Archive for April, 2010
If you have nothing else to do but lust after the HTC Touch HD but doesn’t have enough bills in the wallet (or not brave enough to your credit card, or your dad’s) then HTC made something especially for dreamers, not in bad way – the HTC Touch Viva. Of course, when we say that a phone fell in a budget conscious paradise, it has to sacrifice something and this time it’s the GPS and 3G. Don’t frown and let’s step back through the years, I bet you’ve lived the life without these perks, right? So let’s move on.
Don’t expect that the screen in the HTC Touch Viva is as flush as the other more expensive members of its family tree, but it’s considerably topnotch. It has an ordinary touchscreen that is responsive to finger presses; no need to add extra pressure with those pinkies. Despite the screen is a little small, the text and graphics remain bright and sharp.
On the back of the handset is the 2MP camera slightly hidden in a small recess probably to avoid any scratches when the phone is inside the pocket. The camera lacks auto-focus and flash, making its camera not recommended for night shots. It also develops a good deal of digital noise in low light.
Another problem arises in the music section, with the standard 3.5mm headphone jack sacrificed for a mini USB port for audio output. The same port is also used for syncing and charging the device, so it means that you can’t listen to your favorite while it’s charging o syncing data with your PC. The biggest surprise (or shock!) is that headphones aren’t included in the package. You have to buy them separately from the HTC accessories.
A little redeeming value for the HTC Touch Viva’s succession of turn-offs is the TouchFlo interface which offers finger-friendly access to most of the phone’s key features. Moving between functions such as text messaging, music player and Internet browser can easily be done with a finger running across a row of icons at the bottom of the screen.
Applications in the HTC Touch Viva include a dedicated viewer for YouTube, a handy RSS news reader and the Opera web browser, which makes browsing to websites much easier. It also includes preinstalled Google Maps, but the weird thing is the lack of GPS, a big moniker actually. The lack of 3G also means giving all the downloading tasks to EDGE which is only good for receiving emails, but definitely not for surfing.
We must not be oddly get dismayed with this metallic fella, as it still remains a phone, perfect for making text messages and voice calls, and you can still boasts its design to everyone, anyway. Just make sure you aren’t showing this thing to phone critics.
HTC holds the title as the real Apple iPhone annihilator, or competitor, at least. In fact, HTC holds the record of being the first mobile phone to have a touch screen, although of course, iPhone received all the limelight. With the release of the HTC Touch HD, it’s safe to say that the iPhone did get a real tough call this time, with the HD’s sharp and crisp display among other factors that make it so fantastic.
Minimal is the best word to attach with the HTC Touch HD, sporting a front that is almost taken over by the screen. Four nicely tailored control buttons are beneath the display and a stylus is tucked at the bottom edge of the handset. Slide off the back of the HD and reveal a replaceable battery and a microSD card slot to add more to the 288MB onboard memory.0
It will always go back to the gorgeous 3.8-inch screen, which is larger than the iPhone’s. Its resolution is unbelievably crisp at 800 x 480 pixels and it also sports rich colors that are almost life-like. Some find the use of a standard touch panel, instead of a capacitive type, disappointing but if you’re more of a stylus-lover you will find this attractive. However, touch crazy people may really find the HD’s screen disappointing and non-reliable.
Let’s not give all the blame to HTC HD but maybe we can start pointing it to Microsoft, which failed to produce any OS with touch support. The Windows Mobile’s TouchFLO requires a lot of rehashing.
The Touch HD uses Opera Mobile 9.5, a web browser that promises a good mobile web experience. Pages are automatically reoriented to portrait or landscape view, thanks to the accelerometer. You can resize the photos or column of text by double tapping and you can scroll around the screen using a single finger. The best news: pages load very fast with the Wi-Fi or HSDPA. The HD is also equipped with built-in GPS that works with the Google Maps application.
Unlike the iPhone’s 2MP camera, the Touch HD has a 5MP camera that produces good enough images. It’s disappointing that it lacks LED flash, as if the camera is a useless feature in the dark. Is the HTC Touch HD the real iPhone killer? Probably not, but with its very promising features (including magnificent call quality and messaging options), the Touch HD is a good mobile choice.
The HTC Touch Dual joins the class of slider phones, with its own slide-out 20-key keypad tucked in its compact frame. It is taller and thicker than its predecessor, but retaining the minimalist look of just having the touch screen, 5-way navigation pad, camera and power buttons, call answer and end keys and volume control visible. The stylus is hidden on the top-right side and the microSD expansion slot at the bottom. The SIM card slot can be accessed by taking out the battery first.
