I just got an HTC Touch Pro (AT&T Fuze) as the Tilt I had for over a year finally starting getting unreliable. Happy with the Fuze so far, but I'm sort of perplexed with this whole Touch Flo 3D (aka Manila) deal.
Essentially as I see it HTC decided to leapfrog Microsoft and slap their own Today interface on top of Windows Mobile which makes their phones look and operate more like an iPhone. But HTC is a phone designer, not an operating system designer. We all know Microsoft makes buggy products, especially operating systems (I've been a Windows Mobile/CE User for about 5 years now.) I can't switch to an iPhone though because it doesn't have all the apps that I need, yet. But what a slap in the face from HTC - or really just a half-baked solution to Windows Mobile users who have some sort of inferiority complex that there phone isn't as "cool" as an iPhone.
So, as I, and many others have probably discovered, the TF3D Today Screen is woefully lacking in configuration options. I have both the PhoneAlarm and PocketWeather apps which cannot be displayed on the TF3D display. You have to use an additional app (2nd Today for example) or enable the Touch Flo option in Phone Alarm so you can toggle between the two different Today screens. What a joke.
So I installed a really nice looking skin for my PhoneAlarm App called 'My Touch VGA' which has a similar look to Manila. Granted I have only had the phone a couple days but I am having a hard time seeing what the BIG BENEFIT is of using Manila versus the regular WM Today screen? Wow you can flip through pictures and contacts sort of like an iPhone. Real cute. BIG DEAL. The weather app is a joke as you can't see forecasts on the Today screen without scrolling to it and it will only show you one city at a time. And that stupid clock is using up a ton of screen real estate that could be used to display snapshots of much more valueable information.
Here's a screen shot of what my WM Today screen looks like.
Can someone tell me what the REAL BENEFIT is of Manila is aside from looking cool? I don't consider "cooler" a REAL benefit. Is it faster? Does it let you perform tasks twice as fast? Is it more useful? I just don't get it. It looks to me like it is just some half-way slapped together wrapper that's been slapped around the Today screen which gives you far less control of what appears on the Today Home Screen in exchange for making people think they have something that works more similar to an iPhone. How pathetic.
I'd love to be surprised if someone can explain some major beneficial features I've missed?
I guess I should clarify, I realize Touch Flo inn general is more referring to the ability to do gestures with your fingers instead of using a stylus. I guess what I'm referring to more specifically is the Touch Flo Today plug-in. Here's some examples of drawbacks I immediately saw:
1. Can't add 3rd party plugins to Touch Flo Today screen (HTC provided no API - dummies)
2. No easy way to switch between Touch Flo and WM Today screens without installing 3rd party app
3. No lock screen
4. Home screen provides little 'at a glance' information due to big clock taking up too much room. It limits you to only 2 or 3 lines of appointments even in collapsed clock view.
5. The photo flipping is gimicky. In the Contact manager, it looks great, but is only practical if you have 3 or fewer favorite people. You might use photo flipping to show off the phone, but for all practicality, when you actually want to call someone the slider is better.
6. SMS and Email are lumped together
7. Weather takes up the whole screen instead of just being part of the Home Screen whether you are looking at current conditions or a 5-day forecast. Weather is like time, it should be something you can quickly glance at on the home screen.
8. No way to add/remove or reorder the selections at the bottom
Bottom line TF3D LOOKS slick but looks don't translate to real world significant efficiency/functionality improvements/benefits. Once you get past the iPhone'ish glitz, you realize it is not much better, if better at all than a re-skinned standard Windows Mobile Today Screen because there's no way to integrate 3rd party apps with the Touch Flo Today interface. And most of us know, probably the main benefit (if the only benefit) of Windows Mobile is the HUGE selection of very useful 3rd party apps.
5.