HTC P3600 Review – Introduction HTC is one of the biggest manufacturers of Windows Mobile Phones in the market. We like HTC products and we recently reviewed HTC TyTN (first 3G phone with a slide out QWERTY keyboard) and HTC P3300 (pocket pc phone with built in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS receiver). In this review we take a look at another device from HTC, the HTC P3600 (Trinity). The device is available for sale at aprx 450 GPB. HTC P3600 Review – Design The HTC P3600 comes in two colour cases, a white and a black. In both colours the device looks very good. We prefer the white edition because the black one is too glossy and marks of your fingerprints are all around the device. The dimensions of the device are 108 x 58.2 x 18.4 mm and the weight is 150g with battery. Compared to HTC P3300 (108mm x 58mm x 16.8mm) you can see that HTC P3600 has similar dimensions. It has the size of most pocket pc devices today that have no QWERTY keyboard. It is a compact design that makes the device portable enough to be carried around easily. The display of HTC P3600 is 2.8 inches supporting a resolution of 240 x 320. The weight of 150g makes HTC P3600 20g heavier than the HTC P3300 and aprx 20g lighter than HTC TyTN. As you can see from the image below you can hold the pocket pc easily in the palm of your hand. The overall design and setup of the phone buttons is very good and minimal. Below the display you can find a set of buttons which includes the ‘Start Call’ and ‘End Call’ buttons, the Windows Mobile 5.0 dedicated keys (Start and OK), two Soft keys (on left and right) and in the middle there is the handy navigation control button which can be used to navigate to every direction and make selections using the middle button. Above the display you can see the second camera (VGA), used for taking self-portrait images and also used for video calling (HTC P3600 has support for 3G). There is also the speaker surrounded by two led indicators. On the left the indicator shows: • A blinking Blue light for Bluetooth system notification of powered-up and ready to transmit radio frequency signal. • A blinking Green light for Wi-Fi status. • When both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are enabled, their lights blink alternately. The right indicator shows: Green and Amber lights for UMTS/GSM standby, UMTS/GSM message, UMTS/GSM network status, notification, and battery charging status. Below you can see all HTC P3600 buttons and their functionality.

On the left side of the device there is the Jog Wheel. This is a very useful feature of HTC P3600 and it is something that is very useful while working with a Windows Mobile device. You can use the Jog Wheel to navigate through the different menus and make selections by pressing the wheel. You can also use the jog wheel to adjust the sound volume while on call. It is a very handy feature that can also help in speeding up the process of finding an application. It is much faster than taking the stylus and try to navigate through the menus. The Jog Wheel is a feature first introduced with HTC TyTN.

Just below the Jog Wheel there is also an OK button, which can be used to confirm any data entries or to exit the program in use. This button can also be used to activate the Windows Start Menu so when used in combination with the Jog wheel you can really use the device using only your thumb.

On the back of the device there is the main 2.0 mega-pixels camera and the car antenna connector.

On the right of the device (starting from the top) you can find the Power button, voice command button (when you press the button once it starts the Voice Speed Dial; press and hold to record a voice note), the miniSD card slot, the dedicated camera button, the stylus holder, and the strap holder.

On the bottom of the device there is the USB Slot, the reset button, the infrared port and the microphone.

HTC P3600 Review – Features

HTC P3600 has a very good set of connectivity features including Quad-Band GSM, 3G and HSDPA, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, and infrared. The only connectivity feature missing is a built in GPS. Nevertheless since the device has no built-in GPS support you can still use an external Bluetooth GPS device and still experience the features of GPS on your device. It would be nice if the GPS was built in but still there are other advantages the HTC P3600 than can offer. The support for 3G networks and the built-in Wi-Fi can enable fast data transfer rates and fast access to the Internet wireless. The Bluetooth can be used to connect your device to any Bluetooth enable device such as a GPS or external keyboard.

