We’ve seen it in slimming black and striking white (way before Labor Day), and now we’ve got some titillating pictures of what’s going on underneath courtesy of HTC’s own service manuals, leaked in PDF form for both the G2/Magic and the T8290/Quartz. Both offer nearly 100 sultry pages of assembly and disassembly information, including full photo spreads showing the phones’ naughty bits splayed to the winds. For those who read the articles, there are comprehensive descriptions on how to re-flash the pair, which should come in handy if you’re never content to leave good enough ROMs alone. The only question now is: where can we get a pair of those dashing pin-striped gloves?

[Via ModMyGphone; thanks, Meerhaj]

Filed under: Cellphones

HTC’s Magic manual exposed for your downloading pleasure originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Mar 2009 09:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Low light, candles in the corner — seriously folks, these shots are downright sultry. Optus’ HTC G1, er, Dream has been spotted and photographed in some random corner of the world, and while it basically looks like every other G1 you’ve ever seen in this hue, we’re absolutely certain that Australians in attendance are more than happy to have a look. You know where to head for the rest.

[Thanks, Tom]

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Optus’ HTC Dream spotted, photographed passionately originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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“Better late than never,” so they say. Perhaps — but with Sprint’s version of this in the rear view mirror for half a year now, just how relevant is a Touch Diamond on Verizon these days? Odds are we’ll find out next month — or, at least, that’s where the latest rumors have it lined up for launch — but in the meantime, we’ve got one floating around in the wilds looking pretty much like any other Touch Diamond you’ve seen in the past. Like its Touch Pro, it seems Verizon went ahead and nerfed the Diamond’s memory down to 128MB of RAM and 256MB of ROM (why is anybody’s guess), which only serves to reinforce our concerns that this thing is being launched months too late. We love you HTC, seriously — but with the Omnia at $99 on contract right now, we’re not exactly seeing the line starting to form at 8PM the night before release, if you know what we’re saying.

Continue reading Verizon’s Touch Diamond in the wild

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Verizon’s Touch Diamond in the wild originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 Mar 2009 03:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We can totally picture this scenario at a bar, party, or Engadget reader meetup: “Hey, check out my Touch Diamond… oh, oh, wait, what’s this? Wha-BAM!” Out comes the numeric keypad, right out of nowhere, accompanied by a sickeningly bad S60 knockoff interface. Observers are stunned, dumbfounded; some even pass out in shock. Babies are crying, you can hear the forlorned wail of sirens in the background, and mass riots ensue. Put simply, the world was never designed to handle a fake Touch Diamond with a slide-out keypad — but you had to cross the streams, didn’t you? Jerk.

[Thanks, Jack G.]

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Keepin’ it real fake, part CLXXXIX: meet the HTC A296 — and its gaping maw originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Those clever fiends at the FCC have apparently been having all sorts of good times with HTC’s upcoming Touch Diamond2 of late, recently putting through a “TOPA100″ handset that sounds quite a bit like the leaked codename “Topaz” phone that turned into the Touch Diamond2 at MWC. Unfortunately, it seems the FCC just has the Europe version of the phone (slated for Q2 of this year) at the moment — a US version for AT&T is supposedly in the works, as shown in the original leak, but we’re still in the dark as to when that might arrive.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

HTC Touch Diamond2 “Topaz” for Europe makes it past the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Mar 2009 11:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC’s rumored 2009 lineup gets fleshed out with specs, dates originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Mar 2009 12:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After Google had accidentally dropped the T-Bomb during its offline Gmail demo, we’d half expected (okay, hoped) that the version of the Sapphire passing through the FCC would rock T-Mobile’s 1700MHz AWS goodies for US 3G. Alas, it doesn’t — implying that there’ll be at least two versions of the phone launched around the world, which really doesn’t come as a surprise considering the G1 takes the same route. We figure this particular variant probably does 2100MHz HSDPA in addition to the usual array of GSM / EDGE bands, so rest easy, Vodafone customers, you’ll have a perfectly legal handset should you decide to cross the pond.

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HTC Magic stops by FCC for a quick ‘hello,’ no AWS in sight originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Feb 2009 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android may be doing its best to exterminate Linux on the mobile platform, but a dedicated group of fans is doing its best to keep it alive and on the move. One of those is a G1 user by the handle ghostwalker who managed to get a full X-Windows environment running on his handset. Building on the already working Debian version for the G1, he installs LXDE (the Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) on top and then connects to that using the Android VNC viewer. The process sounds straightforward (as far as these things go) and is fully detailed at the read link, but as always don’t blame us if you break your poor Android’s shell — and heart.

