Cingular 8525 (HTC Hermes) Pics Leaked, Sports PTT?

[Janak Parekh]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.modaco.com/index.php?showtopic=244422' target='_blank'>http://www.modaco.com/index.php?showtopic=244422</a><br /><br /></div>Here's some exciting and promising GSM Pocket PC news for American customers: not only have pictures of Cingular's Hermes device, called the "8525", been leaked, they suggest that PTT (push-to-talk) has been added. 8O Modaco suggests that it's the Hermes 100 model, instead of the 200 model we've already seen a lot of. (An even higher, press-quality image <a href="http://forum.xda-developers.com/files/8525.jpg">is on XDA-Developers</a>; another interesting fact is that the 100 seems to omit a forward-facing camera.) <br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/parekh-20060820-Cingular8525.jpg" /><br /><br />Previous rumors have suggested a late-summer-to-fall timeframe, which makes sense, but PTT would come as a complete surprise to me. I doubt WM has built-in support for it, although I guess an OEM could add it. In any case, if Cingular places this device at the right price point, I might be tempted to finally jump the crippled-EVDO-ship. ;)

[Darius Wey]

Now there's a good looking device, with the right colour coordination. The black/grey isn't overpowering. :)

[JonnoB]

No front facing camera... no videophone. :?

[ADBrown]

No front facing camera... no videophone. :?

Do you really want to have to style your hair for a phone call? :lol:

[Silver5]

That really is a nice looking Pocket PC phone. I really do like it. I don't think it is worth the current extreme prices but I may buy one in a few months. I can't benefit from the high speed access for at least that long anyways...my Qtek 9000 and 9100 will have to hold me over until then!

I really hope T-Mobile releases it as well. Once they have their higher speed networks this phone will be a real upgrade from the 9100/MDA/K-Jam.

[Gator5000e]

Looks great. If speeds are as predicted I will be trading up from the 8125.

Any news if net access will still be via MEdiaNet for 19.99 or will it go to the higher pda unlimited price?

[nitestrike]

I'm all but there if it's not expensive. Not much bigger than my JAMin and a keyboard.

[beq]

No front facing camera... no videophone. :?
I too was getting intriqued by this novelty feature :( Seems like it would be another great app to showcase Cingular's UMTS speed...

But does anyone know how the HTC TyTN's (Hermes 200) built-in videophone app work? Can you only do video calling with other TyTN users??


P.S. Is it just the Cingular 8525 that doesn't have the front-facing camera, or does the Hermes 100 design itself omit it?

[Nurhisham Hussein]

But does anyone know how the HTC TyTN's (Hermes 200) built-in videophone app work? Can you only do video calling with other TyTN users??


No, you should be able to do videocalls between any UMTS device (with a front camera) on the same network. Here in Malaysia we can even videocall across carrier networks. Costs an arm and a leg though, and probably the least utilised part of the 3G services here.

[stllhogan]

i've been waiting for this for a few months since i heard the rumors of it coming to cingular, i started to disbelive after what seems like forever. i bought a micro sd card knowing this would be my next pda/phone. ill probally upgrade in oct because my contract lessens and i will get a discount. and if not ill just buy the thing whole, i was looking on the uk sites today and thought $630 seemed decent enough.

it's sad that there is no camera, im not to intrested in the video confrencing but i might use it or to take a picture/mirror myself. but the sadest part in my mind, is that the front camera kinda was pushing new technology, i mean it starts with one, but then it grows, who knows maybe it will save dramatic amounts of money or cingular wasn't set up for it yet. both ways its mine.

it also seems time to upgrade from my 2002 genio e550g, out of date i must say, :cry:

[aNiMeMaN14]

that pic provided looks sooooo fake :oops:

[jngold_me]

that pic provided looks sooooo fake :oops:

It doesn't look that "fake" at all. It looks like a Hermes 100 device to me. I was hoping Cingular would pickup the 100 version rather than the plain-ish looking 200 verision (ala TyTN).

[aNiMeMaN14]

It doesn't look that "fake" at all.
Yes, it does. Conceptually, no, it's not hard to believe at all. But the image provided looks heavily doctored using Photoshop. Some other sites have the pic, along with the word "CONFIDENTIAL" written under the picture, furthering my belief that this picture is a fake.

/2¢

[beq]

The thing is, my T-Mobile service is already out of contract, and so is my family's ATTWS family plan. I was just about to plunge into a new Cingular family plan for everyone (including my fiancee). How long do you think we'll have to wait for the Cingular 8525's arrival??

