GADGET REVIEW: HTC FUZE FROM AT&T

The last 4 weeks I’ve had the opportunity to test out the AT&T HTC Fuze. The smartphone runs Windows Mobile 6.1 as its OS and is skinned with HTC’s propriety TouchFlo. It’s a touchscreen device (no multigesture) and includes a magnetic clipping stylus for traversing the phones menus. Keep in mind that I’m an iPhone user, so as you can imagine there is a constant comparison between the two. I’ve used one other Windows Mobile phone, specifically the Blackjack, and although I enjoyed its versatility post Sony Ericsson S710, I can’t say I was pleased with the device.

The Fuze’ screen is bright and easy to read. All things considered, it’s a bit on the small side (2.8-inch) considering the phones overall weight (5.82oz) and thickness (.71-inches). But within that frame they’ve managed to pack in 480×640 pixels and 262k color. Although a finger can be used to navigate the phone’s endless array of menus (that’s Windows Mobile 6 for you) there’s a good reason they tossed in a stylus: the touchscreen can be a bit finicky and requires pinpoint pressure (not accuracy) to get it to react. Surfing the Net on the phone’s screen can be a bit challenging given it’s small size and high pixel count, but with some acclimation it should serve its purpose sufficiently. During my testing I noticed that some websites, such as GadgetReview got all squished together. Apparently that issue can be remedied through a small tweak that I didn’t pursue.

Unlike the HTC Touch Diamond, the Fuze includes a QWERTY keyboard, which can be revealed by sliding the screen up in landscape mode. As you’d expect, the phone’s screen adjusts to ‘landscape mode’ as soon as this action is performed. It’s a tad slow to react to this command but good enough for the day-to-day user. My major gripe with the sliding screen design is that the volume up/down keys and the PTT button are placed on on the same side of the screen from where one pushes it open. So if you’re not tightly griping the phone from both sides and adjust the volume, or start a ‘push to talk’ conversation the screen will move ever so slightly. This didn’t prove bothersome during my testing, but for the heavy PTT user it might be a bit annoying.

The tactile and real keyboard is a total step backwards for me in light of my iPhone use. With that said, I had no problems knocking out a text or punching in a website URL. I probably wouldn’t want to knock out a novel on it, but then again who would on any phone’s keyboard. They’ve included dedicated IM, SMS, Email, Web broswer (Opera mobile is the default) and a calendar button which is a nice touch and makes jumping around the phone while in landscape mode much more efficient. What I found particularly frustrating and rather cryptic was the ‘ok’ button, which serves as a ‘step back’ button.

Windows Mobile 6.1. Errr, the frustration. I hate the OS, so you can either side with me, make some concessions or take the following with a grain of salt. Windows Mobile has to be the most complicated mobile OS ever known to man. Setting up WiFi on the Fuze practically required a dictionary for all the security terms I was prompted with, and I’m no stranger to setting up a router. Nonetheless, after some process of elimination I got the Fuze on my home’s network but given the rather simplistic approach of the iPhone’s WiFi setup the Fuze could be perceived as a Rubics Cube. Fortunately, HTC’s TouchFlo menus pick up where Windows Mobile falls off, well, sort of. TouchFlo includes your basics, such as contacts, calendar, IMs, texts, weather (this is really nice looking), AT&T services and Internet. While the TouchFlo does bring simplicity to Windows Mobile it is in addition or redundant to the OS, which may confuse some.

As already mentioned the Fuze includes a hidden full QWERTY keyboard. While the screen is closed you’ll depend on 4 hard keys: home, back, phone answer and phone end. Accessing the phone function, which just requires a push of the phone answer button, was a bit allusive since there’s no dedicated keypad. Alternatively, you can access the phone’s Windows Mobile contact list from the home screen.

If you’re lucky enough to be on a PC, transferring contacts to the Fuze should be a breeze. If you’re like me, and own a Mac, you’ll be thoroughly frustrated since the Apple’s Sync program is not compatible with the Fuze, or probably any Window’s mobile phone.

Since the Fuze is intended for the road warrior, or person requiring a vast amount of versatility, I tested out the GPS functionality. The phone requires that you download the AT&T navigator program. Although I didn’t run through every possible function I did attempt to travel from point A to point B. The Fuze located me, which took about 5 minutes, but for some odd reason didn’t provide me with turn-by-turn navigation. I don’t doubt that through some tweaking and patience that the GPS could prove helpful, but for those looking for an easy out of the box experience you’ll need to look somewhere else or purchase more robust software.

As with many of today’s smartphones, the Fuze is able to playback a wide variety of media, which includes MP3, AAC, eAAC, EAAC, WMA and WAV files. Unfortunately, you’ll be toting around a headphone dongle if you make any attempts to listen to such files since the Fuze not only lacks a 3.5mm headphone jack, but a 2.5mm headphone jack. An egregious and detrimental mistake which limits the marketability of the Fuze. Of note, the Fuze only features 512MB of storage space, which can be easily expanded to the 32GB thanks to the microSD card slot hidden, yes hidden, behind the battery cover.

In conclusion, the Fuze’s drawbacks far outweigh its benefits. My assessment, as prefaced in this review, is most certainly skewed thanks to my passionate love affair with my Gen 1 iPhone. The battery life on the Fuze is substantial, 4-5 days on standby, but should be expected given is relatively thick and heavy size. The screen isn’t tiny, but jamming that many pixels in such a small space means a bit too much squinting for my comfort. The placement of the PTT and volume buttons isn’t bothersome to me, but over time could prove annoying to the long term, every day user. The lag experienced while navigating from application to application also proved annoying and anyone looking for a crisp and fast response will be sorely disappointed. I hate to say it, but I’d all together pass on the Fuze.

Pros

High rez screen and bright colors Full QWERTY keyboard HTC TouchFLO adds some simplicity A wide array of options and features
Cons

Screen small for such a high rez Slow processor makes phone laggy Touchscreen requires pinpoint pressure No 3.5mm or 2.5mm headphone jack

The HTC Fuze is available here for $150 after a two year contract signing and $50 mail-in-rebate

Posted in: Gadget Review