Introduction
Affordable isn't the most common word in the HTC vocabulary but a company whose sole line of business is smartphones is not quite expected to speak the language of the masses. That said, we really need to define affordable first. It's what HTC Touch2 tries hard to be but… let's face it… doesn't get too close to. After all, there's little a PocketPC full of high-tech goodies can do about it.But there's much a company needs to do to keep pace with an evolving market. HTC are busy updating their portfolio and the Touch2 is yet another in a growing line of sequels. Alright, it may be a small step for PocketPCs but a solid move for HTC in the midrange.
The launch of TouchFLO is a landmark but the original Touch will also be remembered perhaps as the first HTC device to actually have some exterior design and compactness. No offence, but prior to that PocketPC's were just big enough to get away with the lack of style.
Anyway, the Touch Viva and the Touch 3G followed soon after - near clones that tried to give PocketPC's mass appeal.
HTC Touch2 official photos
So, that means the HTC Touch2 will be trying to walk in three pairs of shoes and give the company some flexibility in the midrange. The newbie is smart, fast (in fact, surprisingly fast), compact, and friendly. The sharp contemporary looks are a definite asset but there's more than enough stuff under the hood to motivate upgraders too.
Key features
- 2.8" 65K-color QVGA display
- Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional OS with TouchFLO
- Qualcomm MSM7225 528MHz CPU and 256MB RAM
- Quad-band GSM support
- 3G with HSDPA 7.2Mbps
- Wi-Fi connectivity
- Built-in GPS receiver with A-GPS support
- Stereo FM radio with RDS
- 3 MP fixed focus camera
- microSD card slot
- Touch-sensitive zoom bar
- Standard miniUSB port and Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP
- Standard 3.5mm audio jack
- Great audio quality
- MS Office Mobile document editor
- Opera 9.5 web browser
- YouTube client, Facebook integration
- Excellent video playback performance
Main disadvantages
- Low-end display resolution
- Camera lacks auto focus, flash, geotagging or a dedicated camera key
- No accelerometer sensor
- Poor screen sunlight legibility
- Preloaded CoPilot Live navigation software is a trial version
- No secondary video-call camera
- No handwriting recognition
HTC Touch2 live shots
At the end of the day though, the Touch2 seems to have enough to make up for this misfortune. And if size looks like an invitation to lower your expectations don't be too keen to take it. The Touch2 - among other things - is the first HTC phone to run Windows Mobile 6.5.
Keeping it slim and compact was a priority for the HTC Touch2
Even if sticking to the size limit was vital, HTC were quite generous with the equipment of the Touch2. From processing power to connectivity - the Touch2 is a solid and extensive upgrade. The smartphone runs the latest WinMo, packs Wi-Fi, HSDPA and an inbuilt GPS receiver. The fixed focus camera is not much of a perk but the standard 3.5mm audio jack will sure come in handy.
There is quite a lot to test so let's open the box and meet the handset in person. We're back after the jump with unboxing, design and construction. It's Touch2 time.
OK retail package, could've been better
The moderately-sized retail box is not exactly brimming with content but it has the basics. The wall charger, a software CD and a miniUSB cable to use with the charger or connect to a computer. In the box you'll also find a one-piece headset which isn't your only option though since the Touch2 is kind enough to offer a 3.5 mm jack.
The Touch2 unboxed
The only letdown here is the lack of a memory card in the package. HTC didn't bother enclose even a 1GB microSD so all you get for starters is what's left free of the 512MB system memory.
HTC Touch2 360-degree spin
The friendly size was one of the key assets of the original HTC Touch and the Touch2 follows suit, staying almost as compact as its predecessor. The biggest difference is in height. At 104mm, the Touch2 is visibly taller but it's thinner and narrower.Anyway, it's a pocketable yet powerful handset, which weighs only 110g. And we shouldn't forget the added zoom bar and the couple of new buttons which are a boost to comfort and usability.
Design and construction
In terms of design, the Touch2 is really hard to call a sequel. So much has changed since the original Touch. The D-pad has been removed, new buttons have been added but the most noticeable difference is the touch-sensitive zoom bar, which debuted in another pair of sequels: the higher-ranking Diamond2 and Touch Pro2. The zoom bar can be used on images, web pages, messages, and doubles as a music control as well.
