Cingular 8525 Review

[Pearl_Diva]

smart-mobile-gadgets. he is selling the 641xxxx serial number, the latest. and it has a US warranty with US support so no need to ship accross seas. no more screen alignment problems...etc.etc. i just fear the 8525 may have some of the same issuse the tytn initially had, plus i like the unbranded.

Thanks!

 

[gadgetluva]

So I've read the reviews and checked out the wiki and am reading the comments. It looks like this is quite the device. I'm a huge fan of my 8125 and use it all the time. I don't have Cingular's 3G service available at home or work or anywhere in between. I use wifi for fast connections at those locations. WiFi use coupled with listening to tunes via BT headphones is a pretty decent strain on battery life. I imagine UMTS isn't quite as strenuous as wifi.

Does the snappier operation, redesigned keyboard, extra buttons, streamlined exterior and better camera warrant an upgrade even without the 3G functionality? It has a pretty hefty price-tag compared to when I bought the 8125 for $249 back in Feb. I wanted to wait til I had 3G access before upgrading but if the 8525 is such a better experience than my already heavily-used 8125, I may have to re-consider!

i would wait a bit if I were you. My main reason for updating was the 3G radio that I have already gotten quite a bit of use out of in the past day. The faster processor is definitely nice....but it seems to be a large price tag to pay for just the processor.

 

[Pearl_Diva]

I'd wait for 3G to appear in the area too. But he could buy the 8525 on the 30 day trial, and if he likes it, he can sell the 8125. That is, if he's really that anxious to test the phone.

 

[RobeJazz]

Audio Out Question

I can't belive that I can not find an answer to this question! Either that, or I have a different unit than you all.

There is no Audio Out jack!? I know the headphones that came with the unit work, but how do I use good headphones? or My Car Stereo?

Please Help if you know where to get an adapter

Robe

 

[rockky]

hey....just a word...that
the xda-developers site's info on rom and radio upgrading
and...modacos dns setting recommendations have sent this device (tytn) performance soaring
what was once 500-700kbps performance is now 800-1100 consistently.
dwell within those sites for a while!

 

[trjons]

After two days of exclusively using the 8525, I'm frustrated by the form factor. I want to text message but I hate opening up the keyboard to do that. It drives me crazy!

Plus I learned today at the football game that if you are in an area where data is down (due to 90,000 spectators), you can't TEXT message at all!!!! That is unbelievable! The Cingular software puts the SMS into Outlook and requires a data connection...which totally defeats the purpose IMO.

 

[patrickj]

On Modaco, you mean the switch to OpenNIC DNS servers? If so, yeah that it a very cool change to make. I think I'll wait a little on ROM updates ...

hey....just a word...that
the xda-developers site's info on rom and radio upgrading
and...modacos dns setting recommendations have sent this device (tytn) performance soaring
what was once 500-700kbps performance is now 800-1100 consistently.
dwell within those sites for a while!

 

[vinman]

ok, that question earlier about the audio out jack has me a little puzzled. Did they switch to some proprietary deal like Motorola uses? Is there an adapter yet?

 

[Pearl_Diva]

After two days of exclusively using the 8525, I'm frustrated by the form factor. I want to text message but I hate opening up the keyboard to do that. It drives me crazy!

Plus I learned today at the football game that if you are in an area where data is down (due to 90,000 spectators), you can't TEXT message at all!!!! That is unbelievable! The Cingular software puts the SMS into Outlook and requires a data connection...which totally defeats the purpose IMO.

Is it that way on the unlocked version? If so, I may have to forget this phone.

I never needed a data connection before to SMS!!

 

[vinman]

Well, Cingular is showing the phone available in my area, but still no 3G coverage. I'm saving my pennies and as soon as it's more than just a rumor that we're getting it soon, I'll plop down the cash to buy it. I'm a while from being eligible for an upgrade, so since I'm paying full price, I'm definitely waiting for the UTMS coverage.

