Vista SP1 for HTC Shift arrives via Automatic Updates

The Windows Vista Team Blog announced two weeks ago that Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1), which became available as a standalone package in mid-March, would be rolled out slowly to users who have "automatic updates" turned on and whose machines don't contain any problematic drivers. Today, those two conditions were met by me and my HTC Shift X9500.

The Shift's 800MHz A110 processor isn't well suited for multitasking, so unlike on my Vaio TZ (which, incidentally, still hasn't gotten SP1), whenever there are updates available, I wait until I'm done with whatever I'm doing before letting Windows do its thing. I generally install anything marked "important" and "recommended" that Windows Update offers me (I use the "Check for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them" setting), so when SP1 appeared without fanfare, I almost missed it and continued checking my RSS feeds.

I had an about 90 minutes to spare before I needed to leave the house, so I figured the 66.9MB update, whose long list of improvements can be found at the Windows Vista TechCenter, would have more than enough time to download and install.

It didn't.

The download itself took nearly half an hour. After that, Windows let me know that it could take another hour or more for the installation to be complete and that I wouldn't be able to use the Shift until everything was complete. Even though I prepared not to use it, it was still a little jarring to see that what has always been my choice was now a requirement.

By the time I needed to get out of the house, SP1 had only gotten through 12% of the first of three stages in its installation.

I don't know how much longer it took to complete, but when I got home two hours later, it had installed successfully and without issue. I haven't noticed any difference in performance since then, but my Windows Experience Index base score, which was 2.0 when I first set up the Shift, is now 2.1. It's an insignificant upgrade, sure, but it's an upgrade nonetheless.

The service pack through Automatic Updates hasn't caused any trouble for me so far, but the same can't be said for those who installed the standalone package. While several users at the xda-developers forum are experiencing issues with 3G connectivity using the balanced power plan, Pocketables reader Ian left the following comment on my Shift unboxing post:

HTC do need to sort out the Vista driver issues. The display driver gets headaches after the sp1 installation, the SD card pops in and out of existence, while the NDIS driver for the HSDPA gets lost on the Vista side. The display driver in particular can lead to blue screens.

The fact that SP1 was automatically distributed to my Shift leads me to assume that the driver issues have indeed been sorted out, but I'll keep you posted if something happens to make me think otherwise.

If you've got an HTC Shift that "qualifies" for Vista Service Pack 1, be on the lookout for the update soon.

Comments

[mw65719]

Hi Jenn,

I also installed SP1 via "automatic updates" (I'm using the same setting as you - mainly because I want to make sure that downloading updates happens when I'm on WiFi, not using my limited volume mobile (UMTS) data plan).
If I remember correctly, I had to reinstall the HTC Control Center application.
Other than that, I have not yet had any issues.

[Jenn]

I heard about the Control Center having issues after the update but haven't experienced any with mine.

Are you noticing any performance improvements?

[Dave]

Hi,
I'm too having 3G connectivity problems in Vista, after using the stand alone SP1 update.

SnapVUE shows that the device is connected to my T-Mobile 3G network, but Vista has intermittent (mainly disconnected) connection to the Internet.

I'm just in the throws of removing SP1 and seeing if that resolves the issue.

I will then try the automatic update for SP1.... fingers crossed...

[mw65719]

Frankly, I haven't used the Vista side of the Shift enough before getting SP1, so I can't tell the difference - neither regarding performance nor anything else

[Jenn]

Rats. I think SP1 might've killed my speakers. The drivers are still intact and supposedly up-to-date and functioning properly, but there is absolutely no sound coming out of the speakers flanking the Shift's screen.

I don't use the speakers much so I didn't realize until just now that they were dead. I'm still not sure exactly when they stopped working, so I won't point the finger at SP1 just yet.

[Sigma]

I reinstalled my Shift, because it was no more possible to remove SP1, since I run Windows Vista again without SP1 all 3G connection problems disapeared!!

[Dave]

I also renstalled the Shift using the 'Hard Disk Recovery' option (f3 at startup). At first I thought that had fixed the 3G issue, but it has since returned...

I have tried using the 'Clear SnapVUE Utility', from HTC. This sometimes brings back the connection, after reconfiguring the 3G network settings in SnapVUE, but I haven't have a sustained period of internet connectivity for more than about 10 minutes, before Vista loses the connection...

This device looks great and has a good range of features, I just don't think Vista is a stable OS.