The Palm Pre is the long awaited, eagerly anticipated and über-hyped next generation smartphone from Palm Inc. First unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in January amidst much fanfare, the device has been an online media darling ever since. Arriving in Sprint retail stores on June 6, the Palm Pre is the result of a corporate restructuring years in the making and tons of behind the scenes work. It will also be available from Best Buy and select Wall-Mart stores. The Pre will sell for $199 from Sprint after rebates and a two year service contract. The full retail price without a contract will be $599. While both AT&T and Verizon has expressed sentiments that they plan to offer the device at some point, Sprint has an exclusive deal to offer the Pre in the US through 2009. A GSM version is planned for Europe and other parts of the world, however at this time no official plans for release have been announced. Palm Pre Design The Pre is an elegantly crafted device that has a very natural feel to it. The whole exterior (and even webOS itself) has an aura of acute roundness and polish. Something this smooth has not been seen before in the world of smartphone handsets and certainly not out of Sunnyvale. In its closed state, the front of the Pre is a well thought out work of minimalism embossed in a gloss black shiny finish. Of course where there is shine comes a rash of thumbprints, but fortunately Palm provides a microfiber pouch to help you manage the human grease. The nice thing about the optional Touchstone charging kit is that it comes with a much nicer soft touch rubberized back cover, which aids grip-ability and significantly mitigates the smudges.

The display naturally melds with the forward facing exterior in such a way that it doesn't even feel like the screen area is a separate section. I will revisit the display and screen quality again in more detail in the hardware section of the review. The display area is bordered by the earpiece to the north and by the gesture area, center button and mic opening along the bottom. A good thumb push up from the bottom half of the screen area will reveal the Pre's slide down physical keyboard.

The back of the Pre continues the polished stone theme with a centrally located silver Palm logo. The top right corner contains the camera lens and flash and situated in the other corner is the rather large speaker grill. It's also worth noting what you don't find on the back. The Pre continues to class it up by forgoing any the usual clutter array of stickers, logos and serial numbers.

The sides of the device are also appropriately smooth and contain a few mildly veiled function buttons. Starting with the top one can find the standard stereo headset jack, the ever useful silencer switch and the slightly elevated power/unlock button. The top left side hosts the volume rocker, while the right hides a snap out cover for the micro-USB port.

When the keyboard slider is extended the back of the exposed display area hides a smooth reflective mirror surface. On what is usually a neglected area, Palm has thoughtfully positioned a large mirror here that doubles as an extra large self portrait camera or a convenient vanity mirror.

The front-mounted center button is a simple click-action multifunction "home" button analogous to the iPhone's single button. Its sole purpose is to bring you into the dashboard card view which presents the cards that are currently open and the quicklaunch bar. The button itself illuminates with a soft white light when the gesture area is activated, as do two adjacent small obscured circle shaped lights in the gesture area when certain actions are performed. I feel that the center button is somewhat of a missed opportunity. It would be nice if it could provide more functionality such as waking up the device or lighting up when you have new notifications. Even a simple trackball would have greatly added to its utility.

The Palm Pre has dimensions of 59.57 mm (W) x 100.53 mm (L, closed) x 16.95 mm (D) [2.35 inches (W) x 3.96 inches (L, closed) x 0.67 inches (D)]. It weighs ~135 grams [4.76 ounces]. It compares favorably in size to most high end smartphones currently on the market. In terms of thickness, it's no Palm V, but the Pre's rounded curves and light weight make it very pocket friendly.

The Box
Even the Pre's retail box exemplifies Palm's new approach to industrial design. Just like the Treo Pro's packaging, the Pre comes in a very small box that has been shrunk and revamped with a more environmentally friendly motif. The new packaging is nearly half the size of Palm's previous design and it does away the software CD, the usual plastic bags and excess cardboard as well. The box itself is mostly composed of recycled materials and employes a "toxic free" soy ink on the included printouts. This is certainly another nice touch and adds positively to the initial user experience, while employing more sustainable materials.

Palm Pre Hardware

The Pre's innards are comprised of the cutting-edge TI OMAP 3430 chipset, a very nice integrated CPU whose specs I will not bore you with here. The Pre's exact processor clock speed has not been disclosed by Palm, though it is rumored to be in the 600 MHz range. The phone uses a digital dual band (850/1900 MHz) CDMA2000 radio with EVDO Rev. A for wireless data.

The Pre is certainly quite a performer. Even with its eye candy festival of sharp graphics and fluid animations, it is quite responsive during routine usage. There are certainly some apps that can slow the Pre down at times, but it copes well and multitasks with relative ease. After years of using the overextended Palm OS and Windows Mobile Treos the Pre is a breath of fresh air in this department.

Display
The Palm Pre's display is in a word, superb. The color and vibrancy of this screen cannot be understated. The blended contour of the front bezel and its seamless integration make for a complimentary frame. The LCD is a HVGA, 320 x 480 pixel resolution touchscreen that supports up to 24-bit color. The screen is exceptionally vivid indoors with good saturation and nice black levels and it holds up well in direct sunlight. It is very pixel dense, measuring in at 1.86" x 2.75" inches, compared to a Palm TX which sported a 3.25" x 2.2" inch display with the same amount of pixels.

The top solid black status bar even feels like it could be part of the hardware given how effortlessly this spot blends in with the surrounding shape. The same goes for the notifications, which have an appearance of sliding up from out of nowhere. Another nice touch is that the display will progressively light up smoothly upon reactivation and gently fade out when turned off rather than abruptly activating at full stregnth.

The Pre uses capacitive touchscreen technology, unlike the resistive touchscreen found on every prior Palm device over the past twelve years. So instead of a fine stylus pointer, the screen requires the use of human skin to register input. This changeover sacrifices some accuracy as well as the ability to input handwriting for finger operated ease of use.

Speaking of finger operations, the display's touch sensitive area extends just below the screen to the center button. This special gesture area is used for various system and navigational commands. In addition to scrolling and flicking, the operating system and various apps can employ special functions that can assist in navigation or perform various functions. The most common gesture is a simple swipe to the left to go back or up a level in an application. Another involves invoking a shortcut wave launcher in any app but dragging up from the gesture area. You can view a number of these gestures in action in our previous video.

Keyboard
Besides the new WebOS, the Pre's second main claim to fame is its slide out hardware keyboard. Longtime Treo users will feel right at home with its design and layout. It has a similar feel as the Treo Pro's keyboard, but with an improved layout and much better spacing. It is a very usable thumb board, though it is a bit more cramped that I would prefer. I certainly achieved much better results with far fewer typo's the Pre's keyboard than I have been able to on other virtual keyboard implementations. The Pre does employ some behind the scenes logic to interpret and correct some commonly mistaken key presses, and I had a positive experience with it in my short review period.

