I almost didn't see your question as I only track about 50 threads, and this isn't one of them. <VBG> I just came over here to give you guys an update on the Neopoint phone.
The latest update is that Sprint has tried somewhat to be helpful, but my interface problems are more than they can deal with. They won't or can't give me a phone number to someone at Neopoint or the software maker (Puma Technologies???) who can help. I believe that Sprint would help if they could.
I have sent two service requests to Neopoint via their web page, and they have yet to respond in any form whatsoever, not even an automated response, or a "we'll get back to you". Therefore at this point my conclusion is that Neopoint knows the interface program doesn't work right, and they are trying to avoid answering because they have no solution.
As for battery life, I am not that heavy a user, but so far the battery life hasn't been a problem. I realize that 30-40 hours of standby isn't very long, and therefore I turned off back-lighting (except at night) and lowered the contrast on the LCD screen. For me so long as the battery lasts 12 hours including moderate use of the PDA features and maybe a hour of talk-time the battery should be fine. I haven't had a problem yet, but if I do I will probably add a car-charger. I should add that the accessories for the phone are not out yet - no car charger, no extra charger, no case, and not the desk accessory that automatically synchs the phone and recharges at the same time.
The battery itself is a custom design that would fit only this phone. Unless this phone becomes very popular I suspect that replacement batteries could be expensive. On the other hand, the battery is labeled as "slim li-ion battery", and it would seem to me that just as motorola came up with fat batteries for their phones, a fat battery for this phone is also a possibility.
The fit and finish are very good. The feel of the buttons is very good, and the four-way cursor button works fine. The T9 input is fantastic. The voice recognition works well. The scheduler, to-do list, call history and rolodex all work well and are easy to use. I haven't tried the mini-browser, nor enabled the automatic internet update feature. I have also not tried to use the phone as a 14k wireless modem or fax-modem.
I'll probably give Sprint/Neopoint until the end of next week to come up with a solution before I return the phone because it really is a nice phone (Everyone who sees it wants one!) and to the best of my knowledge there isn't anything else like it out there. The Qualcomm PDQ will do the same sorts of stuff, but is an awkward brick.
Does Nokia make a phone that can communicate with a computer, and in particular, with ACT!2000? If so, will it work as a scheduler and rolodex? I can live without the mini-browser as I have no idea what I would use it for.
Thanks,
Carl |
