Upgrading HTC Hero to Android 2.1

I’ve finally upgraded to Android 2.1 the HTC Hero (T-Mobile G2) I’ve been using. For the most part this is a safe process, and the chances to brick it are virtually none (if understand it correctly !…).

Here’s the guide I’ve followed: [Guide] Complete Newbie Guide to Install a Custom Rom [Updated 16/07]. And yes, I had to “Goldcard” it…

I’ve tried out a few ROMs and stopped at VanillaEclair 5.0-build7 – for no particular reason. It worked, some of the others had some flaw that I’ve encountered, I’m afraid it wasn’t a very scientific decision...

For the little I’ve tested, I’ve I liked:

• The mail. Finally!
• VPN and proxy support.

What I didn’t like:

• Loosing the cool HTC apps and widget… oh well..

 

<update>

I’m afraid I couldn’t connect to my company’s VPN :(

<update>

Trying out a new SoftPhone

I’m trying out a new softphone – I’m trying to ditch X-Lite. Here a cool option: 3CX. And yes, it looks like an iPhone, cool!

Geotagging photos

I’ve been trying to geotag my photos using my PDA so I can cross-reference them by date. Though the process works it wastes by PDA’s battery on something like 1 1/2 hours.

A friend of mine is trying a cool new system: u-blox:

u-blox’ patented GPS Capture & Process technology enables mobile products to instantly capture a location using just a few millijoules of power. This is especially attractive for applications such as photo geotagging for cameras and camera accessories where users just want to point and shoot, and not waste precious time and battery power waiting for a conventional GPS position fix. The concept can easily be extended to ultra-low power position loggers that can record position data for months without recharging.

How it works
In contrast to real-time GPS receivers which can take an unacceptably long time to establish a position fix, GPS Capture & Process captures location data in a fraction of a second. It achieves this by separating the GPS signal capture and subsequent processing into two distinct steps:

1. Capture: the raw output of an embedded GPS front-end is digitally captured and stored locally, for example in a camera’s memory each time a photo is taken.
2. Process: when uploading photos for storage, u-Blox PC or Mac software also uploads the raw capture data and timestamp associated with each photo. With the help of u-blox’ online satellite positional data service, the raw data is quickly converted into a position fix.

The benefits to camera and logger manufacturers are clear:

• Ultra-fast location capture: GPS signal data is captured on-demand in less than 200 ms – no waiting for acquisition of satellite orbital data necessary. Point and shoot performance!
• Extremely low power solution: the GPS radio is on for a small fraction of a second per capture resulting in a negligible impact on battery life.
• Fast time-to-market: complete end-to-end, globally available and reliable online geotagging and reverse geocoding service is available now.
• Fast PC processing: geotagging and reverse-geocoding software and online service is optimized for Windows (XP, Vista and 7) and Mac and can typically compute a position fix from a capture in 0.4s per photo.

The system can work synced with the flash or operated manually. The online satellite positional data service is provided by u-blox, so this can be a problem the day they shut it down… and no, we can’t use it with a flash (I’m guessing this one…).

Probable the next generation of cameras will come equipped with geotagging capability, and this can be a great solution.

Cool gadget. Probably usable on a myriad of other scenarios…

HTC Hero boot time sucks!

I’ve been trying out an HTC Hero. It’s a fair equipment with some cool functionalities, but there’s one little detail that doesn’t seem aligned with Google’s objectives: it takes ages to boot!

Here’s my experience:

Boot to desktop	1:34
desktop loading time	1:03
total	2:37

My Windows 7 boots considerably faster!

Please note that desktop loading time doesn’t allow me to use the mobile, so I have a 2:37 total boot time.

Probably some of this time is spent on the Android agenda widget.

Still a cool mobile.

Installing HTC Hero on Windows 7

The proposed workaround stopped working. Why? I had a newer driver. Strange…

It seems like a newer driver update is available at WindowsUpdate :S Arghh!… I had to:

• uninstall the driver – something like HTC Dream, if I remember correctly
• disconnect the network
• connect the phone
• install driver locally according to the proposed workaround

Let me say my first experience with HTC Hero is a mixed one:

• excelent: market!!!
• good: cool hardware and display; cool desktop
• --- : not so intuitive as expected… the menu and cancel buttons…
• bad: no out of the box sync over USB; no network support over USB

Still a great mobile!

