Yadda yadda.
As an actual Diamond user (on ATT) for a month now, I have still not experienced the phone problems I read about. Obviously, I am using the European version here in the US and have no issues with the phone either here in the Puget Sound area of Washington State where I live or in New York City where I just spent the past week. The Diamond works as a phone just fine: good audio quality and plenty of bars, even in the middle of Manhatten. I will agree that there were some lag issues with the ROM version that was available in the early shipping models. A new official HTC ROM has fixed those.
As for the harsh criticism of the battery life: I would agree there seems to be a double standard about that topic when it comes to the iPhone, but I can't expect tech journalists to change their behavior. My actual experience is more important to me. I have always been in the habit of putting my phones on the charger at night, so having days of stand-by time is not important to me. Likewise, it has always been my habit to put my phones on the car charger on my commutes so Bluetooth drain is not an issue. On those days when I resist using the Diamond's Wifi and multimedia applications, battery life has not been an issue. Does that mean I don't want the protection offered by an spare battery or an extended battery? No. I will certainly purchase one or the other.
At least with the Diamond I have the option of swapping out the battery.
