View this article at: http://www.electronista.com/articles/08/08/06/telus.diamond.on.aug.14/

Wednesday, Aug 06, 2008 9:40am

Telus sets HTC Touch Diamon...

Telus today confirmed its position as the first in Norht America to launch the HTC Touch Diamond and gave the Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone an official launch date of August 14th as well as extra pricing info. The touchscreen device is positioned as one of Telus' main rivals against the iPhone and will normally be priced at $150 with a three-year contract; a two year contract immediately boosts the price to $350, while a contract-free purchase sells for $450.

The Telus version is close to HTC's reference version, including EVDO Revision A-based 3G data, 4GB of built-in storage and Wi-Fi, but adds support for using its native GPS with Telus Navigator and includes a portal to the company's app store.

The company is also stepping up its competition against iPhone provider Rogers by offering a temporary discount on its data plans that supplies unlimited browsing, e-mail, and instant messaging for $15 per month versus the normal $30 rate. Rogers and its sister carrier Fido are offering their own special plan with 6GB of data per month for $30, but unlike Telus are allowing the data to be used with any application.

Telus' announcement may come weeks ahead of one rumored for Sprint, which may not launch its own version of the Touch Diamond until September 2nd.