Experimental/Beta WM6.1 ROMs for Axim X51v

[johnhu_2005]

bump bump ^^

[maldjusted]

Another happy LennySH L11 user here.
After my last upgrade, quite some time ago, to A12 which almost bricked my X51v, I was hesitant. But installing from SD was so smooth (according to youtube instructional, I got confused about which buttons to press like everybody else).
Everything is faster, all software I installed till now works well (EDIT: today I checked and GPS (iGO8) works well, after manual configuration - I always have to manually define com ports for my cheap bluetooth device, also in old A12).
The bundled additions like unrar/menus/wireless power menu and especially the youtube player are very much appreciated (I did notice faded colors when playing same video next to a friend's iphone, could be codec or could be my screen protector).
Downs: few freeezes followed by soft resets here and there, some gmail messages were not sent (using the built in messaging and auto configuration), strange activesync behavior (I wasn't able to connect yesterday and considered a second hard-reset, but today when I plugged a sansa clip into adjacent USB slot, the activesync suddenly went back to life, strange...), and even when replacing PIE with opera 9.5b1, I cannot outbrowse an iPhone (which I'm keen on getting now that my 7-8 years old cellphone broke).

[johnhu_2005]

Congratz on the upgrade! Lenny's ROM is not without it's faults. But the advantages overcome the disadvantages. I also use Opera. Of course the iPhone/ iPod Touch is design for multimedia. That is why the iPhone has better color.

[woodstock64]

I currently am running Football's 6.0 w/ True VGA which I love: So much more screen real estate! I'm I accurate in deducing that if I upgrade to Lenny's L11 I will no longer be able to run True VGA? :( No True VGA would definitely be a deal breaker which would be a shame as speed is very important to me, given that I use my Axim x51v at least 8-10hrs/day.

[johnhu_2005]

Of course Football's ROM is relatively old. Makuu's ROM has TrueVGA already embedded or installed.

Try this out: MvRTrueVGA

It allows you to enable TrueVGA. Of course, Lenny's L11 does not have TrueVGA on by default, but it can be done pretty easily.

[Simon cheung]

Have anyone testing wifi using wep?

I have Football A07 version and find the wifi running very slow with WEP. Not sure I did anything wrong or it has issue with WiFi since no one really reported any problem with wifi on football A07 version. May be just me, that did not setup correctly.

However, if LennySH L11 version has no issue with speed on WiFI with WEP, then I would just upgrade and re-install all the applications.

thanks!

[johnhu_2005]

I am usig WPA-PSK right now. I have used WEP, Wi-fi runs fine on L11. Give it a try and see how it goes. The speed of the Ax itself definately beats Football's.
If the wi-fi still has problems, try changing channels on your router. 6 or 11 is generally the best.

Hi all! It's been a long time since I came here since I stopped using PDAs and stuck with the new "Net books" or budget notebooks.

However, my new HTC Tytn II encouraged me to use my x51v again when I found out how crappy videos ran on the HTC.

I see that there are finally custom roms on the x51v (hurray! no more ROM waiting from Dell; although I believe they stopped the PDA business altogether). But now I am utterly confused with all the different custom ROMS.

How does Lenny's latest rom compare with the Football A07 edition? In terms of bundled apps with the ROM, is there a lot of differences? I keep hearing about people enjoying Youtube and Opera on Lenny's rom, are these also on the Football A07? I know there is also a newer A08, is it also called football?

Thanks all!

[rlarson_mn]

Hi all! It's been a long time since I came here since I stopped using PDAs and stuck with the new "Net books" or budget notebooks.

However, my new HTC Tytn II encouraged me to use my x51v again when I found out how crappy videos ran on the HTC.

I see that there are finally custom roms on the x51v (hurray! no more ROM waiting from Dell; although I believe they stopped the PDA business altogether). But now I am utterly confused with all the different custom ROMS.

How does Lenny's latest rom compare with the Football A07 edition? In terms of bundled apps with the ROM, is there a lot of differences? I keep hearing about people enjoying Youtube and Opera on Lenny's rom, are these also on the Football A07? I know there is also a newer A08, is it also called football?

Thanks all!

Both sites where the ROMs you are referring to have detailed descriptions of what applications are contained in the ROM release. There are also pictures and comments by others that have loaded, beta tested or used these ROMs. The best way is to go to those sites do a bit of reading and then flash you ROM with each ROM you find interesting. I have done this over 39 times so its pretty easy with instructions on how to do it on both sites. :approve:

Both sites where the ROMs you are referring to have detailed descriptions of what applications are contained in the ROM release. There are also pictures and comments by others that have loaded, beta tested or used these ROMs. The best way is to go to those sites do a bit of reading and then flash you ROM with each ROM you find interesting. I have done this over 39 times so its pretty easy with instructions on how to do it on both sites. :approve:

Is there an official website for those ROM releases? I tried google but found a lot of different threads which only link to the ROMS but don't provide the release info.

