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hi everyone,
I'm a Die Hard fan of Blackstone/Touch HD , and im waiting for it for a long time !
but after reading about it, watching movies, following discussions, I feel its nothing but a HUGE and tempting display .
we're all WM users and we didnt experienced any large-display phones with such size, and thats why we're trying to believe this is BEST !
since theres no TV-OUT capability , hard one handed usage , no D-PAD ( C'mon , its not iphone that fingers could do anything with any pressure ) and weird camera lens box!
is it really we wanted or its just another "I WANT TO BELIEVE?"
I do see where you're coming from... To me, I'll be honest, it's the Diamond in a REALLY nice case. One that's familiar to a long-term Elf user. The touchy-feely case, no desire to use the D-Pad... But when all's said and done: It's a huge display and has a 5MP camera. It's the best ever HTC, but it will be easy to top...
Now I feel bad... Thanks...
Hi,
Interesting point of view. ... and I agree most of it.
To be honest, the only thing I am interested in Touch HD is the huge 3.8" screen.
I like browsing the internet using Opera Mini (and Opera 9 of course) and I have no problem with my current HTC Kaiser.
However, I always envy with phone that has big screen, 3.5" like my friend's iPhone.
So, thats my sole reason to think about buying Touch HD.
However, I am holding back because there are couple of things that I need to convince myself:
1. TouchFlo 3D cannot show multiple appointments/tasks in its today screen.
This is rubish, I cannot understand why HTC does not implement this like the old HTC Home. And I have not found better solution for this.
Of course I can turn off TF3D (can I?) and use HTC Home or SpB Mobile Shell.
But ................ why???
2. No DPAD, can I live with it? Probably ...
But I have a dream to have a GAME DEVICE and PDA all in one.
I cannot do that with HTC Kaiser because of the graphics driver and bad performance. Really, I hate it.
3.8" is very nice for a game device. However, without DPAD, the game will be limited.
If I look the current Touch HD design, a DPAD is still possible in the center of those 4 buttons!
I know, I can buy Nintendo DS or PSP, but hey! I dont like carrying a lot of devices
5 MP camera is nothing ... the quality is still doubtful.
No TV-OUT like Raphael? Grrr!!!
Well, this is my personal opinion.
I dont know, probably I will buy it anyway ... or wait until I can hold and see it in real live ... and judge if the 3.8" screen is enough to convince myself to buy.
upcomming phones have almost same display size ( like ASUS Galaxy 7 ) and solved problems ...
but i want it from HTC .
I think it's yet another half-a***d swipe at the iPhone, without any real thought put into it. WM fans want to believe this is "the one" that's going to give them everything they (perhaps secretly) really like about the iPhone, while still wearing the Windows Mobile badge. In reality, it's just another WM phone with a bigger screen, and actually a few disadvantages over some other models (like that lack of a D-pad). In spite of the screen I really doubt the multimedia will be as slick as the iPhone, and for gaming it's a dead duck - unlike the iPhone where the appstore is brimming full of immersive games built around the iPhone's acceleromotor and multi-touch screen, the Touch HD only has the WM back catalogue to choose from, 99% of which will be written to run on non-accelerometor equipped phones with D-pads.
Meanwhile, underneath the Touchflo you still have an interface designed for a stylus, however big the display.
gogol said:
....1. TouchFlo 3D cannot show multiple appointments/tasks in its today screen.....
This is rubish, I cannot understand why HTC does not implement this like the old HTC Home. And I have not found better solution for this.
Of course I can turn off TF3D (can I?) and use HTC Home or SpB Mobile Shell.
But ................ why???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
Get your act together HTC
I still cannot decide which model to choose - X1 or HD - and now I am thinking more and more of getting an X1. I simply understand that the only thing about HD that I am going to really love and cream-my-pants because of is the 3.8" screen.
I think that HD is a perfect device for non-WM-addicts, for people who will use just TF3D-interface and Opera at most, without installing any tweaks/programs/registry-hacks/emulators/debuggers/consoles/younameit. Cause when you want to install one of them, you're in trouble - no hardware keys, no D-pad... Achtung!
One more thing I thought about.. Every phone has a kind of a "secret combination of keys", e g "turn-on-the-phone-holding-two-buttons-pressed-and-enter-diagnostics-mode". I wonder if the sensor buttons would do that?
If I am going to express my opinion I will rather say I am going for the large screen size to be honest, Window mobile did not change since, its still WM 6.1 and not much difference on software, yes is the look of the phone that impress me and the size of the screen, because I personally enjoy watching movies on move.
How can HTC put such a cheap, crappy-looking clock onto such a "high-end" device?
The analogue clock from the TF2D (as per the Touch 3G) just looks so much better.
I also agree with the comments about the Appointments - this is a very important point for me, and if not easily resolvable will make me look eleswhere.
So do I remove the TF3D and use Spb instead? If I were to do that, would I then lose the scrollability of the unit - is the finger-scrolling part of TF3D or part of WM6.1?
From a non techie user point-of-view, the more I am finding out about this, the less excited I am about it. Having just read through the manual, I realise it doesn't do any more than any other WM 6.1 pda, except for the bigger screen. And even the quality of films on that seems to be in question!
Maybe I should stop reading sites such as this - lol.
Look we all love the design factor, large screen, hi res etc. That makes it the best win mo phone. Don't let these posts turn you off. You fell in love with the phone for a reason. As for the minor problems (2 appointments etc), well... where there's a will there's a way... xda-developers. Just give them time to work their magic.
Anyway there is always Second Today to see appointents http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=O2MYv5ooIp0
Nothing...........
I just Ordered mine from pdashop.nl 1 minute ago... And i don't need any negation right now. for 629 Euro. ....It better impress
Nothing is gonna take that joy from me..
You can fall in love with a phone for the wrong reasons! I really do think expectations are too high for this device, and people are right to question and rethink this now, before they've paid their money... IMO it's a flawed design, WinMo needs some kind of d-pad, it's not finger friendly enough even on this size screen to get by without it. If losing the hardware controls is a necessity of that larger screen, then they need to replace the UI completely, and use some other OS.
...
Are you guys serious?
Let's see the complaints that make this device "just another WM phone."
1. TV-OUT Capability
Why do I need this? WHEN will I need this? If I am at home, I will use my laptop to connect my HDTV via HDMI. Using a phone at home for it's TV-Out capability is well, useless. If you can afford this device, and are tech-savvy enough to know about it, then odds are you have an HDMI capable computer and TV.
The ONLY scenario where I could see this feature be useful is if I wanted to output video on a random TV, maybe at a bar:
"Hey bartender, hook up my HTC TOUCH HD to the TV please."
LOL
Come on!
2. Hard one handed usage? This coming from people who love QWERTY keyboards. I find this hilarious. What's so hard about it? Move your thumb around and you're good to go.
3. OMG! Weird camera lens box!! WTF is weird about it? Now, if you want to tell me no flash, alright I can agree with that. But to nag about the camera lens box? I think it looks good. I mean, I honestly don't care what it looks like as long as it's not pink with rainbows.
What are some other complaints?
No directional pad. Well, you have a 3.8in TOUCH screen and you want a d-pad? Is this a joke? If you want a d-pad, don't buy a TOUCH screen.
No games. Who plays games on their phone? Seriously. If you want to play games, go and buy a PSP or DS.
Home screen only shows a couple of appointments. This is a SLIGHT issue, but something tells me it will be fixed in no time by the heads roaming these forums.
-------------------------------------------------------
Now, let's compare these issues with the iPhone, since there were about 101 insinuations that we are desperate WM fan boys.
No TV-out:
iPhone doesn't have TV out either. OOOOOOOO.
