HTC Win Mo 7 flagship may be new Diamond

The rumored HTC Obsession, which could lead the charge of Windows Mobile 7 devices, may actually be a direct sequel to the Touch Diamond2. A rumor tonight asserts the phone is real and will come to both AT&T and T-Mobile in the US as the Touch Diamond3. It would supposedly be one of HTC's first phones with an AMOLED touchscreen (here 3.7 inches) and would have a 1GHz Snapdragon as its other central feature, rendering it at least as fast as the HD2.

A handful of surprises are also part of the detailed specs obtained by WMPowerUser. It would have the expected 5-megapixel camera but would also have 720p video recording, albeit at a non-standard 25 frames per second. Despite moving on a year or more past the Diamond2, it would still have just 4GB of internal storage but could rely on a microSDHC slot for up to 32GB more.

While plausible, some doubt is cast on the story by its mentioning Apple's FairPlay DRM as supported, though it's not certain if this an optimistic fake or simply an error. Apple has typically refused to license its copy protection out to other companies and usually prefers DRM-free AAC for audio.

If the rumor remains true, the Diamond3 won't ship until sometime after June and may never come in a CDMA version due to poor sales of earlier Touch models on networks like Sprint and Verizon. This and previous rumors have the smartphone being one of just two known Windows Mobile 7 (possibly Windows Phone 7) devices that could would inaugurate a major revision of the OS that, among other changes, could involve a heavily Zune-inspired interface.

Touch Diamond2 (for reference)

By Electronista Staff