Verizon's Touch Diamond in the wild
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Mar 8th 2009 3:54AM
posted Mar 8th 2009 3:54AM
posted Mar 8th 2009 3:54AM
The percentage of returned gadgets that have nothing wrong with them.
Of the $13.8 billion worth of returned products in 2007, only 5 percent were because gadgets were actually broken, according to a 2008 study.
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Verizon is a crock of shit.
I read every single comment. Bottom line is iphone not only revolutionized cell/pmp industry on a global scale, but still continues to be the standard by which all highend smartphones are measured. This just another htc phone,on a communist crippling carrier,verizon. We are still years from seriously witnessing a phone that will awe,mesmerize,revolutionize,set the standard,raise the bar like the iphone has..,im sure we all agree.,
Shank, you are both wonderfully right and horribly wrong. Yes, the iPhone revolutionized a lot and few (if any) can match it's usability. However, we are not that far from matching (or even surpassing) it. Palms new OS really has the capability to do that. In addition, the iPhone has limitations and stipulations many don't want to be drug into. I don't want to be forced on to AT&T. I don't want to be forced to not have an hardware keyboard. I want to be able to use any browser I want from major companies. I want to be able to install any program without jailbreaking (it does limit many things including quality programs like the new firefox mobile browser). I want to have more than one hardware option.
The iPhone is wonderful and I love it because it revolutionized phones, is brought a push for innovation that was desperatly needed, and will probably spell the end of windows mobile in a few short years. However, it is not God's gift to mankind and there is plenty of decent competition waiting in the wings or even already here.
And yet with a phone so awesome, Verizon still finds a way to bastardize the phone to hell and back. I wonder what other hardware limitations they forced on HTC to make and what software limitations they enforced on Windows Mobile to lock out the phone as much as they can.
Why Verizon is seriously every CDMA fanboi's favorite network is seriously beyond me when they pull crap like stunting the Diamond and Touch Pro for no real reason.
Honestly, I think it looks drab and ugly compared to every other carrier's Diamond. Lame, Verizon, lame.
Everyone rips on Sprint for being awful, but hey, they have the Palm Pre coming and non-gimped HTC products. What does Verizon have other than the nerdy-glasses crossed-arms network guy and a well-executed FUD campaign?
amazing signal, amazing signal, several phones that *no one* else has or ever will (thanks mostly to their contracts with LG on popular phones at decent prices), amazing signal, the best customer service I've ever had (at least in my experiences over the 3 years I had them.. and I've worked CS and had to deal with CS from many companies since I was in my mid-teens), amazing signal.... excellent 3g speeds, things like a GPS program that you can purchasea 3-day pass for, Song ID (I never used it, but several of my friends LOVE this program), and a billing system that tends to err less often than the others (once again, in my experience).
I'm not a verizon wireless customer anymore, I went with t-mo for a 50 dollar curve with wifi calling... and I miss verizon every day. it's nice having a gsm phone that isn't crippled in any way, but the trade off was totally not worth it in the end. the UMA calling doesn't stay connected properly (me and my 2 roomies all have the same issue, no matter whose router we're on) and GSM signal in most places in this super-populated area is a joke. the data speeds are agonizingly slow when I think back to how fast it was on my voyager (last vzw phone)....
my guess as to why you don't understand the die-hard vzw customer's infatuation with the provider, is that you've not had the pleasure of using their services. they just work, unless you're one of the unfortunate people in one of those locales that has the odd patch of low vzw signal. =(
unfortunately, with the pre, iphone, and several other smart-(or semi-smart)-phones that are being offered now or in the near future, I'll have to look elsewhere. I'm not too impressed with the storm. if it had been a more thoroughly-cooked device without the click, I would LOVE to go back...
so, unless they step up their game on the smartphone end of their line-up, I'll have to look elsewhere.... but I'll continue to hold out hope. I love verizon wireless.
Umm...a network that does not drop calls where I live and use the phone most. I cannot say the same for Sprint. Personally, I do not purchase my phone to be a toy, it has to work since I use it for business. I can wait until Verizon gets the killer app phone...but right now, they do have the best network out there and that is why they have my business. If you can find me a better network that does not consistently drop calls and has the cool products, drop me a line...but right now for me, Verizon is it.
There are CDMA fanboys?
I guess that's what it really comes down to, isn't it? I used to work for VZW customer care and it made me feel dirty how much I felt they cheated their customers and crippled their phones. But in the CDMA world, you expect your phone to be crippled and have tons of branding on it. BREW is one of the most insidious methods of running software on a device I can think of.
