Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Looks Smart but is as thick as a McDonalds Milkshake, 25 Sep 2008
I purchased this phone after my HTC Touch was accidently damaged and Orange would not supply me with a new phone.
I can really only complain about this phone. Rather than enjoy using it, I have to bear with it.
My main gripe is with the User Interface - the touch flo 3d homescreen consists of a large clock with other informaton such as appointments etc shown in such small writing that you cant see it.
The second problem with the interface comes when you receive a call, as the screen comes alive should anything touch it, for example your pocket, or a phone case the phone will reject the call, this is because of a huge on-screen button which ends a call if pressed. VERY STUPID AND EXTREMELY FRUSTRATING, also expensive as I am consantly having to call cients back.
There is a free program that locks the screen but even then, the phone seems to have a mind of its own, sometimes it will allow you to reeive a call, other times the call simply ends before you have a chance to answer it.
3rd gripe, the phone can't seem hold one call while you are taking another, the phone simply locks up when you put someone on hold
4th Gripe, the 3d Touch interface is very slow.
5th Gripe, the keyboard settings seem to change, sometimes a full qwerty appears on screen, other times a different lyout appears.
6th gipe- crap speaker- you can hardly hear anything
7th gripe - crap reception
8th Gripe - glossy buttons attract fingermarks, so that the smooth mirror finish begins to look grobby from the moment its used.
9th gripe - unreliable bluetooth connection to external car speaker. This was never a problem with my previous HTC device.
The list goes on.
In summing up, whoever testd this phone should be sacked, it's not ready to sell. it's frustrating to use and the interface is ill thought out and functons poorly.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A flawed masterpiece, 23 Nov 2008
The following review is for the XDA Serra, O2's UK version of the HTC Touch Pro (also known as the Raphael, T Mobile MDA Vario IV, AT&T Fuze and Sprint Touch Pro).
This is my third O2 XDA model - I`ve previously used the XDA Mini S (aka HTC Wizard) and XDA Graphite (aka ASUS Jupiter) - and probably my 6th or 7th Windows CE/Mobile device. I've grown fond of the XDA Mini S but recall that the phone was a complete dog until O2 issued a major ROM upgrade. I got the XDA Graphite on a free O2 upgrade as a compact, 3G-enabled replacement for the Mini S, but the battery life was so abysmal I never really used it in anger.
In looking for a replacement for the XDA Mini S, I had the following criteria in mind;
* HSDPA capable
* Good touch screen quality and finger usability
* Slide-out QWERTY keyboard
* Preferably Windows Mobile 6.1 based (I'm wedded to a number of Windows Mobile applications including Outlook mobile, Ilium eWallet, Memory Map and Tom Tom Navigator)
* Good camera quality a nice-to-have but not paramount
* Available on an O2 UK Tariff (I wasn't prepared to pay a SIM-free price).
I must confess to a (possibly irrational) antipathy to all things Apple so didn't consider the iPhone, though I have no doubt that the iPhone is probably more user-friendly. The HTC Touch Pro is categorically not an "iPhone killer" (though the newer HTC Touch HD may well be).
The truth is, all of HTC's smartphone offerings have been exercises in managed expectation. They promise so much on paper but so often fail to deliver in terms of practicality. The Touch Pro is, along with the Touch HD, by far the best phone HTC have ever produced, but it still has some frustrating flaws. I will admit that in the first few days of having received the XDA Serra I found the Touch Flo interface and GPS performance so frustrating that I seriously considered returning it to O2, but having persevered for a fortnight or so I am now much happier. So far, this is how the pros and cons stack up for me:
Pros:
1. Size, form factor and build quality.
2. Excellent screen resolution (640x480) and quality. Visibility in sunshine is very good.
3. Excellent slide out keyboard - far and away the best available.
4. Excellent phone sound quality.
5. Good 3G (HSDPA), Bluetooth and FM Radio performance.
6. Touch Flo interface makes finger operation easy but gestures take some getting used to. Helps to have small fingers.
7. Magnetic stylus is less likely to drop out.
8. Uses standard mini USB connector for sync and charge.
9. Can charge from PC USB connection.
10. As with all Windows Mobile devices, syncing with PC via Activesync is very easy.
11. Huge variety of freeware and shareware available for the Windows Mobile platform, including some alternatives to the Touch Flo interface (mainly still in beta but very promising).
12. Teeter game - which uses the phone's built-in G-sensor - is great fun.
13. Very chic, for those who care about such things.
Cons:
1. Very expensive SIM-free.
2. "Joystick" functionality on central Navigation button is almost completely unusable and is a major design flaw.
3. Endurance with standard 1340mAh battery not great (especially if all radio options are enabled) but probably no worse than other phones in this class. Higher capacity (but bulkier) 1800mAh battery packs are available. I personally haven't found battery life to be an issue.
4. 3.2MP camera is a big improvement over earlier HTC models but is outclassed by the latest Sony, Nokia and Samsung camera phones. The LED camera flash is barely adequate in low light.
5. Flaky Wi-Fi - needs to be set to `maximum performance' (at the expense of battery life) to get decent reception.
6. Built-in GPS is very temperamental. Initial lock can take anywhere between 5 and 30 minutes, though once lock is acquired, performance is OK in open ground. Urban reception is poor and the Assisted GPS function (which is disabled by default on the XDA Serra) doesn't appear to improve matters significantly. There are some performance enhancing hacks recommended on various XDA forums, but the phone will never be a match for the latest SiRF handhelds (such as the Garmin eTrex Vista, which has incredible urban performance) and I imagine many people will find the internal GPS unusable in practice.
Note that you can always use an external Bluetooth GPS adapter such as the excellent Emtac BTGPS II or the one provided with some versions of Tom Tom Navigator.
7. Touch Flo interface a bit sluggish at times, but can be improved with some registry tweaking (Google the XDA Developers Forum). People who are happy to use a stylus will probably wish to disable the Touch Flo interface altogether.
8. Touch Flo interface cannot be customised, at least not without registry hacks.
9. Pressure needed for some touch screen gestures means a screen protector is advisable (one is provided in the box).
10. No built in headphone socket - needs special USB-to-jack adapter (a handy remote-control adapter with a standard 3.5mm jack is provided in the box).
11. Cannot sync/charge and use headphone adapter at the same time using the adapter provided, though it is possible to buy third party adapters for around £20 which do allow this.
12. Some relatively minor stability issues which will probably improve after the next ROM upgrade - expect to have to perform a soft-reset at least once a month.
If you don't need the slide-out keyboard, I'd strongly recommend the HTC Touch HD (which has recently topped PC Pro's smartphone A-List).
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Latest and greatest, 1 Jun 2009
While this review is a little late (with the Touch Pro 2 coming out soon) this is still an excellent Windows Mobile SmartPhone.
Consider changing the OS to a custom made one from XDA Dev (while this does void the warranty) for an extra performance increase.
The camera takes the best photographs that I have seen on a 3mp phone while call reception is also excellent. While I don't entirely like the minimalistic approach to the use of buttons it is still very easy to navigate your way round the phone. With intensive use (always on internet connection with direct push e-mail) I get about 2 days battery life with 5 days possible at a push.
Certainly one of the best WM Smartphones so far and can't wait for the WM 6.5 upgrade!
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