Weird camera lens box:
iPhone has a useless 2megapixel camera without recording or focus features.
One handed usage:
Anyone notice that you have to slide SIDEWAYS just to unlock the iPhone? Explain to me how you are going to do that with ONE hand. At least HTC had the foresight to allow you to use the phone primarily with your thumb with up and down gestures.
The HTC Touch HD is NOT like any other WM phone or ANY phone for that matter. It's sensitivity is far superior, beautiful screen, FAST, and can do anything you can throw at it besides useless things such as outputting video at a bar.
Oh, and please don't get me started on the lack of iPhone features. How about the ability to CUT and PASTE? Want to talk to me about the iPhone marketplace? There are programmers all over the net with custom programs for WM that allows us to do basically ANYTHING, even emulate the iPhone.
Give me a break. This is a GREAT device and as far as I can tell, the only thing missing is flash.
And if you want to really be douche about it, most phones nowadays have a phone, video/music player, and a camera! So I guess we should all just get ourselves a Nokia 7610 and cluck.
So, could I use Second Today to run something like the Spb Today screen (because I am used to and love its flexible Appointments display), or am I mixing up technologies?
And just how safe /easy is it for a non-techie to install Second Today, and to change the button functions (and does this require a registry change, because now I'm starting to talk a new language?)
And, whilst I'm in a writing mood, the other issues raised were video playback quality, and suspected lag in GPS navigation.
Can anyone confirm the current situation with these. Is the playback quality acceptable without dropped frames, and has it been absolutely confirmed by a real test that there is no GPS lag?
Boinng said:
I think it's yet another half-a***d swipe at the iPhone, without any real thought put into it. WM fans want to believe this is "the one" that's going to give them everything they (perhaps secretly) really like about the iPhone, while still wearing the Windows Mobile badge. In reality, it's just another WM phone with a bigger screen, and actually a few disadvantages over some other models (like that lack of a D-pad). In spite of the screen I really doubt the multimedia will be as slick as the iPhone, and for gaming it's a dead duck - unlike the iPhone where the appstore is brimming full of immersive games built around the iPhone's acceleromotor and multi-touch screen, the Touch HD only has the WM back catalogue to choose from, 99% of which will be written to run on non-accelerometor equipped phones with D-pads.
Meanwhile, underneath the Touchflo you still have an interface designed for a stylus, however big the display.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
haha opinions from Apple Fan Boys dont count. All opinions on gaming (based on nothing), no dpad (which i love), Poor multimedia (not from the videos ive seen), App store stinks because hacked apps for iphone way better and FREE,
I owned an Iphone for a month and couldnt get rid of it fast enough because WM offers so much more functionality for business and "hackability"
dont get wrong ! iphone is NO WAY competitor, its just a fancy phone! not more not less !
im going to buy this beast, but i really want to know is this really a big deal ?
i dont think so !
but we all know the form factor and the screen size is undeniable ! thats why im going for HD .
nu_D said:
...
1. TV-OUT Capability
Why do I need this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you are on holiday? At the hotel, in a country where you dont understand local language ... you end up with CNN
So, TV-Out is nice to have! Hook it up to the hotel TV and play movie from your PDA.
Why some users complained about this TV-Out? Because the "previous" device has that, HTC Raphael. Why dont they include it in the next iteration?
Of course, probably there are some other reasons, like PRICE etc. But I see this TV-Out as a valid point.
nu_D said:
2. Hard one handed usage? This coming from people who love QWERTY keyboards. I find this hilarious. What's so hard about it? Move your thumb around and you're good to go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not always like that. The OS (WinMo 6.1) is not specifically designed for touch screen only.
People like me, prefer to use DPAD to move around the UI, much faster, efficient and less-thumb-hurt
You may disagree, but thats you!
nu_D said:
No games. Who plays games on their phone? Seriously. If you want to play games, go and buy a PSP or DS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Woohoo ... Gaming is also part of the mobile world.
If you dont play game in your PDA, then (again) it's your choice.
You should not dictate that, because the mobile gaming market is THERE.
nu_D said:
Want to talk to me about the iPhone marketplace? There are programmers all over the net with custom programs for WM that allows us to do basically ANYTHING, even emulate the iPhone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Righty ... Please dont compare iPhone apps with WinMo apps
nu_D said:
Give me a break. This is a GREAT device and as far as I can tell, the only thing missing is flash.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it is a great device. But how great is this? Depends ...
manuelcalavera said:
dont get wrong ! iphone is NO WAY competitor, its just a fancy phone! not more not less !
im going to buy this beast, but i really want to know is this really a big deal ?
i dont think so !
but we all know the form factor and the screen size is undeniable ! thats why im going for HD .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
and my apologies for not answer the question lol. Is it a big deal, nah, not when you look at all the other technology worldwide as a whole. Its nice but there is really no "phone" that is a big deal in my humble opinion.
nu_D said:
...
Now, let's compare these issues with the iPhone, since there were about 101 insinuations that we are desperate WM fan boys.
No TV-out:
iPhone doesn't have TV out either. OOOOOOOO.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually yes, it does. Bad start.
Weird camera lens box:
iPhone has a useless 2megapixel camera without recording or focus features.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Absolutely. For the record, I have no idea why anyone's complaining about the "weird camera lens box" on the HD. It's just a lens.
The iPhone's camera is just a camera, and makes no pretence to be anything more - if you want a better camera, buy one (or a different phone).
One handed usage:
Anyone notice that you have to slide SIDEWAYS just to unlock the iPhone? Explain to me how you are going to do that with ONE hand.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Easily and quickly about a million times a day. Seriously, you're just demonstrating you've never been near one, and are desperately trying to think up things which might be wrong with it, on the strength of a few screenshots you've seen. The "slide to unlock/answer" is an excellent feature that's completely natural to use one handed - it works so well that even HTC have tried to imitate it with a similar "slide to answer" feature on the, ahem, Touch HD.
At least HTC had the foresight to allow you to use the phone primarily with your thumb with up and down gestures.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You mean TouchFlo scrolling? The first feature that HTC copied from the iPhone, last year? Ah yes, such foresight!
The HTC Touch HD is NOT like any other WM phone or ANY phone for that matter. It's sensitivity is far superior, beautiful screen, FAST, and can do anything you can throw at it besides useless things such as outputting video at a bar.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wake up and smell yesterday's coffee. It's like like every other WM phone, runs the same software as every other WM phone, it even has the same processor and internal spec as most other current WM phones. The screen is new, as is the inconvenient lack of d-pad - everything else is the same old same old.
Oh, and please don't get me started on the lack of iPhone features. How about the ability to CUT and PASTE?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh, yeah, it doesn't do that. You knew about that? I thought it was a secret?
Want to talk to me about the iPhone marketplace?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really, but I'll tell about the Appstore - bloody brilliant. Thousands of quality apps, many of them free, all the paid ones generally much, much cheaper than their WinMo equivalents, and all there to be browsed and downloaded right on the device, updates alerted and downloaded in the same way.. yep, it's a fantastic system. Is that what you wanted to know?
There are programmers all over the net with custom programs for WM that allows us to do basically ANYTHING, even emulate the iPhone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now why would you want to emulate a rubbish old iPhone?
For the record, I used a Tytn II for the past year, I've never owned a Mac, and I've never been a "fanboy" of any damn thing, but if you think the iPhone's a soft target for a bit of WinMo frustration, you're mistaken.
THIS IS A THREAD FOR CONSTRUCTIVE FEEDBACK AND UNBIASED OPINIONS. IF IT DOESN'T APPLY TO YOU, PLEASE HIT "BACK".