The new Touch looks much sharper than its predecessor
The new Touch2 will be available in three color versions - silver, black and brown. The variety of color combos may as well suggest HTC are preparing for a solid demand for this entry level in PocketPC.terms device.
The front panel does look like it could've accommodated a larger screen but the zoom bar and handy hardware buttons didn't leave much room for growth. Again, a 2.8" QVGA resistive touchscreen made sense on the original Touch but is quite a letdown some two years later.
The display could've been bigger
The poor sunlight legibility doesn't make things any better. Customary for a PocketPC, the Touch2 hardly is the best device to work with in the bright sun.
Above the display we find the earpiece and the LED status indicator. The phone has no secondary camera for video calls but we don't think it will be badly missed.
The Touch2 has a status light and earpiece atop of the display
The five keys and the touch-sensitive zoom bar below the screen do make for comfortable handling. Just like on the Touch Diamond2 and the Touch Pro2, the hardware controls and the zoom bar make up quite well for the missing D-pad.
The keys are well defined and solid to press, and this time there's even a dedicated Home key. On the Diamond2 and Touch Pro2, the end button served as a Home key too. The End key on the Touch2 is in charge of screen lock.
Unlocking on the other hand takes after the moves of a well-known handset by a company called Apple. Sliding the on-screen padlock icon does it here, while a tap displays a dropdown with missed events or incoming messages. Well done - iPhone owners would have to jailbreak their device to get the secondary functionality on the lockscreen.
The five keys and the touch-sensitive zoom bar are nice to use • the Touch2 lockscreen
The back key is a handy control that takes you a screen back wherever you are in the Touch2 interface. Simple though it might sound it's another boost to user-friendliness.
The zoom bar can be used on images, web pages, messages, and doubles as a music control. We are delighted with its response when it comes to the actual zooming in and out, which works like a charm in the image gallery.
The right side of the handset is completely bare. It would've been nice to find a camera key there. Not essential perhaps given the fixed-focus camera, but wouldn't have hurt.
The Touch2 has no shutter key
On the left side of the Touch2 we find the volume rocker, which is very prominent and nice to press. Next to it is the microSD card slot and that's where we couldn't quite get the point. The thing is you can't lift the cap unless the battery cover is off.
Still it's a hot-swappable slot, so you don't have to remove the battery or restart the device, but it couldn't have been too hard to make it easier to access. Anyway, the phone worked fine with a reasonably full 16GB microSD card. It's only that you have to buy a card by yourself as HTC didn't enclose one in the retail package in an attempt to keep the price of the thing down.
Not the most comfortable card slot solution
Design and construction (continued)
At the top of the Touch2 there is a standard 3.5mm audio jack. Now we're talking.
The 3.5mm audio jack broadens the connectivity options on the Touch2
The bottom features the miniUSB port for connecting the data cable and the charger. The other thing to note here is the stylus compartment, which isn't magnetic like on the HTC Touch Diamond or not even active as on the HTC Touch Diamond2. We really miss the functionality of launching the relevant applications as you pull out the stylus - that was quite neat.
The miniUSB port at the bottom • the stylus compartment isn't active
The backside of the Touch2 features the 3-megapixel fixed focus camera lens and the loudspeaker grill. Don't look for a flash, there isn't any.
The camera lacks autofocus and flash
Opening the battery cover reveals the 1000 mAh Li-ion battery that powers the HTC Touch2. The original Touch had a 1100 mAh unit but the Touch2 is obviously running on a much more power optimized platform and can claim up to 500 hours of stand-by against the 200 hours of the predecessor. The talk time of the Touch2 is quoted at 7.5 hours.
A 1000 mAh Li-Ion battery may as well be enough, given the small and low-res screen
The build quality of the HTC Touch2 is quite impressive. During the week we spent with the device we had no reason to doubt its construction and long-term durability. When it comes to comfort - the Touch2 handles very well and has a commendably solid feel in hand - especially for such a small handset. In essence, the Touch2 is a compact and friendly phone and that's a good premise for a wanna-be-popular smartphone.
