New HTC Diamond A Great Smartphone

The Touch Diamond2 has a lot of new and improved features that make it one of the few Windows Mobile based phones worth looking at this year. This HTC smartphone is definitely better than its predecessor and will simplify the way users communicate.

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The Diamond2 is one slick-looking phone with its stainless steel front and glossy piano-black rear. It sports a 3.2-inch WVGA touch screen (800×400), with HTC including four buttons (Call pick up, Start Menu, Back, and Call End/Home) as well as a touch-sensitive zoom bar (which we will be discussing later) below the screen. It also comes with a 5-megapixel camera and a VGA camera used for video calls and conferences.

The mini-USB port on the base of the handset is used for charging and synchronising your phone, as well as connecting the proprietary headphone. Unfortunately, the unit does not have any 3.5mm headphone jack.

HTC’s TouchFLO interface always made it easy for us to access our contacts, multimedia files, and phone settings. The Diamond2 uses the latest TouchFLO interface we love, with HTC adding more subtle but useful features to strengthen the system. One great example of this is the ‘People Centric Communication’ feature that allows a user to see a contact’s details, text messages, e-mails, as well as call history in one window.

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Another thing that sets this unit apart from other smartphones is its zoom bar. If you need to zoom in on images or want a closer look at a webpage, all you need to do is to slide your finger to the right. Conversely, sliding your finger to the left will zoom out the image or webpage. This function also works well with the Google Maps app (pre-installed on the Diamond2).

In terms of features, the Touch Diamond2 comes with the lot. It is HSDPA-enabled, comes with Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth, and supports Microsoft Exchange E-mail. The 528MHz Qualcomm processor as well as its 512MB of memory ensures that the unit will run smoothly with minimal lag and loading times.

The Diamond2’s default on-screen keyboard is small and cramped, which made it difficult for us to compose text messages. Fortunately, other input methods were available, giving us the option to choose how to type numbers and text.

Finally, users would be happy to know that the Diamond2’s battery life has improved dramatically. With the Wi-Fi turned on and with us using the unit to call, text, and send e-mails occasionally, the unit lasted for almost two days.

Overall, the new HTC Touch Diamond2 is more for business-oriented users who want to stay on top of things. The HTC Diamond 2 will be available through Optus with pricing and plans to be released by the carrier.