Posted by Matthew Miller @ 9:04 pm
Categories: HTC, Microsoft, Review, T-Mobile, Windows Mobile
Tags: T-Mobile, T-Mobile Dash, Dash 3G, 3G, Keyboards, Smart Phones, Cellular Phones, GPS, Wireless And Mobility, Handhelds
This summer is a blockbuster season for touchscreen smartphones with the Palm Pre, iPhone 3GS, Nokia N97, HTC TouchPro2, and T-Mobile myPhone. However, not everyone is crazy about touchscreen devices and they just want a solid smartphone that gets the job done in a compact form factor that is easily operated with a single hand. One of the hottest selling smartphones ever for T-Mobile has been the T-Mobile Dash. I personally used this device for about a year and have given out a couple I had to family and coworkers who still enjoy using the Dash today. T-Mobile announced the Dash 3G a couple weeks ago and I have had the chance to spend the last week and a half evaluating one of them. Actually, T-Mobile may have a tough time getting this review unit back anytime soon 
You can check out product images and software screenshots in my image gallery along with a short video of it in action and my thoughts on the device below.
The T-Mobile Dash was an almost perfect non-touchscreen smartphone with a long lasting battery, bright display, very functional keyboard, compact form factor, rock solid stability, excellent functionality as a one-handed device, and relatively low price. I know several other mobile enthusiasts that thoroughly enjoyed using the Dash even though they could use just about any other mobile device if they wanted to. I found the Dash just needed a few more things to make it an even better device, including support for 3G data networks, GPS integration, and a better camera, and I thought we lost our chance of ever seeing this upgraded model when HTC and others started focusing primarily on touchscreen devices.
Many of the people I interact with as part of the Mobius group also enjoyed using the T-Mobile Dash and we asked about this device just about every time we met with HTC. I was very pleased to hear that HTC listened and took our feedback as they created a very nice successor to the Dash with the Dash 3G. I am most likely going to have to pick one up when they become available and I am sure my wife will be taking it from me as soon as she gets a hold of that keyboard.
As I will discuss in detail, the T-Mobile Dash 3G steps up in a couple of ways and is an even better product than the T-Mobile Dash. You now get support for T-Mobile’s fledgling 3G network, the processor sees a major bump in performance, the battery gets bumped up, and a GPS receiver is included in the device. The form factor is very similar, but HTC actually significantly improved the QWERTY keyboard. The T-Mobile Dash 3G isn’t the most powerful Windows Mobile device, but that is not what it is designed to be and given the intended customer it is just about a perfect upgrade to the Dash.
Specifications
Here is a rundown of the specifications of the T-Mobile Dash 3G, with a list of the differences between it and the T-Mobile Dash shown below:
