HTC Touch Pro gets handled, keyboard better than X1's?

The question on quite literally every WinMo fanatic's mind as we go into the second half of the year here is, "Touch Pro or X1?" It's not an easy question to answer, and anyone hoping to sink some cash on either one of these models in a few months is going to want to do so with a crap-ton of research and anecdotal information under their belts lest the buyer's remorse set in particularly quickly. MobileBurn scored an early look at the Touch Pro -- which won't be available at retail for a month or three yet -- and came away impressed with the all-important keyboard, saying that it was "much more" usable than the QWERTY found on Sony Ericsson's rival superphone. Closed, it's said to be virtually indistinguishable from the Touch Diamond (which we'd say is a good thing) other than being a bit thicker to accomodate they keyboard and picking up a matte-finish rear cover. Unfortunately, HTC refused to show off the Touch Pro's interface -- apparently on account of some new tricks up TouchFLO 3D's sleeve that haven't already made their way into the Touch Diamond -- but they did share that the new model will handle landscape mode with particular aplomb. So this one might have the X1 beat in the keyboard department, but the X1's WVGA display takes the crown for sheer pixel count. Decisions!

[jacubious @ Jun 27th 2008 4:53AM]

I think it will come down to just handling each phone in person and seeing which one you prefer. Right now though, I am leaning towards the x1 for the pixel count. I am curious to see what this new TouchFlo is about though.

[E71 @ Jun 27th 2008 6:23AM]

http://pdadb.net/index.php?m=pdacomparer&id1=1306&id2=1117

bear in mind, they're just preliminary specs (subject to change).

[Walt @ Jun 27th 2008 7:25AM]

Hi E71,
Those specs at PDAdb.net list GPS and aGPS as present on the TP but not the X1. Unless something has changed, the X1 will have aGPS.

[kjb434 @ Jun 27th 2008 9:59AM]

xtream,

the phone number still can be moved from phone to phone, but the carrier has to do it for you.

[James Cameron @ Jun 27th 2008 12:55PM]

The HTC pro did it right with the space bar button. But I don't get it is why Xperia X1 space keyboard need to take up so much space?

I'm still leaning towards the X1. 3 phones I'm leaning towards:
Xperia X1
HTC Touch Pro
HTC Dream?

I just hope and pray that there will be a way to install android on the HTC Touch Pro or the Xperia X1.

[maveric101 @ Jun 27th 2008 3:07PM]

ah. this is becoming another one of those epic questions. pirates or ninjas? Gladiator or Braveheart?

Touch Pro or X1?

[loosely_coupled @ Jun 27th 2008 11:42PM]

I love the Idea of VGA and WVGA screens and have been waiting for them forever, but after getting an iPod Touch, I'm not really seeing the need. 480x320 in a 3.5" screen is pretty damn sharp. I'm not sure if a 800x480 3" is just plain overkill, especially considering that the more pixels you add, the more the GPU has to work to render the graphics.

[maveric101 @ Jun 28th 2008 1:15AM]

loosely_coupled: as long as the extra pixels don't slow things down, theres no such thing as too many pixels. i'm waiting for the day when displays match the resolution of the human eye (of course this depends on viewing distance).

[loosely_coupled @ Jun 28th 2008 7:00PM]

@maveric

Pixel density that reaches the physical limit of the retina is certainly a good goal, but we can't even get 200+ DPI monitors for god sakes! The most important thing Apple and Microsoft could do is to FINALLY make resolution-independent vector user interfaces. The average Joe who thinks his "text is to small" is the one buying all the 1280x800 19" monitors! For god sakes, we haven't progressed for years! I remember an old 15" laptop I had at least 5-6 years ago that had a 1600x1200 screen. Today, you can barely even FIND 15" displays that have 1600/1920x1200 screens...

We need to at least shrink the existing 2560x1600 resolution panels down to 17-20" instead of 30", and increase the 30" panels to 4K digital cinema resolution! (~3840x2400)

Where is the progress???

[Ayman @ Jun 27th 2008 4:58AM]

They are both with tiny keyboards which only 2 fingers (or thumbs) will be used max.
other than that I agree with Jacubious that X1 on th pixel count. and im curious too on the touchflo

[Mustafa UG @ Jun 27th 2008 4:59AM]

X1 Forever

[Darkest Daze @ Jun 27th 2008 5:07AM]

I personally would prefer this over the X1. The keyboard is pretty important to me and I seem to just prefer the overall design of this phone.

[gadjitfreek @ Jun 27th 2008 5:10AM]

Don't matter to me...it's not like Verizon will take on either phone. I love their coverage, but detest their phone selection.

[ben @ Jun 27th 2008 5:20AM]

agreed.

