MobileViews Blog

Author: todd

  • Why is Windows Mobile WiFi so Sucky?

    I’ve been using my iPod touch (upgraded to the 2.0 firmware) at a number of hotspots during the past week. I’ve also been carrying a variety of Windows Mobile WiFi enabled devices. One of the things that has become very clear to me is that the iPod touch acquires access points much much faster than any WiMo device I’ve tried. I’d say that that the iPod touch is generally ready to roll in under 10 seconds. WiMo devices seem to take 30 to 60 seconds just to acquire an access point and then be ready to use (browse, email, etc.). That, of course, is when a WiMo device acquires any signal at all. I’ve run into several public access points where the WiMo Pocket PC (Professional Edition) could not even lock into the WAP. The iPod touch, on the other hand, was working within seconds.

    Since the Safari web-browser on the iPod touch is so much better than Internet Explorer on the Pocket PC or Smartphone, it is a no-brainer decision to use the iPod touch when wandering about hot spot areas.

  • Vote iPhone Apps Up or Down at Lockergnome

    If you head over to a LockerGnome web page at…

    http://iphone.lockergnome.com/

    …you can (after registering) vote iPhone apps up or down Digg-style.

  • Windows Mobile Total Access Tips & Tricks

    I mentioned in an earlier blog entry that Microsoft renamed the Windows Mobile Owners Circle to Total Access. Some (3 to be precise) of the articles I wrote for Microsoft’s WindowsMobile.com site have been moved to the nearly impossible to find…


    Windows Mobile Total Access Tips and Tricks

    …section. You’ll also find articles from Jason Dunn, Tyson Greer, and reprinted tips from Smartphone/Pocket PC Magazine there.

  • Back to Basics: Windows Mobile Mail, SSL, and Web Hosts


    If you use POP3 or IMAP4 server to retrieve email, it is always a good idea to turn on SSL (Secure Socket Layer) to encrypt the data. However, if you use a web host’s email server like I do, you more than likely will have an SSL certificate mismatch. If you happen to be looking at your Windows Mobile smartphone, you will see a message like this one warning you about this mismatch. Pressing the Yes button skips over this issue and lets email flow down to your phone. However, if are not looking at the phone, no mail will sync up. And, if you do not see this message, you may not notice this for a while. My personal practice is to start manual mail sync at least once a day to avoid mail retrieval issues due to this certificate problem.

  • NBC Videos for iPhone and Windows Mobile


    NBC’s mobile portal provides streaming video (including full episodes of some shows) on both Windows Mobile devices and the iPhone (and iPod touch). Head over to…

    m.nbc.com

    …to see the site and videos. If you use an iPhone or iPod touch, you’ll be redirected to a site specific for them (see the screenshot above). You need to be patient with the video streams even when using a wireless LAN. It took about 30 seconds for it to buffer on my HTC Advantage. Then, the audio stream started without video for another 10 seconds or so.

  • More ActiveSync Weirdness: Does NOT Work with USB Hubs

    ActiveSync 4.5 has been working as well as can be expected of it (works about 85% of the time) on my PC running XP for a number of years now. I have a USB-to-mini-USB cable plugged into a powered USB hub that I’ve used with a number of mostly HTC Pocket PCs and Smartphones during this time. However, for the past couple of days I have not been able to sync any Windows Mobile device via ActiveSync 4.5 if they are plugged into any USB hub (I’ve tried two completely different hubs). The devices do sync (sometimes anyway) if plugged directly into a USB port on the PC itself. The hubs work fine with other USB devices (mouse, printer, flash card reader, etc.). So, I’m pretty sure the hubs, their cables connected to the PC, and the power cords (both are powered hubs) are working.