HTC’s product pipeline is nice and leaky these days. And, that’s just the way we like it. There’s nothing a little grass-roots promotion to help push an upcoming handset to the limits of its sales-envelope. Without product leaks, we wouldn’t be able to tell you that we’ve been expecting HTC’s announcement for a mid-range HTC Touch successor to the original HTC Touch smartphone, and that today’s announcement comes with little surprise.
The HTC Touch Opal, which we recently saw posted online, will apparently launch as the HTC Touch Viva – a decidedly down-range sibling to the HTC Touch HD, HTC Touch Diamond, and HTC Touch Pro. And, as the spiritual successor to the HTC Touch, the HTC Touch Viva (Opal) will sport much of the HTC Touch’s original feature-set.
That means the HTC Touch Viva will be rocking the same 2.8-inch QVGA display that will easily pale in comparison to the HTC Touch HD’s gorgeous 3.8-inch WVGA touchscreen. The HTC Touch Viva runs a TI OMAP processor clocked at 201Mhz, and boasts a respectable 256 MB ROM and 128 MB RAM that will power the HTC TouchFLO (not 3D) UI riding atop the Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional platform.
A 2 megapixel camera, aGPS, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, and microSD card slot ensure that the HTC Touch Viva will still be able to bring a full-featured multimedia smartphone to the mid-range market. Consumers not wanting to break the bank for the latest and greatest from HTC won’t have to skimp on features that were just last year considered “high-end.”
But, when it comes to wireless data connectivity, the HTC Touch Viva will be limited to EDGE-only data speeds. The quad-band (850/900/1800/1900Mhz) GSM radio will be capable of EDGE speeds around the world (if an EDGE network is available, otherwise GPRS is as good as it gets). As far as the 2.8-inch touchscreen, HTC will be carrying over their recessed touchscreen design from the original HTC Touch. As a lower-end – HTC calls it “affordable” – handset, the HTC Viva won’t sport the HTC Touch 3D interface and flush-mounted touchscreen seen in the company’s higher-end smartphones. Still, you get one heck of a phone for your buck.
Look for the HTC Touch Viva to launch in October 2008 in the Storm Gray that you see pictured here.
Here’s a rundown of the HTC Touch Viva’s feature-set:
HTC Touch Viva
- Size: 104.5 x 59 x 15.75 mm
- Weight: 110g
- Connectivity: GSM/EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
- Software/Operating system: HTC TouchFLO with Windows Mobile® 6.1 Professional
- Display: 2.8 inch QVGA screen
- Camera: 2 megapixel
- Internal memory: 256 MB flash; 128 MB RAM
- Memory card: microSD™
- WLAN: 802.11 b/g
- Bluetooth®: 2.0 with EDR
- GPS: GPS/AGPS
- Interface: HTC ExtUSB™ (mini-USB and audio jack in one; USB 2.0 High-Speed)
- Battery: 1100 mAh
- Talk time: GSM: Up to 480 minutes***
- Standby time: GSM: Up to 270 hours***
- Chipset: TI OMAP 850, 201 MHz