08-23-2004, 04:00 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
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World Of PPC Reviews HTC's Blue Angel
Andreas Erle reviews the HTC Blue Angel (otherwise known as the XDA/MDA III) on the German site World of PPC (English translation available here.) While we've seen most of the details before, one bizarre tidbit is the arrangement of the SD slot on the top of the device.
Yes -- it's backwards. This isn't a major problem for memory, but for things like an SD GPS card it'll cause the antenna to point in the wrong direction. My other nit is the screen is apparently subject to the same yellowing as the iPAQ 193x/4x and 4xxx devices. Fortunately, both are minor, but one sometimes wonders how the OEMs actually test the designs.
Update: PPCT member Adamz has figured it out -- the "top half" of the unit, just above the SD card, slides up to allow access to the thumbboard. If there was something protruding, it'd get clipped. I guess it's a reasonable compromise if you consider that fact. 
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08-23-2004, 04:14 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 25
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Actually, the label "Pocket PC" in the picture is upside down as well, indicating this actually would be the UP side. The power button, app buttons and the D-pad would therefore be on the top as well.
Not sure if I like that...
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08-23-2004, 04:16 PM
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Thoughts Media Review Team
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 599
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To be fair, the review does state that it should be possible for the socket to be reversed before going into production.
At least, I think that is what it says. The translation had me laughing so much I could barely read the text any more:
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In the comparison to the MDAII (in the pictures down and/or left) the Blue fishing rod from the masses is a piece smaller, both more a little highly and (up to the range of the camera) a little more thinly. Only in the width is it kanpp 2 mm more largely. All in all the Blue makes fishing rod more stimmiger thereby subjectively from the proportions. Whom however the MDAII was already too heavy, which will enjoy the Blue fishing rod little
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Ah - a new use for my PDA ... fishing :-)
Sorry - didn't want to take this off-topic :mrgreen:.
--Philip
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08-23-2004, 04:17 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 1,479
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Nevermind
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08-23-2004, 04:19 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 241
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by radioflyer7
Actually, the label "Pocket PC" in the picture is upside down as well, indicating this actually would be the UP side. The power button, app buttons and the D-pad would therefore be on the top as well.
Not sure if I like that...
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Actually, this is a view of the top. The d-pad type thing is the speaker, and I do not know offhand what the two buttons are, so we can assume the bottom half of the device is as expected, a d-pad type control and maybe 4 buttons.
The point of the wordage used is that the sd card slot is backwards, so when the device is laying flat on a table the sd card will face the table, and so if there is any indicator lights or directional antennae they will be facing the wrong way. 
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08-23-2004, 04:22 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by foebea
Quote:
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Originally Posted by radioflyer7
Actually, the label "Pocket PC" in the picture is upside down as well, indicating this actually would be the UP side. The power button, app buttons and the D-pad would therefore be on the top as well.
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Actually, this is a view of the top. |
Correct -- it's upside-down. Take a look at the other pictures, and you'll get a better idea of the device.
I guess I mean the SD slot is horizontally backwards on the top of the device? It's not too easy to phrase. I edited my post slightly to make it clearer.
--janak
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08-23-2004, 04:23 PM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 598
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Anyone else really liking the idea of that slidey keyboard? And neato blue backlighting.
I wonder how well that connectivity switcher app is going to work...seamless swapover from wifi (home) to GPRS (car/street) to wifi (office) and back again has me drooling.
Apparently the 6xxx is going to have some form of this too.
J'bm
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08-23-2004, 04:26 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 209
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Janak,
There is the rub. I really don't think the makers of these devices do any real proof of concept or design testing. Yes, we see different preview versions of products that have subtle changes in button color or other things before official release, but I don't think this is functionality testing. I think this is budget testing. What can we do to make this thing cheaper to make.
As far as the engineering of the SD card on this devise, I can see one of three things.
1. This is the cheaper way to make it.
2. The SC card slot did not fit under the speaker when turned the right way.
3. They never tested it and/or didn't care.
Just my $.02. Then again, I haven't had enought coffe yet this morning. I may be a bit negative.....
:morning:
__________________
And there you are.
I was just thinking, "What could take this headache I have over that edge to a full blown migrane?"
And there you are.
- Dr. Cox, Scrubs
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08-23-2004, 04:43 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 357
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Re: World Of PPC Reviews HTC's Blue Angel
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Originally Posted by Janak Parekh
Yes -- it's backwards. This isn't a major problem for memory, but for things like an SD GPS card it'll cause the antenna to point in the wrong direction. My other nit is the screen is apparently subject to the same yellowing as the iPAQ 193x/4x and 4xxx devices. Fortunately, both are minor, but one sometimes wonders how the OEMs actually test the designs.
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The reason it's like that is so that you can still slide the keyboard open without banging against an extruded SDIO peripheral dongle.
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08-23-2004, 04:45 PM
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Editorial Contributor
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 5,411
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by jpaq
As far as the engineering of the SD card on this devise, I can see one of three things.
1. This is the cheaper way to make it.
2. The SC card slot did not fit under the speaker when turned the right way.
3. They never tested it and/or didn't care.
Just my $.02. Then again, I haven't had enought coffe yet this morning. I may be a bit negative.....
:morning:
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Or they figured it didn't matter for memory, Wifi and BT are already built in, they weren't worried about the two people who have SD GPSs, and it'll work fine for the few with SD VGA cards. (What else is there?) So for whatever engineering reason it's turned this way, it shouldn't cause much problem.
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