It measures 4.2 x 2.1 x 0.6 in inches and weighs 3.9 ounces. The Touch Dual’s screen is smaller, however, at 2.6 inches. It has a resolution of 320 x 240 pixel and 65,536 colors. Like the original Touch, it has the HTC TouchFLO user interface which is paired with the Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional operating system. It utilizes Bluetooth 2.0, EDGE, GPRS, HSDPA and UMTS, but lacks Wi-Fi capabilities and GPS.
The interface now has bigger-sized menu icons and virtual keyboard keys, a new getting started menu, a sound mode tab, phonebook with alphabet-access to contacts and a task manager with memory information. These changes allow users to have a better “touch” experience with their fingers, minimizing the use of a stylus.
TouchFLO technology makes the screen sensitive to the commands of the user given with the tap and swipe of their finger. Users can also make use of the Block Recognizer and the Transcriber to speed up doing inputs. To get to the QWERTY keypad, users just need to slide up the front cover activating a new task page on the screen which is a short cut to making text and emails or noting in appointments. The QWERTY keypad has a Blackberry SureType feel to it.
The upgraded version of Windows Mobile gives the mobile Internet Explorer zooming capabilities which decrease the need to scroll. It is still bundled with Microsoft Office Mobile Suite for using Word and Excel and viewing PDF and PowerPoint files; Direct Push Technology for real-time email and Outlook synchronization via Exchange Server; and Windows Media Player 10 Mobile for music and video streaming.
Touch Dual’s 400 MHz Qualcomm MSM 7201 processor has 128MB of RAM and gives a snappier user-experience. It makes use of a 1, 350 mAh lithium ion battery with five hours of continuous GSM talk-time and 3.2 hours of continuous 3G talk-time.
This smart phone is a quad-band with call features that include an address book, speakerphone, text and multimedia messaging and voice dialing and command. Touch Dual has two cameras, a 2-megapixel one with an 8x zoom for taking photos and videos and another one for video calls. Like the Touch, it has no flash thus taking photos or videos at night are not recommended. A purchase of the Touch Dual comes with an AC adapter, carrying case, extra stylus, manual, mini USB cable, pair of earbuds and software CD.
This 2008 HTC flagship phone’s most important feature is its TouchFlo 3D user interface, with a mobile browser built from ground up. Its touch actions are carried out fast and smoothly with one’s fingers. Grabbing, flipping and scrolling are mainly done by swiping gestures, while zooming is done with circular motions. However, users are still given a choice of using a stylus and a d-pad. The stylus is held in place on the screen by a magnetic force, which easily unlocks once the stylus is removed.
It’s light and finely-angled case has an orientation sensor that automatically changes the screen’s orientation to either wide or tall, and a silencing feature for incoming calls that is activated by putting the Touch Diamond on its face. The Touch Diamond uses a Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system equipping it with the ability to run a lot of programs like Microsoft Office, Windows Media Player as well as Internet Explorer.
But, it has an HTC interface that is easier to use and contains stylish, moving graphics. It has its own main programs menu that can be customized according to how the owner uses the smartphone most. However, the interface is not HTC all throughout. It still makes use of Windows Mobile, like in sending messages, and the switch from the TouchFlo 3D to Windows is not that visually smooth.
The Touch Diamond’s music player has an album art interface, sliding toggle switches, volume slider and You-Tube app similar to the iPhone. Though communication carriers can still link up with services for music, photos and ring tones, it is HTC that will do the interface to ensure faithfulness to the look and easy-use that characterize TouchFlo 3D.
The HTC Touch Diamond’s flat, thin and black appearance belies its powerful capabilities starting with its HSDFA 7.2 and HSUPA 3G communication protocol, which the iPhone when first introduced did not even possess. Like most smartphones, Touch Diamond has Bluetooth 2.0 and USB 2.0.
The Touch Diamond only weighs 110 grams and measures 102 x 51 x 11.5 mm. Due to its very sleek appearance, it offers no room for a headset jack or memory card slot and only has a 900mAh battery to power its VGA touch display. Its 2.8” screen has very fine resolution that brings sharpness and detail to pictures and web pages.
More advantages to owning a Touch Diamond are the inclusion of an assisted GPS that can be used with other satellite navigation tools, and a 3.5G data that enables speeds to reach 7.2 MBps in some areas. It even has a weather forecasting feature.
