HTC Touch Pro Review
What are you looking at? A black diamond with a keyboard!
Oh yes, mama mia. HTC just announced their next another kick ass product called HTC Touch Pro aka The HTC Raphael. What market this gadget is intended for? It could be for the business people or white collar guy in Dow Jones or Hang Seng. Or not at all, it is just for nothing but to block the 3G iPhone impression. Perhaps you don’t believe me right now, but the market behavior tend to say it so.
If only you surf out the major gadget blogs yesterday, you might recognized that most of them are reporting the launch of this HTC Touch Pro. And most of them tell us the same thing; wow, this is cool!
Is it really that cool? Don’t worry, cause I’ll try to review it here. Just for information, I’ve done with the review of HTC Touch Diamond previously. The result is very good, this post gave us 1500+ visits since then. Cool gadget bring not only god cash for the vendors but also for blog which reviewed it. Yeah, it is a win-win solution. Here we go!
Design
This handset is a black candy bar with a slide QWERTY keyboard. Just like the stuff SE X1 or HTC own Shift series also has. Anyway, unlike any other, this one comes with five rows keyboard type which gives users an ease while typing numbers. Okay MS Office, I’m ready to go … But wait a second, the back side also has a diamond-cut motif. Just similar like its brother, the Touch Diamond.
Interface
Similar with its predecessor, the HTC Touch Diamond, HTC Raphael or Touch Pro also packed up with the magnificent TouchFLO™ 3D touchscreen software. As HTC itself said on their official site that this software will provide users a responsive interface. Means that users will get a comfortable feeling around the display screen while using every single app inside of it. Whether it is messaging, making calls, managing calendar, organize to do, playing media files, searching the contact, surf the web, or even zoom up the picture, etc. You name it guys …
Multimedia
For shadow catcher, this handset comes with 3,2 MP camera plus an auto-focus and flash light for the good of your own pictures or videos. It is just similar like the Touch Diamond already have. Oh yeah, it also let you make a video calling with VGA CMOS color camera. Hmmm, pretty common.
Network
Mixed up with HSDPA and IEEE 802.11 b/g, this is a gadget you can count on if you’re in the business that run at the speed of thought. It is a stuff that will let you upload your file at 384 kbps and download at 7.2 Mbps. Streaming YouTube videos or feed up your Google Reader is not a big anxiety anymore. Fear no webs my friends. Ummm, don’t forget this one sir; this one is also perfect if you’re like to sit on the bench of Starbucks cafe. Yummy …
Hardware
The hardware material is just get better from the previous HTC Touch Diamond. If the Diamond comes up with 528 MHz processor and 256 MB ROM than Touch Pro will goes up beyond the same processor yet a 512 MB ROM. This one will double its performance though.
Special features
It gives their users a TV-out functionality that allow them to deliver a PowerPoint presentation without any laptop. Surely, this is what most enterprise executive will love from this one.
Price and availability
There is a little bit difference here though. Dan Nystedt from PCWorld reported that an HTC representative said that the device will be out globally around August. While John Chan from Crave and Matthew Miller from ZDNet said that this 3G agent will meet their fan boy in late summer i.e. September. Well, one thing for sure here that the North and Latin American will get this stuff later this year. After Asian, Middle East, and European.
No details information on the price yet. However, as a comparison, Touch Diamond will cost at about US$857 in Taiwan next month. While an EDGE-based version of the Touch Diamond in India available at about US$646. In my opinion, this Touch Pro won’t spend your wallet higher than the Diamond since the company do not equip it with a 4 GB internal like the Diamond used to have.
Drawback
Just get ready for the price please. Oh yeah, one more thing, I’ll repeat you here, this gadget doesn’t come up with 4 GB internal storage. Well, this is actually not a significant issue for executive that doesn’t carry on a lot of media files. But in case if you are, then get ready to pack up your microSD card with it. Always!
Finally, this is the complete specifications:
- Processor: Qualcomm® MSM7201A™ 528 MHz
- Operating: System Windows Mobile® 6.1 Professional
- Memory ROM: 512 MB
- RAM: 288 MB
- Dimensions: 102 mm (L) X 51 mm (W) X 18.05 mm (T)
- Weight: 165 g (with battery)
- Display: 2.8-inch TFT-LCD flat touch-sensitive screen with VGA resolution
- Network: HSDPA/WCDMA: Europe/Asia: 900/2100 MHz Tri-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE: Europe/Asia: 900/1800/1900 MHz
- Transfer rate: Up to 384 kbps up-link and 7.2 Mbps down-link speeds (Band frequency and data speed are operator dependent.)