Compromises were obviously inevitable though to keep within size and price limits. Our main concern is screen size, a three-incher would've been more like it. Some improvements in the camera department would have certainly made a difference - such as adding auto focus. On a different note, the 3.5 mm jack and zoom bar are more than welcome.
The HTC Touch2 is compact and friendly
More TouchFLO, less 3D
The TouchFLO goes without saying on the HTC Touch2 but the attractive and user-friendly plug-in has lost some of its 3D embellishments. Despite the slight differences though, the TouchFLO does well to make WinMo more responsive to touch.The absence of a capacitive touchscreen on the HTC Touch2 is barely noticeable. The TouchFLO is highly touch-optimized and responds admirably. Of course, when you eventually hit the underlying Windows Mobile, you'll meet some of the not so thumbable parts of the interface.
The TouchFLO Home screen, as usual, offers a choice of full-screen tabs, decked out with some impressive graphics. You can no longer skip through the tabs with a single finger sweep across the screen - instead you have to side scroll the tab thumbnails at the bottom of the screen until you find the one you need.
The available tabs include the home screen itself (with a large clock), favorite contacts, text messages, email, Internet, photos and video, music, weather, map search, settings, and programs.
Now, let's have a closer look at those tabs. A nice thing is that each tab comes with its own set of context keys, but the downside is that those are not customizable to suit your needs. With that TouchFLO homescreen at hand, you'd rarely have to resort to the standard Windows menu.
Other than showing the clock, the Home tab gives you access to the HTC Call log, the calendar, world clock and alarms. The context keys are assigned to the dialpad and the camera.
The Home tab
The second TouchFLO tab is called People and that's where you can set favorite contacts with an assigned image or, in the absence of that, a generic one provided by the software.
The People tab
The Messages tab shows your latest SMS/MMS, and a single finger sweep will take you to your next message. A small shortcut in the top right corner will automatically start a new SMS/MMS in the default Windows message editor.
The Messages tab
The Email tab shows your emails and, again, you can finger-flip through them one by one.
The email tab looks nice
The Internet tab launches the Opera 9.5 web browser or the slick preinstalled YouTube video client. You can also scroll your bookmarks and launch a webpage directly from there.
Opera mini is the default browser in the Internet tab and that's non-negotiable. Now, that's limiting - even if we like the Opera very much. But the bigger problem of the Internet tab is the Search bar, which we saw in the Touch Pro2, has gone missing.
The Internet tab
TouchFLO (continued)
Now that the Calendar is readily available on the Home tab, we move on to Photos and Video. This is the entrance to the gallery of images and videos and you also get shortcuts to the still camera and camcorder.
The Photos and Video tab
The Music tab has barely changed. It displays albums with their covers and they are smoothly thumbable. By the way, the Images and Music is where the lack of 3D in TouchFLO is most obvious. Album art and thumbs are flat on the screen and don't get anywhere near the spatial view of other TouchFLO handsets.
The Music tab with album art
The Weather tab continues to amaze with its beautiful graphics. You can check the weather in up to 7 locations and you can flip through them with a finger sweep. You can also get a 5-day forecast for these locations via the first context key.
The Weather tab is quite elaborate
There is also a Map Search tab which does what it says and is quite convenient. It can be used as a shortcut to the Google Maps (which it uses).
TheMap Search tab
The next tab is Settings and it lets you control various system options and replaces the old and confusing Windows Mobile Settings page. You can control the syncing and location settings, personalize phone profiles, change wallpaper, enter the communication settings menu, and setup an email account. As for the new Windows Mobile Settings page, it is perhaps better than before but you still get the familiar white screens with text.
The Settings tab • the standard WinMo options
The Settings tab allows you to set the ringing profile, volume level and ringtone all from one central place, which is really handy. Even pressing the volume rocker brings up a fancy custom-made fullscreen slider instead of the usual WinMo mini-sliders.
You also have access to the HTC custom Communications manager, which handles all on-board transceivers.
The Comm manager • the user-friendly sound settings
The last tab on the homescreen is Programs. There are shortcuts to favorite apps, but you can also access all the programs that are available using the left "soft key".
