vB Easy Archive - HTC Touch Cruise vs. N95

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HTC Touch Cruise vs. N95
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Posted by: ddsdude

Anyone have a chance to try the HTC Cruise? Specs seem impressive: 400mhz cpu, TRIBAND 3G, GPS, 3MP cam (ok not too impressive), TouchFlo iPhone-like touchscreen. Only downside is that it's a WM6 device.

By the time the N96 drops, it will be quite antiquated if this baby is any indication of where things are headed.

Posted by: RogerPodacter

the n96 could be released today and its already outdated. at the very least, its equivalent to n95-4. thats it. nothing special about it, and actually with its smaller battery its not even the best phone out there compared to current released phones. nokia went nutty bat shat.

Posted by: break-r

I see nothing special about the cruise
Overpriced if you ask me, at least locally anyway..

Posted by: ddsdude

Well, the triband 3G, powerful CPU and Touchflo interface look pretty good to me. And no friggin' slider mechanism to worry about! If it were running S60v3, I'd be all over it. Never used a WM device but I've seen enough demos to know that it lags even with the best cpus. Other downer to this device is apparent lack of 3d acceleration. I have yet to see a full review of this unit so if anyone has a link, I'd appreciate it.

I agree that locally, it is way overpriced. Not worth more than $700CAD.

Quote:

Originally Posted by break-r

I see nothing special about the cruise
Overpriced if you ask me, at least locally anyway..

Posted by: tripleintegral

I have a Cruise now. I came to it after an E90 and an N95-1. It is amazing. It combines the productivity that I had with the E90 and feels a lot more sturdy and solid than the N95-1. It's also really responsive and fast w.r.t most N95s I've played with.

Posted by: ddsdude

I like the sound of that.

Few questions if you don't mind...

1. How well does the GPS work? Voice guidance included?
2. How is the web browsing experience?
3. Does it have TV Out? If so, how is the video quality?
4. Are stereo speakers built in? How is the quality?

On paper, I am really diggin' this device. I have had it with Nokia's sliders... My N95-2 was solid at first but now that slight vertical wobble is getting on my nerves. The Cruise seems to combine iPhone and N95 features nicely with no slider to worry about.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tripleintegral

I have a Cruise now. I came to it after an E90 and an N95-1. It is amazing. It combines the productivity that I had with the E90 and feels a lot more sturdy and solid than the N95-1. It's also really responsive and fast w.r.t most N95s I've played with.

Posted by: LIVEFRMNYC

I would choose the Touch Cruise cause of no moving parts(non-slider). But otherwise it truly is a hard choice. Keep in mind that WM6 is near flawless. It's WM5 and below that had much problems with lag, etc: but WM6 is very stable.

Posted by: sonus911

I've also got a cruise. I've had it for about a month now. I couldn't be happier with it. The Touch Flow software that it runs allows me to use it one handed w/o a stylus for 99% of the day. Unfortunately, I don't have much Symbian experience...my previous phone was a Windows Mobile Smartphone (non-touchscreen), although I have used the E60 (I believe that's what its called) and handled a N95. Like I said before, the cool thing about the TC and the rest of the Touch Cruise line is that they are the only Windows Mobile Professional (touchscreen) phones you can use one handed. Ohh, and it has a huge 1350mAh battery, which does quite well considering I use A2DP, 3G, and the touch screen quite a bit throughout the day.

Quote:

1. How well does the GPS work? Voice guidance included?

GPS works really well, it finds me instantly. Voice guidance depends on the software you use. The TC comes with Tom Tom 6 and you can install Windows Live for free (excellent software, but no voices). Tom Tom 6 has voice guidance and all that jazz, but you only get one city for free, you have to a country map if you want more.

Quote:

2. How is the web browsing experience?

Out of the box, the TC comes with Pocket IE and Opera Mobile. Neither is smooth enough for me when browsing the non-mobile web, so I use Opera Mini, which runs ridiculously fast over 3G, and is almost iPhone/Safari like when you have a touch screen.

Quote:

3. Does it have TV Out? If so, how is the video quality?

No TV out, although I supposed you could get a MiniSDIO TV out if you wanted. Video quality as a whole is iff though. Divx in 320x240 plays just fine, but 640x480 is a problem...the TC has 3D acceleration, but HTC never released any drivers for it

We'll see if they fix that any time soon....

Quote:

4. Are stereo speakers built in? How is the quality?

Sorry, no stereo on the built-in speakers. I use A2DP, which sounds great, but I hear online that Nokia has no rival w/A2DP quality.

Quote:

The Cruise seems to combine iPhone and N95 features nicely with no slider to worry about.

