Work to-go: My new Samsung i780

Posted on April 23, 2008 by Benjamin Koe


Over the weekend I bought myself a new “toy”, the Samsung i780. OK, it’s not really a toy because this is essentially an extension of my work life. This is my first Windows Mobile device and for a Mac user this is a weird experience, but I purchased anyway and in a matter of 2 days, I…

  • Set the device to check my Gmail via IMAP every 5 minutes.
  • Work with my office Exchange server so I get real-time email, calender, contacts, and tasks sync from work. Yes, this is officially crazier than plain vanilla push email.
  • Installed, set up, and successfully navigate with GPS so I don’t get lost and won’t be late for meetings/dates.
  • Installed Adobe Acrobat LE for reading PDFs on the go.
  • Installed Flash Player 7 so I can watch YouTube on the go.
  • Set up home and office WiFi for faster than HSDPA connection when indoors.
  • Installed Google Maps just because the maps look better than the default GPS software’s, but the GPS chip doesn’t work with Google Maps.
  • Set the web browser to load my Google Reader feeds on start up. This is officially my “newspaper”.
  • Installed Olive Tree bible software so I got the holy book with me when I go to church.
  • Installed Blackberry Connect 4 and Citrix ICA client just in case I need the added connectivity.
  • Installed GPRS Traffic Monitor to track my data usage. You need to get the special version 1.11w for this device.

So far I have to say that I love the device (I don’t even know if I should call it a phone anymore). Everything I need is right there when I need it including email and meeting reminders when I’m taking a dump. I can already hear the anti-crackberry guys going… S T R E S S… but hey, if it helps me work faster and gives me more flexibility, why not? I like to think of it as convenience, not craziness. (And the people say: “yeah right!”)

Anyway, there are two thing which every owner of a Samsung i780 needs before we can conclude on TCO. They are: an unlimited mobile data plan and an extra charger.

Why unlimited?
If you leave the phone to do wireless ActiveSync on Exchange keeping you up to date with your work in real-time, then you’re talking about roughly 15-20MB of data traffic a day depending on how much email and changes to your schedule you have. Add Gmail IMAP every 5 mins, streaming YouTube, Facebook updates, Twitter messages, RSS feeds, Google Maps updates, and random tiny screen surfing, then multiply that by the days in a month. Now you get the picture.

Another charger?
The extra charger is for one simple reason. The battery life absolutely sucks! If you’re never near a power outlet, I recommend you never get this device. There is a reason why they give you two batteries in the box when you buy it. An ordinary mobile phone will likely last you 2-3 days depending on usage including wireless data usage and taking photos. This one doesn’t even last one day. I charge it overnight, unplug it in the morning, and head to work. Persistent HSDPA, occasional WiFi, and normal phone and SMS usage leaves me 90% empty by 10:30pm at night. Phone and network services then shut down leaving me with a plain old PDA and no emergency calls. That’s what you get with a device that has three wireless radios: HSDPA, WiFi, and Bluetooth.

TCO: Samsung i780 (S$288), StarHub MaxMobile (S$36.38/month), Extra charger (S$15)

Welcome to Ben’s connected world.

Upodate: I just installed Skype and Google Search for Windows Mobile. Great stuff, works perfect. Also, if you’re a major Google user, you’ll need this page with all the Google Mobile apps and services.

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29 Responses to “Work to-go: My new Samsung i780”

  1. Stacey Derbinshire, on April 23rd, 2008 at 1:00 am Said:

    I found your blog on google and read a few of your other posts. I just added you to my Google News Reader. Keep up the good work. Look forward to reading more from you in the future.

    Stacey Derbinshire

  2. Benjamin Koe, on April 23rd, 2008 at 10:20 pm Said:

    Thanks Stacey. Appreciate your kind words. You’ve got an interesting entrepreneurial blog going on too. Maybe I’ll be seeking your advice down the road. =)

  3. Run GPS on Google Maps on Samsung i780 [How-to] « The eOK .network, on April 28th, 2008 at 5:35 pm Said:

    [...] Work to-go: My new Samsung i780 [...]