[xstream @ Jun 27th 2008 5:39AM]

ever thought about just buying a phone without a new contract and just putting your old sim card with your old contract in it?
most phones sold by the phone providers are branded and not in a good way so just buying it directly is the only real option anyway

[Speeddemon2008 @ Jun 27th 2008 5:53AM]

xstream, verizon doesnt use sim cards. verizon is cdma which is internal. at&t and tmobile are gsm, and they use sim cards.

[xstream @ Jun 27th 2008 5:59AM]

hmm i thought cdma requires a sim card too (cdma isn't used here in germany). if there is no sim card then that does mean your number is bound to the phone or what? sounds pretty crappy imho

[SimbaDogg @ Jun 27th 2008 8:03AM]

xstream...

it is crappy

[Dorf @ Jun 27th 2008 10:02AM]

It's very crappy... I can drive from Iowa to Tennessee and have EVDO well over 95% of the time, but I can't get a super sweet phone. (WM anyway...) Unless I read AT&T maps wrong, they don't even have friggen 3G in Iowa, while VZW dominates (in the population centers anyway) the state.

[nicolas.exc @ Jun 27th 2008 5:11AM]

I think that the screen is more important....I love X1....

[Dave @ Jun 27th 2008 11:31AM]

No tilting screen? boooooooo

[619619 @ Jun 27th 2008 5:12AM]

The Touch Pro have no Standard Jack output, this is the only negative point for me....
Until I see their screens live :P

[Itsuru @ Jun 27th 2008 5:14AM]

This is a little smaller than the X1, dimensions are important too.

[maveric101 @ Jun 27th 2008 2:56PM]

actually the pro is 1 mm thicker, but yes, smaller in the other dimensions.

[Matt @ Jun 27th 2008 5:20AM]

Wow... with the X1 and Touch Pro coming out, Apple's iPhone 3G is so friggin double dead.

I think that by December, TouchFLO 3D will most likely be running on the X1 (by the guys at xda-developers or ppcgeeks) since the Diamond, X1, and Touch Pro all run the MSM7201A (MSM7501A for CDMA) chipsets.

The X1 might cost a bit more with those 200 extra pixels, but the one thing I'm still waiting to hear about is when the first Tegra phone is going to hit. If Tegra phones won't hit by Xmas, I'm going to get a Touch Pro.

[Mike @ Jun 27th 2008 6:10AM]

Exactly! Black Xperia with TouchFLO 3D in one of the Xperias "panels" would be pretty good ;).


Another important question is if WM7 will be supported by Diamond and Xperia. (But apparently yes)

[dnono @ Jun 27th 2008 11:14AM]

I dunno about the iPhone demise just yet. New higher-tech phones will always grab the market share of those with extra bucks who like new toys - 1st gen iPhone included. But the new iPhone p2.0 rice has dropped low enough for us who can't always afford to be bleeding edge (with the up front cost) - and there are more of us.

Unless both of these phones are launched with prices near $250, iPhone 2.0 will sell and sell and sell. Don't get me wrong though, if the HTC price-point is low enough I'd jump - that's one sweet looking phone for those of us who want some physical buttons to press.

[Za @ Jun 27th 2008 12:05PM]

Both the fones will also be significantly more expensive up-front than the iPhone. I can't imagine either would be much under $400 with contract, looking at pricing of previous HTC smartphones. They are more capable, sure, but will also be tres cher.

[Scott @ Jun 27th 2008 2:22PM]

Of course you can get an iPhone 3G in two weeks, for $200. The same plans and contracts will be required for either of the above phones, so no difference there.

It may be worth it to you, but no doubt those two phones WILL be a lot more. Going by Nokia N95 8GB prices, you're going to be looking at $600+ up front in the US. Prices like those aren't going to cannibalize iPhone sales one bit.

The story may be different in other parts of the world.

[David @ Jun 27th 2008 3:54PM]

@ scott,

Nah, Retail unsubsidized price might be around $500.00, but of course the carriers will also subsidize these phones. My guess is under contract you'd be able to pick one up for between $200-$300. I got an at&t Tilt for $250 back when it was released last year, I know others who get prices as low as $199 under contract.

As far as these phones eating/not eating into iPhone sales, I think its the other way around. The repeated iPhone price drops, a reflection of its diminishing perceived value, are an attempt to capture more of the BB, WinMo market share. I don't think BB, WinMo, or symbian have much to worry about.

[Abdo @ Jun 27th 2008 5:20AM]

Using the X1 keyboard with your fingernails (the only way) is equivalent to scratching a chalkboard, whereas the HTC looks nice and gummy...

[Rsaeire @ Jun 27th 2008 5:26AM]

I would go for the X1 as every smartphone and PDA from HTC I have used have had inferior call quality to a standard handset.

