Windows Phone Thoughts - Daily News, Views, Rants and Raves

"Sony Ericsson has produced some exceptional handsets over the years, with certain gems like the W950, W300i and W580i (just to name a few) catching the eyes and hearts of casual and hardcore mobile fanatics alike. Even so, it's hard to argue that any single phone in the outfit's history has caused more of a stir than the XPERIA X1."

Darren Murph and the team at Engadget Mobile tear into the new Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 version slated for North America, the X1A, which is different than the X1i which is already available in some areas. You'll find a great look at the hardware and software the X1 offers, as well as a gallery of shots and even video of a web surfing race between the X1 and the iPhone 3G. Who do you think won? Check it out at Engadget Mobile and see if it's worth parting with $799.99 to take it home.

"You know you love it, new Windows Mobile -- even new carrier is good enough for us -- hardware always gets us all thrilled and chirpy. Sprint's really blown it open today with the Touch Diamond and Touch Pro announcements, so to honor them we got our hands on the Touch diamond. We like this set, Sprint's version in red -- a well chosen, soft and kind red -- is no exception and while a bit husky, we expect it's going to be well accepted and will be finding its way into many pockets come September 14th. Sadly, the Touch Pro was absent at CTIA, but we'll do our best to dig it up before the show closes out. Enjoy the pics."

Yesterday, Sprint made the announcement about the coming HTC Touch Diamond and the HTC Touch Pro phones. Today, Engadget Mobile has lots of shots of both devices so you can get a closer look. One interesting observation Sean Cooper makes in the writeup about the Touch Pro: "The Diamond murders the Pro for total pocketability, sex appeal, and feel in the hand -- so you've really got to ask yourself just how badly you need that keyboard before you pull the trigger one way or another." Interesting question. I think my first reaction would be to go for the keyboard, but the included 4gb memory and smaller size make the Diamond an interesting consideration. Check out the pictures for the Touch Diamond here. If you had to choose between the two, which one would you lean toward?