Introduction

Less than a year after HTC revolutionised their device line-up with the Diamond range of products, the company has launched a refresh of two of the most popular handsets, the Touch Diamond2 and the Touch Pro2. The Touch Diamond2 is available now contract free and will be launching on the mobile networks later in the year.

First impressions are important and on the outside the Touch Diamond2 certainly does the job. Gone is the irritating faceted back of the original Touch Diamond, as is the D-Pad, a common occurrence in current HTC devices. We see a new touch sensitive zoom bar for applications such as Google maps and Opera Mobile. The front fascia on this review sample is a cool brushed aluminium, which looks fantastic and very professional. The device is solid in the hand, well balanced in weight has an overall aura of a product manufactured with little expense spared.

So you can probably tell I’m impressed so far. We’ll take a look under the hood shortly, and while the spec’s aren’t ground breaking (it *is* just a hardware refresh, remember), HTC has been hard at work to squeeze every last drop of power and functionality out of both the hardware and the software.

Hardware

Here are the raw numbers:

• Qualcomm MSM7200A 528MHz CPU
• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
• 512MB/288MB ROM/RAM
• 108x53x14mm, 118g
• 3.2” WVGA (800x480px) Resistive touchscreen
• 2100MHz 5.2Mbps HSDPA/Quad-band GSM
• Wifi/BT2.0 with EDR/GPS/ExtUSB
• 5Mpix Camera with AF (VGA forward camera)
• 1100mAhr battery
• microSD slot
• FM Radio and G-sensor

So we lose the 4GB internal storage and D-pad from the original Touch Diamond, keep Windows Mobile 6.1, HSDPA and Quad-band radios, connectivity options, FM radio and G-sensor and CPU family, and gain a larger screen, a little height and depth, a 5Mpix camera, a larger battery and a microSD slot.

Some of those modifications may tempt current Diamond owners; however it is would appear from the timing of the launch that HTC are aiming to bring in new customers and keep their flagship devices competitive.

Let’s take a tour of the device. The front is obviously dominated by the 3.2” WVGA screen. The LCD part is bright and the colours vibrant, it is set a few millimetres below the touch-sensitive panel. Above we see the forward camera for video calling on the right, and the in-call speaker in the middle with green, red and orange notification LEDs either side. Directly below the screen you can just make out the zoom-bar area. Sliding your finger across this will zoom in emails, Google maps and Opera 9.5. In true HTC style this is a novel addition which works well, but is horribly under used. Why can we not slide between TouchFlo tabs, emails, or scroll when in landscape? As good as the gesture support is, it can still be a little fiddly on the main screen. More on that later, though. Finally we see the hardware buttons: start and end call, and the start and back (actually an OK/close) buttons, both now compulsory for the impending Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrade to come later in the year. The end call button also doubles as a home key, with the home icon etched into the metal fascia. The default hold option on this key also locks the device.



The reverse is as minimalist as you would expect, a single glossy piece of plastic covers the microSD slot (accessible without having to remove the battery), SIM card slot and battery itself. At the top we see the 5Mpix camera aperture set in a small brushed aluminium mount, retaining that link to its Diamond heritage.



The top has a single button for power and standby, and the extUSB and microphone are located at the bottom. The left side holds the familiar volume buttons and the right has a slot for the loudspeaker. The stylus is housed in the bottom right corner, it lacks the magnetic locking mechanism of the original Diamond, however it will still bring the device out of standby and unlock when drawn out.




Software

The base OS is currently the slightly ageing Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, however once 6.5 is officially launched later in the year HTC will be providing owners with an update download. Presumably new devices from this time will be loaded with the update out of the box (we can only hope, Microsoft has a less than stellar record for keeping device software at the cutting edge!). However over the top of this we see HTCs excellent finger-friendly TouchFlo3D interface. Again, this was launched with the original Diamond, and while we’ve seen some improvements in other devices launched in the mean time (namely the Touch Pro and the Touch HD) this latest version delves deeper than ever into the OS, covering up even more of the default interface. For the majority of daily use, you'll almost never need see the standard Windows Mobile interface.

The majority of tabs will be familiar to current Touchflo3D users: home, people, messaging, email, web, stocks, camera, music and weather. The home tab takes advantage of the extra 160 pixels at the bottom of the screen by displaying extra calendar entries and the weather tab shows an additional four-day forecast. (Please note the green bar at the top of the screen is the excellent “Batti” battery monitor, and is not included out of the box. You can however download it for free here!)


We also see two new tabs, calendar and settings. Calendar gives the TouchFlo flavour to your daily schedule, with month and day views, again the standard Windows Mobile calendar is hidden until you view appointment details or have to start editing. The settings tab provides customisation options not only to TouchFlo but also an extensive range of Windows Mobile settings, again replacing those fiddly drop-down menus and radio buttons with finger-friendly alternative. Sound provides for all your audio profile and ringtone needs, although you will need to go to the standard notifications screen if you want to customise message notifications. Wallpaper allows you to customise the background on your home tab (see the screenshot above), however this inexplicably is not applied to the backgrounds on the other tabs. Communications replaces the traditional comm manager, allowing you to pair with Bluetooth devices and connect to Wifi access points without using the standard interface. Both work extremely well. My contact card stores your personal information, mail setup again hides the fiddly standard mail setup wizard, and the G-sensor lets you view and calibrate the accelerometers and disable auto screen rotation.



