Toggle Between Vibrate and Ringer Mode

I just learned today that no matter what you have the Comm Manager button (upper left on the side) assigned to, if you press and hold it, it will toggle between vibrate mode and ringer mode. I wonder what other tidbits about the K-Jam I haven't discovered?

Figured Out What Causes The Sound Problem

Back in January I posted that the K-Jam had an issue where the sound totally dies with a trick to fix it, short of doing a soft reset. Well, last night I accidentally discovered the cause and an even easier fix - and yes, this still happens with the new AKU2/MSFP enabled ROM from I-Mate.

I got a phone call, but instead of ringing, the device was silent. I have mine set to vibrate as well which is how I knew it was an incoming call. I took my Jabra BT-250 headset out of my pocket and put in my ear. Before I could press the answer button on the headset, the phone rang one more time - right in my ear! Normally it rings at the device and the headset has a nice soothing electronic beep that sounds like it is in a glass of water - nothing that could damage your ear drum.

That got me thinking. The sound on the K-Jam isn't dying, it is being transferred to the headset for some reason. It happened again today and the fix was simple. Just press the button on the headset. Somehow it is getting turned on and pressing it turns it off, sending the sound back to the K-Jam speaker.

So, case solved. Not sure why this happens or if it is the Jabra BT-250's problem, a problem with the K-Jam or a problem with the BT stack that Microsoft provides for the K-Jam. If this is happening to any of you, let me know if you have a bluetooth headset and what the model is.

AKU2 ROM For K-Jam Released?

Some diligent members at XDA Developers have noticed a new English and Arabic ROM for the K-Jam, and are reporting that it includes AKU2, which should have MSFP. That means if you have Exchange 2003 SP2, you can get the new direct push email notifications. I haven't downloaded it yet to see what is included though. Download speeds are reported to be very slow.

K-Jam Sister 8100 Available From Cingular

By now, many of you are aware the Cingular 8125 is available, at least according to their web site. I've heard from those trying to order it that it is on back order. It comes with or without a camera. The K-Jam is called the model WIZA200 in the device info panel. I think the 8100 series is the Wizard 100 line. Other than the face plate and keyboard design, and the option of a cameraless version, it is virtually identical to the Wizard 200 models from i-mate (K-Jam), T-Mobile US (MDI) and numerous others worldwide.

It is a device well worth the success it seems to be enjoying.

Sound Problem With The K-Jam?

I don't know if this is unique to my device or if anyone else has seen this Sometimes the sound on my K-Jam stops working. Turning the sound off and back on via the sound icon on the start bar doesn't fix it. So far, I have found two sure-fire fixes. A soft reset always fixes it, which may suggest hardware since everything is reinitialized when it boots. However, I tripped up on another fix. I call the K-Jam from another phone. It doesn't ring of course, but does show the pop-up and vibrates. I have my phone set to ring and vibrate all of the time. I hang up the calling phone before voice mail picks up. Now the "missed call" alert sounds. That's right, sounds. Whatever happens when that is triggered fixes the problem, which suggests this is a software issue, and why I thought some of you might be experiencing it too.

Enable ClearType When In Landscape Mode

Darius has written a quick post at Pocket PC Thoughts that shows how to enable ClearType in non-native modes. For example, the K-Jam pretty much lives in portrait mode so that seems to be the way ClearType works best. When in landscape mode, CT is disabled by default. The iMate JasJar would be exactly opposite since it lives in landscape mode most of the time.

I have applied this to my K-Jam and it looks pretty good when you have the keyboard extended and the screen is sideways. Makes the email experience that much better.

BoxWave Cradle for the K-Jam

BoxWave has a cradle for for the K-Jam and all of its sister devices that are essentially the rebranded HTC Wizard. It includes an AC adapter for faster charging times. USB charging is convenient but it just so slow.


You can order it here right now for $32.95.