailing.

[natestera]

I use primarily LINUX Familiar GPE on my old 3955, but have also run Opie in the past. I use 2002 and 2003, WM etc on my other devices, but not as interesting...

[Pdaholic]

I've got an HTC Apache and a Universal. I was one of the early adopters of WM5, and I hated it initially. The bugs have been worked out now, it's faster (but still not as fast as my old WM2003 ipaq 4350), more stable, and persistent storage rocks. But with the exception of persistent storage, the OS isn't really better, IMO, compared to the 2003OS's. The hardware is consistently improving, however, so I keep upgrading.

[birick]

2003SE on my Axim X50v. I have the upgrade disk but, after reading nothing but bad news and hate stories from those who did the upgrade, I decided not to downgrade my PPC by installing the upgrade.

[Ed Hansberry]

The only lag time is when I press the "Start" button the first time, or go into "Settings" or "Programs" and it attempts to load all the icons the first time. Once up it's pretty smooth sailing.
that mainly happens when icons on the start menu are on storage cards. happens on my k-jam too.

[aquanaut]

Just switched from an h4150 to HTC Hermes (dopod 9000). WM5 is a much more refined OS -- for example, notifications don't overtake the screen. Most impressive new addition to the OS is the comm manager. No experience with a wm2003se phone edition, so can't objectively compare, but it's pretty neat how when both the phone is on and I have a wifi connection, internet access automatically goes to wifi. Even skype asks which connection I prefer. Pretty slick, but will keep my 4150 and t610 as a backup mobile device(s).

cheers

[lapchinj]

Don't you think ED that it's a little funny to ask users on this forum which OS they like better and then list Linux, Symbian and others here on a pretty solid PPC based forum? We probably have other members that use other OS's like Opie or Linux but it seems to me like going to a Democratic or Republican convention and asking them if they'll vote Democrat or Republican.

Oh Yeah I do use Opie on an old 3600 and have a Sharp 5000SL that I did some development and beta testing with for Sharp with. I was really hoping for some real interesting community driven stuff with these but alas all I could hack out with these is some pretty cool robots and stuff. Good to play with and teach my kids programming with but for real work it's still the PPC.

I currently have 2 x50v's, one running WM5. I loved the OS but it kept crashing and now the thing doesn't boot at all. This one's going to PocketPCTech for them to look at. The other runs 2003SE but it's slow in comparison to my main PDA which is my trusty, slim, never-crashed-once HP 4155. I haven't tried using it under water yet but it probably would work fine just like my Timex watch :mrgreen: .

Jeff-

[Ed Hansberry]

Don't you think ED that it's a little funny to ask users on this forum which OS they like better and then list Linux, Symbian and others here on a pretty solid PPC based forum?
I didn't ask what our readers like. I asked what they use. I know most are ppc users but I am not so naïve to assume our readership in 100% Windows Mobile.

This isn't a poll to determine anything except what makes up our readership, and the fact that it isn't 100% WM is pretty cool.

[ctmagnus]

I :ppclove: WM5 on my JAMin. It has the occasional slowdown, but that's to be expected, due to the RAM/ROM situation in WM5 devices and everything that goes along with it, which I actually prefer over the older versions.

[ucfgrad93]

OK, I'll be the first to admit I use Palm OS on a T5. It is rock solid and does everything I need it to.

[JesterMania]

The only lag time is when I press the "Start" button the first time, or go into "Settings" or "Programs" and it attempts to load all the icons the first time. Once up it's pretty smooth sailing.
that mainly happens when icons on the start menu are on storage cards. happens on my k-jam too.

Thanks for the solution, that makes sense. I really wish they would offer more internal ROM storage space on these devices. I'm particularly disappointed that most phone devices don't offer anything past 128mb. My ipaq has 135mb and that's not enough for me.

[melsam [MS]]

Hey, what about Microsofties working in the Windows Mobile product group? (hint: they don't use any of the OS options you currently provide :)

[Ed Hansberry]

]Hey, what about Microsofties working in the Windows Mobile product group? (hint: they don't use any of the OS options you currently provide :)
yeah, I thought about putting Windows Mobile.next as a choice, but that would just be rubbing it in. ;)

[gavinfabl]

The poll is to be expected, as most people viewing this site would have a ppc.

