Of late, it seems that the search button is not working too well, or is not being used too well. I thought that a post like this might help a lot of people who are looking in for some basic info. It might answer questions asked about once every six hours...either by total noobs, or by people like me who have been lured to SE by the T616, and are not used to the SE 'way'. This information took me a long time to get to, and I thought that while I was heavily doped (recovering from a neurological pain condition) that this would be a good use of my somewhat limited mental faculties

If other folks can add more to it, because I'm sure there is a lot to add (like bluetooth PC communication, for example, which I don't use) we might persuade the moderator to 'sticky' this...

Difference between T610 and T616
T616 is the North-American specific version of the T610. The T610 works on 900, 1800 and 1900 MHz bands, of which only the 1900MHz band is used in the US. On the other hand, the T616 uses the 850, 1800 and 1900 MHz bands. Thus the usability of the T616 outside North america is limited to places that utilize the 1800 MHz band.

What is 'firmware', and where do I find out what firmware my phone uses?
Firmware is the software that allows your phone to function, acting as an interpreter between you and your phone's hardware. It is very much like a computer's operating system. It is periodically updated, as flaws are fixed or as functions are upgraded.

You can check your phone's firmware by the following key sequence(where < means push the joystick to the left; > to the right, and * means press the * key):

>*<<*<*

This gets you to the 'Service Menu'. Pick SW information to see your phone's firmware. My T616's firmware, for example, is R1A054.

Why does my phones signal strength meter fluctuate wildly?
That is what SE phone signal strength meters do. Later firmware upgrades to the T610 and T616 usually fix that problem

Why does my T610/6 show only one/two bars where my Nokia/Siemens/Motorola shows 3 or 4?
SE phones usually show a smaller number of bars than other brands. That does not necessarily indicate a poorer performance of the phone. This is just a representation of the 'strength' of the signal, kind of like a gas-gauge in a car; if it the needle has moved 4/5ths of the way, doesn't mean that you have only 4/5ths of a full tank left.

The T616 will perform very well when the bar shows 1 bar; by contrast in other phones that I have had, having one bar meant I was in deep doo-doo. SE proponents will say that other phone brands artificially inflate their signal strength meters. While the T616 does not have the best reception, it is at least equal in my personal experience to Nokia 6800 and Nokia 6200. I live in a poor signal strength area, and have 3 T616's.

What is a locked or unlocked phone? How do I know whether my phone is locked or not?
A locked phone is usually 'locked' to a single wireless provider. GSM phones use 'SIM' cards which hold your account info, and a locked phone will accept SIM cards only from one carrier.

Phones can either be purchased 'unlocked' from sellers or straight from the manufacturer, you can unlock them by entering an unlock code (from some carriers, for example), or pay people to have them unlocked. (You can do it yourself, too, but it is not that easy).

You can check the lock status of your phone by accessing the 'Service Menu' as above, and picking the SIMlock submenu. If the symbol next to 'Network' is locked, then your phone is locked. The number next to the lock represents the number of tries available to you to punch in an unlock code.

Where do I find the date of manufacture of my phone?
Remove the battery. Under that, you will find the SE label. On the bottom right of that label, you will find a number like '03W32', which means year(03) and week(W32) of manufacture.

Where can I get ringtones for my phone?
http://www.howardforums.com/showthr...threadid=203100

Where can I get themes/backgrounds for my phone?
http://www.howardforums.com/showthr...threadid=203100

Where can I get games for my phone?
http://www.howardforums.com/showthr...threadid=203100

Where can I find links to 'pretty much anything I will ever need'?
http://www.howardforums.com/showthr...threadid=203100

What software do I need to transfer files to my pc, or to synchronize/backup my phone to my pc?
Files can be transferred using cable (USB or RS232); Infrared port ; Bluetooth connector. You will need the first two of the things listed below; the rest are optional
1. Mobile phone monitor (www.sonyericsson.com)
2. XTNDconnect (comes with phone; lets you sync your phone to Outlook, and lets you use your phone as a data modem for your PC or PDA)
3. Float's mobile agent (edit contacts, send SMS, monitor phone, originate calls https://sourceforge.net/projects/fma/)
4. SendFile (transfer files to phone): http://www.christersson.org/software.php
5. PhoneBackup (backup contacts, settings, calendar, SMS): http://www.christersson.org/software.php
6. PC control (control PC from phone): http://www.christersson.org/software.php

How do I set up speed dial
Transfer contacts to SIM. Arrange the positions on the SIM in the order you want. From standby, punch in the location of the contact you want (for example, put 'J. Doe' in location 2. Then press 2, and press 'Call')

How do I insert a pause in my dialing sequence, for example, to add your PIN code when you call your voicemail
Press and hold the '7' key at the place you want to insert the pause.

What is Video Caller ID
If you associate a picture with a contact, and that contact calls, the picture will show up on the display. Similarly, if you add a voice tag to your contact, the voice tag will be played out when the contact calls.

How do I know when my phone is done charging?
If you are charging with the phone off, the little light in the joystick will go off. If the phone is on, the battery status bar will stop moving when the phone is fully charged.