The past few months I've been over my minutes by hundreds, so I've been paying hundreds of dollars per month :(

[Janak Parekh]

Yes, it does. Conceptually, no, it's not hard to believe at all. But the image provided looks heavily doctored using Photoshop. Some other sites have the pic, along with the word "CONFIDENTIAL" written under the picture, furthering my belief that this picture is a fake.
Look at the original press pic in my link -- it looks like a very standard press picture, and I've seen a lot of them. In general, they all look a little fake because the pictures are too perfect, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's touched up as per a press pic. In fact, I cropped this pic from the original, and the "CONFIDENTIAL" lettering is still there.

The only part that seems remotely suspicious is the PTT button - the lettering is a bit faint. I really doubt any of the rest is fake, though.

--janak

[netboy]

, if Cingular places this device at the right price point, I might be tempted to finally jump the crippled-EVDO-ship. ;)

shouldnt u wait for EVDO revA first before jumping? didnt Version said EVDO revA will go live in 4Q 2006? that should be around the same time as Cingular Hymen releases.. i go with whoever give me the FASTEST speed..

[Jerry Raia]

I'll get it even if it is fake! :lol:

[fone_fanatic]

For the hermes being released on cingular, its not fake. Concerning the PTT, I don't know. I spotted someone using a herm100 at starbucks and spoke to him and he was testing the device for cingular. The testing period finishes this week (end of august) and its to be released anywhere between now and october. I wouldn't be surprised if it was pushed to Nov/Dec. But the test device was a plain HTC Hermes HERM100 with front facing camera and NO PTT. So this might be revisions added for the final US release product.

[Janak Parekh]

shouldnt u wait for EVDO revA first before jumping?
Sorry, I wasn't being clear. I was specifically referring to Verizon. I love CDMA and EVDO as a technology, but the crippling carriers do, especially Verizon, is galling. I would also like the SIM flexibility a GSM carrier provides, and HSDPA should be plenty fast enough for such a handheld device, which is not going to be able to utilize the full benefit of the faster EVDO Rev. A bandwidth anyway.

--janak

[zetsurin]

Positively porcine. Yeuck!

[amg]

that pic provided looks sooooo fake :oops:

It doesn't look that "fake" at all. It looks like a Hermes 100 device to me. I was hoping Cingular would pickup the 100 version rather than the plain-ish looking 200 verision (ala TyTN).

Really??? Look carefully at the upper right (above the screen) of the picture showing the face of the device. Where other Hermes devices have been shown with the dual camera (for video calls), there is no camera - That isn't the "fake part" - What calls this whole photo into question is the faint circle around what should be the camera, evidencing that someone photoshopped the camera out.

Cingular may be getting ready to release a Hermes device. It may lack the forward camera. It may have PTT. It may even come out tomorrow - but this picture is clearly a fake.

[Eriq Cook]

Look at the original press pic in my link -- it looks like a very standard press picture, and I've seen a lot of them...

Yes, it does look like a standard press pic IMO. I have seen many of these and they all look very clean like this. This looks professional unlike the hideous imate JAQ phone below it. Now THAT looks fake.

[Jerry Raia]

This looks professional unlike the hideous imate JAQ phone below it. Now THAT looks fake.

If it isn't it should be fake!

[ctmagnus]

I hope that bottom loopy thing isn't a lanyard loop. They could've used that space for a standard 2.5mm (or even 3.5mm by my estimate) headphone jack rather than the preposterous sync connector/headphone jack combo that the industry seems to be drifting toward.

[beq]

Good to hear that the Cingular 8525 is scheduled to come by October... Does Cingular have HSDPA now (widely deployed)? Not just UMTS?

Any guess as to Cingular's subsidized pricing? If you sign up for a family plan, I forget if each extra line also gets a discounted phone?

Anyways, a Cingular rep told me that normally you can't qualify for another phone discount until you've been in your contract 21 months. Is there any way to get a phone upgrade discount earlier?

[Janak Parekh]

Really??? Look carefully at the upper right (above the screen) of the picture showing the face of the device. Where other Hermes devices have been shown with the dual camera (for video calls), there is no camera - That isn't the "fake part" - What calls this whole photo into question is the faint circle around what should be the camera, evidencing that someone photoshopped the camera out.
Ah, I see what you mean, after adjusting my viewing angle on my display. I guess it boils down to what you mean by "fake". I could easily see this as a PR modification because (for example) they didn't have final units available to professionally photograph. However, I doubt these images were made by a random person like the fake Treos we've seen in the past. At least, that's my read on the situation.

--janak

[Janak Parekh]

Good to hear that the Cingular 8525 is scheduled to come by October... Does Cingular have HSDPA now (widely deployed)? Not just UMTS?
I believe they're actively involved in rollout.

Anyways, a Cingular rep told me that normally you can't qualify for another phone discount until you've been in your contract 21 months. Is there any way to get a phone upgrade discount earlier?
I suspect this is unavoidable with any 2-year contract. :( It's a reason I've repeatedly spent extra on Verizon to get a 1-year contract...