The constant mantra I keep hearing about Verizon is "It's the network!" And I think there's a lot of truth to it. Verizon has a very high-quality voice network. They work in rural areas where most GSM carriers don't. Verizon phones are usually the least data-rich, the most heavily-modified by the carrier (cue Chevelle's "The Red"). However, they're not for us. It's important to note that Verizon's customer base is established baby boomers. I have never known anyone under the age of 32 who had Verizon unless they were on their parents' family plan or they got it through work. Verizon markets itself as a premium product and, at least it used to be, priced accordingly. T-Mo is the hip, youthful (read cheaper) option that uses that newfangled European GSM stuff that makes you feel so cosmopolitan.
Yes, I was a CDMA geek. I used to love the technology itself, and I had the luck to be with the only CDMA carrier (the now defunct SureWest Wireless) that sold unbranded, uncrippled phones (Yes, we're talking full series 40 Java-enabled Nokias) and had free unlimited 1x data tethering enabled with every plan. But I had to face facts when they went under and I got an iPhone. I've been fairly happy with ATT, but I won't pretend that their network is more reliable than Verizon's.
I used to be with a CDMA carrier, i hated the crippling and lack of device selection, drove me crazy. Now I'm with ATT and could never be happier, I don't have any problems with the network or coverage either which is great.
It cracks me up when people piss and moan about Sprint's coverage vs. VZW. In all but a few exclusive areas like the DC Metro tunnels, I have just as much signal strength on my Sprint phone as do people with VZW phones. In places like the Metro, Sprint roams for free on VZW anyway so the argument is moot. I haven't dropped a call in years and I pay about a third of what VZW customers pay for unlimited data. I'm sure that in some random towns you can get a few more bars on VZW than on Sprint but in any city or suburb I've been in, signal strength and dropped calls have never been an issue and it is easily better than ATT and TMo coverage.
the reason people like Verizon is the quality of the coverage. Not the company itself, and it's ridiculous phone line-up
Given how much everyone says "Verizon has the best network", how come someone like AT&T isn't investing the money to build out network to compete? I am sure that if AT&T (in particular) was able to build out UMTS 3G to match Verizon coverage, a LOT of people would switch just to get away from the Verizon crappy cut-down phones (especially if AT&T advertised the new coverage with a marketing blitz)
Or are there too many places where Verizon have obtained exclusive rights (e.g. deals to put cells in places like subways and high rises) for AT&T to be able to compete?
"things like a GPS program that you can purchasea 3-day pass for"
oh thats a huge benefit when GPS is offered free.
VZW is spitting in Ronald Reagen's face by charging for it.
hey that's my phone! and hand!
i love the phone, but i've decided to sell it since i don't use windows pcs so i can't flash ROMs or anything.
the listing is on howardforums if anyone wants to check it out:
http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1504692
Joseph,
Howardforums FTW! Were you using a mb or mbp? Those pics in the thread are flipped photo booth style... lol.
yeah i was using a macbook haha :)
i just sold my nikon so i couldn't get good pictures when they asked me
would you mind selling it for $250. its all i can afford to spend on a phone in such a crappy economy =\
@L4M3
then i guess you dont want a phone too bad then?
really? The touch diamond has already been out forever and verizon still feels the need to nerf it?
Crap like this makes me happy that I didn't let my friends sell me on Verizon when my AT&T contract expired and I was telling them my intentions of switching carriers.
"VERIZON'S SERVICE IS TEH BEST!" They say. While true, I'm a power user, and I don't want my phone to be watered down and stripped of it's useful functionality. Verizon is guilty as charged. Even Sprint doesn't do this, as far as I know.
Well, you could always get the Alltel version and wait for the eventual switch to Verizon.
I did, and it's amazing. But it is the old version with the 4 gb internal memory. Wish it had a card slot.
Wait it says there's a microSD card slot so was that not on there before? 128MB less for one of those slots sounds good to me
I don't think the Touch Diamond can use MicroSD as RAM when it runs low on runtime memory. If it can, that'd be awesome and would totally make the lack of extra RAM a moot point. But sadly, I don't think that's the case here.
MicroSD is a very slow bus, way too slow to be used for ram. I really don't understand VZW's logic, it's certainly not cost cutting cause ram is very cheap.
Better late than never for Verizon for the Touch Diamond? Definitely. Look at Tmobiles WinMo options, its still the goddamn Tmobile Wing which is SERIOUSLY outdated!
This is why I hate living where I do. Beautiful scenery, Camp David nearby, rural living yet near enough to the larger cities. It's great, except for choosing a wireless carrier (and maybe wishing for FiOS).
In my area, Verizon has the best coverage of any carrier. I was 100% happy with vzw for 6 years. Then iPhone was released, and I switched to at&t. I loved my iPhone but the coverage was not as good as vzw. At&t had no 3G in my area until recently, where I had EVDO from vzw for the final 2 years with my LG before buying an iPhone in June '07.
Now, as my launch day iPhone is rapidly aging, and my contract expiring in 3 months, what am I to do? AT&T has many decent smartphones plus the possibility of a new iPhone, t-mobile has the G1, and Sprint will be getting the palm pre. And verizon? A crippled version of the Touch Diamond.
