Develop Bugs

SX66 (BA) v.s. 8125 (Wizard)

I just got a request to post a comparison of the SX66 (Blue Angel) and the 8125 (Wizard). So... here is goes.
Lets start with some obvious differences.
The 8125 has WM5 and it is quite stable. It also has that smart dialer and it kinda nice too. The contacts provides syncing with Outlook 2003 (and exchange 2003) in a more intricate way then WM2003 did. For instance it syncs contact pictures and therefore there is no need for a "photo contacts" app.
The BT on the 8125 is Microsoft, I think that is a double edge sword. You see it works with my BT headset like a champ!!! (Anyone who has suffered through using a bt headset with the blueangel knows what a relief it is to have it JUST WORK!) However I think that it dosent support certain BT profiles that the BA did, cause it used WICOMM (sp?).
The key board on the 8125 is SO much bigger then the BA (although the device is smaller). I was unsure of how much I would like the side sliding keyboard, but I got use to it in about 10 min and it is nice and easy to use, plus so far it hasn't just stopped working for no apparent reason and required a soft reset (once again BA owners know what I'm talking about)
I found it typing to be considerably faster on the 8125 then the BA just cause of way the keys click when pressed, its more defined then it was with the BA.
The 8125 has a 1.3 MP camera, I have to say that the VGA camera offered on some BA's sucked, and the SX66 didn't even have one. So the fact that the 8125 has a camera is great in comparison to the SX66 which didn't have one at all. Plus it does video, burst shots, shots specifically for contact photos, and up to a 2x zoom (digital). Its also has a light on it that, although it is quite bright to look at, doesnt seam to do much for the pictures. I think I will take a pic to post with this thread.
That brings me to WIFI, I know you are all thinking that they are equal when it comes to WIFI, but they aren't =) You see the 8125 works on G-only networks. I didn't change the registry on mine to make it do so either. I have posted about this an I am waiting for someone else to confirm this. Plus the WIFI works a lot more smoothly on the 8125. Just less over all hassle.
The 8125 has A LOT less hardware buttons then the BA. I have to admit that I missed them at first. However now there is a small app (and i mean REALLY tiny) that makes one hand use not just do able but down right easy.
The speaker on the 8125 is MUCH loader than the ba. I dont just mean on speaker phone or when ringing either, I mean on regular also. It is very easy to hear people now, even in a noisy place, such as Jamba Juice with all their blenders going and the music playing. I will admit that the sound on the 8125 has more treble then the BA had. The BA had quite a bit more bass. But I would rather hear the person I am talking to then hear my boom boom musics bass.
Voice command over BT works. To be honest it works well considering the voice codec for BT is 8bit and Voice Command uses 16bit. It requires some reg editing, not much at all, and ta da, it works.
The 8125 uses just a USB cable to sync and charge, and that also makes using it for DUN a lot more convenient. Where as the SX66 requires a proprietary connector.
The BA is faster when it comes to BIG programs such as GPS Navigation. As soon as I can get iGuidance working on the 8125 (I think it is a WM5 issue, I get a security message when I try to run the app after installing) I will post a good run down of the difference. However in day to day things like PIE, messaging, voice command, and phone calls of course it runs great. As soon as I can run iGuidance I will let you know. I can tell you that NAVIGON ran quite unbearably slow on the 8125.
The 8125 is MUCH smaller then the BA. It is much more portable, where as the BA was quite luggable. It is lighter, smaller, and one hand friendly (especially with that smartkey app). I was always finding myself dressing to so that I was suited to carry my SX66 all day... those sad days are gone now =)
I think I touched on everything there. But if you have any questions just post and I will be glad to answer.
Later; Lew
P.S. Wow, I almost forgot about EDGE. 8125 has EDGE. SX66 does not.
[E] > [G]
UPDATE:
Due to a little debate on Skype (I had never used it), I installed skype on the wizard. I then tested it. I ran skype with the wifi on and connected to a g-only access point. Skype ran good while not in a skype call. It was very responsive and chatting was easy. When I made a skype call it connected, and to be honest worked ok, the quality was good and the conversation wasn't lagged (not by the Wiard atleast). However I must say that the Wizard was VERY slow to respond to any input, such as pressing the hang up button in skype, but the conversation as smooth (BTW it was over the internet, NOT the local network.) So my conclusion is SKYPE WORX... it just uses ALMOST ALL of the devices resources.
BTW, I used Skype 2.0, from this URL. Download the one that says;
"Download Skype for 312 MHz CPUs"
http://www.skype.com/products/skype/pocketpc/download.html

more questions...
great review but I've got a couple more questions for you...
I'm thinking of making the same switch.
How do the screens compare (both size and quality)?
What do you think of the stylus?
How is the speed on "normal" applications (like those included with the phone)?
How is the call quality?
Thanks for the information!

