The HTC S710 was a handset that I can honestly say I was
excited to test. That doesn't happen very often, but the combination of Windows
Mobile 6 Standard, a regular phone keypad, and a slide out QWERTY keyboard was
very enticing to me. Sliding QWERTY keyboards are not something new to the
Windows Mobile world, especially to HTC, but no other handset thus far has
combined the two in a smartphone, though the Helio Ocean claims the honor of
being first such handset to market. Despite not being first overall, the S710 is
still the first to do it with Windows Mobile 6 Standard, and currently is the
only such device on offer.
Physical Aspects
I was surprised by the size of the HTC S710 when I unpacked
it. Surprised in a good way, that is, as the device is much smaller than it
appears to be in photos. While the hidden QWERTY keyboard does add a little
thickness to the device, the S710 is hardly bigger than any other normal
handset, smartphone or otherwise.
The front of the handset features a silver numeric keypad, a
four-way directional pad, and two softkeys, with the send/end, home, and back
keys clad in chrome that extends up around the edges of the display. The sides
and back of the device feature the soft-touch rubber compound that we love so
much around here, with a small silver inset holding the camera and self portrait
mirror on the back of the handset. The speaker grille is located next to the
camera.
A power button can be found on the top of the device, the
camera shortcut key on the right, and the volume and voice memo buttons on the
left. An extUSB jack, an HTC version of microUSB used for charging, data
connections, and headsets, is on the bottom, and a microSD memory card slot is
on the right of the device, each protected by the best little rubber covers I
have seen. The covers are robust, yet easy to remove. The positioning of the
microSD slot on the top portion of the slide did make it a little hard to put a
card in though, as you need to hold the device closed in order to apply the
force necessary to insert the card. The SIM card slot can be found on the back
of the top portion of the handset, and can be accessed by sliding the device
open and unclipping a small door. Quality abounds here.
But sliding open the HTC S710 gives access to a far more
interesting feature: the QWERTY keyboard. The slide mechanism is solid and
wobble free, but unfortunately, while the keyboard is one of the more exciting
things about the S710, it is also an aspect that lets it down. The keyboard is
of a good size and the keys have adequate space around them, but tactile
feedback is lacking, to say the least. It is useable for short periods of time,
but the firm keys mean that fatigue comes quickly, and despite lots of practice,
the middle row of the keyboard seemed just a little out of place to me.
Thankfully, for the short periods that I could use the keyboard without getting
sore fingers, I was able to type at a respectable pace. The softkeys available
at the top of the keyboard were bothersome; positioned far too close to the
upper part of the slide, they were difficult to press and rather inconvenient.
Forgetting about the QWERTY keyboard for a moment, the bread
and butter of the device is the standard numeric keypad. This entry method,
despite a small manufacturing defect in our unit, was a pleasant surprise. The
keys had fantastic tactile feedback, a good travel distance, and despite
appearing small and cramped, were very easy to find and use. Unfortunately the
d-pad did not yield as good of an experience, as its small pressure points
caused me to hit the wrong direction regularly. The home, back, end, and send
keys were large and easy to use.
Looking above the keypad, a large 2.4" QVGA resolution
display that defies the 101mm x 50mm x 8mm (4.0" x 2.0" x 0.7") size of the S710
can be found. This display is larger than what is found on many PDA phone
devices, and makes using the handset an absolute pleasure. I am a sucker for a
large screen, and this display was fantastic from every angle, especially when
use in a landscape orientation. It was even easy to see in sunlight, something
that can't be said about most screens.
Above the display, in the crevice around the earpiece, are
two small status LED lights. These blink in different colors and patterns to
indicate WiFi and Bluetooth status, new messages, and other similar events.
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
Core Functions
The good thing about Windows Mobile Standard devices is that
they still keep a focus on being a good phone, not just a data-centric device.
The HTC S710 is no exception to this, and delivered great audio quality all
round. Incoming audio came in very clear and crisp, though a little low in
volume, and outgoing quality was even better. Apart from the volume issue, there
is nothing that I, nor anyone I called, could say against the quality exhibited
by the S710. Even in noisy environments, users on the other end of the line were
able to hear me clearly.
Continuing this trend, the speakerphone functionality from
the HTC S710 was the best I have ever used - bar none. Loud, clear, and
sensitive are words that could all be associated with the speakerphone, and it
is the first device that I have used where called parties could not discern that
I was using a speakerphone, rather than holding the phone to my face. The HTC
S710 is also the first phone I have used that didn't make me feel that I needed
to shout in order for the speakerphone to pick up my voice.