[Via Hack A Day, thanks Neerhaj]

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X11 on G1 hack is for those who like a little extra OS in their OS originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Feb 2009 09:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember that Windows Mobile 6.5-equipped HTC phone that was stolen from the Telstra exec at MWC? Well it looks like you can forget about any hands-on videos popping up — to quote the immortal words of Will Smith from Men in Black, the device has apparently been flashy thing’d, from afar. According to an anonymous Microsoft staffer speaking to APC, the company remotely wiped all traces of the operating system and user data from the mobile as soon as it was reported pickpocketed, so unless the thief was smart enough to immediately place it in a faraday cage, this phone’s probably a bit too frazzled for the limelight right now.

Filed under: Cellphones

Telstra exec’s stolen WinMo 6.5-equipped HTC phone remotely wiped? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Feb 2009 17:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[Via Brighthand]

Read - HTC tweet I
Read - HTC tweet II

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HTC says Touch Pro2 will be “broadly available,” North America included originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 22 Feb 2009 14:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Mobile 6.5 got the lion’s share of attention this week at MWC, but HTC’s TouchFLO 3D shell for 6.1 got some interesting interface tweaks for the new Touch Pro2 and Touch Diamond2, and we’d say they’re actually more interesting than 6.5 honeycomb launcher and new unlock screen — especially the newly revised keyboards with haptic feedback. Plenty more screenshots at the read link, and don’t forget to check out our hands-on videos of the Pro2 and Diamond2 if you haven’t already.

[Thanks, msav]

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HTC Diamond2 TouchFLO 3D screenshots appear for your enjoyment originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Feb 2009 20:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/odd_stuff/Thievery_at_MWC_Telstra_exec_s_HTC_with_WinMo_6_5_stolen’; It’s not clear if Telstra chief Sol Trujillo was sporting an HTC Touch Pro2 or a Touch Diamond2 at MWC this week, but one thing’s for sure: he’s doesn’t have it anymore. A pickpocket apparently lifted the handset off another Teslsta exec who was checking it out today — and making matters worse, it was running an early build of Windows Mobile 6.5. Oops. Of course, we doubt Microsoft is too concerned — 6.5 ROMs are leaking all over the place anyway — but it looks like Sol’s picking up Ballmer’s tab at the bar tonight.

[Thanks, Boy Genius]

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Thievery at MWC! Telstra exec’s HTC with WinMo 6.5 stolen originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Feb 2009 14:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If day one of MWC was dominated by Windows Mobile, day two went to Android — although most of the announcements were vague and Toshiba’s Snapdragon-based TG01 did much to impress. Obviously the big announcement was the HTC Magic (née the G2), which’ll be coming to Vodafone UK in April, but several other manufacturers committed to building Googlephones as well. What else did we learn?

Continue reading MWC day two: a new hope

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MWC day two: a new hope originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/gadgets/HTC_Magic_G2_hands_on_and_in_depth_impressions’; We only got a brief glimpse of this device before it was whisked away at the Vodafone press event today, so we tracked down HTC’s megabooth and sat down for a much longer gander at the new HTC Magic. The unit we played with has a non-final button layout on the front — we’d say the final version, reflected in official press shots, is much-improved — but was raring to go otherwise. Check out our impressions, along with a couple of videos after the break!

Continue reading HTC Magic in-depth hands-on, with video!

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HTC Magic in-depth hands-on, with video! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 12:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vodafone just scooped planet earth with the first touchscreen-only Android phone: HTC’s Magic. All the specs look to line up with what was rumored, with a 3.2-inch QVGA screen front and center (that resolution might be a typo, HVGA seems more likely), HDSPA, GPS, 3.2 megapixel camera (no flash), and a G1-style trackball. Details on pricing and availability will be unveiled for local Vodafone markets as they see fit, but pricing in Spain will be from 99 to 199 Euro, depending on contract. Initial markets to nab the phone will be UK (due in April), Spain, Germany, France and Italy, with more countries to follow, and the phone will be a timed exclusive with Vodafone. Crazily enough, the phone has a proprietary headphone jack, proving once and for all that HTC doesn’t like you, but at least this one will ship with a touchscreen keyboard out of the gate.

Continue reading HTC Magic is official, bringing Android to Vodafone sans keyboard

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HTC Magic is official, bringing Android to Vodafone sans keyboard originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 06:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We know, there was an absolute flood of news from Mobile World Congress today, but day one in Spain has finally come to a close, and it looks like Microsoft is flexing all its muscle to try and lock up partners and rejoin the fight for mobile dominance. Seriously, this is Redmond’s show: we haven’t seen a new, non-prototype Android handset powered up yet, and that’s frankly astonishing and somewhat disappointing. What else did we learn?