--janak

[ZodiacfreaK]

Wether or not the device itself is fake all I can say is that the camera in the top right corner was photoshopped out. Hell thats giving it too muc credit. It looks like it was "mspaint'd" out. At first glance it doesn't appear that way but move your face back 2 or 3 feet from your screen and you can tell the lighting/shadowing is off and it appears to be a flat spot. So wether or not the device is fake, there was a camera there. And as for the PTT button. That is the worst button I have ever seen 100% fake. I mean seriously guys what type of design/substance/whatever would ever make a button look like that in a picture?

[zoetrope]

aNiMeMaN14 is right on the money. That photo is fake, and the poor attempt to cover up the front facing camera is not a bad paint job, it's a very very poor use of the 'clone tool' in Photoshop.

I'm not saying Cingular isn't releasing their version of the Hermes, or that even Cingular itself doctored the picture itself in order to anticipate the removal of the front facing camera in their final version. But that picture has been doctored, no question.

[ZodiacfreaK]

I was saddened by this picture soo much that I decided to try my luck to at least fix the terrible camera problem and make a somewhat more beleivable P T T button. Keep in mind this is the first time I have ever done something like this. But here it is! :)

http://www.zodiacresource.com/fake.PNG

[beq]

Heh, as long as Cingular's plans for the phone are real, I don't think it's that important in the grand scheme of things if Cingular decided to use an early photoshopped image for their confidential announcements...

So I'm not arguing with you guys, I'm just saying I don't know what the big commotion is all about...

[ZodiacfreaK]

Heh, as long as Cingular's plans for the phone are real, I don't think it's that important in the grand scheme of things if Cingular decided to use an early photoshopped image for their confidential announcements...

So I'm not arguing with you guys, I'm just saying I don't know what the big commotion is all about...
Well thats the thing. These images aren't from cingular so it is just some random image online claiming to be the 8185. And it has all of the exact same design as the 8125 but all the 8125 specifics are photoshopped out. If cingular is this far into development of a phone they would at least have renderings or test models. They would never photshop a different device. And plus they wouldn't do one this poorly.

[rivec]

I have found some actual photos of the REAL 8525. They are kind of blurry, but you can definately tell it's the real deal. And yes, the front cam is missing. Also, from the same source as the pictures came from - Cingular is shooting for an early Sept. release date. Yay! :mrgreen:

http://hays.mine.nu/images/1.jpg

http://hays.mine.nu/images/2.jpg

http://hays.mine.nu/images/3.jpg

http://hays.mine.nu/images/4.jpg

http://hays.mine.nu/images/5.jpg

[beq]

Cingular is shooting for an early Sept. release date. Yay! :mrgreen:
Wow that's great news :) My family's been out of contract waiting for a good phone to be released before signing up for a new plan. One has a birthday coming up Sept 9, here's hoping!

[rivec]

Yep... mine is coming up on Sept. 19th - I am definately hoping they come out before then.

[Miam]

Has anyone heard new release date news??? I am really looking forward to getting one of these. I have been too happy with my Siemens Sx66 over the past few years.
Will the MS Voice Cmd work with this PDA as well? I love that program.
What are the differences b/w this 8525 and the 8125?
As far as contracts go, I would rather purchase mine from eBay to avoid any more contracts.
I just hope the cost of this thing comes down FAST!

[Janak Parekh]

Has anyone heard new release date news???
That's an excellent question--I'm looking forward to its release as well. The latest unofficial rumor I've heard is sometime in September. It may be within the next few weeks. Rest assured we'll be posting on it as soon as it comes out.

Will the MS Voice Cmd work with this PDA as well? I love that program.
I'd expect so.

What are the differences b/w this 8525 and the 8125?
Many -- faster processor, better button layout, 3G are amongst the most notable improvements.

As far as contracts go, I would rather purchase mine from eBay to avoid any more contracts.
Well, do realize that you'll likely have to pay more via that route, but it's up to you.

--janak

[Jason Lee]

As far as contracts go, I would rather purchase mine from eBay to avoid any more contracts.
Well, do realize that you'll likely have to pay more via that route, but it's up to you.

--janak

As far as contracts go you can buy the phone at a Cingular store and not renew your contract. I bought my 8125 and my sx66 that way because i didn't want a pda internet plan. Most of the phones in the store will have a "Go phone" price, which basically means the price with no contract. :)
It cost me more in the short term but not having to change my rate plan saved me loooots of money in the long run. I don't use many minutes so i got the $29.99 per month plan. The cheepest you can get now is $34.99. I don't need that many minutes. I like my plan and don't want to change. ;)