Posted by Jason Dunn in "HTC Windows Phones" @ 07:00 AM
This is a two-part unboxing and first impressions video of the HTC HD2 [affiliate], a Windows phone running Windows Mobile 6.5. The HTC HD2 has is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, at an amazing 1024 Mhz. It has 512 MB of ROM, 448 MB of RAM, and a microSDHC card slot for expansion up to 32 GB. It weighs 5.54 ounces (157 grams), and measures 11mm thin (0.43"), 120.5mm tall (4.74"), and 67mm across (2.64"). Read more...
What's what? You want to completely immerse yourself in the Touch HD2, learning everything you can about it? Paul over at MoDaCo went off the deep end - in a good, geeky way - and shot a whopping 43 minute video about the Touch HD2. Pop some popcorn, grab a drink, and settle in for a massive deep dive into the Touch HD2.
"We had a chance to give HTC's newest darling device -- the Windows Mobile 6.5-sporting HD2 -- a more thorough hands-on today, and we wanted to share our impressions. Firstly, we must say that HTC has done perhaps its most ambitious skinning job ever here. So while this does run atop Windows Mobile 6.5, you rarely see the OS poking through the gorgeous new Sense user interface the company has created."
It looks like there's a lot to like about the HTC HD2, but I'm honestly questioning the 4.3 inch screen. It looks HUGE in Eric Lin's hands...is 4.3 inches too big? What do you think? I guess I'll have to see it in person to decide. Other than that, wow, does this device look hot! HTC Sense - the new term for TouchFlo3D - looks buttery smooth in performance. This looks like it's going to be a great device - and it seems like it's even going to come to North America...
Posted by Jason Dunn in "Pocket PC Hardware" @ 06:00 AM
This is an unboxing and first impressions video of the Bell Palm Treo Pro. This Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional touch-screen phone is a CDMA phone offered by Bell Canada. The 2.5 inch screen is 320 x 320 in resolution, and the device has a full QWERTY keyboard. It has built-in 802.11 WiFi, a 2 megapixel camera, GPS, Bluetooth, and a microSD card slot. No, it's not a new device, but Microsoft Canada contacted me and asked if I'd like to look at one, and I said yes. Read more...
Post-CES and post two-week-cold, having dug myself out of most of my back-logged email, it was time to get down to reviewing some of the hardware I have sitting around here. The iPAQ 100 Series Classic Handheld, running Windows Mobile 6, went on the video-reviewing block, and the resulting video is below (if you have a YouTube account, please rate the video and post a comment if you can).
All in all, as a strict PDA, it does the job well. But as I point out in the video, I feel it's priced too high, and surprising competition comes from a device such as the iPod Touch when you're at that $299 price point.
There were a few things I didn't mention in the video - the first is that while the iPAQ 100 uses a miniUSB plug rather than something proprietary (great job HP!), it requires a certain type of miniUSB connector (something about needing an extra wire). My PPC Techs Lil' Sync Pro cables charged it without a problem, but other miniUSB cables I tested wouldn't charge it which is something to be aware of - it's really unfortunate that HP didn't make it compatible with all miniUSB cables.
I also didn't mention that lack of hardware buttons for the soft keys. On a touch screen device without a keyboard, this is less of an issue because you'll probably already have the stylus out, but considering how focused Windows Mobile 6 is around soft keys, it would have been nice to see the hardware reflect that - especially since it would have enhanced one-handed use scenarios.
I just can't shake the feeling that someone who wants a stand-alone PDA probably doesn't need a 624 mhz CPU, or even 64 MB of RAM. If HP had kept the 300 mhz CPU from the iPAQ 1950 in there, and dropped the price to $199, I think they'd have a device much more focused on the "I just want a personal information manager" device crowd.
Jason Dunn owns and operates Thoughts Media Inc., a company dedicated to creating the best in online communities. He enjoys mobile devices, digital media content creation/editing, and pretty much all technology. He lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada with his lovely wife, and his sometimes obedient dog. He's can't wait for spring - it's cold here now!
A kind person at Porter Novelli contacted me on Tuesday of this week and asked if I would be interested in reviewing the new iPAQ 100 Series Classic Handheld. Would I? You bet! This device is the introductory level device in HP's lineup, but it's shiny and new, so how could I say no? ;-) I'm on a roll with videos lately, so within 10 minutes of the courier dropping it off I started the unboxing video. I think the longest wait was for YouTube to finishing processing it (does anyone have any contacts at YouTube? I need to talk them into giving me priority processing). Without further ado, here's the unboxing video.
