HTC TyTN / 8525 / JasJam (Hermes)
Average Ratings
Another fine HTC product.
Although I changed phones, this phone, overall was phenomenal.
Pros:
Clear 2MP camera/video.
Good reception.
Loud volume.
Could handle all applications applied.
Wi-fi capable.
Sturdy.
Not too big.
Stereo Bluettoth capable.
Cons:
The PTT (push to talk) button was constantly pushed, no matter if it was in my pocket, case, etc.....
Micro SD, which meant that my 4GB Mini SD was useless.
It's hard to find replacement headphones for that phone that works. If you lose em', you'll have no choice but to but Stereo Bluetooth Headphones.
Overall good phone, but I now have the HP IPAQ series. I'd still recommend this, or any other HTC phone, to anyone.
Former Palm User: This is a great phone.
After dealing with a myriad of disappointments from my Palm TX, culminating with touchscreen problems, I made the jump over to a Windows Mobile device. I'm glad I did. To talk about the phone, I first need to make some comparisions between what I found vs. what I expected.
The 8525, the first Windows-based phone/PDA I've used, has been a big change. The 8525 has a LOT more functionality. Installing programs is very easy. There's a TON of great applications. The screen is very responsive and stability is vastly improved over my experiences with the Palm.
Calendar and contact additions is not quite as easy on the palm. In fact, it's a lot more complicated. This has been a big disappointment.
But in terms of what I actually DO with the phone, I've been very pleased. Call quality is fantastic. Battery life has been okay. I am a very heavy data user, and the phone lasts about 3-5 hours using 3G data, listening to streaming music, and making some calls, and playing games. That's about what I got with my Palm TX.
I'd not call this a phone. I'd call it a PDA that can make phone calls. This is important to note. Phone use is not particularly straightforward out of the box. There's a bit of a learning curve getting used to how to make calls, manipulate phone contacts, and the like.
As far as data features go, you can't go wrong with this phone. With the unlimited data plan for $40 per month (at current rates), you get near WiFi speeds with 1000x the coverage.
Add Opera Mini to supplement the IE Mobile and you can actually use the internet with almost the same functionality as a desktop.
Application support is great. The firmware is easily updated. MMS and SMS is fantastically easy with the slide-out keyboard.
The biggest drawback is the use of those little miniSD cards, which aren't quite as popular as SD.
AT&T offers refurbished models for a fraction of full retail. I picked up my 8525 for $100.
If data is your thing, this is the phone.
Tremendous Phoine
The 8525 has everything. As long as it is upgradeable to Windows Mobile 6 (which they say it is) then there is no better smart phone on the market. It was hard for me to move from my Verizon xv6600 even though the phone really didn't work well but the 8525 had so much promise. I am going to write a lot of cons for this product but not take it as a knock, just thoughts for future improvements.
Pros
- Fits in your hand like a glove and a majority of the buttons are perfectly placed
- Jogger is great for former Blackberry users
- Wifi and 3G provide very fast downloads
- The Blue Tooth actually works
- The screen is sharp
- Camera is very good and so is the video
- PPT is a nice value add feature
- The connection manager button on the side allows you to connect via different options quickly and easily
- Set up was easy (but I know the operating system well - others might want to read the manual)
- Windows Mobile 5 is a huge upgrade of Windows 2003 second edition
- Email set-up was easy and use is even easier
- Fast processor
- Keyboard is perfect for people with big fingers and has a good feel
- The speaker phone is excellent, clear and loud
- Good sound quality for music files
- The phone is pretty good at holding onto a tower but coverage near my house is spotty
Cons
- Battery life. I have heard others say they got 2 days of life out of the battery but I am yet to crack more than 16 hours of above average use.
- They put the on/off button directly across from the jogger. When you click the jogger you shut off the phone from time to time
- The slider feels flimsy. I always feel like I am going to break it
- Can't type with one hand
- Doesn't come with a cradle to charge an extra battery (which you need if you are traveling)
Overall it is a fantastic phone, the best I have seen so far. I am extremely happy with my purchase and recommend the phone to anyone who is a road warrior who wants all the bells and whistles.
