Dell x51v (x51) PDA Bluetooth Problems

UPDATE: Members of Aximsite have hacked together a Widcomm Bluetooth stack that has all the missing profiles. Instructions and links to downloads are available in this thread.

I posted this message on the Dell Support Forums about two weeks ago:

I am a current Dell Axim x51v owner that is very angry that Dell rushed out this PDA with an incomplete Bluetooth Stack implementation. I can’t connect to my cellular phone nor can I can’t connect to my headset so it’s like having a Bluetooth Dongle without drivers (i.e. useless). Technical support has been of no use because they were shrugging their shoulders at first. Finally, after a lot of research on various forums, I learned that Dell, unlike its Windows Mobile 5.0 competitors from HP and Asus, refused to use a third party Bluetooth Stack. What’s even more troubling is that Dell’s previous x50 has more Bluetooth functionality than the current release because it also uses a third party Bluetooth Stack. I wish I had known these facts before I gave Dell my money. Don’t get me wrong, for other things, the Dell Axim x51v is great but it is sorely lacking in its advertised Bluetooth capabilities—I would go as far as to say misadvertised capabilities. If Bluetooth functionality is important to you, then please do not buy Dell’s x51 series PDAs until Dell fixes these problems. My question to Dell remains: when are you planning on restoring functionality available in your previous flagship PDA (x50v) to your current x51v flagship model? I have hope but the technical staff’s empty promises coupled with silence from Dell on these issues is bothering me. I await a response.

I am thoroughly disappointed with Dell’s response so far. They have released a ROM Update to version A06 which was said to clear up many of the issues but it hasn’t. The key is Dell making a move towards releasing Microsoft’s Adoption kit Update 2.0 for Windows Mobile 5.0. This update includes several Bluetooth profiles that we need, such as:

Generic Access Profile (GAP)
Generic Object Exchange Profile (GEOP)
Serial Port Profile (SPP)
Dial-up Networking (DUN) Profile
Hands-Free Profile (HFP)
Headset Profile (HSP)
Human Interface Device (HID) Profile
Object Push Profile (OPP)
ActiveSync-Over-Bluetooth
Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP)
Audio/Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP)

Until then, I’m going to recommend that no one waste their money on either the Dell x51v or the lesser x51 handhelds from Dell.

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January 8, 2006 | Filed Under Tech/Gadgets | Comments Off 

GigE troubles or why Dell/Broadcom suck

I’ve been considering upgrading my network to GigE (gigabit ethernet) for a long time because of the sheer amount of data (hundreds of gigs nightly) that I push around between my computers. I had been considering picking up a Linksys EG008W because it would stack perfectly on my customized Linksys WRT54g running Tofu’s firmware. However, after reading this review, I realized that it doesn’t support jumbo frames (i.e. MTU > 1500) which will effectively limit my peak throughput to around 400-500mbps. The suggestion in the review was to look at the SMC EZ Switch SMC8508T which supports jumbo frames. At $88, I’m probably going to wait it out. Another option is going for the 5-port version which is closer to $58.

This isn’t the end of the story though. After seeing the lack of jumbo frame support at the switch level in the Linksys EG008W, I started hunting for information on my GigE network cards. Luckily, my Dell PowerEdge server has an Intel GigE network card which supports jumbo frames and checksum offloading which should allow a max throughput of around 900mbps or higher. My other system has a Realtek 8169 GigE network chip directly on the motherboard. A quick google search shows that it supports jumbo frames but the exact value quoted varies from 7.5K up to 8K which further solidifies my opinion that Realtek is garbage. Lastly, my Dell M60 (Precision Workstation) laptop has a Broadcom 5705 chipset which, unfortunately, does not support jumbo frames. Why Dell could not pay an extra 50 cents for an Intel GigE chip in their flagship laptop product is beyond me. Regardless, I’m fairly sure that my network will still get a speed boost from a GigE switch (~4-5 times faster) but as it stands the consumer needs to do their homework to determine jumbo frame and checksum offloading support before forking any cash to any vendor.

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January 4, 2006 | Filed Under Tech/Gadgets | Comments Off 

Finally Microsoft fixes the hibernation bug in XP SP2

Running Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) systems with greater than 1 gig of ram (1.5 gigs on my laptop) would lead to problems with putting the system in hibernation. My regular system RAM usage is usually over 1.1-1.2 gis of RAM with spikes much higher. My default choice of powering down my laptop has always been to hibernate the system because of the instant restoration of where I was before. However, frequently when I chose to hibernate the system, WinXP would initially start preperations and exit out of the GUI. A few seconds later, the screen would pop up the XP desktop again and a pop up would read:

"Insufficient System Resources Exist to Complete the API."

At that point, I couldn’t hibernate the system anymore as the option would disappear. This would leave me with the choice of either “Shut Down” or “Standby.” For months Microsoft had a fix for this problem for non-SP2 machines (KB330909) which could not be applied to my SP2 laptop. Luckily, Microsoft released a hotfix (KB909095) which cures the problem. The only catch is that customers must call 1-800-MICROSOFT and request it. My phone call this morning took about 10 minutes from dialing until the hotfix was in my inbox. I successfully applied it to my laptop and it has worked repeatedly. As can be seen by looking at Bryce Yehl’s site and my own experience, this problem has been going on for a very long time. Now if only Microsoft would provide a post-Sp2 override for shutting down USB ports when badly behaved USB devices request (but don’tt use) >500mA of power.

Update (3.13.2006): I found a download link for this hotfix at rapidshare from another blog via Google.

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January 1, 2006 | Filed Under Tech/Gadgets | Comments Off 

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