HTC scored a hit with the Android-powered myTouch 3G when it was launched by T-Mobile USA in July last year. Now the Taiwanese smartphone maker has followed up with the myTouch 3G Slide which features a slide-out mini-Qwerty keyboard and the curiously named ‘Genius Button’ on the front of the handset.
Pressing the Genius Button enables users to use voice commands to control the phone and its features including making calls, composing and sending texts and e-mails or searching for a nearby restaurant. It will also read text messages aloud, and lets users dictate and send responses.
I must admit I was pretty dubious about whether a mobile handset had the processing power to deliver accurate results in voice command modes. But I was presently surprised. The feature, which is powered by Dragon Dictation from Nuance Communications, the voice technology market leader, seems to work pretty well and, like PC-based voice recognition packages, improves its accuracy with usage.
Other new features include a ‘Faves Gallery’ which integrates calls, texts, e-mail, instant messaging, social networking updates from up to 20 of your favourite contacts in a dedicated application accessible through a soft button and a screen-based widget complete with photos, contact information and one-touch ability to respond.
Even if you’re not using your phone, a custom green light lets you know you’ve got a communication waiting from one of your favourite people.
I also like the handset’s ‘myModes’ feature that enables users to switch between up to 10 customised modes by creating different themes including home screen apps, widgets and wallpapers depending on the mode selected. So for example, you could create a work mode, a home mode and an in-transit mode for when you are travelling between home and office.
Users can switch modes manually or automatically at a designated time or when the GPS-enabled handset detects a changed location.
The myTouch 3G Slide will be available exclusively from T-Mobile USA next month and takes advantage of the US carrier’s upgraded HSPA 7.2 network. It runs Android 2.1, comes with a 3.4-inch touch screen, an integrated 5Mp digital camera and a pre-installed 8Gb microSD card.
