For those who are on the bubble to purchase an X51v......
....how has reading all of the "problematic" posts regarding the X51v and WM5 potentially affected your planned purchase?
Here's what all of my research and post reading has done to me psychologically regarding my planned purchase of the X51v:
1. I am most definately purchasing an X51v
2. I have delayed my purchase. I was ready to purchase right around Christmas, but am now waiting until mid-January in order to give a little more time for the rest of you guinea pigs to play with and comment on upgrades etc.
3. Another reason to "wait" is in hoping another stackable coupon deal comes along. If one came tomorrow, I might just purchase the X51v and not wait a few weeks. Money does talk.
Dell is no different than any other computer/software manufacturer. It's a race to get the latest and greatest out to market, and these large companies are willing to take the chance. Instead of spending untold amounts of research dollars to attempt to roll-out the "perfect" product, companies like Dell and Microsoft make money from consumers who purchase computer/software products and, in addition to using the products, are unknowingly to many test dummies. These companies gather up the complaints, and roll out upgrades thanks to us, the consumer.
I know this going into any computer purchase. Therefore, before I even spend dollar one, I know along with my purchase will come headaches. It's no different than buying a car - you want perfection when spending your hard earned money, but it doesn't usually happen without a little effort and numerous trips to the repair shop. Sometimes you'll get lucky and get a product without problems. I've had my X5 Advanced for almost 2 years, and (*knocks wood) have never done a hard reset. I've had a Dell Dimension 8200 for over 3 years without any issues other than bad software installs. I've been on the other end of the spectrum too. I had a year long battle with my sons Toshiba laptop, which FINALLY was replaced with a Gateway.
All in all, my X5 experience definately keeps me with the Dell PDA. The Axim X51v appears to be a superior product. I guess I'll just have to suffer with the less than stellar working relationship between Dell and Microsoft, as both are contributing to the early (and expected) flaws in the new X51v technology.
My first post here, though I've been lurking a while.
I've been on the fence for a while now, but I decided to buy (just ordered an hour ago) as the price is right at the moment.
Most of the issues I've read here don't scare me too much, though the Bluetooth issues are concerning. I'm hoping that Microsoft/Dell will eventually get them solved. Most of the time I'll be using 802.11 but there will be the odd time when I'll want to PPP via bluetooth and my v710 phone (I know, good luck...)
I looked at the earlier Axims quite a while ago but held off, and struggled thru life with my Palm Vx .
BUt my brother in law is either getting an iPaq or a lower-end Axim, and I'll be darned if he's gonna have better technology than me! :)
I know there's probably a new X60 around the corner, but if you wait for the latest greatest, you'll wait forever.
It's no different than buying a car - you want perfection when spending your hard earned money, but it doesn't usually happen without a little effort and numerous trips to the repair shop. Sometimes you'll get lucky and get a product without problems.
I have to disagree with this part of your post -- cars and computers are completely different in this realm. A car is a machine with thousands of moving parts, and a very complicated assembly process. If you buy a new car and there is something wrong with it, it is most likely because an error was made during assembly. Computers, and in this case our PDAs, are solid-state devices built almost entirely on automated lines. Each unit is identical for the most part, and if there is a problem with one, there is usually a problem with all of them.
If a car has a problem like that, it prompts a recall, at a huge expense for the manufacturer. Imagine if GM treated its customers like Dell has -- thousands of new cars that won't go faster than 40mph and get 10mpg even though they should get 32, and GM says to just hang out until we figure out why. This would never fly in the automotive industry.
The real problem here is the culture that Microsoft has created. It started with Windows 95 -- people were so amped about seeing this new OS that MS decided to release it even though it was full of bugs. Contrary to traditional business logic, all this did was increase the consumer's appetite for MS products. "What they gave us was crap, but they're saying newer and better things are coming..." We have become so used to software updates on our computers and firmware updates for our other devices, that we've started to give companies like Dell too much slack. There are always going to be problems with software, its just the nature of the beast, but there's a certain level of quality that should be there before its released. Dell obviously didn't follow this principle when they decided to deliver WM5.
I have to disagree with this part of your post -- cars and computers are completely different in this realm. A car is a machine with thousands of moving parts, and a very complicated assembly process. If you buy a new car and there is something wrong with it, it is most likely because an error was made during assembly. Computers, and in this case our PDAs, are solid-state devices built almost entirely on automated lines. Each unit is identical for the most part, and if there is a problem with one, there is usually a problem with all of them.