The Programs tab
HTC have replaced the System status screen, too. When you touch the icons on the top of the Home screen, the notifications area will appear where you can check missed events, operator messages, etc. This idea is most probably borrowed from the Android notifications, which do the same.
The Communications manager for quick toggling of connectivity options is also accessible by touching those icons.
Notification screen
Windows Mobile 6.5
Pressing the Start button on the Touch2 opens something similar to the menus found in non-smartphones. In the new main menu you've got all the installed programs plus shortcuts to the settings menu.And of course, as of Windows Mobile 6.5 the Main menu comes in a honeycomb pattern, which is supposed to make touch control even more comfortable.
The perfectly flat structure of the Main menu can surely get a bit clumsy in time due to the huge number of icons piling up, but still we'd prefer that over the confusing experience that so many Widows Mobile new adopters have had in the past.
Icons within the main menu are easy to rearrange: a press and hold is enough to move the frequently used icons to the top.
The customizable Start menu
Without doubt, Windows Mobile 6.5 is the user-friendliest WinMo ever made. Unfortunately the improvements over its predecessor 6.1 aren't big enough to make it able to compete with the other contemporary platforms in terms of usability. Of course there is some touch optimization but the truth is a complete overhaul is needed rather than a facelift.
6.5 has brought little changes to the deeper levels of the WinMo interface
We recently published a dedicated article on the new Windows Mobile 6.5. Feel free to take a closer look and see how far WinMo has gone.
The contact manager is a winner
Contact management is usually considered one of the strongest points of Windows Mobile. You have an unlimited contact list, unlimited info fields for each contact and brilliant synchronization options.Since the Diamond2, HTC have added a new interface which uses a small thumb icon for a person's picture, set against a gray background with nice font. You can pick a letter of the alphabet by using the letter column placed on the right.
Searching by gradual typing is also available.
Phonebook with thumb scrolling • searching by typing or via the alphabetical list
The standard editing is OK, but unfortunately the advanced editing of a contact throws you back into the old WinMo depths. But hey, you still have a plethora of available info fields - and if by any rare chance those are not enough, you can always rename some of the existing ones and use them instead.
Editing a contact
Viewing a contact is a whole new experience. HTC have done a great job again redesigning the whole interface into something quite stylish and visually attractive.
The contact's information is divided into groups - names, communication and information. There are four different icons at the bottom - the current info, all SMS with this contact, all emails and call history.
Viewing contact details
Good telephony, no perks
The Touch2 has no troubles during calls but skimps on some of the nice little perks that we liked in the Touch Diamond2 for example. The lack of an accelerometer leaves the Touch2 without turn-to-mute. Another omission is the active stylus. On the Diamond2 and the Touch Pro2, pulling the stylus out automatically launches the Notes application and even puts down the call details (the caller's name and the time of call) on the note for you.Smart dialing is enabled though, so you hardly ever need to go to the Contacts list in order to dial a number.
Calling Dee Dee
The Call log on Windows Mobile devices offers practically unlimited entries. HTC have pimped the look of the regular WinMo call log and have added thumb scrolling.
Call Log
We also conducted our traditional speakerphone test and the Touch2 scored an Excellent mark, ranking pretty high on our list of tested devices. You can find more details about our test, as well as the results of all other tested handsets here.
| Speakerphone test | Voice, dB | Ringing | Overall score | |
| Apple iPhone 3G | 66.1 | 62.1 | 71.7 | |
| LG KC910 Renoir | 69.7 | 64.7 | 70.9 | Average |
| Samsung i900 Omnia | 70,2 | 64,8 | 75,2 | Good |
| HTC Touch Pro | 74,9 | 69,7 | 73,7 | Good |
| Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 | 75.5 | 66.6 | 82.7 | Very Good |
| HTC Touch Diamond2 | 74.6 | 70.0 | 78.1 | Very Good |
| HTC Touch2 | 75.7 | 75.7 | 82.7 | Excellent |
Messaging: all the usual skill but no landscape QWERTY
The HTC Touch2 supports SMS, MMS and email. SMS and MMS share an inbox and a message editor and thanks to TouchFLO, you can enjoy thumb scrolling in the inboxes and in longer messages.The Message tab offers a great interface for managing messages. With the nice interface and touch-optimization it's highly unlikely you will ever switch back to the standard Windows SMS inbox.
