At a recent Dopod press launch, the company revealed that the Dopod 838 (HTC Wizard) and Dopod 900 (HTC Universal) will be available at S$1,288 and S$1,788 respectively. However, at PPCSG's gathering last night, a Dopod representative confirmed that the prices have been adjusted to S$1,488 and S$1,888 instead. Even for a self-professed geek like myself, S$1,888 is too steep to pay for the Dopod 900. That's a S$100 increase compared to the previous reported price. In addition, the price of the Dopod 838 at S$1,488 is a whooping S$200 increase. We suspect that that price hike may be due to Dopod having exclusive rights over the HTC Wizard and Universal as they have also mentioned that O2 will not be bringing in these HTC products.

Is Dopod pricing itself out of the mobile market even before it has got into it? Do you lust so much for its products to pay such a premium? Tell us what you think!

mmm......a x51v or hx4700 +3G phone combine still be cheaper

well, I think $1788 and $1888 don't make much difference, it still falls beyond the reach of majority of PPC users... and I think only minority executive level who uses heavily on business will be able to afford it... think of it as a mini laptop... So i don't think it will make much difference to their sales...

As to DP838, a hike of $200 is definitely putting of some users originally wanted to change their mini for this....

that's really a big premium they are charging, so they are not really targetting mass consumer market here but rather focussing on the businessmen niche.

but at that kind of price, I would have expected one-to-one exchange support for defective units. if you pay for a mercedes benz, you expect to be treated like a king. but from the talk tonight, they seem to have some way in finetuning the sweet spot for their medium to long term support policies.

I suppose eventually the market will dictate the extent of support provided when the initial euphoria wears off...time will tell.

SGD1888 has created a great impact on some HTC manias. people would rather buy a notebook with such a high premium as it is very difficult to justify.. Guess Dopod is only targetting at HIFI or million dollar businessman only.

You mean $1788 is justifiable and $1888 is not?

Hi,

IMHO, definitely not a good buy even price tag at $ 1788.00. This is just a PDA phone, with this kind of price tag, think we can invest in much better way....

Idea for all, especially for the lovers of dopod 900, perhaps we should just hold on since i believe most who read this already own a PDA phone, let see who win.... eventually they have a overhead to look after where we don't! :) :)

I've sort of given up PPC Phone...IMHO the best combination would be a SE Phone (K750i or W800i) and Dell x51v.

I would probably uses the PPC for Wi-Fi, listen to mp3 and even GPS - if I'm not wrong these applications sucks battery life. My work depends alot on my mobile phone, thus need a hp like the above mentioned - can lasts for 3 days or more.

I don't drive but having able to show your friend the direction using GPS while he is driving you to your destination would be fun!

Few points of Dopod that I'm not happy about. IMHO

- $1888 price for a Dopod 900 compare to Taiwan Dopod 900(est price around $1588-1688).Why the different in price when the product are the same(Both bundle with bluetooth and 1GB SD card)?Are they charging the extra charges for shipping fee to Singapore?

-Purchasing Dopod 900 @ $1888 is consider as a premium product.But how come that the service and support, don't provide a loaner or replacement set while the set is sent for services. Real executives users will find it very disavantage especially when their work depend on it.Even though it just take 3 working days(If you include sat and Sunday, it will be 5 days).


-Price is seriously the main factor here, Dopod just intorduce themselve to Singapore and yet their product prices are just too steep.There isn't any specialties in their AMS comparing to O2 or even the outstanding support of DELL. I really hope that Dopod marketing department should reconsider the price tagging of Dopod 900 and 838 cause it's simply an impossible price.

my 2cents

-

Haaa... Premium products like Nokia 8800 comes with Sapphire Crystal Screen and 2 year warranty and free polishing.

1888 i think can get one N8800 + x51v... x51v can get complete care, no matter how u trash the item, u get a replacement next BUSINESS DAY not 3 BUSINESS DAY... and DELL serivce deliver the item to your doorstep, not u urself going down to Bugis and quene with all the other people having problems with your devices... I bet all of u guys here heard about the 2-3 hr quene at bugis... heee...

