O2 Xda Exec - Part II - The Applications

O2 Xda Exec Review Part II - The Applications Supplier: O2 Manufacturer: HTC Product: Xda Exec Colour: Black / Gunmetal Grey Cost: From £399 with contract from 3rd October Supplier Web Site: http://www.o2.co.uk/xda Supplier Product Web Site: TBA Manufacturers Page: http://www.htc.com.tw/ The 4WM web site will continue to investigate the wonder machine from O2, the O2 Xda Exec, by next looking at the included application set. In part most of the applications are those that are available as standard under Windows Mobile 5.0, but O2 have added their own specialist applications. Does this combination serve to create the next generation Xda machine? Read on to find out! For your delectation all photographs are thumbnails which may be clicked on to load a image. Boot modes Before we look at the applications and the machine in detail it is worth bringing into focus at this point one unique feature which O2 have had designed into the machine. Unlike other 'HTC Universal' machines the Exec gives you the option of three install types, these are: Basic - The Exec is set up with basic features only; the O2 today screen and O2 connection settings. This is the preferred option if you do not want to use O2 Active and want to be up and running on the 'net' as painlessly as possible Corporate - The Corporate option remains as in prior Xda builds - you get the standard HTC Universal applications and nothing else, no preconfigured 'net' settings, nothing. The code needed to allow Corporate mode is still 0506 Personal - This offers the richest application set and comprises; the O2 Active System, O2 applications and settings as well as the O2 network configuration settings This install type screen will appear as part of the boot process after a hard reset as been carried out, but it can also be accessed from the Programs Screen, which gives you the ability to switch modes 'on the fly' which is very useful indeed! These changes may involve a restart of the machine but no hard reset is required. The O2 Active Today screen For the purposes of the review the Exec had been hard reset and the 'Personal' install option was used so that the full benefits of O2 Active version 4 are visible. O2 have worked closely with V2R to engender a lot of new features within the O2A system, and as can be seen the system is now menu'ed and multi-tabbed. Down the left hand side resides the main O2 Active launch bar which allows you to access O2 online. This is split up into: Messages - Inbox - Text - Mutimedia - Call Voicemail - MSN Messenger - Hotmail - Email Account # 1 - Email Account # 2 Calls O2 Video - Video Call - Video - Camera Media Centre - Media Player - Video Downloads - Games Extras - Hotspot Directory - Task Manager - Bluetooth - Email Setup - Power Profiles - Connection Settings Favorites - Sync'ed favorite #1 - Sync'ed favorite #2 up and down arrows at the top and bottom of the launch bar allow it to be scrolled up and down the screen. To the right of the launch bar is the Information Screen, which initially serves to display the Today screen applications. Below the launch bar (and above the soft key menu system) there are four tabs, which change the function of the Information Screen as follows: Home - Displays any applets you have assigned to be active within the 'Settings / Today' system Custom - Activates a custom launch page which you can customise to add your preferred 'quick launch' applications Settings - This Screen is very useful, as it displays a great deal of system data such as; Memory use (internal, storage, and external card), battery strength, battery power, screen orientation, icon sizes, and the active sound system! Wow! Help - displays O2's custom help pages which detail commonly required information such as how to use the O2 Active interface, etc. This is one heck of an advance over prior O2A versions and I'm glad to say the problems with prior incarnations seem to have been eliminated. If the O2A system has been installed in full then you will also gain two new icons in you top task bar, these will allow you to check on the current state of battery charge and also allow you to manage your online connection. Of course if you install in Basic mode you lose these features and can then use the standard today screen. The today screen can of course use different themes which the VGA screen shows off to advantage. These can of course be enhanced further using applications such as WisBar Advance 2 from Lakeridge Software. The Applications Usually when we look at the applications on a new device we take pains to ensure that any screen shots taken include only the native applications. However for this review all the installed applications have been left visible (but faded out) so that folks can see which applications I have used that are WM 5.0 complaint. The standard application set (WM 5.0 and O2 apps) includes: Games - Bubble Breaker & Solitaire O2 Active - allows you to manually activate the O2 Active system if you have disabled it auto-starting (O2 specific) ActiveSync - The WM client component of ActiveSync 4.xx Calculator - WM 5.0 Calculator Camera - HTC Camera control application Clear Storage - This removes the need to hard reset - it wipes the protected part of memory that allows the persistent store system to work, in effect hard resetting. A very effective and easier way of performing a hard reset than juggling buttons and stylus presses! Download Agent - Allows you to obtain updates for your Exec 'over the air'. MS have not yet turned this system on Email Setup - Custom O2 wizard which allows you to easily configure email (O2 specific) Enroller - For managing digital certificates. Not in any real use at the moment, but this type of application will become more important in the future Excel Mobile - WM 5.0 Pocket Excel File Explorer - WM 5.0 File Manager Hotspots Directory - Custom O2 application which allows you to search for WiFi Hotspots on the O2 UK network (O2 specific) Install Type - here you can load the Install mode selector and switch operating install types (O2 specific) MIDLet Manager - allows you to use mini Java applets on the Exec Notes - WM 5.0 - Notes application O2 - SIM Toolkit - used to access operator features on prepay SIM cards (O2 specific) Pictures & Videos - WM 5.0 Video / Picture viewing application PowerPoint Mobile - WM 5.0 PowerPoint Application Search - WM 5.0 system search applet SIM Manager - WM 5.0 client for managing SIM contacts Task Manager - Allows you to control running apps, or in advanced mode see running processes (O2 Europe specific) Tasks - WM 5.0 To-Do list application Terminal Services - WM 5.0 Terminal Services application for accessing servers remotely Voice Speed Dial - Voice activated speed dialling / application launching (HTC application) Wireless Manager - HTC client application for managing the phone / Bluetooth and WiFi (HTC application) Wireless Modem - allows you to use your Exec as a 3G modem (HTC application) Word Mobile 5.0 - WM 5.0 Pocket Word Application Zip - HTC ZIP client for managing Zipped file archives This is a goodly set of applications comprising the full WM 5.0 suite, some good applications from HTC and the icing on the cake is the O2 additions. In addition to the above applications which are part of ROM install O2 supply the Spb GPRS Monitor and the ClearVue PDF viewer on the companion CD. We'll now look at some of these applications in detail. Email Setup Email Setup - you may wonder why this has been included as there is already a configuration system within the standard Inbox (messaging) application. O2 have supplied it to make things easy for the user as it has within a wizard which allows you to very simply set up email for the top 40 public ISP's in the UK. As examples Pipex, Freeserve and O2 are included in the list and it does truly speed email configuration as well as avoid any user errors which may occur! Hotspots Directory This is one incredibly useful application, you can use it to search for WiFi Hotspots using any of the pop-ups shown on screen. Using it I've already located two hotspots near home that I was completely unaware of. Hotspots are available for either the UK or Ireland - depending on which region was selected on the Exec set up screen. Pocket MSN This is your portal into the MSN Communications system, from here you can access: MSN Messenger MSN Hotmail Compose Hotmail MSN Mobile web site as the system supports the downloading of new Hotmail messages if any arrive while you are signed into MSN Messenger you are always kept up to date if any new important emails arrive. Task Manager The new Task Manager written by HTC for use on the 'Universal' allows you to view all tasks running, whether they are programs or processes. Very useful in tracking down what exactly is running and identifying problem areas. The only thing missing here is a CPU usage indicator! The task manager is available on O2 Europe machines only - it's not part of the standard Universal build. Voice Speed Dial Voice Speed Dial is one of the jewels in the crown on the Exec. You can set voice tags against any contacts phone numbers (home, work, mobile, etc), internally or on the SIM, as well as any application on the machine. This works flawlessly and makes it really easy to call any contact or launch any program on the Exec. It works as standard with the voice dial button on the outside of the Exec or by running the application itself. The other bonus is that (if you have a compatible Bluetooth headset) you can voice dial over Bluetooth! This is one feature that users have been requesting for a long time and with the Exec that request is met! The Voice Speed Dial application is produced for HTC by the Cyberon Corporation in Taiwan. Wireless Manager The Wireless Manager