The HTC Touch is the first ever phone to have an intuitive touch screen technology. This TouchFLO feature with HTC’s user-centric interface makes the HTC Touch very easy to use with either one’s finger or a stylus. This smartphone is not only finger-sensitive but gesture-aware as well. The HTC user interface greets users with a Today screen and a cube display that launches application with a flip of a finger. It brings users to the address book, music player, photos and videos. Swiping the 2.8” touch screen with one’s finger from top to bottom hides the HTC interface; and swiping up opens it again.
There is also an on-screen keypad, that would be better used with the help of a stylus, and a 5-way d-pad below the QVGA screen. Other buttons in this minimalist-inspired phone are the camera button, power-on key, volume slider and Windows Mobile keys. The slots for microSD and SIM cards are carefully hidden under the chrome trim. Music lovers will definitely appreciate the loudspeaker at the back. The operating system used is Windows Mobile 6 Professional with a Texas Instrument OMAP 850 processor of 201 MHz. For memory, it has a ROM of 128 MB and an SDRAM of 64 MB DDR. The Touch is also compatible with SD 2.0 which allows SDHC cards up to around 2 gigabytes.
Bundled in are HTC’s Audio Manager, Direct Push Outlook® email and Windows Media® Player that supports AAC, AAC+, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, eAAC+, MP3, MPEG4, QCELP, WAV and WMA formats. The HTC Touch is a tri-band that uses EDGE for DATA transmission. For connectivity, there is an 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 technology that will enable owners to use the smartphone as a modem for their laptop. They adequately make up for the absence of 3G.
Aside from being able to web-browse and email, listen to music and watch movie clips, send and receive text and multimedia messages with it, the Touch’ s call quality is rated very well. Its call features include call history and waiting, caller ID, conference calling, flight mode and voice speed dial.
The Touch has a decent CMOS camera with 2-megapixel and fixed-focus lens that takes 1200 x 1600 pixel photos. However, it does not have a flash. Users can opt for standard video for H.263, Motion JPEG and MPEG4 formats, or MMS for H.263 and MPEG4 formats.
This smartphone uses a rechargeable Li-Ion battery with 1100 mAh capacity. With moderate use, battery charge can last up to 3 days. Buyers can choose to own this tiny and stylish smartphone in either black or wasabi green. This 3.95-ounce smartphone comes with an extra stylus, manual with a shortened guide, slip case, software CD, USB connector world charger and USB sync. cable.
The T-Mobile Shadow is a sleek slider phone with a 4 x 2 x 0.6 in inches measurement and a weight of 5.3 ounces. This easy-grip phone also comes in copper and sage colors. The hip T-Mobile has a 2.6 inch screen with QVGA display that has 65,000 colors and a pixel resolution of 320 x 240. The screen can go from portrait to landscape viewing. One set-back is, its not touch-screen.
Aside from it’s easy to use alphanumeric keys that can be accessed by sliding up the front cover, owners can try using the navigation wheel which can go clockwise and counterclockwise. The QWERTY keyboard has 20 buttons that uses SureType hardware from Research in Motion. Using the two-letter keys, text can be inputted by XT9 or multi-press method.
The T-Mobile’s right side contains the shortcut and camera activation keys, while the left side has the volume rocker and the USB/headset port and microSD slot. Since it is a quad band, it has world roaming. Its other voice communication features are address book, caller ID, speakerphones, text and multimedia sending and receiving and voice dialing.
Though the T-Mobile Shadow highlights its phone functions more, it is among the Windows Mobile 6 smartphones. It has an integrated Wi-Fi for accessing the internet and a built-in Bluetooth that can be used with wireless and stereo Bluetooth headsets and hands-free kits. Users can get Windows Live Search as well, which helps in searching for directions and getting traffic conditions.
It is bundled with Microsoft’s Direct Push technology for real-time email and auto-synching with Outlook via Exchange Server. Users can have AOL, ICQ, Yahoo and Windows Live Messenger applications. It also has the Microsoft Office Mobile Suite for using Excel, PDF Reader, PowerPoint and Word.
A Windows Media Player 10 Mobile enables users to enjoy AAC, MP3, MPEG-4, WAV, WMA and WMV music and video files, as well as recorded television shows from a Windows Media Center PC. T-Mobile’s 2-megapixel camera can be placed in camcorder mode and in sports and contacts picture modes. There are brightness, resolution, quality setting and white balance choices among other effects. Storage is 140MB, but the microSD slot accepts as much as 4GB media.
