[sc:mobile-category ]As noted previously (see part 1 and 2), finding a case for a phone as large as the HD7 has been quite a challenge.

Finding something in the local stores (even the Bell store) failed pretty miserably and ordering online is always a crap shoot.

In part two talked about the two issues I had with case and the I mentioned that I had ordered another case from the net which I hoped would solve these issues.  The good news is that the new case has arrived and it does address both issues:

First and foremost, it clearly has a flap and clasp to keep the phone in the case no matter what.

Second, the belt clip actually fits over a belt and locks on so it won’t come off without you taking it off.

On the back of the case you may have noticed the leather strip above the belt clip and the button below it.  The belt clip is actually removable (you can see it in action at the Cellet website, but they don’t seem to have any of they’re cases online).  The default is a leather belt clip that attaches to the bottom button, much like most camera cases.  It’s nice to have the option, but I found the leather clip was in the way too much so I just cut it off (it’s not removable otherwise).

The open space at the bottom of the case makes it easy to “pop” the phone from the case, even if your fingers are a little slippery.

I received several comments from people on how nice the case was, the two tone leather distinguishes it from the common fare out there.

The only minor issue I’ve found with the case so far is that while the case is listed to be for the HD7, its actually made for the HD2.  With the HD2 and HD7 being so close to each other it didn’t make much of a difference, but for the first few days I found the case to be slightly tight, with the clasp only catching after a couple of attempts.  However as I’ve had it now for a week or so the leather has loosed up a bit and it’s no longer an issue.

I believe that this will be the final case, unless either something major comes up with it (all the stitching falls out at the same time ) or I find one I like better (which seems as likely as the Rapture a few weeks back ).

The Good:

• Nice design
• Quality leather
• Multiple clip options

The not so bad/not so good:

• Built for the HD2, the HD7 was a little tight for the first few days

The Bad:

• The button clip got in the way in a day to day usage, no way to remove it without scissors

[sc:mobile-category ]When Windows Phone 7 was first announced it was clear it was a complete break from Windows Mobile and that it would not be as feature rich as that platform just due to the new platform being, well, so new.

Even before it was released, the first feature update was announced and copy and paste was released to the world a few months later than expected.  The teething pains of the new platform were apparent.  Now, Microsoft is preparing the next update to the platform, code named Mango, for release some time this year and it’s so big they’ve even stop referring to it as Windows Phone 7, instead just calling it “the next version of Windows Phone”.

On Tuesday, May 24th, Microsoft is having a press release to preview this update however some details have already emerged:

• Multi-tasking
• IE 9
• Pinable email folders
• Conversation view in email
• Exchange server search
• Microsoft Lync app (unified communications)
• Complex password support
• Rights management in email and documents
• Hidden Wi-Fi support
• Improved Xbox Live integration
• Targeted distribution of apps
• Windows Live Messenger, Facebook chat and Yahoo IM support
• Album information displayed on lock screen if music is playing
• Bing Audio (music identification)
• Bing Vision (bar code scanning)
• Turn by turn navigation
• Distribution Groups
• Visual Voice Mail
• Music Hearting (like/dislike a-la Zune)
• Jump points in the application list
• URL bar in IE in both horizontal and vertical orientations
• Twitter integration

In addition there are several big developer changes that will make it possible to bring several new classes of application to Windows Phone, including background music services, local live tile apps as well as VOIP and IM.

These are all good things to be sure, and some are just still rumors (though pretty reliable ones by the sounds of it), but it would seem a few more would be nice to see, like:

• SMS Sync with Exchange
• Flash/Silverlight support
• VOIP integration
• VPN support (can anyone say OpenVPN?)
• Pinable configuration items (like Wi-Fi)
• Real customizable color themes
• Artist information (a-la Zune)
• a release date

Microsoft has been pretty tight lipped about a release date for Mango, after getting stung with the network operators trying to get the copy and paste update out I can’t say as I blame them all that much, but at least a quarter target would be nice.

There have been only two hints so far:

1. Coming this year (back at CES as I recall)
2. This blog post which states “In the weeks and months ahead we’ll have even more to share on new features coming in Mango” near the end.

So that means anytime between July and December .

Perhaps some of the “missing” features will get announced next Tuesday, stay tuned and we’ll all find out together I guess.

And one last question… what ever happened to the multiple hardware chassis specifications MS promised?  I love my “slate” device, but I’m sure a more business oriented “Blackberry” form factor or other variations would help out the ecosystem as well.

[sc:mobile-category ]Since I’ve purchased by HD7, finding a case that fits the beast has been a real challenge.

By carrier (Bell) has a vertical holster listed, but its not nearly big enough to hold the HD7.  Throughout the colder months since I purchased it, I’ve mostly just keep in in my jacket pocket and used the Otter box case, which is quite nice.

But now that summer is getting close and I’ve actually gone out a few days without a jacket, the HD7 has become a problem to carry.  I have not found anywhere in Canada to get a case so I order one from the US, by a company called PDair, which you can see here.

