Nokia 9500 vs ????

[jojoc]

A new phone for my daughter is in the works. She wants the 9500.

Upon further checking the following came up: no vibrating alert, no backlight keyboard, no voice dialing, same crappy VGA camera, and opening of applications tend to be slow.

Since the phone is huge and weighs a ton, I'm envisioning that the 9500 would be inside her handbag most of the time, thus the need for a bluetooth handsfree device. But with no voice dialing, is this possible? And the lack of vibrating alert would compound the problem (while inside her bag).

She's in college and thus the need for this type of a phone. I suggested the I-Mate, Treo 650, O2 Mini as alternatives. She's keeping her options open.

Any advise/suggestion before taking the plunge?

jojoc

[Ruler_70]

My suggestions: Treo 650, SE P910, Pocket PC...

[Dynamoo]

The Nokia 9300 has most of the advantages while being a lot smaller and eliminates the crappy camera altogether. If she's is college, then the 9500/9300's QWERTY keyboard would make it idea for limited note taking - there's nothing else short of a laptop with a keyboard as good.

Of course, the T-Mobile MDA IV comes out in the summer, and might be available under different names before then.

[Iron Mike]

what about her needs for wifi?

[Karim]

I have the 9500 and it's an excellent phone.

[khideg]

9500 is best choice

[TheZodiac]

If shes using this in place of a laptop for notes or something, than there isnt much else besides a 9300. Of course, you cold try a CSK2, which has PIM, a decent cam, vibrate, and a KB. Though, no BT.

Depending on her choice (if she has one) wireless carrier, she can also go for an MDAIII which has the slideing down KB - seems like she is going to be using a KB allot since most of the choices she is keeping open are KB'ed phones.

The N9500 is also expensive. She could also go for a free phone deal and a sub $1000 laptop and still come away with to capable products that do seperately a great job..

Unless shes suttborn :-P Then stick with:

9500
9300
CSK2
Treo 650 (may be the best bet)
MDAIII (kb version)

I would stay away from the Sony P910 in thie case.

[Great_Admirer]

imate jam kicks the 9500/9300 butt all the way.

small
wifi
bluetooth
vibrater
nice camera
touch screen
.........
.........
........
........
and the list goes on and on and on

wat else u want in a small package

[Karim]

iMate Jam is a good pocket PC. However it is not a communicator. And NO, it doesn't have WiFi, nor a good resolution screen.

[capri_cap]

If camera is not a concern, 9300 is the bset choice, small and sleek compared to 9500.
If camera is reqd. go for XDA2s , has an average camera, comes with a keypad.

[jojoc]

My daughter's been hooked on Nokia since the beginning and she is stubborn.

How about voice dialling vis-a-vis bluetooth handsfree? My understanding is this: without voice dialling, she would have to resort to pulling the phone out of her bag and search for her contact number.

The Tre0 650 GSM in the Philippines is a rip-off. No free SD card and the firmware is "buggy."

The O2 Mini looks cool but I was told that the 1.3 mega pixel camera is crappy.

The 9300 also looks good but I don't think it's got wifi. And she's gonna need wifi. Her class hangs out at Starbucks/Seattle's Best which are wifi friendly.

The I-mate jam is cool but is priced around $190 more than the 9500 here. And she needs a keyboard.

I don't think the MDA III is available here.

Hooo Boy!!!!

[findmidis.com]

9500 all the way - its got all the essential applications built-in, the keyboard is much better than anything else out there. You can type faster on the bluetooth/IR keyboards for PocketPC, but:

1) It'll be another thing to carry (as big as the PocketPC itself)
2) You'll have to remember to change batteries, never know when it dies out
3) Occupies more space than the 9500, and requires a completely flat surface

I'll be getting my own 9500 on Monday :D I've had an XDA-II before with an external keyboard and SDIO WiFi, these HTC devices are REAL battery hogs and you cannot get more than 2-3 hours of work out of them (even on dim display settings). From what I have read so far, the 9500 is a little slow in opening applications the first time around (then you can keep them open in the 64MB RAM for easy switching later) but at least it can get 3-4 hours of Wifi usage or 7-8 hours of regular use. I would literally keep my SD cards out of the XDA2 just to increase its standby time!

The JAM is a really cute device, but from what I understand it wouldn't suit your purpose well. The camera is pathetic, even VGA pictures are crappier than any Nokia camera-phone, and the videos are horrible (larger in size than most phones, but too many skipped frames and a wobbly effect). The JAM is great for managing contacts and engagements, and also listening to music, but not as suitable for web browsing and notes-taking.

The 9500 does not have voice-dial over BT, and like you said she will have to pull out the phone and then dial from there. I don't think the 9300 is a good option because its the same price (or more expensive) than the 9500, lacks the Wifi, has a smaller internal screen, and has a smaller keyboard. If the 9300 was $150-200 cheaper than the 9500, it would make a lot more sense - I can't justify its small size commanding such a big price when it's low on features compared to the 9500.

[Karim]

The 9300 is a little cheaper than the 9500, and is a bit smaller. Not a whole lot smaller. Nokia should have skipped the 9300 and made the 9500 the same size as 9300 with the same options it has now.

[tedwardo]

but would that be possible?

[Karim]

Why not? It would cost a lot more to make, but it would be a great device.

[jojoc]

Okay, here's the latest. My daughter's narrowed it down to the 9500 or the 02 XDA 2s. She says she'll sleep over it and break the news to us tomorrow.

I just came from Starbucks where I just spent 2 hours with my wife, her sister and husband discussing the pluses and minuses of all available pda phones in the Philippines.

My sister-in-law just got her Treo 650 this morning and her husband is thinking of getting either an SE S700i or the XDA 2s (just to keep up with her). He's waiting for my verdict (my sis-in-law got her 650 on my say-so).

I was able to access the O2 comparison chart at http://www.my-xda.com/comp.html and am quite impressed with xda 2s.

My gut feeling is my daughter's going for the 9500 (she reasons that it'll be 2007 or later before the 9700 Communicator comes out).

My sis-in-law's husband will be going for the xda 2s...on my say-so.

[tedwardo]

Why not? It would cost a lot more to make, but it would be a great device.
yeh but would it be possible to fit the hardware into the 9300?

[khideg]

listen if you neeed wifi get 9500.

let us know what you have bought :)

[jojoc]

Just one question before we head off to get the 9500 (yup, she decided): the external memory is expandable to 1gig?

Thanks.

jojoc

[Karim]

Yes, via MMC card slot.

[mweb6161onMB]

Yes, via MMC card slot.
Before i even got chance to espouse the virtues of XDA2S.

[jojoc]

Yup, she finally got the 9500. But my sis-in-law's husband got the XDA 2s. Anything he should watch out for?