It uses the Texas Instrument OMAP processor with 200MHz and has free program memory of 63MB making for a less speedy performance when heavier applications are in use. The T-Mobile has around 5 hours of talk time.
In keeping with its name, the T-Mobile Dash is very slim and can sit comfortably in ones pocket or hand with its rubbery finish. It is only 4.4 x 2.5 x 0.5 in inches but has all the applications that one may need in a smartphone, like a built-in QWERTY keypad, Push-email technology and Wi-Fi connectivity.
It also has a Bluetooth 2.0 option that also allows wireless connectivity over a given range. However, the Dash has no infrared port. The Dash’s front has a great QVGA display, but it is not a touch screen. Its keypad and function buttons are all on the front of the phone as well. The only control on its spine is for the volume located on the left. While its headphone jack and synchronization port are both hidden from sight.
The limited key size and spacing on its keyboard requires a bit of adjusting to for some users, for them to do typing in the desired speed. It helps though that this phone has a predictive text feature to make typing faster. The T-Mobile Dash runs a Windows Mobile 5.0 operating system, a technology specifically made for smartphones that have no touch screen. Its processor is a 201 TI OMAP which holds up well even when checking email while listening to music. Its RAM is 64MB and has 128 for non-volatile internal storage. There’s a slot under the battery cover for microSD expansion in case there’s a need for more storage space.
The Windows Mobile operating system allows T-Dash users to use their smartphone for emailing over POP3 accounts and making changes on their Outlook’s contacts, tasks and appointment tools by synching with the use of Exchange Server. It is also bundled with a modified Internet Explorer for smaller screens and a Windows Media Player version for listening to MP3s and watching videos in WMP.
For viewing Adobe, Excel, PowerPoint and Word files, the T-Dash uses a ClearVue Suite. Unfortunately, this does not enable users to make changes to what they’re viewing. The T-Mobile also has a camera with 1.3 megapixel for simple picture-taking in a well-lighted environment. Users must keep their grip steady and have lighting in mind as this smartphone does not have a flash feature.
When web surfing and emailing, users need to remember that the T-Mobile Dash only uses a 960 mAh battery which will run low in a day’s time if all the smartphone’s functions are utilized.
HTC SMT-5800 joins the group of smaller Windows Mobile smartphones. Its pocket-size feature was accomplished by making its mid-section narrow. The QVGA resolution screen’s size is maximized at 2.4 inches, but the navigation and separate numeric keys’ utility are affected.
It does manage to squeeze in a full sliding QWERTY keyboard to its 4.1 x 2 x 0.7 in inches measurement. It weighs a total of 4.2 ounces.
Texts and images are easily seen in its 65,536 color output screen with a 320 x 240 pixel. Though, the display can definitely seem washed out under bright sunlight.
The power key is on the left side together with the volume slider and a microSD slot that is without a cover. The SMT-5800’s right side contains the easy to locate and use camera button, while its bottom has the battery cover release. Tests have shown SMT-5800’s clear call quality and ability to sustain a signal. It has both EV-DO and 1xRTT connection. It also has standard voice communication features like smart dialing, speakerphone and voice command. It can have a talk-time of 3.5 hours.
Its EV-DO capability enables it to reach data speeds of 600Kbps which will be enough for smooth web browsing, downloading and streaming.The SMT-5800 uses Windows Mobile 6 edition. Its Outlook is synched with the contacts database, which can contain not only addresses and numbers but personal information like important dates and names as well. Owners not only have Microsoft Outlook mail at their disposal, they can also upload Google, AOL, Hotmail and Yahoo. They can also launch the Pocket Internet Explorer from its Start menu, but without a mini-map or RSS feed reader.
Like other Windows Mobile smartphones, owners can also view and use Adobe PDFs, Excel, PowerPoint and Word programs. Another plus to SMT-5800 is its Windows Media Player 10 Mobile that enables users to play AAC, MP3, MPEG-4, WAV, WMA and WMV files, as well as music and videos; and integrated Bluetooth 2.0. Add-ons are Bubblebreaker and Solitaire games. Bluetooth music streaming can drain this smartphone’s battery in a day, but limiting use to calls and web browsing can lengthen use up to 3 days.
This smartphone’s 2 megapixel camera feature can take still shots and videos fairly sharp from as far as 10 feet. You can make adjustments to ambience, capture, exposure, mode, size, timer and zoom settings, among others. It takes photos and videos well outdoors, but not as well indoors most likely due to the fact that it does not have a flash.
