I've dug my Axim x50v out of hibernation and want to get it rolling again. At this point, according to the About screen, I'm running the following:
WM 2003 SE
v 4.21.1088 (Build 14260.2.0.5)
ROM version A02 (01060500)
I need to maintain wireless and bluetooth, and I want to add as much memory as possible. As I understand it, the SD slot can deal with up to 4GB, and the CF slot is unlimited - I've found 32 and 64 GB CF cards so far and will go as big as possible. Is this assumption correct? Is there a limit to the size of a CF card for the x50v? And 4GB is the limit for the SD card?
I also want to get a very good audio and video player. Media Player is fine, but is there something better? How about a PDF viewer? Is there a version of Adobe Reader available?
As you did say you have an x50v that's the last update from Dell and for the x50v (VGA model, of course); there is a seperate ROM available for the x50 models with QVGA screens.
The SD card slot can read up to 4GB non-SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) format SD cards. Most of those are older and somewhat tough to locate nowadays because SDHC is the favored "style" nowadays. You have another option which I'll address in a moment.
I can't find a price on a 64GB CF card, but I did locate info that said a company called Pretec is making 64GB and even 100GB CF cards that operate at 233x but the cost is ridiculous: $400 for the 64GB and $640 or so for the 100GB. You're better off grabbing several 32GB cards on the cheap from Newegg or Fry's (the one from Fry's was $59.99 the other day so the price fluctuates like mad).
Even so, the price on 64GB and larger CF cards is truly insane, so get a bunch of 32GB cards if you're so inclined. Why someone might need more than 32GB is beyond me, but whatever squeaks your sneaker I suppose. I grabbed a 16GB for $50 last week at Fry's, and I've got a few hundred mp3 files (transcoded from FLACs to mp3 using LAME) as well as several full length movies (Xvid rips I made myself with AutoGK - 640 pixels wide and however high is necessary to maintain the widescreen aspect, and they're all sharp as a tack with full stereo audio as well at 128 Kbps 48 kHz) and that's only using about 9GB so far, I've got a lot of space left - and I can just buy another 16GB if necessary.
The SD card thing... there's a way around it, if you're so inclined, and that involves dumping the old WM2003SE OS and moving to either WM5 or even WM6 or WM6.1. Personally I recommend - for performance and stability - a ROM made by a guy named MagLite that has a specific mod in it that seems to (note I said seems to) alleviate one of the issues the x50 series (meaning the x50 and the x50v both suffer from it) has because of the type of Flash memory they're designed with: NOR.
It's called the filesys.exe issue, or the file compaction problem. I won't go into details here about it as there are hundreds of posts here, at Brighthand, at the XDA Developer's forum, and many other places about it and it all falls squarely on the x50/x50v only. The x51/x51v don't have such problems which relate to slow performance at random times almost to the point where you feel a hard or soft reset is necessary just to use the Axim once more.
Having said that, I've had most excellent results using a MagLite Windows Mobile 6 ROM, version A02, that's been modded with one edit: the pagepool (related to memory usage and file compaction) setting has been altered to 0 meaning the PDA decides when it's best to do the compaction process as I understand it.
I've been using this ROM for some time now and it is without any doubt to me the fastest and most stable ROM I've ever put on my x50v, and it gives me all the goodies that WM5/WM6 users are capable of having. WM2003SE is basically relegated to the scrap heap for most purposes these days as developers don't really code for backwards compatibility with the new applications and games being released. It's easier to just let the past stuff go so they can focus on maximizing the usefulness of the current OS or OSes, those being WM5 and WM6, and WM6.1 is primarily for "smart phones" or PDAs with actual cell phone capabilities (the .1 aludes to cell phone additions).
The biggest benefit for some people of running the newer WM5 and WM6 ROMs is that it makes the x50v compatible with SDHC cards - you can use a 4, 8, 16, and even a 32GB SDHC card as they become available. Right now, with WM2003SE, you'll never have that compatibility. But in 30 mins or less, by updating to a newer ROM, you can have SDHC support without issues. I highly recommend a WM6 ROM over WM5, however. WM5 on the x50v runs like crap, regardless of who makes it or mods it, it's just how it goes. But the WM6 ROM, especially the one I use, works GREAT.
That's about it in a nutshell of sorts. If you need help, I'll do what I can because I tend to test out ROMs on a regular basis on my x50v. YMMV, of course, but I can't recommend that MagLite WM6 A02 w/Zeus_Alex's 0 pagepool mod enough, it's fantastic. You can find it and more info here:
I post in that thread as br0adband and as bbz_Ghost (I forgot the password to one account so I created another, now I remember both so I've got two accounts). ;) I also re-uploaded the ROM because the original links were dead; the new upload links and location are in the very last post as of right now.
