Sunday, September 28, 2008

Review - HTC Touch Cruise (Polaris)

This is a review of my latest phone, the HTC Touch Cruise, otherwise known as the Polaris. I purchased it back in June 2008 so I've had a good few months to use the device and to get a decent feel for it. Around the time I purchased the phone, the Europe/Asia version of HTC Touch Diamond was already available, and so was the iPhone 3G. I was also considering the Nokia N95 8GB, but with the N96 and the Nokia Tube on the horizon, I decided to hold off on a Nokia purchase.

Although the Touch Diamond was very tempting, it's lack of compatiblity with the GSM 850 band and the lack the US 3G bands compatibility wee major deal breakers for me, despite the advanced TouchFlo 3D interface and the beautiful VGA screen. The onboard 4GB was nice at the onset, but it was somewhat diminished by the fact that there are 8GB and 16GB devices already out there, not to mention the fact that 16GB microSDHC cards are in the horizon and that the Touch Diamond lacked a microSDHC slot that is ubiquitous to many other phones in the market.

I was also tempted to get the iPhone 3G, but I learned that many of the things I found lacking from the original iPhone was STILL not included in the newer 3G version, such as missing MMS capability, no stereo bluetooth A2DP, no bluetooth sync or OBEX file sharing, no cut/copy and paste functionalty, no Java or Flash support in the Safari Browser, the inability to use the horizontal touch keyboard outside of Safari and the fact that I had to renew a 2 year contract and that it would remain SIM locked to the AT&T network. Despite the stellar multitouch interface, slick design and beautiful screen, all those factors combined were one huge dealbreaker for me.


But enough about those other devices and onto the Touch Cruise. It is a windows Mobile 6.1 device that comes with the first generation of HTC's Touch Flo software, similar to the software found on the more ubiquitous HTC Touch, which is/was available though the major US CDMA carriers like Verizon, Sprint, Alltel and US Cellular. The HTC Touch also has an unlocked GSM version available. The Touch Flo interface over the now-aging Windows 6.1 interface makes it more "finger touch friendly" by adding a useful home screen widget that gives handy shortcut "tabs" to often used functions such as:
  • a large digital clock
  • a weather screen
  • a shortcut menu with eight configurable icons
  • a control panel to switch your phone from normal to vibrate and silent mode.
It also comes with a "touch cube" which is part of the Touch Flo interface, that is accessible by swiping from the bottom of the screen to the top with your finger, and swiping left or right with your finger to "rotate" the cube to a different face. Swping back down will take you back to whatever screen you had previously. Although there technically only three "faces" to the cube, the 3D effect appears like a cube nonetheless . The "touch cube" includes the three following touch friendly screens:
  • A customizable 9 contact screen, which also shows the photo if you have one setup with your associated contact.
  • A screen to access the HTC Music, Photos and Video viewers
  • A screen to access Email, SMS/MMS, Internet Explorer, Tasks, Comm Manager and Calendar

The full onboard GPS was the major deal sealer for me. The fact that it also had all the GSM and 3G bands and the fact that is available now instead of some future date, really put the decision over the top.

I got a really good package too. It came with the essentials such as an AC charger, stereo headphones that you could take calls with, usb cable and a 1GB microSD card, which I switched to an 8GB card that I had on hand. The bonus was the suction cup windshield holder and car charger, which solidified the GPS functionality.

Little did I realize however that the GPS software provided, called "MapKing" had only Asia/Pacific maps available with Hong Kong being the default map. I was like WTF? That right there was a major deal-breaker for me. I was up all night that same evening trying to get a US compatible GPS program. Because the device itself was pretty expensive because I bought it unlocked, spending even more money for software was not an option, and thanks to the steep 20% restocking fee at the place I bought the thing, returning it was also not an attractive option.

After a few hours of frantic online searching, I finally discovered a version of TomTom Navigator that comes with the US versions of the latest HTC devices through the xda developers forum. It came with one free city map, so I downloaded the one for Chicago. Once I got the GPS software loaded, it worked pretty much like a standalone TomTom GPS unit. In fact,
when the Touch Cruise is set to horizontal mode the touch interface is almost indistinguishable from a standalone TomTom. I was very satisfied with the accuracy of the map positioning and the turn by turn directions. There is also a US and Canada Map available though TomTom which I plan to purchase if I do any major long-distacne driving.

