Mini review on my Dopod 838

[Shun]

In 2005, HTC releases 2 reference designs of HTC Wizard, they share the same basic specification but have a different look. Dopod 838 is based on the Wizard 100, whereas more common devices like IMate K-JAM, Qtek 9100, T-Mobile Vario, O2 Mini S are based on Wizard 200.

There are already many reviews on Wizard 200, mostly based on simple usage for a couple of days or weeks. Not to repeat what other reviews have done, I shall concentrate on practical using of the device instead.

A quick refresher on the specification:

OS: Windows Mobile 2005 for Pocket PC Phone Edition
Dimension: 109mm x 58mm x 23.7mm, 160g
CPU: TI OMAP 850, 195MHz
Memory: 128MB ROM, 64MB DDR SDRAM
Expansion Slot: miniSD
Display: 2.8" transflective, 320x240 pixels, 65,536 colours, touch-sensitive
Phone: GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, and 1900)
Camera: 1.3MPx with assist lamp, unlimited video
Keyboard: QWERTY, 41 keys
Connectivity: miniUSB, IrDA SIR, Bluetooth 1.2, WiFi 11b
Battery: 1250mAh, 200 hours standby, 4-5 hours talk time
Software: Contacts, Calendar, Messaging, Tasks, Notes, Word Mobile, Excel Mobile, PowerPoint Mobile, Internet Explorer, Pocket MSN, Windows Media Player 10, Terminal Services Client, Camera, ClearVue PDF, Voice Commander, Zip and etc.

[Shun]

http://img494.imageshack.us/img494/8369/838ex718xi.jpg

Dopod 838 with Sony MDR-EX71. My phone isn't assemble properly, leaving a very small gap on top between the back cover and the body, :(

The QWERTY keyboard is nice and feel good. There are some "hidden" keystrokes to toggle number lock and entering of characters not printed on the keyboard, needs some exploring and practice to use it efficiently though.

Stylus is too small and not comfortable. It's also reported that the stylus holder break easily. Fortunately, it is not needed much on the 838 because of the soft keys and keyboard. I also keep the spare stylus in my wallet for normal usage, further reducing the chance of damaging the holder, :)

[Shun]

System preformance is acceptable, no navigation lag.

Memory is sufficient to handle all default application plus some freeware without casuing hiccup to the system.

External storage is miniSD, a big thumb up to Dopod for not including any card in the box, I can finally get the card according to my needs peacefully. I get a SanDisk 1GB miniSD, format it to FAT32 to reduce space wastage, working prefectly.

(PS: I actually forced myself to use the bundled 64MB RS-MMC in my previous phone because I can't bring myself to waste the card, I hate it when phone makers and users keep wasting resources like mad!)

Battery can last 4 to 5 days with very minimum usage, average to 3 days for my usage.

[Shun]

Phone reception is extremely good, signal always maintain at 2 bars and above, even in zone that most phones don't get any signal. (PS: it did drop to 1 bar once, can't figure out the reason as it happens at a location with good signal... ???)

Voice quality through the ear phone is very good, loud and clear. A lot of static when calling with the loud speaker, seems like some kind of lousy tuning, hopefully can be solved in future firmware.

This phone comes with T9 dialing that enter digit and lookup contact simultaneously, I like it much more than other dialing system. The soft dial pad is not bad, but nothing can replace a physical dial pad.

A small fault with the soft dial pad is the lack of key lock, I would like to able to activate it while in phone mode, instead of having to return to front page to do it.

[Shun]

The supplied headset is optimized for vocie clarity, good for calls but useless when listening to audio files.

With an average headset, audio sound as good as any compressed audio player, and as bad as any compressed audio format, :) I'm keeping my CD player for sometime.