 

<update>

Cool things:

• Icons look beautiful – they learned the lesson with Apple
• Very well built
• The gadgets makes the difference: accelerometer, compass, multi-touch
• Google apps integration – incredible with gmail
• Syncing with my carkit headset – didn’t ask for those dreadful ‘1111’, ‘1234’, … ‘9999’ low security stupid keys, just hacked them!
• Getting a bunch of apps from Market; apps like Layar

Not so cool:

• As a phone, it could be better:
  • Slow and cumbersome access to my 2K contact list, some bugs. Probably HTC software’s fault
  • Easy to miss receiving calls, and to miss we are making a call :S
  • Low cell signal
  • Not the greatest of phoning sound quality
• Button position could be better. Back button is just hard to reach for right handed people
• Slow access to my Exchange mail
• Why do I have an alarm icon on the top of the phone?!?!
• Ok, I know I’m not the typical phone user, but my after a bunch of installations my Hero is not as responsive as it used to…
• Battery life could be better, could hardly make it through the day. But then again it is as appealing that I' could have overused it…
• Couldn’t get the SDK up and running. Ok, probably my fault, I’ve downloaded Eclipse and SDK and tried to install it with no internet access. Well it seems that Google demands internet access on install. Go figure…

The verdict: I’ll probably wait for a faster CPU with a wider screen. And a cheaper one. Could Nexus On be the one?

</update>

 

<update II>

I’ve been using an average of nearly 20MB/day of 3G traffic. Oops, I’ve just wasted my monthly limit in less than a week. Be it because Android pushmail is too demanding on traffic or just because Android is a new gadget I’ve been exploring, one thing is for sure: I have to return this baby soon or upgrade my traffic account…

</update II>

TMN SilverBelt: take 2

After only a week of usage I’ve returned my SilverBelt and asked for a new unit. The only serious problem I had with it was the battery – it didn’t last for a day with the exact same usage as my old HTC 3300.

The new unit had the same problem, so I had to cut some waste. I started by opting out 3G over GSM. It saved me a bit, but not enough to get me through the day.

The workaround to get me through the day was quite drastic: I had to disable push mail, and opt for a 1h pooling. But now I can get through the day.

So my verdict is:

• Cool display size – though a little “deaf”;
• Windows Mobile 6.5 is heading in the right direction (and way), but it is still a no go; ZTE/TMN “shell “ is poor, to say the least;
• Quite acceptable value for your money – ok, doesn’t support MultiTouch, accelerometer and digital compass, but we can’t really ask that for this price, can we? Ok, Pulse doesn’t support digital compass…
• Unusable for a communicating kind of guy

So I’m again on ebay looking for a bargain on a:

• iPhone 3GS
• HTC Hero
• T-Mobile Pulse

Until them, SilverBelt will do just fine.

PS: ok, some of these units don’t support PushMail, so this option is not entirely rational, is it? Who cares, its a gadget, if chosen without the heart will defy its purpose :)

Just received a new phone: TMN Silverbelt (ZTE Raise)

Finally my HTC 3300 gets to be replaced::

 

Nothing much to say for now, it seems pretty fair for the 219.90€ I’m paying. Here’s what you get with one of this:

• Windows Mobile 6.5
• 5 MPixel camera
• GPS and NDrive
• HSUPA
• 3.2’’ screen

 

Here’s the detailed data from PDAdb.net:

 