Hi, im currently waiting for the Touch HD, but the past few days have posed many questions with much criticism going on about HTC's new flagship product. This has brought up the idea again, whether i should go for the iphone. Im no fan boy and i would value anything thats factual and unbiased.
this are my most important needs for the phone off the hat, in order of importance.
1) text messaging. i need a good keypad to message and such. i know the touch hd uses a resistive and the iphone a capacitive. but bearing in mind that the resistive screen used by the touch hd is by far the best, is it really far of from the iphone? If the apple gets a score of 100%, what would the touch hd's touch screen get?
(i sorta do MMS messaging at times too)
2) web browsing, the easy of web browsing is kinda important. less the navigation but more of page viewing. this is where the 3.8" screen comes as a huge plus. i know navigation on the iphone is more user friendly, but in terms of amt of information in a scree, is the touch hd much better?
3) videos. just one question, can the touch hd watch SMOOTH and CLEAR videos with the correct codes and resolution(reasonable size please)?
4) extra stuffs. i know that WM has many 3rd party software out there, much more than the iphone. ignoring the design and such, does the boundless quantity of software provide sufficiently functionality as compared to what the app store offers?
5) the occasional picture. iphone or touch hd? in terms of speed and quality.
Edit: I do have tons of time on my hands to tweak the Touch HD to my liking and such. lol.
(Just gotta wait for it to be out in Singapore...)
Note: I dont appreciate flaming nor do i feel i deserve any :/
Look up in this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=443504
1) no answer cos I dont have my HD yet
2) same as 1)
3) use Core Player v1.2.5 and it will work out of the box
4) Absolutely...Wait another month and you will find plenty of stuff exclusively for the HD. Thats xda any people in here are outstanding
Hope could at least help a little.
Ascenca
Sounds like the HD will be more up your street.
I think you'll probably get bored of the iphone interface after a while (with the HD you'll be able to customise and tailor it to your needs)
I'm waiting for my HD to be delivered within the next 2 days (fingers crossed), but according to the slashgear review, the HD has the best resistive touch screen available (almost on par with the iphone).
The touch experience is extended over to Opera so should make web browsing a doddle.
Plus you can play high res div-x videos smoothly - not sure about other formats.
Here's the review - http://www.slashgear.com/htc-touch-hd-slashgear-review-part-2-0721942/
With respect to camera quality - it'll have to be the HD as you've got a 5MP camera (i know pixel resolution isn't the only factor for measuring quality but it has to beat the iphones 2mp) plus you'll also get more options on how you want to capture images not to mention the video recording ability.
Hope that helps !
I've had both (got the first iPhone when it came out in the US and got rid of it a month later for various reasons - mainly things that it just didn't do well or at all that I really need from a phone) - but I was struck with the UI and how good it was (the capacitive touchscreen I guess basically and how polished the visuals were supporting it)
Anyway, I've never really understood this ludicrous 'fan' loyalty mentality [over EITHER brand]- it's an effing phone, it's not like a member of my close family make them or anything.........anyway....I digress....I can't answer all your questions, as one or 2 are a little technical and require more detail than I can provide I tihnk - plus I've only had the HD a few days and so I've not managed to try certain things (will try video in a sec though
1. Txt messaging .... '=IF IPHONE=100%,TOUCH_HD=97%,IMO' ;-) (seriously - it's v. good, I think so anyway)
2. Screen 'volume' browsing advantage - it tips a little in favour of the HD for obvious reasons - not much in it really though - definintion is fantastic on the HD
Jumping to 5. The HD just gets it I think - speed is about the same IIRC but the screen definition on the HD blows the iphone away (and anything else I've seen quite frankly, including the diamond, if only because it has a smaller version of the same screen and was a bit flickery on the brightness)
HTH
FWIW - I really do like the iphone...but.....it just lets itself down badly on several points for me at this stage - it may get to the point in a couple of gen's time where it becomes a contender for me again - but IF I can get ANDROID onto my HD [oh please oh please oh please....] ....I feel the bar will be set waaaaay up high - too high in fact!
so the touch HD can be said to be more "open sourced", especially with lots more apps and such out there?
Stelixus said:
so the touch HD can be said to be more "open sourced", especially with lots more apps and such out there?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh certainly. But not just the apps, also the ROMs, radios, unlockers, SPLs and all the other stuff the geniuses here dabble in.
One more factor to think about is the actual time and energy you want to spend on your phone. Buying the HD (or any WM phone) and participating in XDA-Devs is a dangerous recipe. Most people I see on here (myself included) don't just set up their phones and live happily ever after. It is a never-ending and frustratingly enjoyable experience trying to make the phone work exactly like you want it to.
The iphone on the other hand, just works. But probably not exactly like you want it to
Having owned both... (well still owning HD now and it's a keeper so yes I am slightly biased):
Stelixus said:
1) text messaging. i need a good keypad to message and such. i know the touch hd uses a resistive and the iphone a capacitive. but bearing in mind that the resistive screen used by the touch hd is by far the best, is it really far of from the iphone? If the apple gets a score of 100%, what would the touch hd's touch screen get?
(i sorta do MMS messaging at times too)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For typing, the differences between any touchscreen become much smaller as all you do is press your finger down on an area contrary to sliding and brushing and such. The HD types better in that regard as there is more keyboard options (I really dig suretype) and even on similar keyboards (qwerty) the HD utilizes the additional screen height with some additional controls.
To answer the other question: well both screens are 100% to me, maybe the HD is 98%... The differences in responsiveness are so damn small I can barely tell. Behaves a little differently though, mostly depending on UI differences, not screen differences. But the HD has a sharper, cleaner presentation and both UIs are very good, so I prefer the HD, by a small margin.
Stelixus said:
2) web browsing, the easy of web browsing is kinda important. less the navigation but more of page viewing. this is where the 3.8" screen comes as a huge plus. i know navigation on the iphone is more user friendly, but in terms of amt of information in a scree, is the touch hd much better?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HD hands down. The huge screen and high sharpness are all major criteria for me, and this is mainly why I chose the HD (and why it has its name ). Navigation on the iPhone is barely more user friendly, multitouch is nice for pictures but annoying/overrated for browsing... I really prefer the doubletap.
There is not much more information on the HD screen as only the widescreen factor gets you more info, but because of the super resolution it is a lot sharper and thus you don't need to zoom in as much to get readible pages. In fact, I do global reading/site skimming without zooming in at all. Iphone won't let you do that as easily.
Stelixus said:
3) videos. just one question, can the touch hd watch SMOOTH and CLEAR videos with the correct codes and resolution(reasonable size please)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I watch DivX mostly on it, using 800MB and 1,5GB files. I use coreplayer, perfect for me... I don't do benchmarks so I can't tell you the scientific performance, but if I see razor sharp 800*480 and smooth playback movies with super fast seeking, I'm happy.
Stelixus said:
4) extra stuffs. i know that WM has many 3rd party software out there, much more than the iphone. ignoring the design and such, does the boundless quantity of software provide sufficiently functionality as compared to what the app store offers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would not let the WinMo platform cloud judgement here. The Apple App Store is huge and only getting bigger each day, it's got great developer support. Don't buy into WinMo because of applications. IPhone has got apps for anything you need, just like WinMo, biggest difference is that WinMo has 10 apps for anything you need, so you got more choice
However, WinMo is much, much MUCH more customizable. Like I said WinMo has 10 apps for each IPHone 1 app, well it's like you got 10 OS versions contrary to 1 as well... WinMo is a broad term and IPhone OS is always the same damn thing, and all these kids got the same apps on their phones
Stelixus said:
5) the occasional picture. iphone or touch hd? in terms of speed and quality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HTC, Apple, Blackberry... Don't buy these brands for good camera, but yes, occasional picture, it's fine. You get the same quality from an IPhone and a HD, but the HD picture is much bigger (5MP contrary to 2MP), but sensor quality does not differ much.