[Shun]

The camera takes acceptable pictures under good lighting, perform badly under low light or uneven lighting. No macro mode.

http://img476.imageshack.us/img476/9917/044bw.jpg

http://img476.imageshack.us/img476/8093/118sr.jpg

[Shun]

WiFi standard is 11b, same as all Wizard devices except IMate K-JAM which has 11g. Speed is good, vary between 1.5/2Mbps (battery saving mode) to 8/9Mbps (performance mode) when tested with a local server. However, performance mode isn't very practical, battery drain faster and you don't need high speed to surf the Net. When you really need the speed for transferring large amount of data, the device heat up quickly, :D

Bluetooth standard is 1.2, good and stable connection, voice through Motorola HS850 headset sound loud and clear. No A2DP for stereo audio at this moment, should be available soon with the AKU upgrade.

GPRS, IrDA and USB port works as normal. No EDGE in my country, can't perform any test on it.

[Shun]

Software compatibility with Windows Mobile 2003 application is good, only a few application need to disable some features to run properly. However, many application were designed before Windows Mobile 5, these application have menu and features that is only accessible with the touch screen, quite annonying to work with 2 different standard, :(

Standard application for Pocket PC are discussed in many reviews, I shall not talk about them here.

[Shun]

Like it's predecessor, Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC focus on a generic concept that don't give special treatment to objects and cellular operation, no special binding of help to folders, no explicit binding of media files, no implicit lookup of application, no counters for SMS/MMS when other messaging system lack, etc. etc.

Based on Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC, Dopod 838 too is not optimized for phone, it will disappoint many when compare to other type of phones.

Nevertheless, it is still a solid PDA phone, stable, solid RF, good sound, nice QWERTY keyboard and etc. The only things I missed is a hardware dial pad and FM radio, maybe a better camera with auto focus and more controls too. At this moment, lack of 3G is an avantage to me, :)

[Shun]

http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/8130/dog8387eg.jpg

I don't like the look of the 838, my dog seems to like it a lot though, :)

http://img366.imageshack.us/img366/9571/dogsol2dm.jpg

He is playing Solitaire on my 838!

[Shun]

http://img456.imageshack.us/img456/1440/160qz.jpg

http://img491.imageshack.us/img491/1051/142gq.jpg

[Shun]

http://img491.imageshack.us/img491/6131/138tg.jpg

http://img491.imageshack.us/img491/6290/121xb.jpg

[Shun]

Dopod 838, as well as most Pocket PC, they are not quite user friendly by default. Seeing to it, I prepare an optional guide to enhance the UI without spending a single cent. It is based on my personal preference, all software can be found on Pocket PC freeware sites, eg. www.freewareppc.com.


Step 1: reassign the buttons

While many people change the front keys for 'Messaging' and 'Internet Explorer', I choose to leave 'Messaging' alone and assign 'Internet Explorer' to 'Comm Manager', I find the symbol on the keys more meaningful this way.

Next, I assign the original 'Comm Manager' to 'Start Menu' and 'Voice Dial' to 'Ok', since these 2 keys at the sides are in position with the functions. An added advantage is camera mode, 'Ok' and 'Shuttle' keys are both at the top now, changing camera settings is much easier. Voice dial is activate from the Bluetooth headset.


Step 2: install an Application Launcher.

Today screen are great, it shows various useful information on the device's front page, and it is becoming popular among non Windows Mobile phones. Despite it's usefulness, Today screen on Pocket PC still can't lanuch application after these years, :(

Fortunately, they are many Today's plugin for the purpose. I choose cLaunch, a very flexible freeware that can be configured to display application on Today screen in icon view or list view, in vary item's size, supports grouping of application under 8 tabs and etc.

It can cover the whole front page if you want, I choose to cover bottom part of the front page, leaving the information for Today screen on top.


Step 3: Task Manager (I skip this step on 838)

In Windows Mobile 2003, task managers is a 'must have' application to auto close running application. With Windows Mobile 5, it is better to keep application in the memory due to different memory organization. I drop task manager completely.

If you must have one, consider 'Small Menu', reassign 'Comm Manager' key to it instead of the 'Start Menu', and you have a good task manager that don't stay in the memory.


Step 4: on screen meters

Many task managers shows screen battery and power meters too, use them if your task manager provide them.

