Mount for HTC Desire

[Rob3rt]

The thing with a garmin (for example) it that it is meant to be strapped to handlebars and is thus designed to fit the purpose and the warranty reflects this (we it should do anyway). A HTC desire is designed to be a smartphone. These mapping and sports apps simply take advantage of the technology in a phone. HTC and android won't limit this ability, but at the same time they won't offer any protection when used in this way. If they did there would be an official HTC mount with a appropriate warranty. Maybe there is one?

With Google navigation,car mounts will become available if not already available, but in a car its safe from the weather, if it springs off the mount its only going to drop on the dash or car floor.

Does the desire have a hole to pot a small camera wrist strap to save in the case of a pop of the bracket event. I can't see one, just one hole but no exit. Maybe I'm not spotting this feature on mine.

 

[Rezillo]

Does the desire have a hole to pot a small camera wrist strap to save in the case of a pop of the bracket event. I can't see one, just one hole but no exit. Maybe I'm not spotting this feature on mine.

Curious tone - you know there is no tether hole!

I mentioned above that one should drill the Amzer holder to take a tether. This in turn means the bracket must be secure around the phone but it is not without a plastic tie added at the top. Amzer can improve their bracket to avoid using a tie but there's no way to modify the phone itself. Having said that, tethering the holder is actually a better solution as it clamps the battery cover in place, which a direct phone tether will not do.

That's one of the two annoying features of the Desire - no wrist tether point, so you risk dropping it using it as a camera, and the short one touch on button, which means that every time you check to see if your phone is on or off, it turns on if it is already off.

John

 

[Rob3rt]

Curious tone - you know there is no tether hole!

I mentioned above that one should drill the Amzer holder to take a tether. This in turn means the bracket must be secure around the phone but it is not without a plastic tie added at the top. Amzer can improve their bracket to avoid using a tie but there's no way to modify the phone itself. Having said that, tethering the holder is actually a better solution as it clamps the battery cover in place, which a direct phone tether will not do.

That's one of the two annoying features of the Desire - no wrist tether point, so you risk dropping it using it as a camera, and the short one touch on button, which means that every time you check to see if your phone is on or off, it turns on if it is already off.

John

I did not know there is no tether hole, I haven't really checked, I thought maybe you could secure one using that 1 hole on the bottom somehow such as something inside and just the tether sticking out of there as maybe a design feature but its something I haven't looked at since I don't use my phone as a camera often, and rarely pull the back of since it feels kind flimsy.

The one touch power button is stupid yes. The fact that the volume buttons don't lock when playing media is also annoying. I personally find the camera operation awkward too.

 

[Rob3rt]

I don't understand the problem. Mine just turns the display on and off if you touch it once. If you hold it down it gives shut down options.

So if the display is off I touch the button and it lights up. Then I do the security pattern and I'm away.

If you turn the phone off, sometimes the screen will go dark before its actually turned off while its shutting down, so you don't know if it is off, so if you tap the power button once to see if phone is off, it turns on.

 

[Rob3rt]

Yeah like on flights etc you can't tell of its turned of, pressing.button it the only way, if it not off yet, it will light screen up again, if it was off, it won't be any more, queue repeating the process watching phone like a hawk hoping it shuts down before screen locks. Lol

 

[Jezston]

Guess I've not had that problem either - although turning it off is indeed a bit of a faff. You could always put it on flight mode if it's for aeroplane use?

Back on topic, I understand the concerns about risking the device, which is why I'm looking for one nice and secure - I already have a rubber shield around my phone so I'm not being cavalier with it, but I would want a mount where the whole mount is more likely to come off than the phone from the mount, and that that would be pretty unlikely itself!

Yes it would be better to have specifically designed items for the job - a proper dedicated GPS for GPS, a Countour HD for a camera - but I have the phone anyway, so thought it might be worth a go!

Rezillo: I don't suppose that mount you linked to have a gap for the camera to poke through? Or does it block it off?

 

[Rob3rt]

Guess I've not had that problem either - although turning it off is indeed a bit of a faff. You could always put it on flight mode if it's for aeroplane use?

Thats true you could. It was a for instance, there are other occasions one may wish to turn of their phone. I rarely turn mine off but occasionally it needs to be turned off, and this one touch power button is annoying, it should have a 2 sec hold to turn on or something. One touch means it can accidently get turned on simply being in your pocket since the button is easily pressed.

 

[Rezillo]

I'll check the mount later to see if there is camera clearance. If you're interested in locally stored maps, Viewranger is good, imho. The maps seem to be better value than their rivals but bear in mind that the app is still in beta for Android and doesn't yet have all the features of the symbian version.

John

P.S. Sorry for upsetting Robert earlier.

 

[Rob3rt]

I'll check the mount later to see if there is camera clearance. If you're interested in locally stored maps, Viewranger is good, imho. The maps seem to be better value than their rivals but bear in mind that the app is still in beta for Android and doesn't yet have all the features of the symbian version.

John

P.S. Sorry for upsetting Robert earlier.

I am not upset

 

[Rezillo]

Rezillo: I don't suppose that mount you linked to have a gap for the camera to poke through? Or does it block it off?

Jezston - I've checked this evening and the Amzer mount does block the camera off.

John

 

[Jezston]

Bugger. Thanks anyway!

 

[Glenn]

Overstock.com have Nexus One motorcycle mounts, but they won't ship it to the UK, I'm waiting to see if my friends son can ship one to me.

 

[Windward]

I've been looking to use my Desire on the handlebars too. I keep looking for a good mount, but no luck for me either... Some chaps cable tied a waterproof case called Boxit to the stem, but it's too small for the desire (I was going to get a Hero, and it would have been perfect for that ). Ortlieb do a waterproof GPS cover that attaches to the top of a bar bag, I'm probably going to go for that and charge the desire from my dynamo, but it's no good if you're a zip zip go fast sort of rider who doesn't carry luggage!

PS. I found an awesome mapping app called Maverick that lets you cache google, osm, ordnance survey and the sustrans maps from a pc, I found it really useful to escape the Basildon dual carriageway purgatory last week.

 

[Londoner]

Have you tried Holders and Mounts' Herbert Richter bike mounts? I have "full swivel" bike mount for my iPhone 4.

 

[Chutzpah]

Sorry for the thread resurrection, but has anyone with a Desire purchased a mount and happy to rate it?

Most of the ones I've seen online look a little flimsy to say the least. I was out with someone with a really decent looking iPhone mount today, is it just a case that more third parties have been developing mounts for the iPhone?

I just want my phone nearby to check the map on it once in a while when I'm out in unknown country lanes. Currently I have to stop, get my phone out, check, put it back in my pocket and then get going again... That's a bit annoying around my way as road signs are few and far between