Wireless Data
On the Sprint Pre, EVDO Rev A. data is present and provides a potent wireless broadband experience. Sprint's 3G network is capable of speeds in the range of 600 kbps to 1.4 mbps. The Pre's EVDO connection felt faster than any other Palm device I had used before. I had a good signal in my area and surfing the web and staying connected was quite speedy. The Pre also includes built in Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g that supports WPA, WPA2, WEP and the 802.1X authentication methods. Palm even recommends that users keep their WiFi active if available at home or work for better battery performance as the Pre is supposedly more efficient at doing data over WiFi.

Storage
The Pre comes standard with 8GB of fixed internal flash memory, of which approximately 7.4GB are available for user storage. There is no means of memory expansion and this is a certainly a serious drawback. 7.4GB is about the minimum of what I would consider useful these days, but for some it will be more than they ever need.

For Palm, as an early supporter of the SD card standard since 2001 with the m500 PDA line, retreating away from the expandability and flexibility of removable storage cards strikes me as a very ominous sign of aping Apple's unfriendly attitude towards flash memory cards.

Access to the internal drive is via the side mounted micro-USB port. When plugged into a computer, the Pre asks if you want to use Media Sync Mode, USB drive or just charge the device. When Media Sync is selected the device shows up as an iPod device in Apple's iTunes software on a Mac or PC. This mode allows you to sync non-DRM music, video and podcasts via iTunes.

USB Drive mode works just like a mass storage USB memory stick where you can access the internal storage and drag and drop files. While either of these modes are in use, the Pre cannot receive calls or text messages.

Camera
The Palm Pre has a 3 megapixel camera with a small LED flash lamp. Palm touts this camera as offering "extended depth of field" capabilities via an onboard DSP. At this time it only supports still captures, and not video, which is a serious downer. It is operated via the on screen controls and the shutter can also be activated by the keyboard space bar. Besides the capture button the only optional control is the flash setting for auto, force and off and it only captures pictures in one size, an odd 1520 x 2032 pixels. The Pre can also optionally geo-tag your photo's by embedding the location data in the photo file.

In general I found the pictures to be more than suitable for a camera phone. Shots are still a little grainy in dim lighting conditions and I often found the colors to be slightly off. It does do a decent job outdoors and is great for those on-the-go moments. It also has a very fast shutter speed, which permits you to take multiple photos in quick succession. The flash does assist with low light conditions at close range and makes dark night shots possible for a change.

Below are a few unedited photo examples taken with the Palm Pre. The last picture of the flowers was snapped in complete darkness in order to demonstrate the flash capabilities.

Battery Life
T

he Palm Pre has a user replaceable 1150 mAh lithium-ion battery. This is the exact same battery that is in use on the Palm Centro and Treo 800w models. While a little on the smaller end for a smartphone, at least there is the option to carry around and swap out spare batteries. Fortunately, one advantage of the Pre's shared battery architecture older models means that replacement batteries and widely and affordably available already, including Seidio's extended-capacity original-size 1350mAh Centro/800w battery. Given that the Pre is employing a power cell with a less than desirable capacity, battery life is probably the top negative with the Pre. Power users should be able to get a days use out a full charge, but will more than likely have to recharge daily. Personal usage patterns will largely determine the longevity of a charge, and the Pre's more advances features and constant data connections will take their toll on your preciou

s milliamps.

Is the battery life a total deal breaker? Well, it's no Achilles heel though it is quite probably the main drawback. The Pre certainly has some more compelling aspects that make up for this. Nevertheless, the Pre still does a commendable job given everything that is going on and concerned users can tweak the device for more extended usage. A higher capacity replacement battery or spare cell can also help remedy this one disadvantage.

Audio
The Pre has a respectable audio system. Phone call quality was agreeable and the speakerphone was loud but had a bit of distortion when maxed out. The Pre also supports Bluetooth v2.1 +EDR and the associated A2DP stereo profile for use with wireless headsets, stereo headphones, speakers and other wireless bluetooth devices. The inclusion of a standard 3.5 mm stereo headphone jack is another commendable feature, though is necessary requirement these days. The included earbuds are suitable for phone calls, though you probably already own a better pair for listening to music.

WebOS Software

With the hardware overview now out of the way, we can now dedicate some time to talking about the real star of the show... and that is, without a doubt, the software. Palm's new WebOS makes it debut on the Pre. WebOS was built from the ground up as a next generation mobile operating system and according to Palm's exec's, is set to power Palm's future products a long time to come. Even in its debut form (version 1.02 was installed on my review device), WebOS is off to a most impressive start.

What separates WebOS from other systems is the scope of detail and ease of operation that is so often overlooked. It truly achieves a new level of ease of use all while fashioning a fluid and animated user experience. The team behind WebOS put and incredible amount of thought, organization and innovation into the platform and this shows at nearly every corner. From the finger gestures to the minimalistic, distraction free user interface and lack of save buttons, WebOS brings an alluringly fresh approach towards device interaction.

WebOS combines a beautifully crafted UI, that is further enhanced with a number of dynamic animations and special effects. It is built on top of a Linux system core, and fortunately one never needs to know. Palm has built a complete web based, finger optimized shell on top of the open source subsystem. With the ability to run multiple programs at one time, the Pre provides an elegant way of managing these with unobtrusive controls and notifications.

This multitasking oriented design focuses around the use of application cards. Each card represents an active application or app window such as a new browser tab. Application cards slide up into place, and can be closed by literally dismissing them with a satisfying flick.

Navigating web pages and documents is as easy as lifting a finger, complete with kinetic scrolling action. Zooming in and out is done with the double tap and pinching motions and the cursor can be controlled onscreen by swiping while holding certain keyboard keys. Screen taps evoke a slight ripple effect which help to show where your finger tap registered and the system rapidly responds to changes in orientation via the accelerometer in supported apps.

While it is still feels like a version 1.0 product at times, mainly due to its many bare bones built-ins, WebOS easily meets or exceeds the established mobile operating systems in capability and composure. Some of the included apps are quite basic with limited options, while others such as the web browser, truly stand out as exceptional. I expect these to improve and evolve over time, and hopefully once the SDK is released, there will be a wide assortment of third party enhancements.

Even with what was already known and out there about webOS, a number of things still surprised me. There are a number of things that the Pre just does all the time in the background for you. For example, once you setup a email account it will by default always check your mail in the background even without the email program open. The same goes for the instant messaging process, once you setup an account on either AOL IM, Google Talk or Jabber your buddy list and their current status shows up in your contacts and you always remain connected in the background even without the messaging application open.

Classic Palm OS
For those that can't live without their favorite old Palm OS apps, there is still hope for you yet. Longtime Palm OS developers, MotionApps, have developed a Palm OS emulator for the WebOS called Classic. Classic will allow many native Palm OS software titles to run on the Pre. It will be available at launch from the Palm App Catalog with a free trial period. I would have liked to have seen this functionality built into the OS, however it's good to have the option available if you need it.

Synergy
One of the main newly developed features Palm is touting is the whole Synergy system and various connections to the cloud. What this means in plain English is that the Pre is one the first devices that can link up with your online profile and automatically download and many of your contacts and calendars that reside in various places on the Internet. For instance, simply by entering your Gmail account details, the Pre automatically sets up your email, imports and consolidates your Gmail contacts and syncs your Google Calendar as well. The same goes for your Facebook and Micosoft ActiveSync accounts as well.

