HTC > HTC Touch Pro discussion

We've got our hands on a brand new HTC Touch Pro! This is the place to talk about it. Ask us questions and we'll answer as many as possible via the blog posts, videos and these forums.

How is the interface? Is it fast or slow? I remember reading that the Diamond was sluggish before the rom update? I'm anxiously awaiting for Sprint to get this so I too can have one of my very own!!!

can you show some use of the G sensor? and if it works when the keyboard is out? Does the ringer silence when you flip it on its screen duiring a call? thank you very much

How is the audio quality on the phone? Is it capable of playing movies using Divx player or any other applications? How's the quality of the audio, and movie on the screen?

The interface is fast, yet the Touch FLO is still not quite as quick as it could be...tad unresponsive at times. Feels as though the amount of programs running at the same time really slows it down. We'll cover it in the next video! The G-sensor/accelerometer stuff is all pretty impressive, complete with the call killing by flipping the phone over...and we cover that in the forthcoming video too! As for the video playback, we're having a look, and it's no slouch in that department! We'll show you a video for that tomorrow... Hands on up in a bit!

Great review so far!! I didn't know about that camera zoom thing! Could you guys demonstrate the tv-out? and could you take some pics and vids and upload them to your site? oh, does the screen tilt? if not is it comfortable at that angle? Great job guys ;)

Thanks for the video reviews. Can you tell us if the keyboard has ullumination so you can type in dark settings?

cruiserandmax the keyboard does ligt up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsURf_BABeg its half way through it and youre able to see it. cant wait till verizon gets this

I've been looking at the HTC Touch Diamond and the Pro. And I was just wondering which one is better in your opinion. Because all the facts say that Pro is better. But price wise the Diamond is more expensive. I was leaning toward the Pro to begin with but I just got curious. Thanks for the reviews they were awesome.

I have been watching this phone very very closely and can not wait until it is released in Oceania. In regards to the weather updating/internet connection, is there an option for it to only access with wi-fi and not 3G network? The reason I ask is because if it was constantly updating using my current 3G provider I would soon be bankrupt. Setting it to only recognize wi-fi would be a major benefit. Also...will there be sites where we can update the firmware/software? I look forward to hearing your opinion on this. Keep up the fantastic videos, I have been starved for them!

@ oakman I'm pretty sure you can set the device to only update weather and such when connected to wifi. And for updating ROM/Firmware you always have http://www.xda-developers.com/

hi, can you show us the tv-out function? i know that u need the tv-out cable which is not included in the box but please try to get it expansys has it for example. And whats highest capicity of micros sd cards to use in the touch pro is the 16gb launched or not yet?

Thanks for the reviews i'm still on the edge on buying this phone. I wanted to know if you guys can do a side by side comparison of the Kaiser. It would be nice to see the response times of the switching to landscape and text messaging. I'm not sure about others but my kaiser keyboard response time is fairly slow. I can type about 3 words before they start showing up on the screen and i've flashed with numerous roms. I would assume u would have to switch back the basic windows mobile screen to do a fair comparison. I dunno if anyone agrees :)

If you turn the Touch Pro so it's in landscape WITHOUT The keyboard out, will it change to landscape view, like the iPhone? Does the "circle" gesture zoom-in in Opera like it does when viewing photos?

It's great to see so many questions! We're going to be posting some more videos (along with some still pictures) next week - and we'll endeavour to answer as many questions as possible. We're also going to see what we can do about improving the video quality. Keep the questions coming...

How does this device work with the Skyfire browser? Could you post a Youtube video of you using it with Skyfire? You can get Skyfire for free on it at http://www.skyfire.com/sign-up/beta2/step2 with the beta code of bGenius and you will recieve your SMS download link. If you don't immediately recieve your SMS download link, just sign up again with the exact same information (and the code) and it should work. I would really like to see how this works with the Raphael. Please reply. Thanks for your time.

Can you point out what keyboard shortcuts exist? It looks like the left/right softkeys are gone. What about OK/start menu buttons? Also, any issues with GPS & bluetooth?

In the following video of the HTC Diamond, a feature is shown of a magnet that can hold the stylus onto the side of the device. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY-cu7BvFZw&feature=related You can see this feature at 3:41. Does the touch pro have this feature? I also have another question: I've heard that TomTom7 comes with the HTC Touch Pro. How has it worked for you guys? Is it nice software? Thanks for the answers and awesome videos. :-)

I would love to see the GPS feature enabled/demonstrated. Another thing that would be good to see is something simple like sending and receiving a text message. When you receive a text message and view it with the Touch Flo interface then slide out the keyboard to reply does this alter anything dramatically? Do you need to go out of the touch flo message screen and then back into it by choosing messages in the plain looking qwerty interface? Also, one more thing.....how easy is it to listen to MP3's and also use other functions on the phone? How do you rate this phone as an MP3 player?

