Wish there was something better than sipdroid and not as commercially linked. IAXdroid would be perfect. There are some java libraries. Also having problems with sipdroid and nat that was not a problem on the N810.

I also have a "perfected spl" on my Rogers Magic (also on AT&T). I avoided the complication (and risk) of the gold card method by following the "one click root": http://theunlockr.com/2009/08/29/how-to-root-the-htc-magic-in-one-click/

also his newest rom runs on android 1.6 which has vpn support for pptp and l2tp

ward glad to have you on the android side of things

If it can also function like the MiFi, I’ll bet this will be a huge home run for Google and Verizon.

[WM: It’s going to be a fun holiday season in the Android world.]

So as mentioned I went out and bought the HTC magic after reading your review and been happy ever since. SIPdroid does what I want it to do. Also the applications available for the phone are great. Since I’m linux savvy I rooted the phone without trouble and can also make extensive use of the wifi tethering (my provider allows this).

Thanks for making me spend another $600 on a phone this year but I’m loving it!

[WM: Coming soon from Motorola and probably others.]

sipdroid only works on 3g/edge if you get the app from their website if you get it from the market the 3g/egde capabilities are disabled but this is one of those apps that keeps getting better the latest
release was quite a improvement

I’m also in the iPhone camp now. It’s amazing how much they have done to advance mobile computing. Sure there are artificial limitations, but even without background services I have IM and IRC "virtually" backgounded with push enabled apps. My biggest complaint is not with the software, but with the carrier.

I bailed on the Nokia e63 after one too many reboots and connectivity issues either getting it to work with WPA, getting it to stay connected to WiFi, getting it to connect to a sip provider, no diagnostics when sip registration or call failure, and inconsistent behavior for incoming calls despite the fact that I’ve used the same networks for other SIP applications. After a month of trying various tricks and workarounds it just wasn’t worth the hassle when I just wasn’t getting my calls and half my outgoing calls would end up without audio.

[WM: Good points. Thanks.]

As a diehard Nokia SIP client user, I have become quite disenchanted with Nokia’s removal in their latest phones. Android provides hope. However, the recent CyanogenMod cease and desist letter and Google’s increasingly worrying stance over rooting their phones has cast some doubt on this angle. Chances are that I might snap up the phone you used in this article just in case newer Android phones become impossible to root. That said, I’m quite thrilled you did this write-up!

I have one more suggestion for you… Windows Mobile. XDA-Developers has a little software package that opens up the built-in SIP functionality in Windows Mobile 6+ phones. In some ways, Windows Mobile is more powerful because you can define dial plans within the handset itself but this also makes it more complicated. Anyway… it’s worth a shot to see if you can provide another one of your phenomenal write ups.

Finally, we’re still waiting for a Palm Pre SIP stack. Sadly, I think my blog ends up in the top Google results for "palm pre" "sip stack" which is an absolutely abysmal sign. 🙂

That being said, an even better solution would be to modularize those applications, and allow them to be downloaded and installed on any Android device as a regular application, with hooks into the OS as normal. That would be the open source way — similar to dual-licensing models.

Use our version of Android, or if not, download our binaries, agree to the license terms we specify during install, and approve its access to internal hooks for full functionality.

Problem solved, Google looks great.

Working WITH others not AGAINST them.

Apple is by no means a good comparison. They only know how to do things one way.

I am a huge fan of their hardware and OS, but not their business practices and pricing.

[WM: Yeah. What’s really strange is that all of these apps are available for the most part directly over the Internet at no cost. The one exception might be Google Market on which Google makes commissions. 🙄 None of it makes any sense to us. Screw the guy that’s probably done more to advance the platform than anybody and in doing so alienate your most loyal supporters. Really bright move on both counts. Almost looks like they were jealous that a guy could design a better OS than their people on the payroll. It’s an age-old Silicon Valley nose-in-the-air problem dating back as far as the Ashton-Tate days. Too big for their britches as my grandma would say.]

P.S. Looks like some of the same growing pains are underway at Palm as well.

My Pre clients actually use iTunes to get their music on their phone.( I advised them against it actually.) Also I am surprised how many users of Windows and Macs I run into who use iTunes without an iPod connection.