[ZoZo @ Jun 27th 2008 5:36AM]

You do know that the X1 is also built by HTC right ?

[J @ Jun 27th 2008 5:36AM]

well i hope you know that the X1 is made by HTC so if you're looking for better reception hopefully the X1 will have a special radio or something because i'm sure the components that they use to build the X1 will be very similar to that of the Touch Pro.

[jbs @ Jun 27th 2008 8:48AM]

my current HTC Mogul call quality is just fine, imho...

[Tonicboy @ Jun 27th 2008 5:34AM]

They are on crack if they think this is "virtually indistinguishable" from the Touch Diamond when closed. I just played with both today and they are clearly different phones. The Touch Diamond is heavier and thicker, and a more square-like proportion (the Touch Diamond is more elongated and surprisingly like a candybar form factor). The matte finish and rounded corners also make it feel very different. All in all, the Touch Diamond comes off as a fashion phone whereas the Touch Pro seems much more like a traditional smartphone.

[ZSX @ Jun 27th 2008 5:57AM]

http://www.phonescoop.com/articles/article.php?a=200&p=360&g=364&h=9959

PhoneScoop above have a series of photos with the Touch Diamond and the Touch Pro side by side, and from my perspective, top-down they look nearly identical. Side-on the Pro is obviously quite thick, but this is in comparison with the ultra-thin Diamond.

I am worried about the graphics drivers for an 800x480 screen, and for incompatibility with existing and forthcoming 3rd party software. Plus you know that xda-devs will be all over the Touch Pro the moment it is released, meaning upgrades in the months to come. Not sure you can say the same of the X1 even if it is made by HTC. At present I'm leaning to the Touch Pro, but my mind changes every other day!

[StephTheGeek @ Jun 27th 2008 5:36AM]

Oh Engadget... how you understand my dilemmas so.

[Chris @ Jun 27th 2008 5:44AM]

BEar in mind at the screen size the extra 200 pixel width wont make much difference in appearence. Where it WILL make a difference is in running apps which are just gonna screw up when considering the extra pixels. Tried on a similar wide screen Toshiba G910 and 3rd party apps just didnt run :-P

[Chris @ Jun 27th 2008 5:45AM]

BEar in mind at the screen size the extra 200 pixel width wont make much difference in appearence. Where it WILL make a difference is in running apps which are just gonna screw up when considering the extra pixels. Tried on a similar wide screen Toshiba G910 and 3rd party apps just didnt run :-P

[Rsaeire @ Jun 27th 2008 5:47AM]

From what I understood they were working on it together no? If it's gonna be built entirely by HTC then that's gonna make my choice a whole lot harder! lol

[xstream @ Jun 27th 2008 5:54AM]

sony tells us that they designed and engineered it but htc manufactures it

[Tek Gremlin @ Jun 27th 2008 8:23AM]

Saying Sony Engineered that is just marketing bull. I used work just like this and all it means is there is one Engineer at Sony who reviews the designs from HTC and makes small changes and crap. The core know how is for sure HTC. Sony us fully equipped any phone it has already designed, and not stupid enough to give intellectual property to any company based in Taiwan.

[Chris @ Jun 27th 2008 5:47AM]

Oops, sorry on the double post :-P

[holycow @ Jun 27th 2008 5:54AM]

X1 keyboard looks easier to type on because of the little spaces between the keys.

[Phoenix @ Jun 27th 2008 8:41AM]

Well... No. The actual KEYS are smaller, and therefore harder to hit. I'd rather have a larger area to press rather than a gap that does nothing.

[substance90 @ Jun 27th 2008 6:03AM]

Both PDA`s look great, but the HTC design plus TouchFlo 3D are more to my liking.

[BChau @ Jun 27th 2008 6:40AM]

Some post above comment on the audio quality of HTC phone. I have been using the imate JASJAM for almost 2 years and the audio quality is excellent. Callers often couldn't tell if I am on the landline. And that is from an HTC phone almost 2 years old.

As for choosing between X1 and TP, that is hard choice. Differences are small. I think either choice is good. I probably goes with TP just because I like being able to get help from XDA.

[Rsaeire @ Jun 27th 2008 6:49AM]

The HTC P4350 and S620 I've used couldn't compare to any my previous handsets, be it Sharp, Nokia, Sony Ericsson etc, for call quality. I'm not saying that all HTC handsets have bad call quality, as BChau has had a good experience with his/her JASJAM, but based upon my experience I will be careful of what I choose when it concerns HTC.

Other than call quality though I love HTC handsets and would recommend them to anyone for their additional functionality.

[Paul W. @ Jun 27th 2008 7:38AM]

Hmm.. X1 wins for being quad-band. For traveling and such!