SO u guys can justify urself IS DOPOD 900 a PREMIUM product or not... i do think it is OVERPRICE.

$1888...Think i better get a IIs than this premium product....Even bought it under a Telco contract, i don't see it's good enough to fit my bills.After knowing while people in europe can get the Exec under telco contract without the premium..My heart was not so fancy ab the dopod anymore.
Or like What HongJia,slmka said,i might drag myself out from PPCPE device n using PPC n Phone..
High premium price while getting a dissapointing service support, that's what i hate to see.While the PPC &PPCPE community is getting bigger n bigger in singapore. if the service quality still remain the same, i doubt that people would love to take out money from their wallet n throw into sth expensive while unable to assure their reliability.who know maybe dell will throw it's head into PPCPE section, HP might launch a much better series with reasonable priced device?
I don't mind waiting, as the 3G it's still not that important to me..IIs did serve me more than enough for the time being..

Whatever it is, I suppose they didn't get a very good start. Its definitely overpriced.

At $1,488 for the 838, me no tempted to upgrade my Mini.
Hope we can all hold out for a while and let the response speak for itself.
Then our Dopod friend will learn quickly that we are not "Luo Poks" (carrot heads)!

Most of us have not yet even physically touch and see the Dopod 900 and 838 and the company has already made it a deal breaker.

Before that, our Malaysian conterparts were moaning about the high price and today we are at the receiving end of it too

I believe that Dopod is starting on the wrong foot by first not giving out any news about the availability here and now the great price hike.

What if it is $1888 without GST like some Sim Lim Square retailers will quote you first then give you the price with GST after you want to pay for it, $1982.4 with GST for the Dopod 900 ?

Looks like we have to vote with our money by not purchasing it. For those who "die-die" want to buy it, is time for alternative avenues to buy it whether from the internet or from overseas when you are on vacation.

From Clove technology,

http://www.clove-tech.co.uk/products/produ...ntElement=23709

Imate JasJar(£525) plus delivery to Singapore(£24) = £549 which is about S$1647

Add with Singapore GST S$1647 x 5% = S$1730

There is a savings of S$158.

It is a waste of time for Dopod to enrol into Singapore market to just make a quick bucks.

Like I mentioned before, the device does not worth that much at all, it is probably worth the same price as a XDA IIs, imagine that it just come extra with VGA and 3G capabilities and it upgraded its price to almost the $2K region. Must be MAD!

Even 02 does not take this kind of opportunity.... as we all can see, the Dopod is not gearing much respect in the Asia region, probably due to the high pricing and the 'Unknown' Service Level.

Maybe it is good that if they clarified the price increased and also what kind of service are they offering to the consumer?

Wonder if the price increase is related to the 'HIKE' in the oil industries as well.

Firstly, we all need to understand that it's Dopod International (S) Corp. Pte. Ltd. not Dopod Charity. Therefore, it's reasonable for Dopod to price their products to make a profit. That said, I thought the previous prices of $1,288 and $1,788 were a little steep but struck a good balance between the company and consumers' interests.

As mentioned by the Dopod rep last night and their press release, High Tech Computer (HTC), the makers of Wizard and Universal is its strategic partner while O2 is not. Do a Google and it's a open secret that the chairman of HTC has a major stake in Dopod. Perhaps that's why Dopod has exclusive rights in this part of the world. A monopoly can only spell trouble for consumers. In this case, we see the Dopod 838 and 900 being priced (for a lack of better word) exorbitantly at S$1,488 and S$1,888.

From previous experiences, we know that O2 products have a knack of retaining its RRP. But, as Dopod is a new kid in town, we have no indication of its pricing strategy yet. The prices could be volatile and follow the market demand.

Does it make sense for geeks/early adopters like us (actually more like suckers) to play the waiting game? Perhaps we should learn to "Outwit, Outplay, Outlast" for one time, rather than get all suckered into paying top dollar for a product? What do you think?