My recommendation for a good audio and video player (if you want just one app) is still the good old reliable TCPMP 0.72RC1 application. It can play nearly anything, has several plugins for Flash video support, AAC audio, h264 video compression support, and a few others. The Core Player - the commercial "upgrade" version that was originally TCPMP - is slow and sluggish in my testing and just doesn't perform nearly as well as TCPMP 0.72RC1 does. Just my opinion, of course, but I'm not alone. There are others, but that's the one, seriously. And it's free...
Good luck...
Last edited by bbz_Ghost; 10-06-08 at 11:47 PM.
The Following User Says Thank You to bbz_Ghost For This Useful Post:
Wow!! Thank you SO much for all the details. You've hit the nail right on the head multiple times and answered not only the questions I posted but even more.
I will most likely try the ROM upgrade over the weekend. From there, an big SD and CF card will fit the bill.
I am in a similar situation in that I have just bought an x50v and before I start installing software and customizing it am looking to upgrade and patch it to get it as up to date as possible.
I am not very tech minded with this sort of thing and would like to thank bbz_Ghost for his clear and concise post.
I have followed the links and downloaded the WM6_A02_RTM_By_Maglite_-_Zeus_Alex_Change_of_PP_to_0Mb file as recommended. I have read the postings relating to this download and find that I am getting totally confused with the huge amount of information available on this subject.
I would be really grateful if I could get the answers to the following questions using idiot-proof language for us novices.
1. My x50v currently has WM 2003 SE. As I understand it I need to upgrade the bootloader before I can upgrade the ROM. I have downloaded Dell Axim X50v WM5 A02 Bootloader which I think is the correct files. Am I right in assuming that I just copy the .nb0 and .crc files to an sd card to install? If so could someone tell me the correct procedure to install this. Once done can I move on to flashing the ROM and if so could someone tell me the exact procedure.
2. Once WM6 is successfully installed is there any further steps required in order to get the x50v running as well as possible.
Sorry for asking questions that I’m sure have been asked many times before but all my searching has resulted in finding very technical posts the have over 100 pages to trawl through.
Hiya. I'll try to keep this as simple-language as possible.
First, you can either upgrade to Windows Mobile 5 (WM5) or Windows Mobile 6 (WM6).
WM5 is released by Dell and officially supported. WM6 ROMS (Operating systems for your Axim) are developed by 3rd party developers and are not from Dell. They WILL VOID your warranty if you flash (install that ROM).
With that said, you can choose between WM5 and WM6.
First you need to upgrade to WM5 A01. Download it here: RapidShare: Easy Filehosting. Extract the .rar and use "AximUpdate.exe". Follow directions given.
Now, you can update to WM5 A02 from Dell. Download it from here: Drivers and Downloads. Then, use the installer and follow directions given.
At this step, you can stop here and use WM5 A02 OR you can continue and try WM6. But beware, it WILL VOID you warranty.
Now, you have two choice to choose from. You can choose Maglite's A03 Beta WM6 ROM for x50v (here). Or you can choose LennySh's A09 Test 2 WM6.1 ROM for x50v (here). Personally, I strongly suggest LennySh's A09 ROM. Either way, download the one you choose.
Extract the .rar or .zip. You be given two files, .nb0 and .crc. Get a blank SD card formatted to FAT32. Place those two files on there.
PLEASE Backup all data! Flashing a ROM will erase EVERYTHING.
Now, press wi-fi button + power button. While holding those two, press the reset hole. While still holding the two, release the reset hole. When a screen that says "image update" appears, release the wi-fi button + power button. If it didn't work, try again.
Now, double tap your action button (The button in the middle of your d-pad). The flashing process will begin. Be sure your Axim DOES NOT run out of battery during this 15-30 minute process. If it does, it's toast.
Now, follow directions given and you'll have a WM6 (From maglite)or WM6.1 (from Lennysh).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the answer to your question 2. All I can think of is not to put too much stuff on the Today screen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*Note: DO NOT install WM6 ROMs without installing Dell's WM5 A02 ROM first. It will not work.
There, that was as simple as I could get it. To get to WM6, it's a long process. So this would be a good weekend project.
Enjoy,
~John
__________________
Currently running LennySh L11 ROM on my x51v.
Currently running LennySh A09 ROM on my x50v.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To support me, To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. !
