This is for later reference (and Google) because it took way too long for me to find these answers myself.

Cingular has a support forum here which has been a very good source of information. I’d love to know what forum software they’re using…it’s extremely usable and a pleasure to navigate (can you tell I’ve been in forum-mode at work lately?) For the really geeky stuff that Cingular probably wouldn’t want you to know about, go to Howard Forums.

This phone does GPRS/EGDE as well as wi-fi. The GPRS/EDGE browsing uses a proxy server which makes browsing far more responsive than it would be without it. Catch is, you can’t surf via a wi-fi connection with the proxy server. I was having difficulty connecting to my home network. I was connecting fine, I was getting an IP address but the browser would be stuck at “Locating…” on every page. The answer: Opera. I’ve been harsh on Opera ever since they dangled a Mac version in front of our eyes (we’re talking at least 10 years ago) but wanted a commitment of payment up front to start development. I never saw in Opera a reason to replace Firefox. But, wow, their browser for Windows Mobile devices is fantastic. Much better rendering that Pocket IE. Multiple windows. Easier to work with on a small screen. And it’s fast without the proxy server. As a matter of fact, it completely ignores the proxy server so I can switch between GPRS/EDGE and wi-fi without a hitch. It’s $29 and worth it. At least until Mozilla comes out with a Mobile version of Firefox.

Would you believe how difficult it is to figure out how to do a hard reset on this thing? Took some searching but I finally found the answer: hold down both buttons on the upper sides of the phone (comm center and voice command), then stick the stylus in the reset button for about 3 seconds, release the side buttons, then release the stylus. You’ll then get the window asking for confirmation before deleting everything. If you have control of the device, it’s easier to just Start -> Settings -> System -> Clear Storage. But if it’s locked up, you’ll need the 3–handed salute.

External storage is mandatory. There’s only about 44MB free RAM on this right out of the box. It goes fast, especially if you have a lot of tasks, contacts and calendar items like I do. I picked up a 512MB Mini SD card for $50 at CompUSA yesterday. I could have done much better online I’m sure, but I don’t need more than a 512 MB card right now anyway.

When you receive a voice mail message, it pops a nice little notification icon in the menu bar and the left soft key changes to “Notification.” Great. But I couldn’t get rid of the icon/soft key alert even after I emptied the inbox. Took a call to Cingular support to get the answer: Leave yourself a voicemail message (in fact the Cingular employee did while we were on the phone). Wait a few minutes to be sure it’s in the box, then dial in, listen and delete the message, and then this is the important part…hang up by hitting the * (star) key. Wait until the recorded voice says "Goodbye" and then the notification should clear. It worked.