Threaded SMS is also available on the Touch2, just as it is across all Windows Mobile 6.1 and 6.5 devices.
Typing SMS on the Touch2
The email inbox is also available as a homescreen tab with eye-catching finish. The email editor will hold no surprises for experienced WinMo users.
Setting up your email is easy as it is on most of the latest mid or high range phones. You type your email and password and all the other fiddly options are configured automatically.
Browsing the email inbox • reading an email
Perhaps now is a good time to mention input options on the Touch2. Since the device lacks any form of keypad you get a set of home-grown thumbable virtual keyboards. You can choose between a full QWERTY keyboard, a half QWERTY one, and an alphanumeric keypad displayed in portrait mode on the touchscreen.
Handwriting is not supported this time. But the bigger issue is all the keyboards - including the full QWERTY - are only available in portrait mode. That and the small Touch2 screen don't exactly suggest comfortable typing. Unless stylus is your game.
The touch-optimized keyboards on the Touch2
The multimedia is well covered
The HTC Touch2 offers a small amount of storage - less than 512MB. This is barely sufficient and you'll definitely find yourself needing a microSD card. The WinMo file manager on the Touch2
The file manager is the standard Windows Mobile one and won't surprise anyone. Well, it's sure to not let you down either.
Image gallery: no accelerometer
The Touch2 offers a nice thumbnail browser straight from the Photos and Video tab on the Home screen. There's another thumbnail browser in the Album app available from the context menu on the Home screen or from the Programs menu.
Browsing images as thumbnails in the Albums application
The image is opened automatically in landscape mode and there is no option to rotate it to portrait view. Once an image is opened, you can zoom in or out using the touch-zoom bar or continue to the previous/next by sweeping a finger on the current one.
Opening an image • context menu
Scrolling to the next image is smooth and instantaneous with a single sweep of the finger. Zooming in and out is extra fast, as well. The Zoom bar comes quite handy for that purpose.
Music player
Just like the previous HTC devices, the Touch2 has a music player that makes good use of Album art. The music player is accessible straight from the TouchFLO home screen, however, the cool Apple-like Cover Flow animation known from the TouchFLO 3D is missing. The attractive music player runs directly from the home screen
In case you want to filter tracks by other criteria beside album, the Library shortcut will take you to the player backend where you can sort music by artist, genre, composer, purchased tracks or simply create custom playlists. The visual interface of the library is fluid and eerily reminiscent of iPhone's very own music player.
The music library
Equalizer presets are available only when you have the headset plugged in. They are not part of the music player itself but of a separate application called Audio Booster. That setup allows you to make use of the presets when you watch videos or even when you listen to music on an alternative player.
The Audio Booster app is a system wide setting
Luckily, there is a 3.5mm audio jack on the Touch2, so you won't have to stick with the supplied headphones. The headset looks decent enough, but listening to music is not among its strengths and is best left for making phone calls.
Decent audio quality
The audio quality of the HTC Touch2 is only a tad worse than that on the Diamond2 which we rated pretty high. The Touch2 has decent frequency response, which only deviates around the +-1db level at the very end of the audible range.The noise level, dynamic range and stereo crosstalk readings are pretty good, rivaling some dedicated music phones. The total harmonic and intermodulation distortion scores are also decent.
