COMPUTING ON THE GO
Touch Cruise has a host of new features, improved interface
PEE KAY
Last year's debut of the HTC Touch, HTC's first Windows Mobile Phone, was a hit. The unit, with its minimalist design and curvy case, is very striking. TouchFlo technology, first implemented on this original model, is also a fantastic differentiator from other Windows Mobile devices.
It's no doubt that the unit has set new standards in usability. Many models later, the HTC Touch Cruise still manages to maintain this unique selling point, while adding features such as a GPS.
My first impression of the HTC Touch Cruise, besides its nice black box, is its looks - not because it's pretty, but because artistically, it looks very much like its sibling, the Dopod P800W, circular wheel and all. Let's examine the device's physical attributes.
At the front, the handset is silvery and shiny. In addition to a tiny video camera the unit features only four buttons (including Talk and End buttons) and a circular Navigation Wheel.
Voice Commander and Volume Control buttons are located on the left side. A Micro SD slot, camera button and stylus are located on the right side (stylus at the bottom). The power switch is on the top, and USB port and reset button on the bottom.
The unit's matte black and rubbery backside is home for the speaker, 3MP camera, self portrait mirror and external GPS antenna connector.
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SPECS
Processor: Qualcomm MSM7200TM 400MHz
Memory: ROM: 256MB, RAM: 128MB DDR SDRAM
Operating system: Windows Mobile 6 Professional
Phone: GSM/GPRS/EDGE: Quad-band (850, 900, 1,800 and 1,900)
Display: 2.8in. transmissive TFT-LCD with backlight LEDs, touch-sensitive screen, 240 by 320 with 65,536 colours
Control: HTC TouchFlo four-way navigation wheel with enter button
Camera: 3.0MP colour CMOS camera with 8X digital zoom (second camera: VGA CMOS camera)
GPS: Accuracy within 15 metres, 95 per cent typical
Physical: 110.0 (L) by 58.0 (W) by 15.5mm (H), 130g (with battery)
Connections: HTC mini-USB, Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11 b/g)
Expansion slots: microSD (SD 2.0 compatible)
Battery: Rechargeable lithium-ion battery, 1,350mAh
Standby time: Up to 400 hours
Talk time: Up to seven hours
Media playback time: Up to eight hours (WMV), up to 12 hours (WMA)
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Although I'm not a person who pays much attention to appearance, I have to say that the look of the unit is quite plain. Minimalist and plain, unlike the original HTC Touch which is both minimalist and fashionable. But as they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Besides, the HTC Touch Cruise has features up its sleeves that can make you forget its homely face.
With dimensions of 110 by 58 by 15.5mm, the device is smaller than most PDAs I've tested recently. With a weight of just 130g, it's also one of the lightest (the original HTC Touch weighs 112g). You can drop this one into your shirt pocket unnoticed.
Turning it on is an experience that I would call "HTC neatness". First, the unit vibrates as soon as you press the power switch, a response that lets you know immediately that the device is on without the need to check by looking.
Once on, you will experience HTC's user interface, designed to make your interaction with the device much easier. Let's start with HTC's Home, an application planned to work on top of Windows Mobile's Today.
HTC's Home interface consists of four application tabs and modified top-row icons. This application lets you check incoming SMSs, phone calls, local weather, launch applications and set sound/vibration preferences.
One neat thing is that all these interfaces are laid out so spaciously you can always perform each task with one hand, using your thumb.
Single-handed usage optimisation is emphasized further by the modified top-row icons. Touching one of these pops up a larger window of the same icon - easy to choose with your thumb. HTC's customised on-screen Touch Keypad and Touch Keyboard, with its enlarged buttons, also makes data entry with your thumb easy and effortless. No more fumbling for the stylus. No more clumsy icon selection because of their tiny size. Cool.
The right-most top row icon is called Quick Menu, another cool invention that provides access to the Application Closing button, Task Manager and Memory Manager.
The coolest item in HTC's arsenal, however, is its TouchFlo technology, which is an interface consisting of a three-faced Touch Cube. This can be activated by swiping your thumb on the screen from bottom to top. (I can see no better way to smear your PDA's screen, by the way.)
This Touch Cube comprises a three-by-three photo dialling screen, a multimedia launch screen and an application launch screen. You switch from one screen to the next by swiping your thumb across the screen horizontally - either from left to right or right to left.
Having used a lot of software that supports photo dialling, I can safely say that HTC's TouchFlo provides the largest photo dialling images I've experienced - comparing to PocketX's Photo Contact Pro, SPB Phone Suite, and Inesoft's Address Book - making it the easiest to use single-handed.
So far, so good, but these features have appeared on HTC devices before. Now for the new features of the HTC Touch Cruise.
The first is its 400MHz CPU, which although not the fastest around, is twice as fast as that in the original HTC Touch, and it's more than fast enough for the job.
HTC also replaces its old faithful five-way navigator (implemented in the HTC Touch, the HTC Touch Dual and the HTC Touch Elfin) with a Navigation Wheel. This interface can be used both as a five-way navigator and as a rotating wheel. I use it the old fashioned way, but you can use it any way you like. It's solid and sturdy either way.
The camera is also an improvement over the original models, and the on-board 3MP camera is now as good as any other 3MP PDA camera I've tested. The last, but not the least improvement to the unit is the addition of a GPS. In Thailand, the unit is bundled with Garmin XT GPS software and ESRI's map, the best combination as far as GPS is concerned.
I discovered, to no surprise, that the GPS receiver in the HTC Touch Cruise is much more sensitive than the one in my old Garmin GPS 10. The Garmin XT software also has an easier-to-use interface than my old Garmin Que, and is designed with single-handed use in mind.
My hands-on time with the Touch Cruise turned up some negatives too.
The rundown includes the lack of soft keys, a reflective front (which besides the fact that it gets smeared easily, can be annoying from time to time - especially when you place the unit on the shotgun seat of your car while driving on a sunny day), and the lack of standard audio jack.
I should emphasize this "lack of standard audio jack" issue a little more, since it seems to have become a trend of late, judging from the last few PDAs I've reviewed.
In and of itself, the lack of an audio jack shouldn't pose any serious problem. Unfortunately, since early May this year, the law requires that all vehicle operators use a hands-free device when engaging in conversation on a mobile phone.
So the lack of an audio jack means you can either choose to use a hands-free kit or to charge your handset (via the device's mini-USB port), but not both.
However, if you use the unit's GPS function, you will need to plug the unit into a power source - which means if you drive a car, you would need to acquire an extra Bluetooth earpiece in order to comply with the law.
If you plan to use the GPS on a regular basis, you should also note that you will need to shell out extra cash for an in-car power adapter and mounting device. For the asking price of 29,900 baht, the Touch Cruise should have come better equipped than this.
In conclusion, the HTC Touch Cruise has an acceptable specification, superb usability and a few minor niggles, but definitely a device worth looking if you're in the market for a new PDA.
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