I've been using the HTC Touch Pro 2 for a couple weeks now, and I've been really happy with it. Although I do get iPhone envy from time to time, I have my reasons for not going with Apple. Originally, I had only wanted to do a brief write-up, but it eventually turned into a book. That's fine except I don't wanna write anymore, and I also don't feel like editing this thing down. Yes, I'm a lazy bastard. This thing's been way over-baked, so here's what I have out of the oven so far - take it or leave it. This is my meandering thoughts on a long and unorganized list of features on the phone, even stuff I haven't tried out yet.
Let's Start with the Good Stuff
Price
It's $269 at T-Mobile with a 2-year contract. If you trade-in your old qualified smartphone, you can get $100 back; this deal ends in March. Just make sure you get the right promo code (ignore the dates on this page, it's been extended). One service rep gave me a promo code that was only good for $50, so make sure you're using the code on that page. I traded-in my 4-year-old T-Mobile MDA which was worth only $50 on EBay when I last checked, so it's a great deal. That brought the price down to $169, which is cheaper than other comparable smartphones, like the Droid, iPhone, and Nexus One.
Installation
I've already installed Windows 6.5 on the MDA, so the upgrade was a pretty smooth and simple process. I used the Microsoft My Phone program to sync up the essential data from the MDA to the website. I then sync that to the HTC Touch Pro 2, and voila, all of my contacts, task list, and photos are restored to the new phone. This entire process took about 10 minutes.
Form Factor
When I was at Fryes, I was trying it out along with the Droid, which was another phone I was thinking of getting because it runs Android and has a 5MP camera and turn-by-turn GPS. The Droid was lighter and thinner, but it felt kinda flimsy, like it was made of plastic and could break easily. I didn't really like the feel of it. The HTC Touch Pro 2, by comparison, felt rugged and tough, even though it's a little on the thick and heavy side. It looks like a PSP.
The 3.6" screen is awesome. Things look very pretty at 480x800 resolution. Unlike some of HTC's previous phones in which the screens are depressed, the Touch Pro 2's screen and frame are completely flat and aligned, which makes pressing on corner buttons a whole easier. The touch screen is responsive. The accelerometer only works with certain programs, but it's no big deal to me because I can always slide the keyboard out for landscape view.
The full qwerty keyboard is a must for me because I type a lot with my MDA. The onscreen keyboard works fine for one-hand operation, but when I need to type up a blog entry like this one, it's a pain. The keyboard has an extra row for numbers and even has a control button. Not having to switch back and forth between numbers and letters saves a lot of time and confusion. With the control button, you can also do a lot of control-c/control-v action between apps - an essential feature for multitasking.
On a cosmetic level, it's a slick and shiny device.
Windows Mobile 6.1 vs. 6.5
The phone comes with Windows Mobile 6.1 pre-installed, but you can download the upgrade to 6.5 from T-Mobile's website. Because HTC puts their superior UI on top of Windows 6.1, you won't really notice any difference after you upgrade. The phone is already finger-friendly out of the box. HTC's built-in interface is clean, intuitive, well thought-out, organized and easy to use - a lot better than Windows 6.5 which I defended, but now I can understand why some people hate it.
Web Surfing, 3G, and Wifi
I have a total of five mobile browsers installed - Opera Mini 4.2, Opera Mini 5 (beta 2), Opera Mobile 8.5, SkyFire, and Internet Explorer. The phone comes with Internet Explorer and Opera Mobile. Between the two, Opera Mobile is the better browser - it's faster and supports AJAX, which is pretty cool, although too slow on a phone to be used effectively. The accelerator and zoom functions work well with Opera Mobile. I still prefer Opera Mini though. It's the fastest mobile browser. Even though it doesn't support flash and ajax, the speed difference more than makes up for it. I use Opera Mini 5 to surf the web because it's super fast. To update Wopular, I use 4.2 because 5 is a little buggy with form input. I use SkyFire to surf flash heavy sites or watch movie trailers. Yes, it's good to have options.