Alright the screen size is adequate. It also looks very nice. As nice as SX66 or nicer. To be honest I always keep a screen saver on so it is always partially distorted.
The speed for normal apps is good. I don't know if you ever upgraded to WM5 on the SX66. If you did, then I can definitely tell you that it SMOKES the sx66 with WM5.
I got use to the stylus quickly. It is quite a bit tighter than the SX66's was. So I don't always have to check if it is in there or if it may have fell out. Maybe over time it will get loose, but I always remember the SX66 stylus being loose.
Call quality is better than the sx66. I also was getting some complaints with the SX66 that I was hard to understand, I asked the same people that were complaining if I sounded better with the new phone, they said yes.
Once again if there is anything else just let me know.
Later; Lew

I'm going to buy one!!! How much does it cost without a contract? SX66 is going to be sold!!!hehehehehe

$450.00
and it coems with a 64k sim card.
Later; Lew

Wallaby vs Blue Angel
I really want to upgrade to a Wizard or Phophet, too. I have a Wallaby that works fine now, so it's not an emergency or anything.
What I wanted to ask, is there a lot of difference between the Wallaby and the Blue Angel, besides the keyboard and bluetooth? I mean especially the telephone radio? My reception is always poor.
The PDA portion of my Wallaby works well, I can play games or listen to music or view videos just great. i wish it had more than 32MB of RAM, and I expect the Blue Angel has much more memory.
If the phone radio units are about the same, then I really must get a Wizard!
Thanks!

I updated the the review to include Skype. Also to answer your question. The BA had poor radio quality. On another note the wizard is NOT as powerful as the BA. Mine plays video and music with out breakin a sweat. Howver games (my example is Worm World Party), although quite playable, lags when there are explosions.
Hope it helps.
Later; Lew

and alas...
this topic havent seen the WM6 crawl into our BAs and turned it into a mean machine that would surpass all other usurpers.
conclusion... BA(SX66) wins! overall performance.
since no one bothered to defend Wizard. peace!

Does it have the 3 seconds delay

For all you lucky new owners of the Artemis, two questions: Does the phone have the delay of about 3 seconds when jou are beeing called like myu mda pro, and how is the phone overall ?

No. It's instantly answer.

Phone signal is very strong on this device, and voice quality is great. This may be the loudest speakerphone I've ever seen on a WM Phone. Bluetooth and WiFi connections are strong, as well.
This is a winner of a device. I still like keyboards, but I'm getting by with the front buttons and TenGo input.

Still Using Harrier/Blue Angel Because You Prefer It?

I'm testing the waters a bit to see what the HTC enthusiast community thinks of the Blue Angel and Harrier in comparison to HTC's current product line.
While the Wizard and TyTN are fine products, they clearly are not the Blue Angel's design. The display has been downsized to 2.8 inches, and the Omni's handheld use is significantly diminished.
So, please vote in the poll. We'll try to let decision makers at HTC know if you want the Blue Angel brought into the 3G era.

I think there should be a 3G Blue Angel but they should still be progress in the development of more devices similar to the Tytn as the Tytn is proving one of the most popular devices I have seen and I feel is opening up mobile computing to people who thought about getting a connected PPC but didn't like the bulk of the units which had the features to make them useful.

Personally I stick with my BA because of how large the screen is and IMO the only phone that is worth switching too is the TyTn.
I also like how much thinner it is than any of the current HTC phones with a keyboard.
Meh... just my $.02

for Me its the screen, could do without the keyboard as i never use it.

I was using a Blue Angel (Harrier) on the Verizon EVDO network. It is a terrific device. I can watch videos real time. The larger screen is also awesome and much easier on tired eyes.
I finally put my Blue Angel aside and have been using primarliy a Wizard.
Even with all the Tweaks and overclocking, the Wizard is relatively slow. However, the Wizard has been much more reliable and is a much better phone.
I'm just about ready to order a TyTN because it seems the bugs are getting worked out. I'd rather have a Blue Angle sized unit with all the new Windows Mobile Features.
It looks like all the future HTC phones are small screened. The HTC Herald looks like a verizon/sprint EVDO (possibly Rev.A) phone. Looks great but still no Blue Angel.
I'd like to have a TyTN type phone for everyday, and then an "Arch Angel" phone with a large screen to travel with. It should have a fast processor, accept Standard SD cards.

