HTC shows its business Touch

HTC has launched the latest in its range of keyboard-equipped handsets for enterprise users.

On Wednesday the company unveiled the HTC Touch Pro, an own-branded Windows Mobile 6.1 device that has already surfaced as the T-Mobile MDA Vario IV. It is very similar to the recently released Touch Diamond handset, with the main differences being the added keyboard, more RAM and better battery life. The Diamond is being touted for high-end consumers, while the Pro is plainly a business device.

Peter Chou, HTC's president and chief executive, said in a statement: "The HTC Touch Pro and Touch Diamond have created a new generation of HTC touch devices that make the promise of the one-hand, one-touch mobile internet a reality."

The dimensions of the Touch Pro are, when viewed from the front of the device, exactly the same as the Touch Diamond. Because of the keyboard, though, the Pro is 6.7mm thicker. At 165g, it is also 55g heavier than the Diamond. The Pro lacks the Diamond's 4GB of internal storage but has microSD expandability, which the Diamond does not.

Both the Diamond and Pro use the same 3.2 megapixel camera, FM radio, GPS and VGA-resolution touchscreen. They also both use HTC's flashy TouchFLO 3D interface, and offer 7.2Mbps HSDPA connectivity.

Like the Diamond, the Touch Pro uses Opera as its browser rather than Internet Explorer Mobile - an event that came about because Microsoft released Windows Mobile 6.1 before it released Internet Explorer Mobile 6, which is expected to reach the rendering level that Opera already achieves.

The handset should become available in late summer, according to HTC.

Original article: HTC launches business-friendly Touch handset from ZDNet UK