The HTC Touch Diamond2 is possibly the best touchscreen phone since the Apple iPhone 3G, and in many respects it pushes the Apple handset close for title of 'best smartphone of them all'.
The original HTC Touch Diamond first appeared last summer and was widely touted as the closest any Windows Mobile device had yet come to an iPhone killer.
And for the most part, it lived up to the hype, with its compact size, distinctive TouchFLO interface, easy email, exemplary browser, impressive touch screen, loads of potential apps thanks to its Windows Mobile base.
Even the camera vied with the iPhone's for crappiness. But what now for the new version? We have a closer look:
Look and feel
The latest incarnation, the not terribly originally named HTC Touch Diamond2, is slightly bigger and heavier with a larger touch screen and upgrades the camera to 5 megapixels.
The build quality of the case has also improved, and there are also a few tweaks to the interface, a new zoom bar which works for both pictures and web, upgraded applications and improved battery life.
It doesn't exactly break the mould of the original Diamond but it offers a very creditable upgrade with improvements in almost every area.
Screen
The Diamond2's extended screen is a beautiful thing – it's a large 3.2in TFT LCD touch-sensitive one offering 800x480 pixel WVGA resolution (that's VGA, but wide).
It's sharp, bright and clear and acquits itself well for display purposes. In terms of sensitivity it strikes a good balance between accessing icons and doing the glide thing where you slide your thumb over the screen to scroll through menus or move pictures around.
Unfortunately, there's no way to adjust the touch sensitivity, so you may find that you have to get used to using the right amount of pressure to brush through menus and access applications.
The screen's size emphasises just how vulnerable it could be, and fortunately the handset comes with a thinnish leather-look cover which goes some way to protecting it.
Casing
The HTC Touch Diamond2 is slightly bigger than its predecessor at 108x53x14mm and 118g (the original was 102x51x11mm and 108g) with the extra size being used almost entirely to deliver its extended screen – 3.2-inches rather than 2.8-inches, and covering most of the front of the phone.
The plasticky D-pad beneath the screen has gone and been replaced with a thin line of buttons – call start and stop, Windows menu and a back button. Just above this is a zoom bar for use when browsing or viewing pictures.
The Diamond2 feels sturdier than the original Diamond, due in part to the new metal edging. The plastic back too feels stronger than the flimsy material of the original, and it's lost the rather pointless crystal-shaped back, which only served to give the Diamond its name while offering no practical purpose.
It didn't look terribly good either and HTC claims it has listened to suggestions from its users and got rid of it, replacing it with a plain black plastic back, with only a triangular metal surround for the lens of the 5 megapixel camera as a reminder.
The sides feature minimal fuss with just a volume rocker and loudspeaker, plus a slot for the stylus (it comes with a spare), a mini USB charging/headphone slot on the bottom and power button on top.
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rovingrowe
Wednesday at 15:30 GMT
1. I bought my phone from Handtec in May. The screen is fantastic and I rarely have to reset it - a big improvement over older phones. Video streaming works a treat and the built in YouTube app is great. Sound quality is fine and it is handy to be able to pull the micro SD storage card in and out without resetting the phone. So far, I haven't had a problem with software running off the storage card locking up after the phone has been in standby mode - a big irritation with WM5.
A few gripes and 1 major ISSUE:
- Touch Flo looks great but irritates as it takes more steps to get to all the detail of a contact, diary, etc. I end up working around Touch Flo rather than using it much
- The HTC browser looks great but doesn't seem to work that well. Big delays and oversensitive zoom slider. I end up using Internet Explorer - much better than earlier versions but still nothing like as good as iphone browser
- Touchflo has a nice feature on contacts where commonly used contacts can be selected and listed on the top Contacts screen. Unfortunately the PC sync software regularly loses its mind and does a complete re-sync, overwriting these selections on the phone. Looks nice but I have lost patience reinstating them every couple of weeks and now just ignore it.
- The headphone socket is combined with the mini USB sync/charge socket is a HTC variation of the mini USB plug. You need to use HTC headphones or buy an adapter - cheap on Ebay but a little annoying
- The casing and screen are very sensitive to finger prints – I end up wiping it constantly. The screen is pretty useless in sunlight.
- MAJOR WATCHOUT: The reset button is under the back cover. Right next to this is a recessed casing screw with an anti-tamper 'void' sticker. It is very easy to stick the stylus into the screw instead of the button by mistake. I found out the very expensive consequence (£70) when the touch screen developed a fault after only a few weeks. I then spend many more weeks arguing with Handtec and HTC to no avail - I had to pay up. HTC even emailed a photo of the damaged 'void' sticker which had pretty clearly never had a screwdriver in it. There is very little clearance inside the casing to put tape over the screw hole and if you block the hole with something you would again risk damaging the sticker in some way. All this would be avoided if the 'void' sticker were simply put on a different screw. If I were cynical I might think this was deliberate to avoid paying out for warranty claims!
- The phone Handtec provided is apparently an Eastern European model. I found this out when I tried to download the Win 6.5 upgrade and was refused. A support call to HTC clarified why. Apparently the E European version will be released later in Nov.
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