It is not that the HTC is a mediocre smartphone, for it still remains to be an impressive model in some ways...especially with its qwerty. However, amongst a few slight drawbacks there is one that bothered me a bit...and surprisingly it was not lack of US 3G on the unlocked version. It is sometimes difficult to find a sense of efficient usability with daily tasks on the feature set of the TP2. This was particularly true when I was in the midst of working at ECPI for my internship. I used the qwerty slider to record a log of daily responsibilities onto the Notes section as the workday went on, and I found it to be too bulky and clunky at certain moments. Having the touchscreen, stylus, and sliding qwerty seemed to be overkill and took away from productivity whenever I had to maneuver moving parts to use the qwerty. While this is to be expected when I bought the Windows Mobile phone, I still enjoy its big screen, speakers, and full keypad for casual use outside of the workplace.
With the addition of SportyPal, PockeTwit, Missing Sync, and media content on a 16GB microSD card, the Touch Pro 2 easily takes the place of the E71 for the most part. However, there are some benefits of the Nokia that I found myself missing while using the HTC.
Speed and portability: whether this is due to my familiarity with Symbian or the operating system itself, there seems to be faster navigation through onboard features and apps. The touchscreen with its sporadic instances of unresponsiveness can feel like a hindrance on Windows Mobile at times, even with the inclusion of TouchFLO 3D. While non-touch devices can experience the same problems of lag and response time, it appears to be more of an inconvenience for me on touch models. Being able to pull the E71 from my pocket and quickly activate a one-handed command feels better than having to operate a slider and then use touch (or even use touch alone). While I do appreciate the variety of inputs available on the Touch Pro 2, the E71 does have an unassuming, uncluttered charm. The slim profile of the Nokia is a welcomed feature to avoid the use of a clunky beltclip holster and engage in more comfortable typing. There were times on-the-go when I fumbled with the TP2 in a fast attempt to either retrieve or return it to the holster, and this certainly increased the risk of dropping. Despite the awe-inspiring layout of the HTC qwerty, I do prefer the vertical orientation of the E71 qwerty for lengthy writing. It feels more natural to my hands and also much simpler with only tactile buttons being the primary input source.
Durability: I was a little turned off by the slight damage of my TP2 after I had dropped it onto concrete in the rain. There was a clear understanding of the plastic composition of its physical build, but something still bothered me. For practically half of HTC's retail price, my past E71 offered superior build quality with its blend of plastic and metallic parts. This same Nokia had been dropped twice and received slight blemishes to its finish that were barely noticeable at first glance. However, after the HTC was dropped one time, it looked as if it was done multiple times with extent of the damage. Such a risk could have been placed on the Touch Pro 2 due to its bulky size, but my past Nokia E90 models quickly prove this idea wrong. They were much larger, still maintained a higher build quality from the Nokia ESeries line, and survived moments of being dropped. True, I could purchase a case unit for the Touch Pro 2, but this only adds to its bulk.
3G data access: Being able to use 3G to tether a smartphone to my Mac for portable Internet browsing without wifi is a HUGE convenience that not many people utilize. Even though it may not be as speedy as wifi, it still gets the job done in the right amount of time. Leisure activities such as watching YouTube videos can be an absolute pain without fast 3G or wifi. I've tried YouTube downloads over EDGE speeds, but that endeavor required endless patience. Using EDGE also seems to bring about weak signal reception, at least in my own home.
Efficient typing experience: Even though the Touch Pro 2 happens to possess a most advanced qwerty for any mobile device, there are some drawbacks. The overall width of the keypad can seem cumbersome after a while, and there is a lack of punctuation shortcuts. Something as simple as placing an apostrophe into words such as "didn't" or "can't" may not appear to be crucial, but that's the kind of detail that the E71 handles with no trouble at all. As for the HTC, there is always the XT9 variant which only clutters the screen with a horizontal stripe of unnecessary words. Even though the TP2 managed to get the automatic placement of the period correct with a simple double space after the ending word, the E71 just feels better to use for fast typing.
All of these reasons can basically sum up why I've returned to the Nokia E71 as my main device. It is the most suitable workforce smartphone and exercises the fullest potential in multitasking. The Touch Pro 2 has its benefits, but they weren't enough to keep me from missing the broad functionality of the E71. It feels great to be back with Symbian S60 on a NON-touchscreen Nokia model, and I will be sure to never take it for granted again.
Trent Smith
Sent from my Nokia E71
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TRENT SENSE blogger/netcast host
trentsense.com
YouTube.com/absolon3
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