HTC TyTN User Reviews

I've had the Cingular/AT&T Wireless 8525 version of the HTC TyTN PDA for 18 months now. It's been a very reliable phone with good call quality, a nice loud speakerphone, decent screen display, and excellent flexibility in using not only Windows Mobile apps but a number of my old Palm OS apps as well via the StyleTap compatibility application.  I like the voice dialing capability too. Upgrading my browser to the beta version of Skyfire has enabled me to have an iPhone-like display while surfing the net.
After upgrading from WM 5 to WM 6, the phone became a lot more stable and almost never crashes anymore. The only irritations in using this phone are these two:  1) the PTT talk button on the side is too easy to press accidentally (and you can't disable it); 2) trying to dial usually requires the use of the stylus unless you're sitting still and concentrating on where the virtual buttons are on the display.
This was my first HTC phone and I have to say that I'm a fan of theirs now. For anyone who uses some version of this phone, you can look forward to the new HTC Touch Pro which will replace both this phone and the AT&T Tilt (TyTN II) when it's released on October 23, 2008. AT&T's version will be called the AT&T Fuze and will employ the TouchFlo technology which uses an accelerometer like that in the iPhone to change the display orientation when the handset is rotated.
All in all, this phone has been outstanding and I'd give it an 8.8 on a scale of 10.

this phone is able to use the micro sdhc cards. they show that it doesnt and people just assume it cant, but i have an 8gb card in mine right now and it works perfectly

I like change my mobile often. This is the fourth windows mobile that I have. But this is my partner since 1 year and a half ago. And in facts, I'm happy. We could say that has a big size and a its battery is not spectacular. But now, that I'm thinking to change it ( most because I'm bored of see it every day) I don't see any machine that represents a big change for me. With the same features, more or less, the same battery and the same size, I think that the market can't offer to me a representative change. This could tell me two things: 1. The market didn't do anything, 2. This machine really is good.
I have changed the operating system to newers version of windows mobile. But , I didn't do nothing more to the machine. Really, this phone was a good piece of what HTC can do. It's hard and usable. Good connectivity.
 

The darn PTT button pushing on me at radom, and the charges therein, on top of not being able to use my 4GB mini were enough for me. Overall, the phone was great, but I now have an Hp Ipaq phone that perfectly fits my needs.

i like the phone has tons of downnloadable features, call quality is great and keyboard is excellent, only problem is holding shift to dial with the keyboard

I had the 8125 for a year and moved up to the 8525 and would reccommend it to others. Just as reliably as the 8125 but with less bugs. Not perfect but better. A lil confusing on the button "switchology" in other words, it has way too many buttons on the sides and you can't disable the PTT button even if you don't use PTT. None-the-less still a good value.

I first bought this phone when it was first released and it was somewhat buggy on the phone side. I returned it, then decided to try it again recently, flashed to the new bios, and the phone is far better then when I had it in Dec/Jan.

The screen size is outstanding. WM 5 runs fast, and can keep several irc programs up and running fine. Loaded my medical aps for work, and is useful.

I had a Blackjack for about a week, and liked it, but the functionality was a little off and the keys were very small. To be honest, I just really got bored with the device. I just got this 8525, and it is absolutely great!!! The screen takes some time in getting used to, but in terms of ease, functionality, key size, and just the overall presentation of the phone, it is DEFINITELY worth its cost.

Wow!!! I was relunctant in getting the 8525 because I wasn't sure how I'd like the slide out keyboard. I tried out a Blackjack first for a week, and just wasn't satisfied with lack of touchscreen, and the limited functionality of the Smartphone edition of WM5.0. The gadget geek in me just needed more! So far I'm 110% satisfied in returning the BJ and getting the 8525 instead. Txt messaging is a joy with the slide out full qwerty keyboard. Very rarely is the wrong key pressed, unlike some of the other PDAs with the keyboarded mounted directly below the screen. The screen quality is AMAZING! Very crisp and clear, and one of the major reasons I went with the 8525 instead of the Treo 750. With 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, full qwerty with large keys, this IS the ultimate PDA/smartphone out there, IMO. The only grip is the overall thickness, and I wish there was one higher notch to the earpiece volume, for very noise environments, but overall, I'm very very pleased with this unit, and recommend to anyone looking for a solid PDA and phone wrapped into one! And I consider it great value since I was able to find one for 299!