Palm also provides desktop component to get your data into the Pre in Windows and Mac versions. The Palm Data Transfer Assistant is a one time importing app that can grab your contacts, calendar entries and tasks from Palm Desktop, Outlook or iCal. There will also be additional third party applications from Chapura and CompanionLink, which will offer sync and importing with various other PIM software and services.

Web Browser
Wild claims aside, easily the most impressive aspect of the Pre and WebOS is the web browser. Built on the same open source rendering technology that powers the Safari and Google Chrome desktop browsers, the Pre browser is quite fast and more than capable of rendering websites as they would appear on a personal computer. Pulled down over EVDO or WiFi, pages load quickly and are quite snappy and responsive whilst navigating around.

If you are used to Blazer, prepare to be blown away. If you have used an iPhone before, the experience is similar if not better all together. It certainly feels faster than any other mobile browser that I have used before. It's been a long time coming, but the full and usable Internet has finally arrived on a Palm device.

Most pages first load up in a zoomed out view as they would appear on a larger monitor. You can then double tap to automatically zoom into a particular area, or do the pinch and zoom motion to set the magnification level. The best experience is had when the device is held on its side in landscape mode, where is drops the UI and enters fullscreen mode as well. Here text is usually larger and more readable, however you have to tilt the Pre back upright in order to use the keyboard.

In my short trial I never had the browser completely crash, however I did experience a few minor issues. A few times it would stop rendering pages even when refreshed, and other times it seemed to confuse the cache and show images in the wrong spot here and there. These were just minor hiccups on what is otherwise totally excellent web experience.

Universal Search
Another WebOS standout is the Pre's ability to search through your information. Simply sliding out the keyboard and typing from the home screen invokes the clever universal search feature. With each key press the device will attempt to narrow down and find the contact or application that you are looking for. If a local match can't be found, the Pre will present a list of online search options such as Google, Google Maps, Wikipedia and Twitter. This is a super efficient way to dial or message a contact, and it also works great as an even faster means to execute a quick web search.

Messaging
The email and messaging experience on the Pre is good, though a little basic. They way it is integrated into the system is most impressive, given that it can stay in sync with your server without having the app open. The notification system gently alerts you when new messages arrive and the built in client can combine multiple inboxes into one view. The client currently supports POP3, IMAP and Microsoft EAS messaging systems. The Pre also supports IMAP IDLE for a near real-time push email experience with compatible systems.

SMS and Instant messaging are also integrated as seamlessly as the email program. These apps also combine their respective communications by contact for a great threaded conversation view. The messaging app also combines your SMS and IM chats and will alert you to each contact's current IM status.

Multimedia
Another aspect that has fortunately been given a good amount of attention is the Pre's multimedia capabilities. The Pre's high density screen and multitasking capabilities further add to its attractiveness as a media player. All of the usuals are present as well as some added apps for additional online content.

The Pre's music player is straightforward and easy to use. Even its background operation is well thought out, as you can control the player at any time via a set of expandable controls in the notification area. It even notifies you of the new track names as you progress through your playlist. The music app supports the usual mp3 files, unprotected AAC, AAC+, AMR, QCELP and WAV formats. The inclusion a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack permits you to use your existing earbuds and is well positioned at the top.

The included video player is just as usable and supports a variety of formats including MPEG-4, H.263 and H.264. I would have liked to have seen Divx/Xvid support, but you can't have it all. For more video enjoyment a basic YouTube app is included, which lets you search, browse and stream full clips from the 'Tube. SprintTV is also on board, which provides access to a wide range of subscription based mobile video content. It should be noted that all of the above video applications will playback video in landscape mode. The Pre also comes preloaded with Amazon's MP3 store for on-the-go music purchases.

In order to facilitate media importing your media, Palm has created a special media sync mode. By selecting this option when you link up with your PC via the microUSB cable, the Pre goes into a special iTunes compatible mode. iTunes will then recognize the Pre as an iPod device, and you can sync your music library or specific playlists with your PC in this manner via iTunes. This functionality only supports music and video at this time, as you cannot sync other content such as photos and PIM data through iTunes.

Photos
One app that seriously disappoints is the Photo viewer. The Pre's Photo browser simply needs some urgent improvements. The basic functionality is present, however the app is just painfully slow at some crucial tasks. Displaying each photo's can often take up to 4-8 seconds just to fully load. As a result, the program also frequently stutters when scrolling through a set of pictures. I'm sure its something that could be addressed in a future update, but at present browsing photos is frustratingly slow.

Business users will be relieved to find a document viewer built in that is capable of displaying Microsoft Word and Excel spreadsheets. At this time, the app is view only as you cannot edit or create office documents on the Pre. Its primary purpose seems to allow you to view email attachments. DataViz has announced that they are working on a version of their popular Documents to Go editing software for the Pre. A basic PDF viewer is also present.

Google has created a version of its Google Maps application for the Pre. The app makes use of the built in GPS and location services to pinpoint your location. Just like its desktop counterpart, it can provide basic search, directions and traffic information in addition to the maps and satellite views. For more detailed routes, Pre users can make use of the Sprint Navigation software (based on Telenav) for a more automobile centric voice guided directions and services.

For creating notes, an attractive yet basic memo pad application is on board. There is also a dedicated To-Do list application called Tasks. A very basic Clock app (that does not even support world times), Calculator and a Nascar specific app from Sprint finish off the list of built-ins.

App Catalog
In the post iPhone world, it now seems like every major handset manufacturer is rushing to create its own on device application store, and the Palm Pre is no exception. Palms take is called the App Catalog and on my review unit it was clearly marked as a "beta" application. At launch there will be about a dozen or so applications available to try. Some of these have been discussed before and the lists includes Pandora, New York Times Reader, AP News, Classic, Tweed and Spaz (Twitter clients), FlightView, Handmark Stocks, Flixster, Fandango, Citysearch, Connect Four, Sudoku, LinkedIn, Where and Accuweather.

The App Catalog presents a number of features and popular applications available for download and also has a number of organized lists such as most recent, Top Rated and various categories. It even throws in a tag cloud view for good measure and of course you can also easily search the catalog. It was very simple to download apps, though it was not possible to purchase anything of yet. Not all of the details of how this software marketplace will function have been made public yet, however during my trial it worked pretty well and shows a lot of promise for prospective developers. As time goes on and once Palm releases a public software development kit, you can expect the App Catalog to grow significantly but at present it is somewhat spartan.

Another thing that caught me off guard about the Pre is the online Backup capability. By default the device will automatically backup the contents of its internal memory space to a Palm server somewhere 'in the cloud.' That way if your device is damaged or replaced you can easily restore your data and personal settings from the last backup via Palm's web interface. This feature can also be disabled if you desire. If your Pre is lost or stolen, you can even attempt to send a 'kill-pill' from the same interface to wipe out the device's remotely.