	Brand:	TMN
	Browse TMN devices
	Manufacturer:	Zhong Xing Telecommunication Equipment
	Browse all devices manufactured by Zhong Xing Telecommunication Equipment
	Hardware:Designer:	Zhong Xing Telecommunication Equipment
	Project;Codename:	ZTE Raise
	Browse all devices under ZTE Raise codename
	Release;Date:	October, 2009
	Predecessor_Model:	ZTE e760
	Physical;Attributes
	Dimensions	57 x 112 x 12.5 millimetres
	(width x height x depth):	2.2 x 4.4 x 0.5 inches
	Bounding_Volume:	79.8 cubecentimetres
	Mass:	146 grams (battery included)
	Software_Environment
	Embedded;Operating:System:	Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
	Browse devices running this OS
	Operating:System_Kernel:	Windows CE 5.2.2
	Microprocessor,-Chipset
	CPU-Clock:	528 MHz
	CPU:	Qualcomm MSM7225
	Browse devices based on MSM7225
	Width_of+Machine-Word:	32 bit
	CPU-Core:	ARM1136EJ-S
	Instruction+Set:	ARMv6
	Memory,-Storage;capacity
	RAM+type:	SDRAM
	RAM_capacity:	256 MiB
	ROM+type:	Flash EEPROM
	ROM_capacity:	7630 MiB
	ROM+capacity;in+bytes:	8 GB (billion bytes)
	Graphical+subsystem
	Display+Type:	color transflective TFT display
	Display:Color_Depth:	16 bit/pixel (65536 scales)
	Display+Diagonal:	3.2 " (81 millimetres)
	Display-Resolution:	400 x 240 (96000 pixels)
	Viewable:Display_Size:	2.73 " x 1.64 " (69.46 x 41.67 millimetres)
	Dot+Pitch:	146.3 pixel/inch (0.17364 millimetre/pixel)
	Audio_Subsystem
	Audio-Channel(s):	stereo sound
	Analog/Digital Converter	16 bit nominal quantization
	(Recording):	44100 Hz sampling frequency
	Digital/Analog Converter	16 bit resolution
	(Playing):	44100 Hz holding frequency
	Microphone(s):	mono sound
	Loudspeaker(s):	mono sound
	Audio:Output:	Supported
	Cellular+Phone
	Cellular-Networks:	GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900, UMTS900, UMTS1900, UMTS2100
	Cellular_Data;Links:	CSD, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, HSDPA, HSUPA
	Cellular:Antenna:	Internal antenna
	Call-Alert:	40 -chord melody (polyphonic)
	Vibrating;Alert:	Supported
	Speakerphone_:	Supported
	Control:Peripherals
	Positioning;Device:	Touchscreen
	Primary:Keyboard:	Not supported
	Directional;Pad:	Not supported
	Scroll:Wheel:	Not supported
	Interfaces
	Expansion_Interfaces:	microSD, microSDHC, TransFlash, SDIO
	Supports High Capacity (SD 2.0/HC) memory cards with capacity of up to 32GB
	USB:	USB 2.0 client, Hi-Speed (480Mbit/s)
	Bluetooth;(802.15):	Bluetooth 2.0, Internal antenna
	Wireless+LAN/Wi-Fi_(802.11):	IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, 54 Mbit/s
	Internal antenna
	Infrared-Gate:	Not supported
	Multimedia_Broadcast
	Analog-Radio:	FM radio (87.5-108MHz) with RDS radio reciever
	Proprietary headset as antenna
	Digital;Media+Broadcast:	DVB-H digital tuner
	Pull-out antenna
	Satellite:Navigation
	Built-in;GPS;module:	Supported
	GPS;Protocol:	NMEA 0183
	GPS+Antenna:	Internal antenna
	Complementary:GPS+Services:	Assisted GPS
	Built-in;Digital;Camera
	Sensor_Type:	CMOS sensor
	Resolution:	2560 x1920 pixels (4.92MP)
	Autofocus+(AF):	Supported
	Optical+Zoom:	1 x
	Macro:Mode:	Not supported
	Built-in:Flash:	mobile light (LED)
	Camcorder:	320x240 pixels
	Recordable-Image;Formats:	JPG
	Recordable_Video-Formats:	3GP, MPEG4
	Built-in_Secondary+Digital+Camera
	Sensor+Type:	CMOS sensor
	Resolution:	640 x480 pixels (0.31MP)
	Camcorder:	0x0pixels
	Recordable-Image:Formats:	JPG
	Recordable_Video:Formats:	3GP, MPEG4
	Power_Supply
	Battery-Technology:	Lithium-ion battery
	Battery_Build:	removable
	Battery+Capacity:	1250 mAh
	Additional;Details
	Built-in+accelerometer:	Supported
	Additional;Features:	GPRS Class 12
	EDGE Class 12
	HSDPA 7.2
	HSUPA 5.76
	Bluetooth stereo audio profile (A2DP
	AVRCP)
	Related_Page:	http://wwwen.zte.com.cn/en/products/mobile/mobile_detail_291.jsp?mobileName=ZT..
	Datasheet:State:	Preliminary specifications
	Datasheet:Views:	5537 times
	Datasheet_Added:	Jul 28, 09 12:30:17

Mac OS X 10.5: Digital camera RAW formats supported

My Canon 50D is now supported! It’s about time!

