aboutBefore writing anything else I must warn all readers that changing the operating systems on your mobile will void the warranty. If the upgrade process fails the phone might be damaged and no service will fix that for free. Do it on your own risk and make sure the following list is satisfied:

  • Ask people about the ROM you want to install. Make sure it did not brake any phone.
  • The phone’s battery must be at least 50% charged (better 100%)
  • Make sure you have and UPS. Or a laptop with good battery because if you cancel the process after it started the results might be unexpected.
  • Make sure the USB cable is firmly connect and is not broken!

I cannot be made responsible for any damages caused directly or indirectly by this article.

On PortegeClub.com there is a WM 6.5 ROM Release Candidate for the G900. Because PortegeClub is not always working I uploaded the ROM on my server  and you can download it from this link. It is not the kitchen version (clean version) and it includes some software but it is reasonable and it is not bloated.

The upgrade process is simple:superruu

  1. Get the ROM
  2. Get SuperRUU
  3. Run SuperRUU on a 32 bit Windows machine
  4. Select the ROM image and check the “OS” radio button
  5. Click “Upgrade target”.
  6. Turn off the phone and start it while pressing the left softkey. A red screen should appear informing you that you need USB connection.
  7. Connect the phone to the PC running SuperRUU and the upgrade process should start. Do not interrupt it!!! It takes about two minutes.

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WM6.5 brings a new startup logo and animation and a lot of other visual changes.

wm65_startwm65_logo

The first thing you will notice after startup is the new redesigned Today screen which supports widgets just like the HTC home screen. It’s aspect is nice but you will find out soon that it cannot be customized. The only item supporting customization is the favorites widget :( Like usual there are widgets for time, messages, calls, pictures and music. Also you can use the classical Today screen items but you will use the eye-candy widgets. What I really enjoyed is that you can scroll through items by moving your finger over the screen in any region not just on the right side – this is a nice addition and also works for menus.

today_01 today_02 today_03 today_04

Another major interface change is the start menu. Well it is no longer MENU, it’s a start screen that displays shortcuts to applications and phone settings. They are all arranged in the well-known WM6.5 combs and have a nice aspect. You can also scroll through items with your finger and when you get to the top/bottom of the menu there is a visual bounce effect that creates a realistic sensation. What is hard here is to navigate with the hardware DPad through items because pressing right many times cycles through a “row” of the comb and is not going the lower items. You must use all directions to navigate.

start_1 start_2

There are some other major visual changes but I don’t have screenshots for them. The first thing is the unlock screen which has an object that must be slide in order to unlock the phone just like on iPhone. The second are the menus that are larger and more “finger-friendly” – you can navigate easily with the finger through them.

On my G900 screen rotation took almost 10 seconds (from portrait to landscape). While using the PDA in landscape the icons seemed crowded, hard to follow and the Today screen was not so good looking.

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Because it is not an official release I cannot say it works bad. There could be “unofficial” reasons why this is not working properly. Anyhow, I haven’t seen other major changes except the interface. The problem with interface changes is that you get used to them quickly and then you start to see what is not working. The ringtones are corrupted in this ROM and the SD card is disconnecting after a few hours so I reverted the ROM to a kitchen version of Windows Mobile 6.1 – you should try the 6.5, it’s a nice experience!