A very nice feature of HTC P3600 is the HTC communication manager. The communication manager is a simple application which you can use to activate / deactivate any of the connectivity features of P3600. As you can see from the image above you can use the communication manager to switch on/off the bluetooth, wi-fi, Phone (Flight mode) and activesync. There is also the possibility of enabling another notification item in the today screen which shows the Phone network information and the status of wi-fi and bluetooth. This is also a very good feature but unfortunately it is not enabled by default on all HTC models, but you can enable it by making some changes in the HTC P3600 registry.

Another feature which is available in Windows Mobile 5.0 AKU 2.0 and above is the internet sharing. This is very similar to the Internet sharing feature you can find on Windows PC. You can use this feature to share the internet connection of your HTC P3600 with a PC or Laptop. The whole procedure is very simple, all you have to do it to connect your pocket pc with your PC or Laptop (via USB) and then enable GPRS and connect to your provider on the HTC P3600. Then you can click on the ‘Internet Connection Sharing’ button on your pocket pc and the connection will be shared between HTC P3600 and the other connected device.

The HTC P3600 has two cameras. One is located on the front (just above the display) and can be used for video calling and taking self portrait pictures, and the second one is 2.0 mega-pixels and is located on the back .The camera can be activated using the dedicated camera button located on the right hand side of the device. The primary camera does not have flash or macro mode but it can be used for recording both video and images. The camera application has a lot of options including:

• Photo: Captures standard still images.

• Video: Captures video clips, with or without accompanying audio.

• MMS Video: Captures video clips suitable for sending via MMS.

• Contacts Picture: Captures a still image and gives you the option to immediately assign it as a Photo ID for a contact.

• Picture Theme: Captures still images and places them within frames.

• Panorama: Captures a sequence of still images continuously in one direction, and allows stitching of all the images to create a panoramic view of a scenery

• Sports: Captures a sequence of still images (3, 5, 7, or 10) automatically.

• Burst: Captures a sequence of still images (maximum 30) as long as the CAMERA button on the device or the ENTER button on the NAVIGATION is kept pressed.

The available capture modes of the 2nd camera are Photo, Video, MMS Video, Contacts Picture, and Picture Theme.

HTC P3600 Review – Software

HTC P3600 is running Windows Mobile 5.0. The software bundled with the device besides the standard applications offered by WM 5.0 include:

Acrobat Reader LE: Reader for viewing PDF files

MIDlet Manager:

MIDlets are Java applications that can run on mobile devices. The MIDlet Manager allows you to download Java applications, such as games and tools that are specifically designed for mobile devices. Although some Java applications and games have already been installed on your device, the Java MIDlet Manager gives you the flexibility of installing and managing additional J2ME applications from the Internet.

ZIP:

This feature allows you to save memory and increase the storage capacity of your device by compressing files in the conventional ZIP format. You can view and extract archive files received from various sources. You can also create new *.zip files on your device.

HTC P3600 Review – In the Box

When you purchase the HTC P3600 pocket pc phone you can expect to find the following items ‘in the box’:

1. HTC P3600 Pocket PC Device
2. HTC P3600 Leather Case

3. HTC P3600 Charger

4. HTC P3600 headset

5. HTC P3600 Stylus

The car charger is not included ‘in the box’ when you purchase the HTC P3600 pocket pc.

HTC P3600 Review – Performance

The device has a Samsung SC32442A processor running at 400 MHz. The Samsung is a very powerful processor and that enables applications to run smooth and without problems. The device can be used to run very demanding applications (like Skype) and Games with out any problems. The reception and voice quality during calls is also very good. The processor used on the HTC P3600 is the same as the processor used on HTC TyTN.

The battery lifetime can last up to 2 days, normal use. This of course can vary depending on the use of wi-fi, Bluetooth and 3G.

Overall we like the HTC P3600 because it is a device that can satisfy the demanding pocket pc user. The present of the Jog Wheel can make the device truly used using only one hand, the design is very good and the performance is excellent. The HTC P3600 is the physical successor of I-mate JAM and JAMin and if you decide to purchase one we are sure that it will keep you satisfied for a long time. As you can see from the image on left the HTC P3600 has a size identical to the i-mate JAM with a very similar design.