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
The Following User Says Thank You to johnhu_2005 For This Useful Post:
Congratulations on your first post, steve_r :approve:
Are satisfied with your X50v ?
Then I suggest that you just use it.
Actually I don't recommend an upgrade to WM5 ! Have a look around here and you'll find that many users has regretted the WM5 and has returned to WM2003SE - the one already installed.
The thread title is: x50v - What are my NECESSARY updates?
If you're unsure about how to upgrade why don't you simply wait until you have red a lot more about your Axim.
WM2003SE is very stable and reliable.
It's never too late to upgrade - but it's not necessary !
I just want to put your attention to the welch of knowledge accumulated on this site by experienced members.
If you like, you may click on this link to the many excellent articles here and this one here
Welcome to the MobilitySite - I'm sure you'll enjoy - :)
WM6.1 adds (realistically) nothing of any significance to the X50v as it's primarily designed for "smartphones" - let me clarify what I'm saying. WM6 and WM6.1 differ primarily in the features designed to be used with devices that have actual cellular phones in them. You can see all the specifics here:
There are some additions to functionality with IE and some other tools, but for the most part WM6 and WM6.1 offer the same primary functionality. What I've noted in my testing is that WM6.1 (regardless of the ROM so far, mainly Lenny's builds) are slower than WM6, but that could be because I haven't found one modded with a 0 pagepool edit just yet and I'm too lazy to do that mod myself.
Aside from those features, they're still roughly the same. In terms of performance, I use TCPMP 0.72RC1 and some video clips I have to do testing between the ROMs that I've become accustomed to messing around with (the stock Dell WM2003SE stuff, the WM6 ROMs from MagLite and others), the WM6.1 A09 and A11 beta ROM from Lenny, etc). Of them all, the best performance using my X50v has always been the MagLite WM6 A02 w/Zeus_Alex 0 pagepool mod ROM, above and beyond all the competition.
The cool thing about this ROM stuff is you can simply redo it (meaning the X50v) and try another ROM as long as you pay careful attention to what you're doing as far as the proper procedures in terms of upgrading and downgrading - you can't just jump from WM2003SE directly to WM6/WM6.1, etc because you need the WM5 stuff as a "middleman" of sorts due to the bootloaders. One thing that needs to be said here:
You do need to have a plain old SD card for some ROM flashing - meaning not a newer SDHC (SD High Capacity) card because WM2003SE can't read such cards in the X50v. There's a patch to allow SDHC cards to be read by WM5 if you put one of those ROMs on (WM5 doesn't read them by default either), but WM6 and WM6.1 both offer native support for SDHC cards of any capacity, all the way up to 32GB at this point in time).
I have a plain old PNY 1GB SD card that's about 4 years old that I use pretty much exclusively for ROM testing/etc, but as long as you have an SD card that is readable and at least 64MB in size, you'll be fine (single ROMs with their checksum crc files are ~42MB so ya gotta have at least a 64MB SD card to place it on, cleanly formatted with FAT32 as the file system is the recommendation).
Having said that, I still recommend the MagLite WM6 A02 w/Zeus_Alex 0 pagepool ROM for the X50v as the best all-around performing ROM and by best I mean longest battery life it can muster as well as the best speed as measured by benchmarking the X50v using TCPMP 0.72RC1. I've tested maybe a dozen ROMs and mods of those ROMs and that one is still the best overall.
I'm certainly not against an upgrade but you must admit - hopefully - that you run the risk of bricking your ax if you are inexperienced.
Originally Posted by Steve.r
I am not very tech minded with this sort of thing ...
I'm sure that you and Johnhu - like me - have spent several hundreds of hours to acquire your technical skills and some basic knowledge is required to make an upgrade - IMHO.
That's why I recommend to stay put with WM2003SE at least until you know how to restore your axim if something goes wrong - and it usually does
"Experience is just another word for your mistakes" :)
And still - an upgrade is not necessary to make a X50v work just fine.
And still - an upgrade is not necessary to make a X50v work just fine.
While I agree with this 100%, I would add that some of the newest software floating around simply doesn't work with WM2003SE anymore as more developers are having to give up that backwards compatibility as the new "stuff" is created.
My line of thinking goes like this:
Even the latest items on the market today in terms of strictly PDA capability (like the revamped HP iPAQ 2xx series) still use the venerable Intel PXA270 XScale processor - in other words, even the latest hardware is still using the same CPUs. WM2003SE is useful to a big degree; however, in light of the fact that it's so old, that it's losing more and more support each day, and probably the most important aspect of all - people paid good money for these devices in the past - knowing that you can simply upgrade to an "unofficial" WM6 or even WM6.1 ROM and get all the latest bells and whistles fairly easily breathes new life into these "old" Axims.