Not everything about webOS is all sparkly and shiny. As I've pointed out there are some flaws and rough edges here and there, but of course this is not unexpected with such a new platform. There are also a lot of opportunity for software developers as there is plenty of room to fill in holes and build out and improve on functionality that is already present. The few things that I can take issue with are not by any means serious show stoppers. Granted this is a 1.0 release and hopefully Palm will invest time in future ROM updates to fix up the loose ends and work to further optimize system performance.

For instance many of the more higher end apps such as Photos, Music and even the Calendar can take anywhere from a couple to 7 seconds to fully load, while most of the others are nearly instantaneous. Flash support is not present in the browser of yet, but for most folks this is not a big deal. Adobe and Palm have announced that they are working on some sort of support for WebOS and may release something in the future.

I also ran into a few issues with memory allocation. I was initially shocked to get a "out of memory" type alerts when trying to open a new app during my first experience with the device. Sometimes when you have a number of cards open and you try to launch a new application, the system will refuse to proceed and will tell you to close some of your open cards before it can continue. Now this could be understandable with a multitude of active cards, but this message would sometimes manifest with as little as 3 active cards, while other times the device hummed along with more that 12 open at one time. It didn't get in the way too often, but it was certainly worth noting. Usually I would notice this when trying to use the Photos app, so that particular application may have an unresolved memory leak issue or something.

As with the hardware, I'm disappointed with the center button as I mentioned earlier. It's nice that you can just slide the keyboard down to unlock but I'd like to be able to have an option available to use this button to wake up the device. It's especially hard to reach the power button when the keyboard is already open. Another personal gripe is that you cannot use the Pre for "tethering" with your computer as a wireless modem. As a long time Treo user, I've been accustomed to this handy functionality and it's disappointing to see this feature suppressed.

Conclusion

The Palm Pre delivers on Palm's promise of a bringing a next generation differentiated product to market. WebOS is a powerful and compelling new mobile platform. Despite being a 1.0 product, the Pre is pleasantly functional and delivers new level of simplicity and ease of use. Coupled with the attractive hardware design and charming display, this adds up to a distinctively agreeable experience for mobile phone users. Palm has a lot riding on the Pre and it now appears to be fully back in the game with a superb combination of software and hardware.

The Palm Pre is available from Sprint for $199 after rebates and a two year service agreement.

Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) is continuing to expand their influence in the unlocked GSM cellphone market with the launch of their latest multimedia beast, the Sony Ericsson W995a Multimedia phone. Following its trip through the FCC’s labs, the Sony Ericsson W995a is now available for pre-order through SonySyle.com and comes unlocked and ready to roam whatever wireless network you so choose (as long as you stay away from CDMA networks). Like Sony Ericsson’s Walkman phones of the past, the W995a is a slider, but it also rocks a highly capable 8.1-megapixel camera outfitted with Cybershot technologies.

Rather than brand the Sony Ericsson W995a as a Cybershot or Walkman phone outright, the new W995a is being touted as a “Multimedia” phone. The Sony Ericsson W995a plays comfortably well on both sides of the fence. On the one side, we have the

dedicated music playback controls lining right side of the handset and the large stereo speakers on either end of the device that lend to the W995a’s Walkman ancestry - there’s even an FM radio in there somewhere. On the other side, we have a quality 8.1-megapixel auto-focus camera boasts photo-flash, image stabilization, Face Detection and BestPic technologies, which give the Sony Ericsson W995a the bits to compete with other Cybershot handsets.

The Sony Ericsson W995a is being offered on pre-order through SonyStyle.com for $600. Interested? Read up on it here. Order it here.

The HTC Touch Diamond hit the scene last year with hard-hitting features that led the smartphone pack at the time. We’re talking VGA touchscreen, a quality 5-megapixel camera, WiFi, GPS and 3G connectivity - all packed into a slim and trim package barely half an inch thick. So, how do you top that? With the HTC Touch Diamond2, of course.

The Diamond2 still hasn’t officially landed in the USofA, but expect AT&T (NYSE: T) to pick up the Diamond2 as the HTC Warhawk (awesome name!) in the near future. For the time being, you’ll have to make do with a European Diamond2 or just keep yourself busy with the review and photo gallery below! (Summary at end)

HTC Touch Diamond2
By HTC ($599.99)

Specifications:

• Operating system: Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional (upgradeable to WM6.5 Professional)
• CPU: Qualcomm (NSDQ: QCOM)® MSM7200A™, 528 MHz
• RAM: 288MB
• ROM: 512MB of user-available memory for data and applications;
• Connectivity: microSD, Bluetooth 2.0 (A2DP), ExtUSB, WiFi (b/g), GPS
• Network:
  Quad-band GSM/EDGE - 850/900/1800/1900Mhz
  Dual-band 3G (WCDMA) - 900/1800Mhz for Europe/Asia and 850/1900Mhz for North America, allowing for HSDPA 7.2Mbps data speeds

• Display: 3.2-inch resistive touchscreen at 480 X 800 WVGA resolution
• Camera: 5.0-megapixel camera with auto-focus
• Dimensions: 107.85 X 53.1 X 13.7 mm (4.25 X 2.09 X 0.54 inches)
• Weight: 117.5 g (4.15 oz)

Introduction
HTC’s second-take on the original Diamond resulted in the HTC Touch Diamond2 with double the RAM and ROM and a larger 3.2-inch VGA touchscreen. Gone are the diamond-pattern facets on the backside of the handset, replaced by a smooth glossy panel accented with brushed metal trim around the camera lens. The display bezel and chin of the Diamond2 are also trimmed in the same classy-yet-sassy brushed aluminum. But, the best thing about the Diamond2 may be the much-improved touchscreen display.

Aesthetics
Design
The HTC Touch Diamond2 rocks the slate form-factor, which makes for an incredibly slim profile. The Diamond2 eschews a slide-out QWERTY keyboard (the kind that older brother Touch Pro2 features) in favor of a 13.7 mm (0.54 inches) waistline that’s hard to ignore. Compared to the original Diamond, the Diamond2 is a bit taller to accommodate the larger touchscreen display.

Judicious use of brushed aluminum accents lend to a seriously high-quality feel. There’s plenty of plastic used throughout the Diamond2, but the you’ll be hard pressed to find any “plasticky” feeling components.

The “Diamond” moniker made sense when the Diamond had diamond-facet patterns adorning its backside. But, now that the Diamond2 has moved past the diamond pattern, the model name makes less sense - and we could care less. The Diamond2’s smooth and glossy backside lends to a more refined look, although it tends to pick up micro-scratches like a magnet. We’d recommend a full-body case or protective film if you’re the type to obsess over scratches and the like.

The bottom-right corner houses a magnetically-secured stylus. The magnet sucks the stylus in for the last couple millimeters of travel. It’s a really cool feature that probably goes largely unnoticed. The details, it’s all in the details.

