vB Easy Archive - So how do you like your Sharp 903?

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So how do you like your Sharp 903?
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Posted by: pchan0

Now that its out for some time, do you like your Sharp 903 or would you have rather buy another phone?

I'm in the market for a new phone but don't know much about it. I'm located in Toronto, Canada. What firmware should I be looking at? Do I buy a unlocked phone? What else do I have to look for?

THANKS in advance for your answers. Please help a newbie out.

Posted by: yis903unposubl

Best phone I've ever owned. 'nuff said.

Posted by: volcompunk

lol you're asking in the wrong forum. we all love our 903's

Posted by: mavericke

What can I say?Never want to touch any phone again!

Posted by: pchan0

"I'm in the market for a new phone but don't know much about it. I'm located in Toronto, Canada. What firmware should I be looking at? Do I buy a unlocked phone? What else do I have to look for?"

Anybody can help me out?

Posted by: Kevbodian

simplest firmware = euro (only problem is SMS times are off a bit), mp3 music and ringtones
nicest = jp (only problem is AAC ringtones require a pain-in-arse trick) AAC music and ringtones are a bit tricky

im using JP. its very nice. no repro either.

Posted by: pchan0

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kevbodian

simplest firmware = euro (only problem is SMS times are off a bit), mp3 music and ringtones
nicest = jp (only problem is AAC ringtones require a pain-in-arse trick) AAC music and ringtones are a bit tricky

im using JP. its very nice. no repro either.

Kev,

Thanks for the answers. I'm looking at one right now that is chinese version SX833. Is this firmware okay? I'm chinese by the way so it should suit me?

Posted by: yis903unposubl

one more thing on JPN (i think most of us on the forum have JPN), no T9 text for english. makes text a pain in the @$$.

Posted by: Kevbodian

i personally love multitap. i hate T9... such a pain to be training it all the time.

Posted by: AndrewCYChow

Quote:

Originally Posted by pchan0

Thanks for the answers. I'm looking at one right now that is chinese version SX833. Is this firmware okay? I'm chinese by the way so it should suit me?

SX833 is the version from Hong Kong Smartone-Vodafone. It can play MP3 directly, but it does not support MP3 ringtones (only AAC or MMF).

Just to narrow it down, if you have the need to input Chinese, you can basically eliminate the Japanese and Euro versions.

Posted by: Kevbodian

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndrewCYChow

if u have the need to input japanese then u can rule out chinese or euro.

if you have the need to use MP3s as ringtones, then u can rule out chinese and japanese.

Posted by: totaltoanage

Sharp for life.

Posted by: studiddy

After playing around with it and getting the lcd remote I think it is the best thing ever. The screen and camera are unreal. What I especially like is the fact that there are seemingly a dozen ways to control each function, and there are tons of functions. The multicolor light was cool, and everyone is amazed by the flip screen with music videos on it. Far and away the coolest thing I have bought in at least a year.

Posted by: OmniLove20

Best phone I've used up-to-date!
I've a good feeling that this phone is going to stick with me for a long time, unlike any other phones I have had in the past...;]

Posted by: juniinuj

dude! this is like the coolest phone in the universe no matter what fw you get they all have something cool to offer. think i've switched to sharp for life

Posted by: PY0413

Of course I love my 903sh and I am pretty sure that I will also love the 904 in the future. ^^

Posted by: volcompunk

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kevbodian

sms times in euro fw are not off, atleast in timsta's euro fw they are on time perfectly

Posted by: Evo_jai

when i first had the 902, i was like 902 is niceeee, when i got my hand on a 903,903 just took mobile camara phoen to a next level, 903 is the best phone up to now, if 904 or 905 turns in to a PDA phone with WIFI , that would be even better , but if sharp keeps on improving their screen and camara, will still be great, i dun think i will touch another brand again

Posted by: kirklau

903SH is a very nice choice, i'd stick with jap fw since its got all the functions it was meant to have, having the different themes was really cool as well, haha... you can still input chinese if you've learned jap b4, not a tough one there. however, there is another phone i'd recommend you checking out, the se 900i. i personally use the 903SH, but my friends have the se 900i and i think its quite cool as well! different from the 903SH, but still cool in its own way, the flip itself is nice, the white color one is very pretty, looking at pix is alot easier than the 903SH, the internal memory is pretty large, you can easily use mp3 as ringtones, the speaker is loud....on and on, but if i had to choose again, i'd still get the 903SH, to each his own i guess! hope you get a phone that you truly like!