  4. eStee, on April 28th, 2008 at 5:46 pm Said:

    I enjoyed this read, Ben. Thanks!

  5. Whatever, on April 28th, 2008 at 7:08 pm Said:

    Uh, the part about battery life is strange.

  6. Luis, on May 2nd, 2008 at 3:32 pm Said:

    Hi,

    I also have this wonderful toy, but somehow the Blackberry connect does not work on my mobile, is there a special trick needed?
    Can you please tell us which version of BB connect you installed and what steps you took to have it working?

    Regards,

    Luís

  7. CaptSlackr, on May 5th, 2008 at 4:55 am Said:

    Hi Ben. You have the most helpful blog for new buyers of the i780. It is indeed a great product. But one thing I look for in the i780 (being a previous Nokia user) is the one click create text message feature. I can’t also figure out how to send SMS to multiple recipients. Are these features available/customizable on the i780? Appreciate a little help.

  8. Benjamin Koe, on May 5th, 2008 at 8:47 pm Said:

    @CaptSlacker, I’ve been looking for a solution myself. No easy way to get that. The best way I’ve found is to just type the name of the person you want to SMS when you’re on the today screen and that will automatically jump you to that contact. Click the contact scroll down to SMS, and there you go. It works for me.

    @Luis, I wish I could help you, but I haven’t tested it with my server yet. I’ve been using Exchange which is quite good so I haven’t fired up BB connect. I’m looking to try it soon. Maybe I’ll let you know then. Cheers.

  9. Kelvin Quee, on May 6th, 2008 at 12:03 am Said:

    Do Skype PC-to-PC calls work? I also wanted to ask if it works on Linux…. oh wait…. darn!

  10. billy wong, on May 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pm Said:

    hi ben, thanks for this post, its made me buy the i780 along with the maxmobile to… I use exchange as part of my lifestyle but cant seem to configure the phone to go online?

    what settings did you change if u dont mind me asking, i cant seem to find the model on the starhub website for auto configuration.

  11. Benjamin Koe, on May 11th, 2008 at 11:43 pm Said:

    Hi Billy, thanks for th comment. I’m not the IT manager in the office, but what I do know is that we have an external facing (outside of the firewall) server that can be accessed via SSL. That server is used for Outlook Web Access as well. So, all you need to do is configure Active sync to that server and turn on SSL.

    There are other options such as the actual internal email server, but for that, you’ll need to be within the company’s network or use a VPN. If you ask me, the SSL method is the best and simplest. In fact, i sometimes get mail pushed to my i780 faster than it comes through Outlook.

  12. billy wong, on May 12th, 2008 at 12:25 am Said:

    thanks Ben!!!

    with regards to the pushmail whenever i get new emails it doesnt notify me on the screen or even make a sound.

    Ive checked my sound/notification settings and it seems fine, is this normal and does this happen to yourself?

  13. Khanh Nguyen, on May 12th, 2008 at 2:30 am Said:

    Thanks for the very useful information on the application for i780.
    I think connection on wi-fi draws a lot of power.

  14. Benjamin Koe, on May 12th, 2008 at 2:04 pm Said:

    @Billy, mine works perfectly. But you’re able to check email through the client right? I got Gmail working on IMAP and my work mail working on Exchange. The coexist very well. I haven’t tried POP email, not sure if there are glitches in that.

    I actually turn off my sound and other notifications for email else I’ll have no peace. I use it as a convenient access to email, not as push mail. If I set it to alert me like SMSs, I’ll be in big trouble. =)

  15. Sally, on May 13th, 2008 at 9:47 pm Said:

    Hi Ben,

    As my company only work with BB, may i kindly if there any finding with BB connect? Does it work?

    TQ very much ^^

    //qte
    @Luis, I wish I could help you, but I haven’t tested it with my server yet. I’ve been using Exchange which is quite good so I haven’t fired up BB connect. I’m looking to try it soon. Maybe I’ll let you know then. Cheers.
    //unqte

  16. Run GPS on Google Maps on Samsung i780 [How-to] - biginfo.org, on May 19th, 2008 at 3:07 am Said:

    [...] I got my i780 a week back, I was under the impression that the GPS chip was locked to only allow AGIS’s NAVfone [...]

