is it really that bad?

I love my Sendo X:
1. Great feature set
2. Extremely flexible
3. Great support from Sendo with the Sendo Online Support
4. Firmware updates - not set in stone like Nokia
5. The Now! screen is really handy
6. Actually looks like a phone, not a ghastly palm top/feature phone wannabe (Nokia 3650, SX1)
7. Won the Mobile Choice Smartphone of the year
8. Excellent website tutorials and tools
9. Cool accessories due to come out soon

These are just a few reasons why i like it.

No it is very good I think. See my mini review thing.

Some of the bad points have been sorted now. That was after 2 or 3 days with it.

http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/forum//forum/thread/27048/

This is a review from AAS:

http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/reviews/review2.php?id=105

I think it probably depends on your past experiences. I imagine that people switching from a 3650 (say) would see an improved Series 60 interface in a conventional form factor. The SD card support is a bonus, even though the USB interface doesn't give direct access to that card.

For me, switching from a 4 year old 6210, I noticed a screen that is virtually unreadable without the backlight, flickery display updates, a flimsy shell that creaks, patchy keyboard backlighting, poor battery life, the rearrangement of the T9 keys (grrrr...), poor sound quality (without much to compare it with) and the poor ergonomics of the central navigation control. I've also experienced some of the bugs that others have reported. But I do like the form factor, the rest of the keypad is quite clicky and responsive, and the chance to download email and sync with my Mac (but not the email) is a definite improvement.

I've had mine since Friday, and my initial feeling of disappointment has faded a bit, so it's on probation, but if I find that I can't trust it to receive calls and SMSs then it's going back.

pelwell wrote:I think it probably depends on your past experiences. I imagine that people switching from a 3650 (say) would see an improved Series 60 interface in a conventional form factor. The SD card support is a bonus, even though the USB interface doesn't give direct access to that card.

For me, switching from a 4 year old 6210, I noticed a screen that is virtually unreadable without the backlight, flickery display updates, a flimsy shell that creaks, patchy keyboard backlighting, poor battery life, the rearrangement of the T9 keys (grrrr...), poor sound quality (without much to compare it with) and the poor ergonomics of the central navigation control. I've also experienced some of the bugs that others have reported. But I do like the form factor, the rest of the keypad is quite clicky and responsive, and the chance to download email and sync with my Mac (but not the email) is a definite improvement.

I've had mine since Friday, and my initial feeling of disappointment has faded a bit, so it's on probation, but if I find that I can't trust it to receive calls and SMSs then it's going back.

most of you say here is just your opinion...
for example~
:icon2: all TFT, LCD screens are very dificult to read without backlight!
:icon2: sound quality poor????? man, compare with ALL handsets, it's the best! maybe motorola E398 be at sendo X level.
:icon2: poor ergonomics of central navigation?? here again it's on of the best things in sendo X! much better than 6600, 3650, the only nokia with an acceptable one is 7650...

true things are about bugs... there it's the major problem BUT, above all, there are firmware updates, and most of the big problems are already resolved (waiting for patch to be out 😃 )

I have had the phone for just over a week (UK SIM free version) & these are my findings:

- Initial battery life is poor, but this does improve if you run the battery down a couple of times. The only power related bug I have seen is 2 random reboots (for want of a better word) even where there was still a decent charge left in the
battery.

- Pelwell is right about the screen, without a backlight, it is difficult reading the sms/call counters on the screen saver. Its a pity the phone doesnt have an external led which could be pulsed to indicate new messages etc.

- The change in the layout of the T9 keys (compared to my previous 8910i) has probably been my biggest complaint (in particular, the space key being located in the bottom right of the keypad rather than the middle).

- I have had no problems with missed sms messages.

- I personally find the UI navigation intuitive (but then I am a programmer, so am probably not the best judge here 😉 However, it is a big improvement on the equivalent MS smartphone UI (and I say that as a Windows developer).

- The overall performance of the OS seems pretty good - there are a couple of areas that could be improved: initial startup & opening sms messages, for one.

- The sound quality of MP3 files is generally very good - certainly better than other Nokia phones I have heard. The supplied headphones arent great, but the phone sounds pretty good through a HiFi! (However, it obviously isnt going to replace an Ipod).