The case is actually quite beautiful, high quality leather, nice distinctive stitching and very well made.

There are only two issues I have with it, one of which I knew before I ordered it and the other that didn’t present itself until I had unbox it.

The first issue is the open top design.  There is no flap and clasp to keep the phone in the case if you bend over or remove the case from your belt.  I knew this was the case and honestly I believe its more of a unsubstantiated fear then a real problem, but it seems to always be in the back of my mind which makes it seem much worse than it is.

The second issue is the belt clip:

It’s only about 5cm long, which means unless your wearing one of those skinny dress belts, it doesn’t clip over the belt but instead rides on the belt itself.  This makes it hard to adjust and likewise feel like it isn’t securely fastened to your belt.  There were no photo’s of the clip anywhere on the site or on other vendor sites so this came somewhat as a surprise when I received the case.

You might notice that the belt clip is slightly askew, this is a manufacturing defect, but it doesn’t effect the cases function in any way so I don’t’ consider it a problem.

One additional note was that when I received mine the clip was so tight that I couldn’t get it over the belt at all, I literally had to pry it away from the case and bend it back to loosen it up.  This is of course not a bad thing as it does show the build quality of the case.

Overall I like the case quite a bit, however I’ve ordered a second case with a flap and clasp (not from PDair as they don’t have one for the HD7) with what I hope will be a much larger belt clip.

I’d recommend this case as long as you can live with the two caveats above, which I’m thinking I can’t .

[sc:mobile-category ]The first significant WP7 update is finally here!

Microsoft has posted what they updated here.  OS version 7.0.7390.0.

Below is the list of updates that MS lists and my thoughts on each one:

Copy & paste

It’s top billed for a reason, it should have been in the original release.

Copy and paste is the kind of functionality that you don’t know how much you use until you don’t have it and even in the couple of months I have had the HD7 without C&P, it nearly drove me insane.

The implementation is pretty slick, taping on a word selects it and then you can drag the selection either left or right.  The only issue I have with it is that sometimes selecting the first word is a challenge, either the wrong word is selected or WP7 doesn’t pick up the selection at all.  I suspect I’ll get better at it over time, even in the last few hours it seems to have become easier to hit the sweet spot.

One slightly strange C&P item is that for text messages you can only copy the entire message, there is no selection interface for copying just part of the message.

Otherwise, it’s exactly what WP7 needed.

Faster apps and games

I haven’t really seen any real difference here, but I don’t use a lot of apps so it could be good for those that switch between apps a lot.

Better Marketplace search

I’ve commented on it before, the Marketplace is a mess to find applications in, search or not.  A couple of quick searches really didn’t seem to return better results for me.

Other Marketplace improvements

The other improvements are mostly bug fixes, one of which I had run in to around upgrading to a newer version of an app.  We’ll see if it happens again next time it has a new version released.

I couldn’t test the ability to create an Xbox live account from the games as I already have an account setup.

Wi-Fi improvements

Ok, MAC address in the about box is a BIG improvement and should never have been left out in the first place.

And of course unlimited is always better than limited so support for unlimited Wi-Fi profiles is good, though I never personally hit the limit.

Outlook improvements

I’ve never received an iPhone photo attachment but I’m sure those that have are quite happy about this.  Likewise the rest of these improvements seem mostly to be bug fixes.

Messaging improvements

This is interesting, when MS originally posted the list of updates it included this grouping, but it has now disappeared from the list.  I haven’t seen any improvements in this area so that’s that I guess.

Facebook integration

I don’t know what they changed here, everything seems the same as before…

Camera improvements

Nothing to see here either, just some bug fixes.

Audio improvements

I have a set of Bluetooth headsets, but haven’t received a call yet since the update while using them (or before actually) so I don’t know what they changed, but I’m sure it was an improvement .

Other performance improvements

And of course the grab bag of anything else.  It’s impossible to say what if anything changed on the HD7.

Conclusion

So in general the changes fall in to three categories:

1. Feature additions
2. Bug fixes
3. System updates

The feature additions are highlighted by Copy and Paste, the rest are pretty minor and in some cases (like Xbox account creation) invisible except in certain situations.

The bug fixes are great and the low level system updates are welcome but really, other than C&P, everything else is mostly invisible, which leads to the question…

If an update falls in the ecosystem and nobody is there to hear it does it make a sound?

I’m not sure, but perhaps the IE9 update will make some more noise .

Some of the things that I would have really liked to see:

• Unlock codes over 4 numbers
• Ability to disable calendar and contact sync for Live accounts
• More calendar view modes
• SMS sync to Exchange
• Notes sync to Exchange
• Some kind of network live tile, so you could toggle Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/Cell network without drilling down through settings
• Time based profiles
• Custom ringtones
• Support for more than just call forwarding (call hunt, etc.)

The Good:

• Copy and Paste, yea!
• Faster app loads

The not so bad/not so good:

• Lots of bug fixes

The Bad:

• How much was left out of the update
• How many updates are completely invisible to most users