HTC Touch Diamond 2

The 512MB of on-board memory is twice as big as the original Diamond's but still won't support much of a library. Fortunately, there's a microSD slot under the cover which can handle cards of up to 16GB in capacity, though HTC doesn't include one to get you started.

Stacks of features - and compact too

Other extras include GPS supported by Google Maps - Streetview looks great on the Diamond 2's screen - and Office Mobile for creating and reading Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents. This being a Windows Mobile device there are, of course, lots of additional third-party apps available, including games which make use of the phone's accelerometer, so you can control them by twisting the handset.

The battery has been improved since last time too – it's physically bigger than the one in the HTC Touch Diamond and though the phone's specs only promise an extra ten minutes of talk time, in use we found that it lasted a good day or so longer than the first Diamond did – around three days of moderate use rather than two. Call quality remained decent too.

Verdict

The Touch Diamond 2 is the best all-rounder in the HTC canon so far. The screen is gorgeous, the browser excellent, connectivity is as good as it gets and the 5Mp camera is better than any we've yet seen from HTC. It has all the versatility options of Windows Mobile - plus the option to upgrade to version 6.5 later this year - without the disadvantages, since the TouchFlo 3D UI means you rarely need to look at the OS directly.

In short, it's a great little do-it-all handset and the best alternative to the iPhone currently available. ®

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