The HTC S710's quad-band GSM radio was flawless, and I really
have nothing to report about it except for the fact that I didn't notice it on
anything less than full signal the whole time I had it. Admittedly, I have quite
good signal strength where I am, but when tested across three different carriers
the same results were found. No dropped calls were experienced, and the only bad
point about the S710's reception was the occasional digital noise coming through
the earpiece during a call.
In general, smartphone devices have far worse battery life
than their less intelligent feature phone cousins, with Windows Mobile devices
being some of the worst offenders. In spite of that, I was truly surprised to
find that the S710's battery performance was well above average for a device of
its class, with heavy usage yielding up to three days between charges. If one
was to use WiFi and Bluetooth less than I do, you could quite possibly go four
days or more without a recharge. Coming off the Nokia N95 that I generally use,
this is a breath of fresh air. Frequent travelers will appreciate this aspect of
the S710 perhaps more than even the quad-band GSM radio. Part of this good
battery life result can be attributed to the HTC S710's lack of 3G support, but
for users in many parts of the world, especially North America, this will be an
easy trade off.
Windows Mobile 6 has good support for profiles, with five
available for use and full customization. Each profile can have differing
ringing and vibration settings, volumes, alarm types, reminder types,
notification types, and settings for system sounds, meaning that every type of
sound emitted from the device can be tailored for each situation. Unfortunately,
you can't actually assign different ringtones to the various profiles, only the
ringtone volume, and, unless I am missing something, there is no support for
timed profiles paired with your calendar in the device. Profiles can be switched
straight from the home screen, though.
Like any Windows Mobile device, and indeed any smartphone
should have, the HTC S710 has great support for contact management. A vast array
of data can be stored in each contact - anything that can be stored in Outlook
on a PC. In addition to regular information fields, each contact can also have a
custom ringtone and a photo assigned to it to allow you to easily identify
incoming callers. Windows Mobile 6 also has the best contact search mechanism to
appear on a handset - from the home screen, you only need to start typing the
name of your contact using the xT9 predictive text system to see the contacts
list pop up and start narrowing down results. This zero-click access to your
contact list is a very welcome feature.
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
HTC S710
Of course the HTC S710 is also a messaging device, and at
this task the handset really shines, especially when used in conjunction with an
Exchange server. One of the most sought-after improvements in Windows Mobile 6
is its ability to display HTML formatted email, and, in my experience, this
works quite well. Inline images still cause issues for the system, but text
formatting is handled well. To me, this isn't really an improvement though, as
the crazy colors and fonts that some people use in HTML email are not welcome on
a mobile device. I would much prefer the device plainly format the text in order
to provide greater readability.
One update to the messaging system that I welcome, however,
is the ability to search folders on a Microsoft Exchange server. Messages do not
need to be downloaded to the device before searching, but will only be fetched
when accessed through the search results. This brings much needed mobile
accessibility to the S710. Simple number shortcuts to common functions like
reply and forward are also very handy, though for new users they will be a
little difficult to remember.
Text messages and emails are composed in similar screens, and
really couldn't be simpler to use. Adding recipients involves clicking on the To
field and then typing the name of your contact, which is a little counter
intuitive compared to Windows Mobile 6 Professional and Nokia's S60 way of just
typing letters in to the field to match contacts. MMS messages are also easily
composed using simple options to control the content and settings of slides.
Media can be attached through an informative browser application.
Instant messaging is provided by the integrated Windows Live
Messenger application. Those seeking compatibility with other IM systems will
have to look to third party developers. Fans of Microsoft's system will be happy
though, as the experience is fantastic, and the QWERTY keyboard and landscape
screen are put to good use.
If there was one thing bad that could be said about the HTC
S710, it is its lack of any form of 3G connectivity. Thankfully, GPRS/EDGE is
present, as is WiFi and Bluetooth, and I am happy to report that these methods
worked perfectly. HTC bundles its Connectivity Manager application with the
S710, which is accessible from the home screen, and provides easy shortcuts to
turn all connectivity methods on or off and to enter flight mode. This
application also gives easy access to the built-in Windows Mobile configuration
screens for the connectivity methods.