I think you almost need two devices depending what you are doing. A 3G Blue angel with the same screen or possibly a VGA one for some tasks and a Tytn for most of the time. I have a Tytn on order but I will still use my IIs a lot because of the screen.

I love my BA. I had executive, then, IIi(alpine)..now back to my BA
Its a complete device(for those who dont want GPS)

Ditto. Screen (so many new devices have such small screens). Keyboard. Large RAM memory (yes I know WM5, but persistant storage read/write is slower). Still the best device.
Although, there's always something missing (GPS/FM Radio/a huge internal memory/Some devices even have TV!/direct USB access without an adater/EDGE/3G/etc.).

Love the BA form factor
I've gone thorough half a dozen phones in the past couple months trying to find an ideal unit for me. Seems everyone these days want the cute little phones that you could swallow if you got it too close to your mouth. Whats the point ? If its just for making and receiving calls fine, but if it's meant provide visual display and input (emails and surfing) than why wouldn't you want it big bright and loud ? Within reason of course..but some of these newer phones with all the great features are too small to make them easy to use. In my case it has to be Quad band as I need the 850 for CellularOne in my area.
I had a Blackberry 7100 which was great for push mail and work stuff but not so hot for display or web stuff. I just bought and then sold a very nice Hermes (Softpoint/Jasjam) device which was probably the best phone I have seen for coverage and features. It flat out worked great. I just could not see me using that needle size stylus on the 2.8 inch screen for very long. The display was nice but just too small enjoy using for me. It might work as a heads up display, but for my main device it need to be bigger. I mean... do you really want to run GPS map apps on this while your driving ? Or shop on eBay while squinting at that little thing. It looked MUCH bigger in the Ads
I've run a Symbian based Nokia e61 (still do) and find it one of my favorites for ease of use without a touch screen. It's not a touch screen but you would never notice with the neat smart key layouts and center joystick control. The display is not huge but the layout works great for web use and the browser is very quick. The problem with this phone is it seems to have a weaker over all RF module and I constantly loose my GPRS lock when going through fades and the only way to get packet (GPRS) back is to power cycle it. Maybe it's just my phone thats bad but the dealer won't exchange it as this point and I really doubt their "repair" shop would even find the problem.
I just bought, powered up and re-boxed an Ipaq 6945/15 device. Worked good signal wise and packet data stuff/Wifi devices were good. The phone just has a overall cheap feel to it. The keyboard is a joke (compared to my e61) and the joystick and side buttons are hard to use. Would it be that much more expensive to put a rubber tip on the joystick ? The 240 x240 display was weak and grainy as well. It has about 15 minutes on it and will listed for sell at a auction site near you soon ! I am waiting for my first BA device I just purchased off the web (O2XDAiis) and hope it's what I'm looking for. The 2003se software will new for me and it will probaly go to some version of WM5 soon after I get it. I'm hoping the screen is bright and pretty and I can actually use the "touch" screen with my finger instead of digging for a matchstick while cruising at 70 miles an hour. I like heft too, it signals quality to me. I searched long and wide for a 3.5 inch display, quad band phone and found Nothing but the older BA at this point. I'd love a new device to come out with WM5, 3.5 to 4 inch display, bright screen and the latest interfaces. I'd buy one RIGHT NOW.
Guy

BA all the way...big screen..nice keyboard..