Since I no more use a task manager, I use Batti instead. It show the battery status as a line over the top of the screen, more precise and always available, much better than the default 5 levels battery meter on the Today's screen. You may consider powerstatus.exe to show both battery and power status.

(PS: the default meter on 838 can be disabled by deleting the InitTray.lnk from the \Windows\StartUp folder)


Step 5: add support for profiles (I skip this step too)

Profiles are the most interesting omission in Pocket PC phones. Why is it absent from Pocket PCs when Windows Mobile Smartphones can have it?

Nevermind, this can be added with PocketZenPhone v4.5.1 freeware edition. It's another Today's plugin that shows 5 profiles on front page, change to a profile by simply tapping on it. It can also be scheduled to auto switch between profiles at specify time.

I drop it because it has too many settings, give me lot of headache, never bother to get it right, :(


Summary:

After the above customization, I can use the device with one hand for most operation, launch application with a single tap and keep track of the status all the time. In fact, I never know the content of the Programs folder on my Pocket PCs, :D

Is it worth doing so much? I guess not for many users, but for real smartphone users, isn't the ability to twist the device the most interesting?

There are other more interesting or advanced tricks that are not listed here, eg. registry editing, crafting a installion script to refresh a device within 5 minutes, etc. etc. Due to the similarity with Windows, I find it more fun digging into Windows Mobile, :D

[Shun]

With a small registry hack from the Net, my Dopod 838 is make WiFi 11g/11b compatible, up from default 11b only configuration. Following are the result tested with the same local server:-

On Battery Saving mode, speed increases to 3/4Mbps from 1.5/2Mbps.

On Performance mode, speed increases to 12.5/14Mbps from 8/9Mbps.

Overall performance improve by 150% to 200%, still far from the theoretical 11g speed of 54Mbps but not bad for mobile device. Didn't notice any huge increase in battery consumption and the device seems to be cooler when the same amount of data was transferred.

Best of all, it can now connect to most wireless network without affecting the entire network, :)


Link to the registry hack for all HTC Wizard based phones - http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=38898

[666joe]

Nice review and looks like a nice neighbourood !!

cheers for that !

[Shun]

Thanks, I have fun writing it, though avoiding content repetition from other reviews was tough, :D

[666joe]

I know where your coming from.. Nice review mate and judging by pictures you guys are having better weather than us in UK.

It's nice to see these as so many products don't make it to UK let alone Europe...

[carcomptoy]

It's nice to see these as so many products don't make it to UK let alone Europe...
heh don't even get me started on how little things get to the US:cool::p

[Shun]

I know where your coming from.. Nice review mate and judging by pictures you guys are having better weather than us in UK.

It's nice to see these as so many products don't make it to UK let alone Europe...
Yup, Singapore weather is just nice for phones with not so good camera, lot of sunlight to light up the surrounding for my photos, ha ha ha... actually, I'm quite envy of the seasons in other countries, :)

Europe version of the phone was released earlier as IMate K-JAM, Qtek 9100, T-Mobile Vario, O2 Mini S and etc. I prefer the design of the Europe version more than the Dopod 838, :)

[Shun]

As mentioned, I was unhappy with the absent of profiles support in Windows Mobile PPC Phones, and software available to add the function are a nuisance with huge number of settings.

So, I proceed to build a simple but more flexible system myself. It's a quick and dirty method, I craft a few registry files for different profiles. Then, the profile's registry file are imported sliently with a freeware registry editor to activate it.

With the method, I can add profiles in several ways, I can create shortcuts to the profiles to be switch profiles from Start Menu, Programs folder, hardware keys, task manager or application launcher.

It works, but it is not an easy job, so I only post the detail in a Windows Mobiles forums where users are more familiar with them, :)


Now, a freeware is finally available to take care of everything, it's simple, flexible and easy! It is called Phone Profiles, url - http://www.winmobileapps.com/device/pocketpc/plt/plt.aspx.

By default, it add an item on the Today screen that display the active profile. Changing the profile and settings are done by selecting and hold on the item with the touch screen or hardware selection key.

