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HTC OZONE Phone for Verizon Wireless IN THE BOX In items listed above I received a number of current adaptor plugs or clips that did help during the trip. NOTE: I found traveling in China was fairly easy as far as charging electronics goes. The big difference for me was that many new products come with the ability to charge from 220 or 110 built in. All I needed was the proper plug adaptor and I was in business. If I did not have one from the company I was usually able to get one for the housekeeping department. I at times I was able to fall back on the shaver outlet in the hotel. It is best to read all instructions first or contact support for the product involved before doing this.
HOME SCREEN INCLUDES I found the home screen to be a big help. Most activity was displayed and easily read. I worked with the home screen for most features. I was able to set the weather for each city I visited in China as well as for my short stay in Phoenix. That gave me a 5 day preview when in each location. Unfortunately I was unable to set it to show Key West and had to settle for the Miami forecast. SETUP I had been very skeptical when I read the Verizon Wireless PR about using the Verizon Wireless Services worldwide as if I were in Key West. The idea of no added country codes or even area codes in some cases blew me away. I was assured that was the case but had my doubts until I made my first call home from Beijing. I just went to Contacts, found the listing for our cell phone and pressed the green button. I heard ringing just as if I was making the call from the gym in Key West. When Pat answered I knew we were now capable of easily maintaining contact for the entire trip to China. Our daughter Bree, who was traveling with me, was now able to contact her husband in Phoenix. We both had access to the Internet, instant messaging, and all of out email accounts. All of this thanks to Verizon Wireless and the HTC Ozone Smartphone. I was a very happy camper. For complete specs on the Verizon Wireless Ozone phone CLICK HERE. During the Phoenix and early portion of the China travels there were no issues with the HTC Ozone SmartPhone. Once I started moving about in China I began to lose the ability to send and receive emails and text messages. I also could not get on the Internet. The ability to make Global calls was not affected. At this point I called Verizon Wireless Global Support. Due to the time change my call was answered during the night shift in the states. They were familiar with the issue but wanted me to speak with the day shift guy who had been handling these calls. I was asked to get back to them when he was in. At about 8 AM eastern time (8 PM in China) I received a text message from the tech. He provided his number and asked me to call him. He was more than helpful. After a little discussion he suggested I give him the phone and room number of the hotel where we were staying. This allowed him to call us back and check the HTC Ozone phone and related services while also being able to hold my hand. This was way more service than I expected. After a few minutes he explained the issue. Since I was roaming from city to city in China I was moving from service provider to service provider very often. During some of these moves the Data connection was being lost or turned OFF. He then walked me through the steps to turn the Data function back on. He also gave me several other tricks to change providers if needed. He said the manufacturer was working on a fix. From that point on I had no problem getting the data service back when it was lost. The next day I received another IM from the same guy. He wanted to know if all was Ok. I am sorry to run on about this but I am still amazed at the time, effort, and interest he took in my situation. I was impressed. This article is not a full technical review of the HTC Ozone from Verizon Wireless. If you want more details CLICK HERE OR take a look at the FAQ Page. I did use the phone to play music through headphones using Bluetooth and it had great reproduction. As a matter of fact even music played through the internal speaker was clear and quite LOUD. The camera was good for a 2MP unit. It photos were clear and produced acceptable results. Videos were not as good. SAMPLE PHOTOS
For more Ozone photos and Videos go to my FLICKR site by clicking here. I charged the battery every night as the phone used much power since it was on and in use much of the time. I would suggest you purchase a spare battery when traveling and keep it charged in order to insure service when you need it. I had no problem finding charging capability in hotels and airports. The extra adaptors provided by Verizon really helped. I think these are available as option accessories. If not you can purchase them elsewhere. I did miss having a dedicated camera key or button. The ability to contact friends and relatives when traveling overseas is comforting at both ends of the line. If you need to maintain contact with business associates while on vacation the HTC Ozone is worth a look. I am now a firm believer and already thinking about my next trip. I will not take it without a Global phone in my pocket. Please note: You will need a Global SIM and may be charged additional fees if you want some of the services mentioned in this article. |
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Harry Skevington has been involved with electronics since 1981. He has taught, written for, and provided support to, computer users since 1985. Information that will help consumers with buying decisions is more important than ever due to the current convergence of computers and other consumer products .
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2011 by Month January |
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