But... Here comes WinMo again... Of course the HD camera lets you do 10 times as much as an IPhone cam, making it more suitable for the occasional picture.
larsuck said:
The iphone on the other hand, just works. But probably not exactly like you want it to
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True for the most part, well, it works ... But many software updates were required to get there Bad call reception (still an issue), locked OS features because they simply weren't ready yet, temporary freezes, lockups, horrible battery life.... It reminds us that Apple phones are made by the same mere mortals that would make any other phone
and most imporant of all, with HD you have Voice Command available. There is nothing even remotely close on Iphone i have htc x7500 and iphone. HD coming tommorow
I have had my 3G iphone for about 6-7 months now, and have in that time tried several new phones, namely Nokia E71, Diamond (horrible), X1 (lasted less than 1 day!) and I also own a Trinity.
Anyway, the HD arrived via www.devicewire.co.uk in the UK (doh) on Thursday last week, and I powered it up right away. It was £522 delivered.
I think in the UK, people are better off ordering online, since you have the 7 day DSR (Distance Sellings Regs) to fall back on in the event of dislike, dead pixels etc.
With the HD, I am surprised how much I like it..........put it this way, it came Thursday, and Friday it was a case of "yes, this is good, but nothing much better than the iPhone, so I can not justify the cost, so back it goes".....read on for what happened next
I even have the return code from devicewire (very good aftersales, even when you are returning stuff!!)
I can not say the HD screen blew me away, since the screen on the iPhone is a truly, truly lovely screen anyway, and I had been using this everyday for the aforemention 6-7 months.....but, for anyone who has not been using an iPhone, the screen is gonna make you do a double take. It is clear, big, bright and the fonts look amazing.
First thing I did was switch off the ambient sensor (yes, it does have one!), and put brightness up to full, I love contrast as my eyesight is not so good these days.
Now, this is why the iPhone has been so good for me, (although I guess most of you lot here will be younger with perfect vision), I find it has good large fonts, and great contrast.
Compare this to the default text size on the Diamond, or indeed the latest Sony X1, its tiny, and yes, I do know you can altertext size, but on a small screen, it just means you get less on a sreen and have to be scrolling all the time.
The HD is just perfect for me, nice big fonts, so smooth, and perfectly usable with either a finger, (even with a glove on, something that is not possible on iPhone), or a stylus, which as it turns the HD on, is handy to have.
So, the screen is as good as the iPhone, with better resolution, and as I just read in the Slashgear review, the actual touching of the two screens is very close indeed. Even coming from several hours use of the iPhone eveyday, I do feel that I will get on with the HD screen very nicely.
But hang on, I am not keeping this am I, I already have the return code and devicewire are expecting it back......well, I doubt it now.......I had put it all away very carefully on Friday, but it sat there looking at me, and I kept reading about it on here........it was all too much, got up this morning and thought "lets take it to work, Sunday is quiet usually, I can have a play".
Well, the breakthrough for me was to turn off Touchflo and install PocketPlus, a great piece of software I have used on many devices. Oh, that and TomTom 6 running in landscape on the trip to work
As for GPS lag, it is only about 10 miles to my workplace, but there is little or no lag present in TomTom 6.
TomTom is a big deal for me, I find nothing touches it, and it is a great disapointment that there is still no TomTom (or anything else!) for the iPhone, when you recall the stories that TomTom already had it running back at the 3G launch, it must be Apple who are blocking its release.....
I think Touchflo is just too "black" for me, not sure if it will run with a brighter skin or not, but I like the way PocketPlus makes a device look, much brighter.
Now, a lot has been written about WM 6.1 being hard to use without D-Pad? The only issue (apart from games which I confess is of zero concern to me) is for selecting little drop down (roll out) menus, and that is sorted with AEBPlus http://ae.inc.ru/aebplus.php which allows you to assign the volume up and down keys to act as Arrow Up and Arrow Down, and this sorts it and works well.
I can confirm the UK HD comes with the little soft case (its quite nice actually), but a word of warning, do NOT assume all iPhone cases will work, my one, and nice Marware slip case is too tight, and the HD is a smidgen wider that the iPhone. Anyway, I like the softcase. It was also nice to get the 8gb Micro SD card. I have not installed the screen protector yet, can never really get on with those anyway.
Keyboard use on the iPhone is pretty good, and I was very doubtful that HTC could get anywhere near it, but they have basically cracked it IMV. The buttons are the same size as iPhone and easy to use. I am making less mistakes in a few hours than I do after 6 months on iPhone.
Web browsing is not in my opinion as good as the iPhone, well, let me qualify that. If you just use fingers, the iPhone wins, but if you use fingers and the stylus, I think the HD then just shades it.
One very welcome side effect of returning to WM is the multitasking, this is one massive issue for us geeks on the iPhone, combined with the lack of cut n paste, it really shows the two devices quite far apart in usability.
Email is very good on the iPhone, and if you only have the one account (gmail for example) it takes some beating for simplicity. However, the HD also does a great job, and with a little wireless keyboard (impossible on iPhone), I think it will make a good laptop replacement)
RSS is OK on the iPhone, but much easier on the HD, with the built in RSS Hub program, which downloads all feeds, including video feeds. I like to watch Cali Lewis on Geekbrief www.geekbrief.tv everyday, and you have to jailbreak the iPhone to be able to do that (yes, I do know its coming in 2.2 software, but with a limit of 10mb over cellular, which renders it useless for video podcasts, and anyway, its a pain in the arse to upgrade iPhone and then have to jailbreak each time.
We are good at making our decisions fit the case, so the iPhone user is always going to say "oh, I don't really miss cut n paste", when in fact, you quickly forget how often it is useful.
I think for me, it comes down to this, the HTC Touch HD can do everything the iPhone can do and lots more, but the the iPhone can not do several things the HD can do. Does that make sense?
I hope this view (not a review IMHO), helps some of you, and just like the chap in the other thread, please feel free to ask any specific questions about useabilty, although please don't ask me to run x test on y video, using xx program while standing in a bucket of water, as I probably can not be bothered
A couple of program I will miss if I sell the iPhone are TV Plus, a great APP which gives a 7 day EPG and more inportantly, links to Sky Plus (UK only) and lets you setup recordings.
I will also greatly miss Remote, an Apple APP which controls iTunes on my main desktop PC, although I should be getting up off my butt to change charge anyway.
So, who wants to buy an iPhone ;-)
Kev
So font size was your only problem with the Xperia? I'm trying to decide between the Xperia (had it for about 5 days now) and the HD.
BTW, my other phone is an iPhone 2G and I do like the screen.
Whoops, forgot that bit.
No, I got the X1 in the UK at Vodafone (if anyone is interested they are £500 are are not locked to Voda.....well, my one was not anyway)
The fonts were always gonna be too small for me, but I hated the keyboard, the keys barely protrude over the case, very little feedback.
But the killer and reason for return within a few hours for refund was a horribly wobbly screen, but I accept this could have been my one.
Also, given that you would have to use on screen keypad to dial people, it was too fiddly, too small. That 3" screen is very narrow you know.
Sorry.
Kev
I bet there's a program on WinMo that let's you control not only your iTunes but your whole PC. On my current 4 years old Nokia, there's System Freak, that lets you do that...
Thanks for that post KevWright.
Like VeloAudio, I'm deciding between the Touch HD and X1. I still have some niggling concerns about the Touch HD but I am assuming the X1 has the same 'problems' or 'complications' so am leaning towards the former.
Your post bolsters the case.
Great post!