| Test | Frequency response | Noise level | Dynamic range | THD | IMD + Noise | Stereo crosstalk |
| HTC Touch2 | +0.17, -1.61 | -84.6 | 87.1 | 0.023 | 0.182 | -84.9 |
| HTC Touch Diamond2 | +0.12, -0.60 | -86.9 | 89.1 | 0.022 | 0.191 | -86.8 |
| +0.35, -1.12 | -85.3 | 87.9 | 0.027 | 0.267 | -86.3 | |
| HTC Touch Diamond | +0.42, -2.46 | -84.0 | 87.0 | 0.023 | 0.338 | -85.6 |
| HTC Touch HD | +0.20, -2.29 | -86.7 | 89.2 | 0.024 | 0.253 | -86.1 |
| Apple iPod Touch 2G | +0.04, -0.05 | -91.4 | 91.5 | 0.0027 | 0.012 | -90.0 |
| Samsung i900 Omnia | +0.37, -1.15 | -79.3 | 79.3 | 0.0039 | 0.027 | -78.7 |
| Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 | +0.11, -0.47 | -93.2 | 94.8 | 0.448 | 0.897 | -96.3 |
The HTC Touch2 frequency response graph compared to the Diamond2 and the iPod Touch 2G
You can learn more about the whole testing process here.
FM radio with RDS
The HTC Touch2 built-in FM radio naturally requires the headset to be plugged-in. As we already told you however, you would be better off using a third-party headset as the bundled ones are not well suited for listening to music.Nevertheless, the Touch2 FM radio has an excellent interface much like the rest of the multimedia players on board and offers memory for some 20 radio stations.
The FM Radio on the Touch2
RDS is available too - so overall, radio is handled pretty well on the Touch2.
Multiple video players
TheTouch2 comes with the standard well known - and sadly underperforming - Windows Media Player. It only manages mp4 and 3gp and for DivX/XviD support you will need a third party application.
The Windows Media player
The HTC Touch2 has an extra video player but it only supports the video/audio codecs available to Windows Mobile. To enjoy a wider range of video options on the Pro (DiVX or XViD for example), you will probably need to purchase a dedicated video player with additional codec support.
We resorted to the well-known Core player for that purpose and as usual it did a great job.
The HTC Touch2 is pretty good at full-screen video playback - we played an XviD-encoded DVD rip for PC playback and, luckily, there were no skipped frames. Probably because of the lower screen resolution, the Touch2 fared a bit better than the HTC Touch Diamond2 in terms of fluid playback.
The Core player
However, videos didn't look as well as on the WVGA displays of Diamond2 and the Touch Pro2.
3 megapixels worth of disappointment
The HTC Touch2 has a 3 megapixel fixed-focus camera producing photos with a maximum resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. The camera offers an intuitive user interface and shoots in landscape mode.It lacks a dedicated camera key so the only way to capture is the virtual shutter key on the screen.
The Touch2 camera lacks a flash whatsoever.
Interface and features
The Touch2 viewfinder is free of any overlaying controls by default but you can display those by touching the dedicated key under the "capture" button.In terms of camera features, the HTC Touch2 has the usual: self-timer, white balance presets, light sensitivity settings (up to ISO800), color effects and viewfinder gridline.
The HTC Touch2 camera options
There is no geotagging (strange, but not unseen), but this time the biggest letdown is the lack of autofocus. This means you have no macro mode and you can't focus either on a preferred object.
There is also a panorama mode that offers on-screen framing guidance. After all the individual shots for the panorama are taken, the Touch2 stitches the images together automatically.
When it comes to image quality, we have to admit that the Touch2 camera is generally not as good as we would have liked.
Noise suppression is too aggressive at times, eradicating all fine detail (notice that the building facades lack any kind of texture). Worse yet, noise is still an issue - especially in the shadows - and color rendering is inaccurate on many occasions.
There is some red tint in many of the images too (take a closer look at the clouds, for example).
Sample images of HTC Touch2 camera
Synthetic resolution
We also snapped our resolution chart with the HTC Touch2. You can check out what that test is all about here.
HTC Touch2 resolution chart photo • 100% crops
Video
The Touch2 video capturing capabilities are rather basic - CIF recording at 30fps. It takes a lot more to be impressed these days and given the reasonably powerful CPU on the Touch2, we probably expected more.
But what we didn't expect at all is the actual video quality - it's well below the decent line, the detail is way below normal, the colors are not accurate at some places and at times the picture is simply blurred.
The interface of the camcorder resembles the one of the still camera. You can only adjust the white balance, resolution, brightness and finally add some color effects.
The Touch2 camcorder interface
Here is a sample CIF video (0.5MB) produced by the Touch2.
