HTC Touch Pro2 Windows Phone, Mocha
Posted by adminDec 29
- Sleekly professional touchscreen smartphone with tilting, slide-out QWERTY keyboard; Windows Mobile 6.1 OS with TouchFLO 3D interface
- Compatible with T-Mobile’s 3G network (available in select markets); integrated Wi-Fi (802.11b/g) for home, corporate and hotspot networking
- GPS location capabilities; 3.2-megapixel camera/camcorder; Bluetooth stereo music; microSD memory expansion; Windows Media Player for music and video playback
- Up to 8.5 hours of GSM talk time (6.5 hours on 3G), up to 480 hours (20 days) of standby time
- What’s in the Box: handset, battery, charger, wired stereo hands-free headset, USB cable, carrying case, quick start guide
Amazon.com Product Description
Simplify your communication and mobile Internet browsing while staying connected, informed and in control of both work and life with the HTC Touch Pro2 from T-Mobile. Enabled for T-Mobile’s expanding high-speed 3G network and Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g), the Touch Pro2 offers fast data delivery and an enhanced Web-browsing experience that lets you connect to social networking sites and stream videos more quickly. And in addition to the high-resolution 3.6-inch wid… More >>
HTC Touch Pro2 Windows Phone, Mocha
I got rid of the iPhone a while ago, as it wasn’t able to get past the “play” stage for me. HTC has finally made a smooth business phone that is easy to use, stylish, and stable. I have Windows Mobile 6.5 on it which completes that usage!
Rating: 5 / 5
Listen, I’m pretty much of a tech guy. I waited for this phone. With the large screen, built in GPS SD Micro card, Windows Mobile running all my current software (Slingbox, Coreplayer, etc.) this phone has it all. So many features, great speaker and seems to be built very well. The phone has some issues but then I am very detailed and critical in my evaluation. Also this phone is a real deal from Amazon and has a great carrier, T-Mobile. Absolutely five stars rating. Thank you Amazon. Tony C.
Rating: 5 / 5
The hardware in the Touch Pro 2 is very impressive, starting with the large, bright, sharp 3.6″ display. The screen is huge, and beautiful to look at. Much sharper than other phones I’ve used. The phone also sports a slide out keyboard and tilting display, which might seem gimmicky, but once you start using it, you don’t want to stop. Integrated GPS, WIFI, 3G, 3MP camera also headline the Windows Mobile-powered device.
The good:
The 800×480 screen is gorgeous. Although it is a resistive touch screen, it is surprisingly responsive. Thanks to improvements in the Windows Mobile operating system & the HTC Touch Flo 3D interface, I almost never HAVE to use the stylus (although I do for some things, like web browsing). GPS works well. Although the camera is only 3 megapixel and has no flash, it takes pretty good quality screen. The keyboard is fantastic – big keys, well laid out. Web browsing (with Opera Mobile) is very good. Although there’s no multitouch, I love the zoom bar at the bottom of the screen. Perfect integration with Exchange. Powerful multitasking, not quite Pre-level, but very good. Call quality is sharp, even in a low signal area. Although not completely snappy, the TP2 actually feels faster than its predecessor, the Touch Pro, despite having the same processor. A lot of 3rd party applications available, although very few are available in the Windows Mobile Marketplace. MyPhone is a great backup service, makes keeping your information (across multiple phones even) a breeze.
The bad:
Windows Mobile. Although HTC does a good job of sprucing up WM, it still is a dated operating system that doesn’t compete well with newer ones like Android, WebOS, and iPhone. The screen is responsive for a resistive touch screen, but still not as good as a capacitive screen, which I believe is a limitation of Windows Mobile 6.1. Battery life is inconsistent – HTC included a big 1500 mAh battery, sometimes it lasts several days, sometimes barely one day. Camera could be higher resolution & could use a flash. The 528MHz Qualcomm processor has been a HTC staple for over a year now – it is starting to get a little sluggish with demanding applications. The keyboard is great, but a hair too wide for my smaller hands.
All in all, the Touch Pro2 is the best phone you’ll find for Windows Mobile. It actually competes very well with non-WM phones like the iPhone, G1, and Blackberry – and in some ways, such as screen and keyboard quality, surpasses it. Windows Mobile 6.5 adds some nice new features, but still feels like an older operating system. Don’t expect to be “wow’d” by the user interface, but the hardware of this phone is unsurpassed in many ways.
Rating: 4 / 5
PROS:
Huge hidden keyboard (iPhone & Blackberry do not). Vibro-feedback on touch screen keys (iPhone does not). Many “open source” customizable screens (iPhone does not). Removable battery (iPhone does not). Tilt screen (iPhone & Blackberry do not). T-Mobile’s more flexible/affordable plans (iPhone does not). Built-in removable stylus (iPhone & Blackberry do not). MicroSD card for up to 32Gb additional storage (iPhone does not). Great battery life (iPhone does not).
Plus easy email, Facebook integration, amazing quality video, clever dual microphone/speaker “auto-conference calling” enabler, thousands of free apps, Accelerometer for smooth finger integration, updated software for a much faster response than Touch Pro (1), and much more.
CONS:
Decent audio, no standard 3.5mm headphone jack (surprised). Heavier and bulkier than Blackberry and iPhone (but so what). May have trouble with “TomTom Navigator 6″ support (at the time of this review).
Sure iPhone & Blackberry have some other cool features, but overall, the HTC Touch Pro 2 is my “best pick” for coolness, function, reliability, expandability, cost, and support – hands down. GET ONE.
