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cheshire · 03-15-2005, 10:35 AM

Hello tomdooley,

Let me comment on each of those comments that you have heard:

So far, during these past few months, I have found the battery life to be adequate. My daily use includes reading news, about an hour of phone talk time, some games and very heavy PIM usage. I also use a Bluetooth ear piece. The Mini lasts about 1 to 1.5 days without charging; charging daily is sufficient, not forgetting that the sync cable charges too.

Having said that, I find that the OS, Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition Phone Edition (WM2003SE/PE), is not very stable. Using the stock applications are fine, but the more third party software I install, the more likely it is to soft reset itself. Sometimes a simple action of changing the today theme will cause a reset, due to installed third party software. The biggest offenders are today screen plugins that do not specifically support the Phone Edition (support of WM2003SE is not enough, software must explicitly support the Phone Edition). I have gone for a minimalist approach, and so far it turned out fine, but the initial stage was extremely frustrating as I have encountered several hard resets. I have also started to do weekly backups.

Bluetooth headset use works all right. I am using a Jabra FS250 ear piece, although the Mini works well with Sony Ericsson and Motorola headsets too. The Mini does not support Bluetooth audio gateway, meaning you cannot pipe music to the Bluetooth headset. Also, voice dialing via the Bluetooth headset doesn't work; voice dial must be activated via the mic on the Mini.

Not too sure about the Wifi use, but I have heard success stories with the Sandisk 256MB Wifi combo SD card. I personally don't use Wifi on my Mini but I haven't heard any horror stories so far.

Having said all those, what I enjoyed most about the Mini is its size; it's one neat little package that I can put in my pants pocket unobstrusively. My biggest gripe is that the OS doesn't seem too stable, but if you watch what you are installing, you should be fine.

I haven't had any experience with the Treo 650, so I can't comment. The most obvious difference is the attached keyboard, and how often you think you will be using the keyboard. The Mini uses an onscreen keypad, so you'll have to touch the screen to dial. Other than that my impressions of the Treo are that it is quite a solidly-built device, albeit a little larger and with a protruding antenna, which I personally don't prefer.

03-15-2005, 10:35 AM	#6
cheshire Fence Sitter Posts: 51 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Singapore Device: Asus P525	Hello tomdooley, Let me comment on each of those comments that you have heard: So far, during these past few months, I have found the battery life to be adequate. My daily use includes reading news, about an hour of phone talk time, some games and very heavy PIM usage. I also use a Bluetooth ear piece. The Mini lasts about 1 to 1.5 days without charging; charging daily is sufficient, not forgetting that the sync cable charges too. Having said that, I find that the OS, Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition Phone Edition (WM2003SE/PE), is not very stable. Using the stock applications are fine, but the more third party software I install, the more likely it is to soft reset itself. Sometimes a simple action of changing the today theme will cause a reset, due to installed third party software. The biggest offenders are today screen plugins that do not specifically support the Phone Edition (support of WM2003SE is not enough, software must explicitly support the Phone Edition). I have gone for a minimalist approach, and so far it turned out fine, but the initial stage was extremely frustrating as I have encountered several hard resets. I have also started to do weekly backups. Bluetooth headset use works all right. I am using a Jabra FS250 ear piece, although the Mini works well with Sony Ericsson and Motorola headsets too. The Mini does not support Bluetooth audio gateway, meaning you cannot pipe music to the Bluetooth headset. Also, voice dialing via the Bluetooth headset doesn't work; voice dial must be activated via the mic on the Mini. Not too sure about the Wifi use, but I have heard success stories with the Sandisk 256MB Wifi combo SD card. I personally don't use Wifi on my Mini but I haven't heard any horror stories so far. Having said all those, what I enjoyed most about the Mini is its size; it's one neat little package that I can put in my pants pocket unobstrusively. My biggest gripe is that the OS doesn't seem too stable, but if you watch what you are installing, you should be fine. I haven't had any experience with the Treo 650, so I can't comment. The most obvious difference is the attached keyboard, and how often you think you will be using the keyboard. The Mini uses an onscreen keypad, so you'll have to touch the screen to dial. Other than that my impressions of the Treo are that it is quite a solidly-built device, albeit a little larger and with a protruding antenna, which I personally don't prefer.