First impressions: HTC Touch Diamond CDMA

HTC launched the Touch Diamond CDMA at a quiet press conference in India this week, through which I didn’t really sit. I thank my stars for getting me delayed by a full hour to the presentation which had HTC’s India CEO  waxing eloquent about the company and the “Touch Flo” interface and a bunch of other things.

Agreed, they started it, Apple borrowed a few elements and I’ll go as far as to say they are copying Apple now. No, no wait, they are completely pimping the Apple iPhone out now. And I didn’t really like the fact that were presenting it in such a way which would suggest that HTC created the whole thing. Plus, they could not implement a multi-touch input even at such an exorbitant price and they talk about “the experience”.

I was trying to play around with the phone a bit and tried zooming in on a picture. It involved a weird swirling action which I could not get right even after repeated attempts. Even the demonstrator ran into some troubles. Also, HTC’s version of cover flow is just terrible.

The HTC Country Head was totally tripping over the 3.2MP auto focus calling it “The best mobile camera in the PDA range”. Erm, I’ve been having a 3.2MP AF unit on my Sony Ericsson P1i since the last one year and its been serving me faithfully.

One more thing that put me off was the price. At 40000 INR or $800, this thing is just not happening. There is nothing really path breaking in the phone neither is it a head turner. Using it isn’t confidence inspiring at all. The touch screen is not as responsive as it should be and it isn’t half as gorgeous as its GSM cousin. Plus the few keys that are there on the phone feel flimsy.

I don’t believe that I am bashing an HTC phone to such an extent considering the fact that there is a strong possibility of my next phone being an HTC. Maybe it was the expectation of HTC getting the Android to Indian shores or even the Touch HD or Touch Pro for that matter. If priced around 25000INR or at $500, this thing might sell, but as of now, please stay clear of this phone. Go get a Blackberry instead. They are infinitely more functional, keep owners happy and have a full QWERTY keypad. Now, there.

The phone releases on November 10th.

A few questions I asked HTC India’s Country Manager, Mr. Ajay Sharma

1) Why have you chosen to lock the Diamond, GSM or CDMA to certain operators?

Ajay Sharma: We wanted the best for our phones and as far as CDMA goes, we cannot think of anyone else except Reliance Communications. We are in the basement of this hotel and we still have perfect coverage.

2) Point taken. Why is there such a large difference in pricing between the GSM and CDMA units.

AS: First of all, the hardware used has a fair amount of difference. Add to the fact that the dollar is trading at almost 20% higher than when we came out with the GSM version.

3) When do we see the Touch HD and Touch Pro coming out?

AS: See, as a company, we must thoroughly study the market before we launch a phone. Also, we do not want to cannibalize the sales of the other models. I’d certainly want to release these models right now, but it’ll be better if we are prepared for it.

Rest assured, HTC shall be coming out with 3-4 phones every quarter.

4) The HTC Touch has been the flagship model for you in India. What do you have to say about users reporting “hanging problems”?

AS: Hanging is a very generic term and more often than not, it is user generated. Users overload it with applications, hence, there are bound to be such problems. As far as I know, there is nothing wrong with the handset or the software.

The sales of the HTC Touch continue to be encouraging and are increasing every month.

5) One final question. When is the Android coming to India?

AS: Today is “Google Android No Comments Day!”

Virgin Mobile India Launch

That Branson guy is crazy. Yeah, that same old, boisterous, flamboyant Chairman of the Virgin Group, Sir Richard Branson. First he sends a telescope in the JAM office inviting us to the launch of Virgin Mobile in India. Then he goes right up Hilton Towers and does a bungee jump (like his bones are not more than 30 years old) on the unsuspecting Mumbai masses. Once thats out of the way, he comes into the press conference dressed as though he is out for a walk on the beach. White shirt, plain light brown pant and floaters. May I warn you, Sir, Paani Poori on the Mumbai beach, will put you in hospital for the remainder of your trip.

I was all excited when he came in the conference hall (which was literally bursting at the seams, the media love someone quotable and flamboyant). Why, you ask? Because, dahling, I thought some sexy Virgin Atlantic air-hostesses might be hanging around. There were none. Like, damn.

Branson seems to have apparently rung Ratan Tata and told them, “Hey big man, we want to do something in India. Anything!”. So Tata sets up Virgin Mobile as a service available under the Tata Tele banner which allows Virgin to escape all the legal hassles and use someone else’s existing network too. Elementary business branding, pumpkin.

Virgin seem to have done extensive homework and all this is targeted at the youth, which everybody and the press kit were hell bent on reminding us. Nevertheless, their homework deserved an A grade from me, so to speak. They seem to have studied the pattern of the youth quite smartly. And I couldn’t quite deny their research. I’ll tell you one outrageous thing. You receive talktime for receiving calls from any network. Also, the person who handles your complaint at the call center will continue to do so till you cling on to Virgin Mobile. That’s outrageous!
And with all that they have bring their expertise of handling Virgin Mobile all across the globe too. Vodafone and Airtlel, be scared. Be very scared.