Bluetooth worked perfectly for wireless ActiveSync, file
transfers, headset usage, and when using the device as a modem for my notebook
computer. The only complaint I have about WiFi is the lack of copy-and-paste for
inputting access keys; though this isn't a complaint about the WiFi system but
rather about the OS itself. Connecting to my home access point with WPA
encryption was flawless once the key was in. The HTC S710 also includes Windows
Mobile 6's new Internet Sharing application to greatly simplify using the device
as a wireless modem for a PC over USB or Bluetooth, though this is likely to be
disabled by some carriers if the S710 is bought under contract.
HTC S710
HTC S710 and T-Mobile Wing
HTC S710 and T-Mobile Wing
Multimedia / Applications
A 2.0MP camera takes pride of place on the back of the HTC
S710, and although it is a non-auto focus unit, it takes pretty good photos.
Unfortunately, I was unable to test the camera's performance in full sunlight,
as the whole time I was testing the device it was pouring with rain in my part
of the world. On the plus side, the camera put up a good performance for indoors
and overcast testing, producing good colors and only slightly grainy photos. I
would imagine that the device's performance in good lighting would be as good or
better than this.
The camera's user interface is always in a portrait
orientation, displaying indicator icons both top and bottom for the currently
selected settings. The device uses a nice tabbed menu system for the camera, and
allows tweaking of settings like white balance, effects, and quality levels.
Flicker and contrast adjustments are also present, as are additional settings
like a self-timer and shutter sound. Resolution settings from 1200x1600 down to
120x160 for photos and 176x144 or 128x96 pixels for videos can be chosen, and
videos can be captured in MPEG4, H.263, or Motion JPEG formats. I was quite
impressed with the level of options in the camera application considering the
device is obviously not aimed at the photography enthusiast. A simple photo and
video viewer application is available for viewing your media that allows
browsing by thumbnails and viewing photos in a slide show.
Web browsing on the HTC S710 is a hit and miss affair. I have
never been a fan of Pocket Internet Explorer, but it does provide an adequate
way to browse simple websites over WiFi or EDGE. The same one column, fit to
screen, and desktop views are present from Windows Mobile 5, as is a text size
control and the ability to disable images. That is about all though, and Pocket
IE still lags far behind Nokia's S60 browser and seems even more archaic
considering the standard set by the Apple iPhone's built-in Safari browser. If
you are looking for a good experience browsing websites from your S710, I would
recommend looking to third party solutions.
Just to be different, the HTC S710 comes with two separate
media players. The built-in Windows Media Player 10 Mobile will fit most
people's needs for both a video and audio player, but the typically restrictive
codec support appears again in this latest Windows Mobile. DRM protected music
can be synced using Windows Media Player on a PC, with all media on the device
searched for and indexed using metadata like Artist, Album, and Genre. While
Windows Media Player can create playlists, the device's other media player,
HTC's own Audio Manager application, makes the process far more intuitive while
mimicking the best of Windows Media Player's other organizational capabilities.
Unfortunately, as you might have guessed from the name, Audio Manager can only
play audio, so you are still stuck with Windows Media Player for watching video.
On the plus side, audio quality out of either media player is more than adequate
for a business-focused smartphone, though the lack of a 3.5mm or even 2.5mm
headset jack means you are stuck with HTC's extUSB headset unless you purchase
an additional adapter.
HTC S710 Camera Sample
HTC S710 Camera Sample
HTC S710 Camera Sample
HTC S710 Camera Sample
HTC S710 Camera Sample
For owners of the HTC S710, media playback is probably going
to be low on the list of necessities. Higher on the list would be personal
information management features, and for such things the S710 shines. The
regular set of Windows Mobile 6 PIM applications has not been tampered with,
leaving you with a great calendar and task list. While differences between
applications in Windows Mobile 5 and 6 have been kept to a minimum, a new
'ribbon' can be found on the top of the agenda view of the calendar, giving you
a quick graphical overview of your appointments and free time for the day.
Calendar items can have repetition options, statuses, sensitivity levels, and
notes. New to Windows Mobile 6 is the ability to send appointment requests and
acknowledgements over an Exchange server. The task list application is just as
handy, with the device syncing all information from Outlook or Exchange,
including categories, notes, and reminders.