Display
The HTC Touch Diamond’s full–VGA touchscreen, despite being a smallish 2.8-inches, delivered sharp images that still manage to impress us today. Unfortunately, it suffered from the “squishy-screen” syndrome that affects most resistive touchscreens of its kind. This new-generation HTC Touch Diamond2 sports a new touchscreen that is more sensitive and more accurate when used with fingers. The Touch Diamond2 is still cursed with a hint of “squishy-screen,” but the improved touchscreen sensitivity and larger screen-size make it easy to ignore. It really is too bad that Windows Mobile 6.1’s microscopic UI elements preclude the use of capacitance touchscreens.

Zoom Bar
Gone is the touch-sensitive navigation area that the original Diamond featured below the touchscreen. The Diamond2 replaced the circular-zooming control with a “Zoom Bar” that resides just south of the display. Drag your finger left across the Zoom Bar to zoom out, dragging it rightward to zoom in. From text to pictures to websites, the Zoom Bar should make it easier to zoom in and out of the display.

TouchFLO 3D II
HTC did a bang up job with their latest iteration of the TouchFLO 3D Windows Mobile overlay. Rather than use WinMo’s out-of-the-box UI, HTC replaces the traditional Windows Mobile homescreen with a finger-friendly, slide-scrolling, 3D-tastic interface. The result? A slick homescreen that gives at-a-glance access to all your information - weather, stocks, email, contacts (HTC refers to it as “People,” as part of their “people-centric” philosophy), time, web browser, camera, and music. It’s like a gift from the smartphone gods… and HTC.

The one problem with older TouchFLO variants is that you still had to interact with the Windows Mobile UI whenever you ventured past the homescreen. HTC solved that problem in their newest WinMo smartphone by effectively disguising most Windows Mobile 6.1 menus and UI elements with their own finger-optimized creations. Hit the “Start” button and you’ll be taken to HTC’s custom application-launcher. Changing system settings rarely requires any interaction with Windows Mobile screens. The new TouchFLO 3D II UI is like an oasis in the middle of a desert designed by Windows Mobile.

Multimedia
Music/Video
Music playback is accessible right from the homescreen. Just scroll your finger over to the “music” icon to flip through your musical library (on both on-board storage as well as your microSD card), complete with cover art. Or, if a list-view is more your style, just tap the “library” tab and there you go. HTC’s media player UI is consistent with the main HTC TouchFLO 3D UI, making use of slide-scrolling categories and menus.

The Diamond2 sports full Stereo Bluetooth (A2DP) support, allowing all that sweet music of yours to be beamed directly to your Bluetooth headphones. The quality of sound over Bluetooth has been a sticking point with some, but the Diamond2’s Stereo Bluetooth connection isn’t going to muck up the sound of your music more than the MP3 compression already has.

Video playback isn’t as easy to access. You’ll have to fire up Windows Mobile’s Windows Mobile Player in order to play any videos. Depending on the quality of your video, playback on the large 3.2-inch WVGA display can be nothing short of stunning. High-resolution displays might not be high on your list of gotta-have features, but that’s only because you haven’t seen high-resolution media displayed on a capable screen.

The Diamond2 supports a dizzying array of media file formats. Chances are good that all your music and videos will play just fine on the Diamond2 without any conversion required.

Camera
The camera is impressive. With a quality 5.0-megapixel image sensor, the Diamond2’s camera takes some really impressive pictures. Low-light performance is still a bit lacking, made worse by the lack of a photo-flash, but we never expect any cameraphone to do well in dimly-light environs.

Auto-focus is fast and accurate. You know all those fancy out-of-focus pictures you always see coming from DSLR cameras? Yeah, the Diamond2 can do that. And, you can direct the Diamond2’s camera to focus on any point in the frame by tapping a focus-target on the touchscreen viewfinder.

No flash. Too bad. We would have liked to have seen a flash in there.

Videos are captured at up to VGA resolutions. The auto-focus feature focuses the camera only once when you start capturing video. If you change from close-up to far-away focus in the middle of your video, don’t expect the auto-focus to follow suit. You’ll have to stop and re-start recording. Still, for the quality video that we get from the Diamond2, it’s hard to whine about auto-focus not working on the fly.

Usability/Ergonomics
Push Internet
HTC is touting their “Push Internet” technology as a way to get quick and convenient access to your favorite websites, without having to wait for the phone to load the webpage. The “Push Internet” feature will automatically download data from your favorite websites at pre-set intervals throughout the day. The idea is to deliver your most-frequented websites to your phone first thing in the morning (or whenever you’d like it to deliver the data). But, it’ll eat into your battery life, so use it sparingly.
Keyboard
By eschewing a physical QWERTY keyboard in favor of a virtual, on-screen keyboard, the Touch Diamond2 manages to keep slim and trim. Unfortunately, like most super-small gadgets, the attractive size comes with compromises. The on-screen keyboard is fairly accurate, thanks to a completely refreshed resistive touchscreen design. And, the vibration feedback that accompanies each key press makes for a decent typing experience. But, if you’re a heavy into text messaging, instant messaging or you just have to deal with a lot of emails, the Diamond2’s virtual keyboard is going to be a major pain. The virtual keyboard’s keys are small enough to occasionally confound even the most nimble of fingers.

It all comes down to how much you use the keyboard. If you’re not a heavy typer, then the Diamond2’s slick styling and oh-so-thin waistline are hard to pass up. The keyboard power-users out there will probably want to go with the HTC Touch Pro2 (which we’ll be reviewing in short order!).

Zoom Bar
The zoom bar is awesome! It’s much more intuitive and “usable” than the “circle zoom” feature on the original HTC Touch Diamond. As long as the Diamond2 isn’t busy crunching numbers elsewhere, the zoom feature responds almost instantly. If your Diamond2 is bogged down with other tasks, however, don’t expect the zoom bar to respond immediately.

Still, the zoom bar gets high marks from us! The zoom bar is so good, in fact, that it rivals the iPhone’s pinch-to-zoom feature in terms of intuitiveness and accurate zooming.

MicroSD card slot
It’s a minor detail, but it makes for a huge difference in usability. The microSD card slot isn’t buried under the battery. Instead, it sits just next to the battery, under the battery cover - allowing the user to hot-swap microSD cards without powering down the device. Minor, but incredibly convenient!

Windows Mobile menus
Windows Mobile has been the bane of HTC’s smartphones for as long as we can remember. Back when Windows Mobile was the de facto smartphone platform, there wasn’t much competition to drive UI innovation. But, now that the iPhone OS has shown the world what a finger-friendly UI should look like, Windows Mobile’s flaws are that much more evident. HTC did as much as they could to hide the Diamond2’s Windows Mobile underpinnings, what with the new HTC TouchFLO 3D UI, but you still have to interact with WinMo on occassion. When you do, you’ll need to bust out the stylus in order to effectively navigate the myriad tiny buttons and check boxes that Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) as been using for years and years. Needless to say, Windows Mobile gets low marks for usability and ergonomics.