I thought I would put my .02 cents in on this topic since I had a BA for 2 years and just recently got a Cingular 8525.
I did a pro's and con's list to help me make it very clear which phone I wanted and why. I'll just share the list with you...
Pros FOR the 8525 over the BA:
- Edge speeds are about 5x faster than regular GSM (120-150kbs)
- 3G speeds are about 30x faster (800-850kbs)
- Universal USB charger
- 2mp camera is much higher quality
- Camera application is much more advanced
- Native WM5 OS. No hacking or slowdowns from non-supported upgrades
- Jog Dial (this is a big one... Can't be without it now)
- MUCH improved bluetooth reception for handsfree
- Wifi type g and b (noticeably faster)
- Free push email w/ web2mail (simply amazing, no more disappearing gmail!!!)
- Smaller form factor... nicer fit in my hand than BA
- BT headset can start VoiceCommand. No need to touch the phone anymore.
- No soft reset to make the WiFi work start up
- PTT will be supported in the future and might be nice to have.
- Multiple sounds play without garbling (ie. VoiceCommand announcement and ringtone)
- Sharper more vibrant screen (the clarity and overall quality difference is significant)
- MUCH louder speakerphone and ring volume
- I like the navigation pad a bit better than the BA and it seems much more responsive.
Cons of the 8525 compared to the BA:
- Micro SD format max's out at 2GB (at the moment)
- No standard headphone jack
- Battery drain is higher due to 3g and push email
- The main buttons are a bit cramped around the navigation pad, but you get used to it, just like anything.
On the con side... Micro SD cards (typically) come with a standard SD card enclosure so you can use it with standard flash card readers or even put them into standard SD card devices like phones or the BA even. This is a nice thing in case you want to transfer information from one device to the other. Mini SD seems to be the real loser format out of the three in my opinion.
The headphone jack isn't really an issue for me so far. Yeah it would be nice to listen to the tunes with whatever headphones I choose, but I'm thinking a dedicated music player would be better anyway since I'm already running my battery into the ground as it is, but that doesn't change that my options are certainly limited. I'm sure someone will come up with an adapter solution soon. I've already seen some, but they are still getting better.
Battery drain is a big one... Other than disabling 3g and turning off direct push... I don't see a way to save battery. I just turn the back light down as low as it can go and use vjlumosiii (handy little app) mapped to a button to get max brightness when I need it.
Overall... I have to say that the 8525 is going to be a device that I will use for the next 2 years or so with MUCH fondness. I loved my BA and after having it all tricked out was still better than many peoples phones.
That's just my opinion on these 2 devices. I like them both... but the 8525 is going to be my work horse no doubt about it.
Mark

Apple Ipod.. The next gen BA ?
http://www.apple.com/iphone/
Looks like my next BA replacement. It's everything a new BA should be if they upgrade it... Now I just need to see one on eBay and someone to provide unlocker for it ..

GapBoyT said:
Personally I stick with my BA because of how large the screen is and IMO the only phone that is worth switching too is the TyTn.
I also like how much thinner it is than any of the current HTC phones with a keyboard.
Meh... just my $.02
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah but it's only 240x320.. maybe if they released a new vga version with a good camera/ wifi g/i/e, native WM5, id be down, the BA just too big!
Gvotuc said:
http://www.apple.com/iphone/
Looks like my next BA replacement. It's everything a new BA should be if they upgrade it... Now I just need to see one on eBay and someone to provide unlocker for it ..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
baaaaaad idea man.. why do you think apple is getting sued by cisco.. they don't think things through! Hence the intel macs killing the g5's in benchmarks on OSX, APPLE Should stick to software!! (And ive got cingular!)

Yup, yup.
Still using my 6600 and love it!
The screen size and the full size SD card is what kept me from going to a 6700.

i've got the BA PH20B on 02 (2yrs now) i use it alot with tomtom, i was thinking of the HTC 3300 its got built in GPS, 2.8'' TFT-LCD 240 X 320 with 65,536 colours, but only a 201mhz chip so gotta look into it more. and i found out you can get it with out the navigation software. save a few pennies there.

Motorola S9, cuts out.. choppy

Hello,
I have a problem with the S9. While listening to music every couple minutes or so, it's like it skips for a second or two.
Also it sometimes will turn itself off.
Anyone experienced any of the two ?

Known problem. Even says so on the box. (Says you should keep it above your waist otherwise it will cut out).

That's bs. it is above my waste...

marek101 said:
That's bs. it is above my waste...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same - with all 3 of the S9s that I had. Sound quality was great, but it was hyper sensitive to phone location.
And all 3 of them failed with exactly the same problem. They're supposed to be suitable for active people - I used mine whilst running on the treadmill down at the gym. Bit of perspiration in them and then went bzzzzt, stop. Rubbish.
The Jabras that I'm now using don't look anywhere near as good, and don't sound quite as good, but the battery lasts for twice as long, and they don't die when I get a bit sweaty (ewwwww!)

hmmm that really strange as i constantly use my S9 with both my wizard and athena and have never noticed this problem even though my phones are usually lefin my trouser pockets below my waist

True, but it dies after a bit of sweat hits it...and you may find some work better with other phones. IMHO I suggest wait for it to become in-ear and better water protection.