Home Screen
Home Screen (Landscape)
Calendar with Ribbon
Wireless Manager
Calculator
Audio Manager
One of the things that Windows Mobile 6 Standard has over
Windows Mobile 5 for Smartphones is the ability to both view and edit Microsoft
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files. The editing capabilities are fairly
rudimentary, but any editing is a step up from the read-only smartphone versions
of Windows Mobile 5, and the QWERTY keyboard works very well in Word. Strangely,
despite being able to edit existing files, the user is unable to create new
ones, which seems like an oversight. Adobe Reader LE is also pre-installed to
view PDF documents, and a much-improved Calculator application rounds out the
office application list.
Other applications of note preinstalled on the HTC S710
include Esmertec's Java MIDlet manager for running third party Java
applications, the Bluetooth Explorer for browsing Bluetooth devices remotely,
Quick Notes, and a Task Manger for viewing currently running applications and
closing them as necessary. Bubble Breaker and Solitaire are also present for a
bit of mobile gaming, and all of this fits into 58MB of storage memory, of which
51.5MB is available to the user upon a fresh boot. For running applications,
49MB of RAM is available to the device.
HTC S710
HTC S710
User Interface
Windows Mobile 6 is more of an incremental update to Windows
Mobile 5, rather than a complete overhaul. The same basic menu system and look
remains, though visual tweaks make the experience much nicer. The whole system
looks a little more modernized, though I still believe that other smartphone
operating systems look far nicer and even work better in many cases.
All the basic menu systems from Windows Mobile 5 remain in
place, though everything seems just that little bit more organized. The Home
screen is basically the same as that seen in the previous version, showing a
list of recently accessed applications, wireless status, time, upcoming calendar
appointments, the active profile, and message status out of the box. Each of
these items can be clicked on to bring the user to the associated application,
and different Today screen themes can be activated to show different information
depending on what you care about. The S710 comes with several Today screens for
you to choose from.
The main menu, or Start menu in Windows Mobile terms, shows
icons in a three-by-three format and is thankfully now scrollable instead of
having to go through the menu page by page. Speed dials and voice tags can be
assigned to each application, and the numeric keypad is linked to each menu
item. Most menus beyond the Start menu are list-based, with the right softkey
generally bringing up a popup list of options for the current screen, and the
left confirming selections. The back key is available, but introduces a little
inconsistency in the system. For example, the back key will generally bring you
back a level in the currently running application, but due to the multitasking
nature of WM6, if you start an application from the Start menu that is already
running then immediately press the back key, it will still take you back to the
previous menu in the application. In use, the expected function of doing this
would be to take you back to the start menu, as that is the screen that the user
was previously on. The back key is also used for backspace in a text entry
screen, and will not bring the user to the previous screen when pressed;
instead, the user will have to use an option from the right softkey.
Theme support is limited largely to changing the color scheme
of the device, but coupled with the ability to change the Home screen themes,
this gives adequate options to set up the handset the way you please. No matter
what themes you select, menu response times are the same. With the HTC S710's
200MHz processor, menus are not that fast. Despite Windows Mobile 6 adding a
little more attractiveness to the UI, the S710 is not any slower than Windows
Mobile 5 devices running the same processor. Sliding out the keyboard causes a
two or so second delay before the screen switches to landscape orientation, and
while this is noticeable, it isn't unacceptable, and can be reduced by turning
off the sound effect associated with the sliding process.
HTC S710
HTC S710
Conclusion
Even if nothing else can be said about the HTC S710, the
device still has one distinct advantage over most Windows Mobile smartphones: if
you are looking for a device with a sliding QWERTY keyboard, there really is no
competition at the moment. Thankfully, HTC has not rested on its laurels and has
instead produced a device that, while making a few mistakes, is overall
wonderful to use.
While the keyboard could do with a little tweaking, and the
lack of 3G data is surely a disappointment, almost every other facet of the S710
is marvelous. The large screen, sturdy construction, and above average numeric
keypad help boost its rating, and the inclusion of a half decent camera and
other media functionality is a boon. For a device like this, WiFi is almost a
must, and with the exception of having to type your security key, the HTC S710
pulls it off like a champ.
After using the HTC S710, I can honestly say that there isn't
anything about the device that is a deal breaker. I would suggest trialing the
keyboard before laying down your hard-earned money on the device, but otherwise
I would recommend this over any other non-touchscreen Windows Mobile device.
When all is said and done, the S710 is a wonderful device, and even if there was
competition for it right now, I think it would still be deserving of our highest
rating.
