Take an HTC Universal, TyTN II and the Diamond2 and lock them all in a room… The Touch Pro2 is the offspring that emerges.
Please bear in mind that I am a self confessed Windows Mobile power user. Nothing annoys me more than an un-smart phone. I like my phone to be an old friend, something I can rely on without getting my laptop out. I want to be able to pull of my mail from my 5 main email accounts. I want to be able to video call a client and tell him to his face that he shouldn’t install toolbar XYZ into his browser and then complain because his spam just increased 500 fold and he is getting adverts for gentleman enhancement pills when he tries to log into his Internet banking, especially as he did EXACTLY the same thing last month! I want to be able to connect to a server via remote desktop. More importantly I want to be able to do that 8 hours into my day, without having to cut short my call because I am worried about my battery lasting another 2.
Has HTC designed a device to help me with my needs? They advertise the HTC Touch Pro2 as doing just that, and my first impression is that they have succeeded and in certain instances surpassed..
I have already done a review of the Diamond II that got a lot of feedback, so in planning this one, I decided to split it into 3 parts. First comes a real world review, then an business review, covering Exchange and the conferencing in more detail. Finally a review of the phone the same way I did the Diamond II. The middle part was something I had promised when I wrote the review of the Diamond II, but never completed it fully due to a bloke and a toolbar!!
HTC Touch Pro2 – the Real word review!
On my way to pick up a package from customs, my Diamond II was hastily backed up using the ever-useful PIM Backup (http://www.dotfred.net/) , cards were removed, and my brand new phone was relegated to my backpack! I didn’t even bother leaving the post office before I unpacked the Touch Pro2, installed my SIM and SD card, and started using it!
Matt had already done his unboxing video, taken a few photos for me, repacked everything (actually, Tracy had packed everything) and sent it over. He had even left the battery in, so it arrived with 32% charge after being shipped from the UK to Malta, and switched on as soon as the stylus was removed, a very nice touch from the guys at HTC. After pausing for just one sec to admire the speed of the interface, I delved right in and setup the 3G Internet connection, restored the PIMbackup to get back my SMS’s , and then setup and connected to Exchange to pull off my emails, contacts and appointments. "Hitting the ground running" I left the post office, and continued my VERY hectic day!
Almost immediately the appointments started to come in from my Exchange server! I minimized the clock down, to see how many this enormous screen could fit. With the clock minimized, it showed the next 5 appointments.. more than enough for most people.
The interface is like an old friend to me now. I have had my Diamond II for a few weeks, and simply adore the ease of use. The Touch Pro2 is a natural device to use, with minimal fuss and buttons laid out in exactly the right places… except for one! It’s one of the only quibbles I have with the Diamond II as well. HTC moved the home button from the left hand side of the device to the right hand side, basically the end call key. The Diamond had a dedicated home key on the left, and after a year of using the original Diamond, I am still not used to this placement. It’s a personal thing, but then again, so is a review!
(Just in case you hadn’t noticed, I am writing this review during and after the day in question, hence why the screen shots times and appointments are all funky and mixed up!!)
Running around the place from appointment to appointment and driving in a car, I needed to pair the device up to my Jawbone II Bluetooth headset so as to avoid getting fined by an overzealous warden. Unfortunately I chose to do this waiting for my lunchtime meeting in the Hilton. I started searching for new devices, and gave up looking for my jawbone after the screen filled up with about 60 different modems, handsets, laptops and headsets that the Touch Pro2 managed to find. In this instance, It was a case of the Bluetooth being a tad too powerful for its own good! After a full 8 minutes of searching, and finding over 200 devices I realised there was an accountancy conference starting that day in the conference centre, and gave up even trying to look for it!
I had been paying around with a few "new" features whilst waiting. One of the things that caught my eye was the WorldCard Mobile application that was installed. Having owned this application, on a previous HTC device I was pleased to see that HTC had included it again. It’s a business card reader that is so good, after I showed her how it worked on her business card, it impressed even the "die hard" iPhone user that I was having lunch with. She scurried off to search the App store to download it, and I didn’t have the heart to tell her that it’s only available for Windows Mobile., mainly because I had already broke her smugness by pointing out that the screen on my new "toy" (her words, not mine) was bigger than her Cupertino Pride & Joy. (that’s where the Mac Vs PC comparisons start & stop folks!)
Now.. I was getting worried.. I had left the charger, USB cable and all that jazz in the car, and I realised the battery wasn’t fully charged when I got the device less than 2 hours ago. A quick peek in the power manager confirmed my fears.. It wasn’t showing information at all as the phone hadn’t even been fully charged. Cursing Matt for not charging it before he sent it over to me, I was met with a welcome surprise… It was showing 29%. Let me just remind you that it STARTED with 32%, and I had already run Bluetooth search for over 8 minutes, had 3G on the whole time, downloaded my address book, calendar and emails from the exchange server, and played with the camera whilst using the Worldcard application. I had made a few calls as well. No time left to praise the ladies gents at HTC for power management, I departed for the next appointment.
The conference calling and emails got a run for their money at my next appointment, along with the browser. I have missed a full QWERTY keyboard so much since I traded in my Universal for the Diamond. I didn’t realise just how much until today. I think now is a good time to tell Matt that he is NOT getting his review unit back! Firing up Google Maps, I decided to track a new route to a customer, letting the GPS guide me (and the Taxi driver who had NO clue where he was going!). I wasn’t disappointed to note that it picked up a signal VERY fast, and found 8 satellites, even in the back seat.
It seems they did put a lot of thought into this device. The ringing is LOUD. Noticeably louder than the Diamond. The earpiece volume has increased as well. The device shuts off its backlight in a very elegant way when I hold it up to my ear, and gently increases brightness when I take it away. The device turns on when I pull the stylus. If I walk into bright sunlight, the screen adjusts brightness again, enabling me to see it better.. not perfectly, but better. I can type in my code, and make a call without removing my sunglasses .
The web browser annoys me by always showing the "Google for mobile" optimised version of the page.. but I can tweak that out later!
I love the fact that you flip during a phone call and it turns on the speakerphone, and conferencing is a godsend for me.. It saves me having playing "hold call tennis" and relaying info from A to B!
At about 8pm, the battery finally died, over 9 hours since I had unpacked the device, Not bad for an advertised 30% charge. Don’t take that as a definitive time schedule though. The battery will ONLY show a real charge percent after is has been fully charged at least one, and conditioned!. Time to fully charge and get onto the serious writing of the reviews… and detailing all the new and amazing things this device can do, and doing all the same again tomorrow!
Everything mentioned above is described in detail in the second and third parts, Business use review, and Detailed device review, coming in the next couple of days.. Now is the time for you Guys & Gals to hit me with questions and comments.. I am still writing, so can answer anything you need me to now!
Take a look at Part 2 and Part 3 of my HTC Touch Pro2 review.
Review by: Piero (MVP)
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