Current users of TouchFlo3D may have noticed an omission from the tabs above: the programmes list. This is our first taster of the extent to which HTC have gone to make Windows Mobile a joy to use on the Touch Diamond2. The traditional start menu is out, instead on tapping the Windows logo we’re presented with a 3x8 grid of application icons, with 4 rows visible at a time, exactly as the programmes tab worked (and not insignificantly dissimilar to the new Windows Mobile 6.5 grid start menu. It would appear this was a combination of a natural evolution of the original programmes tab and an effort by HTC to make the transition to 6.5 less confusing). The home, people, calendar and settings icons are locked and somewhat annoyingly cannot be removed (end call takes me home, why do I need a software button for this too?). This menu shows some of the apps I’ve personally added, however ActiveSync, YouTube, Google maps and Teeter are there out of the box. “All Programmes” lists everything you would come to expect from a standard Windows Mobile start menu.


Further enhancements come with the notifications bar, a tap at the top of the screen lists finger-friendly buttons for new messages, appointments, emails, et cetera. Notifications are easier to read, and even menus get a beauty makeover.



Day to day use

This version of TouchFlo3D is perhaps the quickest I have used. The interface has almost zero lag, and HTCs enhancements make one-handed use feel completely natural. The touch screen is accurate and responsive. As a heavy message user, I had no problem banging out emails and texts using the HTC full QWERTY and (my personal preference) the 9-key xT9 pad.



The email inbox has yet to have been touched by HTC, however as one of strengths of Windows Mobile this has not posed an issue, especially when coupled with those enhanced menus and on-screen keyboards. Auto-rotate is also supported, useful for fixed-width HTML emails.



HTC have enhanced people management, with contact management software completely replacing the standard contacts list. When viewing your contacts from the call screen, you can tap their contact card to view your call record with them, and messaging history for emails and SMS messages. The email collator may be useful if you have a few contacts you regularly contact but is perhaps a little redundant when you consider Windows Mobile inbox smart-filtering. The SMS threaded messaging screen puts the Microsoft version to shame, however. This is also the default screen when tapping a message to open it from the message Touchflo tab.



The WVGA screen makes web browsing a task with little compromise. Opera Mobile 9.5 is now an extremely mature browser and handled my regular batch of sites with no major issues. Text scaling works well, the zoom bar can be useful on sites which do not take well to the small screen, and page renders are crisp and readable. Opera supports auto rotate using the G-sensors and the full widescreen view is perfect for many websites.




Final thoughts

While the comparisons to the original Diamond are an obvious angle to view the Touch Diamond2 from, it has to be considered as an independent device. The spec is fantastic, and while it is not equipped with a large internal storage, 8GB microSD cards are cheap now and widely available.

The extent to which HTC have improved TouchFlo3D and delved into Windows Mobile with their customisations is admirable, and second to none. While still provided, the stylus is all but redundant. The interface is quick and responsive, intuitive and a pleasure to use.

The device is comfortable to hold and easy to use with a single hand. The build is sturdy and the design makes it stand out as a high-end, premium handset. It feels in no way tacky or cheap, exactly what we have come to expect from HTC

The good, the bad and the ugly

Good: TouchFlo3D, makes day-to-day use a pleasure.

Bad: The depth of HTCs enhancements are sometimes a little inconsistent.

Ugly: The camera is still poor quality in all but the best lighting conditions.

Nice review, I liked the way you left in the XT9 error in your last SMS, reminded me of the drunken text appreciation society on facebook

Hi Chris

Thanks for the review... I guess like a lot of people I'm looking at an upgrade after having my Tytn II for the past 18 months, the Diamond2 looks a like a good candidate (I have a feeling the Pro2 is going to be too expensive for me)...

The problem is I think I'm going to miss the scroll wheel and d-pad a lot - can you comment on whether the haptic feedback on the Diamond2 compensates for the lack of hardware inputs?

This new HTC device is very interesting. My question is: is it better than the Touch HD, meaning is it worth an "upgrade" from the Touch HD or will it be a " downgrade"?

forelli

Great review Chris!

I think I still prefer the Touch HD tho...

P

I'm so glad you said that, having just shelled out for a HD I was hoping I'd not made a bad decision.

Im torn between touch HD and Diamond2 - my contract is up on t-mobile and im waiting to see what they can offer me for diamond2 (compactV out 21st may)

can anyone comment? pros vrs cons? im loving the bigger screen on HD but diamond2 has a bit more appeal! let me know your thoughts!

cheers!

Well I'll be switching back to the HD shortly Both are great devices and zoom bar and screen/physical size aside, identical in specs, so you aren't really missing anything. Personally I love my HD but have soft spot for compact devices. If you've just bought an HD, just look at that glorious screen every time you have any inclining of a doubt

Mozster, I didn't really touch on it much in the review (perhaps I should have), however HTC have implemented great kinetic scrolling functionality. It works almost everywhere on the device and allows you to scroll through emails, web pages, contacts etc with a flick of the finger. It's far, far improved over older version of TF3d and the implementation on pre-Diamond devices. The haptics are fine and I find I can bang out emails with little problem using the 9-key keyboard. Those kind of things are entirely down to personal preference though (love 'em or hate 'em).

And the text typo, I didn't notice til it was too late and couldn't be bothered fixing it, thought it added a little realism

would love a diamond 2 but told myself i wouldn't buy another device till winmo 7 comes out. may have to go to xda and find the rom for my diamond.

Well Chris good job, but one point you've missed : battery life. Had this device for 2 weeks but hardly get more than 1 day with, let say very mild usage. Overall good device indeed, but for now I'll stick with my "old" HTC HD...

Wow this looks great, I can't wait for my next upgrade from the original Touch Diamond (MDA Compact IV)!

Yes, me too!

I wish T-Mobile rebranded the HTC Touch HD in their network but since they'll never will, Diamond 2 is my first choice to upgrade next.