Continue reading MWC day one: the Empire strikes back

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MWC day one: the Empire strikes back originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So this thing’s definitely got some heft to it — and honestly, especially for a business-centric device in this class, we don’t think that’s a bad thing. As with just about everything HTC churns out, the Touch Pro2 is exquisitely manufactured, feels rock-solid, and the WVGA is absolutely awesome — we noticed that the gestures and animations are totally smooth and responsive, proving that WinMo is perfectly capable of handling this kind of UI dazzle. The Straight Talk functionality for seamlessly moving between different types of communication will be appreciated by anyone who spends half their business day on the phone and seems to work (and look) positively lovely — and as for that speakerphone? We can totally picture ourselves slamming this thing upside down during a meeting in a fit of “our company just lost a $100M contract”-style rage with a satisfying, weighty “thud” and instantly bringing the whole room into the conversation. Follow the break for a couple videos of this thing in action (and sorry, no angry speakerphone fits).

Continue reading First hands-on with the HTC Touch Pro2 (with video!)

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First hands-on with the HTC Touch Pro2 (with video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 07:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So, how do you make HTC’s Touch Pro — already near the top of the WInMo heap — an even beefier device? For starters, you can throw out that nasty VGA screen of yesteryear and up it with a 3.6-inch 800 x 400 replacement. Next, add a dedicated touch-sensitive zoom slider that works overtime to take maximum advantage of said screen, then throw in a few key carryovers: 512MB of ROM, 288MB of RAM, microSD expansion, and a 3.2 megapixel cam. Meet the Touch Pro2, the official follow-up to HTC’s popular series of QWERTY sliders that introduces so-called “Straight Talk” technology for “seamlessly” transitioning conversations between email, single-line calls, and party calls. It’ll also automatically switch to the crazy high-performance, full-duplex speakerphone simply by flipping the phone over, so it’s clear that this bad boy was meant for business. It’ll launch early in the second quarter in parts of Asia and Europe with other “major global markets” following in early Summer.

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HTC Touch Pro2 is awesome in ways the Touch Pro never could be originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC is following up on its ultra-sexy touchphone, the Touch Diamond, with the new Touch Diamond2, which seems quite worthy of the title of successor. This time around there’s much more room for screen, with a huge 3.6-inch 480 x 800 LCD up front, and around back there’s a 5 megapixel camera with autofocus. The other main addition is a “touch zoom bar” below the screen — just like on big brother Touch Pro2 — which we presume provides expected (and welcome) functionality. There’s also the new version of TouchFLO 3D running on Windows Mobile, but under the hood there’s the same old 528MHz processor, and the whole kit is actually a tad thicker a 0.54-inches. Still, memory is up to 512MB ROM and 288MB RAM, and if HTC keeps hoisting pixels and sexy on us at this rate we can hardly complain. This phone should hit major markets in Europe and Asia in “early Q2 2009,” with more spots to follow later in the year.

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HTC’s Touch Diamond2 adds zoom bar, mega screen, surprisingly few diamonds originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Feb 2009 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So we’ve been watching this sketchily-sourced piece from VentureBeat’s MG Siegler that claims Google was specifically asked to avoid implementing multitouch by Apple over patent concerns bounce its way around the web today, and while we didn’t want to contribute to the echo chamber effect without being able to lend any authority to the story, it’s starting to get stupid: John Gruber is chiming in that he’d additionally heard that Apple warned Google against including a 3.5mm headphone jack on the G1 after Cupertino was shown a prototype, which is ridiculous. Fine, we’re somewhat willing to accept the complete lack of multitouch on the G1 is a result of Apple’s influence, especially considering the huffy language Apple’s been using lately over its intellectual property, but the absence of a straight 3.5mm headphone jack can’t be chalked up to any patent issues, since Gruber’s source is probably pointing to an Apple patent that covers controlling music via a headphone jack, which in no way prevented HTC from slapping a regular 3.5mm jack on there — and hell, HTC makes breakout boxes for ExtUSB that expose both a jack and control capability anyway. Furthermore, it’s not even remotely clear why Google would be cruising around Infinite Loop with the G1 way ahead of release; as Gruber himself points out, Schmidt recuses himself from board meetings involving iPhone conversations, and we’d expect the courtesy to go both ways.

iTunes, iPod, music, your ears… we get it, Apple owns everything with a melody nowadays, but c’mon, now: at the time the G1 was designed — many moons ago — attitude toward the importance of 3.5mm jacks on phones was significantly different than it is today, and we can understand why HTC and Google could’ve reasonably thought that ExtUSB was good enough. Today, that attitude wouldn’t fly — indeed, HTC’s own Touch HD does a real jack, and going forward, we’d expect most Android hardware to have them, too. Talented engineers can usually design their way around patent issues, and we’re certain Google and HTC have both the legal and technical muscle to deal with Apple — so can we please all stop playing lawyer and get back to mocking up the Dream G2?

[Via Daring Fireball]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

FUD alert: Apple allegedly scared Google out of using multitouch, 3.5mm jacks, batteries, displays, love originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Feb 2009 18:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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