  17. Mark, on May 20th, 2008 at 1:17 pm Said:

    Great post Ben!

    I understood from research that Skype didn’t work on the i780? Have they resolved the problem now? Does SkypeOut work?

    Mark

  18. sbanboy, on May 22nd, 2008 at 10:53 am Said:

    Hey thanks for the review and software suggestions …. now I am kinda convinced that I need to get the unlimited data plan for my samsung i780 … I love the device …hehe .. and am finding out so many things that I can do with it.

  19. brian, on May 30th, 2008 at 9:42 pm Said:

    hi benjamin, ive just got this phone and so far im satisfied with the performance,thanks to your review for this phone. i would like to ask how did you installed skype on the i780? also can i used it for voip, if yes, what apps can i use? thanks

  20. Benjamin Koe, on May 31st, 2008 at 11:00 pm Said:

    @Brian, all you need to do is download it from http://www.skype.com/download/skype/windowsmobile/download.html and install the .cab file like yo do any other Windows Mobile app. I haven’t successfully managed to make calls via 3G connection, but with WiFi I’ve done it. Not as good quality as the desktop client, but it works.

  21. nocturnale, on June 3rd, 2008 at 4:55 pm Said:

    Great minds think alike. I have a Macbook Pro Penryn and a Samsung i780 too! Enjoying the gadgets tremendously.

  22. Daph, on June 4th, 2008 at 11:33 am Said:

    Hi Ben, I’ll like to know if you encounter problem logging into MSN website or Messenger using IE? I always received pop-up saying my connection error, but when I go into Opera, it works fine. Any solution? (FYI, I sat just next to the modem only.)

  23. FT, on June 4th, 2008 at 4:00 pm Said:

    Wow… really nice reading all the conversation. I jus got i780. But i feel that i am quite lost with all the GPRS charges thingy. I have bough a plan that have 10GB access. I like to go on msn with my i780, what is the avarage size for a statement in MSN? or they charge by time

  24. Ravi, on June 9th, 2008 at 5:25 pm Said:

    Hey guys - has anyone tried accessing Youtube on i780… when I try to do it on it says buffering 0% and nothing happens after that… I hav tried accessing Youtube in a hotspot and it works fine… but it does not move an inch on mhy maxmobile connection… can someone offer some help ?

    Many thanks.

  25. Benjamin Koe, on June 9th, 2008 at 6:37 pm Said:

    It works. But it needs a strong connection. I’ve tried it over WiFi and 3.5G on Maxmobile. But if it drops to 3G or 2.5G it stays at 0%.

  26. tuckmeng lam, on June 17th, 2008 at 2:24 am Said:

    Hi Ben,

    Read your blog by chance. I’m an i780 newbie.. tried to install Skype inside, but when I run it, it says it cannot run because of missing files. Lost because I used the exe installer for smartphones.. hope to hear a tip or 2 from you on how to get skype working… thanks in advance.

  27. Sharon, on June 24th, 2008 at 2:38 pm Said:

    Hi Ben: I saw your blog re the samsung i780. My provider is giving me this unit for free. My question is, have you already tried the Blackberry Connect on this one? I am currently using a nokia e61i and I am heavily dependent on my blackberry connect for all my emails. I just want to find out if it works on this samsung phone because if not, i would opt for the other phone models that they are offering. Thanks

  28. Benjamin Koe, on June 25th, 2008 at 9:25 am Said:

    @tuckmeng: Try the .cab file instead.

    @sharon: I haven’t tried BB Connect 4 because Exchange works so perfectly well. If you’re running Exchange, why not just connect to it directly without BBC4? In fact, WM6 supports all email protocols from POP, IMAP, to Exchange.

  29. Brendan, on July 2nd, 2008 at 3:37 pm Said:

    Hi there! You got your i780 for $288?
    Where did you get that? bundled with which contract?
    Wanna get this phone as well man :)

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