Techno Cop: iPhone vs. Dopod 838 Pro

This is by no means a technical side by side comparison of the iPhone , and the already available DOPOD 838 Pro. This is just something I had to do today before I make the decision to switch back to OUTLOOK (under Parallels) or to stay with Entourage. Besides, I have yet to see a hands-on review of the iPhone from which to base my comparison.

My purpose for going through this exercise, as already stated, is to determine if I should stick with MS ENTOURAGE. I had been so spoiled by OUTLOOK before that I literally reside in it 24/7. It is in OUTLOOK where I do all my emails, schedules, tasks, notes, even project management. Something I find difficult to do in Entourage simply because I need to buy yet another software to sync it with the DOPOD. Money better spent on the iPhone, perhaps? In fact, I now have to use the Entourage for email only and Outlook for everything else. But, one thing I really like about Entourage is not having to worry so much about viruses since it runs in MAC OS X.

However, I may still stick it out with Entourage if I could find a phone in the near future that will finally sync with it without any issues. Do I hear - iPhone?

How does the iPhone compare then with the DOPOD 838 Pro that I am currently using? Again, I am just basing this on the press released specs of the iPhone. Let's take a look.

	iPhone	Dopod 838 Pro (WM5)	My Take
Screen Size	3.5" dia	3.5" dia
Screen Input	Touch scrollable	Stylus & Touch but not touch scrollable
QWERTY	Virtual QWERTY	Slide out QWERTY
Voicemail, Photo, Videos	YES	YES
Music	iTunes	WM & Realplayer	+iPhone
Browser & Email	Safari & Email Client	Internet Explorer Mobile
Wireless	Wi-Fi & EDGE	Wi-Fi & 3.5G	+Dopod
Landscape/ Portrait mode	Sensor detection	Auto landscape upon QWERTY slide	+iPhone
Mobile Office	None	WORD, EXCEL, ONENOTE	+Dopod

From my own personal standpoint, the DOPOD 838 Pro practically has all the features of the upcoming iPhone, and then some. I find the mobile office feature of the DOPOD as a must have for the times when I do not have my mobile computer with me.

Assuming that the iPhone will indeed sync with Entourage, and I think it will, should I wait for it then and stay with Entourage for the time being? I guess not, unless the iPhone ships with mobile office, or its equivalent, built-in.

Today, I decided not to prolong my agony and dumped Entourage in favor of my old reliable friend - MS OUTLOOK 2007. It simply makes no sense using 2 or more applications when you can make do with one.

This is by no means to say that OUTLOOK is better than Entourage or that the DOPOD 838 Pro has the same, if not better, features than the upcoming iPhone. What I am simply saying is that for the features that matter most to me, I find that nothing can beat the combo of OUTLOOK and DOPOD 838 Pro (include also other WM5 devices).

As a longtime PC user who is barely a month old in Mac OS X, I have already stated my choice. Had I not been exposed (read: spoiled) to OUTLOOK for such a longtime, I will definitely be lining up for the iPhone in June and use it with Entourage.

Now, since I am not buying the iPhone anymore, how much is that 8 Core Mac Pro again?