Musical sketchbook

Here’s another cool app from Microsoft research labs: Songsmith software. Microsoft Songsmith lets users create music in a novel way by attaching a microphone to a Windows PC and singing into the mic. Here’s something we’d expect from Apple. Cool!

<update>

Here’s how it works:

Songsmith basically does three things when it’s making music to go with your melody:

1. Songsmith figures out roughly what frequencies (and thus what musical notes) you sang using a technique called autocorrelation. We don’t figure this out quite so precisely that we could write down sheet music for your melody (that’s still something a computer can’t do as well as a trained musician), but it turns out we don’t need to figure out exactly the melody you sang in order to make good backing music.
2. Songsmith chooses chords to accompany the notes you sang, using the algorithm we describe in our papers about MySong. Basically, we’ve used a database of about 300 popular songs to train a mathematical model with the basic statistics of what chords sound good with each other and what chords sound good with different types of melodies. Note this is a statistical model... we’re not taking your melody and peeking into a database to find similar bits of melody when we make new chords. Instead, Songsmith has learned the basic statistics of chord sequences, and uses those statistics to generate new chords when you sing a new melody.
   Of course, there’s no single correct sequence of chords for a given melody – in fact there are lots and lots and lots of chord sequences that might sound good for your song. So Songsmith incorporates the “happy” and “jazzy” sliders to let users – both musical novices and experienced songwriters – quickly explore all those different sequences. If you want to know howthose work, you’ll have to go visit the MySong project page.
3. Then we turn those chords into the music you hear using different musical styles (Songsmith comes with 30 styles, ranging from pop to rock to country, etc.). Songsmith tells the styles what chords it wants to play, and the styles help Songsmith turn those chords into a musical arrangement. These styles are provided through a partnership with PG Music, and Songsmith gives you a way to purchase additional styles from PG Music if you want an even broader range of styles. Then we turn that musical arrangement into the sound you hear using a musical synthesizer and a (very high-quality!) set of virtual instruments provided through a partnership with Garritan and Plogue. And yep, you guessed it, Songsmith also gives you a way to purchase additional styles and instruments from Garritan if you want an even broader range of sounds.

</update>

What's wrong with Android?

Ok, Android is a cool phone, but it still lacks a bunch of obvious features like:

• using it as a modem connected to your laptop;
• no sync with your computer, pushing Google's mobile web-based applications;
• no Exchange support;

My old WM6 does it all.

Finally bought a Mac

I've been trying to get a cheap Mac for years, but finally gave up and bought a new one. It's a simple 20' iMac, I've just bought an extra memory to get to 4GB.

Those of you who know me since the late 80's should be wondering if I have Alzheimer - yes, I used to develop on System 6 and 7 on Macintosh 128K, Plus, SE 30 and Quadra and hated everyone of these dreadful beasts. Those of you who know me from the mid 90's as a Microsoft evangelist (not to say fanatic) should be wondering if this is a sign for the end of the world. Those who know me from the last years know I'm just in love with Mac OS X.

Why Mac? Because:

• it is different
• it is challenging
• it is beautiful
• it brings a new UX
• it has a user community that isn't afraid to dump the past and reach for new concepts
• it is innovative
• it has Unix roots (yes, I've worked on Unix for ages...)
• it isn't too intrusive a gadget to put on a bedroom
• it runs all I can run on a PC (including XP and Vista) plus Mac OS X

And no, I'm not planning on stop using Microsoft OSs. They are the best, but I want more. There's room for much more, believe me!

I'm now trying to get into this new concept (the last time I used a Mac was over 3 years ago for only a couple of months). The next step is to choose a virtualization product to get my good old XP developing machine up and running - can't wait to get Silverlight into Safari on Mac :)

After that my next step will be to to install Ubuntu on my old Celleron.

