Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


nix

nix

147 posts

Master Geek


#9729 9-Oct-2006 12:56

i need to replace my aging iPaq 6365 and am looking at another HP - the HP 6828 Multimedia Messenger.

From the specs - "Intg Tri-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE wireless radio with automatic band
transition, Intg WLAN 802.11b& Intg BT v1.2 wireless tech"

So will this EDGE business give me some sort of high speed data access here in NZ?

Or should I be looking elsewhere - at one of the iMate series for example. I'd love some advice / opinions!

Basically I want:

A basic phone
2 MP camera
MP3 playback
WIFI & Bluetooth
Internet thats faster than GPRS - currently I set up my iPaq as a bluetooth modem for my Toshiba tablet when I'm away from home. Ordinarily I like to be able to check my email or check out a wikipedia page , update my blog from the PDA.
I like to be able to take notes, keep essential data at hand - so WM is useful but not essential. Some sort of ability to read txt files at least though.

Regards

nix

View this topic in a long page with up to 500 replies per page Create new topic
 1 | 2
chiefie
I iz your trusted friend
5877 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #48012 9-Oct-2006 13:04
Send private message

Edge is not in NZ, we instead have UMTS. it is between GPRS and UMTS. Other places like Asia, North America and some part of Europe has it.




Internet is my backyard...

 

«Geekzone blog: Tech 'n Chips Takeaway» «Personal blog: And then...»

 

Please read the Geekzone's FUG

 




chiefie
I iz your trusted friend
5877 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #48013 9-Oct-2006 13:07
Send private message

Oh! if you want to replace your 6365, don't get 6828, get Imate JasJam as it has HSDPA and you will appreciate the faster speed on HSDPA. i'd avoid anything not UMTS at the very least.




Internet is my backyard...

 

«Geekzone blog: Tech 'n Chips Takeaway» «Personal blog: And then...»

 

Please read the Geekzone's FUG

 


grant_k
3539 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48014 9-Oct-2006 13:12
Send private message

chiefie: Oh! if you want to replace your 6365, don't get 6828, get Imate JasJam as it has HSDPA and you will appreciate the faster speed on HSDPA. i'd avoid anything not UMTS at the very least.


Yep, I'm hanging out for HSDPA on my next phone.

Jama's blog ( http://www.geekzone.co.nz/Jama ) makes very interesting reading in this respect with its comparisons of the various mobile broadband technologies.  Vodafone's original 3G (UMTS) was still not really competitive with Telecom in terms of speed and latency.

FINALLY, with the move to HSDPA, Vodafone are within a whisker (Slightly worse latency, Download speed around 30% slower, but Upload speed about 2.5x faster) of Telecom's current EVDO Revision.  Not before time!

Keep in mind though that all of this is very much a moving target with HSDPA and EVDO scheduled to receive further speed upgrades in coming months.

Cheers,
Grant.



3g

3g
341 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #48020 9-Oct-2006 13:38
Send private message

Adding to the earlier answers, EDGE is big in the US.

Main reason (imho) that the US has gone EDGE (whereas here in NZ we went straight to HSDPA) is that EDGE is effectively an upgrade of the existing infrastructure, whereas UMTS (and HSDPA) require new infrastructure - which explains why Vodafone 3G isn't available everywhere that GPRS is available.

In NZ we have the luxury of being relatively small (compared to the US at least), so it's viable for NZ to leapfrog EDGE and go straight to UMTS & HSDPA. The US markets need(ed) a stepping stone to the higher speed technologies, which EDGE gives them.

freitasm
BDFL - Memuneh
79250 posts

Uber Geek

Administrator
ID Verified
Trusted
Geekzone
Lifetime subscriber

  #48025 9-Oct-2006 13:53
Send private message

And in the meantime if you need to fallback from 3G you go all the way back to GPRS instead of a bit more enjoyable EDGE experience (yes I used it in the USA).

Grant, I am using a vodem. Its performance is 1/2 of the performance of a PC card solution, making it actually very much equivalent to CDMA EVDO Rev 0. I am going to test another PC card pretty soon, and I expect it to perform better, like the Sierra Wireless I had before.





Please support Geekzone by subscribing, or using one of our referral links: Samsung | AliExpress | Wise | Sharesies | Hatch | GoodSyncBackblaze backup


grant_k
3539 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48027 9-Oct-2006 14:01
Send private message

freitasm: And in the meantime if you need to fallback from 3G you go all the way back to GPRS instead of a bit more enjoyable EDGE experience (yes I used it in the USA).


Yes, and GPRS sucks, I've had to use it a lot when Telecom staff kicked me out of the wireless Hotspot at Mystery Creek Fieldays... Frown

freitasm: Grant, I am using a vodem. Its performance is 1/2 of the performance of a PC card solution, making it actually very much equivalent to CDMA EVDO Rev 0. I am going to test another PC card pretty soon, and I expect it to perform better, like the Sierra Wireless I had before.


