i-mate have released two new PDA-phones in its Ultimate series and the differences between them are only cosmetic. For a detailed review of the features and performance that applies to both handsets, be sure to read our review of the Ultimate 6150.
Design
To keypad or not to keypad? This is the single decision to make when choosing between i-mate's Ultimate 6150 and 8150. Both handsets feature the same dimensions, hardware and applications; the only difference being that the 8150 features an alpha-numeric keypad and sacrifices 0.2-inches of screen real estate to accommodate this.
For our money, everyone needs a keypad. Text input is always faster, especially with the assistance of good predictive text software, which the 8150 also has. There's sure to be dozens of touchscreen aficionados crying bloody murder about this opinion in our talkback, but we stand by it.
That said, the keypad on the 8150 isn't the best. The area dedicated to it is a bit too small, and while the keys have ample space horizontally, they are too small vertically. On top of this, the keypad lays flush with the surface of the handset, and while this is may be more aesthetically pleasing, it makes it harder to accurately differentiate between keys when typing quickly.
Overall
If the difference in screen size was more substantial the decision would be much more difficult. But losing 0.2-inches of screen size really isn't going to affect your experience of reading e-mails or Web sites, and the ability to completely control the 8150 without touching the screen is a handy option to have for numerous everyday tasks.
Considering the two devices have matching retail prices, our pick is the 8150. It's a shame that the keypad isn't as easy to use as we'd like.
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davidsparrius
23/06/2008, 10:17 PM
rating
1/10
Smart? Of course, they were to get this over the line with a giant like Telstra.
I run a business with 16 staff members. We use a BES with Blackberries and I had become frustrated with the tracking wheels constantly breaking down. I spoke with our rep from the Telstra shop and asked what we could do about better options. "Ahh the I-Mate Ultimate" he suggested. So we bought two of them (one for myself and one for my business partner). Ironically, he gave up after a couple of hours of trying to work it out. So I can't really give you any info on his thoughts. But here is mine.
1. The battery only lasts a few hours. I had a business trip to Sydney and it died about 12:30 PM. I only made a couple of calls and hardly used it at all.
2. The POP3 service keeps crashing.
3. The relay service for sending e-mail kept crashing.
4. Heaps of software errors inernally. For example, I loaded two or three songs onto the device and wanted to set one up as a ring tone. It set up ok but when a call came in, it was silent. Turned out you could only assign ring tones from files that were on the media
card.
I was so frustrated with this piece of rubbish I ended up throwing it back in the harbour in Sydney.
This is NOT a phone for business users.
Pros: 1. Makes you look important.
2. Has a great camera function with high resolution.
3. Has a nice pen function.
Cons: 1. Battery life span is a joke.
2. E-mail POP3 and relay service is a joke.
3. Was big and heavy.
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Rob
08/03/2008, 05:30 PM
rating
8/10
Great all round phone
Pros: It has everything, fats internet
Cons: buttons
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dmeeishahin
01/03/2008, 01:04 AM
rating
2/10
Though I got it as a valentine's gift, I couldn't keep. It disconnects the simcard after overnight charging, I missed all the morning comoing calls and it was a critical timming of our annual medical conference. It hung up and closed with no outgoing or incomin calls twice in the first 24 hours. I took it back within 36 hours. First they refused to refund or change and sent to the dealer, a week later, I was told it was only a software problem, I never received an official report and hence , they will not change i. , I picked it up to find that it had been opened and was not screwed back properly as the battery wouldn't fit (so it was not just a software problem, I had to exert pressure to get the battery in place. I tried it , first it seemed OK, but in less than 24 hours it went dead again, I tried to open it to move my simcard and re-insert as I used to do before but the battery wouldn't come out, I had to send to the dealer tthrough the purchase store take my simcard out. I received my simcard. I was given store credit instead after a long debate that as a very busy professional had no time for. I still couldn't get my money and they do not carry the replaceme nt cell phone I want. I have to admit in the store, they were polite and considerate. Last my simcard got barred for unpaid charges of SR 700! though I had paid the bill 4 days before that incident, I am still verifying the calls from the comminication company and at the moment I am not sure if my simcard got abused after it was extracted from the phone, I will no shortly how it had that much worth of calls in 24 hours!
Unfortunately, it was a traumatic experience.
Pros: Looks elegant. A reputable brand. the side wheel was a plus to cruise down and up the list. I haven'y got the time to explore all its options and functions.
Cons: A poor software.
A very bad after purchace service in Jeddah. KSA
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bader
29/02/2008, 08:02 PM
rating
10/10
Could i Add blackberry connect on this phone ?
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