HTC Touch Diamond

In general, Windows Mobile doesn't do a very good job at letting its control our smartphones with our fingers. Sure, we can use a stylus or even our fingernail, but for the most part, WM isn't designed to be controlled by the pads of our fingers. However, HTC changes this with TouchFLO 3D, which adds touch controls to WM's interface.

TouchFLO 3D lets you use flick gestures to scroll through lists. It also lets you zoom in and out of documents, pictures, and Web pages using clockwise and counterclockwise finger movements. The touchscreen and interface were very responsive to flicks with both the pad of my finger and my fingernail. Zooming on the scroll wheel was smooth and easy, as well. TouchFLO 3D brings a scrollable menu to the home screen that provides access to some of the most commonly
used applications: People,Messages, Mail, Photos and Videos, Internet, and Weather.

HTC includes the powerful Opera Web browser along with EVDO Rev. A and Wi-Fi 802 1 l big on the Touch Diamond. Overall, the Opera browser was easy to use, and I was pleased with its speed and rendering capabilities. In addition, Opera works well with the phone's Motion G-Sensor, so when you rotate the phone, the display changes orientation. The Touch Diamond also supports Sprint Music and
Sprint TV for portable entertainment.

The Touch Diamond lacks a standard headphone jack, which means you'll have to use the included USB headphones or the adapter dangle that has a 3.5mm headphone jack. the Touch Diamond omits a memory card expansion slot and instead provides 4GB of internal memory.
The Touch Diamond's glossy screen also tends to show smudges after use. These things aside, the Touch Diamond is a great phone with a lot of functionality and a fun user interface.

by Jennifer Johnson




Touch Diamond
$549.99
HTC & Sprint
www.sprint.com

Computer Power User January 2009