Oh Surprised, that's interesting.  I thought that with the transfer speeds available on USB 2.0, it should be plenty fast enough to keep up with HSDPA, but obviously not so...  Or do you think some other factor is coming into play here?

I noticed that Jama was using the Sierra AirCard 850 for those tests and presumably it has the CARDBUS (32-bit interface).  The results sure were impressive...

Cheers,
Grant.

freitasm
BDFL - Memuneh
79250 posts

Uber Geek

Administrator
ID Verified
Trusted
Geekzone
Lifetime subscriber

  #48034 9-Oct-2006 15:06
Send private message

The devices are very different. For your information, the PC card I tested was Jama's, and that was an 1.8Mbps card... Vodafone is sending a new version, 3.6Mbps to test.







Please support Geekzone by subscribing, or using one of our referral links: Samsung | AliExpress | Wise | Sharesies | Hatch | GoodSyncBackblaze backup


 
 
 

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.
Jama
1420 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48035 9-Oct-2006 15:08
Send private message

The issue is around different antenna technologies.
Vodem = uni directional (moving it around will affect performance)
AirCard 850 = omni directional (it picks up the best reception around the antenna)

Also, the Vodem performance will be impacted by obstacles such as the laptop lid hence the reason for the USB cable and the velcro. You should stick it as high as possible on the back of the laptop lid and use the USB cable to get it away from the laptop.

grant_k
3539 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48038 9-Oct-2006 15:29
Send private message

Jama: AirCard 850 = omni directional (it picks up the best reception around the antenna)


Does the AirCard 850 have an external antenna?  i.e. not just one of those flip-up antennas attached to the PC Card itself?

Yeah, omni-directional is the best way to go so long as the signal strength is high enough...

Jama
1420 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48046 9-Oct-2006 16:00
Send private message

AirCard 850 has a removable, external antenna

freitasm
BDFL - Memuneh
79250 posts

Uber Geek

Administrator
ID Verified
Trusted
Geekzone
Lifetime subscriber

#48050 9-Oct-2006 16:28
Send private message

Just unpacked my Merlin XU870 HSDPA card here...

Will test it later from the mall and compare with the vodem and the AirCard.






Please support Geekzone by subscribing, or using one of our referral links: Samsung | AliExpress | Wise | Sharesies | Hatch | GoodSyncBackblaze backup


Jama
1420 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48051 9-Oct-2006 16:36
Send private message
grant_k
3539 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #48054 9-Oct-2006 16:47
Send private message

Jama: Nice Express Card


Mauricio: Which of your many Mobile Devices has ExpressCard slots?

Or are you using the PCMCIA adapter?

ExpressCard is a pretty new type of slot which hasn't appeared on too many laptops yet.

Cheers,
Grant.

freitasm
BDFL - Memuneh
79250 posts

Uber Geek

Administrator
ID Verified
Trusted
Geekzone
Lifetime subscriber

#48056 9-Oct-2006 16:50
Send private message

Jama, thanks for the link! Posted a picture here: http://www.geekzone.co.nz/freitasm/1519

Grant17, it comes with a PC card adapter. I use a Toshiba Tablet PC M205.





Please support Geekzone by subscribing, or using one of our referral links: Samsung | AliExpress | Wise | Sharesies | Hatch | GoodSyncBackblaze backup


lapimate
352 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #48059 9-Oct-2006 16:56
Send private message

Jama: ... Vodem = uni directional (moving it around will affect performance) ...


So what is the most favourable orientation for a Vodem, assuming one knows the direction of the Vodafone antenna? E.g. point Vodem's non-USB end at antenna w. Vodem horizontal flat on its back?

 1 | 2
View this topic in a long page with up to 500 replies per page Create new topic





News and reviews »

Air New Zealand Starts AI adoption with OpenAI
Posted 24-Jul-2025 16:00


eero Pro 7 Review
Posted 23-Jul-2025 12:07


BeeStation Plus Review
Posted 21-Jul-2025 14:21


eero Unveils New Wi-Fi 7 Products in New Zealand
Posted 21-Jul-2025 00:01


WiZ Introduces HDMI Sync Box and other Light Devices
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:32


RedShield Enhances DDoS and Bot Attack Protection
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:26


Seagate Ships 30TB Drives
Posted 17-Jul-2025 11:24


Oclean AirPump A10 Water Flosser Review
Posted 13-Jul-2025 11:05


Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: Raising the Bar for Smartphones
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Brings New Edge-To-Edge FlexWindow
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Epson Launches New AM-C550Z WorkForce Enterprise printer
Posted 9-Jul-2025 18:22


Samsung Releases Smart Monitor M9
Posted 9-Jul-2025 17:46


Nearly Half of Older Kiwis Still Write their Passwords on Paper
Posted 9-Jul-2025 08:42


D-Link 4G+ Cat6 Wi-Fi 6 DWR-933M Mobile Hotspot Review
Posted 1-Jul-2025 11:34


Oppo A5 Series Launches With New Levels of Durability
Posted 30-Jun-2025 10:15









Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.