Can you delve a little bit deeper into the screen responsiveness please? Just a few more sentences on how it compares to the iPhone's would be great.
Also, this is probably unbelievably subjective, but which phone do you find sexier? For instance, you are on the bus and you take out your iPhone and you take out your HD, which feels sexier?
Thanks.
kevwright said:
A couple of program I will miss if I sell the iPhone are TV Plus, a great APP which gives a 7 day EPG and more inportantly, links to Sky Plus (UK only) and lets you setup recordings.
So, who wants to buy an iPhone ;-)
Kev
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You might be interested in a SlingBox, which allows you to stream and your own Sat/IPTV etc. over the web to your laptop or your WM device. It comes with software to control the IR on your video sources. I stream Bluewin IPTV and Sky to the SlingMobile software on my Trinity and intend to do the same with the HD tomorrow when it arrives. I hope it runs on the HD. I will report back later on that.
Matterhorn said:
You might be interested in a SlingBox, which allows you to stream and your own Sat/IPTV etc. over the web to your laptop or your WM device. It comes with software to control the IR on your video sources. I stream Bluewin IPTV and Sky to the SlingMobile software on my Trinity and intend to do the same with the HD tomorrow when it arrives. I hope it runs on the HD. I will report back later on that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what I've read elsewhere, the Touch HD doesn't have an IR port, so you won't be able to use the IR functionality of Slingbox unless you mean the "box" itself attached to a TV?
kevwright said:
Oh, that and TomTom 6 running in landscape on the trip to work
As for GPS lag, it is only about 10 miles to my workplace, but there is little or no lag present in TomTom 6.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What version did you install, and will it work in full WVGA or are their black bars on the screen?
Thanks in advance
nu_D said:
Great post!
Can you delve a little bit deeper into the screen responsiveness please? Just a few more sentences on how it compares to the iPhone's would be great.
Also, this is probably unbelievably subjective, but which phone do you find sexier? For instance, you are on the bus and you take out your iPhone and you take out your HD, which feels sexier?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, it is hard to say that much more, I have them both here and am playing now. Not sure if you know the iPhone, but on 2.1 software (jailbroken), when you press the button for say SMS, there is about a 2 sec delay while it loads up, now on the HD, its about the same, but on the HD if you leave messaging running in the background (which I suspect you can do with these better memory equipped models?) it is instant, with the iPhone you always get the delay cos nothing (well except the music player) is allowed to stay in background.
OK, using book reading software, I would say they are almost equal.........maybe the iPhone is fractionally better, or it could be I am more used to it.
As to your second point, I can't help mate, for one, I only have a vague idea of what a "bus" is, and the day I find either the iPhone or the HD "sexy", that is the day I go back to my Nokia 6310 )
OK, I think they look so similar mate, there is nothing in it.
Kev
kevwright said:
But the killer and reason for return within a few hours for refund was a horribly wobbly screen, but I accept this could have been my one.
Kev
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you saying they are all wobbly or it is just yours. You going to replace it I guess?
luckyuser said:
What version did you install, and will it work in full WVGA or are their black bars on the screen?
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I can not find a version number I am afraid.
It looks great in portrait, but bloody fantastic in widescreen, I have it on a manual rotate screen, and there are NO bars in any view.
Kev
exe said:
Are you saying they are all wobbly or it is just yours. You going to replace it I guess?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would have no idea beyond my one mate. It was that bad that I could never live with it.
I have replaced it....with the HD )
I will not be getting another X1, fonts were too small, and after this screen, there is no going back.
Kev
Matterhorn said:
You might be interested in a SlingBox, which allows you to stream and your own Sat/IPTV etc. over the web to your laptop or your WM device. It comes with software to control the IR on your video sources. I stream Bluewin IPTV and Sky to the SlingMobile software on my Trinity and intend to do the same with the HD tomorrow when it arrives. I hope it runs on the HD. I will report back later on that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I do have Slingbox, and have even register Slingplayer, but I just have never had good perfomance on it to be honest. I am not realy fussed about watching TV on my HD, just this little app was great to tell my Sky box to record something, mainly cos it enabled you to do it even without turning the TV and Sky box on.
I am hoping there is something for WinMo
Kev
nokia e71 vs. htc touch diamond
hi kevwright,
after a bad experience with an htc diamond (very poor battery and many ROM updates), I've decided to go for nokia e71. Now I'm considering an htc touch hd, but I'm very curios about it's battery life. how the touch hd compare to the e71 in terms of battery life and general?
in call recording
Hi alll - I have posted a separate thread on this issue, but alas, I thought i would also ask it here from those that already have an HD.
in call recording feature - anyone tried it out? some are reporting that it doesn't work...even though HTC calls it out in their specs online.
can anyone kindly shed some real world experience w/this feature on teh HD?
Thanks in advance.
Someone tell this guy how paragraphs work...
Great post.. I allready bought Touch HD, and I have the same view as you!
Cheers!
Thanks for the insight, kev. Great post.
dragosel80 said:
hi kevwright,
after a bad experience with an htc diamond (very poor battery and many ROM updates), I've decided to go for nokia e71. Now I'm considering an htc touch hd, but I'm very curios about it's battery life. how the touch hd compare to the e71 in terms of battery life and general?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Battery life looks like it will be quite good, but not as good as an E71 (screen is tiny!).
Had it only a day really, so I will update this in a few days.
Kev
I'm currently the owner of a launch day Touch Diamond - which cost me about £465 back in June from Devicewire.
Prior to that, I had a 16gb iPhone - which I really liked, but missed the features of a regular phone like picture messaging etc.
I'm running one of Dutty's last ROMS on the Diamond, it works perfectly and does pretty much everything I want. The only downer for me is the size of the screen. I go on 3 or 4 holidays abroad a year and the iPhone was ideal for filling with videos and watching them on the plane. I'm just back from my New Year break and borrowed a friends iPod Touch to use rather than watching videos on my Diamond for the bigger screen.
I have the HTC 1340mah battery in too which makes the battery a good bit better than the stock one, but its still needs a charge most nights. I also have the HTC charging cradle...
Has anyone here upgraded from a Diamond to a Touch HD? How do you find it in comparison? Bearing in mind I've spent about £500 on this phone, cradle and extended battery - is it worth paying another £550 for the Touch HD? Obviously I can eBay my Diamond and maybe get a few quid for it - but with heaps of them on just now they're not going for that much!
yes
I had the touch pro for three weeks and hated using it. Ive had the Touch HD for four weeks now and love it. the Touch Pro was just painfull entering text or surfing.
I switched from Diamond to HD about 6 weeks ago and I don´t regret it. I still have the Diamond but never use it (I like to have a spare phone..just in case). The HD runs slick right out of the box, I don´t think I´ll flash it anytime soon. The screen is just awesome, not only because it´s big but it´s also more responsible. And you have quite a bunch of MB´s more free RAM + a Micro SD card which is included in the box. I´ll say go for it
I also had a Touch Pro and now much happier with the HD.
The HD is really great !! The Touch Pro was good but I found I did not need the keyboard so often and it was a heavy price, sic, to pay for it. The screen quality on the Touch Pro is very good but it's small compared to the HD.
The HD fits very well to my ideal device - very thin but large. The Touch Pro was too fat and had a too small display.
I upgraded to a Diamond but sent it back cos I wasnt getting on with it. Upgraded to a HD but yet to receive it.
Seriously considering just selling it on ebay and cash in. Upgrading from a nokia n95 which is all I need.
Do you think if i didnt get on with the diamond id struggle with the hd?