PS: isn't it strange, the first things I've installed was a Remote Desktop Client! Looking for new challenges is fun, but feeling firm on known ground is very cozy...

HTC Touch Diamond is announced

Uau, seems like iPhone is getting some competition. Great phone!

Cool Vista gadget for Portuguese speaking

Here's a useful Vista Gadget: a Portuguese dictionary, from Priberam.

iGo Stowaway experience

As promised, here's my experience:~

The good:

• excellent laptop-touch like keyboard;
• small and fast;
• easy to setup;
• syncs fast (and smart, no button on the keyboard, opening the keyboard turns it on);
• I can even use it on conferences - it is so cool to write notes, answer to mails and IM!

The not so good:

• it doesn't support the Portuguese layout - Portuguese keys are slow to get to;
• the keyboard base is not stable enough - for example when we hit heavily the CTRL key the keyboard tends to jump more then it should;

The worse:

• if you're holding a meeting with non technical people, you'll risk being seen as a hopeless lunatic;

iGo Stowaway Ultra-Slim Bluetooth Keyboard

Finally bought a Bluetooth keyboard for my HTC 3350. I've been waiting for this for ages, but the prices were just too high. My choice: iGo Stowaway Ultra-Slim Bluetooth Keyboard.

It is as ultra-slim and effective as I expected, and easy to setup. I'll post some feed back soon after a couple of meetings using this baby.

Poor man's GPS

Here's something cool for people that don't have a GPS: Google Maps Mobile.

It can interface with your GPS, but can also try to figure where you are from your mobile positioning system.

Heard about it on an Hanselman's podcast.

MacBook full of Air

So Apple didn't produce an ultraportable as so many predicted, they just announced an ultra slim notebook, the MacBook Air. To squeeze this baby into a ridiculously thin format (less than 2 cm), Apple dropped the DVD (a great way to promote movie rental service for iTunes) and the clocking - returning to what it was over a year ago (1.6 and 1.8 MHz).

Philips SHN2500 review

As a geek commuter I listen daily to approximately 2 hours of podcasts on loudly trains, so noise reduction is a great issue for me. Here are the options I've used so far:

1. I started using an in-ear passive noise reduction from Thomson; it was a fair solution, cheap, power-free and small, but in-ear systems pose 2 problems:
1. I could hear myself - just moving the jaw would produce inconvenient noises;
2. It wasn't the best solution from an hygienic perspective, as you may imagine;
   
2. After a while I bought an inexpensive HN-700 active reduction headsets from Creative; again a fair product, not the greatest on quality, but fair; the only problem I have with these is that portability can be an issue;

Today I've found what I thought would be a great buy: a dual cancellation noise reduction system (both passive and active) for about 40€, the Philips SHN2500.

The passive noise cancellation works as expected, the problem is the active feature. When I power the unit, a loud electronic rain (is that how it's called?) is all I get. No noise cancellation whatsoever. Not even on the low frequencies.

I've found this troubling review:

I have no idea how these can claim noise canceling. When turned on with low or no source volume, there is ZERO reduction in background noise of any kind. There is not even a trace of a microphone in the unit...it does nothing different with varying noise or location of the unit. The only reason people might think it is doing something is that it amplifies the source about 6 dB, drowning out other sounds equally. But if you return the volume to the same level, you'll hear exactly the same amount of noise. This product is fraudulent in its claim of active noise reduction.

If this is true, I'm afraid fraud would be the only way to address it. I'm returning this product first thing tomorrow.

Vista on the Eeee!!!

Forget all the people who told you Vista wouldn't work on the limited space of the Eeee, this guy has make it possible - the announcement comes with an how to.

The big surprise is how fast it seems to run. In the video, Vista seems nice and snappy, despite the Eee PC's 900MHz Celeron processor.

Great tip, Marco Gonçalves.

Having an iPod Touch is like...

Think about it: as a geek, having an iPod Touch / iPhone where I cannot write software on is much like being best friend with the prettier girl on the town... I also realized iPod Touch was built for suits, not geeks. Think about: you cannot carry it on your jeans, but it will fit seamlessly on your expensive italian suit.

Oh my old love-hate relationship with Apple is catching up...

PS: so why do I keep wanting an iPhone?... argh...