Disappointing
I sadly just returned my 8500 (no camera) after 3 days. I wanted it to work but the problems were abound. I considered trying a new one but thought if it happened to one it could happen to the next one - after the 30 day return policy.
Pros: Excellent features - wifi,bt,3G, full keyboard, great screen and it had a nice feel in your hand, easy sync.
Cons: wifi had the range of bluetooth.
The phone had to be rebooted to get a signal several times. When I had no phone signal my smt5600 had 4 bars. When I had full signal strenght, the people on the other end said my voiced sounded scratchy. I tried loading the latest ROM - no change. When using the wifi (limited range) I kept getting popups indicating my WEP key was invalid and had to reenter it. The wifi signal strength was erratic. I didn't even get the change to delve into the higher level functions as I spent all my time trying to get the basics to work.
The Titan is High Maintenance
I have come to the conclusion that this phone can only be described as "high maintenance." I started with cingular a month ago and on the last day of my 30 day trial I switched to a Pearl.
PROS
-Wifi is pretty awesome, it runs really well in my house making the need for the PDA connect plan questionable will get to that later).
-The versatility and wide range of programs, themes, and everything else is also very nice.
-Reception is very good.
CONS
-I installed the updated ROM and it stopped me from connecting to my isp. That is annoying.
-Phone is slow, especially when a few programs get opened the darn thing slows way down.
-In 30 days I had it freeze up on me 4 times, I had to hard reset 3 times and my SIM card somehow disconnected causing me hours of hassle last week.
-Big phone, also the buttons and placement of buttons never really got comfortable.
-connection to computer for activesync is far from flawless. That may or may not be my computer but apparently the two devices don't get a long.
Overall I enjoyed the phone but the expense for data ($39.99) is overrated especially since we only have EDGE in my area for a while longer. The phone is high maintenance, simple as that, when I want to do simple things it is very difficult. I hope the crackberry pearl treats me well or else I might have to get the iphone!
What A Let Down
I purchased the 8525 to reduce the clutter in tow as I spend most of my time living out of a suitcase for a living. Cingular is my carrier and sold me on the advantages of this new dynamo, only to learn it was a big mistake! This smart phone is packed with some great features that will make the most cynical of critics smile, however the short Cummings of the phone/pda are not easy to look past.
Pros -
1. The wi-fi cant be beat. This money saving convenience works with ease and has great reception capabilities to receive and transmit with even the weakest of signals.
2. Although I only use a phone camera for moving information in my working environment - it performs like a budget minded single purpose camera and works well.
3. The QWERTY keyboard is comfortable and allows a nice wide screen to work with, when pulled out and used in this mode.
4. The speaker phone performs well and offers the benefits that one should expect from this mode. It has a clear and loud speaker paired with a good microphone.
Cons -
1. This is not a one handed phone and requires full attention when dialing. Lets face it - most of dial with our thumb and using this touch screen is a pain to avoid hitting unwanted keys.
2. When using the phone, I found the reception average at best, due to a battery saving feature that reduces signal quality. This feature should be allowed to be used at the owners discretion.
3. The phone cannot be used as a modem tethered to a laptop with either the supplied cable or blue tooth. There is a known problem that was identified by the manufacture and discussed with me after waisting a full day with Cingular and HTC. I need the benifit of getting on line with my laptop and was never told of this glitch.
4. The owners manual is in a pdf form on a supplied disk. You need to have a pc on hand to read it.
5. All opened programs will stay running and consumes battery life and processor speed,unless closed by means of digging deep into the systems settings
Great Features - Horrible Software
I loved my new 8525, all those great new features...for about 1 week. Then the phone started to lock up on me. The touch screen became totally unresponsive, and then the machine went crazy...I'd hit a button, and the screen would shift appropriately but then immediately shift back. Totally infuriating. I did several soft resets, then a hard reset. And it did not fix the problem.
