Patience is not my strongpoint, at least when it comes to outdated OS versions. I followed the advice of this thread at XDADevelopers and am now enjoying Eclair goodness on my Streak. There were a few minor glitches, but nothing insurmountable.

So am I satisfied? Nope. I want Froyo. Or at least a better UI (HTC Sense anyone?) on my Eclair. But for now at least, what I have is as good as I’m going to get. Tomorrow, of course, is another story

The Streak’s OS is Android, my current smartphone OS of choice. But the version is the 1.6 (Donut).  Donut seems positively ancient, with most Android smartphones sporting at least 2.1 (Eclair) if not 2.2 (Froyo). Indeed, my only other Android device with Donut is the Archos Internet Tablet. But the Archos has been around for a while, whereas the Streak is just released.

Dell must have known that the Streak having Donut instead of Froyo or Eclair would be a negative to buyers. Indeed, that almost caused me not to buy the Streak. Almost … I assumed Dell will quickly have an update to Eclair, if not Froyo.

Indeed, Dell announced shortly before the U.S. Streak became available that the European Streak would be updated to Eclair. Since, Dell has indicated unofficially (via Twitter) that it would update the U.S. Streak directly to Froyo and skip Eclair.

Why then did Dell release the U.S. Streak with outdated Donut? I’m not on a first name (or last name) basis with Michael Dell. However, my guess is that Dell had not yet finished testing Froyo (or Eclair) on the Streak but did want to defer releasing the Streak any longer than it already had.

Be that as it may, Donut is a letdown after enjoying Eclair and Froyo goodness. Big difference between 1.6 and 2.x.

So am I stuck with Donut until Dell gets around to updating the Streak’s OS? No. There are unofficial ways to root the Streak and install a custom 2.1 ROM.

Will I do that, or wait for Dell? Not sure right now. The rooting part seems safe enough, and nothing I haven’t done before on other devices. But there does not appear to be a first class 2.1 custom ROM available … yet. However, one likely will become available soon. then again, Dell’s update of the Streak to Froyo also may become available in the same time frame … or not. With Dell, hard to tell.

Assuming both options are available, which to choose? Froyo is Froyo. But there are different user interfaces, HTC Sense being the most well known, but hardly the only one. Indeed, Dell has its own custom interface for the Streak. Can’t say I like it. But that may be because of Donut, rather than the UI itself. But the bottom line is that the choice will become a battle of the available UI’s. And that would be a good subject for another article, don’t you think?

Whether anyone has missed me or this blog or not, I’ve missed writing, and am starting again. Here are some planned topics:

Lenovo ThinkPad x201t Tablet PC coming today told you about my latest Tablet PC purchase, which was from one of my favorite vendors, Allegiance Technology Partners. I will be writing a review soon on the x201t for TabletPCBuzz (which has been patient in waiting for my review).

How I’ve networked our new home. including firewalls, WiFi and DLNA.

My latest adventures on my iPad.

Comparisons of our Android super-phones, including the HTC Droid Incredible, HTC EVO 4G, and the latest addition to my gadget harem, the 5” Dell Streak.

My wife’s Sony Vaio Signature Collection P mini-notebook.

See you soon!

This video from Taiwan is not in English, but has English subtitles and is easily understandable … especially if you’re a Star Wars fan. I particularly liked how Darth Jobs helped a consumer stop blocking the iPhone 4’s antenna with his fingers. Enjoy!

[via WMExperts]

Update: Here’s another one .. in English. And no Darth Steve Jobs. Instead, (fictitious) Apple employees.

[via PocketNow]

[via Ultramobile PC Tips]

“I am writing to inform you that we have run into a very unfortunate delay. I have been waiting until we had information on our new timeline before I began notifying our customers about the situation. We made a poor choice in the company we were using to put the finish on our stands. After they failed to meet the agreed upon deadlines we realized (a little too late) that we needed to find someone else to work with. We have found a new company and they are trying to get our parts done in an expedited manner, but they will not be ready for us until Wednesday of this week. We will immediately complete the assembly of the stands and will begin shipping within 24 hours of picking up the parts. You will receive a confirmation email when your order actually ships. We are very sorry for the delay and appreciate your understanding. Please contact me with any questions or if you wish to cancel your order for an immediate refund.”

Such honesty is all the more refreshing in these days of corporate-speak. I’ll continue to wait. Hopefully I will receive the stand next week, after which I will do a quick review.

The meeting site has free WiFi. However, the network admins have installed a very restrictive Internet filter. I guess the idea is to keep employees from goofing off on the Internet. However, the filter also prevented me (and colleagues) from accessing business-related websites.

We were told to submit each site we want to visit. The network admins then could review and determine whether to allow an exception to their filter. Obviously not workable.

Fortunately I have a 3G iPad. Also fortunately, I previously paid for the unlimited 3G data option. AT&T since has ended that plan. But fortunately I’m grandfathered in. So I fired up 3G and was able to access the websites.

WiFi is prevalent. But so are Internet filters. So to be truly mobile, relying solely on outside WiFi (as opposed to your own like MiFi) may not always be sufficient.

(BTW, I wrote this post on my iPad’s WordPress app using a Freedom Pro bluetooth keyboard.)

Steve “Chippy” Paine of Carrypad has posted Dell Streak and Archos 5 screens – 0.2″ is a lot! (picture source). He’s comparing the screens of the upcoming Dell Streak, a 5” phone just arrived in Europe and coming to the U.S. next month, and the 4.8” Archos 5 Internet Tablet, a PMP which I own and have written about before. He writes:

“I was under the impression that the Dell Streak was a 4.8″ screen but it’s not. It’s a true 5″ screen. In addition, there are physical Android buttons which remove the need for on-screen buttons and thus save some important screen real-estate. The end effect is shown in the image.”

This screen comparison has more than just academic interest to me. I’m considering buying the Dell Steak for my wife. She complains that she needs reading glasses to read the screen of her phone (vanity thy name is woman). I showed her my Archos 5 IT. She said she could read the screen without glasses. I asked her to hold it as if it were a phone (which it’s not). She said she could – encouraging since I understand the overall dimensions of the Dell Streak and the Archos 5 IT are almost identical. I wasn’t concerned about pocketablity since she keeps her phone in her purse not her pockets. And with a larger device she has a better change of finding the ringing phone in time in that black hole of a purse

Chippy promises his first impressions of the Dell Streak soon. I can’t wait! Update: Here it is: Dell Streak First Impressions. As Chippy mentions, his wife also wants the Streak, and will carry it in her purse, so no pocketability issue.