Full pack connectivity
When it comes to connectivity the HTC Touch2 has it all - HSDPA 7.2Mbps, Wi-Fi, stereo Bluetooth + EDR.The Touch2 has quad-band GSM support and dual-band 3G - 900 and 2100 MHz are the compatible bands (that's Europe and the like). You can check out our Worldwide Network Bands distribution database.
USB 2.0 is supported as well through a miniUSB adaptor. Actually it's extUSB, but miniUSB cables fit just fine, and the port also serves audio input and output. When paired with a computer, the Touch2 prompts you to select among ActiveSync, Mass Storage or Modem modes.
In Mass Storage mode, the memory card is handled as a removable drive on the computer for faster file transfers. The only downside is in this mode you have no access to the memory card from the handset UI itself.
Web browsing is a single landscape-mode short of top-notch
The HTC Touch2 as usual comes with the Opera v9.5 browser. There's IE Mobile if you really want it, but the default browser launched from the homescreen is Opera. And with good reason, since it puts IE Mobile to shame.The Opera browser is extensively touch-optimized and draws inspiration from the iPhone's Safari. The browser has matured since its inclusion in the Touch HD and now suffers no rendering bugs.
GSMArena.com on HTC Touch2 (Opera 9.5)
The browser is heavily optimized towards vertical scrolling - it rolls complex pages without missing a beat. Panning sideways is a little slower - a checkerboard pattern appears for a moment before the content is drawn, but this lasts for no more than a second so it's no big issue.
Zooming in and out is also very fast. Here the Zoom bar can be used or you could opt for the regular double-tap zoom. Double tapping is more accurate as it zooms in to where you tapped, eliminating the need for much panning. On the other hand, the Zoom bar gives you finer control over the zoom level.
Landscape mode is not supported though and that's a major downside. The on-screen QWERTY keyboard is also portrait only.
And a few words about the Opera 9.5 interface. By default web pages are opened fullscreen free of any overlaying controls. A tap on the bottom right corner, however, brings up the available controls. When entering a URL there's a special '.com' button on the keypad, saving a few presses.
First, you've got the address bar at the very top. At the bottom of the screen there is a row of icons that can take you back, take you to bookmarks, bring up the tab switcher (you can open up to two tabs), the home page or the browser settings.
Opera 9.5 has a handy download manager which tracks the progress of the files you're downloading.
Keeping you organized is the PocketPC game
Windows Mobile offers several time-management features and all of them are easily syncable with Outlook.The Calendar offers daily, weekly, monthly and even yearly views. When viewing tasks, you can also see weather information for that particular day if available.
The Calendar daily and monthly views • viewing and editing a task
The To-Do list allows you to add tasks and assign them priority. The Note editor will also come in handy. The Voice recorder and Calculator need no explanation.
The Alarm clock has three alarm slots. Each Alarm can have its own repeat pattern. Unfortunately, due to the limited customization options in the default Alarms application, we suggest you check out some free third-party alternatives.
Document editor is also aboard
Among the other WM core applications is the Office Mobile package featuring support for viewing and editing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files. With the latest version of Office Mobile, you also have the OneNote application.
The Office Mobile allows viewing and editing Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote files
Thanks to Adobe Reader LE, there is also support for viewing PDF documents. We are pleased with the performance of the Touch2 in this area, as opening and handling PDF documents is usually rather slow on handhelds.
Opening a PDF document with Adobe Reader LE
See ya at the Marketplace
The HTC Touch2 comes with plenty of preloaded applications - the essentials are already installed, which means you can start using them straight away. There's the regular stuff such as an RSS Reader, a YouTube application and a Streaming Media manager. There is also Facebook intergration and MSN Money app.As we've come to expect from HTC, their nice Task Manager comes preinstalled. It blends in with the TouchFLO interface seamlessly and is convenient for switching between open apps or stopping them (not that there's any shortage of RAM, but still).
The Task Manager is available, as always in the top right corner of the homescreen. You can also access it through the settings menu, which comes in handy since an application's close button replaces the Task Switcher button. This does hamper its task-switching ability a little and we'd have liked to see a more elegant solution to the problem.