I have an XDA Mini S. I recently moved mobile operator to T-Mobile but got a Sony Ericsson M600i. This runs the latest symbian uiq 3. Its simple to use but not without flaws. However, the winning aspect for me at the moment is its true phone like size. You would never think it was a pda too.

The K-Jam is a more powerful device, but do you need all that juice.

BTW if anyone is interested I have a brand new, opened boxed MDA Vario. In addition, I will include a couple of batteries, one is the extended version and a retractable sync/charge cable all for £150.

[surur]

I think its really interesting that more than half of the readership has already transitioned to WM5. Unlike a PC, a new OS usually means a new device, and this means half of the people here has a PPC/Phone thats less than a year old. Thats a lot of churn right there.

Surur

[gavinfabl]

I think its really interesting that more than half of the readership has already transitioned to WM5. Unlike a PC, a new OS usually means a new device, and this means half of the people here has a PPC/Phone thats less than a year old. Thats a lot of churn right there.

Surur

Yes its interesting but not really surprising. Apart from the hardware advances I found WM5 very stable compared to earlier offerings. Plus the no loss of data if battery went flat etc..

[jgrnt1]

I still haven't gone the converged device route. I have an iPAQ 4700 running WM2003SE. I may try WM5 now that a more usable ROM is available for the 4700, but 2003SE has been great on the device. I think I would find it very difficult to give up the large VGA screen for portability or convergence. I do all my reading on the iPAQ and the screen size and resolution really makes a difference to me. It's also great for navigation (I use iGuidance). Lastly, I can use Bluetooth for the GPS, while I stream music via WiFi, from the ASUS WL-HDD I have installed in my trunk, and still check appointments. I have a hardwired Proclip mount in my car. With all the problems people had with the original WM5 upgrade for the 4700, I'd hate to upgrade and not have the horsepower to run Bluetooth, WiFi and other stuff at the same time.

[Hx4700]

I'm waiting for WM5 SE to come out and a new crop of PDAs w/ faster processors or GPUs to handle VGA. Until then I will stick w/ my Loox 720. MS never gets it right fully on their initial implementation of any new WinCE OS.
It's out - it's called WM5 2.01.
And I only had to do two hacks/tweaks to get close to 2003 SE speed and reliability with this one. :?
Ron...
PS - shouldnt we have a count for WM5 version 1 and 2 and 2.01???

[Yata]

I know some of you have multiple devices, so when answering the poll, answer which mobile operating system you use most

Whilst I love my O2 XDA Mini S (WM5), I do find that I use my Symbian-based Nokia E61 more. It's just so much faster and easier when making calls and sending text messages.

[pocketpcadmirer]

I have 3 windows mobile devices at present..

O2 Exec(htc universal)=wm5
O2 Atom Exec(test device actually for reviewing purposes)=wm5
O2 IIi(htc alphine)=wm2003SE

[snave11]

I know this is going to make me unpopular posting this in a PPC forum -- but I still prefer the PalmOS. I have Windows Mobile 2003 on Dell Axim x30 and just got Windows Mobile 5 on Dell Axim x50v -- but haven't set it up yet. I'm looking forward to checking it out.

Also have a Sidekick II, but only use it for staying in touch -- not for its PIM. That's why I hope to get a Treo (PalmOS-based) when my contract ends this year... it'll be interesting to see what happens with PalmOS.

[Ed Hansberry]

…just got Windows Mobile 5 on Dell Axim x50v -- but haven't set it up yet. I'm looking forward to checking it out.
please don't judge WM5 on an Axim X50 with the WM5 upgrade. I don't hve ftrst hand experience with it but understand Dell didn't do a great job with it and it isn't near as good as the X51. :(

[snave11]

I blundered. I got an x51v, not 50. Just double-checked.

[Ed Hansberry]

I blundered. I got an x51v, not 50. Just double-checked.
cool! :way to go: judge away. :)

[JohnJohn]

4 pages of responders and no mention of BLACKBERRY OS?

I'm currently swaping my SIM card back and forth from a Blackerry 8700 OS and a WM5 Cingular 8125

[Phillip Dyson]

I voted WinMob 2003SE.

I'm currently using my Toshiba e830 and Cingular 2125. I have a HTC Hermes coming in the next week though.

I'm excited about the Hermes but I remember trying convergence before and missed the VGA of my e830 terribly. So I went back.

I'm determined to make it work this time though. I really want to go converged.

