Review: HTC myTouch 3G Slide
Screen
The Slide's display is 0.2 inches bigger than the myTouch's 3.2-inch display. This may not sound like a lot, but it makes a world of difference. Where the myTouch felt cramped, the Slide feels roomier and spacious. Too bad HTC didn't bother to do much with the pixel count. It's not that images, icons and graphics aren't sharp. They are clear enough, but they fail to pop like icons and graphics do on the superior displays found on the Incredible or Droid. There was also an overwhelming sense of dullness. It's certainly not a bad display, it's simply mediocre. Indoor viewing was fine, no problem. Outdoor viewing was impossible. The white text on black background of Android's menus don't help. In order to use it outdoors, I had to shield the display with my hand. Some times that's just an impractical thing to have to do.
Signal
Tested side-by-side with the original myTouch 3G, the Slide always performed worse. It consistently held one bar less than the myTouch 3G did, even in areas that I would rate "fully saturated" by T-Mobile's 3G signal. During the time that I tested it, the Slide never dropped down to T-Mobile's EDGE network. It always held onto 3G, even with no bars. How does this translate to real-world performance? Well, I didn't miss any calls when using the Slide. I did notice inconsistent data performance, though. Sometimes it would be blazing fast, and other times it would completely stall out.
Sound
Phone calls were very clear with the Slide. In my tests, I experienced no static, noise or other weirdness. I could hear callers perfectly, and they reported no problems with my sound, either. Amtrak's automated assistant was able to interpret my speech just fine even when I had Soulfly's newest album blasting in the background. The earpiece volume might be a problem for some. Set all the way up, I was just barely able to hear Amtrak over the same heavy metal background noise. Testing the volume in a car yielded the same result. Background noise can easily overpower the Slide's earpiece. Ringtones could also be a smidgen louder. The speakerphone performed perfectly in my home office. I was able to walk around, and even exit the room and still conduct a conference call.
Battery
The battery life story is becoming a familiar one with Android handsets. You'll make it through one day just fine. Two days? Not so much. If you use social networks even modestly, expect the battery to be drained by the time the clock strikes 12 (Midnight, not Noon). I was able to fully discharge the battery in four hours of straight web usage, with Twitter, email, and music playback thrown in, but that's an extreme case. Charging it nightly will suffice for most.
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HTC myTouch 3G Slide