The Touch2 task manager is available on the TouchFLO homescreen
The Touch2 comes with two preloaded games - both classics - Bubble Breaker and Solitaire.
Bubble Breaker and Solitaire against boredom
The RSS Hub app is an RSS reader for staying up-to-date with the latest news and content at your favorite web places. The Streaming Media manager allows access to custom sources of streaming audio and video.
The RSS Hub reader • the Streaming Media manager
The YouTube application is here again. It offers a fluid, excellent looking interface - shinier than even the iPhone's.
The Touch2 YouTube client • video quality settings
Another application is the rather handy Search software, capable of searching throughout applications and the whole file system. You have the option to set filters so that the application searches only in the places you need.
The system-wide Search application
As for the Search widget, when you enter the keyword you are being redirected to the Bing website.
The Search widget in action
The MSN Money application keeps you posted on the latest in stocks.
The MSN Money app
Nowadays almost every device comes with some sort of Facebook integration. And the Touch2 is no exception.
Facebook is a click away
Now, that's what you get on the phone. But if you need more - the Touch2 will gladly take you to the Marketplace. The structure is reminiscent of what we've seen before (read Appstore) but still needs another touch or two to get user friendly enough. As for the number of the available apps, it is still limited but growing. Follow that link to find out more about the Marketplace.
The Marketplace needs some final touches
GPS does matter
The HTC Touch2 features a built-in GPS receiver - it's the Qualcomm gpsOne chipset, which comes along with the Qualcomm MSM7225 platform.The HTC Touch2 supports the A-GPS so you can download current satellite data over Wi-Fi or the 2G/3G network for a much faster GPS satellite lock.
The Touch2 A-GPS data download manager
The HTC Touch2 comes with a trial version of CoPilot Live 7 and the free Google Maps. The 2.8" touchscreen of the Touch2 is hardly enough to rival dedicated GPS units. Anyway, you have 14 days to test the CoPilot Live and decide if you can cope with a screen of this size.
CoPilot Live in action
Chipset sensitivity of the HTC Touch2 seems to be quite decent for a reasonably fast initial satellite lock.
Final words
The HTC Touch2 makes a small point but makes it right for the most part. To begin with, it looks sharp enough to get you interested but won't intimidate first-time PocketPC users. It has a solid enough spec sheet with a few nice bonuses like a 3.5 mm audio jack and the zoom bar.However, some of the things it lacks cannot go unnoticed. The essentials are well covered of course - and in PocketPC terms essentials imply quite an all-round set of connectivity and office features. But the Touch2 tries to be a budget balancer which makes compromises inevitable.
It becomes all too obvious in direct comparison with the most important rival - Samsung B7300 OmniaLITE. Between the two, the Touch2 looks by far the more credible PocketPC but that impression won't hold upon closer inspection. Screen size and resolution, autofocus camera and the accelerometer are the key points in favor of the Samsung - not to mention the multimedia capabilities (losing on 3.5mm audio connectivity but gaining back on DivX and XviD video support). And what is even more important, the OmniaLITE keeps the asking price lower than the Touch2.
Samsung B7300 OmniaLITE
And that's hardly the only source of pressure on the Touch2. The Symbian powered Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is a year old already but packs a good enough punch and costs way less. The recent HTC Tattoo and the Samsung I5700 Galaxy Spica go around at nearly the same price as the Touch2. They offer similar capabilities but have one major advantage (well, some would call it a disadvantage - a matter of taste): Android OS.
Nokia 5800 XpressMusic • Samsung I5700 Galaxy Spica • HTC Tattoo
It looks like the HTC Touch2 has more responsibility than its rank suggests. While the whole place is abuzz with Android, HTC are quite reasonably trying to update their midrange and respond to the competition, while in the same time reshaping the company and brand image from the ground up.
The Touch2 has another important role as the first HTC handset running the updated Windows Mobile 6.5. For a company that does PocketPC for a living, it's quite an important role. But then, WinMo 6.5 turned out not much of a big deal - so that's why the Touch2 is just another sequel - quite in line with the company's recent naming pattern. Maybe it will take Windows 7 for HTC to display the depth of their vocabulary.
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