- Device Control TouchFLO™ 3D
- Touch-sensitive navigation control
- Keyboard Slide-out 5-row QWERTY keyboard
- GPS GPS and A-GPS ready
- Connectivity Bluetooth® 2.0 with EDR
- Wi-Fi®: IEEE 802.11 b/g
- HTC ExtUSB™ (11-pin mini-USB 2.0, audio jack, and TV Out* in one)
- Main camera: 3.2 megapixel color camera with auto focus and flash light
- Second camera: VGA CMOS color camera
- Audio Built-in microphone, speaker and FM radio with RDS
- Ring tone supported formats: MP3, AAC, AAC+, WMA, WAV, and AMR-NB 40 polyphonic and standard MIDI format 0 and 1 (SMF)/SP MIDI
- Battery Rechargeable Lithium-ion or Lithium-ion polymer battery
Capacity: 1340 mAh - Talk time: Up to 397 minutes for WCDMA or Up to 485 minutes for GSM
- Standby time: Up to 503 hours for WCDMA or Up to 406 hours for GSM
- Video call time: Up to 201 minutes for WCDMA (The above are subject to network and phone usage.)
- Expansion Slot microSD™ memory card (SD 2.0 compatible)
- AC Adapter Voltage range/frequency: 100 ~ 240V AC, 50/60 Hz
- DC output: 5V and 1A
Last note on this review:
A diamond is an HTC without keyboard!
Confusion my friend, is a virtue. Which one will you pick up; 3G iPhone, SE X1, Touch Diamond, Touch Pro, Samsung Soul B, or …… Anyway, when you see a diamond around you, it is not bad enough to call it: An HTC without keyboard! lol. Thanks HTC, you make a gadget blogger like me feel happy to write it for about almost two hours for this one.
Bravo Asia!
June 10th, 2008 at 3:20 am
Why would double the rOm increase performance, since it stores only the firmware? Isn’t rAm more important for running applications?
June 11th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
nice new gadget … increasing the RAM definitely will boost up performance… must get this new toy when it arrive…!!!
June 12th, 2008 at 6:01 am
@ Szilard, Bigger ROM means more features in its firmware. After all, this bigger ROM will let users upgrade its firmware easily.
@ hazrin1975 yes of course you can buy it if you want. Anyway, be careful on the price tag since HTC won’t sell it cheaply. As a comparison, they sold their HTC Touch Diamond product in India at $800 to $900.
I remind you that iPhone 3G will be flying down the stores on the next July 11, 2008 with maximum $299 in price tag. So, think again.
June 12th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
does the built-in wm player already have graphic equalizer? How about sound quality? Have TyTN II, planning to buy Touch Pro as soon as it is launched here in Dubai.
June 14th, 2008 at 10:07 am
@dong
Wow, you must be a rich guy aren’t you? Actually, since WM Player is one of the built in software in Windows Mobile Edition 6.1, I bet that Microsoft also provide that equalizer too.
Oh yeah, this is not a hand-on review Dong, so we couldn’t tell you the sound quality yet. But we will find out the answer for your question over the internet. Thanks before.
June 19th, 2008 at 7:30 am
@ dong you can enjoy HTC Touch Pro sound quality by comparing it to Touch Diamondon Phone Arena review:
http://www.phonearena.com/htmls/HTC-Touch-Diamond-Review-review-r_1956.html
June 23rd, 2008 at 2:20 am
dude change that ROM to ram with proper description
June 23rd, 2008 at 4:50 am
@All
According to their official specification, HTC Touch Pro is equipped with 512 MB ROM and 288 MB RAM.
July 1st, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Well..I am waiting for the lauch of HTC Touch pro in UAE. But my only concern is the prize. Will it be cheaper than Diamond. Let see….when?
July 2nd, 2008 at 7:44 am
@ Jinz, cheaper? No, I don’t think so ……
You may wait for this Windows Mobile Super star on August or September.