Using this MagLite WM6 A02 ROM that I'm using gives me:
a) Longer battery life by about 25%, seriously. If I use WM2003SE (the original ROM from Dell) and load TCPMP and set the device to play some mp3 files on shuffle/repeat and turn off the display, it'll last about 14 hours on the extended 2200 mAh battery before it "dies" and shuts off. I do the same test with the stock Dell WM5 ROM, it'll be 11 hours - seriously (because the filesys.exe compaction issue is far more severe on WM5. If I do the same test with this WM6 ROM I'm so happy with, I'll get close to 22 hours of playback before shutdown.
b) Better performance as noted earlier in my testing of video playback - and video playback is notoriously known as the most difficult thing a modern computing device can do. Nothing else stresses the entire machine at the same time quite so much unless you step over into gaming territory. I don't consider games a valid way of testing even though a PDA with the Intel 2700G GPU becomes a truly static testbed, meaning every PDA with the Intel 2700G in it should get roughly the same results depending on the CPU speed at any given moment.
c) Access to the latest and greatest software as there are some items that simply don't work on the older OS (meaning WM2003SE) anymore. Having said that I need to also make this disclaimer:
I'll be a Devil's Advocate here against myself: I don't tend to do anything on my X50v that I can't do using WM2003SE, at the present time. Meaning that the videos I watch, the mp3/Ogg files I listen to, the data I input for keeping on the go, the PDF files I use for eBooks, the Wi-Fi stuff I use, etc all works with WM2003SE just as readily as with WM5 (albeit slower) and the WM6 ROM I happen to stick with.
There are things (hi-res IE mode and some others) that simply don't function as well or at all in the older WM2003SE ROM, so... I just wanted to make it known that yes I understand why some people will choose to remain with WM2003SE as their PDA OS of choice. I'm simply not one of them as I have proven to myself that the ROM I am using (again, the MagLite WM6 A02 w/Zeus_Alex 0 pagepool mod) happens to be the best overall performing and feature-laden ROM I have tried on many fronts including battery life, straight application performance, and added functionality.
And considering the cost many people put into the Axims, and accessories, etc, giving these wonderful devices a new lease on life for years to come is a powerful motivator to seek out such ROMs and capabilities. I know "Smartphones" are the word of today, and if I could afford one I just might actually consider owning an iPhone... but as I have a cheap prepaid Nokia phone going on 3 years now that has never failed me yet, and I have this Axim X50v (just found another X50v for $50 yesterday, actually, so now the Wife can have one herself and stop hogging mine) that offers so much capability...
Well, that's my line of thinking. Dell may have given up on the Axims, but we Axim owners haven't. We may not be as rabid about Axims as Apple owners are about Macs and iPhones, but we'll bite too. ;)
ROM upgrades are easy, really. If you approach doing such a thing from any other angle, you risk failure, so go into it with 100% positive expectation - no negatives - and everything will be just fine. The stickies here about restoring a so-called "bricked" Axim (most notoriously the X50v and X51v as they're the most popular models for ROM swaps) are an ABSOLUTE MUST READ before getting into this if you (meaning anyone interested in trying out newer modified "unofficial" ROMs) plan to actually make the attempts...
And ask questions, obviously. That's what this and many other forums exist for: the sharing of knowledge where all of us gain in the long run.
I'm gonna shut up now. :hide:
Good luck...
The Following User Says Thank You to bbz_Ghost For This Useful Post:
Yes, Z is right, WM2003 is more stable. Of course, it's Steve.r's choice.
It's like comparing Windows XP to Windows Vista...
__________________
Currently running LennySh L11 ROM on my x51v.
Currently running LennySh A09 ROM on my x50v.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To support me, To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. !
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
I understand the point that WM2003SE would be perfectly adequate for my needs but I’m afraid I’m just too much of a fiddler and find the option of upgrading too tempting to resist.
I would say however that I have no intention of damaging my x50v and will continue to research this subject thoroughly to ensure that I know exactly what I’m letting myself in for.
If youre upgrading I would recommend getting either spb backup or sprite backup to retain your system data. If you don't want to buy it you could just use the trial. Both have the option of saving a backup to ftp or your desktop, and upgrading from either a rom or device change. I upgraded devices and literally everything was moved over successfully to another device, usually it takes me a good 8 hours to get everything tweaked the way I want it, after a rom upgrade.
Follow Us
RSS Feed
Follow on Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