If a car has a problem like that, it prompts a recall, at a huge expense for the manufacturer. Imagine if GM treated its customers like Dell has -- thousands of new cars that won't go faster than 40mph and get 10mpg even though they should get 32, and GM says to just hang out until we figure out why. This would never fly in the automotive industry.
The real problem here is the culture that Microsoft has created. It started with Windows 95 -- people were so amped about seeing this new OS that MS decided to release it even though it was full of bugs. Contrary to traditional business logic, all this did was increase the consumer's appetite for MS products. "What they gave us was crap, but they're saying newer and better things are coming..." We have become so used to software updates on our computers and firmware updates for our other devices, that we've started to give companies like Dell too much slack. There are always going to be problems with software, its just the nature of the beast, but there's a certain level of quality that should be there before its released. Dell obviously didn't follow this principle when they decided to deliver WM5.
Yes, my analogy is a little "loose" comparing computer products to cars. But to me, thousands of mechanical parts working together is no different than millions of lines of code from various companies, loaded on a machine with multiple boards/diodes/capicitors/etc from various companies - we're not dealing with a single-cell product.
We the consumer have put up with the computer industry and allowed these companies the slack they work with. But NOTHING is perfect. I don't have access to statistics I can trust, but I wonder what % of the X51v's out in the market today are actually defective? I believe the advantages technology has given me far outweighs the difficulties that come along with it. This little X5 I carry with me helps me boatloads. It's my right-hand man, and I know the X51v will be the same. I've had computers since the day of the Commodore VIC-20's and Timex Sinclairs and TRS-80's. I love what these products do for me.
I'm not happy with Dell or Microsoft, but I also don't beleive there are thousands of employees sitting around the water fountain laughing at us consumers. They are all working to marry many things in one little box, so we can take this little thing and put it to good use.
This little X5 I carry with me helps me boatloads. It's my right-hand man, and I know the X51v will be the same.
I feel like this is a worthwhile discussion. The quote above is the important part here -- you are still using an X5. The X5 is an excellent PDA; it is functional, stable, and reliable. This has changed with the new crop of PDAs Dell has delivered, and its changed in a big way.
My case is an X50v user, who was anticipating WM5 since its announcement. The WM2003SE OS that was delivered with it works well, but it doesn't take full advantage of the capabilites of the machine (Intel video mostly). There was a good reason to move to WM5, it was supposed to open up the Axim's capabilities. So I upgrade to WM5, and it is a complete nightmare. The biggest problem is that it gets extremely slow; I'm talking about just clicking on menus, or using the on-screen keyboard, and having 2 - 4 second delays in response. The VGA-out now does not work at all, across the board for EVERY x50v that has been upgraded. And how about coming in to work first thing in the morning, setting your Axim in the cradle, and being greeted by a plain white screen. Or better yet, a screen with blue and black lines all over it.
The problems I mentioned there are present on a pristine Axim, before installing any 3rd party software. This is what I was talking about in my previous post; software is never perfect but there should be a certain standard that is followed before delivering a release. I have had every Axim Dell has made, and have never seen problems like this. The only one that comes close was the X30h, due to the screen rotation, but that was fixed fairly quickly.
I'm not saying that you are wrong in your point, because from your perspective (an X5 user), it probably does look like we are being over-critical. But consider how much you use your X5, and how upset you would be if you couldn't rely on it to work when you needed it.
I think the added features that are getting built into the OS are adding to the problems (things Dell or MS adds).
The X5 didn't have built in bluetooth or wifi, so I was able to try the dell bluetooth drivers, didn't like those and loaded to widcom (sp? or whatever they were called).
I am not sure what else is being added to the SW for the x50 or x51, but I bet there are things that were supposed to be wizz-bang cool features, that turned out to be a nightmare for the SW geeks are Dell to get working correctly.
I guess it would be nice to be able to update the rom, and remove/replace components. You could remove the MS apps (Word, Excel) or drivers for wifi and bluetooth; and then select a replacement.
It could run as a desktop app, that let you configure the ROM to be loaded, and then load the customized ROM in to your Axim.
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