Though thinner than the PPC-6700, the Mogul PPC-6800 actually is heavier at 6.5 ounces. This might be because this new smartphone is taller than its predecessor by 0.1 inch. In terms of looks, it is more comparable to the Cingular 8525.
To allow for easy one-hand use, Mogul PPC-6800’s right side contains buttons to power on, launch wireless connection and activate its 2-megapixel camera. The stylus holder is also found in its right side. On the opposite left side, a thumb wheel for easy scrolling, Wi-Fi switch and buttons for voice recording and okay are found. The Mogul’s bottom side has the reset button, microSD card slot and the ports for infrared and mini USB.
The Mogul PPC-6800 can also be easily operated through its ample QWERTY slide pad and receptive touch screen. The 2.8-inche screen has a color output of 65,000 and a pixel resolution of 240 x 320. This is one of the Mogul’s better features, which give users vivid visuals for texts and images. Its basic features includes voice command and speaker phone, speed and smart dialing, text and multimedia sending and receiving, caller ID that can be paired with a polyphonic ring tone and photo, and a call history that can be sorted per contact.
The Mogul does not only have Wi-Fi, it also has Bluetooth and an EV-DO support which can be upgraded. This will enable users to have very good data speed of up to 600 Kbps. This smartphone also uses the Windows Mobile 6 Professional that’ll help users in their personal information management and Windows Live integration. It also is bundled with the Microsoft Office Mobile Suite to enable owners to access and use Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Adobe Reader; and the Microsoft Direct Push for sending and receiving real-time emails.
Mogul’s camera can also take videos with or without sound in MPEG-4, Motion JPG and H.263 formats. The camera also has an 8x zoom, color effect setting, flash, flicker adjustment, option for time-stamp, picture counter, self-timer, white balance control as well as resolution and setting quality choices.
The Mogul has 256MB of ROM and 64MB of RAM. Its Intel PXA250 processor runs at 400MHz, which some might find slower than other smartphones. Users will definitely find the microSD slot useful for larger memory needs.
It runs on lithium-ion battery that can give a talk-time of 4.1 hours.
Each purchase of the Mogul PPC-6800 comes with a 512MB microSD, AC adapter, leather case, screen protector, stereo headset, USB cable and manual.
The HTC Cavalier S630 is considered a T-Mobile Dash upgrade with 3G support. Like the Dash, the boxy Cavalier is compact at 4.4 x 2.5 x 0.5 in inches and 4.2 ounces. It has a 2-4-inch diagonal QVGA screen with a resolution of 240 x 320 pixel and 65, 536-color. The display is easily read even when one is under the sun.
The QWERTY keys have more space between the rows, but have basically remained small and square, which must be noted by prospective owners with particularly large fingers. The left spine is where the power button, microSD slot, mini USB/headphone/power port and voice recorder
key are, while the right spine is where the camera key and scroll/volume strip are located. Camera lens and self-portrait mirror are at the back of the device. This smartphone uses the Windows Mobile 6 Standard Edition operating system, which includes an enhanced Calendar application, Direct Push Technology and support for HTML email, Microsoft Office Mobile Suite, Windows Media Player Mobile and Windows Live Integration. Standard PIM tools like Adobe Reader, calculator, notes, task manager and voice recorder are to be expected.
With the above, owners can enjoy games, movies, music and video on their Cavalier smartphone; synchronize their Outlook email, calendar and contacts via ActiveSync; view Word and PDF documents; and browse the web fast.
To ensure that these applications and tools respond at acceptable speeds, the Cavalier has a Samsung SC32443 processor with 400MHz. There is also a ROM of 128 MB and RAM of 64MB. With the microSD slot, additional memory can be had. Since it has 3G support, speed reaches broadband level of 400kbps up to 700kbps.
There is also Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity that allows object exchange, file-sharing, hands-free kits, and wireless or Bluetooth headsets.
The Cavalier is also a quad-band smartphone with an address book, caller ID, text and multimedia sending and receiving, smart dialing, speakerphone and voice dialing and command.
Its 2-megapixel camera has an 8x zoom but without a flash. It can take videos in H.263, MPEG4 and Motion JPEG formats. Both photo and video functions have the standard adjustment choices for resolution and quality settings. The Cavalier has a talk time of six hours according to the manufacturer. If users need to lengthen battery life they can limit the use of wireless technology. A purchase of a Cavalier S630 comes with an AC adapter, car charger, USB cable, wired headset, CD guide and manual.
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