Price is steep for me too, it is just $200 shy of 2K. Alot of money for a Pocket PC Phone. The only outstanding feature is the QWERTY pad, swivle screen and first 3G PPCPhone, a la-tablet feel. These are the only features absent from other PPCPE in the market.

Looking at it if there is another PPCPE with these "special" features we can see a price war which is good for the consumer, but right now they have the market.

Samsung has a few PPCPE up thier sleeves from the last trade show, they feature PPCPE with QWERTY and pop up screens similar to the 838. Therefore unless we see similarly placed products which are almost apples to apples interms of special features, Dopod commands the price mark at the moment.

But guys do give your views.

i for one, will not pay close to 1.9k for a pocket pc device. despite the psychological pricing, it is really too steep for me to jump onto the bandwagon. as many has said, 1.9k can actually get you a low-end notebook with cash to spare, or even a high-end desktop for that money. guess it all boils down to portability, for a huge device in terms of size and money... :)

Dopod 900 is promoted as more of a up-market product for working pros rather than just a toy for people like us. However, if you have a real need and with plenty of $$$ (like intensive use of 3G and as a PDA) then go ahead and buy it otherwise move over to other WM5 equivalent products. No big deal

I wonder how many Dopod patriots here would stick to their patriotism now

Patriots? You have a funny way of describing people.

The price is really a let down to majority of us here. I was at first, so determine on getting a local warranty Universal.Unfortunately when they announce the revised price, I think I'll rather buy an export set .No local warranty, but at least cheaper by $100-200.

my 2cents

I believe that most of us know that whether it is O2 or Dopod , they are in the business of making money and not a charity.

What we want is a reasonably priced item and not overpriced to make more money.

It will be good to see how well Dopod penetration in the Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore market as there is a huge price difference between China and Taiwan.

-1 for no news from Dopod marketing.
Another -1 for not knowing the sweet spot price from Dopod Marketing.

I got my spv M5000 for 89 pounds on orange uk.
im on a 25 pound a month contract, and pay 5 pounds for insurance (anything wrong with phone or lost etc next day replacement...at your doorstep)

i think you guys are really getting ripped off.....

your best bet is to buy on ebay

actually, the price was mentioned by the representative of dopod, $1888 inclusive of GST with bundles.

And yes, its way too high for a PPC. After hearing the presentation and the Q&A by the Dopod guy , well, I must say, it is a "ai do lai, mai do suat" marketing tatics. I was so put off by his so call presentation. His attitude ... well .... for one to judge then.

Year 2006, there will be more smartphones that comes with 3G, Wi-Fi too, so why priced dopod at such high price?

Frankly, it is not a matter or whether we can afford, I am sure quite alot of people do, to me, it is a matter of the price versus the device.

hahaha, time will tell indeed.

dopod 838 $ 1488 i might as well get a O2 atom with much better features without the keypad(i'm not really a fan of thumbpads actually)

anyway, dopod no doubt is no charity(which company is?) but the way they are marketing themselves, they are not appealing at all. being a new entrant in singapore market, it's hard for them to establish themselves here if they were to give such a pricing to us. it's no longer the pre-internet world. people nowadays alwayz compare prices with global prices and we all know that dopod is like trying to bite a huge chunk out of us.

Oh..... S$1888 for a few pieces of plastic, screwed together with bits of metal and glass here and there, which cost them no more than a hundred bucks to manufacture, no wonder the luxury business is still thriving. Ummmm... early version of WM5???? Just wait loooh.. After the initial hype and euphoria, the dust shall soon settle and reality set in, then we can pick it up at prices more representative of their worth and with new and more stable release of WM5 too and who knows what else thrown in.

It use to be great to rush to be among the very first to hold the latest in technology as responsible company then, at the very least, conduct some form of burn-in test before release, but these days, if you are one, you are no more than another of the thousands of unpaid beta testers to help these company make better releases. So hold on to your horses, nothing really lost, no real pride in being the real sucker, you still got your gen 2 and a half phone, X50v, O2, H4700,etc.... and above all your S$1888 still in your pocket.