Posted by: Blt4424

I got a 903 in October, instantly loved it. I then delevloped a problem with the camera, the CCD went bad. I'm the only person I've heard of having this problem so that kinda sucked. I sold it a month ago and I just bought a new one off Timsta yesterday.

Posted by: zippoKC

best phone ive had. but very fragile, front scratched like crazy. the top corner where infra red sensor is, cracked. :s

Posted by: zabieru

After using the 903sh, i couldnt care less about other cellphones. this is simply the best. If only the camera has the anti shake function and i could change themes and set mp3s as ringing tones.

Posted by: wikka

the best ever in every aspect except maybe size? but its solid when you hold it ...very high quality and yeah there are no complaints except that accessories are a bit pricey

Posted by: gillianchung3

sharp for live x2

Posted by: totaltoanage

charlene is cuter. its the truth. but yea sharp all the way.

Posted by: fbi114

i guess every 1 has said enough god stuff about it.. now for some bad stuff...

1) the size is 222 big!

2) the design of the phone (where the ear phone is located) can be improved on deign!..
what is the problem u ask?.. well the top is just way too sharp.. lol.. how ironic!

3) the choice of different FW are good, but each having their own advantage that make the other 1 seem as though it was worthless.. not good.. eg. If u have the UK FW.. I have the mp3 ring tone.. but u cannot change the theme… if u r running a HK FW.. u can hide the network providers name, BT works w/ not problems…. So on! but u cannot change the theme and cannot play mp3 ring tones… I can go on and on

4) IT DOES NOT HAVE EDGE!!!.. oh I miss it soo much.. this honestly was the only thing that held me back for labeling the 903 as the best ever!

5) the user interface… ???.... WTF happened there.. seriously sharp.. u need some major mod to the interface dude!!

The things that I love about the phone is that it have a WOW effect to it.. when ever I want to take a caller ID picture… I switch the cam to internal view and I have to pleasure to ppl saying WTF!!.. how did u do that?.. man that is wicked!.. lol.. in other worked the internal cam is soo freaking small and well hidden.

Posted by: huskyfan23

I LOVE mine. Best phone I've ever owned. I've owned a ton of phones, though not many imported. Replaced my S710a with it. It is a big phone but that's not really a problem. I've always carried my phone in my hand. On my other camera phones I never really used the camera much because it was crap. The camera on this phone is one of the best features! I would have NEVER expected it to actually focus by holding the button halfway. It's like a normal digital camera! 3.2mp is pretty damn good for a camera and totally AMAZING for a cell phone. I almost went with a 902 and I'm glad I didn't. 903 FTW!

Posted by: kirklau

Quote:

Originally Posted by totaltoanage

charlene is cuter. its the truth. but yea sharp all the way.

ArSa mayber cuter, but ArGill is prettier, hehe...

And about people complaining about the size of the 903SH, I think its a pretty perfect size for the average men's hand. It does look big in girls' hands, but I think they look cute when holding an "over-sized" cell in their hands, hahahaha...

Another thing I want to add is that I think it's reception and clarity are above average, especially when used with it's earpiece!

Posted by: skittles4em

I'm currently using the SE W900i and i'm looking to switch to the Sharp 903. Can someone give me some suggestions as to keeping my SE or Sharp 903? I know i might get biased answer...but it's ok cause i asked the same question in the SE forum! Please tell me the pro and the con! Appreciate it!

Posted by: huskyfan23

Quote:

Originally Posted by skittles4em

I'm currently using the SE W900i and i'm looking to switch to the Sharp 903. Can someone give me some suggestions as to keeping my SE or Sharp 903? I know i might get biased answer...but it's ok cause i asked the same question in the SE forum! Please tell me the pro and the con! Appreciate it!

The 903 looks better, comes in different colors, flip phone so you don't screw up the screen, better camera, same screen, 2 speakers. That's all I can really think of as far as major differences.

It can also be used as an MP3 player and it's got an external remote.

Posted by: skittles4em

wow i like the external remote, except the guy whom i plan on trading it doesn't have it...

so it's ok playing music and stuff?...kinda just like the SE?

how's the battery life?...and does it bother u that it doesn't have external display?

thanks for the info!

Posted by: huskyfan23

I only had mine for one day. I sent it off the next day to get it flashed. It'll be back sometime next week. Can't really comment on the battery life because of that

I don't care about no external screen because you can flip the phone open to see who's calling and make a decision if you want to answer it.

Posted by: Timsta

i'm getting rid of my used lcd remote.. if anyone cares lol.

and huskyfan. u'll have your phone back realll soon. you can also use the remote as caller id as well.

