Windows Mobile users that think they might dig the
Hermes, but would like to see HTC dial down the keyboard factor and dial up the... uh, cute factor, are about to find their soulmate in the
Trinity. The device (shown here in its self-branded P3600 incarnation) ends up getting a lot of love in this review, earning props for its Swiss Army Knife-like connectivity options, quality of construction, and chassis design. Performance proves to be on par with its Hermes sibling, though battery life was inexplicably worse -- despite having more juice on board. The reviewer chalks up the discrepancy to the review unit being a prototype, which seems fair enough. The lack of a keyboard may ultimately doom the Trinity to niche markets, but with HSDPA, Bluetooth 2.0, and 802.11g all packed into an unusually great looking device, we
might just be willing to go back to character recognition.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jason @ Sep 10th 2006 9:59PM
I am not sure if I am allowed to say this, but since I didn't sign any papers, I am sure I can. Last week I had an interview with HTC in Bellevue, WA, and they showed me the first flip phone smart phone. It is really nice. It is as thin as a Razr. I was also told that they will be stamping their HTC brand on the phones now. They will be launching a bunch of stuff this year and next year. They are hiring people like crazy.
If you're interested, I did get the job, but the pay was so lame, so I declined the offer.
Mitch @ Sep 10th 2006 10:28PM
Um, Jason...
HTC released their first flip WM5 Smartphone earlier this year. That's OLD news. It's available for purchase, and has been for quite some time not. It was tagged "StarTrk" or something like that. Also, Engadget reported on the whole "HTC brand name" thing awhile back. Thanks anyway though.
TxdoHawk @ Sep 11th 2006 2:46PM
As a heavy texter, a smartphone/PDAphone without a keyboard just isn't appealing to me. Still, I think there could be a small market for something like this.
Sly @ Sep 11th 2006 3:50PM
It seems that it lacks 3G so...no video calling.
Enzo @ Sep 11th 2006 3:54PM
4. HSDPA
Chiefie @ Sep 11th 2006 8:42PM
As what 5. said, HSDP is 3.5G, and it has vga camera on the front, so it can do Video Calling.
It looks cute and small, however I'd like the slide out keyboard. And looks like a VGA HSDPA PocketPC phone is coming as mentioned here (http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2006/09/11/htc-omni-to-take-torch-from-universal/) currently codename "Omni".
boe @ Sep 12th 2006 12:16PM
Here's and idea - drop 1 or 2 of the cameras - drop the phone down to 15mm or less and you've got a winner! I wouldn't mind of if they kept the LED light to use as a flashlight if it didn't make the unit any thicker though. Never wanted the camera but the LED does come in handy. Would be great if they made it VGA so it could be useful in browsing the web!
martj @ Nov 12th 2006 8:17PM
This P3600 is one of a pair released at the same time along with the HTC TyTN. The TyTN is the slide version with keyboard (aka Dopod 383 Pro).
Of the 2, I would buy personally the P3600 (without keyboard), and would only take the TyTN (with keyboard) if my company gave it to me for free.
With exactly the same application specs, the size and weight saving of the P3600 exceeds the benefit of the built in keyboard.
Different folks have different requirements - mine are point and click(tap).
Yrles @ Nov 27th 2006 7:02PM
Trinity is nice simple and packed with the latest technology. HSDPA of course is the next wave...but I want to see a device along the lines of the Jasjar/Qtek. I hear the HTC "OMNI" may be such a device killer!
Kename @ Dec 4th 2006 8:06AM
I have one of the P3600 and think it really fits the bill for a lighter/compact WM5 device with HSDPA, WiFi, BT, etc. Having used the Jasjam and Jasjar previously, I can honestly say I don't miss the keyboard. The size really does make the decision for some people.
I can however understand the need for a keyboard for those people who need to do a lot of text entry. I only input 300-500 words per day and feel comfortable with the stylus.
Ron @ Jan 11th 2007 11:44PM
Using HTC's PhonePad program you can use T9 predictive text entry quite efficiently. This almost completely negates any reason for a keyboard as you can type FASTER using predictive text anyway. And its designed so that you can use your fingers instead of the stylus for one-handed operation. Keyboards are a waste of space.
nbc17 @ Apr 15th 2007 2:07PM
I want to get one, but not sure if I should go for the black or white. From the pictures, the white looks like marble. The black looks so dull to me. Any opinions? Thanks.