HTC P3600 Specifications

Specifications at a glace

As you can see from the table below the HTC P3600 specifications are very good. The device has a powerfull Smasung processor at 400 MHZ with 128 MB of ROM and 64 MB RAM. The expansion slot of this device is a miniSD card. This is much more better than the MicroSD slots you can see on other devices. The MiniSD cards are not only cheaper but they also have a bigger capacity. In terms of phone network support the HTC P3600 is Quad Band GSM and Tri-Band HSPDA/UMTS. Besides the support for bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi the HTC P3600 also has an Infrared Port.

Features Comparison of HTC P3300 and HTC P3600

Design:

As mentioned above both the HTC P3300 and HTC P3600 share a compact and stylish design. The HTC P3300 measures 108mm x 58mm x 16.8mm and the HTC P3600 has the same height and width but it is about 2 millimeters thicker (108mm x 58.2mm x 18.4mm). The weight of HTC P3300 is 130g and of HTC P3600 150g. The display of both devices is 2.8” transflective TFT-LCD, 240 x 320 with 64K colors.
The ergonomics of HTC P3300 and HTC P3600 is different, the major difference being the presence of the HTC RollR (Track ball and track wheel) on the HTC P3300 and the existence of 5-way Navigation Control and Jog Wheel on the HTC P3600. Having tried both devices, we can say that the 5-way navigation control and Jog Wheel on the HTC P3600 is much more user friendly and helpful than the HTC RollR on the HTC P3300. With the HTC RollR you sometimes get the feeling that the roll is too loose or even broken and that makes your navigation experience a bit frustrating. On the other hand the Jog Wheel and the 5-way navigation control on the HTC P3600 is a very reliable way of navigating though the device menus using only one hand. It is the best combination of navigation controls we have seen so far on a pocket pc device.

Processor:

The processing power of these pocket pc phones is another major difference. The HTC P3300 is equipped with a TI OMAP™ 850 processor running at 201 MHz and the HTC P3600 is equipped with a Samsung® SC32442A processor 400 MHz. The difference between the processing power and performance of the two processors is noticeable with the Samsung being more efficient and faster. This does not mean that the performance of TI OMAP is bad; simply it means that the HTC P3600 is faster. On our review of HTC P3300 we noted that the device is not recommended for demanding pocket pc users who want the fastest possible pocket pc but is enough and good for the average pocket pc user. It can run most of the applications without problems. On the other hand the HTC P3600 is a fast pocket pc which can satisfy the most demanding users.

Memory and Expansion:

The memory for both devices is the ‘standard’ in our days 128 MB ROM and 64 MB RAM but the expansion slot is different. The HTC P3300 has a microSD slot and the HTC P3600 has a miniSD expansion slot. In general the miniSD is preferable because the price of buying one is cheaper and currently is has more capacity than the microSD cards.

Phone Network Support and Connectivity Features:

Another major difference of HTC P3300 and HTC P3600 can be found in the network and connectivity features. In simple terms the HTC P3300 has a built in GPS receiver and the HTC P3600 does not, and on the other side the HTC P3600 has support for 3G while the HTC P3300 does not support 3G. Both devices have Quad band support for GSM/GPRS/EDGE and in addition the HTC P3600 has also support for Tri-band HSDPA/UMTS 2100 (EU), 850/1900 (US).

There is built-in Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g and Bluetooth 2.0 on both devices and infrared for HTC P3600 only.

The HTC P3300 also has an FM Radio while the HTC P3600 does not.
Camera and Applications:

There is a 2 mega-pixel camera on both devices. The camera is located on the back of the device. The HTC P3600 also has an extra VGA camera on the front that is used for Video Calling and for taking self portrait pictures.

Click here for the HTC P3600 image Gallery
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