I too would like to know if you could view things in lanscape on the htc pro, without the keyboard out, like the iphone.

I'm dying to see the next video. Any idea when the next one will be finished?

kudos for the excellent review i too am thinking about getting this phone but theres a few things id like to know 1. is there an option of using an onscreen keyboard?? like how the iPhone and Touch diamond use the touchscreen keyboard. it would be great if the Touch Pro had both. 2. How is the call quality and reception of this phone?? 3. Is the GPS on this phone any good?? one last question.. is there a port for headphones?? the nokia n95 8gb had a 3.5 mm headphone port, does the touch pro have one too??

What program would you use to take advantage of the video calling feature? My wife and I both plan on getting this phone and she will probably be away on business and has a company laptop, but can't install software like a web cam. This would be perfect so that she doesn't have to also bring our personal laptop just to have a video call.

I can reply on the headphone port. It does not have a 3.5mm headphone port. Everything interfaces with the touch through the mini usb port. I'm not sure if you can get a mini usb to 3.5mm adapter. I know i bought one and tried to use it on my Htc Kaiser and it didn't work.

Great review so far, i do have some questions ,don't need to answer all of them ,just want to now... questions: 1. It uses a card slot, how big can the card be? (8Gb, 16Gb..more?) 2. Is it more complex than an iphone , organizing and so? 3. Running multiple apps ,how much does it affect media playing and/or during a call? 4. Could you use a more advance camera ,using macro so we can see the video reviews in more detail? (just a suggestion!) 5. Do you know anything about the new ROM ? the 1.93 version?,it's been said it's a lot faster, 6. Can you update the ROM without loosing the warranty ? 7. Does it have a backup ROM or such ,if you were to crash the phone? 8. Can it run old wm5 or wm6 apps? 9. Is the TouchFlo customizable ,in detail? 10. Is it worth the money ? That's all for now ,but coming soon with more questions, thanks for the time ... GL

I will answer as much questions as I can: 1. It uses a card slot, how big can the card be? (8Gb, 16Gb..more?)-- : In the hardware-hands on video by Unwired, it says that it supports micro sd cards as big as 32 gb. The only way to get a 32 GB microsd card is by buying a certain Samsung Mp3 player, which comes with it. 2. Is it more complex than an iphone , organizing and so?:-- By far. All PPC devices are very complex. 3. Running multiple apps ,how much does it affect media playing and/or during a call?:-- The task manager tells you how much more "room" is available to run multiple applications. 4. Could you use a more advance camera ,using macro so we can see the video reviews in more detail? (just a suggestion!):--Maybe :D 5. Do you know anything about the new ROM ? the 1.93 version?,it's been said it's a lot faster.:-- The new ROM helped it run faster, and made the whole device much more stable. Before this ROM was releaced, there were many complaints about the slow interface. 6. Can you update the ROM without loosing the warranty ?:-- As with all PPC devices, ROM updating does not void the warranty. However, the ROM has to be the ROM that HTC made. 7. Does it have a backup ROM or such ,if you were to crash the phone?:-- If the phone crashes, you can hard reset it. The ROM that was on the device when the hard reset was performed is the one that will come up. 8. Can it run old wm5 or wm6 apps?:-- It depends on which app that is. But for the most part, it will. I'm not completely sure about this though. 9. Is the TouchFlo customizable ,in detail?:-- I would like for the Omino people to answer this aslo, because I don't know. 10. Is it worth the money ?:-- Let's hope so.

3. Running multiple apps ,how much does it affect media playing and/or during a call?:-- The task manager tells you how much more "room" is available to run multiple applications. To respond to this answer. I don't believe this is his question. I believe he means the decoding of certain media. I don't think running the app is going to be difficult but he means will there be enough ram and processing power to decode these files without glitching frame skipping behavior. I would like to know this to be honest. I don't think it will be too much of a problem since the Kaiser does this pretty well. Not perfectly but pretty well.

ThanX for the answers ,wasn't expecting a response so quickly , i suppose i will buy one eventually, nice job here ... keep up!

Argh! More videos!

Cool your jets Oakman...they're coming!

Can't wait, great stuff so far. You have already sold me on this phone.

Hey great review... after the first few i was like WOW I AM GETTING THIS FOR SURE.. but the cons review kinda made me second think.. i am very easly annoyed with poor programming and features... also how is the ring volume and earpiece volume? I am one that needs it at max volume and the iphone, which i have right now fails in both categories. Thanks

I've already been sold on this phone. I just bought it and should be receiving it tomorrow. I'm excited!!