Just my 2 cents worth, certainly cheaper than S1888.

$1888 is very high. IMO, might be better to wait a while. Remember the Dopod rep said that they aim to release 2 new products every quarter? Remember also the mention of "price adjustment" according to market requirements? I suspect that may mean a steeper price decline than O2 for example.

I for one am hoping for a VERY steep price decline if noone/few people bite at the initial price. Suspect their market strategy is to hit early adopters for as much profit as they can and then lower prices to get rid of excess stocks.

Good things come to those who wait?? Think we need a mole in the dopod offices....

I also agree. Far too expensive. For that price I could get an x51v and a laptop from Dell, maybe paying $200 extra.

Interestingly, the O2 guy's prodigy had a Dopod rom when I borrowed it to look.

He said it was because only Dopod had latest rom.

what i trying to say is 1788 has already created a "thick" wall but the wall is even thicker.

I've just read the Weekend Today paper, page 39.

Rcommended retail price for Dopod 900 is $1788 and 838 is $1288. Looks like the price is in black and white with the announcement in the paper.

Today paper have to make a price correction if it is true that the price is $1888 and $1488 instead.

HTH.

Even if you decided to be a 'carrot head' and go for the D900, you must be prepared to hear satirize comment on your spending from friends.

That was the RRP that was announced at the Press Conference last week. The updated price was only known last night (last minute surprise?).

The issue is not the price increase. The issue lies in your need-to-buy vs your want-to-buy attitude

Many here have the want-to-buy attitude rather than the need-to-buy attitude. Why? Because owning an expensive bleeding edge technological device projects an image of first few locally to have such a device and probably showing off by belting it or even carrying it in your hand since you don't have deep pockets to hold it. What's the correct Hokkien term they use.....?

Now, an increase of $100 changes everything like seriousy evaluating the product in every aspects to justify the purchase which was not done before.

If you have a need-to-buy attitude why bother even if the price is increased to $2K, right?

Sure you can wait for the price to drop as long as you can cast aside that bue tahan itchiness for at least 6 months lah (IMO).

Evaluating your wants and needs in buying such an expensive device is important. Think carefully before making this investment.

Another -1 for the Dopod marketing team for not updating the local media about the price increase.

If the price is 2k, most people would settle with a laptop lor... 1888 is far too high price to pay. Went around walk walk at funan got quite a few laptop are around the 1.8 - 2K region nowadays.

N i personal comment about Dopod 900... the red backlight sux big time, but the speakers on the side are pretty good i must admit. So get an export set from O2, black colour body and cool blue backlight for the keyboards.

So what if they are bundling 1GB SD and 1 handfrees (probably not Jabra one from what i heard), most of the pals here who owns a mini or a IIs or a IIi would already have a 1 GB SD card with them. If they bundle with 2 GB SD and Jabra 330 maybe it would sweeten the deal.

Guys, I am voting with my wallet.

Instead, I am buying a Sony VGN-U8G ultraportable which uses full WinXP OS with Celeron-M 900 cpu...20GB hdd...only 550g and size of 3x O2 Mini placed side by side..

It has a 5'' clearbrite 800x600 screen that can do up to 1600x1200 virtual screen....great for Web surfing with normal browser like Firefox, Opera, etc..

Use all your favourite and normal PC apps like MS Office 2003, Visio, etc.

Important is can also use software firewall like NIS2005 or McAfee, since there are alot of spyware recently...danger when browsing the Web..

All this....Dopod 900 with its measly window mobile OS...cannot do at all...and WAYYYYY OVER PRICEDDDDD!!!!!!!

Sony VGN-U8G - S$2300

Dopod 900 - S$1888

It is a no-brainer for me...hope I have enlightened some guys here.

Have a look at the Sony U8G at Sony Singapore Web site or Best Denki Taka.

Yah, forgot to add.

Just buy a normal small-sized 3G samsung phone.