You can also create shortcuts to switch profiles with the different ways mentioned above too, instruction can be found in the site's FAQ.

A bug in the Today's plugin prevent it from releasing the highlight when focus is moved away, making the Today screen messy since 2 items will be hightlighted when you select another item. Therefore, I drop the Today's plugin. I integrate it into the application launcher on my 838, save a little resource too, :)

Nevertheless, simple profiles support is finally available for free to normal Windows Mobile PPC phones users, :D

[666joe]

Yup, Singapore weather is just nice for phones with not so good camera, lot of sunlight to light up the surrounding for my photos, ha ha ha... actually, I'm quite envy of the seasons in other countries, :)

Europe version of the phone was released earlier as IMate K-JAM, Qtek 9100, T-Mobile Vario, O2 Mini S and etc. I prefer the design of the Europe version more than the Dopod 838, :)

Well send some sun this way it freezin !

I agree, the device itself is sound and already gaining a huge B2B following. Quite like this whole reboxing thing, means we all get the toys (sorry carcompty) with differing skins....share and share alike !

[MikeUK]

I know where your coming from.. Nice review mate and judging by pictures you guys are having better weather than us in UK.

It's nice to see these as so many products don't make it to UK let alone Europe...
Isn't the dopod just another shell for the HTC wizard? We have that in UK in forms on different networks and the i-mate/qtek versions.

[Shun]

T-Mobile is releasing it in US next month too, as T-Mobile MDA.

I'm trying to convince a friend to build new application to program large machinery that his company assembler.... it will be interesting to see the expression of his customers when his technician bring phones to the sites, he he he... :D

[carcomptoy]

I like the look of the Dopod better than the MDA though...not much for curviness:cool:

[666joe]

I like the look of the Dopod better than the MDA though...not much for curviness:cool:

Lol do you drive a Volvo then ?

[MikeUK]

Meh, I think the MDA Vario type looks much better, but it's all opinion now............I really should change my avatar though seeing as I've got a D600 now instead.

[carcomptoy]

Lol do you drive a Volvo then ?
LOL no I ironically have the curviest Corolla...but yeah, I mean when it comes to phones. I hate it when curves are put up against each other...like in the MDA. You know how the buttons are concave against the curve?:o

[Shun]

Dopod 838 audio playback with Windows Media Player isn't too good. A very high end earphone/headphone can make it "sound better", but that's some kind of "deception"... a chain is only as strong as it's weakest link, the compressed format source and simple audio circuit kills the output completely.

IMHO, it is not worth spending the money on MP3/WMA player, just get a cheap Sony MDR-EX71 plus a cheap Sony CD player and you can get much richer output.

A better option will be to try to improve it with software. Again, I download a few freeware and start testing them with various formats, including MP3, WMA and non compressed WAV. Following are the result of the freeware:-

PocketMusic freeware edition - this player seems to produce output that represent the device's audio ability, which means it doesn't sound good on 838 too... However, it still a better player that Windows Media Player with enhancement like playlist management and EQ.

TCPMP 0.71 - this thing sound awful, sound like the old WinAmp that was badly criticized for it's output... dull, flat, hollow, etc, etc...

MortPlayer 3.3 - It seems to have the highest distortion among the players, the output are completely modified. Due to that, the original sound of 838 is gone and it turns out better than it should, as long as you apply minor or no equalization. Interesting, I still pick it for my 838 though it has the highest distortion, :D


Overall, PocketMusic should be the best among the players, follows by MortPlayer and Windows Media Player. The 838 sound better with these freeware, it is still not comparable to CD quality, but most user should be satisfy with it.

How about TCPMP? It sound extremely bad on the 838, probably wouldn't be any better on other devices too. I simply can't accept TCPMP as an audio player at this moment, hopefully it can be improved in future, :)

[manav]

I cant thank you enough for this.

[lxhw]

838 is indeed a nice fone, but the 195MHz OMAP 850 processor(same as 577w & 586w SP) disappoints me a little whereas 818 features 416MHz XScale...

