Brighthand Reviews The Touch Diamond

[Nurhisham Hussein]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.brighthand.com/default.asp?newsID=14106' target='_blank'>http://www.brighthand.com/default.asp?newsID=14106</a><br /><br /></div><em>&quot;The HTC Touch Diamond is the most consumer-friendly Windows Mobile smartphone yet. It's both powerful and easy to use. People looking to step up from a regular phone to a much more feature-rich one should seriously consider this device. HTC has clearly put many hours of thought into how to make a smartphone more intuitive, and this device shows it. I predict big things for this product, with sales in the millions.&quot;</em><br /><br /><img alt="" border="1" src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/spt/auto/1214383290.usr14226.jpg" /><br /><br />We have yet another review of the Touch Diamond, this time by Ed Hardy from Brighthand, and much like the others he likes it quite a bit. There aren't many negatives to point out, apart from the stylus and a so-so camera - but those are hardly new gripes with Windows Mobile phones over the last couple of years. TouchFLO 3D appears to be as good as advertised, and the rest of the device shows how much effort HTC has put into building on Windows Mobile for something that would appeal to consumers. Read the review for more.

[Ed@Brighthand]

There aren't many negatives to point out, apart from the stylus and a so-so camera

Let me add a small addendum to this. The Diamond is an excellent device... for its target market. It has been created primarily for first-time smartphone buyers who otherwise might be looking at an iPhone.

If you're a long-time Windows Mobile user you might have some problems with some of the features HTC left out to get the svelte shape. There's no memory card slot, for one, and the battery life makes it appropriate for only light use.

Those who like the looks of the Diamond but need a smartphone more fitted to a power user should wait for the HTC Touch Pro. This will have a larger battery, microSD card slot, and a hardware keyboard.

[randalllewis]

And I wouldn't be so quick with comments about a so-so camera. I have found recent HTC phones, the TILT, Cruise and Diamond to have cameras that were surprisingly good. Would I stop using my Canon S5? No, of course not. Yet given where we've been with camera phones, I am pleased with the results these HTC models produce. I am surprised at the amount of user adjustments the cameras offer. I would gladly trade some of those capabilities for a flash, but that is about it in terms of missing really needed features.

[Nurhisham Hussein]

My point of reference is my previous phone, which was an SE k800i - absolutely superb for a cameraphone, even in low light conditions. I actually prefered taking pictures without the onboard xenon flash, it was that good. I'm typically needing to use a camera indoors, so low-light performance is important to me. While I'd readily acknowledge that HTC cameras have been getting better (huge difference over the last three years), they've still got a long way to go in my eyes.