Remo Knops

While I wrote earlier about the announcement of the HTC Touch Diamond2, HTC also announced another flagship device: The HTC Touch Pro2, a real powerhouse with a full QWERTY hardware keyboard.

“Designed for business professionals, the HTC Touch Pro2 is architected with distinct style and strength while delivering the most powerful productivity experience available on a mobile phone” [ref01]

If I have a look a the current HTC Touch Pro, this is also true. HTC has packed the HTC Advatage X7510 features into the compact casing of the Touch Pro, making this an extremely powerfull device in a compact design. This device is very very popular and commonly used both in corporate environments as well as in personal (home) environments. Let’s have a quick look at the HTC Touch Pro2:

htc_tp2_front-back-side_570px1

“Sporting Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, the HTC Touch Pro2 features a Qualcomm MSM7200A CPU at 528 MHz, a 3.2 megapixel main camera and a 3.6″ TFT-LCD WVGA touchscreen at 480×800 pixels. At a size of 11.61 x 5.92 x 1.70 cm the device weights 175 g only, including the 1500 mAh LiIon battery.” [ref02]

“Leveraging HTC’s TouchFLO 3D, people-centric communication and Push Internet technology, the Touch Pro2 features a high-resolution 3.6-inch widescreen VGA display for an expanded viewing area and large finger-friendly QWERTY keyboard. With improved battery life, expandable memory, a touch-sensitive zoom bar as well as gravity, proximity and ambient light sensors, the Touch Pro2 is optimized for touch as well as heavy email use.” [ref01]

Specification wise there is nothing to complain. To be honest some specifications look the same as the HTC Touch Pro1. I like the new outer casing, which has a more business-finish in comparison with the diamond design. Also the round edges make it a more comfortable device in use. I currently use the HTC S740 and this one also has this sharp edges. Furthermore I do like the improved batterylife, with 3G use in the current times you can’t have enough of battery juice. Thumbs up for HTC.

I was watching the Microsoft Mobile World Congress Keynote with Steve Balmer and Andrew Lees. The demos during the keynote were conducted on a HTC Touch Pro2 device, given the rounded edges. During the keynote already I was impressed with both the speed and snappy-ness of the devices as well with the fact that it will be upgradable to Windows Mobile 6.5 as soon as this platform hits te market. At the end of the keynote Pter Chou, president and CEO of HTC made the announcement that both the HTC Touch Diamond2 and the HTC Touch Pro2 are free upgradeble to Windows Mobile 6.5. This speed is also addressed in a short hands-on video Arne Hess from the::unwired shot at the Mobile World Congress.

Finally one of the features that made the HTC TyTN II such a popular device is back: A screen with TILT-MECHANISM. In the short hands-on video this feature is also addressed, while it is also shown in the picture below. According to Eric Lin fron HTC it is possible to tilt the screen in what position you just like.

“The HTC Touch Pro2 will be available across major global markets beginning in early summer. A price wasn’t announced today.” [ref02]

Although in general I prefer a full QWERTY non-sliding device, I do think the features of this device look really great. Again a five row QWERTY keyboard, which I also like on the HTC Android G1 device is build in. Furthermore I can’t wait to get my hands on a Windows Mobile 6.5 device, so combined with the power and features of the Touch Pro2 this seems a fair choice ! htc_tp2_open_570px1

UPDATE:

T-Mobile announced, the day after the HTC announcement of the HTC Touch Pro2 and the HTC Touch Diamond2, the T-Mobile MDA Compact V and the T-Mobile MDA Vario V. These devices have a slightly different casing than the HTC models. Please have a look at some pictures live from the Mobile World Congress (Barcelona).

UPDATE2:

Michael Gartenberg writes about a new people centric approach on the device, which is also mentioned by Peter Chou, president and CEO of HTC in my previous article about the HTC Touch Diamond2.

“I had a chance to play with this a few weeks ago and the implementation is downright brilliant. Need to see a contacts history in terms of email, messages or other interaction? It’s all there. Want to call a person instead of emailing them back a reply? It’s one click. Want to make a conference call to all the folks on an email list? No problem. Favorite feature? Turn the phone upside down on a flat surface and it automatically engages in speaker phone mode. There wasn’t a whole lot of innovation this week at MWC, but the Touch Pro 2 delivered quite well. This is one handset to look for when it hits later this year.” [ref05]

UPDATE3:

Windows Mobile Italy has posted an article with a great video, showing a hardware tour of the HTC Touch Diamond 2 & HTC Touch Pro 2.