The 3G network is way faster than Edge. On Opera Mini, you won't notice the difference, but you'll notice it on the other browsers. Internet Explorer and Opera Mobile were unusable on Edge, but speedy enough on 3G. Google Maps also works much better on 3G.
I didn't notice much of a difference between 3G and wifi until I started watching YouTube videos.
Watching Videos
If you're on wifi, it's awesome. YouTube videos are crystal clear when you choose the HD version. It's also great that you can tilt the screen and rest the phone on a table or desk while you watch. On 3G, you can only watch HD versions for about 30 seconds before it stops and buffers.
Tethering & Wifi Hotspot
With Windows Mobile 6.1 and 6.5, it's pretty easy. There's an app called Internet Sharing. Hook up the phone to the laptop via USB, turn on the app, and surf the web at 3G speed. It's pretty fast. If you don't wanna use the USB wire, you can always get WMWifiRouter and convert your phone into a wifi hotspot. Both of these are great when you're out and about and need a reliable connection. It's also a great backup if you have spotty Comcast as your internet provider.
The Speakerphone
One of the best features of the phone is if you rest it on its screen, the speakerphone automatically turns on. You can carry on a conversation hands free, a convenient feature.
Not Good Enough to be Good, But Not Bad Enough to be Bad
Taking Photos
It takes decent photos where there's a lot of light. Outdoor shots are great, but interior shots suffer from low light. It won't replace your camera. Just nice to have around in case you forgot your camera.
The Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
The phone comes with a zoom slider that only works on a few applications - Photos, Opera Mobile and maybe a few more. It's not as intuitive or cool as the double-pinch, but it works. In general, I don't find it necessary when browsing the web, especially since the Opera browsers automatically adjust the text size to a readable level that fits the screen. For photos, I find it kinda useful just to see if the picture I took was blurry. If the phone had the double-pinch action going, it could save itself some vertical space.
Battery Life
I get a day or two with each charge. It's better than I expected, especially with that big screen. I do a lot of web surfing, some writing, and watch the occasional YouTube video. It takes a couple hours to fully recharge.
The Bad
Marketplace
I browsed a little bit of Marketplace and wasn't impressed. The top apps are free, but the phone already comes with some of the most useful ones - Microsoft Office, mail, calendar, Opera Mobile, Google Maps, YouTube, Facebook, and a bunch more. Other than those, the selection seems kinda limited, especially when you compare it to the 140,000 you can get on the iPhone. The search function sucks, both on the mobile app and the website. It's hard to find anything with it. Even though there are apps for ftp, you won't get any results searching for "ftp." Lame. You're better off just searching Google. On my MDA, I had apps for ftp, ssh, and graphics. That's really all I need, and I can find them on Handango.
Task List
My biggest disappointment is that it doesn't include the task list on the home screen. You'd think this should be obvious. For now, I just put it at the top of the program list for easy access. I'm sure I can find a work-around in xda-developers.com.
Memory Problem
The phone does have a memory issue for programs. After launching a bunch of programs during the day, the used memory starts to creep into the 85-90% area. By then, the phone gets kinda sluggish. A reboot fixes the problem, but you shouldn't have to reboot the phone every day. It's caused by Windows Mobile 6.5. I notice the same thing with my MDA. Let's hope Windows Mobile 7 fixes this issue.
Stuff I Haven't Tried Yet
I haven't had time to stick in my Jackie Cheung collection (1GB worth) to try out the music player. There's a GPS software called TeleNav, but they charge $10/month so I'll just stick with Google Maps for now.
It's a Wrap
There you have it. The HTC Touch Pro 2 by T-Mobile is a very nice phone with a sleek, easy-to-use HTC interface; awesome keyboard with an entire row for numbers and a control button great for copying-and-pasting between apps; vivid screen resolution that's great for web browsing, viewing photos and watching online videos; tethering and router capabilities so you can take your internet connection with you anywhere; and your favorite Microsoft productivity apps. I now feel like "The Englishman Who Went up a Hill, But Came Down a Mountain."