What is bluetooth
Bluetooth (BT) is a short-wave standard for radio communication. It operates in the 2.4 GHz band, is relatively noise-free, and works in a range of about 10 m (33 feet). The T616 can talk to PC's or other phones which 'have' BT. You can use a 'bluetooth' headset to talk while your phone is 10 m away (in your glovebox, backpack, purse, or home window (the only place in my home where I get good reception)). You can also use your BT phone to send messages to unsuspecting suckers who have their BT turned on in their phone/PDA/PC...however, you cannot browse their folders or access data unless they specifically allow you to do so...using BT headsets and voice-dialing, voice-commands and voice caller ID, I can pretty much go the whole day without actually looking at my phone or touching it (which is actually a pity, considering that this is, in my opinion, the best looking phone I have seen. And yes, I do not like the flashy multi-hued monstrosities that rule the day )

Other tips
-when the display is dark, you can get just the clock to illuminate by pressing one of the volume control keys on the left side of the phone
-the left joystick motion (from standby) leads to the first command located in the 'My shortcuts' list, and can be customized
-from standby, you can go directly to the contact list by pressing a key corresponding to the first letter in the name of your contact, and keeping it pressed (i.e., pressing 5 will open the contact list at 'J')
-you can get the phone to switch profiles automatically (e.g. change to meeting profile) if that meeting is scheduled in your calendar: just change the 'Profile Switch' to Auto in your calendar's 'options' submenu
-from most places/programs, pressing the 'Back' key and keeping it pressed will take you back to standby.
-in camera mode, you can (1) toggle the picture size by pressing 1, (2) toggle 'night' mode by pressing 2, (3) change change brightness ('exposure') by moving the joystick up or down, (3)cycle between effect by pressing 3, (4) toggle between self-timer off/on by pressing 4, (5) adjust exposure/brightness by moving the joystick up/down, (6) adjust color saturation by moving the joystick left/right
-you can add text labels to your pictures or add lines or simple geometric shapes to the smaller sized pictures by going into 'edit' mode while looking at pics in your 'My Pictures' folder
-you can access your phone number and other information by pressing the volume keys on the side of the phone while phone is in standby
-if you need to refer to something frequently (shopping list?), you can write up a note, and 'post' it. This will essentially make it your background in standby mode, and you can see it from standby and during calls etc.
-no, there is no point to the 'colorbug' game (I think) other than showing you how clustering programs work
-you can attatch a carrying strap to the phone by opening the battery compartment, and hanging the strap through the hole in the bottom shaped like a ' [ ' turned sideways.

This should be stickied

a lot of this can apply to just E/// / SE handsets in general

but with this, a lot of ppl can STOP asking repetitive questions

yep, full of useful information, nice job brain_scientist definently should be a sticky

dont get your hopes up. we put an ngage faq in the series60 forum and we still have repost of stuff answered in the faq.

kick arse, im at work and answer lotsa questions.


Thanks!!!

Just found this today trying to fix something that bugged be, and thought it might be nice since it never really occurred to me that there would be a decent solution:

How to make the recent calls list sort by date, not type etc.

Sasha_NY
When you pick a 10-digit number from the CALLS listing, go to MORE and pick the EDIT BEFORE CALL option. Then erase the whole number from the screen using a "c" key and enter just one simbol instead - a plus sign (+). Then press OK and the phone will try to dial a "+". I didn't even wait for it to fail, just cancelled the call and - voila - my calls are now listed in the chronological order, descending, regardless of call-type.

Hope you find this helpful, maybe add it to the guide.

Chris

hell yeah!, maybe this will stop the "what's the diff between t610 and t616 threads"

Hello and thank you for the "how to" brain_scientist.

Is there a way to dump the phone book to the SIM with one click or does one have to save each contact individually to the SIM?

Thanks,
Suzie

Suzie, Yes. As in pretty much everything fancy in this phone, check in the 'advanced' or 'options' submenus.

phonebook>advanced>copy to SIM.

You're welcome (Response to any thanks, in advance, so that this thread doesn't become un-necessarily long)

Here's a link on what I went through to change my cracked LCD screen. People should know that SE does NOT repair out of warranty cellular phones so you either do it yourself or get a third party to do it. Replacement screen cost only about $40 off eBay.

http://www.howardforums.com/showthr...343#post1852343

EXCELLENT!!!!!what a resource!, i will be adding this to the "because" thread under: SE ESSENTIALS simply because it is

*click on my sig for the updated version of "because", i will be PM-ming the mods to make changes in the HoFo version

On an off note, please notice that in the US old Voicestream SIM cards do not work with the t616. I found this cute quirk out when I upgraded from my t68ie. I even went as far as sending the phone to SE service!!! SE actually replaced the actual phone but came back with the same results when I put in my old Vstream SIM. So being calm, I paid a visit to my local T-mobile dealer and asked them to "test" out the phone with one of their SIM cards. And wouldnt you know it, the new t-mob card worked but NOT my vstream one!

I guess I'll chalk this up to one of those life experiences people talk about?

[QUOTE]Originally posted by brain_scientist
[B]Of late, it seems that the search button is not working too well, or is not being used too well. I thought that a post like this might help a lot of people who are looking in for some basic info. It might answer questions asked about once every six hours...either by total noobs, or by people like me who have been lured to SE by the T616, and are not used to the SE 'way'. This information took me a long time to get to, and I thought that while I was heavily doped (recovering from a neurological pain condition) that this would be a good use of my somewhat limited mental faculties

I remember seeing a thread with how to copy , paste, etc...does anyone either know the thread or how to do this...

It might be a good idea to add the Macintosh info to this. Apple has designed their built in apps to work specifically with this phone. They reall seem to like SE phones.

Let me know if you want me to write a bit about 610/616s and Macs.