- Being able to expand the storage with SD cards is very handy (although the hot swappable facility is a bit of a moot point as you need to take the rear cover off first, so have to be careful not to dislodge the battery).

- PC Connect software does the job, but is pretty clunky, but then it took Nokia many attempts to get this right.

On the whole though, I am very happy with the phone and have no intention of going back to my 8910i (it is impressive that the SendoX is only slightly larger, but manages to include a much better screen and greater functionality). I am looking foward to the next firmware update.

[ Directed primarily at Barros - Elite preempted my response ]

Thanks, you've just confirmed my first comment, i.e. that it depends on your past experiences. I think I made it pretty clear that I was comparing it with a 6210 which, although inferior on paper, has the X (and probably most smartphones) beaten in several areas. This just shows that all phones are compromises, and that features such as faster processors and large colour screens have an impact on low-light visibility, battery life, size, weight etc.

If somebody raves about the sound quality and talks of using it as an MP3 player then I have certain expectations, and they weren't met. Maybe the X has problems playing 180Kbps VBR MP3 files, because it reports it as 64Kbps, but the high frequencies are largely absent.

I have to take exception to your comment about the joypad area though. The fact that it is sandwiched between the call and hangup buttons, separated by 1mm and slightly recessed means that exiting an app when you wanted to move right or increase the volume is almost inevitable. Perhaps with practise it will become less of a problem, but I think it could have been done better, by leaving a small gap at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock positions and moving the other buttons further down, or just moving them further away, or thickening the sides of the ring - anything really.

And of course these are my opinions - that is what musichelle asked for. Perhaps you and others could post some of your favourable opinions here, and then musichelle will be able to compare them and come to her(?) own conclusions.

pelwell wrote:[ Directed primarily at Barros - Elite preempted my response ]

...Maybe the X has problems playing 180Kbps VBR MP3 files, because it reports it as 64Kbps, but the high frequencies are largely absent.

I am glad someone else has noticed a problem with this! I have reported this to Sendo but havent had a satisfactory response (I also hope to get some feedback from plinkykev on this, but I am sure he has plenty of other things to keep him occupied).

When I play MP3 VBR files that peak at 450-550Kbps, these are all reported by the built in player as being 128Kbps, so am not sure if this is a display only bug or the player is down converting. Doing an A:B comparison playing through WMP and an external amp & the SendoX through a headphone adapter & the amp did not provide a conclusive answer (but then, given the use of a headphone adapter and the very low signal level from the SendoX, that is not surprising).

On a related note, I have given up with the 3rd party MP3Player from Viking Informatics - this doesnt seem to be able to play MP3 files at any bit rate (i.e. CBR 128 upwards) - hence my earlier thread about a possible 44Hkz issue.

coming from a T610, one of my reasons for buying the Sendo X (if ever) is its Symbian capabilities. Java is good, but symbian apps, in my opinion is (sooo!) much better. 😊

i've read before that quite a number of third-party symbian apps have trouble working (or are not working at all) with the Sendo X. has compatibility improved with the release of the new firmware?

Thanks!

Elite wrote:When I play MP3 VBR files that peak at 450-550Kbps, these are all reported by the built in player as being 128Kbps, so am not sure if this is a display only bug or the player is down converting

Does the X support VBR then? I always thought it only supported CBR.

musichelle wrote:coming from a T610, one of my reasons for buying the Sendo X (if ever) is its Symbian capabilities. Java is good, but symbian apps, in my opinion is (sooo!) much better. 😊

i've read before that quite a number of third-party symbian apps have trouble working (or are not working at all) with the Sendo X. has compatibility improved with the release of the new firmware?

Thanks!

I dont think you will go far wrong with the SendoX if you are coming from a T610 - although there are a few apps that dont work correctly on the SendoX, these are out numbered by the apps that do!

Apps designed for the Nokia 3650/7650 should (in theory) have no issues on the SendoX as those phones use the v6.1 Symbian OS with a Series 60 1.0 UI. Apps that only mention compatibility with the 6600, for example, wont work as this phone has the 7.0s OS with a Series 60 2.0 UI - a case in point is QuickOffice.