[SHC]

How about my ipaq 4700?
2003SE to WM5 back to 2003SE then WM5 again and now back to 2003SE!
:roll:

[Mona13]

I voted WM2003SE as my primary device because I love my x50v and I read such bad reviews that I didn't "upgrade" to WM5.

I recently purchased a Cingular 8125. Which I also really like, but not enough to give up my x50v, so I carry both. (There really is a reason.)

I read a lot of books and like having 2 devices. I can read my book and keep my phone in my purse and talk via bluetooth. I wanted the 8125 mainly for the unlimited EDGE internet and a phone, plus it syncs with my contacts. Which by the way, is also a problem. It doesn't have the capability to only sync the name &amp; numbers without the notes.

I use notes a lot in Oulook contacts.. This works AWESOME in WM2003SE &amp; before and I can write as much as I want. In the Cingular 8125, it trunicates the the notes when it syncs. That's a REAL pain. So, I would like it to be able to sync only name &amp; number without the notes at all rather than trunicate them.

Are all WM5 devices like this or just the Cingular 8125?

Mona13

[DrAT]

I have a WM2003SE iPAQ hx4700, and the equivalent of an HTC Wizard, running WM5. I regard them as different devices for different purposes. I find the phone too small to be productive when it comes to some of its ablities. The screen is poor when compared with the iPAQ, and it's slow, though I overclock it when carrying out processor intensive tasks. However, I don't have to back it up in case I run out of power, and battery life is great. It's also small enough to carry when I haven't space for the iPAQ. 'Horses for courses.'
I still use a Psion 5mx and, very rarely, a Psion Revo. They run for days on a pair of AA batteries. The screen on the 5mx has more real estate than anything of its size I've seen since I bought it, and the keyboard is a joy to use. It's a shame it's only grey-scale. What finally moved me to Pocket PCs was the horrible connectivity suite, PsiWin.

[bnycastro]

Using WM5 PPC PE on the HTC Universal [O2 XDA Exec] I'm loving the improvements over previous versions of the OS... I do wish we could get new ROMs still [A2DP is still not *officially* supported on the Exec] even though the newer devices are out [or have been announced]. I like WM5 the nvfs gives peace of mind and the os works great when used with a hw keyboard. the O2 Exec is my 2nd WM5 device what really got me hooked on WM5 [and hw keyboard] was my dopod 838, great batt life but poor processor [come on wiz owners let's keep it real... it's a bit under powered ain't it!] made me sell it and go for the Uni. Waiting patiently for a dopod 838 pro or CHT 9000 [in english if that's possible] dunno if I can go back to qVGA though... I used a hp iPAQ rw6828 for 6 wks and sold it off as I found myself using the Exec more [VGA and hw keyboard]. I really wish they would release a next gen VGA PPC PE :D

[timcolling]

I'm waiting for WM5 SE to come out and a new crop of PDAs w/ faster processors or GPUs to handle VGA. Until then I will stick w/ my Loox 720. MS never gets it right fully on their initial implementation of any new WinCE OS.

I hate to be naive, but I have to ask: has Msft actually announced plans for a WM5 SE? If so, this is the first I've heard of it.

- Tim

[bleeman]

Windows XP Professional TabletPC edition as my primary mobile device these days is an HP TC4200 Tablet PC. My secondary device is an Mpx220 running WM2003SE.

[Phillip Dyson]

I'm waiting for WM5 SE to come out and a new crop of PDAs w/ faster processors or GPUs to handle VGA. Until then I will stick w/ my Loox 720. MS never gets it right fully on their initial implementation of any new WinCE OS.

I hate to be naive, but I have to ask: has Msft actually announced plans for a WM5 SE? If so, this is the first I've heard of it.

- Tim

There is an article around here somewhere that talked about the next 2 verstions of WM. One of them codenamed Crossbow. I'll see if I can find it.

Edit: Heres one link (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=44960&amp;highlight=crossbow).

[Steve Jordan]

It's interesting to me that, in this post, a majority of people have upgraded to WM5... yet, in the post about old software becoming a liability (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=50655&amp;postdays=0&amp;postorder=asc&amp;vote=viewresult&amp;sid=f40d8e0ff8d7f81e770a4bcc35a682fe), the overwhelming majority sticks with old SW. Many of them say they stick with old HW, too. Is there a disconnect here?