Overall
In the end, the HTC Touch Diamond2 has proven itself worth of the Diamond moniker. The aluminum-trimmed Diamond2 shines on almost every measure of what a smartphone should be. It’s got ample RAM to run all your applications with little lag. The intuitive zoom bar is a huge improvement (usability wise). The Diamond2’s microSD card slot that is accessible without removing the battery is a huge plus as well.

But, perhaps most importantly, the Diamond2 uses the latest HTC TouchFLO 3D UI that almost completely hides Windows Mobile’s ancient interface. TouchFLO 3D is quite possibly the best Windows Mobile overlay, and it’s clear that HTC has put a lot of thought into how the UI works.

The downsides, however, are short-ish battery life, no flash for the camera, and no standard 3.5mm headphone jack. The photo-flash and headphone jack are just going to be things you’ll have to live with. But, battery could be improved by turning off 3G, WiFi GPS and Bluetooth radios, as well as turning off “Push Internet.” Otherwise, don’t expect more than a couple days of moderate-to-heavy use without charging your Diamond2.

Pros

• 5-megapixel camera with touch-controlled auto-focus
• Much-improved touchscreen feel (less squishy, more accurate)
• Beefy memory stores (RAM/ROM)
• Intuitive zoom bar
• Classy brushed aluminum trim
• Refreshed TouchFLO 3D II - HTC made the best WinMo overlay even better
• Vibration feedback
• microSD accessible without removing battery

Cons

• Intermittent zoom bar lag when running multiple programs
• No camera flash
• No standard 3.5mm headphone jack
• Hard to remove battery cover
• Short-ish battery life

Consumer Reports’ recently released their latest batch of smartphone ratings, and guess who was at the top!? You guessed it, the iPhone 3GS. I should note, the 3GS just barely nudged out the Palm Pre, iPhone 3G, Samsung Omnia, Samsung Epix and BlackBerry Storm.

The iPhone 3GS performed at the top of the heap many categories… One category the 3GS did not perform too well in was voice quality. I’m not surprised to hear this whatsoever. I’ve been using an iPhone ever since the first-gen device hit us a few years back. One of the nagging complaints I’ve had about the device is voice quality. Either the person on the other end can’t hear you, or vice versa… Or you crank up the volume to full and things are still faint… It’s certainly an area of concern for many that Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) needs to address. I believe Will and Simon even discussed this in one of our latest podcasts. Or… hmmm… maybe it was another podcast… At any rate, listen to our podcast would ya?

The Palm Pre and BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Storm performed best-in-class in the messaging category… While, (not surprisingly) the Palm (NSDQ: PALM) Pre proved to be the best in the ‘multitasking’ category. Gotta love the Pre’s ability to do more than one thing at a time *cough* c’mon Apple *cough*.

To sum up, Consumer Reports scored all devices from 0 to 100… and here are the top 5:

• iPhone 3GS: 73
• iPhone 3G, Samsung Omnia: 70
• BlackBerry Storm 9530, T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) G1, BlackBerry Bold, Samsung Epix: 69
• Palm Pre, BlackBerry Curve 8900: 67
• LG Incite: 66

Beta version of iPhone Software 2.0: Apple introduced the first version 2.0 of its iPhone software, whose output is planned for June, and announced the immediate availability of a beta version of software for a number of developers and enterprise customers. La version bêta du logiciel 2.0 d'iPhone inclut à la fois le kit de développement logiciel (SDK) pour iPhone ainsi que de nouvelles fonctionnalités d'entreprise, telles que le support de Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync pour fournir des fonctions sécurisées et « over the air » de push e-mail, de contacts et de calendrier et l'effacement du contenu à distance, et la prise en charge du système VPN IPsec de Cisco pour l'accès crypté aux réseaux privés des entreprises. The beta version of iPhone 2.0 software includes both the software development kit (SDK) for iPhone and new enterprise features such as support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync to provide secure and functions over the air "push e-mail, contacts and calendar and deletion of content from a distance, and management of Cisco IPsec VPN for encrypted access to private companies.