I know it varies by area, but for me, vzw is the best carrier in terms of coverage. I just wish they got some decent phones before others and without stripping them.
This phone is almost like a year old now, Get a Diamond 2 Verizon!!!
Haha
THE ZUNE PHONE!!! oh fuck never mind, just got excited as the internet page was loading then the description came up
Doesn't matter the HTC Diamond Touch runs on WM 6.1 making it the worst smartphone on the market. It's very good at everything besides being a phone. Anyone seen a modern smartphone that doesn't have a "hold" button or "conference" button? Get a Diamond...you'll see one.
Last I checked... WinMo 6.1 had HOLD, MUTE, CONFERANCE...etc. Even copy and paste and lets the user install non-MS approved software.
Chris, your comment is great. Just one thing, are you folks obsessed with cell phones?
Cell phones and more cell phones at Engadget. :-)
yes. yes we are.
I look at these more as internet devices than cell phones, cell phone is just one of the many functionalities the devices has.
screw up a phone and its gotta be its verizon that says it all
Nice job HTC, now just put an operating system on it.
I wonder if the battery life sucks as bad as the Sprint Diamond. I ended up returing my shiny new Diamond and went back to my two year old Touch because the Diamond would die mid day if I had Exchange Push and BT enabled. I'm not sure why I had BT enabled, the BT on the Diamond sucks too.
What's the problem? It looks great. Nothing is as bad as what Sprint did to the Touch Diamond and Touch Pro. They made those so ugly!
You're kidding right? The sprint ones looks so much nicer.
I just don't understand it- Verizon has such a great network and yet has such lousy phones. I love using Verizon but have missed out on so many great devices because they're almost always exclusive to another carrier or they come to VZ a long time later. I wish someone could explain to me why Verizon doesn't go after getting exclusivity on good phones like other carriers. Maybe it's just me being bitter, but this is why I hate exclusivity. I wish it were more like- buy ANY phone- and use it on ANY network. But we don't live in candyland, I know.
Just take the Sprint Touch Pro or Diamond and put it on The Network. I have my sprint Touch Pro on VZN and it rules. You can buy a sprint Daimond off Ebay for about what VZN will charge for it and not use your New Every Two. It takes about 3 hours of your time...see PPCGeeks for instructions.
just worked out this is engadget's 50,000th post!
I have a news flash for you all. Verizon doesn't wan't "us" as customers. Who are we? People who actually use the features on their phones. I can promise you that Verizon would love to have every customer using a RAZR. Why? Verizon is still adding customers at a pretty good clip, so there is no need for them to have cutting edge phones. They would rather have all the techies and bandwith hogs move on to other carriers. Grandma and Grandpa in Iowa who can barely turn on a phone are ideal for Verizon. Steady stream of revenue, and very little expense to the company. And if you want to use the features your phone was designed with, they'll be more than happy to charge you extra for that GPS that is built in to the phone you paid for.
I know they are a business, and they have to make money, but when they continually buy up the competition it makes it hard to for the free market to have any effect on what they do. Since there is so little competition out there, they continue to screw customers.
This is the only reason I can think of as to why they make decisions like this. Crippled bluetooth, crippled GPS, reduced memory, "Unlimited" capped at 5gb. Verizon is EVIL. They charge a ton for their services so they can buy out other wireless companies, and continue to reduce competition in wireless. F&^% them.
I read every single comment. Bottom line is iphone not only revolutionized cell/pmp industry on a global scale, but still continues to be the standard by which all highend smartphones are measured. This just another htc phone,on a communist crippling carrier,verizon. We are still years from seriously witnessing a phone that will awe,mesmerize,revolutionize,set the standard,raise the bar like the iphone has..,im sure we all agree.,
I read every single comment. Bottom line is iphone not only revolutionized cell/pmp industry on a global scale, but still continues to be the standard by which all highend smartphones are measured. This just another htc phone,on a communist crippling carrier,verizon. We are still years from seriously witnessing a phone that will awe,mesmerize,revolutionize,set the standard,raise the bar like the iphone has..,im sure we all agree.,
I read every single comment. Bottom line is iphone not only revolutionized cell/pmp industry on a global scale, but still continues to be the standard by which all highend smartphones are measured. This just another htc phone,on a communist crippling carrier,verizon. We are still years from seriously witnessing a phone that will awe,mesmerize,revolutionize,set the standard,raise the bar like the iphone has..,im sure we all agree.,
Yeah yeah, we know you read every single comment and iphone revolutionized or whatever. Now stop posting the same comment, will you? Thanks.
They 'nerf' their phones so you can't load it up with free/cheap, third party apps or custom ROMs. They want you to use their 'pay-to-play' apps.