Posted by: huskyfan23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Timsta

i'm getting rid of my used lcd remote.. if anyone cares lol.

and huskyfan. u'll have your phone back realll soon. you can also use the remote as caller id as well.

Hmmmmm.... how much for the remote?

Can't wait to get my phone back. I feel so dirty using my S710a

Posted by: Timsta

selling my remote for 60

Posted by: kurisu

this may seem like a silly question, but can the phone be easily flipped open with just one hand? Like does it whip open easily, or do you need a second hand to open it (cuz it doesn't have assisted flip open like most flip phones).

oh...and just how hard is it to put an mp3 ringtone on the 903 if using jp f/w?

Posted by: Timsta

it can be easily flipped open with one hand.

you can't put mp3 ringtones on the 903 using jap firmware. you need to put aac on

Posted by: kurisu

ah...well then how hard is it to get aac as a ringtone for a jp f/w 903? Somewhere around these forums (or maybe somewhere else I forgot already) I read that ringtones are only downloaded via OTA (over the air?).

Posted by: Timsta

that is correct! for jap fw.. they have to be right protected.. and downloaded via wap

Posted by: LCH

AAC Ringtone? Download a dummy file named: IMA2.MP4 (I think). Then rename that file to something else and rename with what ever aac or mp4 song you want as ringtone as "IMA2". I think you can also set smaf files as ringtones but I'm not sure.
Anybody care to certify this?

Posted by: CyniKal.Mindset

the 903sh isnt the phone for me, its not loud enough at all, UI is kinda akward, taking pictures and the whole camera options menu is a mess in my opinion, from what I have seen the softkeys arent customizable so its just not flowing for me...I dont like it at all..and wtf? no external screen??? step backwards imo

camera is good, built very well, looks nice...but I would take a w900i over it anyday and I've owned a w900i and currently own a 903...ahwell, you cant win em all. Maybe I'm just a SE fanboy or something

Posted by: Timsta

it really depends on your needs. SHarp has never been a company that has allowed its users to do much modification. if you are jumping over from SE. you're probably not used to it. when i first jumped over. i was like.. the fuk is worng with this UI. but it grows on you.

the loudness.. really depends on the user. if they need it super loud or not. remember. this phone wasn't geared for our north american market. cause us north americans are loud and obnoxious (apparently we are.. i've been told by many clients or maybe its just me lol)

external screen.. yah.. i agree its odd to not have one.. the 703sh has one.. but not the 903.. odd thinking there. they probalby just wanted to make the back so smooth and nice.. without any screens and stuff. again.. u get used to it.

i owned the 802, 902.. both had the external. so it was a bit diff jumping over.

Posted by: ravezy

my best phone ever, well..comparing those those in my sig :P

Posted by: right_l1

i must say i love my 903sh. its such a nice phone. wouldnt trade it for anything. maybe a 904sh... haha

Posted by: CyniKal.Mindset

i'm used to everything but the super quiet speaker...thats the one thing I cant get used to...if it wasnt for the extravagant ring lights I would never get a call in my car

Posted by: Timsta

hahaha.. the disco lights gets attention fast

Posted by: Box215

i dunno, i found the external screen on the 902 so small and oddly placed, i never really used it anyway. Im fine without an external screen on the 903

Posted by: manchuia

hrm...

I had a nokia 6260 for a long time, and kind of like the no external screen. Stopped me from checking my phone constantly. I turned off the "flilp open to answer" feature so I could just open it and decide then if I wanted to take a call.

Does the 903 have this?

Also, the ringtone issue doesn't bother me. I usually pick something unique so I can notice a change in the ambient noise and figure that's my phone. I really can't stand loud ringtones because people usually take a minut or two to find the phone, then look at the screen to decide if they want to answer it. All the while everyone is getting annoyed because that same ringtone has been played on the radio 4 billion times

In the last couple of months I have gone through a "few" phones, but keep coming back to this one. I guess I just can't find a way to justify spending over $600 US on a phone that has to be customized more than a Windows Mobile phone but has less features (minus the cam) than an SE K750 at 1/3 of the price.

But, still, there is something about it. Maybe I should just buy it and then try to resell it if I don't like it. Not like I am adversed to such practices.

P.S. I keep looking for pics of this phone next to other phones, and coming up empty handed. If anyone knows a topic off hand that has pics that would be great. Or how about this? Is this bigger than an n90, similar size, or smaller? That will give me a good idea.

