Verizon's XV6900 Touch, now with more focus
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Jan 22nd 2008 9:01AM
posted Jan 22nd 2008 9:01AM
posted Jan 22nd 2008 9:01AM
Now that we've thrown 'em off the trail, use the form below to get in touch with the people at Engadget. Please fill in all of the required fields because they're required.
Avoid this thing like the plague, like any recent HTC device, even if you like how it looks!
Just check out http://www.htcclassaction.org/ and all the other media-attention about the issues with newer HTC devices that make 'em all but unusable.
Until these display issues are resolved (if ever), I regret ever buying my TyTN II...
I bought the Sprint Touch and I regret it too.
Again Check out the htcclassaction.org site.
hey... i'm from singapore.. can anyone care to tell me where and how can i get a verison xv6900 phone. I'll appreciate it if u could reply me. thanks
Verizon now has these on their site. I have this same phone with Sprint and LOVE it! Let me know if you have any questions about it I might be able to help with.
http://www.VerizonXV6900.com
I can now get "unlimted" EVDO data, go VZW Nazis
The Engadget Mobile link seems to be broken?
They typoed and put 21 instead of 22
http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2008/01/22/verizons-xv6900-touch-in-all-its-shockingly-white-glory/
Engad's comments system really is broken...
I know! Please fix it! -> crying
http://s12.divshare.com/files/2008/01/22/3566146/shocking-white-htc-touch.png
Very shocking... and very white... DARPA needs to get in contact with HTC about the Touch's perfect camouflaging abilities!
LMAO!
I like it better in black...
but no color can hide the ugly, clunky winmo just beneath the surface.
just install PointUI http://pointui.com/ and all will be happy in your 'looks matter more' world.
My unlocked HTC Kaiser is hands down better than this thing. Soft-keyboards are not always usable and my 3MP camera takes better pics of your frowny faces.
SPB PocketPlus does a nice job of improving the Win6 - I also install some freebies
Flash player - if not preinstalled (I don't think the iphone does flash pages but it does a better job with other web pages IMHO)
adobe reader - if not preinstalled
Live Search
SMS threaded texting
WM6 Remote desktop
@ Jeff
WinMo is actually pretty awesome. Just ask these guys:
www.xda-developers.com
You're just ignorant to what a Windows Mobile 6 device can do.
that's just the point: you have to make WinMo worthwhile. manually. yourself.
try selling that idea to your mechanic buddy (which is exactly who bought this and hates it.)
I do appreciate the links, maybe i can help my buddy make his phone NOT a clunky piece of crap, but that's hardly a selling point for me. (you guys sound exactly like linux users defending their OS, by the way.)
oh, and @ chadvavra
"[...] all will be happy in your 'looks matter more' world."
You've really missed the point. Go spend a minute with an iPhone and you might realize that simply "looking good" is not the same thing as a beautiful, intuitive, responsive interface. Anything can look good (in theory) but i'd like something that actually *is* good.
...and my experience with any stock flavor of winmo has been pretty uninspired. (though maybe there is a third party out there making winmo suck less. i've yet to see it move from sucking-less to being-good.)
I dunno. I run WinMo 6 on my Titan and I can skin it to look however I want. I'm not sure what's "clunky" about it. If you mean everything isn't animated and flashy, well then maybe, but it's certainly functional as I've been learning since I got the device. I love both form and function but while I can deal with all function and little form, I can't deal with all form and little function. So far I haven't found any device that does as much as my Titan for as little cost and effort. When it comes out, if it's a sizable difference I will probably upgrade.
Does it have GPS? (no...doom...blend...blah!)
see.
Does it have GPS? (no...doom...blend...blah!) who broke the comment code? veronica?
i thought it was just me clicking the add button a thousand times..
so, does this thing have a stylus i can take handwritten notes with? Exactly how long are we going to have to wait for a full upgrade to the xv6700 (and not a .1 upgrade like the 6800)
yeah, it does have a stylus, and you need it for many common functions.
