[HTC Vox] prajith:
I have used Dr. Gonzo's WM6.1 ROM(nice work!) and some other WM6.1 ROMS. I even cooked a version of my own for my requirements.

But after 2 weeks of using the WM6.1 ROM I am back to my WM6 ROM.

The reason is that I think WM6.1 is not a worthy upgrade to WM6.0 and there are no real benefits for regular users to upgrade to 6.1 ROM.

WM6.1 is useful for only managed environments (read company phone) who by the way don't use cooked ROM so technically Vox is not being used in a managed environment anywhere since it has no official WM6.1 ROM.

Now for regular users:

To make WM6.1 appear as a tempting upgrade Microsoft brought out the slide panel interface and threaded sms which are the only two noticeable features features of this ROM for regular users.

Threaded SMS was already available for WM6 ROM from different software vendors take for example Extreme Text. Now these work better than Microsoft's implementation of threaded messaging and support many additional features too(pictures, smilies etc).

But the basic trouble with threaded messaging is that it's not suitable for heavy texters. As the number of messages grow in your device the time taken to load the messages into a thread increases proportionately.

This is because the messages are still stored as individual messages and there is logic involved to put them into a thread based on sender, receiver and the time of the message.

To summarize threaded sms works good only if you text only to a few people and the volume is low.

Now lets turn to the sliding panel interface.

This is really nice addition. More information shown in a better way.

Looks nice too. But the implementation again is not right.

It cannot be configured as easily as the earlier homescreens(needs 3rd party software which also provides limited functionality) and hey what about the MRU icons? Does sliding panel support that? That was a important feature for me.

The main problem with sliding panel is its battery consumption.

It consumes a lot more of battery power than the earlier homescreens.

To understand the difference it makes, Just use the Windows default theme(disable recent programs) on your WM6.1 ROM for a day and observe the battery life. It gets extended by 10-15% depending on your usage of the device. So though the sliding panel is a nice addition, it comes at a cost.

Now if there is anything that I have left out or did not notice, do point it out.

I want to ask all WM6.1 users what exactly are the reasons which makes you stick to the WM6.1 ROM.

Is it the innate urge to have the LATEST version of OS running on the device, or is it because you really find it better than the WM6 version?

If you really like the WM6.1 version please point out the 5 reasons why you find it to be better than WM6.

Please mention verifiable points which can be observed.

(speed is not verifiable and I don't think WM6 is slower in any way. Or is it?)

My vote is against WM6.1 because:

1.Sliding panel battery consumption.

2.Sluggish threaded messaging (for heavy texters)

3.No new features for regular users.

p.s.

is this why we don't see a HTC official WM6.1 upgrade for VOX, are they waiting for the next version? but Vox does not have the hardware necessary to support the main features of WM7(shake, twist sensors).