O2 Xda Trion Review

O2 have now expanded the popular Xda range with the release of the Xda Trion, which in effect is the replacement for the Xda MiniS. The Trion serves to continue the relationship between O2 Europe and HTC as this is therefore a badged and remodeled HTC Hermes. Will the Trion measure up to the standard and usability of the MiniS? Read on and find out!

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Note all images are thumbnails which may be clicked upon to view a full size photo.

Our thanks go to O2 for providing the review machine and allowing us to out it through its paces.

The Trion continues to offer the PDA owner the benefits of the MiniS style machine with on board functionality being

Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
Mobile (cell) Phone
Camera
Push E-mail
Slide out keyboard

but with the addition of:

3G connectivity
Video calling
Updated camera with digital zoom
Additional control buttons
Improved keyboard
Jog wheel
Improved cursor pad
Updated operating system - Windows Mobile 5

We will investigate each part of the machine in detail to see if indeed this is a worthy update on the MiniS design.

In the box The review machine provided to 4WM is a pre-release model and therefore the items provided with the machine will only be sub-set of the final retail package. The Trion came with: The Xda Trion itself Headset PC USB Sync cable Mains power charging cable

The final retail model will probably include a copy of Outlook 2002 as well as a companion CD containing free software, ActiveSync 4.x and the user manuals. It is not likely that a 'slip-case' will be supplied as the trend these days on this type of device is not to provide any protective casing. On first opening the box it is evident that some goodly amount of styling has been applied to the machine. Although this is not a custom housing, as with the Cruiser casing on the Xda Orbit, the machine looks pleasant and harmonious with a fair bit of style thrown in too. There are no sharp edges which may make the device feel uncomfortable in the hand. What I find surprising is the weight; it feels quite heavy when first picked up. The Trion weighs in at 176 grams which is a noticeable increase after the 127 grams of the Orbit (which has been my 'daily use' machine). In colour the Trion is quite striking with the housing being a pale graphite, with the buttons contrasting nicely in a lighter grey. Set into the body to the top, right and bottom of the screen is a bright silver band which enhances the looks of the machine - incidentally also holding within the button for video calling.

Specifications

Manufacturer: HTC Supplier: O2 UK PLC Product Name: Xda Trion (HTC Hermes 100) Price: Varies depending on contract System Information Processor 400MHz Samsung stacked CPU Memory ROM : 128 MB, RAM : 64 MB SDRAM Operating System Windows MobileTM Version 5.0 Power Battery Rechargeable Lithium-ion polymer battery, 1350 mAh Charging Time 3 hours Battery Life(estimates) Standby time: up to 200 hours for GSM; 180 ~ 250 hours for UMTS. Talk time (Screen off): 4 ~ 5 hours for GSM; 2 ~ 4 hours for UMTS. Media playback: 8 hours (WMV); 12 hours (WMA) AC Adapter AC input: 100 ~ 240V AC, 50/60 Hz DC output: 5V and 1A Display LCD Type 2.8” transflective TFT-LCD with backlight LEDs, touch sensitive screen Resolution 240 x 320 with 65,536 colours Alignment Portrait and Landscape WCDMA / GSM / EDGE Module Functionality UMTS (2100 for Europe, 850/1900 for USA) GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, and 1900) Mode Dual (GSM) Internal Antenna Yes Physical Dimensions 112.5 mm (L) x 58 mm (W) x 21.95 mm (T) Weight 176g (with battery) Camera Module Type Main camera: 2 Mega pixel colour CMOS camera with adjustable lens for normal and macro shooting, and with flash light Second camera: Colour CMOS CIF camera Resolution Photo: 1600x1200, 1280x1024 (SXGA), 640x480 (VGA), 320x240 (QVGA), 160x120 (QQVGA) Video: 352x288 (CIF), 320x240 (QVGA), 176x144 (QCIF), 128x96 Digital Zoom Up to 8x

Navigation Buttons 5-way Navigation Control Five program buttons : MESSAGING, INTERNET EXPLORER, CAMERA, COMM MANAGER, VOICE COMMAND Two phone functions : TALK and END START MENU button Two OK buttons VIDEO CALL button Two soft keys Jog Wheel POWER button RESET button Keyboard QWERTY keyboard with two additional soft keys, and an ambient sensor that detects low light and automatically illuminates the keyboard. LEDs The left LED shows a blinking Blue light for Bluetooth system notification of powered-up and ready to transmit radio frequency signal, and a blinking Green light for Wi-Fi status. When both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are enabled, their lights blink alternately. The right (bi-color) LED shows Green and Amber lights for UMTS/GSM standby, UMTS/GSM message, UMTS/GSM network status, notification, and battery charging status. Audio Audio Controller AGC Microphone /Speaker Built-in/Dual, Hands-free Headphone AMR/AAC/WAV/WMA/MP3 codec Connections Infrared IrDA SIR I/O Port mini-USB (for USB, serial, audio, and power connections) Car Antenna Connectivity External connector for WCDMA, GSM and EDGE Wireless Connection Bluetooth, Wi-Fi Expansion Slots Card Slot Micro SD accessed externally

Externals

The 'control' area of the device is nicely designed with all buttons being rounded pleasant to the touch and in context with the rest of the machine. The control buttons are (top to bottom, left to right): Messaging - Launches the Inbox application Pocket Internet Explorer - Launches PIE Video Call - if connected via 3G opens the video dial system Left Soft Key - Dependent on menu function displayed Right Soft Key - Dependent on menu function displayed Windows Key - Opens the Windows Start Menu OK Key - Okay any on screen commands or close the application Talk Key - Serves to answer calls, switch the Trion to phone mode, toggle speaker mode on / off (during a call) End Call Key - End any call in progress or hold to end GPRS/3G connection Action Button - Allows on screen confirmation or actions to be completed Cursor control pad - Allows on screen navigation

Even though most of the keys are quite closely positioned they are designed so that each key sits on a slight convex curve. Together with the slightly bubble top of each key this allows positive selection of each control. So far I've been able to operate the Trion without looking at the machine with no button selection errors at all.