Posted by: CyniKal.Mindset

its similar size to a n90...both are fairly large phones

Posted by: kurisu

ya I'm interested as well at just how large this phone is. I've looked up the specs and according to gsmarena it's about 50% thicker than my current phone which sounds pretty unbelievable, but probably on the dot lol. It's only slightly less thick than the power brick for my DTR laptop ><

I can't imagine having to carry around my power brick around all the time...

Posted by: manchuia

well think about it this way kurisu. Its a flip phone, so the base (which is probably the thickness of the w800) has a screen on top of it. There is your 50% more. In return you get a large an beautiful screen and (if you have large hands) a keypad area you can use.

I am figuring this phone is equal in size to the 6260 I used to have, which I can deal with. Thanks for the info Cynikal

Posted by: Timsta

its not that thick at all.

Posted by: manchuia

not as think as the n90 or 6260?

Posted by: ChunkyRice

haha! its not as thick as a verizon phone... its about comparable to an e815 in my hands.

Posted by: beinspired

I'm reading so many conflicting msgs around the net my head is spinning. I'm hoping someone here can throw some help my way.
A while back I was given a 903SH unlocked (JAP f/w) and although it was just about every dream come true - it had two major drawbacks. That damned provisioning msg every time I blink and no T9 dictionary (sorry - I'm lazy... kill me)....
So I have a choice of exchanging it for either a Chinese (HK) f/w model or a Taiwanese f/w model ... The Taiwanese model has an issue with the screen menu icons being placed abstractedly on the menu screen - but no provisioning msg. How about the HK version? Is this the one I should choose?

(btw... EURO f/w is out of the question as it's not available here)

Help! (Damsel in distress!... kind of... ;-) )

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

i love my phone, best phone i have ever had. all thanks to tim!

Posted by: Timsta

glad u like your phone.. omg.. u have pucca on your phone. haha.

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Timsta

glad u like your phone.. omg.. u have pucca on your phone. haha.

its garu.. the ninja. not the girl. haha.

Posted by: Timsta

oh.. its garu? damn. it look like pucca. haha. garu from naruto?

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Timsta

oh.. its garu? damn. it look like pucca. haha. garu from naruto?

haha pucca and garu are a couple... kinda. garu is a full time ninja while pucca chases him around.

Posted by: Timsta

OHHH... ha ha.. okay.. i had NOooo idea... thats too much info for me about stuffed toys for the day

Posted by: kurisu

Quote:

Originally Posted by dluxpn0i45

haha pucca and garu are a couple... kinda. garu is a full time ninja while pucca chases him around.

ahaha that's cute.

Damn that is one sweet *** picture of your phone. Just when I thought I was done lookin at phones and had given up on getting a Sharp phone you come along and post that picture.

Posted by: Timsta

hahah.. u still wanting a 903? its a great phone

Posted by: Desert_Fox

Quote:

Originally Posted by dluxpn0i45

i love my phone, best phone i have ever had. all thanks to tim!

who is that girl in your phone? send me a copy yeah? I'll PM you my address if you agree.

Posted by: break-r

isnt that little plastic figurine of garu gonna scratch ur phone eventually?

Posted by: markol

Quote:

Originally Posted by dluxpn0i45

i love my phone, best phone i have ever had. all thanks to tim!

this might be a stupid question.. but how did u get your phone to stand on its own??? o.O

Posted by: sharpboy

good quest very good question how did u?

Posted by: Desert_Fox

its physics!~!! Lol!!!

look at this example:

oooh!!

Honestly, i didn't know 903s can do that. I gotta try that out when I get mine back.

but seriously, I'm dying to know too...

Posted by: pouting_girl

with the power of photoshop!

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

haha.. the actress is song hye kyo, Desert Fox and if you want the background i can send it to you.. the plastic keychain i dont think will scratch my phone anytime soon, though it does move around alot.. as for the phone standing up, the 903 wont do that naturally so there is a little "trick" making it stand up.. you just can't see it from the angle i took the picture. haha.

Posted by: Timsta

haha... the magic power ot he 903.. WHAT CAn't it do.. hahaha.

very nice guys. very nice. if we could make the 903 walk like the t68i... that'd bring back many many memories

Posted by: pouting_girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by Timsta

haha... the magic power ot he 903.. WHAT CAn't it do.. hahaha.

very nice guys. very nice. if we could make the 903 walk like the t68i... that'd bring back many many memories

with the power for photoshop...i could make the 903 fly! =P

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

Quote:

Originally Posted by pouting_girl

with the power for photoshop...i could make the 903 fly! =P

hahaha hmm.. funny you mentioned that since i took a picture a while back with my sidekick..
no photoshop though.. the dark is hiding what i need it hide.. haha.