Reference List

Last week, two days after the official product launch of the HTC Touch Diamond in London, it was time to inform the local Dutch market. In the Round Control Room at Mediaplaza in Utrecht, both editors of online communities and journalists of magazines were there. Mark Moons (Country Manager HTC in Benelux) welcomed us, and started with the strategic position of HTC in the Netherlands.

Growth and change off the overall mobile market.
Consolidation and growth of number two position behind Nokia (in the Netherlands)
A comparison with RIM blackberry supports that a smartphone is more than just a messaging device.
As a result HTC uses smart segmenting and diversification as a model for growth.

In every segment HTC launched a successful product:

HTC s710 (messaging device with T9 and full QWERTY)
HTC Touch (touch-based device)
HTC TyTN II (mobile office, real powerhouse in small form factor)

Furthermore the HTC Touch was the best sold device in 2007, and won a second place at the Red Dot Design Awards. With the launch of the HTC Touch Dual and the HTC Touch Cruise, they build a complete line of touch-based devices. The basic thoughts in the design process the touch-based devices are small form factor and one-hand-use.

HTC Touch Diamond in the spotlights

Analogue to the official global launch of the HTC Touch Diamond, a really nice promotional video was shown. When the lights switch back on, Mark Moons holds a “real” HTC Touch Diamond. As a technology enthusiast this was really a raising heart beat moment. Mark Moons now continues with the presentation of the different TouchFLO 3D tabs, and some live demo’s. However I will not describe every tab in detail but address the personal most important aspects from the device:

Very small and compact device, only 59 cm^3;
The first device on the market with WM 6.1 loaded;
A very bright and scharp 2,8” VGA screen;
Fast and responsive TouchFLO 3D interface;
More tabs for better browsing, improved usability and nice animations;
Opera 9.5 provides an incredible browsing experience;
The youtube client even adds more internet fun;
The build-in accelometer provides really nice additional features;

The product page of the HTC Touch Diamond provides additional info and very nice pictures and videos of the different TouchFLO 3D tabs. There is a more extensive article (in Dutch) about each tab on Pocketinfo.nl.

I will focus on Opera 9.5 and some additional (multimedia) features. In a live demon with HSDPA coverage the “Top Gear” page is used as an example. With a tab-and-hold on the page one can simple drag the page to the right position (compared to the pan view in some graphical applications). A double tap on the picture of an article immediately forces the zoom in on the article, including text wrap of the content. No left right scrolling anymore. Also the circular zoom motion of the previous touch-based models is applicable. HTC has developed its own YouTube client which shows the best YouTube experience I’ve ever seen on a mobile device. The 2.8” VGA screen also contributes heavily to this experience.

An additional cool aspect is the build-in accelometer. This makes it possible to turn off the ringer, simply by flipping over the device. There is a game included, where you need to navigate a ball with the movement of the HTC Touch Diamond. The coolness factor here is that when the ball hits the wall, there is a subtle vibration, which makes it a very really experience. In the reference list some additional “hidden” features of the HTC Touch Diamond can be found.

The localized Dutch version of the HTC Touch Diamond will be delivered in the first batch, which is on other words one of the five countries in which the device is first released. According to Mark Moons, it will be available next month in the Netherlands.

Question & answer session

The GPS functionality is not addressed during both the press events. However no TomTom navigator will be bundled with the device.
The 900 mAh battery seems te be a little light for HSDPA and the multimedia experiences. The power consumption however is better handled on this device, due to the contributions of the Qualcomm chipset and Windows Mobile 6.1. The latter can have contributions between 8-21% with respect to the power savings.
The ROM upgrade for the TyTN II will be released in the near future.
HTC has really worked on a nice set of accessories for the HTC Touch Diamond. However since the device is relatively early on sale in the Netherlands, these will arrive later. Some of the accessories have the specific Diamond design.

Conclusions, recommendations & remarks

My compliments for HTC Benelux and WhizPR for the well organized event on a great location. I really liked the no nonsense story, with a high level of technical details and the informal discussions afterwards.

The HTC Diamond is a device with a great potential, however it might have some flaws for the power users (lack of micro sd slot). The next level of TouchFLO 3D is setting a new standard in the touch-based-devices range. I compare this device with the impact of the first HTC Touch, of which millions of units are sold around the globe.

The compact and really nice design, as well as the improved usability and nice animations make this a device with a wow-factor. It will be used by both teenager and business man in a 3T suite.

Finally I would like to recommend the links in the reference list, since colleagues really have some nice in-depth articles about this great device. The extensive Dutch version of the article can be found on http://www.pocketinfo.nl

MWC 2009: HTC announces a new signal wave: HTC Touch Pro 2

PRODUCT LAUNCH: HTC Touch Diamond

HTC Touch Diamond in the spotlights

Question & answer session

Conclusions, recommendations & remarks

Reference list