Architecture logicielle évoluée Advanced software architecture "Nous sommes ravis à l'idée de voir naître une communauté enthousiaste de développeurs tiers, avec potentiellement des milliers d'applications natives pour Apple iPhone et Apple iPod touch, a déclaré Steve Jobs, CEO d'Apple. Les fonctionnalités d'entreprise d'iPhone, associées à sa révolutionnaire interface utilisateur Multi-Touch et à une architecture logicielle évoluée, offrent la meilleure expérience utilisateur et la plate-forme logicielle la plus avancée jamais disponible sur un appareil mobile." "We are delighted to see the idea of creating a community of enthusiastic third-party developers, with potentially thousands of native applications for Apple iPhone and Apple iPod touch," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. Features of undertaking 'iPhone, combined with its revolutionary user interface Multi-Touch and advanced software architecture provide the best user experience and platform the most advanced software ever available on a mobile device. " Logiciel SDK iPhone IPhone SDK software Le SDK iPhone fournit un vaste ensemble d'interfaces de programmation d'applications (API) et d'outils permettant de créer des applications novatrices pour iPhone et iPod touch. The iPhone SDK provides a broad set of application programming interfaces (APIs) and tools to create innovative applications for iPhone and iPod touch. Dès aujourd'hui, chacun peut télécharger gratuitement la version bêta du SDK Apple iPhone et exécuter le simulateur d’iPhone sur son Mac. Starting today, anyone can download the beta version of Apple iPhone SDK and run the iPhone Simulator on their Mac. Apple a également présenté aujourd'hui son nouveau Programme pour développeurs iPhone, qui met à la disposition des développeurs tout ce dont ils ont besoin pour créer des applications natives, ainsi que le nouvel App Store, moyen inédit pour les développeurs de livrer via le sans fil leurs applications aux utilisateurs Apple iPhone et Apple iPod touch. Apple today also introduced its new iPhone Developer Program, which provides developers everything they need to create native applications, and the new App Store, new way for developers to deliver through without over their applications to Apple iPhone users and Apple iPod touch. Développeurs tiers Third-party developers Avec le SDK Apple iPhone, les développeurs tiers pourront développer des applications natives pour Apple iPhone grâce à un riche ensemble d'API, comprenant des interfaces de programmation pour les technologies Core OS, Core Services, Media et Cocoa Touch. With the Apple iPhone SDK, third-party developers can build native applications for Apple iPhone with a rich set of APIs, including programming interfaces for technologies Core OS, Core Services, Media and Cocoa Touch. Le SDK iPhone permettra aux développeurs de créer d'extraordinaires applications qui exploiteront la révolutionnaire interface Multi-Touch d'iPhone, sa technologie d'animation, sa grande capacité de stockage, son accéléromètre tridimensionnel et sa technologie intégrée de géolocalisation, pour proposer des applications mobiles véritablement innovantes. The iPhone SDK will allow developers to create amazing applications that exploit the revolutionary multi-touch iPhone, animation technology, high capacity storage, accelerometer and three-dimensional integrated geolocation technology, to offer applications truly innovative mobile. Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync Apple a obtenu l'utilisation sous licence d'Exchange ActiveSync auprès de Microsoft, afin de l’intégrer à iPhone. Apple has received licensing of Exchange ActiveSync from Microsoft to integrate the iPhone. Ainsi, Apple iPhone se connectera directement aux serveurs Microsoft Exchange 2003 et 2007 afin d'offrir des fonctions sécurisées et « over the air » de push e-mail, de contacts, de calendriers et de listes d'adresses globales. Thus, Apple iPhone will connect directly to Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 and 2007 to provide secure and functions over the air push email, contacts, calendars and global address lists. Le support intégré d'Exchange ActiveSync permet également de mettre en œuvre des fonctions de sécurité telles que l'effacement du contenu à distance, la gestion des politiques de mots de passe et l'autodécouverte. Integrated support for Exchange ActiveSync can also implement security functions such as erasing the content remotely, the policy management of passwords and autodécouverte. La version 2.0 du logiciel d’iPhone prend en charge le système VPN IPsec de Cisco pour assurer le niveau le plus élevé actuellement disponible de cryptage IP pour la transmission des données d'entreprise sensibles, ainsi que la capacité d'authentification par certificats numériques ou l'authentification multi-facteur par mot de passe. Version 2.0 of iPhone software supports the Cisco IPsec VPN to ensure the highest level of encryption currently available IP for transmission of sensitive corporate data, as well as the capacity of authentication or digital certificates the multi-factor authentication password. L'ajout du protocole WPA2 Enterprise avec authentification 802.1x permet aux entreprises de déployer iPhone et iPod touch en respectant les toutes dernières normes en matière de protection des réseaux Wi-Fi. The addition of WPA2 Enterprise protocol with 802.1x authentication enables companies to deploy iPhone and iPod touch by following the latest standards for protection of Wi-Fi networks Version bêta du logiciel iPhone Beta version of iPhone software La version 2.0 du logiciel d’Apple iPhone fournit un utilitaire de configuration qui permet aux administrateurs informatiques de configurer rapidement un grand nombre d'iPhone, avec gestion des politiques de mots de passe, réglages VPN, installation de certificats, réglages des serveurs d'e-mail, et plus encore. Version 2.0 of Apple's iPhone software provides a configuration utility that allows IT administrators to quickly configure a large number of iPhone, with policy management of passwords, VPN setting, installing certificates, server settings for e-mail, and more. Une fois la configuration définie, celle-ci peut être facilement, et en toute sécurité, délivrée à l'utilisateur par un lien web ou par e-mail. Once the configuration set, it can be easily and safely delivered to the user via a web link or e-mail. Pour l'installer, utilisateur n’aura tout simplement qu’à s'identifier avec un nom d'utilisateur ou un mot de passe, à télécharger la configuration et à choisir l'option Installer. To install, users simply have to identify with a username or password, download configuration and choose Install. Une fois la configuration installée, l'utilisateur aura accès à tous les services informatiques de sa société. Once the configuration is installed, the user will have access to all services of his company. Apple App Store Apple App Store La version 2.0 du logiciel d’iPhone intègrera l'App Store, une nouvelle application permettant aux utilisateurs de parcourir, de rechercher, d'acheter et de télécharger via le sans fil des applications tierces directement sur leur iPhone ou leur iPod touch. Version 2.0 software will integrate the iPhone App Store, a new application allowing users to browse, search, purchase and download via the wireless third-party applications directly onto their iPhone or iPod touch. L'App Store permettra aux développeurs de s’adresser à l’ensemble des utilisateurs Apple iPhone ou Apple iPod touch. The App Store will allow developers to apply to all users of Apple iPhone or Apple iPod touch. Les développeurs fixeront eux-mêmes le prix de leurs applications (qui pourront être gratuites) et conserveront 70 pour cent des recettes des ventes. Developers set their own price for their applications (which may be free) and keep 70 percent of sales revenue. Les utilisateurs pourront télécharger les applications gratuites sans frais ni pour l'utilisateur ni pour le développeur, ou acheter les applications payantes, d'un simple clic. Users can download applications without cost or free for the user or the developer, or purchase the application fee, a single click. Les entreprises clientes pourront se créer une page privée sécurisée sur l'App Store, dont l'accès sera réservé à leurs employés. The client will create a secure private page on the App Store, which will be restricted access to their employees. Apple prendra en charge tous les frais de système de paiement par carte bancaire, d'hébergement web, d'infrastructure et de DRM associés à la mise à disposition des applications sur l'App Store. Apple will cover all the costs of system of payment by credit card, web hosting, infrastructure and DRM associated with the availability of applications on the App Store. Les applications tierces pour iPhone et iPod touch devront être approuvées par Apple et seront disponibles exclusivement sur l'App Store. Third-party applications for iPhone and iPod touch must be approved by Apple and available exclusively on the App Store. SDK Apple iPhone - Outils évolués Apple iPhone SDK - Advanced Tools Le SDK iPhone offre un moyen fiable, rapide et sécurisé de créer des applications novatrices pour iPhone et iPod touch. The iPhone SDK provides a reliable, fast and secure to create innovative applications for iPhone and iPod touch. Outre le riche ensemble d'API pour iPhone, le SDK iPhone fournit également des outils évolués pour la création d'applications natives pour iPhone et iPod touch, parmi lesquels : Xcode, pour l'édition du code source, la gestion de projet et le débogage graphique ; Interface Builder, avec la création d'interfaces par glisser-déposer et l'aperçu live ; Instruments, pour surveiller et optimiser en temps réel les performances des applications iPhone ; enfin, iPhone Simulator, pour exécuter et déboguer les applications. In addition to the rich set of APIs for iPhone, iPhone SDK also provides advanced tools for creating native applications for iPhone and iPod touch, including: Xcode for source code editing, project management and graphical debugging; Interface Builder, with the creation of interfaces by dragging and live preview; Instruments to monitor and optimize real-time performance of iPhone applications, and finally, iPhone Simulator to run and debug applications. Programme pour développeurs Program Developer Durant le programme bêta du SDK iPhone, un nombre limité de développeurs seront acceptés dans le cadre du nouveau Programme pour développeurs iPhone d'Apple et auront la possibilité de transférer du code sur iPhone à des fins de tests. During the beta iPhone SDK, a limited number of developers will be accepted under the new program for iPhone developers and Apple will be able to transfer code on iPhone for testing purposes. Le Programme standard coûte 99 $ (USA) par an et met à la disposition de ses membres le SDK iPhone et les outils de développement ; l'accès au logiciel iPhone en pré-version ; un service d'assistance technique ; la capacité de transférer du code sur iPhone à des fins de tests ; enfin, la diffusion des applications par le biais du nouvel App Store. The Standard Program costs $ 99 (U.S.) per year and provides its members with the iPhone SDK and development tools, access to software in iPhone pre-release, a hotline, the ability to transfer code on iPhone for testing purposes and finally, broadcast applications through the new App Store. Le Programme d'entreprise coûte 299 $ (USA) par an. The Enterprise Program costs $ 299 (U.S.) per year. Logiciel 2.0 d’iPhone - fonctions Courrier IPhone 2.0 software - functions E Outre ces nouvelles fonctionnalités réseau et de sécurité pour Apple iPhone, la version bêta du logiciel 2.0 d’iPhone offre plusieurs fonctions Courrier inédites, comme la possibilité de visualiser des fichiers PowerPoint en pièces jointes (en plus des fichiers Word et Excel) et la capacité à supprimer et à déplacer en masse des e-mails. Besides these new network functionality and security for Apple iPhone, the beta version of iPhone 2.0 software provides several new Mail features such as the ability to view PowerPoint files as attachments (in addition to Word and Excel) and ability to delete and move in mass e-mails. Version bêta du logiciel 2.0 d’iPhone Beta version of iPhone software 2.0 Apple prévoit de livrer la version finale du logiciel 2.0 d’iPhone, avec le SDK iPhone et les nouvelles fonctionnalités d'entreprise, ainsi qu'une mise à jour gratuite pour tous les clients iPhone d'ici à la fin du mois de juin. Apple plans to deliver the final version of the iPhone 2.0 software with the iPhone SDK and new enterprise features, as well as a free update for all iPhone customers by the end of June. Les applications tierces créées pour iPhone fonctionneront également sur iPod touch. Third-party applications created for iPhone also works on iPod touch. Les utilisateurs iPod touch devront néanmoins acquérir une mise à jour logicielle pour exécuter ces applications. IPod touch users will have to acquire a software update to run these applications. La version bêta gratuite du SDK iPhone est disponible immédiatement dans le monde entier et peut être téléchargée à l'adresse developer.apple.com/iphone/program. The free beta iPhone SDK is available immediately worldwide and can be downloaded at developer.apple.com / iphone / program. Le Programme pour développeurs iPhone sera d'abord disponible aux Etats-Unis et s'étendra aux autres pays dans les mois à venir. The iPhone Developer Program will initially be available in the United States and will expand to other countries in the coming months. Apple accepte dès aujourd'hui les demandes des entreprises souhaitant se joindre au Programme bêta privé d'entreprise pour Apple iPhone. Apple now accepts applications from companies wishing to join the private beta program business for Apple iPhone.