Hamudi2000 said:
I switched from Diamond to HD about 6 weeks ago and I don´t regret it. I still have the Diamond but never use it (I like to have a spare phone..just in case). The HD runs slick right out of the box, I don´t think I´ll flash it anytime soon. The screen is just awesome, not only because it´s big but it´s also more responsible. And you have quite a bunch of MB´s more free RAM + a Micro SD card which is included in the box. I´ll say go for it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same situation and opinion
i havnt had a diamond , but i did use my ipod touch a lot for movies and music so the main reason for me to upgrade from my n95 was to have an all in 1 device .
I play my movies using core player which i find very good (no jerkiness during playback etc)
And playing music is also fine , so while id say if i was just going to use it as a phone id have stuck with my n95 but if your going to use it for multi media id say Go for it
Recently there were a few threads that covered this topic a lot. Browse through the past 3 or 4 pages.
g4orce99 said:
I upgraded to a Diamond but sent it back cos I wasnt getting on with it. Upgraded to a HD but yet to receive it.
Seriously considering just selling it on ebay and cash in. Upgrading from a nokia n95 which is all I need.
Do you think if i didnt get on with the diamond id struggle with the hd?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hard to say mate since we are not aware of what you where struggling it functionality wise... all I can tell you is that ive had a few windows mobile devices and always liked them due to suiting my lifestyle just fine...the hd is by far the one is use even more of its achievable function on such as web (most pages can be fully viewd without side scrolling and still looking pretty much as seen on your desktop and pages are readable without zooming in) and general digging into the menus without the need of the stylus!! but windows mobile is like marmite...you either love it or hate it
agent003 said:
windows mobile is like marmite...you either love it or hate it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That should be a tagline here, it's the perfect answer!
I also traded in my 16GB iphone for a first release diamond which was great at first but had me craving the speed and the screen of the apple product despite it's limitations.
Moving up to the HD was, for me, the perfect blend of the two. With a few tweaks i have considerably better speed than the Diamond and a bigger better screen than the iphone.
iphone movie playback and touch is still better but being able to copy text from websites and send in an email via exchange to work colleagues when researching stuff is invaluable.
the camera indoors and at night is a pile of poop tho
my diamond sits in a drawer, the HD does everything better and faster.. what DPad?!? Don't even miss it
2unique said:
the camera indoors and at night is a pile of poop tho
my diamond sits in a drawer, the HD does everything better and faster.. what DPad?!? Don't even miss it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bet the camera is still better than the iPhone's measly 2mp camera in the dark though.
To be honest the only time I ever use the D-pad on my Diamond is to zoom in / out on links that are too small to hit with my fingers!
How do you mean the movie playback isn't as good on the HD as the iPhone?
Another good reason for changing it to save carrying a stupid USB headphone adapter about with me!
I've been watching a couple of Dimonds on eBay - and I can probably get about £200 for it - plus another few £'s for my dock and extended battery.
I was hoping that some people would tell me not to bother changing as they were very similar - but it seems everyone prefers the Touch HD! Looks like my wallet is going to take another battering!!! I think play.com seems to be the cheapest at £500 inc delivery?
I might have a look in my Orange store today and see what they can give me on a contract - as I currently have no ties.
Thanks for all the input though...
p3eps said:
How do you mean the movie playback isn't as good on the HD as the iPhone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
allow me to retract that as of today http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=467112
ask in the diamond forum, might get a few reasons to save your money !!
Heck yea its worth it I am with sprint....about to cancel to jump ship to T-mobile. I had the TOUCH, DIAMOND, and TOUCH PRO. None of them compare to the Blackstone. The vogue was ok, which i kept as my back-up phone. The diamond, I hated the bottom buttons, kept freezing up and not responding. The TOUCH PRO let me down because i thought i could convince myself that the whole "Slide out keyboad" was ok for me, but after a week, i realized I was a touch screen person. So now when i cancel my sprint plan in a day or two, i will be selling the TOUCH PRO, and Vogue. Trust me, the HD is worth it
agent003 said:
Hard to say mate since we are not aware of what you where struggling it functionality wise... all I can tell you is that ive had a few windows mobile devices and always liked them due to suiting my lifestyle just fine...the hd is by far the one is use even more of its achievable function on such as web (most pages can be fully viewd without side scrolling and still looking pretty much as seen on your desktop and pages are readable without zooming in) and general digging into the menus without the need of the stylus!! but windows mobile is like marmite...you either love it or hate it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good post!
It's coming at some stage on Monday but as i said i'm questioning even opening the seal as I could sell it on ebay as a sealed box and make a few quid on it.
The way I look at mobiles I always ask myself could i answer a call or send a brief text message while im driving? like I can with my Nokia N95. (Not that i use my phone when driving but to me thats classed as "easy usage".
With the Diamond I found that calls were being answered in my pocket which was pissed me off something cronic. I found the touch screen un-responsive and after I installed tomtom it slowed the whole phone down and made touch flo very blocky and slow.
That was pretty much it and I wasnt 100% that I could live with these problems for 18 months so took advantage of the 7 day return policy.
Can anyone name another phone that has:
-The same size screen as the HD
-An accelerometer
-7.2 mbit HSDPA
-GPS
-Front facing camera for videophone
-Video recording capabilities
-Expandable ram to 64gb
-5+ megapixel camera
-Hotswap SD cards
-User removeable battery
Afaik there is no other phone with this functionality.
gold333 said:
Can anyone name another phone that has:
-The same size screen as the HD
-An accelerometer
-7.2 mbit HSDPA
-GPS
-Front facing camera for videophone
-Video recording capabilities
-Expandable ram to 64gb
-5+ megapixel camera
-Hotswap SD cards
-User removeable battery
Afaik there is no other phone with this functionality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes stats are great. But as much as i hate saying it the iphone has something unrelated to stats. It has the (make up some word) WOOOOOWZER factor to it. The touch screen is the best, the web browsing is the best so i keep hearing & (nothing todo with the phone) it has REAL unlimited internet. Swings and Roundabouts my friend.
+ ive gotta be honest Id rather use a 2mp cam with a flash than a 5 without. I goto a lot of parties!
g4orce99 said:
Yes stats are great. But as much as i hate saying it the iphone has something unrelated to stats. It has the (make up some word) WOOOOOWZER factor to it. The touch screen is the best, the web browsing is the best so i keep hearing & (nothing todo with the phone) it has REAL unlimited internet. Swings and Roundabouts my friend.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got unlimited internet for less on my HD, cause I don't pay apple tax. I pay 24 euro a month(18 months) which includes 200 min calling and unlimited internet access, Iphone starts at 35 euro a month(24 months) here and only 150 min. No matter how I look at it, iphone was a bummed deal(especially not able to do whatever you want unless you jailbreak).
edit:
PS. Iphone doesn't have flash either last time I checked. But I do have to say I was thoroughly not amused by the 3 seconds autofocus/shutter time on the HD. Other than that I love my HD more than any phone I owned previously.
I currently have a touch HD/Blackstone and I love it to bits, but the prospect of having a capacitive multitouch screen and much faster responses when navigating round the phone/opening/running apps etc is starting to tempt me very strongly to the HD2/Leo.
Have any of you Leo owners upgraded from the Blackstone? If so, please can you let me know your thoughts on whether it was a good move, what the pros & cons are etc, and whether the new phone really is super fast and slick like the reviews I've read say it is.
If I get one I'd probably want to be running SPB shell on it, which from looking through here I assume it works, but will most apps for the blackstone also work on the Leo?
I know there's no stylus with the Leo for instance, but for fiddly stuff does the screen accept the use of a fingernail for 'precision' (ish!) stuff like checkboxes & small menus, or does it have to be skin contact or a real capacitive stylus etc?
Regardless of whether you upgraded from a Blackstone, are you very pleased with the way the phone works in terms of performance and 'slickness'?