Yes, the Cruise is situated quite in the middle of both even in terms of size. As far as text entry, you have handwritting recognition, and a slew of on screen keyboards. The best included ones are not QWERY though, they are T9, and Sure Type (The Iphone wins in terms of text entry with its bigger screen). Its a very solid device, with an awesome build quality and it looks really awesome. Here are two pics I took...

Posted by: marktang

of course i will buy the cruise. used both phones already and N95 is one slow phone and the battery life is really bad on it. i thought it was just a rumor but it is true.
HTC makes some of the best phones in my opinion. and the Cruise is just amazing. better than my tytn II i had before i think.

Posted by: ddsdude

Sonus911, thank you for the excellent response.

It sounds like the Cruise is a slick device but it does seem to compromise on multimedia features (no TV out, slow video, lack of 3d accel for now). The N95 excels in all of these and records/plays back VGA video very nicely. In my estimation, the biggest selling points for the Cruise over the N95 are Touchflo and slider-free design. Given the controversy with HTC and their lack of driver support (see www.htcclassaction.org), I don't think it qualifies as an upgrade from a N95 8GB at the moment. If they resolve the driver issues and the device can fully utilize the power of its impressive cpu then I'd take another look at it. For now, I will sit tight.

Posted by: sonus911

Quote:

Originally Posted by ddsdude

Sonus911, thank you for the excellent response.

It sounds like the Cruise is a slick device but it does seem to compromise on multimedia features (no TV out, slow video, lack of 3d accel for now). The N95 excels in all of these and records/plays back VGA video very nicely. In my estimation, the biggest selling points for the Cruise over the N95 are Touchflo and slider-free design. Given the controversy with HTC and their lack of driver support (see www.htcclassaction.org), I don't think it qualifies as an upgrade from a N95 8GB at the moment. If they resolve the driver issues and the device can fully utilize the power of its impressive cpu then I'd take another look at it. For now, I will sit tight.

Even though I have the Touch Cruise, if I had another company's flagship device, I would probably wait also. You are correct, the HTC Touch Cruise probably isn't quite at the level of the N95 in multimedia (at least until someone does something about the 3D drivers), its forte's are moreso in networking, business applications, UI, and Windows Mobile hackability. Eitherway, its probably best to wait right now, as it should be interesting to see how companies respond to the iPhone. But I'm not like most here, I like to wait 2 product generations before an upgrade.

Posted by: tdrag97

the HTC Touch Cruise look to be an awesome phone... but

how is the camera on the it. I'm not into music or games... just got the n81.. but going to sell for something with a better camera.

and beside the HTC Touch Cruise.. what is the next best thing to it.. with "good" camera and wifi

Posted by: THETRUTH#34

THats the problem when comparing the 2, the touch is a bit more business oriented, but the n95 is a good combo of both, business and multi media ie: gaming, video, camera, music.Does the cruiise have a 3.56mm jack.

Posted by: CdnDesi

Hey folks!

What a great topic. I'm also in the market for a brand new phone and am down to both the Nokia N95 8GB or the HTC Touch Cruise.

Some notes about me and my preferences:

* I don't buy a phone that often. My current phone is the Motorola KRZR K1, and before that, the Motorola V635. As such, I am brand new to the smart phones market

* My biggest complaint is about battery life. My girlfriend and I talk a lot on our phones, and I hated having to charge mine after 2-3 hours of usage. I'm looking for something that can last a bit longer.

* I've got a pretty big iPod Touch, so music and video to me is secondary. I like my mp3 ringtones and that's the extent that I like music on the phone.

* Camera and Calendar/PDA functions are big to me. The appeal of the N95 8gb is that it's got the 5 mega pixel camera with flash. Between that and the Touch Cruise - which has got the 3.15mp camera isn't bad - but I'd like something that takes good quality pictures. I'm not looking to print them out - more view them on my own computer. As for PDA/Calendar functions - I'm replacing my PDA, so I'd like something that perhaps resembles the interface of a PDA but is easy to navigate around. I like the stylus that comes with the Touch.

* After suffering with the Samsung SPH-A520 (CDMA) - and something I've had trouble testing - I really like good call and voice quality. That's why I'm really hoping the next phone has it. I was about 65% happy with the call quality of my current phone.

Price is not a big factor for me - I've saved up to afford either. But that's what it comes down to. Your opinions and thoughts would be much appreciated!

Posted by: CdnDesi

Any thoughts anybody?

Posted by: marktang

if you want a PDA then get the Cruise it is WM based so it like the PC you work with. It not hard to use. But i can guarantee you that both phones wont have long battery life. From my experiences the N95 has a shorter battery life than the Cruise.

Posted by: CdnDesi

Oh wow, thanks for that note - much appreciated!