PDA mobile phones are not as widely marketed as conventional phone models simply due to the fact that they are mostly purchased by businesses and professionals rather than the man in the street.
This range of mobile phones offer many more software options for office tasks such as email, spreadsheets and PDF presentations, and typically have a much larger screen for viewing documents and, in some cases, display technology. touch to navigate through the menus.
The HTC Touch was the first mobile phone to feature a new navigation technology called TouchFlo, which meant that users could simply swipe their finger across the screen to scroll through the menu and then touch to select an option. The technology has eliminated the need for a stylus, which is the traditional way of using a touch screen device, the stylus is a small stick made of plastic or metal that is used like a pen to touch the screen.
HTC has now updated the Touch model and released the Touch Dual some will argue that it is not really an upgraded version as some of the features have been removed but it is the next phone to be released in the range and so it is classified as an improvement.
The HTC Touch Dual has lost WiFi capabilities but gained 3.5G HSDPA connectivity in addition to the existing GPRS and EDGE technology. At the touch of a button, a keyboard appears below the sliding screen with a choice of a 12-key numeric keypad or a 20-key Qwerty keyboard, depending on country and carrier.
Due to the sliding mechanism, the HTC Touch Dual is also known as HTC Slide, but its official name is HTC Touch Dual.
As with the HTC Touch version, Dual uses TouchFlo technology, allowing users to control 3D images and navigate through emails, messages and music files at their fingertips.
The 2.6-inch touch screen includes handwriting recognition with the use of a stylus for those who prefer the old-fashioned way.
The operating system, as you would expect from today’s smartphones, is Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional with Pocket Office and is powered by a 400Mhz Qualcomm processor.
With 256 MB of expandable memory, the HTC Touch Dual is equipped with a 2-megapixel camera with digital zoom and video recording and a secondary front-facing camera for video calls.
The music player supports MP3 and AAC audio file formats, and USB connectivity makes it easy to sync contacts and calendar entries, as well as download playlists directly to your mobile phone from your PC.
Bluetooth wireless technology comes with A2DP stereo support and with Live HTC Home you can view emails, missed calls, messages, weather reports and more with the press of a button.
As you can see, there have been many improvements to what was an innovative phone with additional features complemented by a new design. Overall measurements are 107 x 55 x 15.8mm and the Dual is slightly heavier at 120 grams due to the added weight of the slide-out keyboard.
Users may not be happy about the loss of WiFi, but the added 3.5G technology will make for much faster download times, essential in today’s busy workplace.