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Looking for user opinions on HTC Touch

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Posted by: brovash

The reason I'm considering getting this phone is that I am being offered a ridiculously good deal through bell (I'm currently with fido) by a friend so I'll have to get a bell phone, and this one seems to fit the best. The deal I'm getting includes unlimited internet browsing, and this seems to be the best phone that takes advantage of that (out of the phones that are eligible for unlimited internet which doesn't include BBs and such).

Some questions I'm hoping to get answered:

- I've read mixed reviews on call/build/overall quality on cnet and such...and users that can attest to any of this?

- How is the speed of the wifi on this device? I used to use an ipod touch to access wifi at my university, are the browsing speeds on the touch better/worse/comparable?

- How is the speed of the internet through EDGE browsing?

- How is Text messaging on this phone? Is it easy to send messages quickly? This is key for me since I send about 100 texts per day

- I know it's a windows mobile based system...and I have a mac...is there any hacks I can use or any special apps to make it sync with my mac? I also have windows installed on my mac so if I can't get this to work it's not a huge issue.


If I don't sign with bell for this deal, I'll renew contract with fido again and get a 3G iphone. Now I know the iphone and the touch are in different leagues...but If I were to get data on the 3G along with my plan..it would cost me an additional $40 a month than the sweet deal I'd be signing with bell including unlimited browsing on the touch. For such a difference, does the touch still offer good options? I'm talking in terms of essentials and productivity/useful stuff, not 3G things like watching youtube videos


Posted by: VE9LRN

Quote:
Originally Posted by brovash
The reason I'm considering getting this phone is that I am being offered a ridiculously good deal through bell (I'm currently with fido) by a friend so I'll have to get a bell phone, and this one seems to fit the best. The deal I'm getting includes unlimited internet browsing, and this seems to be the best phone that takes advantage of that (out of the phones that are eligible for unlimited internet which doesn't include BBs and such).

Some questions I'm hoping to get answered:

- I've read mixed reviews on call/build/overall quality on cnet and such...and users that can attest to any of this?

- How is the speed of the wifi on this device? I used to use an ipod touch to access wifi at my university, are the browsing speeds on the touch better/worse/comparable?

- How is the speed of the internet through EDGE browsing?

- How is Text messaging on this phone? Is it easy to send messages quickly? This is key for me since I send about 100 texts per day

- I know it's a windows mobile based system...and I have a mac...is there any hacks I can use or any special apps to make it sync with my mac? I also have windows installed on my mac so if I can't get this to work it's not a huge issue.


If I don't sign with bell for this deal, I'll renew contract with fido again and get a 3G iphone. Now I know the iphone and the touch are in different leagues...but If I were to get data on the 3G along with my plan..it would cost me an additional $40 a month than the sweet deal I'd be signing with bell including unlimited browsing on the touch. For such a difference, does the touch still offer good options? I'm talking in terms of essentials and productivity/useful stuff, not 3G things like watching youtube videos


Total confusion here. This is a Bell forum. The Touch you are considering is the GSM version (with Wifi) and you are talking about the old Edge network still used by Rogers.


Posted by: brovash

Quote:
Originally Posted by VE9LRN
Total confusion here. This is a Bell forum. The Touch you are considering is the GSM version (with Wifi) and you are talking about the old Edge network still used by Rogers.


Hmmm, that's my bad but the touch I am considering is the one offered by bell, but I guess I got that confused by the GSM one...what can you tell me about the bell version of the touch??


Posted by: VE9LRN

Quote:
Originally Posted by brovash
Hmmm, that's my bad but the touch I am considering is the one offered by bell, but I guess I got that confused by the GSM one...what can you tell me about the bell version of the touch??


It is a Windows Mobile device, so this is pretty much for those who don't mind spending a fair amount of time on "maintenance". The new WM 6.1 is pretty good but the user interface is still not the easiest to learn. This is no iPhone for sure. The built-in GPS is great. It's a great deal for cheap ($10/month --some of us are grandfathered at $5/month) unlimited browsing on the Internet. The built-in soft keyboards are not great, so you need Touchpal by Cootek. For serious work I also use a foldable Bluetooth Freedom Universal keyboard which allows me to leave the full-size laptop at home when I travel. Can't do that with an iPHone. There is now a newer version of the Bluetooth keyboard which should be easier to use. The original one is a PITA to install but once you get it going it's good enough.

For the price, and great Canadian coverage, nothing can beat the Touch on Bell's network. If you want something simpler and more reliable in terms of OS, try a Berry. WM is for the "techie" crowd.


Posted by: ulric

I find it frustrating to use as a phone, the ear piece volume is too low and tiny and it's difficult to hear people. I used to have a cheap motorolla phone on Fido (v180), and I had no idea how good it was.

For web browse, I don't think you'll be doing much of that, especially if you have an iPod Touch. The screen on the HTC Touch is only 320x200, and you will likely need to buy Opera Mobile to get to see the web correctly. You'll find a thread on this forum about the HTC Touch Diamond comming up, which has a 640x480 screen and comes with Opera.

I bough Opera Mobile 8, but now I'm using the beta of 9.5, which is presently free until it comes out of beta. It works a bit like the iPhone with the zoom in/zoom out, but it's got many problems and often doesn't understand you want to click on links.

The speed of browsing is good, however, it's 3G.

I also use the onscreen keyboard TouchPal, which is 12$, but unfortunately it takes up half of the screen, so you can hardly see anything while you type.

For syncing a Windows Mobile phone in the mac, buy "The Missing Sync", which I use. Although, I only ocasionnaly sync my phone, it's actually more powerful than Microsoft's ActiveSync on Windows and doesn't require Outlook to sync contacts

What I like about my touch is syncing over-the-air with Hotmail and the office's Exchange server. If it wasn't for email, I wouldn't be really be be using my Touch as much.

A plus: the Touch comes with a box that includes everything, including a belt holster and a wired hearphone/microphone combo.




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