Overview
The Sprint PPC 6700 is another cool device designed by HTC device (the HTC Apache). It's been available since around October 2005, so it's not making "news" here, but that doesn't mean it's not a great device. In fact, it might be better than the more recently introduced T-Mobile USA MDA and the Cingular 8125 devices (based on the HTC Wizard).
The PPC-6700 is the successor to Sprint's last major PocketPC phone, the 6600. While Sprint's PPC-6600 was labeled as being from Audiovox, the 6700 is branded by UTStarcom. It really makes little difference in the end, since the design and construction is entirely done by HTC for both units. Compared to the 6600, the 6700 adds WiFi, EVDO, a larger keyboard, and a considerably smaller overall size. The 6700 is now of a size and shape that you can reasonably hold it to your ear without feeling like you're talking into a dinner plate, which was a problem with the previous generation's huge footprint.
The design is similar to many of HTC's other newer PocketPC phones, such as the Magician; a very simple, rounded candy bar design. Like other recent HTC models, this one features a sliding keyboard hidden beneath the screen. The device is separated by a seam, with the front-most portion containing the LCD and main buttons, and the rear containing the keyboard, battery, motherboard, and everything else.
Unlike many previous sliding-keyboard designs, this keyboard is laid out to the side, rather than vertically.
When you slide the screen over to reveal the keyboard, the system automatically rotates the screen, so that you're then using a device laid out like a Blackberry. This provides more space for the keyboard, allowing for a larger and more complete set of keys than on other devices. I find this to be great for typing, as it allows a lot more input and less hunt-and-peck. The size of the keys is a major factor in how comfortable the keyboard feels, and makes it
one of the best thumb keyboards that I've yet seen.
The PPC-6700 has a very good camera as far as cameraphones go. It's a 1.3-megapixel model with a macro mode switch and spotlight for illuminating dark objects. While the spotlight is better than nothing, it won't give you true flash picture quality. We got better results in well-lit environments. There's also a video recording feature for short clips. Emailing pictures from the phone is quick and easy.
Other media features include a voice recorder button on the side of the phone, and the ability to play back MP3 audio.
Wireless Management
The PPC-6700's true claim to fame is the combination of EV-DO, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth in one device. We had at least two of the three on at all times, and still got very good battery life -- typically two days between recharges, with fairly frequent use. In the car and while out and about, we used EV-DO and Bluetooth, and in the office and at home we used EV-DO and Wi-Fi. One of the coolest features is that Explorer and other Internet applications are smart enough to use Wi-Fi instead of EV-DO if both are enabled. So you can be ready to accept calls at the same time you are surfing or checking email at high speed at a hotspot.
Unlike other Wi-Fi PDAs we've used, there's also no constant dropping and reconnecting to the Wi-Fi network, or at least, it's done in the background with no discernable lag time. Setting up the various connections is also a snap with the Wireless Manager. We simply tapped on the Wi-Fi icon, selected a network, entered the encryption password, and from then on the phone recognized the network and connected automatically whenever we were in range. The Wireless Manager also makes it simple to turn off all radios with one click, handy for plane travel, or simply going private for the night.
It's also possible, but not easy, to use the phone's EV-DO connection as a modem for your laptop. We were unable to tether a laptop via Bluetooth this was (various reports say a patch from Microsoft is needed to make this work), however, we did get it to work over the USB cable. USB tethering is probably preferable to Bluetooth anyway, due to Bluetooth 1.2's 700Mbps or so real-world maximum throughput. To enable modem operation, you need to turn off USB ActiveSync, plug in the phone again, and then install the USB modem driver from the Sprint software CD. A small USB Phone Dialer application is also included on the software CD that you'll need to copy to your laptop. We'd prefer to see the modem driver and dialer app installed automatically as part of the setup process. It took us several reads of the manual and lots of experimentation to get it to work, but once it did, we got about 200-300Mbps data rates on our laptop. Not great, but not bad, either. It's definitely fast enough to make driving to the nearest hotspot unnecessary just to send a quick file.
The Bottom Line
Overall, the Sprint PPC-6700 is an excellent smartphone with all the features business travelers need, and superb Wi-Fi integration. The slide-out keyboard is much more comfortable for data entry than typical thumb keyboards, and the support for Windows and Microsoft Office apps is thorough. While Sprint has no Mac support for the device, third-party Mac sync software from MarkSpace Software will be available soon for Windows Mobile 5.0
Features/Specs
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