HTC Tytn and magnets!

[Dazbot]

I've had a h2210 for 3 years and it's started playing up with memory cards disappearing and once decided to crash when I removed a memory card, had to remove the battery for a second band lost everything :( , luckly the backup actually restored properly and my main data was in the File Store.

So I bought a Tytn 2 weeks ago and just got a memory card, seems like a good device, nice keyboard, push email works well, having problems with TCPMP like everyone else is.

Anyway, I've noticed while listening to music that when I switch the screen off and put it in the case it came with it turns the screen back on. After experimenting with a magnet and the sliding keyboard, I've found that when the magnet is placed near the device on the side where the power button is, it switches on the screen and changes to lanscape, it changes back as soon as the magnet is moved away. Opening the keyboard while the screen is off also causes the screen to come on. Is it just mine, (HERM200, ROM 1.18.255.3) or is it all Tytns.

Does anyone know where to get a cradle similar to my old Tomtom cradle for my old iPAQ h2210, with a RJ11 power output for my tomtom gps, a speaker for tomtom and 3.5mm stereo output that I can plug into my radio for music, so far I've seen some really cheap ones that don't have the outputs?

Thanks

[martin_ayton]

It's not just you - all Hermes do the magnet thing: it's the way it detects whether the keyboard is in or out and, therefore, whether it should be in landscape or portrait mode. Of course that also means that the units can be fooled by any other reasonably strong magnets... like, for example, the magnetic closures in the carry case supplied with most (all?) Hermes: They ensure that when you take your Hermes out of it's case and turn it on, it is *always* in landscape, and reverts to portrait a few seconds later when it realises those magnets aren't there any more.

Oh, and a word to the wise: Those magnets on the carry case are plenty strong enough to mess with the magnetic strip on your credit cards...

TCPMP works fine, in my experience, if you don't select either of the ATI IMAGEON options (under Options > Video). I have GDI selected and all the screen shake and audio problems have just gone away.

Can't help with the TomTom thing. I have ended up with an ORA car cradle from Expansys and no way to charge the GPS when in the car. Not good...

[Dazbot]

Is there anyway to avoid it, besides buying a case without a magnetic clip, seems like a design fault to me. Am I the only one playing music with the screen off and using the standard case?

Using GDI on high bitrate video doesn't work very well, its all pixelated and freezes a lot, hopefully HTC will release an ROM update or TCPMP will be updated.

I have emailed PDAMods who have told me they should have a cradle in next month. So until then I will have to keep my 2210 with me.

[martin_ayton]

Sorry, I don't know any way to go around the magnet problem for sure. I do have a fiddly suggestion: put the Hermes in landscape manually before you shut the screen off. If you do this from the screen rather than by sliding the keyboard out it should stay in landscape when you put it in its case so the case magnets shouldn't toggle the screen on. It's horribly kludgy - if it works at all - but needs must.

Videos: I have heard that the Imageon chip (the poor integration of which into the Hermes appears to be the cause of the problems) handles high bitrate mp4s with aplomb. Are you prepared to recode your videos? Personally, I can live with low(er) bitrate videos since they take up so much less storage and the Hermes only has a 'low bitrate' QVGA screen anyhow.

Thanks for the tip about PDAmods: I'll keep an eye out.