Now, aside from the audio jack question from earlier, I have another. Those of you using this phone already, are you getting the 3G coverage with your existing data plans, or do you have to subscribe to a different package? This is a biggie as I'm still on the $20 MediaNet deal from a few years ago...

 

[trjons]

Is it that way on the unlocked version? If so, I may have to forget this phone.

I never needed a data connection before to SMS!!

I don't know about the unlocked as this is Cingular branded, but the SMS is actually a folder in pocket outlook as opposed to its own "application" as it is on the 750v.

Maybe there is a way to configure it otherwise but it doesn't send or receive SMS when the data is not accessible. I'm at the Coliseum with 92,000 others and I can't even SMS! Ridiculous.

 

[surur]

ok, that question earlier about the audio out jack has me a little puzzled. Did they switch to some proprietary deal like Motorola uses? Is there an adapter yet?

https://www.mobileplanet.com/p.aspx?i=138247

Here you go.

Surur

 

[Pearl_Diva]

Surur, do you know anything about the "no data availability, no SMS" issue?

 

[waynew73#WP]

With regard to the no sms sending, I do know that the htc devices handle sms a little differently in that not only is sms just a part of the whole messaging app, it will stick a message in draft it can't get service connection..as opposed to the treo's where they will put a message into the outbox and automatically send upon getting a signal. (I miss this feature). However, if you're saying that it's ability to send is dependent on data coverage and not just voice service, then I definitely don't know why.

 

[waynew73#WP]

Tytn Review after 2.5 days

I know this is a Cingular thread and I'm on T-Mo, but as I have a Tytn, I just wanted to share my thoughts on the Tytn. After 2.5 days of being on this phone, I am really loving it. It definitely is faster and a step up from my MDA. And although T-mo doesn't have 3G and probably won't well into next year, I have to say that it was still worth the purchase...between the extra processing speed and extra buttons and the wonderful scroll weed, it was worth it! Oddly enough, I did a couple of dslreports speedtests on both this phone and my mda and it seems to be coming back at twice the speed of the mda. I am assuming it's just a function of the processor, but it's definitely so. My only complaint, as I've written earlier, is the lack of "phone pad for t9 - one handed use...anyone know where I can purchase or rip a t-9 pad, I'd appreciate it. Also I have noticed that the phone does get "stuck" every now and then. I am monitoring this as I have seen it on the htcwiki.

 

[trjons]

Here's the deal with the no SMS when no data.

I'm used to the Treo 650 which does not require a data connection to SMS, just phone service. If you are in a dead spot, the SMS is held in a Outbox on the 650 and immediately sends when you return to a service zone.

With the 8525, SMS's are held in a drafts folder and do not send until your data connection is restored.

That is utterly useless.

 

[Pearl_Diva]

But you don't have to have data on, do you? Just in an area where it's available? I hope.

Otherwise I don't want to use active data everytime to send an SMS!

 

[waynew73#WP]

let me clarify for everyone as I was on a treo 600 and 650 before the mda and now the tytn. the treos will store an sms when it cannot get a service connection (voice)..it has nothing to do with data service. if you turned off the data connection and only had the voice service on, it would still send. SMS in general does not require data connection. what all of the htc devices do, is that if the voice service is not available, it puts the message into drafts instead of outbox when you hit send. you then have to go into the draft, open and hit send again for it to go. Basically, what I'm saying is that sms is not a data type of message and the difference between the treo and the htc devices, is that when there's no voice reception or minimal reception, the treo will hold the message in the outbox until it receives reception and then it sends. The HTC devices put the sms into draft and you have to manually send.

 

[Pearl_Diva]

This is what MVT said: "SMS's are held in a drafts folder and do not send until your data connection is restored."

That's what I'm trying to clarify for myself. Is it data connection or just data availability? It sounds like he's saying the SMS will not work if there's no data connection, which I hope isn't true. I hope he meant availability.

I also think that voice signal should be enough to send an SMS.

 

[jpasint#WP]

Did I read right that the 8525 has only 29 MB of RAM available after a fresh reboot? That would not be good.

Joe