It’s been a frustrating year for new Windows Mobile hardware. The HTC Advantage looked so good on paper, then let us down with broken USB host support. The Cowon Q5W took forever to launch, and then they left out HSDPA and all the Bluetooth profiles except headphones, so you can only connect via WiFi. This leaves the Toshiba G900 as my new top recommendation. It has almost every single feature you could ask for in a phone, an 800×480 VGA screen, HSDPA for the fastest transmission speed available, WiFi, Bluetooth, and of most interest, one of the best USB Host support implementations I’ve seen. Not only is the Mini B->A adapter included in the box, unlike the Loox T830, you don’t need to change any software settings before plugging in the camera, it just works.
So what are the downsides? Well, for those of us in the US, it doesn’t support the frequencies AT&T uses for HSDPA, so you only get EDGE speeds. Given the popularity of the iPhone however, maybe EDGE is fast enough? Buy an iPhone for play, then take the SIM out and put it in the G900 for work. The other downside is that this is a Toshiba G900. Toshiba has an unfortunate reputation for building great hardware (the old Toshiba E800 had the first VGA screen way before HP came out with the iPAQ 4700), but dropping the ball when it comes to firmware. If you search for reviews or browse the Expansys forums, you’ll find a lot of criticism, as the first version of the G900 firmware had serious problems. Thankfully they fixed most of these problems, and the G900s are now shipped with the new firmware. Unfortunately, this is the only phone I can think of that has to be shipped back to Toshiba in the UK for a firmware update. Talk about putting your best foot forward, then shooting it. But, even with these reservations, the fact remains that the G900 is the best phone for running Phojo. What other phones are there with HSDPA and working USB Host support? The closest competitor would be the T830, which is a year older than the G900, and in every way inferior (only UMTS vs HSDPA, half the RAM, much smaller screen etc). Even when compared to a non-phone device, the G900’s VGA screen and 128MB of RAM put anything ever made by HP or Dell to shame. Add one to your Christmas list!
Review at the:unwired
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Purchase from Expansys with no contract for 404.95 UKP
Purchase from Expansys with phone contract for 209.95 UKP (other plans available)
Purchase from MobilePlanet for $729
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Feel free to mail me one for testing!
Is the only network it is available with is AT&T? Also no memory slot? I have not tried the USB and my Pocket Loox and Nikon does that work?
Andrew: I`ll trade you one for a D300 :p
Jay:
The G900 is a GSM phone, so AT&T and T-Mobile are the only suitable US networks, Sprint and Verizon are CDMA based.
It has a MiniSD slot, which is smaller than regular SD but bigger than the MicroSD slots common on phones. If you buy a Mini or Micro card they usually come with the Mini->full size adapter.
Not good news
Why because I have a HTC Advantage and having purchased it on recommendation here and never having got it working - I am loath to purchase a new phone - even if it is the best thing since sliced bread.
It was money down the drain
I am hoping those who buy this have better luck.
Not really a criticsm at Paul - but I had high hopes for the HTC Advantage and it never quite worked as promised.
Just out of curiosity - I visited http://www.expansys.com/f.aspx?i=146074 - looks like the users are not very happy - I am assuming this is a select few, but it raises concerns when expansys are encouraging users to complain to Toshiba as ‘the more the merrier’.
Have you heard anything Paul, as it seems that firmware updates are still having to be completed via post
I feel your pain Ian, the Advantage was a serious disappointment. I couldn’t even get an acknowledgment from HTC about the problem. If you want USB host support, I`d Ebay the Advantage to recoup most of the price of the G900, the resale value is very good, $800 in the US. As I mentioned in the article, check when the negative comments were posted in the G900 forum, as they are now shipping with the 3.01 ROM which fixed the early issues.