SPB Phonesuite vs phoneAlarm

[CorruptedSanity]

So which is better?

SPB Phone suite or phoneAlarm?

I particulary like the ability to have my profiles switched based on cellID. That means vibrator @ the movies, medium volume @ work and so on.

I do plan on getting SPB Mobile Shell and SPB DIary. So maybe getting the phonesuite will be a better plug in to SPB Mobile shell.

[shannoncole05]

I prefer Phone Suite - especially since it it integrates well with shell, diary, pocket plus, etc. PA kept getting me out of control with my profiles, like thinking I was silent in a meeting and wasn't. Probably my fault for causing this behavior but too much detail for me.

[PerfAlbion]

I also found PA to have much more than I need, and didn't want to take the time to tweak it endlessly. Phone Suite is nice, direct, and simple. And I also use a bundle of other SPB software, so having it as integrated as it can be is quite nice.

The nice thing is that SPB provides full-featured demo periods, so you can always give it a shot and see if it does what you want. I can say that there's less control than PA, but it's quite functional.

[JDSX]

I own both PhoneAlarm and AlarmToday but this week I removed them while running a trial for Mobile Shell, Phone Suite, Pocket Plus, and Diary. So far I've removed Pocket Plus but kept the rest and I think the switch will be permanent. They are better looking and more effective.

[GekoCH]

I own both PhoneAlarm and AlarmToday but this week I removed them while running a trial for Mobile Shell, Phone Suite, Pocket Plus, and Diary. So far I've removed Pocket Plus but kept the rest and I think the switch will be permanent. They are better looking and more effective.

hmm I don't agree with you. I use PhoneAlarm, Pocket Plus, Diary, Time, Mobile Shell.

For me Phone Suite has to less features so for me Phone Suite is less effective then PA! In PA there are so many things you can change and it's skinnable...

Geko

[JDSX]

hmm I don't agree with you. I use PhoneAlarm, Pocket Plus, Diary, Time, Mobile Shell.

For me Phone Suite has to less features so for me Phone Suite is less effective then PA! In PA there are so many things you can change and it's skinnable...

Geko
In my opinion the skins are all pretty hideous. Of course that's a matter of personal taste. It's true that in theory I could create my own but I don't really have the time for it. Phone Suite on its own does have less features than PhoneAlarm but that doesn't translate into effectiveness. For instance, as another poster mentioned, PA is somewhat buggy when it comes to staying silent. There were times when I'd be in my vibrate-only work profile and it'd somehow shift to a louder mode without any kind of indication or visible profile change. I'd consider myself lucky to catch it on a reminder instead of a phone call. The way it integrates into the rest of the SPB products adds to its effectiveness.

[PerfAlbion]

I think what this is boiling down to is this:

If you want a really powerful app that's incredibly customizeable but might have a bug or two, PA is the way to go.

If you're looking for more basic profiles and controls with fewer bugs, then Phone Suite is a solid solution.

In fairness to PA, given the depth of controls they provide, I'm not surprised there are more issues. With the number of different devices running around, strange combinations of apps & hardware are bound to arise. I'd be amazed if they didn't. However, it does look like they're having to do many tweaks on a regular basis based on release history.

Both have free demos, so use one for a week, then the other and see which fits you better.

[srmz]

My biggest complaint against SPB PhoneSuite is that it doesn't have audible repeating alarms for Missed Calls & Unread Text Messages. Furthermore PhoneAlarm addresses another inherent weakness of the WM operating system by providing repeating alarms for reminders as well and this works very reliably.

[PerfAlbion]

Phone Suite does have audible repeating alarms for Missed Calls and Unread SMS. At least, the current version does. You can configure whether you want an alarm for missed calls, SMS, or both on a schedule you set. I've turned off the SMS reminder, but that's my preference.

You're right on the repeating reminders, but some calendar replacements do this already so it may be SPB looking to avoid software conflicts.

[shannoncole05]

http://www.sbsh.net/products/phoneweaver/

The least feature rich but OK for profile management.

[Jizzay1]

http://www.sbsh.net/products/phoneweaver/

The least feature rich but OK for profile management.

I second Phone Weaver. Its recent updates have made it very useful (and cheap!)

[srmz]

I am sorry Perfalbion for my ignorance. I read about the SBP PhoneSuite from their site and could not make up that it did have audible alarm for missed calls / SMS. Thanks for updating me on this.

Regards

[CorruptedSanity]

Wow thanks a bunch guys!

Ill prolly end up downloading both and seeing which one I like more.