HTC Touch Diamond2, Touch Pro2 Smartphones Released
HTC Touch Diamond2, Touch Pro2 Smartphones Released
To the lucky Singapore
and Southeast Asia markets, HTC
has released the Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2 smartphones.
The phones are said to be improvements on the HTC
Touch Diamond smartphone released in the United States on April 10 and the
HTC Touch Pro, released in October 2008.
Both the Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2 feature HTC's TouchFLO 3D interface,
which has been more deeply integrated into Windows Mobile 6.1 for greater
consistency throughout Windows Mobile applications and menus, HTC states.
TouchFLO 3D brings information important to the user-such as quick access to
contacts, messaging, e-mail and weather-to the top level of the user interface.
Both phones also provide a new people-centric approach to communication: From
the contact card or the on-screen call during a phone conversation, all the correspondence
with an individual-voicemails, texts, etc.-can be viewed all together, enabling
business users, in particular, to engage most effectively.
HTC's Push Internet technology is also included on both smartphones. Users can
preselect their favorite Websites and, because they're preloaded, they'll
render more quickly. Opera Mobile
is being
reported as the default browser.
"The HTC Touch Pro2 and HTC Touch Diamond2 introduce a mobile communication
experience that simplifies how we communicate with people in our lives, whether
through voice, text or e-mail," said HTC CEO Peter Chou in the company
announcement.
Optimized for One-Hand Use
The Touch Diamond2 is said to have evolved the "compact design and iconic
style" of the original model, making for a fit better in a hand and optimizing
it for one-hand use.
The widescreen VGA display has grown to 3.2 inches (from 2.76 on the U.S. Touch
Diamond), and the camera has been boosted from 3.2 megapixels to 5 megapixels
and includes auto-focus, expandable memory, and gravity and ambient light
sensors.
Additionally, the battery life has been expanded by 20 percent, which HTC
expects the enterprise-minded crowd will appreciate.
The Touch Pro2 somewhat resembles the Touch Diamond 2, featuring a 3.6-inch
widescreen VGA display. But give it a push and out slips a QWERTY keyboard made
more ideal for larger fingers.
The Touch Pro2 also features improved battery life, expandable memory, a
touch-sensitive zoom bar, and gravity, proximity and ambient light sensors.
Unique to the Touch Pro2, however, is HTC's Straight Talk technology, which
enables the Pro2-with carrier cooperation-to transition from an e-mail to a
single- or multi-party conference call, as well as having the ability to offer
itself as a conference room-like speakerphone system.
Straight Talk technology, according to HTC, includes a mechanical and acoustic
design that allows it to offer a speakerphone experience similar to those in
boardrooms; asymmetric speakers and noise suppression technology with full-duplex
acoustics deliver a "high-fidelity voice and sound experience."
The Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2 will be available from mid-May through the
end of June for a retail price equivalent to $725 and $885, respectively.
They're slated for arrival in North America later this
year.