I have the following installed on my phone:

EpocWare HandySafe (You cant use Handy Safe Desktop app for syncing with your PC, but as a workaround, you can just copy the safe.dat and safe.ind files between the phone & PC using the Sendo PC Connect app)

Symbianware FileMan (I would definately recommend this)
Symbianware AppMan (again, recommended)
Symbianware PowerNotes
Psiloc World Traveller (took a few attempts to get this working)

Lumisoft London Street Map (Provides London A-Z on your phone, I have the 400 sq Km version installed, but the size of the mapping data requires 17 SIS files totalling 24MB! so dont even try installing this using PC Connect, use a USB reader to copy files to a memory card directly. However, once installed on the SendoX, it runs without problems)

Apps I cannot recommend:

Psiloc eFileMan - Very slow performance, constant lock ups when reading from memory cards. I now use Symbianware alternative.
Viking MP3Player - May not be a problem with the app, but it doesnt play my mp3 files.

The APPs list thread mentions a couple of other apps that can cause problems or dont run as well as they should, but again, there arent many of them. Smartmovie seems to come in for the most criticism, but if watching video clips on a 2" screen isnt your thing (& personally, I cannot see the point), then this wont be a major concern to you.

Elite, how did you get World Traveller to work? When I've installed it on either of my two X's it causes the phone to refuse incoming calls without ringing, and also won't update itself over GPRS.

stuclark wrote:Elite, how did you get World Traveller to work? When I've installed it on either of my two X's it causes the phone to refuse incoming calls without ringing, and also won't update itself over GPRS.

When I first installed this, only 2 cities were listed: London & Liverpool - which wasnt a great help. I contacted the developers who sent me a copy of the WorldClock.dbf file - however, this was identical to the version already installed on the phone. So I didnt bother installing this but when I shut the phone down & restarted, the complete cities list was available - very odd!

However, I did have a problem with the weather updates not working via GPRS - the app would seemingly connect then wait for about a min then say "London not found" for example. I suspected that the app wasnt using the WAP access point I was setting because each time I ran it, it defaulted to a different ap. So I ran the SendoX WAP (manager) app on the phone & changed the default ap to Orange GPRS. I also double checked the WAP settings here:

http://www.filesaveas.com/gprs.html

- I have since had no problems downloading weather updates (whole process for 1 city/town takes about 20 secs). However, the FX rate download didnt work the one time I tried it & havent tried since.

I have just tested the handling of incoming calls with WorldTraveller running using the Silent & General profiles & the calls are handled correctly. The fact that you are getting ignored calls & you have the identical (Expansys) build to me is odd - Do you have any other 3rd party apps running in the background ?

musichelle wrote:judging from most of the posts here, i am starting to think that the X is supposedly something great, but unfortunately failed to live up to its name..

my question now is, is it REALLY that bad..? the praises are quite few, i have to admit. i am considering to buy one, but posts here make me think more than twice. we all know its quite expensive, and i'm looking for a phone which is well worth the money i'll shell out for it. but a number of people had their X for some time and ended up returning it.

thanks in advance for your opinions.

As has been said before. Most things depends on what you're coming from. If you're spoiled by especially Sony-Ericsson phones whom have a great symbiosis regarding phone/sms/mms facilities adn a generally very userfriendly U/I then you might be disapointed. If you come from Nokia phones then I suspect you will like the Sendo X.

My problems with it where awkward bluetooth implementation (the lack of vital profiles urged me to return it). I thought that in this respect my former T68i had a more confusing setup (more menu-items to wade through) but generally behaved more stable with regards to Bluetooth.

The u/i is not as intuitive as I would have liked. For instance I missed calling tel.nos. embeded in SMS messages in a convienent way. It apears (though I can't try this anymore) that it IS possible using the options menu when viewing SMS-messages. Unfortunatly this is not obvious and I didn't even saw this mentioned in the manual.

The phone sometimes behaves odd. For instance it's not uncommon that a phone resets a few times at power-up before you get a welcome screen. To name just one.

What I do like. The Sendo has IMHO an excellent audio subsystem. It's speakerphone is amazingly loud and clear. Most functions are fast and responsive though because of its odd behavious ocasionally things start to cralw for an unknown reason. Usually its a fast phone (unlike the affordmentioned T68i). The screen is very good. Though not the best in direct sunlight which shouldn't be a problem in Brittain I supose 😉 IMHO its a very good and aparantly large screen under most circumstances. I think that Sendo had better focussed their PR-campaign for this phone on its excellent sound system instead of that glorified !Now screen. Because you can sell this phone by letting ppl enjoy the speakerphone IMHO.