Last questions are - what's the video performance like on the Leo, ie does it have all the problems the HD has in terms of poor out of the box performance with video playback?
And is the bluetooth stuff still hardcoded for the HTC music player (like the blackstone), or would I be able to properly use my sony bluetooth headset to control the likes of coreplayer?
Sorry for all the questions - I really want to upgrade to the Leo, but it will cost me a lot and I don't want to make a mistake.
Many thanks for any useful replies!
Jim
After having the Touch HD for 2 month I really loved it. Everything was running as I wanted it to be ... But then HTC announced the HD2 and I decided to switch to it after watching lots of videos in youtube an other sites. I would do it again ...
I don't have any problems using the OS without a stylus. In fact I wasn't using the stylus or my fingernails on my Touch HD either. I only needed to adapt to the higher screen responsiveness, but that was it.
HD2 pros compared to the Touch HD:
+ MUCH higher build quality. The Touch HD always felt somehow cheap, except it actually wasn't ...
+ Everything is just faster. I wasn't too thrilled with TouchFLO 3D on the Touch HD, as it slowed down the device too much. No problems on the HD2, although the new version of TouchFLO 3D (Sense ...) grew in so many aspects and is now pretty well integrated into the OS.
+ The bigger screen. Didn't thing its a big deal, but the screen-difference between the two devices is astonishing. Its much more fun to use multimediacontent on the HD2.
+ Pinch to Zoom.
I had a HD for nearly a year now and loved it - yes, TF3D ran slowly but it also was more "form than function" and I stopped using it in favour of simple SPB Diary with multiple tabs.
Now having a HD2 for over a month I do love the high speed and slick operation and I even stick with TF3D (or HTC Sense, whatever it's called).
But, there are apps from HD that don't run well on the screen as they expect the precision of a stylus. One example is SPB Finance that I used to record all my expenditures on an almost daily business. This just does not work with a big fat finger !
But, but others work great - CoPilot works really nicely. I tried Route66 on the HD2 as this was a fully legal working purchase on the HD but on the new HD2 it's not good. Nice surprise is the new CoPilot works really well and super fast. Even indoors near a window I can get enough satellites for a 3D fix and moving next to the window gets 7 or 8 sats. HD never achieved that.
My build quality on the HD was fine. On the HD2 you get a real solid feel from the metal battery cover where you naturally hold the device.
HD2 is super quick but the capacitive screen is a weakness. However, this is because most applications have not yet caught up. Many exist that are great with fingers like Resco explorer but others expect a stylus and are hard to use.
As a year long HD user I doubt very much that I won't move back after having got the HD2. My old HD is sitting in a box and I have not been tempted to get it out !
Thanks for the replies guys - I like what I hear!
I think the only thing that might delay me upgrading to an HD2 is the difference in value between selling HD and buying HD2 but we'll see....
Can you clarify a couple of things I'm still not sure about though?
Dave - you said you can't use certain apps from the HD because of the capacitive screen as you don't have a stylus with it (and can't use a normal one I believe), but is it possible to use these apps with a finger nail if you really need to?
I know it might be awkward or not very practical, but I want to know whether it's actually possible at all, ie if the screen will physically work like that, or if it's literally impossible to do?
Secondly (don't get me wrong here) whilst I don't want an iphone, is the responsiveness of the HD2 screen the same kind of thing? Local shops here don't have one I can try so I have to go by what others tell me, and I'd like it to work as smooth as the iphone screen, ie no actual pressure etc.
I know it's capacitive so it should be like that but I don't know if there are differences aside from that to how the screen responds. Hope that makes sense!
Last question - I believe the screen is glass on it? Is it toughened in any way? Presume the fact that it's glass will mean that it's much harder to scratch than the HD screen and also means a clearer, brighter display by not having a resistive layer?
Thanks for the replies - I appreciate the info!
I'll try again but I don't think finger nails work ...
I upgraded from the Blackstone and for me, it was definitely worth it.
First thing you notice is the amazing speed if the device. I just saw that I had TomTom (among a couple of other programs) running in the background for several days and I didn't even notice it.
The HD2 is really insanely fast. I sometimes take my old Blackstone in order to try new WM builds, but its slowness makes me sick after some minutes of using it.
Next big thing, for me, is the camera. The light sensitivity has been greatly improved and the flash works stunningly good for an LED flash.
It takes really great pictures for a smartphone, much much better than the HD, finally I have a phone that lets me capture the important moments
(btw. the 'red tint bug' is present but not noticeable on most pictures)
Third thing is the screen. It''s capacitive, that means you can NOT use your fingernail, and no stylus. But I really like the sensitivity, it's much more comfortable to use. And it feels a lot better, it's not the 'cheap' feel of the resistive panel's plastic layers anymore.
And this brings me to the fourth and last point: Build quality. I've never ever seen such a high build quality and high quality materials on a phone. It looks and feels just amazing, even the iPhone feels like a cheap toy in comparison.
Video playback is of course a lot better and it plays high quality video without stuttering.
Well actualy you can use stylus without problems, you just have to buy a special one (whitch buy the way also works on the iPhone)
http://cgi.ebay.com/2x-DAGi-Stylus-...wItemQQptZPDA_Accessories?hash=item414b467e4a
Like they other says there are applications who can be a bit of a hassel with using with the finger...
But I suspect you would love it... I could newer go back to my HD after being used to the buitiful racer the HD2 is, and i absolutely love the screen to.
Hi,
I've spent 1 week with the HD2 after a year on the HD. Mobile Shell 3.5 on both.
The main difference is speed. HD2 is soooo much faster. Didn't notice the HD was particularly slow whilst I was using it, but going back to it now is PAINFUL.
I struggled a bit initially with the capacitive screen, found it a bit hit and miss. In particular I found the HTC keyboard a nightmare, way too sensitive. Installing the .cab that decreases screen sensitivity has improved things greatly, and installing Spb Keyboard has also helped. It's improving with practice, there are still times when I do something and it doesn't register, but overall I'm starting to like it. There's a definite knack to it: much lighter touch, smoother motions. So there's a learning curve here + a need to tweak. And I'm sure the experience will continue to improve as third party software is adapted for it.
Mobile Shell has a few minor compatability issues but nothing to worry about (screen brightness control doesn't work, voicemail indicator widget doesn't work, a few other minor things). Spb are generally good at updating for significant new hardware releases, same thing happened with the HD when it was first released and they fixed everything quickly. I tried the Sense interface for a day or two to see if I could get used to it, it IS very pretty. But went back to Mobile Shell, I find it much more functional.
The HD2 build quality is excellent vs good for HD. And the additional screen size is a significant plus too. I was initially worried it would be a step too far in terms of the overall size of the device, but no. As soon as I laid eyes on the actual device + picked it up I knew it wouldn't be a problem.
Browsing in Opera is fantastic. Fast and the big screen helps. Still not comparable to a desktop browsing experience but very usable and way better than the HD due to the speed.
Overall it's a big step forward from the HD and highly recommended. Like I said, I find going back to the HD to dig out a few files I need to be surprisingly painful...
Cret said:
Secondly (don't get me wrong here) whilst I don't want an iphone, is the responsiveness of the HD2 screen the same kind of thing? Local shops here don't have one I can try so I have to go by what others tell me, and I'd like it to work as smooth as the iphone screen, ie no actual pressure etc.
I know it's capacitive so it should be like that but I don't know if there are differences aside from that to how the screen responds. Hope that makes sense!
