i don't know how it's with windows mobile 5 .. but my favorite mobile application is opera mini (it runs on java though) .. but i think it's best what happened to mobile phones ... it lets you view almost any page .. compresses the images .. and changes layout so that any page is viewable without need for horizontal scrolling ... and it uses very little bandwidth .. for example when downloading front page of digg.com downloads only about 10kb .. while it has about 400kb in normal browser ... i guess there is also special version of opera for Windows Mobile 5 ... but i'm not sure if it has these features ...

Wow, what a weird coincidence: I just got the same phone in July!

Haven't gotten much software for it, just using Windows Mobile to keep up with my email and such. If you like games, get PocketNester to play old Nintendo games. Get OMAPClock to overclock the device temporarily to run certain programs better. Get BTAudioToggle if you have a Bluetooth headset, in order to stream all device sounds, including music, to the headset. Get ProgramLauncher to put shortcut icons for programs on the Today screen.

It's a great phone, although its slow processor hurts it (very few people have been able to run Skype on it). The more you learn about it, the more there is to like, and the more things you can take advantage of.

Oh, I didn't like running Opera on it. The browser seemed solid, but it hangs often (probably the processor's fault). There's an evaluation period, so it is worth trying out to see if you want to buy it.

Also, T-Mobile disables the phone's 802.11g, leaving 802.11b. You can search for a registry edit that will re-enable it, although it might affect battery life.

Weird, I can't seem to install either the PocketNester EXEs or the ProgramLauncher, though they sound cool...

I did manage to install Opera Mobile Browser (a 30-day trial), which works nice. The free Opera Mini is cool – I know it from my old Symbian OS hand phone – but somehow the midlet will crash on Windows Mobile 5.0. The native Internet Explorer is very dumb and doesn't have many options.

I got this phone a couple of months ago as well. In South Africa it's the iMate kJam, it's also know as the HTC Wizard... So, if you're searching for tips, etc., you should try using these terms as well...

My tip for here: Forget the Opera Browser, Opera Mini (the midlet) is worth it. When you say "crash", what happens? Because I find that sometimes the screen goes black if there's an issue with the connection (like you've changed from using wifi to GPRS). All you have to do is use your shortcut key for IE (top right) to open IE, then close it again, and Opera Mini is back. You can use any app for this, but the shortcut keys make it better.

In case you want to get MP3s onto your phone, I wrote a little tutorial on how to do it here: http://easymoney.geniosity.co.za/category/tools/

(you'll need to check the page for the imate post, as your rules prevent me from putting the link due to the word r---tones).

And, (shameless plug) I've also got a quick tutorial there on how to CREATE the MP3 r-tones on Windows XP (without having to buy special software).

ONE day I'll put up my tips on using the phone, and I'll come back and tell you about it.

Yeah, I googled how to add ringtones and found out that I can put MP3s in the Application Data -> Sounds folder. I used Audacity to crop them/ fade out at the end.

I had to add a little tweak to convert iTunes music to MP3 (Edit -> Preferences -> Advanced -> Importing -> Import using: MP3 encoder, and then right-click ripped song -> Convert selection to MP3)... though it only worked on music I ripped from my CDs, it didn't work on music I bought with iTunes (expectedly, as it's DRM'ed). Reminds me to never buy from the iTunes store again.

Will now try to search for iMate kJam, HTC Wizard, and MDA Vario (and "... games").

http://Handango.com seems to be a good start.

> Handango.com seems to be a good start.

Uh, maybe not. Though they listed the phone as supported, the app I bought there won't work.

> Uh, maybe not.

Turns out you need to run the EXE on your computer while USB'ed to the phone. :)

<< though it only worked on music I ripped from my CDs, it didn't work on music I bought with iTunes (expectedly, as it's DRM'ed). Reminds me to never buy from the iTunes store again.

If you burn it, the DRM's gone, right?

Google afficionados like Mobile Maps for mobile phones ;-)

http://www.google.de/gmm/index.html

Which worked well for me already on Vario II / WM 5.0.

> If you burn it, the DRM's gone, right?

Yes you're right. And then you can actually import it back again to have it as MP3 in iTunes (at least that was the hack a friend told me – the quality downgrade seems to be unnoticable basically).

Kobold do you know how to allow the Google Maps app to always use the Net?

i just wish google calendar would show up on my phone (Motorola razr3Vm) and/or Google Calendar would sync with my palm m515

> i just wish google calendar would show up on my phone (Motorola razr3Vm) and/or Google Calendar would sync with my palm m515

there is something called gcalsync at www.gcalsync.com .. i'm not sure if this is what you need

I have a Verizon Wireless PDA/Phone with a pull out keyboard. If you need help you could ask me...

If you can hack it without this please let me know! http://www.junefabrics.com/pdanet/

I get app 500Kb download speed from my laptop using my PC6700 as the modem from Sprint, cost is 15 mo for vision pack.

> do you know how to allow the Google Maps app to always use the Net?

Unfortunately, the Java (Intent Midlet Manager) version on the current MDAs (I have an MDA Pro) is horribly broken in this respect: it does not seem possible to do this, which makes many midlets (Opera Mini as well) almost unusable.
(Another midlet, though – http://xk72.com/midpssh/ – does not have this problem and only asks once per session. It's a pretty decent – and free – SSH client, one annoyance, though, is that you have to press '2' to enable the keyboard, after connecting.)

In any case, I'm still hoping for a native Windows Mobile version of Google Maps Mobile... That should work much smoother than the Midlet version, and could also offer more functionality, like GPS tracking.
(Microsoft has one – http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2006/09/15/757207.aspx – which is pretty decent, but it ain't Google...)

My favourite piece of software for surfing the web is PIEPlus (http://www.reensoft.com/PIEPlus/), an IE Mobile plugin that makes life just a bit easier. (Best feature, IMHO, with two clicks, go to a Google Mobile-ized version of the current page.)

   – Michael

http://www.spbsoftwarehouse.com/products/pocketplus/?en

Makes your life alot better. I've got a little experiance toying with .net 2.0 apps on Windows mobile, "recreated" CDisplay for comic book reading a little while back, never released it because I fear the memory limitations in the display buffer. I have a slightly older device however, the previous incarnation of the phone (minus keyboard and with half the memory).

david a+t davidwhitney.co.uk

David, this Spb Pocket Plus tool is nice, I bought it recently...

PS: QML seems to work well on Windows Mobile 5.0 IE...
http://blogoscoped.com/googleadventure/

Philipp: I saw this page and since I also have this t-mobile MDA (QTec) and also want software for it........

http://www.htcwiki.com/page/MDA+Applications

Hi there, download the pcb plus for cool today plug-ins and pcp gprs monitor. The gprs monitor program tells you how much data youve used as well as the amount of data left if you have a data bundle on your package.

I also downloaded novii remote onto my K Jam and its brilliant. There are preset devices for example Tv's, Dvd players, Cable, Satelite etc. You can also teach the software your remotes settings if not listed on novii remote.

Try this link: www.freewaresppc.com