I never used T9 input since my motherlanguage is Dutch and there's no Dutch T9 build in. Though I didn't like the keypad at first, near the end of my ownership I started to like it. The keys are not bad though the upper row with the navigation-pad gets confusing. The answer and hangup key have other keys besides them. You sometimes press the wrong key.

The case is made of plastic but some parts are covered with an brushed aluminium panel. This looks very cool but i've discovered that the phone is very fragile. I bumped it once and the panels got bend on impact. I also wonder how long it takes before the large panel at the back will come off (it reminded me of my old ZX Spectrum). Since you have to remove the backpanel to insert or remove your SD card I believe the rear panel will show most wear and tear. That rear-panel is also the part that creaks though it did seem to fit nicely.

The Phone when used in video-mode has a vivid viewfinder. Almost showing things real-time. Though the movies have definitly less fps. Both camera and video-mode are fine for its vga-sensor. It even has a bright white LED to iluminate dark places.

The Sendo website still gives users the ability to (freely) upgrade firmware and there's promise to provide some applications (theme manager for instance). This is a bonus. Unfortunatly much software available now is being updated for Series 60 UI v2 while the Sendo uses v1.x This means that many apps won't work on this Symbian phone. Most have tiny problems ranging from no sound for games to interference with normal phone operations. So if you want a software loaden device appart from Java apps the Sendo X is IMHO not a good bet.

Another good point. The Sendo X is atm one of the cheapest so-called smartphones. The package even contains both the datacable (USB) and the PC-connectivity software. So if price is important then the Sendo X gives much bang for the buck.

To sum up:

minus points
-Older platform (might be restricting in the future unless Sendo X sells well)
-certain UI parts not intuitive
-odd behaviour
-casing is quite fragile and creaks

plus points
-great screen
-amazing sound (especially speakerphone)
-fast and responsiveness (most o/t time)
-necessary accesoires included in the package
-free firmware and software upgrades for now.
-cheapest smartphone atm

Hope this gives an idea,

EPDM

PS.

I forgot. With regards to the battery. Well it's obvious that a phone of this callibre draws much power from its batteries. If you're not eager to charge your phone every 2 days then I think you'd stay away from smartphones.

This is not strictly speaking a Sendo X issue because all smartphones have short battery lives. If you expect to charge your phone once a week the you'd better look for other models perhaps without a camera (including other Sendo models)

Just to complete the picture 😉

Regards,

epdm

epdm:
The firmware updates are not free for all Sendo X releases, while they are released they doesn�t cost money, but until then you depends on the operator/retailer to get them.

morph wrote:epdm:
The firmware updates are not free for all Sendo X releases, while they are released they doesn�t cost money, but until then you depends on the operator/retailer to get them.

And that sucks a lot... :frown: :frown:

morph wrote:epdm:
The firmware updates are not free for all Sendo X releases, while they are released they doesn�t cost money, but until then you depends on the operator/retailer to get them.

Well I downloaded my F/w-upgrade via the Sendo X website so I automatically presumed that everybody could do this.

Regards,

EPDM

As has been said before, the firmware updates are free to everyone, but they're tied to the operator which the handset was originally sold by. Therefore, it may be that some operators approve firmware updates sooner than others. This is why some people haven't been able to update the firmware on their phones yet, while others have.

but the major problem is when you buy a phone from a reseller! (expansys, fnac, etc)
those companies don't care about customization of the firmware! So why not put a generic firmware update that works on every phones like the BETA?

Barros wrote:but the major problem is when you buy a phone from a reseller! (expansys, fnac, etc)
those companies don't care about customization of the firmware! So why not put a generic firmware update that works on every phones like the BETA?

There will be firmware updates out for Expansys and other resellers/distributors which are close to 'generic'.

As you say these companies do not require as much customisation as the operators & it is therefore more likely that the new software will be available for them before the software for the Operators. (for proof see the current position with Telefonica where sendo are awaiting approval of the next version of software - likely to be 60Aor B)

hope it be like you say! 😃