Rating: 5 / 5
I spent over a month reading about and researching phones before finally ultimately choosing the HTC Touch Pro 2. I considered the i-phone (although not for very long once I heard the 3Gs is currently impossible to jailbreak), the blackberry, and a few other phones like the HTC Hero. I settled on the Touch Pro 2 for many reasons, but the primary were its phenomenal feature set, well designed QWERTY keypad, and ability to run open source programs. That said, there are a few downsides to this otherwise excellent phone–I’ll get into those later in this review. Also it’s worth noting that this phone sells for quite a bit more if bought directly from t-mobile. Amazon has the cheapest price (as of October 2009) by far.
The build quality of this phone is excellent. It has that ‘solid’ feel that is hard to otherwise quantify, but that you know when you interact with it. The i-phone has the same sort of feeling to it. The phone is also pleasingly tactile, and feels great to hold and use. This is one of the difficult to quantify things about a phone, but is so important since most of us use our phones everyday for at least a year. I believe RIM understands this design principle better than anyone–Blackberry’s have always been great to hold–but the Touch Pro 2 is proof that HTC has learned a thing or two about making a phone more than just another device.
Windows Mobile 6.5 is already available for the international version of the Touch Pro 2, but won’t be available for the t-mobile version for another few months. However, there is little in Windows Mobile 6.5 that the Touch Pro 2 does already have with TouchFLO 3D. The TouchFLO interface makes using the touch screen easier. I find I almost never need to use the stylus except when browsing detailed web pages with a lot of text links. Scrolling from panel to panel is accomplished by using simple drag gestures from right to left or wonder-of-wonders, right to left–one of my pet peeves in menu design is when you cannot scroll both directions. Don’t expect much from WM 6.5 when it is released. Bottom line: WM, regardless of version, is pretty poor, but the Touch Pro 2 and accompanying TouchFLO interface are excellent.
Multitasking is also excellent. You can answer a phone call, open your calendar and make entries, view a PDF and transition to a conference call all with a minimum of fuss. They’ve done a lot to make the phone intuitive to navigate, and I’ve found I can pretty much figure out how to do most things without referring to the manual. TouchFLO makes navigation really easy (more on TouchFLO later in the review) and makes shifting from one task to another simple.
Believe what you’ve read about the QWERTY key pad. It is definitively the best key pad out there. I’ve used quite a few, and tested even more while researching my new phone including various blackberries and the sidekick. The Touch Pro’s keypad is easy to use, feels great, and gives solid tactile response at each key-tap. I can type in the range of 30 words a minute with reasonable accuracy. I think I could type even more quickly if the keypad had an ‘alt’ key on the right side of the keypad and not just the left. This is a surprising disappointment in an otherwise perfect keypad.
The 480×800 resolution screen is a sight for sore eyes (literally). If you’re moving up from a previous generation phone, prepare to be impressed. Even if you’re switching from a phone with a pretty good screen like a blackberry, this screen will still impress you. Crystal clear, excellent color accuracy, and all kinds of real estate for a mobile device. Watching videos on You Tube, playing games, reading text, ect., all benefit from the gorgeous screen.
Wifi connectivity works well and makes surfing the web or using the you tube application a joy. Some reviews have mentioned terrible frame rates when playing You Tube videos. I have not found this to be the case, even on the t-mobile 3G network. Streaming videos works just fine in my experience.
The included media player (WM 6.1 default) is a joke and should be ignored. Download one of the many free (and far superior) media players out there rather than suffering with the WM version. Sadly, the Touch Pro does not have a 3.5mm audio jack. This is probably the single most frustrating thing about the phone and a glaring omission for a phone that could otherwise also serve as a media player powerhouse if it did. The included dongle which connects to HTC’s proprietary USB connection converts to a non-standard 2.5mm jack, which makes it useless: imagine using a dongle connected to a 2.5mm-3.5mm converter connected to your headphones–stupid.
The Touch Pro 2′s emphasis on keeping you connected with your friends through an integration of your contacts, text messages, face book, instant messenger, etc., is a good idea in theory but with mixed results in application. Threading SMS works very well, as does integration with facebook (which lets you choose which notifications you want to receive) but tagging all your contacts with their corresponding facebook page is time consuming.
The camera is ho-hum. Not bad but not great either. It works well when there’s plenty of light but not so well in dim light or at night. It’s suitable for taking informal shots of friends and such, but won’t really impress even by camera phone standards.
Summary:
PROs:
1) Non proprietary system that allows you to run what ever programs you feel like
3G coverage in most major metropolitan areas (I live in Chicago and coverage is good-excellent depending on where I am)
2) TouchFLO interface is excellent
3) Supports up to 32gb micro SD cards (try getting that from an i-phone)
4) Build quality is great
5) 480×800 resolution screen is flawless
6) QWERTY keypad is best in class
7) Good multitasking
CONS:
1) No 3.5mm audio jack
2) No right ‘alt’ key on key pad
3) Expensive if bought directly from t-mobile
4) Windows Mobile 6.1 (or 6.5 for that matter) is old and outdated
ADVANTAGES over the i-phone:
1) Not proprietary and can use third party applications
2) Supports micro SD cards
3) Has a tilt screen
4) Better battery life (3-4 hours more depending on how you use the phone)
5) Is not contractually locked to AT&T
ADVANTAGES over the Blackberry 8900:
1) Support for 3G network coverage
2) Tilt screen
3) Better third party e-mail support
4) Better multi-media support
This is a great phone. The more I use it, the more I like it. If you want a rock solid smart phone that is as great looking as it functional, the Touch Pro 2 is an excellent choice and beats out the i-phone and Blackberry smart phones in my opinion.
4.5/5 Stars.
Rating: 5 / 5