entirely safe and fun

As you may have noticed, I’ve been compiling a list of configuration information for a totally new, configuration-free Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone. This is, of course, because I have one and need to get it working.

It’s thin, it’s light, and it handles stereo Bluetooth: it’s the QTek 8500. There are a few things I’d like to say are awesome about this phone. The QVGA (320 x 240) screen is excellent, especially if, like me, you enjoy browsing the Web from your phone. A2DP, more familiarly known as stereo Bluetooth, rocks unfairly - listening to web radio with no wires in the signal path is pretty tech. Windows Mobile 5 also includes push email, which I haven’t gotten set up yet. These features make the 8500 the ultimate gargoyle phone, Snow Crash style. Furthermore, the form factor is sexy as hell. Master sexy artisans carve the case out of a solid block of matte black sexy.

I’m still not done getting all of the 8500’s features set up, but so far I have no complaints that I haven’t been able to address by tweaking some configuration. The most frustrating part, when I was getting started, was correctly configuring the network settings. No one has up-to-date information on the web, as far as I can tell. I called and emailed Cingular, and the fruits of that research are now on my list of useful things to know. Then, the thinness of the documentation became an obstacle; I’m pushing through that with sheer experimentation at this point. I’ll update the info page from time to time as I figure things out. Every time I find myself wishing I had a nice, four-color-glossy manual from Cingular, I remind myself that I’m using a product too new to even have US distribution channels (mine came with a charger plug that no one could identify, possibly for Outer Buzkashistan or someplace (see update, bottom)), and that something has to give, and that smart engineers, faced with a choice of what will give, have always chosen documentation. “Well, the History Eraser Button seems to be working great, but we need to ship tomorrow. Copy that wishlist Marketing gave us last year and slip it into the box.”

The one irremediable problem with this phone, right now, is that no carrier is supporting it. You’ll have to buy one with no carrier subsidies, making it expensive, and with minimal expectation of technical assistance, which can be frustrating. Just finding the MMS configuration dialog must have taken me an hour, for instance. I pre-ordered mine from GBT Mobile, who were honest, forthright, and easy to get in touch with. There were some shipping delays, but they kept their customers informed, and didn’t dodge or go silent. There are a lot of really awful cell phone dealers on the Web (e.g. Wirefly, to whom I won’t link), and I am happy to report that my experience with GBT was quite pleasant.

I’ll try to get a more thorough review of the 8500 up shortly. In brief, though, I’m enjoying it.

Update: The type G plug is, in fact, widely used in Outer Buzkashistan, but my bet now is that my phone came either from the UAE or the UK, and if I had to choose, my money would be on the former.