I've read that a number of others also have had bad experiences with this phone. Apparently, the firmware is not ready for prime time.
So guess what? It goes back today.
Next time, Cingular should not release a phone until it is ready.
Looks good on paper, but...
I'm coming from a Palm PDA without a phone so I was excited to get an all in one device with WiFi, 3G, keyboard and⦠Windows. Then, I got the thing⦠after two weeks with this thing my wife was ready to leave me because all I could do was complain about it.
I'll try to keep this focused on the device and not dwell on the severe inadequacies of Windoze Mobile and DisasterSync.
Pros:
- WiFi, 3G (although I gave up on WiFi because it was slow and the phone could not always figure out that WiFi was no longer available when I moved away from an AP).
- Wider screen with the keyboard out; however, they should have really used a square screen
- Weight
- Heat generated (by the battery?)
Cons:
- PRICE!
- Battery life. I use this device very actively and could not get 3/4 of a day out of it before a recharge.
- Heavy and big.
- Speakerphone - loud but very distorted sound.
- Slide out keyboard. Makes one-hand use all but impossible. When you need the keyboard screen has to change from vertical to horizontal - a painfully slow process.
- No Control key on the keyboard - how are you supposed to cut-paste?
- Constant resetting (not sure if this is a device issue or Windoze)
- Very difficult to turn on because the power button is tiny and hidden on the side.
- Connection Manager seems to have a mind of its own - sometimes connections are connected and sometimes they are not - for no apparent reason.
As I mentioned, most of my other complaints are with Windoze itself. To make a long story short - someone at Microsoft is totally brain-dead and has apparently never picked up a Palm device. Palm's and even Motorola's ability to sync with Outlook is FAR FAR batter than DisasterSync with Windoze Mobile 5.
Well, I returned mine and now have a Treo 680 - it's easy to use even with one hand, no more double nested menus and just awesome!
Sunil
I returne it
Pros:
Great phone-deals well with contacts, call history etc. Easy to use. Excellent clarity and reception. Phone works like a charm!!!
Feature rich. More of a computer than my Vaio.
Cons:
Bluetooth connects and disconnects with car frequently, about 10 times every 5 minutes.
Bluetooth has to constantly be turned on. Phone has to constantly be turned on. I never know when either are on or off. Backlight settings have to be constantly redone.
Software is difficult to navigate. I was always lost. I keep finding things and then couldn't find them again. Not user friendly.
Websites are fully loaded but you can only see a very small part. Totally useless.
It weighs over 6oz. It is heavy and awkward to hold.
Buy something else unless you want to spend a lot of hours learning to use it and be willing to put up with features like Bluetooth and settings that don't work.
HTC Hermes by JACF
Yo utilizo el equipo en cuestion desde hace un tiempo. Encontre ciertos trucos para el telf y algunos interrogantes que me intrigaron. Me di cuenta que en el corto tiempo que pase con el Hermes me he enamorado al igual que el S620 que relativamente nos Padre e Hijo cada uno, curiosamente posee Tecn 3G, lo cual me hace aun mas Feliz por este emprendimiento de la Empresa HTC. Jamas cambiare este modelo de telf.
A Favor:
- Pantalla Gigante
- Excelente Calidad en Recepcion de Sonido
- Windows Mobile 5.0
- 2MegaPixeles en la camara con Grabacion de Video
- Procesador de 400Mhz
- Facil Configuracion de Cliente de Correos
- Wi-Fi
- PTT habilitado
- Version de Internet Completa en HTML
- Memoria Expandible con Micro SD
- UMTS Tecn 3G
- Hermoso Teclado QWERTY
- Ademas posee Registros de llamadas completas, Calendario, Calculadora, MS Office, Etc.
En Contra
- La llamada es dificultada y la escritura para los SMS
- Mis Amigos lo ven dicen que es Bello, Hermoso pero no lo entienden.
P.D.: Me encanta este telf al igual que su hijo el DASH S620
