HTC Touch Diamond vs. iPhone, fight!
by Thomas Ricker 
posted May 13th 2008 at 6:49AM
Our brethren over at Engadget Chinese had the chance to size-up HTC's new Windows Mobile 6.1 Touch Diamond with Apple's iPhone this morning in Taiwan. We have to admit, HTC's CEO was dead-on when he claimed that the Diamond's "not too big, not too small" after seeing it side-by-side with Microsoft's left-coast nemesis. Hit the read link for bigger pics.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Corleno @ May 13th 2008 7:54AM
hope he is dead-on about keeping the price lesser or equal to the iphone too
cause im not shedding another 1000$(tytn2) just cause HTC thinks their devices are cool :P
Gaines @ May 14th 2008 12:51PM
Looks like it will be $397.99 before discounts/rebates. I expect you can probably get one for as low as $150 if you sign a new 2 year plan.
http://www.HTCTouchDiamond.com
D @ May 13th 2008 7:58AM
What ever happened to the Raphael?
Touch devices are neat, but I still think you can't beat a good keyboard, whether qwerty or even just numeric w/ T9. There's nothing like being able to hammer out a text message one-handed without looking.
Yes, I text and drive -- I fail at safety...but I would fail even harder if I had to look at my phone while typing.
Does anyone know if there is any voice recognition software for mobile devices that's worth anything? :-)
Abid Minhas @ May 17th 2008 9:27AM
HTC have an excellent Keboard free for download. It has large and very useable keys. Excellent for texting while driving - I have the same problem, and that problem's been solved by HTC at least 6 months ago.
Juice @ May 13th 2008 8:39AM
What are you talking about not too big not too small? If you consider screen size the Diamond is unnecessarily huge. They are overall close to the same size but the screen sizes(not resolution) aren't even close. Bad design by HTC IMHO. If I'm choosing a device based on media use it's not even close. The iPhone wins by a mile.
variant2 @ May 13th 2008 10:09AM
Once you get used to a nice size screen, going to a smaller one is like downgrading your phone -- especially if it is a touchscreen.
PEZ @ May 13th 2008 1:13PM
Christ, that hole picture gallery size up SUCKS. Put the damn things on a table, and take the photo. Those ridiculous hands are in the way.
slamEVIL @ May 13th 2008 1:48PM
i agree with D and PEZ. is anybody else noticing how much brighter the diamond's screen is? i too like physical keyboards but man, i really might get this! i think it's the perfect size.
dj496 @ May 13th 2008 2:24PM
The iPhone's screen is almost the size of the entire diamond! They need to have the screen going right to the edge like the iPhone does, it's the only way to get a good size and big screen at same time.
Nevertheless, the Diamond is wonderful progress at HTC and who says competition is wrong? Laptops all look similar. Hi-end Phones will ALL roughly look like the iPhone eventually
mattj @ May 13th 2008 5:32PM
To me the screen is just right. It's no iPhone but if I wanted an iPhone I'd already have it, by now its lost its novelty. I refuse to watch movies on an iPhone or anything of that size because I can't enjoy it. Anything worth watching demands your attention on a larger screen preferably 1080p. I could use a vga quality screen much more on a smaller scale. I could understand maybe if you have chubby fingers but not everyone is plagued by that problem.
I honestly don't get the kick out of portable media devices that most people do. I don't even have an ipod but everyone else I know does and none of them even use theirs to watch video these days.
I do agree that a slim hidden keyboard is always appreciated, *cough* xperia*cough* HTC really impresses me though, they can really crank out new phones I think they will be setting the bar in the future.
Oh and the qwerty keyboard is past it's day, can we get something better already?
loosely_coupled @ May 14th 2008 3:22AM
You are completely ignoring the multi-use nature of the iPhone. The much larger screen is not just for watching videos, it really shines when using the web and also for having a large interface for applications. I totally agree with the guy above who said it's impossible to use a small screen once you have an iPhone or iPod Touch.It really is very liberating after using Treos and Blackberrys for so long --- I can't STAND using anything else now.
Granted, higher resolution 640x480 or 800x480 is always better, but with such a small screen I don't know if it would even matter. With the iPhone's screen being much bigger, It could definitely use a VGA screen. Hopefully we see that with iPhone 3G.
And btw, for everyone hesitant about the iPhone's screen keyboard, you really do have to try it before you comment. It's much better than any others like it --- and much better than I could have imagined. Trust me, I had the same thoughts as many when I first saw it, but now I wouldn't go back. A hardware keyboard just becomes a major waste of space and weight once you get used to the iPhone.
Jdep @ May 13th 2008 8:08PM
Let's talk about the OS. OSX vs WinMo6.1
OSX has no lag. WinMo6.1 is laggy. Its like choosing between an intel core2duo and a celeron.
Apple wins by a mile.
And once Apple comes out with the 3G/GPS 2ng gen Iphone, trust me WinMo device sales will crash to the floor.
WinMo devices suck bad!
jethro_static @ May 13th 2008 9:17PM
And best of all, iphone cannot connect your lappy to the internet. Cannot be used as a modem. Bwahahahahha!
Jdep @ May 13th 2008 11:15PM
but still lagginess is one of most important feature on a phone.
imagine using a pentium 2 computer nowadays, it works well, but sure hell is slow. hahahahaha.....
Iphone:2
WinMo:0 (who needs winmo as a modem, geezz have you heard of WIFI or 3G data card ?)
zephxiii @ May 14th 2008 6:48PM
my 8525 isn't that laggy...works just fine....
panzerdragoonfan @ May 15th 2008 3:49AM
win mo only lags if you dont close down your apps...otherwise its fine
jethro_static @ May 14th 2008 8:50PM
Geezzzz. Have you heard 3G and wireless card cost more money? LMAO to the max!!! iphone bill 80 dollars a month. Wireless card billl 50 dollars a month. Using WinMo Phone as modem free, Priceless!!! Bwahahahahahah!!!
matt17825 @ May 14th 2008 9:32PM
oh so true!!!