However I too sense some sort of odd strain of Apple bashing both in your review and even your comments about how much you use Macs. Sort of a … and some of my best friends are Macs (LOL). The Apple logo crack was not necessary in your response to Craig in what I thought was otherwise a reasoned defense. And yes I am well aware of my own biases regarding the iPhone.

The iPhone has become – especially with the OS3 update, an indispensable tool in my work and play. I run my Mac consulting company with it now, from Credit Card payments, billing, TomTom navigation to writing notes and the device works well under many conditions. I hardly ever use my Macbook except for onsite troubleshooting (often my iPhone does that too)

I have a number of clients who are G-phone owners and their reviews of them have been mixed, with a lot of complaints of how they feel steered to Googles services, lack of "good" apps. and unhappiness with HTC hardware quality in the case of their T-Mobile device. In contrast my customers with the new Palm Pre seem happier. Anyway, thanks for your reviews. Glad your enjoying your Macs.

[WM: Thanks. You’re right. Google’s legal shenanigans last week really reinforced that all of these companies (even with all of their riches) still have much to learn. Seems to be a little gotcha in all of us. And, yes, some of our best friends are Macs. 🙂 Frankly, we never quite got over Apple bricking people’s iPhones, and it still shows once in a while. Sorry. Didn’t happen to ours by the way. Interesting, too, that despite hundreds of thousands of modded Xboxes, Microsoft never found the need to brick people’s personal property nor to issue C&Ds to ROM developers. Instead, they opted to build a better mouse trap.

Speaking of steering users to their own products, that’s an interesting observation regarding Google considering the forced linkage between iPhones and iPods to iTunes and Apple’s music store. At least with the Androids, you have some choice in loading your music and software. ]

…er wait…

"Google Issues Cease & Desist to Open Source Android Developer"

http://www.linux-mag.com/cache/7544/1.html

[WM: Open source doesn’t mean selling the farm. The cease and desist had to do with commercial applications being redistributed, not open source apps. Any other company (including Apple) would have had the same concerns. Without first talking to the developer, it was a stupid move to get lawyers involved. Usually is. It’s hard to put a price tag on goodwill. But Google just squandered millions of dollars worth for no reason. On the Android platform, there is an easy solution which protects commercial apps while making them available on rooted phones to legitimate owners. It is addressed in our updated article and now is being addressed by the developer in question. A two-minute phone call from Google to the developer could have averted what may yet turn out to be a train wreck for a pretty good public company. One disgruntled user summed it up best with his funny Hitler video spoof on YouTube.]

I still find Apple’s "closed platform" (A misnomer on your part considering the aftermarket for the iPhone) more compelling for me. I like the smooth integration with my set-up of MobileMe and MBP. And I find the iPhone’s hardware far superior to anything else I have played with, considering it’s made of metal and glass…. not plastic.

I use several Apps not available on Android. Nike+ for my running (wife uses it too), numerous games I enjoy playing, and the remote I use for my home theater and home automation software. Can you turn all your lights off in the house from your bed with an Android? Can it dim the lights, pull the screen back and start the movie in your home theater? How about turn the popcorn machine on and start popping away?…….. My iPhone can. Oh, and my Escalade has an iPhone jack built in. I looked, but couldn’t find the jack for the Android for some reason.

The Android is nice, but it is very limited when compared to what I can do with my iPhone today.

[WM: Like we said. Different strokes for different folks. Good to hear there are a few loyal iPhone customers left. AT&T needs folks that still are willing to pay those exorbitant international roaming fees without blinking. And with the iPhone you don’t have much choice… other than to buy or rent a second phone. In case streaming music from your phone to your car with BlueTooth doesn’t work (for example, using an iPhone), the jack you’re searching for is the non-proprietary USB jack. You’ll find it in every new Toyota and many other vehicles. Didn’t know the federal government was still making Escalades? 😉 ]

[WM: No aversion to Apple products here. In fact, quite the contrary as this article makes clear. We wouldn’t trade our Macs for anything. In fact, the Android phones are a perfect complement to the Mac platform from our vantage point. Unfortunately, the iPhone has evolved in a very different way as a very closed product. As we noted, it depends upon your requirements. We’ve listed ours. Haven’t seen yours… other than it appears requirement #1 is an Apple logo. 🙄 ]

[WM: Which images?? Don’t see a problem at this end.]