WirelessDoc

Test of HTC Hero's 5 mpx digital camera

This is unedited, straight from the phone's digital camera. (NB: you should click on these images to see the full uploaded size as the reduction for this blog post is producing some added compression artifacts.)

This is almost 1 MB in size. The limiting factor is definitely the tiny lens.

You can adjust exposure, and focus. The camera works well in low light. Auto white balance works well, too.

On the orange markers, you can see the red channel blocking up. But this is typical of most digital camera, even the digital SLRs.

This is result of PP in Nikon Capture NX2, which I use for the D90 DSLR. The image holds up well to sharpening: high pass and unsharp mask.

The color channels are not blocking up as much as I would expect.

I don't see major color shifts when darkening different areas such as the notepad cover.

All in all this 5 mpx image, even though it's a jpeg, holds up well to editing, but I think most folks will go to this extent for a phone cam image, and just upload it directly from the phone.

This was shot in weak window light and still noise is well controlled. I would guess the ISO would have to be above 400.

Pretty good for a phone cam.

"White triangle of death" on the HTC Hero

You can get the background on my problems with the newly acquired Sprint HTC Hero from the previous post, but basically, everytime the phone is reset by removing and then re-inserting the battery, this icon appears, and can't be removed, at least immediately. When this appears, even the phone can't be turned off.

I found that eventually when I press the trackball, the phone successfully reboots.

I wasn't able to access the Internet though, so I called Sprint and the rep had me do the battery reset, and sure enough, this icon pop up again. He said that the phone was defective and had to be replaced.

There's nothing in the online manual for this phone that explains the rebooting process, as far as I can tell.

So far, having used the phone on Wi-Fi, I can say that I like the Android apps available, and being able to stream YouTube videos, music and Webcasts, but the battery drains very rapidly, and as others have said it can be sluggish at times, even when you turn the phone from vertical to horizontal.

I also found that the auto-screen brightness was also changing slowly and ended up being annoying.

Below is the home screen. I'm OK, as long as I don't do the battery reset. Besides, the volume rocker switch is broken, so this phone has to replaced.

AT&T Reverses Its Policy On iPhone Internet Calls - NYTimes.com

AT&T said on Tuesday that it would no longer prevent customers with the Apple iPhone from using Internet telephone services [namely Skype] that bypass its own voice network.

via www.nytimes.com

This follows the Verizon Wireless announcement that it will release an Android phone, and this will allow Google Voice.

Verizon to Unveil Motorola Android Phone | Technology | Financial Articles & Investing News | TheStreet.com

Verizon to Unveil Motorola Android Phone | Technology | Financial Articles & Investing News | TheStreet.com.

This is another Android phone besides the Motorola Cliq and the HTC MyTouch both offered by T-Mobile, and the HTC Hero coming to Sprint on Oct. 11th.

Rejected by Apple, Palm teams with Amazon - CNN.com

Rejected by Apple, Palm teams with Amazon - CNN.com.

Palm has paired with the Amazon MP3 store, having lost the battle with Apple over  iTunes. The is a much better solution. Not only can you now use cellular downloading with your Pre, but the customer service with Amazon is much better. I've never been able to successfully negotiate a refund for an iTunes purchase that didn't work.

A Review of Sprint's HTC Hero Touch-Screen Phone - WSJ.com

Walt likes.

A Review of Sprint's HTC Hero Touch-Screen Phone - WSJ.com.

Overall, I found the HTC Hero to be the best Android phone I've tested, and a worthy competitor to the iPhone, the BlackBerry and the Pre.

See his video review.

HTC Hero pre-order from BestBuy

The HTC Hero is Sprint's first Android-based smartphone. The advantage of pre-ordering from BestBuy is that you don't have to mail in a voucher to receive the rebate. What you do is fill out a form, and pay for a $50 gift card that is applied to the purchase the phone.

The final cost is $180 with a 2-year contract with Sprint.

The phone should be available on Oct. 11, but I couldn't get a confirmation from BestBuy. We'll see.

Nokia looking th buy Palm

This would certainly give Nokia entry into North America.

Palm's Pre Smart Phone Fails to Stem Deep Losses - WSJ.com

Palm's Pre Smart Phone Fails to Stem Deep Losses - WSJ.com.

"The Silicon Valley company -- which reported its fiscal first-quarter loss nearly quadrupled because it deferred much of the revenue from Pre sales -- projected lower sales in the current period than Wall Street expected. Analysts cited factors that include stiff competition as well as a limited number of sales partners among carriers."

Sprint, Palm's exclusive carrier for the Pre, is just as much on the ropes but both companies deserve more credit than the news reports and fan sites would suggest.

Starting with Sprint, they develop a reputation for poor customer service, which has since been resolved, at least in my experience. In my travels, I've been amazed at the coverage of their EV-DO network. I've been a Sprinter since the first Treo came out, and never experience a problem with the service that wasn't fixed quickly. 

For Palm, I've been upgrading to each succeeding Treo, so now I'm using the Treo 700p. And it works, with it's very simple Garnet OS that is easy to manage (it syncs with my laptop reliably). Over the years there have been complaints about the Treo models, and the need to return them. The only problem I've had, and my Treos have been through some rough treatment including a flight from my belt clip to tracks underneath the number 6 train in Union Square subway station in NYC, was a model that wouldn't pair reliably with the Bluetooth headset, and then the Sprint store gave me a substitute and its been clear sailing since then.

Palm's fault was falling behind in innovating in a hotly competitive industry of connected handhelds. You can no longer call them smart phones. They're now emerging computer platforms, that are expected to replace the laptop, or even the netbook.

Tablet wars are coming next. Archos just announced their latest Internet Media Tablet. The iPad is sure to be in the works for next year. I would hope that Palm had plans for a similar device based on their Web OS.

And the ebook wars are heating up with the latest Kindle offerings both small (I returned mine) and large, and Sony's reader. I prefer reading ebooks on a handheld, either on the Treo or the iPod Touch (their software options are not as robust as the Palm software). And why couldn't Apple put a digital camera in the Touch this time around?

The mobile internet industry is the hottest sector in an otherwise lumbering world economy in recovery. Should be interesting.

Charlie Rose - Daniel Hesse

On Charlie Rose tonight, Daniel R. Hesse, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sprint Nextel.

Charlie Rose - Daniel Hesse.

A look at the future of Mobile technology with Daniel Hesse with Daniel Hesse on Sep 10, 2009