On the surface, there is no reason why HTC phones should be considered inadequate. They are well-engineered, possess good spec, and run on software built by Microsoft. Despite these attributes, the phones have, in the past, fallen short on design, price, and software. However the P3400 has surfaced and has proven itself to be HTC’s Borg
-the model that has adapted the most.
The phone comes in a surprisingly pleasant matte black finish. This lends the unit a smooth feel and also a slightly rugged impression. This is one smart phone that says it doesn’t need to be pampered.
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| HTC P3400 Smartphone |
The good news is those used to Windows Mobile will be familiar with the OS. The bad news is those used to Win Mo will see the same old interface that’s been around since the XDA II. It was had enough before; it's worse now that the iPhone juggernaut is here with its magical touch interface.
In the spirit of its full-fledged Windows kuya, you do get used to the interface. And that’s where the P3400’s appeal starts to grow. It may not be exciting, but the interface is simple enough once you know where to find things. Be prepared to do a lot of tapping: Windows Mobile 6 is a stylus intensive interface and that makes texting a pain.
A glance at the spec sheet shows how they made this smartphone relatively affordable. The screen has only 65k colors, the camera is a paltry 2-megapixel number, there’s no Wi-Fi, no 3G and there’s a mere 128MB of ROM storage. It's a good thing SD cards are cheap now.
Those who have been wary of the high price of Windows Mobile smartphones can try this phone out relatively painlessly. But at this price, Nokia and Sony Ericsson already have phones bristling with features.
PROCESSOR Texas Instruments OMAP 580, 201Mhz
MEMORY 128MB ROM, 64MB SDRAM
SCREEN 2.8' TFT-LCD. 240x320 pixels with 65k colors
NETWORK Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE
SIZE/WEIGHT 109x58x17.65mm/455g
