HTC Touch Diamond review

Average user rating

6.7

good

Average user rating from 13 users

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HTC Touch Diamond user reviews

November 26, 2008

Posted by: 01Ten

"Hotter than a heatwave"

What I like:

Slim, sleek appearance. Good looking UI. Apps that rival the iPhone.

What I don't like:

Poor battery life. Cannot expand memory.

Review:

Firstly, it looks great; nobody can deny that! It's slim, sleek and has a great black gloss finish. The back cover doesn't conform with it's smooth, intruiging edges and unique shape. The screen is more than big enough and as sharp as I have seen on any mobile phone. The buttons at the bottom of the phone strike a great contrast in being actual buttons rather than fiddly, and frankly annoying, touch buttons. I also love that it is not bulked out by having many different buttons on the side of the device like many others.

In terms of user frienliness, this is not an issue. The user interface is smooth and simple. If you're used to using a touch screen then you'll take to it without fuss and if you're new to touchscreens then it won't cause you any grief. The slider bar at the bottom of the screen acts as your main port of navigation and works well. It makes a nice change to having a ton of icons on the screen like almost all of the other touchscreen devices have. The ability to literally 'flick' through your emails, messages and contacts help the navigation aspect no end.

The apps that come with the phone are more than fun. The Teeter game is a great time killer as is the bubble breaker game. There are also useful apps such as the mp3 trimmer which allows you to create your own ringtones by cutting down your mp3 tracks. The usual stuff is included like the file browser, voice recorder, calculator etc. The Opera browser is gfantastic and browsing the web is simple and fun with the ability to turn your device on its side to view in a widescreen mode. This is great for watching youtube videos, viewing pictures etc. With this being a Windows device, you also have the benefit of getting apps like Windows Live Messenger and the ability to automatically update your emails through outlook when you link to your pc. Many apps are also available from the internet with anything that works on Windows Mobile 6 (and later) and VGA display being usable.

One negative is the battery life which is not as good as other devices on the market but isn't a huge deal either. My battery life is usually around the 2 day mark which is enough to get you by when out of the house. The charging of the battery is pretty quick also. There is an extended battery available but this adds bulk to your phone, although it would still be less than the iPhone for example (which is massive in comparison).

The inability to extend memory is one which will cause some people issues if they use the phone as an mp3 player as well or store a lot of pictures on it. However, 4gb is ample for most people in my opinion.

It's no iPhone, but it is slimmer, better looking and a heck of a lot more affordable. Not to mention you don't have to sign up for a ridiculously overexpensive contract to get yours hands on one. I'm so glad I got this phone, it is full of little surprises and gives you satisfaction that you have a true mobile heavyweight in the design and performance stakes.

Enjoy your HTC Touch Diamond.