Posted by: pouting_girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by dluxpn0i45

hahaha hmm.. funny you mentioned that since i took a picture a while back with my sidekick..
no photoshop though.. the dark is hiding what i need it hide.. haha.

Stop hiding that string!!! OMg, that reminds me that i got cheated $30 in disneyworld a while back when i paid for that magic trick kit. >.<

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

Quote:

Originally Posted by pouting_girl

Stop hiding that string!!! OMg, that reminds me that i got cheated $30 in disneyworld a while back when i paid for that magic trick kit. >.<

i got tricked in las vegas... -_-

Posted by: sharpboy

no can u seriously tell how u do that?

Posted by: Timsta

lol.. the magic of the 903... heck.. mine makes fried chicken on the side

Posted by: Desert_Fox

you still haven't revealed to us your secrets... I wanna take a pic with my 903 like that

Posted by: d12agonxboi

a co-worker has this string its called the magician's string.

Its thinner then a piece of thread and flexible. The color is black but even though its black is really hard to see unless you're really close up. He puts a little wax at the end and puts it on a dollar and can make it look like its floating in air.

Probably the same thing =)

Posted by: pouting_girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by d12agonxboi

a co-worker has this string its called the magician's string.

Its thinner then a piece of thread and flexible. The color is black but even those its black is really hard to see unless you're really close up. He puts a little wax at the end and puts it on a dollar and can make it look like its floating in air.

Probably the same thing =)

OHHHHHHHHHH that;s the same thing i have!!! $30 for a roll of that string lol. >.<

btw...i'm afraid to post on hofo now...=X

Posted by: d12agonxboi

yeah thats the one, he has a bunch and gives them away. I guess once you find out the trick, its boring to show people because they already know the secret.

Posted by: Desert_Fox

Quote:

Originally Posted by pouting_girl

btw...i'm afraid to post on hofo now...=X

ehhh?? why?

Posted by: dingd0ng

It is okay pouting girl, don't be afraid...we are all very nice here!!! = )

Posted by: markol

Quote:

Originally Posted by dluxpn0i45

haha.. the actress is song hye kyo, Desert Fox and if you want the background i can send it to you.. the plastic keychain i dont think will scratch my phone anytime soon, though it does move around alot.. as for the phone standing up, the 903 wont do that naturally so there is a little "trick" making it stand up.. you just can't see it from the angle i took the picture. haha.

i ACTUALLY tried to make my 903 stand by itself last night.... and did not succeed -__________-

Posted by: Timsta

\oh man....

Posted by: pouting_girl

Quote:

Originally Posted by Desert_Fox

ehhh?? why?

because...i talk too much... =X

and i don't think 903 could actually stand by itself. but you could use something to hold it up and just use the phone to hide it like d12agonxboi or you could just use photoshop and crop whatever you don't want out, like me =P

and timtim ah...your "oh man..." made me choke on my tea!

Posted by: Timsta

haha. i have no comments regarding that.

but anyways. there are many ways to make the phone stand.....

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

Quote:

Originally Posted by d12agonxboi

a co-worker has this string its called the magician's string.

Its thinner then a piece of thread and flexible. The color is black but even though its black is really hard to see unless you're really close up. He puts a little wax at the end and puts it on a dollar and can make it look like its floating in air.

Probably the same thing =)

haha you got it. in the lighting i used its really hard to see..

Posted by: kitchuro

@thread....

Posted by: Timsta

well u certainly got the thread jumpin with your standing 903sh bro lol

Posted by: dluxpn0i45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Timsta

well u certainly got the thread jumpin with your standing 903sh bro lol

haha yea i know..
..the picture with dollar is held by the "invisible thread" and the 903 is standing via a mini allen wrench on the very back of the phone that i taped on with duct tape.. hope that clears up the confusion.. but back to the thread.. i love my 903sh.

Posted by: Desert_Fox

Quote:

Originally Posted by dluxpn0i45

man... I can finally stop thinking about how you got it to stand and concentrate on my ochem midterm in 12 hours.

Posted by: Box215

i have a few gripes. first, when looking at text messages, you cant go directly from one message to another. you have to go back to the inbox first. second, what on earth was sharp thinking with viewing the pictures? you take the pics in landscape mode, but you cant view them in landscape mode? and the same issue as with viewing the messages, you cant go from pic right to the next

Posted by: Timsta

well.. sharp has many many things to learn for UI still.. remember.. they are relatively new in the market.. not that new.. but still new when compared to the big boys. they are improving with each handset tho. as more and more feedback gets back to them, i think they do take some of them into consideration.