I found the range to be dependent on the bitrate of A2DP
When i 1st got my S9 i could listen from 2 rooms apart but the sound was a bit low quality, ofcourse i value quality and i cnaged it and now the phone has to be really close to me, but its not a prob since i only use it omw to school n back.
Check Here
(Look around if you can find different values working )

I have a similar problem with my S9, except it constantly stutters, playing less than a second at a time. It's completely unuseable.
I've tried changing the bitpool settings, but it didn't make a difference, playback still unuseable. Does anyone know what else it may be? Or if there are any hacks or apps, or any way in which this can be resolved? It used to work fine before I upgraded from WM5 to 6.1
Moto S9 -> SPV M700 (trinity) -> WM6.1

S9
I got my first S9 today by mail, and I connected it so it would charge, and first the light was red and then after about two hours turned blue so I tought it was fully charged, but when I disconnected it the light was just stucked there and I'm unable to turn it off or on, does anyone have any idea why this might be?

Did you order off of ebay jcostantini? If you did you might have a fake or defective there.
Kraize

Yes - Have an S9. It worked fine on my Trinity (SPV M700) before I flashed the roms and upgraded to 6.1
Now it doesn't want to work. Every half second it skips for a 10th of a second, this happens no matter how I change the bitpool sizes etc etc.
Does anyone... ANYONE... have an idea.
I have tried it on a couple of different radio ROM's too...
Cheers!

could be just the ROM, i would suggest just waiting for a good final version to come out for your 6.1 loaded phone... if its already loaded, then i suggest you post it in your specific phone problem to troubleshoot
i have s9 + HTC juno/phoebus with the clean dev 6.1 running and they run awesome, phone placement is no issues and i only have some skip issues every few minutes which i dont' mind... sound clarity and quality is excellent

Which currrent device could replace the BA?

What about the current followers?
Toshiba TG01 / K01, Touch Pro 2? Samsung Omnia Pro? Acer Tempo M900
I still can't find a suitable BA-substitution.
portrait orientated keyboard? docking station with battery charging option? Big 3:4 screen to make easier office working?
Not to mention the sd-card-slot ...
But, if make compromises, all mentioned devices have no really improvements (like a much faster processor) or they seems to be not reliable enough (Toshiba).
What do you think? Which device would you make to throw away your BA?

never throw your BA
TouchPro i would get!

never throw your BA
TouchPro i would get!

although none of the newer devices looks similar to the blueangel, they all have their respective advantages in their fields. it starts with the display resolution, all newer devices are better in that field, though not all the displays are necessarily bigger. i don't know, the portrait keyboard is not really something i need in a device, maybe it is because some keys of mine haven't worked since the day i bought it, but even if they did, i don't like the ba's keyboard, i really appreciate the universal's one, i can type almost as fast as on my pc there.
but i gotta admit, in one point, the ba really kicks ass:
the docking station, no lame usb cable, but a proper stand, you can charge the device and a second battery, and let's not forget, the headset port on top (though it is not 3.5mm *aaargh*) you can charge and have handsfree calls at the same time.
that's one reason, why htc will go back to the 3.5mm headset port, they said, you can simply connect the device to any speaker system, fm transmitters... and still charge at the same time. people were sick of carrying an adaptor from mini-usb or extusb to 3.5mm in their pockets, just in case they wanted to play loud music or use good headphones.
i do not fully agree on the sd card slot, while they are certainly the cheapest memory cards (3x 2gb for 10eur unbeatable), the 2gb limit is not exactly future ready. the most important thing is, that the card is interchangable without taking out the battery and stuff like that (yes, i am talking about you, NOKIA, damn you!1).
but talking about memory i would really say, the BA itself has an expiration date. how long do you think, fast proper roms will fit 32mb, external apps are growing bigger every day, 60mb is also not the killer, and installing to an sd card is also not really an option because it's slow and since there is no sdhc support, how far are you gonna get, i don't want to install my apps on every card i have.
don't get me wrong, i love the ba, and i don't think your post was to say, it would last forever.
i agree with you, there is no real successor to the ba featuring all its features, but really thinking about it, you must agree, you would give up some minor features for all the new stuff.
and i personally love gadgets, nonsense additons to devices, that i could perfectly live without, but i want them. there would be: accelerometer, proximity sensor, light sensor, noise sensor, multi-touch...
when it was up to me, the devices would also get a barcode- and fingerprint sensor, voice recognition and x-ray
just my 2 cents
hope some of this was interesting to my fellow BA enthusiasts and supporters of this community.
have a nice weekend everybody
Chef_Tony

It's clear to me that sometimes I must change my device. In my case (I still use the BA with WM2003, have 4GB SD installed and another BA to replace faulty device parts) the main problem is the slow Internet connection.
I'd like to have a device where I can check some information in the Internet in seconds, not in minutes.
Finally the question for me is to find the right moment, when HTC's devices are fast enough, Toshiba's work properly a.s.o. Will there be better BA successors in future? HTCs with 1 GHz? Toshibas with inside pens?
When this future will start?