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I tested the HD2 besides both, an 3G and 3GS, and really couldn't find any real difference in the screens responsiveness. You don't have to do any pressure on the HD2's screen ... I have to say, that I had a problem with the high sensitivity at first, but when playing around with an Nokia N900 last week, I noticed how fast I adapted to the capacitive screen of the HD2. The N900's screen was a pain in the ass (although its actually quite good for a resistive screen), because slight fingerswipes and tips didn't to anything ...
When browsing the forums you will notice, that most ppl here have/had a problem with the keyboard of the HD2. Besides the bugreporting here (I don't have any of these problems), I imagine that most of the problems with the keyboard just come from the unfamiliar sensitivity. By lifting the fingers a little higher when typing, I managed to type pretty accurate.
I don't have a Touch HD to compare side by side, but had the possibility to compare the HD2 to an iPhone 3G ... the 3G was very slow compared to the HD2 ... So wouldn't really go back to a last-gen phone ...
Had a Touch HD for a year until i bought my HD2 last month.
I Had Dutty's Leo rom running since he started releasing those, so I felt completely at home with my HD2 when i had it in my hand. (For those not knowing : Leo rom for Touch HD is just that. Winmo 6.5 running HTC Sense, just like the HD2)
A few things felt wonderfully different tho :
Screen is beautifull. The glas type used is almost impossible to scratch. I have my phone in my pocket unprotected. Even accedently slipped my keys in with it a few times. Not a mark on it! What is this screen made of ? Diamond ??
Speed. Wow! This phone is fast. I ran the weather demo simultaniously, side by side with the Touch HD. And the difference makes the Touch HD look like a joke. (it's not, but compared, its sloooow)
Pinch zoom. OMG now i know why Iphone has been the king of mobile browsing. HAS been! HD2 is now the new king! Opera + capacitive screen with multi touch AND a 1 ghz processor ? It is a match made in heaven. Mobile browsing is EASY and fun now. Thank god i have an internet sub on my simcard...
Camera. Remember how a big hazzel it was to take a pic with Touch HD ? I mean, the moment is GONE, before the camera is ready to take the picture!
With HD2 and a shortcut on the Sense start screen , it takes around 1 second(!!) from press on camera icon till your ready to take the picture!. The flash LED (Which can blind a man btw) makes it possible to shoot in the dark, FINALLY!
Well those things was EXACTLY why I upgraded, and I have not been dissapointed.
Some had a huge problem with the sensitive screen. Not me, I adapted quickly, and the keyboard I was used to from leo rom on the Touch HD, so i guess it's a matter of taste, or fat fingers .
Also
There are a LOT of the tweaks and programs for Dutty's leo rom that works great with the HD2, like BG4all etc.
rd2000 said:
The flash LED (Which can blind a man btw)
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yep, fortgot to mention the LEDs. I love them. Not to take pictures, but for everydays things. Really missed a LED on the Touch HD.
I got my HD2 a week ago, and I'm loving it, other than the rather short battery life (may be a temporary issue, some people do not have this issue).
It's definitely faster than the HD. Going through the Windows folder in File Explorer takes 2 seconds, rather than 6-8 seconds on the HD. Going through tabs in TouchFlo 3D (Sense) is fast, and tab contents are displayed lightning fast.
TomTom works great on the HD2, haven't tried CoPilot because they do not have maps that I could purchase for my region yet (which is funny, since I can download the map while trialling the software). TomTom is rather smooth on the HD2, the position cursor does not jerk forward when moving. With valid QuickGPS data, getting a GPS fix is faster than on the HD.
The speaker is a little worse than the HD in my opinion, although it's somewhat louder than the HD.
Moving from Resistive (HD) to the Capacitive screen in the HD2 may take some time to get used to it. Drawing/scribbling notes can be hard, so is selecting the directory/folder you want to go to in File Explorer. Maybe it's me, I have large fingers.
Reception compared to the HD, Nokia N82, N95 8GB.
The 3G network I'm on is rather bad in my room.
Nokia N82 and N95 8GB - 4 of 7 bars (estimated equivalent on the HD2 would be 3 of 4 bars)
HTC Touch HD - 1 of 4 bars
HTC Touch HD2 - 3 of 4 bars, sometimes full signal.
The signal bars on the HD2 tend to fluctuate at times, while holding the phone in landscape mode and browsing the internet, the signal may drop to no bars, disconnect from the network, then come back on with 1 or 2 bars.
Camera is great. Autofocus seems to be 'continuous', focusing when the camera is moved or after a few seconds. Shutter lag is much shorter than on the HD, but taking moving subjects may still result in a blurr (cranking up the ISO setting doesn't help much). Sharper than on the HD, and the automatic white balance is definitely better than on the HD under certain lighting conditions. LED Flash works OK for objects further than 30cm most of the time, using it for close ups may sometimes result in a bright, white mess.
I'm using the 1.43 ROM, so some of these issues may be fixed in the updated ROM. There are some issues in TouchFlo/Sense, but they are easily corrected by taking a trip down the Tips & Tricks Post in the Leo Forum.
tbela
I'd used Blackstone for some monthes, and overall I was satisfied. (I'd used Xanny Grid Leo rom)
I've a Leo for a week, and now I'm not simply satisfied but I'm happy with it. The speed, the huge screen and the build quality are fantastic. It's very rear, when I have to fight with small old-fashioned windows controls, but with some patience and practice it is also manageable. Nail-touching definitely doesn't work. Althogh, you can buy capacitive-compatible stylus on ebay.
Only disadvantage for me: fring doesn't work, but I hope it will be fixed soon. Temporarily I use Nimbuzz for chatting.
Overall I can highly recommend the upgrade. If you can do, DO IT!
Thanks very much for all the replies guys. The fact that most of you have written wuite a bit tells me you're very enthusiastic about the phone!
I want one for sure now. The only thing is the cost - I can't renew my contract and there are very few Leos on Ebay and around £500, but only maybe £250 sale proceeds from my HD, so it's quite a hit to take.
If I can get a few quid together to help ease the difference then I'll definitely get one.
Thanks for the comments
Same here, had the HD for about a year and liked it in many respects, the HD2 is a much nicer experience though and if you can afford it at some point I highly recommend to get it.
Well I've made my mind up to get one for sure. The only question really is when.
I'll have to buy an unlocked one on Ebay I think and there are very few on there at the moment because the phone is so new. This is obviously therefore keeping the prices really high.
I'm dying to say 'sod it' and get the credit card out but I know I ought to wait a month or two to see if they get a bit cheaper once more are being sold.
I've read reviews on it and most things I see say that this is basically the best piece of hardware on the market in terms of phones, but that it's "let down/ruined" etc by having winmo on it. I like winmo and have used it for years, so for me, that's a plus!
Having said that, I'd kill to see/have winmo7!
Yep. Those reviews are nonsense.
Powerful hardware like this needs a powerful OS, and WinMo really is by far the most powerful OS you can get.
It doesn't ruin anything. It's the perfect OS for a phone like this.
WinMo bashing is a current trend that you can't do anything against when sites like Gizmodo or Engadget spread the FUD. It's really sad.
I wouldn't want any other OS on the HD2.
maati said:
I wouldn't want any other OS on the HD2.
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Overall I agree, But Android 2.0 would be very interesting
Well I'm sure I'll be quite happy since it's exactly what I'm used to.
Last phones I've had have been Touch HD, Omnia, XDA Orbit etc - loved them all.
Can't WAIT to get the HD2 though. Especially now I've bought one this afternoon.
Cret said:
Well I'm sure I'll be quite happy since it's exactly what I'm used to.
Last phones I've had have been Touch HD, Omnia, XDA Orbit etc - loved them all.
Can't WAIT to get the HD2 though. Especially now I've bought one this afternoon.
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Congrats to get this lovely phone. I'd wager you will like it .