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=X=, I tried a Storm in the Verizon store while I was waiting to be helped. I found it incredibly slow and even managed to lock it up. (In all fairness, I have no idea what other people did to it before that happened.) Regardless, the Verizon rep responded with the infamous "they plan to fix that with the next software update." (I don't understand why Verizon keeps releasing products and spending huge amounts of money advertising them before they work the bugs out of the devices?)
I did a lot of research and read hundreds of posts on a half dozen forums before I went into the Verizon store. I wanted to know what early adopters / power users were saying about the Omnia's reliability. Also, what kind of software / registry hacks are available. Unlike the Storm, most everything they report in those forums is positive. And there is a lot more discussion about the Omnia than I would have imagined. I don't know the policies on this forum about posting links to other forums. If it's OK, and if you're interested, I could post links to those forums for you.
The Omnia runs Mobipocket reader well, but I still haven't figured out how to use the software. My only issue with it so far is I have so many books in my "library" on the device, it's hard to find the one I want. I wish they could be stored in folders.
The Omnia is a great device, but it won't do everything I wanted it for. I need something that can hang from a belt clip, be used to show before and after pictures, full page pdf documents and play u-tube clips and power point presentations to potential customers. And I need to be able to do it when we are standing in the middle of their back yards. That's a lot to ask. My plan was to wait until I can afford a $2,000+ daylight enabled OQO laptop (or a similar tablet PC if I could find one that meets those requirements)...
I figured I could live with the Omnia's small screen. It runs the software I need with no problem. But it's screen is not bright enough to be seen in daylight and it's speaker is not loud enough to be heard outdoors. I have 6 days left to decide to keep it or return it.
Regarding the i730. With WM3 my first one was virtually useless. The MS browser is lousy. It wasn't good at managing memory and would lock-up constantly if you tried to run add-on programs. Worst of all, the backlight gradually got so dim I couldn't even see it unless I was in a dark room at night. Just as my 1 year warranty was up, Verizon agreed to send me a brand new replacement. I immediately flashed it to WM5. Then I talked myself into an i760 so the i730 went back in it's box and I forgot about it.
I took the i760 back before the end of the 30 day return period because it just didn't seem like enough improvement over the i730. When the Touch came out, I tried one, and also took it back. Meantime, that brand new i730 sat on a shelf.
When I set-up the Omnia, I also set-up the i730. With WM5, it turns out to be a great device and seems to do almost anything the Omnia will. OK, it has a few minor irritants and it's screen is small. But unlike the Omnia, it's GPS is not locked so I can use it in my truck to guide me to my customers houses. I hate to do it to Verizon, but I'm thinking about returning the Omnia and using the i730 until I can afford the OQO.
By the way, my first Windows Mobile device, an XV6600 (also on a shelf in it's box) might make a great ebook reader. If I remember correctly, it has more memory than the i730 and has a bigger screen than either the i730 or Omnia. I don't know if it can be flashed to WM5. Unfortunately, both of it's batteries blew-up... As I was typing this, I did a search and discovered replacement batteries are still available on line...
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