03-18-2002, 02:05 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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VoiceStream, Verizon and Sprint PCS get Pocket PC Phones
http://news.com.com/2100-1033-861812.html
Here they come folks - Pocket PC 2002 Phone Edition devices, and sooner than I thought. The Thera is a new Pocket PC from Audiovox that uses the Phone Edition of Pocket PC, integrating voice and data into one slick device.
"Verizon will introduce Thera in June, and sell it exclusively for a month. Then Sprint will begin selling it in July, according to a representative for Audiovox, which helped design and build Thera. VoiceStream will also start selling and offering service to PocketPC devices, according to Microsoft."
Thanks to Todd Ogasawara for phoning this one in.
UPDATE: We've just been told that the CNET article isn't completely accurate. The Thera is not running Pocket PC 2002 Phone Edition - they're using their own custom dialer software. This means that some of the features in Phone Edition, like an SMS-enabled Inbox, won't exist on the Thera.
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03-18-2002, 02:36 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,466
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$800!!! Good lord. I wonder how much it will cost after activation?
Honestly, I think this thing is going to tank. Does anyone really want to use it as a cell phone? It might make a good wireless PPC, but not a phone.
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03-18-2002, 02:57 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Foo Fighter
$800!!! Good lord. I wonder how much it will cost after activation?
Honestly, I think this thing is going to tank. Does anyone really want to use it as a cell phone? It might make a good wireless PPC, but not a phone.
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I think the raging success :wink: Palm is having with the i705 shows that a wireless data device is not what the market wants. I got to have some serious hands on time with various Pocket PC 2002 Phone devices and that integration is sweet.
On the price - pay $500-600 for a PDA and $100-200 for a decent phone and you are in this price range. I also don't know what the subsidy for long term contracts will be. It is a bit steep, but it (PPC2K2PE) offers quite a few things no other single device on the market does.
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03-18-2002, 03:29 PM
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Contributing Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,389
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FINALLY!!!!! Does it roam to analog? If so it is almost perfect. (i want the CF slot back.)
Quote:
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Honestly, I think this thing is going to tank. Does anyone really want to use it as a cell phone? It might make a good wireless PPC, but not a phone.
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I have service with sprint and always use more of my minutes for web browsing than talking and that is using WAP. I would love to use this thing and have Internet Explore instead of the phone.com browser.
$800 is way to expensive though. I would not pay $800 for a PPC without a CF slot nor would I pay that much for a cell phone. So I am not sure if I could justify paying that much for them together.
Would be nice though...
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03-18-2002, 03:41 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 183
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Sierra Wireless did the radio integration for Toshiba/Audiovox. If you use the Aircard 555 as an example of what this device might provide, I would expect it to support both 1xRTT and the current 14.4 digital data service from Verizon, plus voice. Since Verizon is really pushing their "express network" it is not surprising to see that they will be the first out the shoot.
But, I have to admit that of the devices, I am more interested in are HP's and mmO2's.
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03-18-2002, 04:19 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 155
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Often a $400 phone is sold to new customers for $125 when signing up for a new phone service from AT&T or any of the others.
So, I'm guessing that it will be the same here. You may still have to pay $400 or $500 for the device, but the real money is going to be made when you sign up for one or more years of service.
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03-18-2002, 04:40 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 83
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i would say that voicestream is in on the wireless pocketpc
i would say that voicestream is in on the wireless pocketpc.... anyone else see this yet?
http://www.voicestream.com/pocketpc/default.asp
looks like a rebranded xda. what's up with the 32mb ram? :?
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03-18-2002, 04:46 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 360
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Smartphone vs. Phone Edition
I allready had a hug post wrote and when I went to post it, the post dissapeared. SO here goes.
The Thera is nice but it is a major let down.
It will only be an option for people who do not know any better or for people with no patience.
With the X Scale devices right around the corner and looking to debute on the market at roughly the same time as the Wireless PPCs why in all that's Holy would you spend mad money on the Wirelless PPC. The Thera has no Memory slots and is using the same modem that is available as a stand alone product. I am betting that the Phone Edition software will become available soo as a flash. If not there are at least apps out there that do the same thing anyway. The HP Phone Edition is just too big, bigger than a normal HP, but at least it retains expansion slots. The OX DA is very, very nice but only GPRS/GPS. It does CDMA users no good.
Most PPC users will choose to wait for X Scale devices, hopefully that have Bluetooth or WiFi or both built in and just opt to use other handsets to connect wirellessly and then sync the handheld with handset and sync the two. Handhelds as phones is a neet concept but almost every comment I have seen says that no one wants to use a handheld as a phone even though they would use the wireless ability for internet and email.
I think Wireless Carriers need to focus on gett ing more Smartphone Like devices in their line up. And I say again build in Bluetooth to these devices. There are people who will buy the handheld phone editions, but not near enough to justify making them.
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03-18-2002, 04:58 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 360
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A Couple of tips
Hi there I just want to bring up a few points. In the US our Carriers are;
AT&T,
Cingular,
Sprint PCS,
Verizon,
Voicestream.
There may be a couple small independents but these are the main players.
AT&T is TDMA/GPRS
Cingular was TDMA/GPS they are moving away from TDMA as is AT&T and both are adopting GPRS systems.
Voicestream is strictly GPS Digital no analog they already have GPRS nationally (I know it isn't perfect).
Sprint PCS and Verizon are CDMA. Verizon apparently will have CDMA 2000 first otherwise known as 1xrtt. Now Sprint was saying that Verizon would use WCDMA instead of CDMA2000 I don't know which it is using.
Anyway handsets and Phone Edition devices Made for GPRS will not work on CDMA and CDMA devices will not work on GPRS. GPRS devices can usually work on several different carriers with simple reprogramming. CDMA devices can usually NOT be reprogrammed to work on rival networks. Phones will roam on other networks but that is about it. CDMA phones so far do not have SIM chips, at least not here in the States.
Also keep in mind that most people who would buy these expensive devices already have contracts through their carriers. I know I do. Therefore; any contract discount bonus is not an option and people will be paying full price for their devices. Now some of us can order the devices and just charge them to our bill if we are on a bussiness acount, but this is going to be the exception not the rule.
I think I will keep waiting for a smart phone.
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03-18-2002, 05:04 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,060
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Smartphone vs. Phone Edition
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Originally Posted by JMountford
There are people who will buy the handheld phone editions, but not near enough to justify making them.
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I would agree that the market for a converged device is fairly small. The research data that I've seen indicates that most North Americans prefer to carry a couple of devices that do exactly what each "should" do over carrying one device that includes functionality compromises.
After all, we're all technophiles here, and just because WE think something is cool or unique, doesn't mean "normal" people do!
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