[yankeeDDL]

Hello,
I've had my Axim for many years now and it's overdue for a major cleanup.
I still have an old ROM from DELL (A03) with a few patches for the WiFi and activeSync issues that used to drain the batteries.
I just learned about these unofficial ROMS and they sound very interesting.
I'm not very handy with the PDA so I do have some worries.
I use the Axim for the following:
- sync Outlook calendar
- Skype (the Axim makes a good "cell phone" when I'm around the WiFi)
- sync the contacts
- GPS (I have a bluetooth GPS receiver and iGuidance installed)

What I would like to do:
- move to Thunderbird/Lightning (I have already transferred everything on the PC) for contact/calendar management
- abandon ActiveSync in favor of FinchSync (FinchSync Home)
- Still use Skype
- Install VoipStunt if possible
- Still use iGuidance
- Be able to open a Word or an Excel file if needed

Some questions (hopefully not too stupid :) )
1) I want to steer away from Microsoft's "crapware", so I was leaning towards Football ROM. However, it may be just easier to go for Lenny's L11 which has Office installed.
2) Does anyone have experience with syncing Thunderbird? Is finchsync the right way to go?
3) The Axim is currently in sync with my PC. When I flash it, I will lose all data on the Axim. Do I need to do any backup of any sort, or it makes no sense since all data is on the PC anyway? You can assume that apart from contacts/calendar and a few files which I have already copied, there's no other data on the Axim.
4) Is Activesync going to give me troubles if I connect the Axim after flashing? Or it will simply recognize the Axim as a different device and not sync it?
5) Based on the above, can you recommend the ROM that would suit best my needs?
6) I'm interested in this TrueVGA application. Is there anywhere I can see some images on what it does and how does it get me more "real estate" area on the screen?

BTW, I have an x51v QVGA.

If you think I should post this in a separate thread, let me know.

Thanks much in advance for the help,
Yankee

[johnhu_2005]

YankeeDDL,
x51v is an VGA device. x51 is an QVGA device. Are you sure you have x51v? If you do not, please do not flash these ROMS, as they will brick your Axim.

[yankeeDDL]

Johnhu,

yes, I have the x51v (VGA).
I made a mistake in my previous post saying "QVGA".

Thanks for checking though.

[johnhu_2005]

Now the answer to your questions:
1. Lenny has 3 distinct versions of his L11 ROM: Stock Dell, Bare Bones, and "Lenny Edition". Unfortunately, Stock Dell and Bare Bones are not out yet. If you want to use Bare Bones, you have to wait. For more info: Dell Axim x51v WM6.1 L11 20273 (LennySh Edition) - HTCGeeks Forum


2. From what I've seen, Thunderbird has no problems with WM6.1. But I have never experienced Finchsync. So somebody who uses Finchsync might help you out.


3. Yes, if you flash it, you will lose ALL data on your Axim. I am assuming that you have no major programs installed? Please BACKUP all necessary files. If all you need to backup is contacts, Dell has a default backup program pre-installed. Check in your "Programs" folder. Then reinstall any programs.


4. There is a low possibility that Activesync will not sync. But that is rare. Yes, it will recognize it as a new device (Still a Dell Axim x51v) so you have to redo your partnership again.


5. I would suggest Lenny's L11 ROM because of it's speed and useful programs on it. If you do not like it, you can either wait for his Bare Bones edition to come out or use Football's ROM. My only problem with Football's ROM is that his could be discontinued. (Meaning there was no activity for some time.)


6. Check out the awesome guide by Menneisyys: VGA demystified – the definitive guide to OzVGA, SE_VGA and everything VGA-related. It's an awfully long article. In summary: You can use two programs. OzVGA: PocketPCFreeware : OzVGA 0.53. OR SE_VGA: PocketPCFreeware : SE_VGA 1.01. I suggest SE_VGA because OzVGA can brick your Axim (As said in the comments). TrueVGA gives you more screen space but makes your text smaller. Also, most themes for Pocket PC does not work with TrueVGA. I would recommend not using True_VGA but you can choose for yourself.


*Edit: Also, another choice you can have is by flashing Makuu's ROM. It has TrueVGA enabled by default. I wish I could tell you more but I didn't test out Makuu's ROM fully. But, Makuu's ROM is mainly used for multimedia (Movies+Music)

A few extra 2-cent:
Please first decide what ROM you want to upgrade and tell us. You cannot just go off and flash WM6.1 because of your bootloader (That blue Dell screen when you boot up) cannot find and read 6.1 ROMS. You have to upgrade to Dell's A12 first. But choose what ROM you want to use. Then tell us so we can help you step-by-step installing of WM6.1.

---John

[yankeeDDL]

John,

wow. I don't know what to say. Thank you. This is great feedback.
Let me answer some of your questions:
3) I have iGuidance (GPS) installed. I have the original CDs though so it's not a problem to re-install. I have a few utilities too (e.g.: magic button), Minimo, Skype ... nothing that I can't re-install.
All documents I have are sync'd from my PC, so I don't think I need to backup.
Contacts are sync'd from Outlook currently.
I have setup Thunderbird on the PC and imported all contacts, so I'm ready to do the transition ... if I can convince myself that it will be worthwhile.
My main problem today is the instability: I do have an old ROM so I'm sure I don;t need to tell you :)

5) I'm thinking to start with Lenny's L11, try it out before "settling" and then either go for it or try a different one.

6) I did see some images from TrueVGA and indeed, the text looked tiny! I don't really need that much real estate for what I do with my PDA.

7) I looked on Dell's site for A12 ROM and could not find it. Is it an official ROM or is it also un-official?
Thank you SO MUCH for warning me: if you hadn't told me, I would have tried to flash the ROM with Lenny's directly.
Can you tell me where to get the A12?
I would like to do the flashing this weekend, when I have some more time.

Thank you again: really appreciate the help.