Abdul Rashid's Blog

HTC Touch HD: Front and back view

Last week, I have mentioned in this blog(entitled: “My WistList: Apple iPod Touch 2nd Generation”) that Samsung Omnia i900 is the best PDA phone ever. But now, I have to reconsider my statement when HTC announces the new HTC Touch HD on 16th September 2008.

According to the HTC’s press release, HTC Touch HD is “an entertainment focused mobile handset that will transform how people experience multimedia on the move”. One of the 'people' that will be transformed is me when I get one (hopefully)HTC Touch HD.

The followings are some of the HTC Touch HD features:

• Size: 115 x 62.8 x 12 mm



• Weight: 146.4 grams with battery



• Connectivity: Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz



• WCDMA/HSPA:900/1000MHz. HSPDA 7.2 Mbps.



• Software/Operating system: HTC TouchFLo 3D with Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional



• Display: 3.8 inch Wide Screen VGA (480 X 800 WVGA)



• Camera: 5.0 megapixel with auto focus – Second camera: VGA.



• Internal memory: 512 MB flash; 288 MB RAM



• Memory card: microSD memory card (SDHC capable)



• WLAN: 802.11b/g



• Bluetooth: 2.0 + EDR



• GPS: GPS/AGPS



• Interface: HTC ExtUSB (mini-USB and audio jack in one; USB 2.0 High-Speed)



• Battery: 1350 mAh



• Talk time: WCDMA: Up to 390 minutes / GSM: Up to 310 minutes



• Standby time: WCDMA: Up to 450 hours/ GSM: Up to 390 hours



• Chipset: Qualcomm MSM7201a 528MHz

There is no pricing available at the time of this posting. But I expect its price is about BND1000.00 ( I hope it is more cheaper). I guess it should just a few hundreds Brunei dollars above HTC Touch Cruise i.e about BND1200 when it is first introduced in Brunei Darussalam. (Note: According to the pricing available by one of the online store in Brunei, the price of the HTC Touch Cruise at the time of this posting is BND998.00).

HTC Touch HD will be available in Europe in Q4 2008 and introduced in other global market shortly following.

Front and left side view

Front and left side view

Front and right side view

My Comments

I like what HTC does with the HTC Touch HD. HTC Touch HD has a large 3.8 inches widescreen VGA display (WVGA). I miss using a large display PDA since I have sold my Dell Axim X71v PDA a few years ago. Now, my wish to have a large display PDA phone do come true (but only after the introduction of Apple iPhone or Apple iPod Touch).

In addition, HTC Touch HD has a standard 3.5mm audio jack. This is very good for listening the music. HTC Touch also has a 5 megapixel camera with autofocus.

The bad news is that HTC Touch HD does not have FM radio and the internal memory is limited to 512MB. You can solve the lack of internal memory by buying microSD and the put it at the memory slot. However, it is better for HTC to put 8GB or 16GB internal memory in addition to microSD slot OR I may prefer HTC put SDHC card memory slot. MicroSD is too small for me to handle.

A large memory capacity will allow me to put more music, photos, and video to be carried on the go. Larger memory also allows me to put the podcast, videocast, pdf file, and photos that I have download from the internet.

If I Buy One: Samsung Omnia i900 vs HTC Touch HD

I like HTC products such as HTC Diamond and HTC TyTN II but HTC Touch HD do attract me more. So far (on the 17 September 2008), I still do not know HTC Touch HD’s price and its full specs. I have not read any preview or review yet. I post my preview here because I am so eager to tell the world that I like HTC Touch HD very much. I hope it is cheaper than Samsung Omnia i900 due to HTC Touch HD’s lack of large capacity internal memory and FM radio. I may buy HTC Touch HD when its price is about at BND900 or less. (Update on 28 October 2008: There is FM radio in HTC Touch HD).

What HTC Touch HD for? As a PDA phone I will use to keep my calender, notes, and contacts as I am not good at remembering things. By using its built-in application or 3rd party application, I can keep update on the latest news through web surfing or rss and on the latest weather either through free BlinkZone wi-fi service or through the 3G/3.5G services. HTC Touch HD does allow me to play games ( a lot of games are available at Handango or Pocketgear). It is also good to show the downsized latest photos I have taken to my friends and family.

I may use HTC Touch HD listen music on the go in the car through Aux-in or Bluetooth connections. Lastly, I can use HTC Touch HD to write my tought and ideas through the MS Word Mobile applications. Do not forget that I can also learn new English, Malay, Italian, and Japanese words when I have installed the languages learning or the dictionary programs.

Conclusion:

The strengths of HTC Touch HD over Samsung Omnia i900 is its 3.8 inces WVGA screen. Other than that Samsung Omnia i900 gives a better specs. Samsung Omnia i900 has built-in 8GB or 16GB memory. If it is not due to its 3.8inches WVGA screen, I will put Samsung Omnia i900 on top of HTC Touch HD in my PDA phone wishlist. But if I have enough budget now, I will go to Incomms or DeeJay or QQStation to buy one as soon as the HTC Touch HD is available in Brunei Darussalam.

My PDA Phones WistList Ranking:
1. HTC Touch HD
2. Samsung Omnia i900
3. Apple iPhone 3G

(The above ranking is based on the preview, review, and the specifications I have read NOT by my experiences of using the products.)

(Photos: Photos of HTC Touch HD are Courtesy of HTC through HTC press release website. All rights are reserved by the respective owners.)

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(Valid until until 30 November 2008)