I think my question is close enough to this thread, so I ask it here:
I'm also looking for an alternative to my MDA III (Blue Angel).
In general, I'm quite fond of the device. What I like about my MDA III and want to have in a future device are these things:
+ Windows Mobile hackability
+ sufficient RAM
+ realtively fast CPU
+ fingerfriendlyness (MDA III is because of its screen size)
+ reasonable battery life (I have a clunky extended battery)
But I want another device, because I see some drawbacks in the Blue Angel and want to have this:
+ less clunkyness (even without the extended battery the BA is huge)
+ landscape keyboard
+ built-in GPS
+ 3G ability
+ even more battery life (I always want more of that)
I got me an e-ten Glofiish M800, which has almost everything on paper. But the RAM (64MB) is much too small for a VGA device and the build quality is really bad. I can't even make decent phonecalls because the speaker is truly awful.
So, is there something the experts can reccomend? What about hte TYTN II, does it have a decent battery?
Regards,
Dirk

pdahunter said:
I'd like to have a device where I can check some information in the Internet in seconds, not in minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which browser do you use? For just getting some information Opera Mini (a Java application) is the browser of choice. It reduces the size of images and rearranges the website's content. With GPRS it is already fast, I never had to wait minutes.
Regards,
Dirk

I'm afraid the main problem is the connection speed.
I don't like operas user interface very much (I have V8.65) - no direct click to favorites/bookmarks, many other functions take more clicks than in IE. So IE became my favorite broswer.
Should I upgrade opera?

pdahunter said:
I'm afraid the main problem is the connection speed.
I don't like operas user interface very much (I have V8.65) - no direct click to favorites/bookmarks, many other functions take more clicks than in IE. So IE became my favorite broswer.
Should I upgrade opera?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a misunderstanding, I'm not talking about Opera for Mobiles but Opera Mini, a Java app.
Grüße,
Dirk

It seems I should give Opera Mini a chance ...

I've been using BA for about 4 years now! never disappointed me, its been amazing till now! however the weird look in ppl eyes start to annoy me so i decide to upgrade: so i got Touch PRO, and frankly i didn't feel it add much to my BA (may be a little bit)
bottom line: BA is one of the greatest device, and to replace it i would go for Touch PRO or PRO 2....but never through my BA
Cheers!

moh980 said:
bottom line: BA is one of the greatest device, and to replace it i would go for Touch PRO or PRO 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I thought so. I'll look for a Touch Pro when I get back the money I spent for the faulty E-ten. To0 bad that the Touch Pro still ist quite expensive.
Dirk

Last week I had a chance to compare BA and Touch Pro 2:
There are pros and contras for the Touch Pro 2.
Considering the contras the most important is the smaller screen (despite the 3.6"):
If I play games in portrait mode all signs and graphics are smaller than on a BA.
If I use the keyboard (E-Mail, Office) I have not enough place for lists and texts (landscape mode instead of portrait mode keyboard).
If I use the touch as navigation system the square of the screen is to small.
(moreover there is not car case yet with integrated power supply)
Hope sometimes HTC will build something like the TG01 with a keyboard.

I own a BA, have done for the last couple of years, currently running xplodes latest 6.5 rom and over all its a good pda... Yes, I class it as a PDA, due to its sheer size, I don't think I can ever comfortably use it as a phone... Yes, the screen is deffinitely bigger than most and that has its advantages, but I do think its getting old now and the way I see it, its probably getting a bit hard to adapt the latest software and roms to its 'aging' hardware...
I've just purchased a 2nd hand HTC TyTn II and to be honest, it really is fantastic, I really am very impressed with it, got it off eBay for £100 and the fact that it has a 3.0mp camera, built in GPS reciever, WiFi (like the BA), a 2.8" Screen and in my opinion, a much much better Qwerty keyboard pulling out the side giving much easier and bigger keys to press! I've currently got a Windows Mobile 6.5 rom on there and the battery life really does make the BA look like it should'nt have Windows Mobile 6.5 on it at all!
But hey, thats just my opinion, i'm not running the BA down at all, as its deffinitely one of my favorite devices and a device I'll keep forever! But I'm just giving my input to this thread and to reflect on what ive said above, for a good six months of the last year, I went back to using my SPV M500 rather than the BA just because it works better as a 'Phone'...
Cheers, Adz.