HTC Shadow 2009: Unboxing and First Impressions

[Jason Dunn]

<p><object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" width="600" height="360" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0"><param name="src" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/58NbrPEwBcI&amp;fmt=18" /><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/58NbrPEwBcI&amp;fmt=18"></embed></object></p><p>This is an unboxing and first impressions video of the 2009 version of the <a href="http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/phones/Cell-Phone-Detail.aspx?cell-phone=T-Mobile-Shadow-Black-Burgundy" target="_blank">T-Mobile Shadow</a>, a Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard smartphone (non-touch screen). The T-Mobile Shadow is in its second incarnation, but this model is similar to the previous version. It features a 260 Mhz CPU, 128 MB of RAM, 256 MB of ROM, and a 2.6 inch screen with 240 x 320 (QVGA resolution), and built-in 802.11b/g WiFi. There's no GPS, but it does have Bluetooth. It's a quad-band GSM phone, with GPRS/EDGE speeds for data - no 3G here. It has a built-in 2 megapixel camera, but no flash, and weighs in at 5.3 ounces. You can read the review of this phone in an <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/en-us/totalaccess/columns/t-mobile-shadow-review.mspx" target="_blank">article I wrote for Microsoft</a>.</p>

[CeluGeek]

About the Keyboard

A 12-key keypad is one with just the digits, * and #. The keyboard on the Shadow is a 20-key keypad. As for generic names, I've seen both half-QWERTY and condensed QWERTY floating around the web. SureType is a registered trademark of RIM, introduced with the original BlackBerry Pearl, so normally it'd be best to avoid calling the 20-key keyboard SureType. The Shadow may be an exception though, as HTC actually licensed SureType technology from RIM for their Touch Dual and Shadow devices. This is also why the Shadow (old and new versions) and the Touch Dual have the exact keyboard layout of the BlackBerry Pearl. Other 20-key devices like the latest non-touchscreen smartphone from HP and the upcoming Nokia E55 have similar but not identical layouts when compared to SureType.

About the Wi-Fi

The reason why it didn't connect automatically may be because of T-Mobile's customizations. Since the Wi-Fi on the Shadow II is used for data but also for Hotspot Calling (UMA), the phone probably didn't bring the Wi-Fi connection wizard (it uses a customized one for T-Mobile) because you didn't have a SIM card installed. Of course, with no SIM card (or an inactive one), you can still configure Wi-Fi manually and use it for data access only. But with an active T-Mobile SIM card installed, you don't have much of a choice: once you set up Wi-Fi (either through the wizard or manually), it is used for both data and calls, even if you turn off the Phone radio.

[Jason Dunn]

Interesting - thanks for the info CeluGeek! It's also good to have some background information about the product...

[CeluGeek]

No problem. Oh, and I have the White Mint version. At first I thought it was a bit feminine, especially because of the mint gradient on the back but I've gotten over it.

Either HTC makes separate ROM's for the black-burgundy and white-mint versions, or the software knows by IMEI or something else to distinguish both phone colors, as the default theme on the white-mint version uses a minty-blue color instead of burgundy for the homescreen, Start menu, in-call and caller ID backgrounds. One other difference I've noticed is that the keypad is better lit on the black-burgundy version. The keypad backlight seems uneven on the white-mint version. Other than these two points, it's the same phone in two different color pairs.