i'm loving this phone. It's a bit tough to dial on, (you have to either use the touch screen or hold won a shift key while you punch in the numbers on the slide out keyboard) but other than that I love it.
I ended up getting VoiceCommander so I could say what I wanted to dial.
The new Live Search application is amazing. It's like Google Maps in the palm of your hand. Since there is a native PPC version, it's way better than the Google Maps Java app.
It does Maps, Directions, Traffic, and will even offer up locations for Hotels, Restaurants. Did I mention it's free? Did i mention it'll work with a bluetooth GPS module (I got mine Rykeline for $50 from ebay)!
Rob

First of all, the updates do not come from HTC. They would be "software" updates, which would come from Windows Mobile. And they have those updates. Secondly, who really opens emails through the outbox? I dont unless I'm resending them and then I dont even open them up. Yes the touch screen needs tweaking every now and then, and the data calls may drop when going from carrier to carrier. But as far as that goes, you shouldnt be accessing data while moving, unless your being driven. And even then, who can complain. Since when have you been able to access internet and email and voicecalling at broadband speeds on a phone? Be happy with the advance in technology. We're getting further and further with technology and creeping up on Japan's heels. Cingular has really done a wonderful job with this device and once again proves why they are the nation's leader in wireless service; data being at the forefront. Enjoy this device, it's full of wonderful features. My favorite of which would have to be all of it.

This phone is great for worldwide use (Japan/S.Korea's UMTS-2100 Network, Europe, USA, etc.), but it's expensive and it's LOADED WITH BUGS. If it's worth spending this much money to have this capability, then I would suggest that it's a great choice; in fact, at the moment, it's really the only choice.

However, HTC's support is shockingly bad. For example, I had no response to very detailed e-mails detailing the specific software-related problems with this phone requesting solutions. I was glad to get an actual representative on the phone, but he was not well-versed with this particular phone. Plus there's also no good repair network in place that their support representatives are aware of, and their answer to the software bugs is to send the phone back to your wireless carrier for repair... Keep in mind, this phone is branded under HTC's name and is meant to be sold as an unlocked phone, not supported by your own wireless carrier. It certainly appears that HTC is ill-prepared for selling phones under their own brand name, because they're still expecting people to try sending the phone back to their own wireless carriers for repair, even when their own wireless carriers doesn't sell it!

Bugs with this phone include, but are not limited to:

1. Data calls cannot be reestablished if you go from roaming to home network, and the only way to fix is either turn it off and then back on, or enable flight mode and disable it again. This is especially bothersome in Southern California where Cingular users can still roam on T-Mobile's network, so if it jumps onto a T-Mobile tower and establishes a data call, as soon as it jumps back to Cingular it wont' be able to reestablish the connection. You'll just get a cryptic error message that states that it "Cannot connect to the network for an unknown reason". So if you use the "Direct Push" feature, you better look at your phone OFTEN, becuase the odds are that it lost the data call because it might have temporarily hopped onto a tower and was briefly "roaming", then switched back to your non-roaming tower only to not be able to reestablish the data connection. This doesn't seem to happen when switching from one roaming network to another (like SingTel to M1, etc., in Singapore), but it will happen when switching from your homem network to a roaming network and then back. It's a nightmare when I'm home because I live in Southern California (Los Angeles) and I use Cingular. But it works fine when I'm roaming elsewhere in the world.

2. The alignment on the touchscreen always becomes off and it must be re-aligned (read other forums -- VERY popular problem with this phone).

3. Try opening an e-mail in the Outbox (which hasn't been sent yet), then close it. If that message happens to have been sent while you had it opened, you will not be able to close it again until you fully power down the phone and then turn it back on.

4. There is no way to manually select or view a GSM Network code number in the network selection settings. This is especially frustrating if you are in Southern California for the reasons mentioned above.

There are various other software issues that I experience with the device, but they're less common than the above. And these are all software issues that HTC is not adequately releasing updates for.

Otherwise, putting these issues aside, the phone is very good for international roaming, as it's really the only device out there that lets you use the same phone and SIM card in Japan, Europe and the USA on a UMTS network.