Connect the Sony U8G via BT and use the 3G samsung phone as modem...

I see you really a fan already.

$1888 is too high for sure, considering how fast prices of ppc's fall.

Well, I feel that best move we can all make to let them know how unhappy we are is to resist buying their products, and let the market forces crush them to bits.

I own a 6365, and have been eagerly anticipating the arrival of this device. All my friends tell me its bulky, too X, and I was like "But its a 3g phone with VGA!!"

Now they have me convinced. @ 1888, not even if hell freezes over am I going to buy this thing. Man, add a few hundred bucks more and you can pass a driving course at driving school, not to mention getting a laptop!!

Then again, with the right Karma, passing driving is muuuuuch cheaper.

$1,888-the cost of a small laptop from Dell...

They should have used the name Exec from O2....not for executive,but exclusive...Dopod EXeclusive..

I think they really targeting the High end user or rich businessman who never visit ppcsg but needs a new toy to show off to his friends during rounds of golf and mistresses.....

But watever it is...they can price it all they want la...they got a nifty machine that has a drool worthy specs that may temp even those conservatives to part with $1888....there's non compared to it in the mobile device world...not yet anyway..

1888......ah! Go buy 4D..if strike can buy!! Hahahahaha..

Strike 4D, i also wun get the Dopod version... i would get a O2 exec export set... since 4D money come free... i don't mind having an export set...

Black colour casing, blue colour keyboard backlight and 200 - 300 dollars cheaper...

$1 888 lucky number but $1 488 not a good number.

i really think eventually there will still always be quite a few early adopters. Someone who die die want a 3G fone (not just for video calls) but having faster transfer speeds when not in a hotspot area. They will be the people that will pay this amount regardless. SO i think Dopod will win and still gain the consumers at this price still eventually. The small majority will just wait for the prices to dive. And even if prices dive, my take is that few will take up the exec because of the size and cumbersome of its size. The 2s adoptors may go for the smaller dopod as it still has a keyboard and current mini users for its Wi-Fi.

So far there are non that competes in this area and the nokias n70 meagre functionality of a MS office is just too far off.

I myself though still find that Microsoft mobile ver5 is really a marginal change from the version 2003 SE. Honestly, i am just too fed up with the bugs and tidious steps of poor integration of a PDA with phone functions. So those who currently have the current 2003 version will find it little reason to upgrade. And the speed of Wi-Fi still surpasses the 3G functionality.

I really still hope that they will improve the corefunction of a PDA....
Pocket Explorer
Better address book without the needs addons of pocket informant
better calendar without the needs addons of pocket informant
Alarm and ring tone bug fixes
MS Word to view AND EDIT decent and common word documents with add ons
Beaming/BT and sending/receiving files/contact cards/calendar items.


p/s- U guys should try the 9500. at least just for a week if u can find one...... the PIM functions are just so far superior. really.

gave it a test.. when it was launched last year.

the screen is beautiful.
kept on want to tap on the screen.

too used to touch screen i suppose

Haha, i did the same thing on my friends 9300 when he borrow to try
and my friend ask me y i touch the screen with my finger??

judging from all the price hikes, im deciding whether to get a BenQ p50 instead, with much more savings, i could have gotten a spare batt, additional SD card, leather casing or even desktop charger? and have alot more saving to spare. given the amount to buy a dopod 900..

Any advise guys ?

Yes!.. P50 is definitely a good buy!.. especially with the latest ROM...

I heard its sellign @ $900 at Harvey Norman now....

pardon my noobness, u mean the rom i will have to get it flashed myself or the fones in stock already have been upgraded wih new rom ?

The new stocks in town should be at least 1.08version, which is 2nd latest and stable version...

Some new stocks might be 1.11version, which is the latest and have some improvements...

You can feel free to check on the spot on the version, and you can also flash the ROM at the service center...

BTW, the BenQP50 promotion for this 2 days are at Harvey Normal Millennia walk..

see here: http://benqp50.atsingapore.org/index.php?o...&id=30&Itemid=2