The leading company in mobile phone innovation and design, HTC Corporation (High Tech Computer Corporation) has announced an updated version of its popular HTC Touch Cruise smartphone - (same name) new HTC Touch Cruise, which boasts a new, more compact and sophisticated design, featuring a bundle of new capabilities, and revolutionary HTC Footprints geo-tagging application that allows users to permanently chronicle their special precious moments by capturing a digital postcard on their smartphone.

According to HTC, “Once captured, Footprints provides the ability to take notes and an audio clip of that favourite restaurant or special place while identifying its specific geographical location. In addition to identifying each postcard with its specific GPS co-ordinates, Footprints also auto-names each postcard with its general location or area.”

Key Specifications Of New HTC Touch Cruise:

• 528 MHz Qualcomm MSM7225 chipset
• 512 MB flash ROM, 256 MB RAM
• 2.8-inch TFT-LCD touch-sensitive screen with QVGA resolution
• 3.2 megapixel camera with geotagging and fixed focus
• HTC TouchFLO, 4-Way navigation wheel with Enter and HTC Footprints buttons
• GPS/A-GPS
• Included car cradle transforms your smartphone into a simple to use turn-by-turn navigator
• Bluetooth 2.0 with Enhanced Data Rate and A2DP for stereo wireless headsets
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
• WCDMA/HSPA: 900/2100MHz. HSDPA 7.2 Mbps connectivity
• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional OS
• microSD memory expansion slot
• HTC ExtUSB interface
• Talk time (GSM): up to 400 minutes ; Standby time (GSM): up to 2 weeks

“Just as we have seen GPS technology transform how people navigate to new places, we are now seeing location-based applications like HTC Footprints changing how we interact and carry our memories,” said Peter Chou, President and CEO, HTC Corporation.

The new HTC Touch Cruise personal navigation handset which measures 102 x 53.5 x 14.5mm and weights just 103 grams is expected to be available in spring 2009.

The world’s leader in mobile communication, Sony Ericsson recently has announced a special Butterfly edition T303 handset for the upcoming Valentine’s Day. T303 Butterfly offers a pink chrome casing with butterfly and flower design on the rear, a reflective mirror glass display as well as a matching charm and carrier pouch.

t303

The specification of T303 Butterfly is same as the original T303 with 14.7 mm thickness, weight 93 grams, 1.8 inch TFT screen with 56K colors and battery life up to 9 hours talk-time as well as 400 hours of standby time.

Beside that, it also built in with other features includes GPRS, Bluetooth 2.0 USB, Java MIDP 2.0, 1.3 mega pixel camera, MP3 player, FM radio with RDS, TrackID along with games plus downloadable games, calculator, calendar, stopwatch, tasks, voice memo, SMS, T9, MMS and built in hands-free.

The T303 Butterfly is design exclusively for Orange shop users and will be available at Orange shop starting at the end of January for the price of $39.99.

The Korean electronic giant, Samsung has announced its latest entry level phone which known as Samsung S3500. Samsung S3500 is a slider phone with measurement of 99.9 x 48.0 x 13.9mm and features with QVGA display screen that comprises of 262 K colors. Beside that, it also integrated with a 2 mega pixel camera which able to allow users to capture images and stores the pictures into their phone.

samsung-s3500

The Samsung S3500 also features with FM radio and music player. Additionally, it also allows users to shares their music or images through Bluetooth or USB ports. Other features of the phone like able to access emails, WAP browser, organizer, 35MB of internal memory and external memory card slot. Currently, the availability and the price not yet release.

Apple has released firmware software upgrade version 2.2 for iPhone, iPhone 3G and iPod Touch with a bunch of new features, enhancements and bug fixes. iPhone and iPod Touch owners can connect and dock the device with iTunes installed computer to upgrade automatically, or download the .ipsw firmware file for manual updating.

1. iPhone 3G firmware software v2.2: iPhone1,2_2.2_5G77_Restore.ipsw
2. iPhone (2G) firmware software 2.2: iPhone1,1_2.2_5G77_Restore.ipsw
3. iPod Touch 2nd Generation OS 2.2: iPod2,1_2.2_5G77a_Restore.ipsw
4. iPod Touch 1st Generation OS 2.2: iPod1,1_2.2_5G77_Restore.ipsw (protected depends on versions)

To update to firmware OS 2.2, just do the following:

1. Connect and dock iPhone or iPod to computer, and launch iTunes.
2. Click Update, and then choose the firmware v2.2 IPSW file downloaded.

   Tip: If you want to restore, update to another firmware or downgrade to earlier version, just press Shirt while click Restore to get the Restore option.

3. Let iTunes upgrade the device.

Use QuickPwn or PwnageTool to jailbreak iPhone and iPod Touch, or Yellowsn0w to unlock iPhone and iPhone 3G after upgrading to version 2.2.