HTC Touch Pro

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The TyTN II was HTC's last flagship model for those who wanted a serious work PDA-phone. Now, it will be succeeded by the Touch Pro, also a slider-style handheld meant for enthusiasts and business users. It has just started to go on sale with a retail price of S$1,248.

Design

Just looking at the front of the device, it's almost exactly the same as the Touch Diamond. Because we have gotten so used to how thin the Diamond is, it comes as quite a shock over how thick the Touch Pro is. But if you put it beside the TyTN II, HTC's last model with a slide-out keyboard, you realize the Touch Pro is just a hair thinner than that device. The fact that it has a slideout keyboard makes the increased depth inevitable--that much we can say. At 165g, it is slightly less heavy than the TyTN II which tips the scales at 190g. Even then, the Touch Pro cannot be considered light and is not likely to be very comfortable in tight jeans pockets or tiny clutch purses.

No screen tilt-up action for this PDA-phone.

Aside from features like a VGA display and other improved tech specs, another obvious change from the TyTN II is that the Touch Pro slides out to the right to expose the keyboard. When the TyTN II was launched, we asked HTC why it made the PDA-phone slide out in a different direction from the Dopod 838 Pro (the model it replaced). The reply was that feedback from customers indicated this was better. This reversion to sliding right feels very strange when taking that comment into perspective. We checked with HTC and its official stance is that the Touch Pro's design follows after the Diamond, which would require the camera to remain on the right side--sliding left will cause the front camera to be in an awkward position when making video calls in landscape mode. That's a weak argument considering TyTN II users upgrading to this will once again have to readjust the way they use the device. And in case you are wondering, no, the Touch Pro's screen doesn't tilt up slightly like the TyTN II's.

The layout of the five-row keyboard on the Touch Pro is excellent. If you are reading this from a desktop computer or notebook, take a look at your keyboard--it probably has five rows for the main QWERTY section with the number keys on the top. This layout is almost exactly reproduced on the Touch Pro, so you don't have to think much about where each key is if you work on a desktop keyboard regularly. As for the actual physical keys, whether you'll like them is up to personal preference. These are smaller than those found on the TyTN II and can feel a little cramped for those with large fingers. Nonetheless, we do feel it's something most can get used to.

The increase in the number of keys from the TyTN II's 39 to 47 on the Touch Pro sees the introduction of the Ctrl key. This allows you to cut, copy and paste exactly the same way you do on a PC. It's a very convenient feature and we hope to see it implemented on more devices. But it's not all good. For some reason, HTC removed the OK button on the QWERTY keypad so you have to move your finger up to tap the screen to get out of menus or to minimize applications.

Aside from the keypad, this handheld has a few shortcut keys below the display including a directional pad, volume buttons on the left edge and a power button on the top. The directional pad has a ring of white status LEDs which light up when you are charging, have an unread message or a missed call. The surface around this d-pad is also touch-sensitive, allowing you to zoom in and out of pages when using certain applications like the Opera browser.

A stylus slot is found on the bottom right corner and, like the Diamond, the stylus is held magnetically. The action of removing it will turn on the device if it is originally turned off.

As with all current HTC PDA-phones, the Touch Pro comes with just one mini-USB port for syncing, charging and connecting a wired headset.

The back of this handheld retains the prism-like motif of the Diamond, but instead of a glossy finish it has a matte soft-touch feel--a change we like. The back is also where the 3.2-megapixel autofocus camera is found along with an LED for lighting up darker situations.

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