acts as your portal to the Exec's world of communication. It allows you to toggle on and off the phone, Bluetooth and WiFi systems as well as managing the settings and configuration of each component. New within the WM 5.0 system is the ability to define incoming ports for devices like GPS navigation systems. Wireless Modem The Wireless Modem applet built into the Exec is a rather useful tool as it allows the laptop (or PC user) to access the O2 communications network from a machine other than the Exec. The Exec / Modem can link to the PC via USB, Bluetooth or IrDA and serves to offer a 254Kbs connection if linked by USB and a 3G connection is available. The only problem at the time of writing the review is that lack of 3G connectivity at home. The application includes basic status indicators so you can see if the connection is live and whether data is flowing. The system will operate using standard GPRS connection speeds as well so you should be able to get online in most places! Zip Yet another useful addition to the feature-set of the Exec. HTC have clearly realised that power and corporate users have a requirement to handle Zip files in the mobile environment. The application is fully functional allowing you to create new archives, send the files via email or infrared (no mention of Bluetooth). Configuration options allows you to set the columns visible as well as setting start up modes, compression settings, etc. Camera The Camera application familiar to prior Xda owners has always been relatively powerful but have now been enhanced beyond belief. Modes of operation have now been expanded do: Photo - Captures standard still images. Video - Captures video clips, with or without accompanying MMS Video - Captures video clips suitable for sending via MMS. Contacts Picture - Captures a still image and gives you the option immediately assign it to a Photo ID for a contact. Picture Theme - Captures still images and places them within frames. Panorama - Captures a sequence of still images continuously in one direction, and allows stitching of all images to create a collage. Sport - Captures a sequence of still images (5 ~ 30) automatically for a short duration at a defined frequency. Burst - Captures a sequence of still images (maximum 30) long as the CAMERA button or the ENTER button on the NAVIGATION control is kept pressed. Of these the later three are absolutely amazing in operation, and do have to be seen to be believed. As you can see there are plenty of options available to adjust both in modes of capture and capture seizes. You can even use the application to switch between the two different cameras. The software will interpolate pictures up to 2 mega pixels but this does require a goodly amount of light). The Exec boasts a 2.0x digital zoom facility as well as a Self-Timer - again new features to any PDA camera so far! In the final part of the review we will investigate the quality of media produced by the camera and detail examples of most modes. Power Profiles Power Profiles are accessed via the O2 Active system and allow you to use various profiles on the Exec which will globally vary according to what has been set within each profile. Profiles include as standard: High Power Long Life Normal Custom Scheduled Basic scheduling is included which allows you to switch profiles at various times. Phone Pad The Phone Pad SIP (Soft Input Panel) provides a simple and useful alternate method for entering information. Using Phone Pad, you can switch between three input modes: T9 Multi-Tap Numeric Very useful for those users who are used to using mobile phone style data entry! Applications Pro's & Con's Pro's O2 Active system Windows Mobile 5.0 operating system offers greatly enhanced / improved Office suite Greatly enhanced camera application with varied capture modes Easy UK ISP set up application UK HotSpots Directory Various 'Install' modes Pocket MSN System included on ROM Advanced O2 Task Manager Voice Speed Dial Wireless Manager Wireless Modem Zip Phone Pad Con's Wireless Modem driver can sometimes fail requiring a soft reset of the Exec Applications Conclusions The Exec has clearly has the application set defined with the power or corporate user in mind, the application set is rich enough to allow productivity to be maintained while on the move. You have access to the web, email, all aspects of messaging, photos and pictures and even PowerPoint presentations. And that is just in Windows Mobile 5.0. O2's added applications only serve to expand on an awesome set of features and give the Exec that true touch of class - whether it be the unique O2 Active user interface or the custom applications. When you use the Exec you know you are using the next generation of O2 Xda and that O2 have worked hard with HTC to produce a machine that matches the specifications found in the dreams of a great number of users. Applications 4WM Rating: 99%