[carcomptoy]

Isn't the oxymoronic? Shouldn't the higher model have a better processor:confused:

[Shun]

818 is the previous generation product, running on WM2003SE. It seems that HTC has decided to give battery life higer priority in some of the new products like 818 Pro and 838.

[Shun]

An update on the optional guide in the review. All application used are freeware.


1) Task Manager

While WM5 memory management don't really require task manager, it can be quite slow to load application from the storage.

Most task managers I tested have some problems on the 838, finally settled on InClose Mobile.

It takes up nearly 2MB of storage space, a huge amount for a task manager. I trimmed it to about 400kB, still quite large but with features like "exception list" and "conflict list", I think it is the only "usable" free task manager for WM5 phones.

By placing common application in the exception list, my 838 responsed quickly on common task like messaging, while remains efficient on memory usage.



2) Device Lock

In my review, lack of device lock in phone mode was one of my complaint.

It can be solved by creating shortcut to a command line application call VJDeviceLock. By placing the shortcut in Start Menu, map it to a button or application launcher, user can now lock the device without returning to the Today screen.

It not only solved my complaint on not able to lock in phone mode, I don't have to switch around in any application, eg. lock in Media Player and returns to it directly, :)

It only works with HTC devices with the Device Lock Today's plugin.


3) Quick Function Access

A feature missing in WM5 that was available in WM2003 is the New Menu. It allows direct access to common function like creating new SMS, documents and etc. While it is possible to simulate the feature by using shortcuts, it is quite tedious and inconvenient.

With WM5NewMenu, just map it to a soft key and you have access to most common used functions that comes preset in it. User can customized it to any desired functions.

I tried mapping it to other buttons beside the soft keys, doesn't seem to work, hopefully the author will twist it so that it can work from any place rather than tie down to Today screen.



4) USB Mass Storage Support

WM5torage is an USB mass storage driver for WM5 devices. It allows transferring of files between PC and WM5 devices without installing ActiveSync, very convenient when sharing files with friends or copying files between customer PCs.

It has problem activating in some cases. User can reset the device to use it again, or a workaround is to start Messaging and shutdown all application, then activate it, works reliably on my 838, :)

[Shun]

The new Dopod 838 ROM Code with AKU2 was released on 19 Apr 2006 -

ROM version: 2.21.13.1 WWE
ROM date: 03/09/06
Radio Version: 02.19.11
Protocol Version: 4.1.13.09
ExtROM version: 2.21.13.102

For those who are not familiar with Windows Mobile, AKU2 refer to a system update that adds Microsoft Direct Push support to the platform. It works with Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 with Service Pack 2 to provide push mail services.

Unlike the older push mail solution call Always Up-To-Date (AUTD) that uses a special crafted SMS to trigger contents download, Direct Push uses heartbeats to maintain live connection with the server and actively synchronize the contents. This new solution is not only much straight forward, it is very flexible too.

(For more information on AUTD, see http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/exchange/2003/autd.mspx)

Setup for Direct Push is very easy, enter the server information and login account into ActiveSync's Server Settings and the device is ready. I subscribe to a free account with mail2web.com and it takes less than a minute to get it working, :)

(For instructions to setup Direct Push with mail2web.com, see http://www.trendsmobile.com/main/showsection.asp?SectionID=138&ParentID=132)

Like many people, I'm worry about the cost incurs to maintain the heartbeats since Direct Push works over GPRS. I found out that it actually works with ActiveSync USB passthrough to the corporate/home Internet connection, or it can be forced to pull over WiFi by barring GPRS connection.

By simply selecting different Networks, GPRS usage is keep to a very minimum amount. I have now a cheap, flexible and effective mail solution.

[Shun]

Beside Direct Push, the new firmware has only 1 more change, an update Comm Manager for Direct Push. However, there seems to many internal modification though not mentioned in the release. Let's take a look at some of the noticeable differences.