Where are you bxsteez? I am in New Zealand and still waiting for the Oceania/Asia Pacific region to release. Word is it might be September. Too long to wait if you ask me. I am pleased you have managed to obtain one. Well done.

We're looking forward to our live Touch Pro webcast next week. Keep the questions coming - and we'll try to answer them in the webcast. http://blog.omio.com/general-news/live-interactive-webcast-with-the-htc-touch-pro/

Have you guys tried tweaking the device? these tweaks are for the diamond, but they should work Touch Pro too. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=398265

Thanks for your reviews. Really insightful. I have a question, between the Samsung omnia and the HTC touch Pro. Which one is better? In terms of battery life and applications, especially for an IT professional. Your advice will guide me in my decision. Thanks.

I would be really interested to know about abba91's tips also. Hey, great Q&A video guys. Appreciate you answering everything I queried.

Great reviews so far, they've been very helpful. I am really thinking of buying this phone though I am still waiting to see xperia x1 and the android phones that should come out soon. Still I have some questions that I would like you to answer if possible. a) What happens when you are listening to a song and there is an incoming call? Does the song fade out and lets you accept the call and then resumes when the call is ended like the iphone or it just stops? b) Can you disable TouchFlo 3D altogether and return to the normal windows mobile interface? c) How good is the video playback on the phone? Can you play a divx movie smoothly like on a pc or does it skip frames and staff? I used to own an htc touch (P3450) and it was choppy playback all the way using coreplayer. Of course the htc pro has a better cpu and much more ram that should handle playback better. d) I've read about people having problems getting Skype to work on the htc touch pro and the diamond. Others report that is working but the other person on the line hears an echo all the time. Can you confirm this? Thanks in advance for your replies. I can't wait for the live webcast next week.

Yes, im torn between the HTC Touch Pro and the Blackberry Bold. It seems that the Blackberry would be more reliable, but i cant get past wanting a touch screen. What would you recomend?

The live webcast is happening today at 4.30pm UK... Point your browsers at: http://blog.omio.com/site-news/htc-touch-pro-live-webcast-today-at-430pm-uk/

One important issue here. Does the camera lags as much as HTC Diamond's? because its kinda hard to get a proper focused picture with HTC Diamond's camera, it have lag issues.

how can i see the rerun of the webcast???

Can you guys consider making a seperate movie where you use the tweaks and compare it to the original phone? cuz i think alot of people are going to tweak the device, so it might be fun to see how it does.

Unfortunately, the webcast was a live one-time deal... Our technical glitches meant that we were unable to record it. Don't worry though, this will hopefully be the first of many as it was a big success! Any ideas for forthcoming handsets to do? Just start up another thread and let us know!

hey omio! thanks for the helpful videos. keep em up! in your next video could you answer this question: since almost the whole intrerface of this phone uses drag navigating, how could I highlight and copy the text from an email? thanks again!

The touch pro supports copy-and-paste. You just drag across the text you want to select, then hold down on the screen until the menu appears, and select 'copy'.

Can the HTC Touch Pro do 2 way phone call recording? Most HTC devices can only record one side of the conversation except maybe when they are on speaker phone.

Unfortunately, it seems that the Touch Pro is only capable of recording whilst the other person is on speakerphone, so it continues the trend in that respect, however there are third party apps which allow you to do this quite easily.

The Vito AudioNotes program for Windows Mobile allows for easy recordings, but it sounds like it only sets your phone to auto-speaker phone and records that way. 

LivePVR seems another good bet, allowing for automatic recording of all calls, or specific individual occasions.

However, these are two apps for all mobile phones running Windows Mobile, so you don't necessarily need a Touch Pro to get 'em...

Thanx for the video reviews. I have the XDA Ignito and thought the addition of a keyboard, extra ram and an external memory slot would be worth getting but I will give it a miss as it seems the keyboard causes more problems than it solves.

I have a TyTN II  and use Email a lot . I really like using the scroll wheel in portrait mode, as  you can whizz up and down your Inbox then push in the wheels to read the mail.  Can those 2 buttons  on the left be used for Email navigation ?  How easy is that to use ?

The absence of a scroll-wheel on the Touch Pro means that you have to find other ways to scroll. Fortunately though, you can use your thumb to 'push' long pages up-and-down the screen (like on a iPhone). This works on the Opera Browser, Pocket Outlook and the built-in RSS reader.

The two buttons on the left are for the volume control. However, you can remap their function using a third-party utility called AE Button

http://ae.inc.ru/aebplus.php

I often wonder why it does not have MMS support? But in comparison to the Diamond which is more responsive?

MMS works fine on my HTC Touch Pro. In fact it is excellnt. Maybe you are confusing it with the iPhone.