The new colors look sweet, though I still miss the slide-out keyboard. The Touch interface has almost completely redone the standard Windows Mobile tools to create a slick and finger-friendly device.
dave
http://theregoesdave.com
While no PDA phone is perfect, I like this phone. I think out of all my pda phones I've had the least issues with this. Some people won't like it if they can't get used to using the touch screen for the keypad but I'm fine with that.
Things I would change
1. Improve the BT - This is probably MS's fault - free phones have better BT distance and sound quality.
2. more physical buttons - only two - on off and one side - should put one in the center on the other side.
3. Micro drive requires taking the phone apart - not exactly ideal.
4. Increase screen resolution to VGA - not sure why we still are making QVGA screens unless you are giving away the phone.
5. Better battery life - Hopefully inovations such as new battery technology, faster and more efficient CPUSs, BT 2.1, OLED etc will help us soon. Seido makes a replacement battery of nearly the same physical size that some claim is signficantly better than the stock battery - I haven't tried it so I don't know - I'm waiting for a scientific comparison.
Dang - I forgot Two VERY Important things
1. FLASH - while I don't use it for pictures as most cameraphone's cameras suck - I use the flash as a flashlight at least once a week - several free programs for pdaphones to turn the camera flash to a steady flashlight - LED doesn't really drain the battery either! Very handy - missing it a lot on this phone.
2. SIRFIII GPS - not sure why they insist on giving us these crappy assisted GPS chips - I understand that they might make money by getting us to use their telenav monthly service but I think few will get it - not enough to offset their service capital investment. Further they'll tick off their clients who know about the european phones with VGA screens and full GPS chips.
Yeah, that's why I went with the Titan over the Touch.
-I don't really use BT so it hasn't been an issue for me.
-Sufficient buttons and a slider QWERTY. I understand that is a matter of preference.
-Access to the Micro slot is easy
-Yeah, I couldn't find a device I wanted with VGA so I guess I will deal
-Battery is OK. I charge every night so I never notice.
-Flash is there
-GPS should be out for the Titan soon although I have no idea what that entails.
I think the Touch is a decent device but I found the Titan to be just a little bit more appropriate for my needs.
It has a small stylus in the bottom right hand corner
It's the top right corner. The cap for the stylus is white.
Whoops - you are right -I'm all upside down today :)
Like I said before. This thing is Ugly in white. I can't wait to get the black one from Sprint.
Too bad it's on verizon.
having owned a k610i that stupid mirror thing is an utterly useless scratch magnet.
but at least it's got a camera...
MEH!
OK, I have to ask- what's the big deal about the Touch? I mean, I have a WM6 phone, a Mogul on Qwest, and like it quite a bit. I wouldn't mind have a Touch-ish phone, in the sense of a not-recessed glass screen like the iPhone and the HTC Touch, but with the HTC Touch it just seems like a gimmick. Unless there is some drastically better new ROM that the Sprint store hadn't installed yet, it seemed like it aped various iPhone functionality in a poor way. Things like scrolling, using my finger, was clumsy as hell, just as bad (or good?) as using the utility meant to duplicate it for other WM6 devices. It certainly didn't have the kind of usefulness in that regard as the iPhone or using Picsel or Opera on a WM6 device.
What gives?
The touch and mogul have a lot of similarities but some differences - it isn't the end all solution but it is a nice option/alternative for some. Some will prefer the physical keyboard available on the Mogul. The Touch has a little more memory than the mogul. The mogul had a horrible BT issue in the first 3 roms for WM6. The latest seems to help a lot. Some will like the cube flash menu system for the touch - I prefer SPB pocket plus but it does give you some similar features for free.
The Touch isn't the next gen of the mogul but an alternative to it with a few updates. The mogul has a flash which I miss dearly on my touch.
PS the Touch feels a lot smaller than the mogul. It is about the size of the mogul without the top sliding area. The Mogul has many more external buttons and an easy to access micro SD drive. Again - just a matter of choice/taste. I prefer the touch enough to stick with it over the mogul but the mogul has some features I'll miss.
HTC Touch came out before iphone did. So it's not trying to "Be the iphone"
yeah, it does have a stylus, and you need it for many common functions.
i hate it when my "reply" gets posted as a new comment. :\