Audio sounds different, it seems to be tuned away from the high pitch sound. However, it's just turning a bad sound into another bad sound with a different tone, :D

The camera seems to use different parameters or processes internally. The results is poorer than the original firmware with the default setiings, but with some adjustments and practices, it can produce better results.

http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/2726/13xf2.jpg

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/7969/21vm.jpg

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/5805/31nl.jpg

http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/9648/41ur1.jpg


WiFi connects much faster and more reliable. 11g is still disabled by default, a registry hack must be apply to enable it.

Software compatibility is also improved. For example, I always prefer Total Commander for Smartphones because it make uses of the soft keys and full tree navigator with the d-pad. It was quite problematic with the original firmware but it is almost usable with the new firmware. It's still not prefect though, problems still exist during common operation like Copy/Move, have to stick with the Pocket PC version for now.

[Shun]

While the updates are mostly positive and the new push mail works flawlessly, I encountered so many problems with the phone operation that after a month of testing, I still aren't very sure about the quality of the new firmware.

At the same time I do the firmware upgrade, I also switched mobile provider and was given a 3G SIM Card. Then, things started to get messy...

Initially, the standby battery life decrease from average of 4 days to less than 2 days. I called provider's support, no conclusion, so I asked to change to a 2G SIM Card. Before I went to exchange the card, I removed every preset contacts in the 3G SIM Card, and surprisingly, the battery life restored or even exceed the original system.

I'm not sure what happened, but happily, I stick to the 3G SIM Card.

Then, reception begins to give problems. In many area where signal was good with the previous provider's 2G SIM Card, the signal ceased completely. Also, the phone seems to be doing some kind of signalling at randomly interval when laying on my office desk alone, it causes interference to a nearby computer speaker. The signal indicator is always full on that desk.

In addition, calls start to go slient half way through the conversation and people are saying I sound very soft over the phone.

The staff from the new provider did advised me on the possibility of poor reception for using 3G card on 2G phone, could all these problems be due to it? Could the provider has adjust some signalling settings after I called them? Could it be the fault of the new ROM code?

I've place it into manual network search which seems much better for now, will carry on monitoring, planning to flash to the original firmware or go for a 2G SIM card ultimately if everything fail, :(

Conclusion:

I don't know how to judge the new firmware now. There are many nice improvement, but the phone operation faults is yet to be solved, which could overshadow everything and makes it totally unless update.

[wawago]

Does 838 support 2gb minisd?
Thanks

[Shun]

Haven't test it myself, read about users using it on similar devices like 818 Pro or O2 Atom, likely that it will work on the 838 too.

[jayesh]

i just came across this thread.. shun amazing work. this is a very good user review. i can count one or 2 reviews on the forum that were as good as this

[ericsu25]

Does anyone know how to master reset Dopod 838? If you do, can you please tell me how...

[vernonlcm]

Sorry i am new here, can i ask 1 question? I thought that Dopod 838 pro is using micro sd so why is that so many people talking about it using mini sd and even rs mmc? Appreciate for any clarification. Thanks.

[Shun]

Dopod 838 uses miniSD and Dopod 838 Pro uses microSD.

RS-MMC is not use in either model.

[vernonlcm]

Dopod 838 uses miniSD and Dopod 838 Pro uses microSD.

RS-MMC is not use in either model.

Okok... thanks for the clarification. If only Dopod 838 pro using mini SD, it would be my perfect choice. LOL

[vernonlcm]

Another thing i like to know if Dopod 838 pro video light can be switch off during video recording?

[kaon]

How does Dopod 838 compare versus Nokia E70?
(in terms of speed, software stability, camera quality, cell phone functionality)

Is it possible to get an E70 in Singapore? When?

[Shun]

Have not use the Nokia E70, can't compare.

838 speed is acceptable. Stability can be very high depending on the user. Camera quality isn't quite good, doubt that it can match the E70.

With original firmware and previous service provider, 838's reception was better than my Nokia 6670. It becomes a little erratic after upgradng to the new firmware and switching to new service provider, :(

Yes, E70 is already available in Singapore for around S$780.