Although the Windows Mobile 6.1 platform is very versatile and has a plethora of software available to it, I have to say it is definitely showing signs of age, especially when compared to the newer, sleeker iPhone multitouch interface. The Touch Flo interface helps a little in this respect, but I found that the version of Touch Flo (first generation) that comes bundled with the device has a few shortcomings, which is mostly because for the majority of what you do on the phone such as go into your Email, calendar, tasks, text messages, contact lists, etc., you still have to revert back to the older Windows Mobile 6.1 interface, which means that more often than not you have to switch from using your finger back to using the stylus, not that I don't appreciate the accuracy of the stylus, but there are times when using your finger is more convenient and that convenience is diminished when you have to take out the stylus because a line, or a checkbox or a radio button, or the "X" on the top-right corner of the screen cannot be easily accessed with just your finger.

Of course, being a Windows Mobile device, you are not without choices. I've tried a few decent "shells" that put a touchscreen user interface "overlay" on top of Windows Mobile 6.1, such as PointUI, Winterface, SPB Mobile Shell, even a "clone" of the iPhone UI called iFonz. Of all the UI overlays, the SPB Mobile Shell seems like the most usable, but it also comes with a price because after a trial period, which I believe is 15 days, it requires activation for a nominal fee.

As it so happens, one of the best UI's for latest HTC devices at least is none other than the Touch Flo 3D interface, found on the Touch Diamond and the upcoming Touch Pro and Touch HD devices. There is also an upcoming device(s) to replace the now-aging original HTC Touch tentatively called the Touch 3G. There are mixed reports but the code name is either Opal or Viva. The best part is that there is a "2D" version of the newer Touch Flo 3D interface, although it won't quite have the flashy animations, it will retain most, if not all of the functionality of its Touch Flo 3D interface. In fact, a beta version is available through the XDA Developers Forum and although it isn't quite perfect, it lacks a horizontal mode for instance, the new "Touch Flo 2D" interface vastly improves upon the original "HTC Home Screen" interface. despite the missing horizontal mode in the beta version, it is still a vast improvement over the original Touch Flo and to those who are inclined to upgrade thier devices I highly recommend it.

Anyway, back to the device itself. Although I cannot categorically say that the HTC Touch Cruise is a "must buy" device, because of current and upcoming choices in the market (Like the HTC TOuch Diamond, Pro, HD, The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1, etc.), it has the potential of fulfilling the needs of buyers with specific requirements. For instance it has both full Quadband GSM and Triband 3G, covering the majority of the available world GSM and 3G bands (minus the newer T-Mobile US 3G band of course). It basically has the same feature set as the the AT&T Tilt (Kaiser/TyTN II) but sans the slideout hardware keyboard and the bulk. The HTC Touch Cruise also has a very good integrated GPS. The only hitch is, because it is an unlocked "world phone" that you may or may not have the proper GPS software for your area bundled with the package. Because it is a windows mobile phone however, a plethora of software options are available to you.

Before I wrap this review up, here are a list of Pros and Cons:

Pros:
  • Similar feature set as the Tilt/Kaiser/TyTN II, but in a thinner, sleeker form factor.
  • Very good integrated GPS functionality
  • Quad Band GSM and Tri Band 3G which covers the majority of the world GSM/3G bands
  • HTC Touch Flo system, which makes it more "finger touch friendly" than standard windows mobile devices
  • Large 3rd party software support
  • The package that I purchased at least came with close to everything you need such as an AC adapter, headphones, extra stylus, protective case and a suction cup arm and car lighter adapter for windshield placement. The package that you purchase may vary of course.
  • Uses a standards mini-USB port for data and charging.
Cons:
  • Device is showing signs of age compared to some of the newer offerings (HTC Touch Diamond/Pro/HD etc)
  • Windows Mobile 6.1 Platform in general is showing signs of age compared to the likes of the iPhone and the upcoming Google Android
  • Still has a "standard" QVGA screen
  • No hardware keyboard/keypad
  • Does not come packaged with latest Touch Flo
  • May not come packaged with the GPS software for your region
  • Does not have a standard 3.5mm headphone jack (needs)

The bottom line is that if you need a solid Windows Mobile phone that is world traveller friendly, has a solid GPS and is highly customizable through various Windows Mobile programs, and is not locked down to many of the limitations that some of the newer devices like the iPhone has (such as the lack of MMS, no bluetooth stereo, etc.) then this phone is for you. This phone has been in the market a while so you may be able to get it for less than some of the newer offerings like the Diamond.

Please note however, that this is mainly a touchscreen device, however so things such as text input must be done on screen. Despite that shortcoming the touchscreen keypads, keyboards, etc. are not bad once you get used to them. The ability to do things like tweak and upgrade the interface definitely increased the usability scan, even for a phone geek like me who tends to frequently switch phones, so again for anyone contemplating a Touch Cruise, I definitely recommend it.