Help Me Survive Windows Mobile 5!

June 29, 2008 5:56 PM

While waiting for the new iPhone, I sold my old one. Now I'm back on a Cingular (HTC) 8125 with Windows Mobile 5 (it can't be upgraded to 6!) And I want to make the best of it without spending any money. I'm on a Mac, so I need to figure out the best way to deal with that, too.

I've learned to hate the device, unfortunately. Compared to the iPhone it's slow, clunky and insanely frustrating to use. But, I'm using it for the next two weeks and I need to find ways to make it work without pulling out what is left of my hair.

I'm on an iMac, and have Outlook in parallels but don't use it. Right now I'm using Plaxo to sync my contacts into Outlook and then to the phone, but the calendar isn't working at all (something on Plaxo's end.) So at least my contacts are working. I'd like a way to sync my calendar/tasks. I had MarkSpace Missing Sync but with the upgrade to Leopard it no longer works and don't want to pay for the upgrade.

I've installed PointUI which certainly makes the primary movements on the device nicer.

What else can I do to make this more pleasant? Other programs you'd suggest? Any free way to sync my data directly from OSX or a clever way to keep Outlook in Parallels and my iCal synced?

Thanks for all the help!

posted by Gideon to technology (11 comments total)

Gideon: "Now I'm back on a Cingular (HTC) 8125 with Windows Mobile 5 (it can't be upgraded to 6!)"

It can go to 6. If you get a build with HTC TouchFlo added then you can do lots of finger swiping to accomplish tasks.

If you want some eye candy, install SPB Mobile Shell - it adds swooshy animations.

I don't know about free, but Missing Sync works well with Apple products. Maybe there's a time-limited demo for the next few weeks?
posted by meehawl at 6:14 PM on June 29, 2008

Yeah, I'm discounting hacking a ROM into it, though. Too many things could go wrong, and I've both a conference and am moving in the next few weeks - I can't be without a phone. And most the ROMS I've found have been rather... arcane in their instructions.

I'll check out the SPB program. Missing Sync, unfortunately, does not do the demo thing. Thanks!
posted by Gideon at 6:18 PM on June 29, 2008

Do iPhone's have sim cards? When my Sony Ericsson phone died, I got an LG as a replacement, 'cause I wanted to wait and see the new iPhones and maybe buy one. But i hated that phone and got a Sony Ericcson z2520, swapped sim cards and was up and running in 30 seconds. Why the z2520a? It syncs, via Bluetooth, with my Mac address book and calendar and cost all of $30. It does not have an internet browser though, which is fine by me.

Also, can Outlook sync with Backpack? Me and the wife use Backpack to schedule our calendars, which then syncs through iCal and we sync both our phones (calendar and address book)via iSync.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:50 PM on June 29, 2008

I have the T-Mobile version of the HTC Wizard (Cingular 8125). Don't have a Mac. I use OggSync to synchronize my calendar with my google calendar.

The Wizard is infinitely customizable. The Howard Forums have tons of stuff, from apps to registry hacking to ROM hacking. You might have better luck if you search for the 'HTC Wizard'.
posted by QIbHom at 7:51 PM on June 29, 2008

if you're not opposed to a little money, pocketmac worked pretty well when I had an HP WM5 device back a few years ago. they have a money back guarantee so you could avail yourself of it if you wanted to.

or, you could use google calendar on the device and figure out how to get iCal to sync to it with gCalDaemon. you could have google calendar sync with this on the device itself. this is probably not the easiest route, but it's an option.
posted by mrg at 8:03 PM on June 29, 2008

Ha, I did exactly the same thing, only I'm using an HTC Polaris right now. I found the spbShell to be a lot better than TouchFlo, and experimented with 6.1 roms, but went back to the factory install. Things I've done while waiting for the iPhone:

Use the Plaxo Windows Mobile Client and cut out Outlook

Grab the Pocket Scrobbler from Last.fm if you're into that.

Install Opera Mobile 9.5 (beta) for web surfing (you can find it on the xda-developers.com forums)

Stick to mobile-only websites, don't trust or use PocketIe

Have patience, it will all be over in about 12 days.

posted by blue_beetle at 8:04 PM on June 29, 2008

WM5 apps:

Core Media player: plays anything
Skype: VoIP calls through your phone's internet connection
PDAnet: tethering without having to pay your carrier extra per month
Dopewars: addicting drug dealing game

Outlook. Are you using it with an exchange server? If so WM5's ActiveSync can talk to it directly and get contacts, calendar, etc. The new iphone is supposed to do this too and uses the same protocol.
posted by damn dirty ape at 8:11 PM on June 29, 2008

By the time you get a Windows Mobile phone working right with your Mac, the new iPhone will be out. It hardly seems worth the trouble. I'd just limp along with the way it is for the next couple of weeks.
posted by kindall at 11:31 PM on June 29, 2008

I forgot google maps for WM.
posted by damn dirty ape at 7:37 AM on June 30, 2008

Thanks everyone!
posted by Gideon at 2:52 PM on June 30, 2008

Windows Live Mobile. The Maps function is maybe better than Google's Maps on mobile, and the new voice query recognition works surprisingly well.

Yahoo Go. Worth it if you use any of the Yahoo services, along with the OneSearch and Mail apps.
posted by meehawl at 9:37 AM on July 1, 2008