HTC Touch price and reviews

My (recently stolen) other phone was the hp Messenger. I really liked being able to use it like a mini-computer but the size/weight and smooth plastic case were a problem. (This sounds minor, but the smooth plastic case was difficult to hold on to in the humidity and I dropped it several times... once onto marble a story up- to it's credit other than a cracked screen (~200 MYR, US$50) it was fine. The HTC touch is almost everything I would want in a pda phone.
First the bads- no 3G. Annoying for a new model but Edge is fast enough for regular surfing. Wi-fi is also getting so common it's not really an issue and I didn't think the it wore down my battery any more than any other application (or even just the blue tooth on my hp). Second there is no voice dialing. As am American (living in Asia) I am in the car quite a bit so miss it but it's not on 99% of the phones over here anyway. It might be on the US version.
I would also like to address the complaints I see about this phone- namely the lack of keyboard, 'touch' working in landscape and the speaker volume. First off, the lack of keyboard/small onscreen keyboard. This phone is really tiny- it would be impossible to keep the big screen AND have a keyboard, adding a pull out key board would bulk it up too much. I don't think the online keyboard is meant to be used as a 'regular' keyboard either. I can type (with my nails)- but why? That's what the transcriber is for. Using the stylus I write on the screen and it types it out. Not letters (there is that option) but whole sentences. It's pretty accurate and about perfect, especially if you practice a bit and input your personal style. I do use the keyboard for passwords, number strings, etc. Anyone buying this should keep that in mind- it's not for someone who is insistant on a keyboard. I don't know what the iphone people are going to do- writing is much easier than typing on a screen and there is no stylus. The other is the speaker. It's okay for music and video but do wish it were louder, you certainly can't sit across a desk and have a phone conversation, maybe it's because the speaker is on the back. Pda speakers in general don't have a good track record and my hp was especially terrible. This is at least 2x as loud and is fine for car navigation. The call quality is clear and loud loud used as a regular phone, I have never gotten the hiss this reviewer spoke of. I also use my blue tooth head set all the time. (no I'm not walking around like the secret service- it's just what I reach for when the phone rings.) The range is good, and I think most pda people will probably be moving that way anyhow. (I have the little Motorola H700 which you open to answer and uses the same charger.) The 'touch' feature does work in landscape, it just seems to take about a half second longer. Don't know why.
The goods- The size, this is tiny and flat. Not alot bigger than a credit card (but longer and about as thick as a pen). You can put it anywhere and it disappears. It's also very light for a pda phone- for a phone in general. The case is a matte black almost rubberized plastic, it doesn't fingerprint and stays in your hand easily. FYI the green model I was told is a smooth pearl plastic- I haven't seen it in person. The processor is fast enough and does graphics fine. It also tells you when you have too many applications (usually graphic) open- easy to click off from the process manager on the top bar. The battery life isn't drained by the bluetooth like on most other phones and the hp. Nor does the wi-fi drain it as much as I expected. The battery should be bigger but since the touch is efficient you break even. I still have to plug it in every night but it's also new, so once I'm not constantly playing with it, maybe it will last longer anyway. I'm personally holding out for an extra capacity battery to appear in the next 6 months. The touch part is great- especially switching applications and moving around the screen. The interface is elegant and simple- not gimmicky. All the applications are literally at your fingertips. Money well spent. I did consider the iphone but the lack of a video camera, blue tooth, and stylus killed it for me. With the 1GB (it can handle higher as well) mini scan disc- it can do just as well as a mp3 player- at least for me and I can listen on my BLUETOOTH head phones.
I would highly recommend this phone to anyone who uses a pda with the exception of those who just can't give up their keyboard. But with tablet PCs coming up- I think it's only a matter of time until you'll need to consider a transcriber anyway. (Just for the record- I would much rather type on my computer than write free hand, but the transcriber is a good alternative when you want small and fast.)