The base of the Trion contains: Mini-USB port - Used to attach the charge cables, hands free kit, or PC Sync cable Battery cover lock IrDa port for communicating via Infrared Microphone for voice input Soft reset hole Stylus silo

The sides of the Xda Trion sport sleek streamlined buttons which are colour coded to match the Trion's housing. The controls on the left hand side of the Trio are: Jog Wheel - this serves to allow one to navigate through menus/ applications, etc, and is a full movement wheel in that it spins continually - this is unlike the jog dial found on the FSC T830 which allows single step movement in each direction. This ensures smoothness of navigation as one can continue to scroll in one direction instead of releasing the jog action and continuously having to move the wheel, release and move again. Immediately below the Jog Wheel is the Start/OK button which on the Today Screen serves to activate the Windows Menu, and on any other screen to either close an application or perform any designated 'OK' action. The Jog Wheel and OK Button therefore allow the user to perform almost 100% of navigation around the touch screen interface without the need to start using the stylus. I find this invaluable for such actions as reviewing incoming E-mails. Below the OK Button is the Voice Dial Button which serves to activate the Voice Command software, used for voice dialling and program activation. Finally towards the bottom of the device is the MicroSD slot which is used to add additional storage to the device. The controls on the right hand side of the Trio are: Top - On / off Power switch - used to take the machine into and out of suspend mode. Middle - Connection Manager Button - This serves to activate the Connection Manager application which allows the Trion to control the Phone, WiFi and Bluetooth connections. Bottom - Camera Button - which activate the Camera application, or if the Camera is already running serves to allow you to take photos or videos. All of the buttons on the machine with the exception of the volume slider, OK button and on / off switch may be customised to suit the users preference.

One item that has not been addressed so far is the stylus; as per the MiniS this mounts into the base of the Trion. The good news is it looks like HTC have addressed the problem of the stylus becoming loose over time as with the Trion the stylus is a very very tight fit into the silo. So far after three weeks' constant use there is no sign of looseness or give. I can only hope that this situation remains as time goes by. The only concern here is that as the fit is so tight that the stylus might get jammed in position or break if not carefully withdrawn. However so far no such problems have occurred - fingers crossed! The stylus is similar in design to that of the MiniS in that it is expandable; when docked into the body its length reduces to 55mm but when extracted it extends to 85mm long. I had hoped that the design could use a full length 'smooth' stylus as per the Orbit but alas this is not the case. For ease of removal head of the stylus when docked sits at rather an oblique angle which serves to allow one to use a fingernail to extract the stylus itself.

Here you can see the back of the Trion with the battery lock released and the battery removed. The Li-Ion battery itself is rated at 1350 mAh which may be a little underrated for a 3G device. Also on the back face of the Trion is the 2 MegaPixel camera 'cluster' which comprises: The camera itself The vanity mirror for self portraits LED Flash Focus ring - which allows one to change modes from 'normal' to 'macro' for close up photography Above the mirror is a black plug which covers the external antenna socket Below the mirror is the microphone for audio/video recording

The Screen

Even though the screen on the Trion is 'only' QVGA it is bright and pin-sharp, very readable in low light conditions and in sunlight. Colours are bright and strong; there is no evidence of washout or colour degradation across the screen area. Pressing the keys activates the backlight which lights just the symbols on the keys with a gentle glow; this gives a very modern look and serves to give just the right amount of illumination for use at night or in other dark places.

The Keyboard

The keyboard on the Trion is for me one of the great improvements compared to the MiniS as the keys are larger and more comfortable to operate. However the spacing of the keys is very slightly reduced (measuring from key centre to centre) and this may make fast keying more difficult for the less dexterous amongst us. The keys themselves have a pleasant movement with a mechanical click generated each time one is pressed giving good feedback - it's possible to achieve quite a fast text input rate when finger typing. Such activities are aided by the areas to the sides of the keys which are blank and serve as excellent thumb rests. The only niggle with the keyboard design for me are the two WM5 Soft Keys, these are immediately above the 'W' and 'I' keys and too close to the juncture with the screen - to operate them one has to use the end of a finger and this is not comfortable at all.

Size Matters!

The screen even though only QVGA (320 x 240) is very good quality, that is clear, bright (nearly always readable in sunlight) and sharp. The small size suits the Trion perfectly, the 2.8 inch diagonal size fits nicely within the shape of the housing and does not feel too small in use or operation. The Trion may not be the smallest or lightest of devices, but taking into account that it is 3G, holds a camera and has an in built QWERTY keyboard one can forgive those restrictions. An Orbit owner may find the machine significantly heavier and larger in use, but the Universal owner will find the reduced weight and size a breath of fresh air!

PART 2 of this review will move on to cover the operating system, camera, and how it performs in everyday usage!

Note: Images within this review have been processed using the superb SnagIt from TechSmith