system hang up

[quote="aquaticlink"]I have been told that p800 will suddenly freeze or hangs up. The only way to get out of it is to turn it off and turn it back on. Has this been happening to anyone? I was advised not to buy one unless really necessary[/quote]

Get your device upgraded to the latest version and you will probably not have these "freeze" problems.
Do not take this as a reason for not buying this device.

I'll assure you that Symbian OS is far more stable then the Pocket PC line of OSes.

Get the P800, with it, you can't go wrong. It has all the pros whereas your average PocketPC device has all the cons.

When purchasing one from a store, how do you know whether you have the latest firmware? How do you update the firmware? Can you do it by yourself or do you have to send it to Sony for upgrade?

Just ask the salesperson what firmware they are shipping, now a days 1D firmware (latest revision) is common and should be installed.

If you have a device that is switched on just tap according to the below.
From the main menu:
VIEW | SYSTEM INFORMATION | <right arrow>
it should say R1D under the PHONE header.

No you can not upgrade the phone by yourself.
However SE have a very nice upgrade offer which allows you to hand in your P800 (or any other firmware upgradeable SE device) to any shop marked as "Service Point".
You can find a "Service Point" near you by looking in the support section of SE's website.
In any event the shop that sell the P800 to you should be able to tell you where to get it upgraded.

Note, the firmware upgrade is free of charge.

I agree with tybollt. This is a great device. Before i upgraded to R1D, I used to have the R1B firmware. Used it that way for 3 weeks before upgrading it. Even then, i find it quite stable. Had only 3 to 4 hangups during that period. Besides all you have to do is to press the power switch for 10 seconds and its back to ok. Believe me, i used to own the Ipaq, and i had more problem with it than my P800. Go for it man 😊