Sprint HTC EVO 3D and bluetooth tether

I finally gave up on my old TP2...it was having major issues requiring a complete wipe and reinstall every so often. It sometimes wouldn't answer calls in time etc, and always at very inopportune moments.

So I decided to upgrade to a new phone, I wanted to go Android, cuz that's what the cool kids are doing these days...

Ok, actually, I have an older iPhone (that I use with WiFi and internationally)...I wasn't going to switch carriers to get a newer one...my wife just got a Win7 phone that is very nice, but impossible to make any modifications on...you can't even add your own ringtone, bluetooth DUN was completely out of the question.

So that leaves Android. I have been using a Nook Color for a few months now, so I am used to the interface.

Let me just say that the EVO 3D is a frikin fast phone, the most responsive phone I have ever used, and seems to be compatible with just about anything (flash Apple?). I know battery live will be shorter than my TP2, so I just half to accept that...but the 3GS I have drains the battery in a day of moderate use, so the EVO 3D seems to at least match that.

I have only used it for a day now, and I was using the data heavily during that time period, and battery life seems to be about a day.

My big concern was if I could bluetooth tether my iPhone to it, like I did with the TP2, and cannot do with the Win7 phone.

A big yes...however I needed to install the PDANet app from Android Market (there is a trial version). PDANet is the same software (and same company, junefabrics.com) I used on my various windows phones for years for USB tethering of my laptop.

This app automatically sets up the phone for either bluetooth DUN or USB tethering (you select when you start the app). simple

So now, will iBluever (the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch bluetooth tethering app) work with it?

I tried setting it all up exactly like I did for my TP2/iPhone set. I made the EVO discoverable, I started the iBluever app and searched for a pairing, selected the EVO set the configs (same as for the TP2 in an earlier post) then had it connect...

The iPhone popped up the pairing window for me to enter a code, I did, then the EVO force quit the bluetooth setup...

hmmm...

I will fast forward through the trial and error...

The successful setup went as follows.

1. pair iPhone to EVO first, before launching iBluever
2. THEN launch iBluever, select the EVO and set it up like the TP2 (including authenticate)
3. Select the EVO again and let iBluever do its thing
4. it AGAIN will ask for a pairing code, this time it will work properly and you are on!



BTW I don't have much to say for a review of the EVO 3D other than it is fast. I never planned on using the 3D display, and I have not yet used the 3D camera (but I might use that at some time in the future)

...btw it comes with an 8Gig sim card from Sprint.

Dr Who Theme by ArcAttack

I wasn't there...but it would have been cool!

Obi110 + ObiON for iPhone = free VOIP!

I have previously mentioned that I travel a lot, internationally. I keep in touch back home in the US with a prepaid international cellphone, Skype, and email.

I recently found a new tool that may replace the first two (mostly).

(I can't find the original article that pointed me to this...)

The Obihai Obi110.


This website has a few good articles on the subject.

This box (the obi110) has ports for your phone line, phone, and ethernet. You plug it into the phone line to allow your VOIP calls access to the outside world, the phone plug puts your house phone on the VOIP or regular phone line.

I it disgustingly easy to set up. I have cordless phones linked to one base station, so I plug that base into the OBI, plug the OBI into the wall and ethernet, and the phone still works normally, no setup required. The OBI gets an IP address...and you can pick up your handset to dial the unit to get the IP.

Go to that IP on your computer, and you can either dig into the elaborate lists of settings...OR...run the ObiTalk app that steps you through most setups.

Ok, so what. So using ObiTalk I set the Obi110 unit up as the Voice Gateway. I installed the ObiON app to my iPhone, and added its obi number to my ObiTalk account.

Here is the neat part. Using the ObiON app I log into my Obi110 unit. From there I can ring the phone or do other things...and the call audio is much better than cellphone...

...it gets better. So lets say I am in Paris and I want to call the wife's cellphone. I use the ObiOn app, dial her regular cellphone number (just the digits, no other codes) ...the Obi110 uses the land line to call her cellphone. You can call any number you want, and it will route through your home line...of course at that point if you dial out of your local area, then long distance charges would apply, just as if you used the handset in the house.

As long as the app is running, you can receive calls from other OBi units. You can set up speed dials on your phone...

...and you can set up Google Voice on the Obi.

I haven't tried that feature yet, but it is well documented at the Obihai site.

Only drawback so far is the ObiON app for the iPhone (there is an Android app also) sucks a lot of battery power when on...so if you are not plugged in and using the app...you had better kill it. (with my jailbroken iPhone, that part is easy).