Well it's that time of year again.  The weather is just right and it seems everyone seems to be disappearing to distand places.  So why should it be any different for us?  I'll be leaving this afternoon for an 11 day trip around the globe, stopping in CHicago, London, Narrobi, and Dar es Salaam. 

While I'm gone I'm sure there's going to be a few dozen HTC press releases and news about some new devices.  Just remember, you'll be able to find all your HTC news here, even if I'm gone.  I'm setting up an RSS feed which should bring you all the latest HTC news from hundreds of other sites and it'll be here on the front page.  Hope you enjoy.  And if you're also planning a summer trip, good luck and have fun!

I just checked my e-mail five minutes ago and was surprised to find a press release from the good people at HTC. The last time I got one of these was the day before HTC gave the official announcement about the Touch Pro. So, you're probably wondering what was in the e-mail.... ok I'll tell you, but let me make sure it's 3:00 pm EST first.

Ready.... go!

As you probably already figured out from the title, Telus (a great CDMA cellular provider in Canada) will be the first to launch the HTC Touch Diamond in North America. No exact date was given, but the press release states that the Diamond will launch in "Late Summer." And that's not all the good news. Telus' Diamond will launch for the sweet price of $149.99 with a 3 year contract. Customers will also be able to pick up unlimited data plans for $15 per month for unlimited email and IM, or $30 for unlimited email, IM and web browsing. The telus HTC touch Diamond will also feature a slightly different back cover which will have a matte finish and no Diamond facets.

I'd say this is a great win for North America. The $149.99 price point is ideal for the device if HTC really thinks they can compete withthe iPhone. Telus has set up their own landing page ofr the Diamond on their site which should have some updates in the weeks to come as the launch get nearer. For the full press release, hit the "read more" link.

UPDATE: Our good friend Michael Oryl just form www.mobileburn.com just sent us a note saying that the Telus Diamond has some additional changes that we missed.  It seems it'll weigh in at 115 grams and dimensions will be 101mm x 50.8mm x 13.9mm as opposed to the original 110 grams and 102mm x 51mm x 11.35mm.  So why has it increased in size and put on some weight?  Well the original battery was 900 mAh but it seems Telus has pushed that up to 1340 mAh.  I'm sure most everyone is willing to sacrifice a little to get a lot more battery. 

 
Yesterday we tell you that a  CDMA version of the HTC Touch Pro passed throug hthe FCC and how we have leaked pictures of Sprint's version of the HTC Diamond.  A member of PPCGeeks has just posted up the picture above which he claims is Sprint's Diamond.  As you can see from the grainy picture, Sprint has taken the liberty of tweaking HTC's TouchFlo 3D interface with their own icons on the bottom.  They even take the UI customization a bit further than T-Mobiel Germany since it looks like the clock has it's own distinct look as well.  No word on when the phone will be launched, but we can rest assured that it'll be in stores before the Touch Pro.

Our good friends over at xda-developers have just been able to port Android to the HTC Touch Cruise.  This isn't the first time they have ported Google's new (still unreleased) OS to an HTC device, but it does show their commitment to get Android running on current devices.  It's unclear if the OS is completely fuctional since reports state that there's issues handging us calls, sending sms, or using the touch screen during a call.  We're still months out from Google Official Launch of Android, but this is promising news and shows that developers are already commited to the open source OS.

Here at HTC Source we are always trying to make the site better for the readers.  We've noticed lately that there's been an increase in mobile browser use on the site.  Currently the site is not optimized for mobile users, but we'd be willing to make a few tweaks if you guys think it's worth it.  we've added a poll over on the left hand side,  Let us know what you think and we'll see what we can do.

We reported way back in April that the Raphael (now known as the HTC Touch Pro) would be coming to the U.S. courtesy of Sprint. Today, that reality is one step closer as the FCC has given the phone their stamp of approval.  An HTC "RAPH800" featuring CDMA with EV-DO on the 850 and 1900MHz bands will be gracing us with it's presence in the coming months.  There's still no official word from Sprint or Verizon that they will actually be carrying the Touch Pro, but our money says that Sprint will have it in their lineup before the end of the year.

Vogue owners rejoice! The official Sprint  WM 6.1 ROM has been  released on xda-developers.com.  Other than being late to report this story, we're also a bit disappointed.  Sprint and At&t have been rolling out WM 6.1 upgrades for their phones, but it seems those who purchesed HTC branded devices are still out of luck. 

 HTC, Microsoft, and several other partners announced today the launch of Pl@net, a new mobile service for HTC devices.  Pl@net is poised to offer entertainment, shopping, news, and travel information to users with a quick tap on their touch screens.  The service will also feature several Taiwan's most prominent Internet shop and exclusive content and concert tickets through Warner Music.  HTC's Pl@net service is expected to go live on July 1, but it's not known how many markets the service will cover. 

Along with Pl@net, HTC also announced HTC My Connect 2.0.  My Connect 2.0 will allow direct software downloads to HTC devices and also gives users the ability to easily share pictures and other media from their devices.  A launch date for HTC My Connect 2.0 was not given, but since the Diamond is set for near global release within the next few weeks, HTC My Connect 2.0 should not be too far behind.

It seems like it's a never ending battle in this high-tech world.  BetaNews is reporting that Typhoon has just reworked a lawsuit against Dell to also include HTC, Apple, Toshiba, Lenovo, Fujitsu, and Panasonic over their patents  #5,379,057, and #5,675,362 issued in 1995 and 1997. Both patents share the title "Portable Computer with Touch Screen and Computer System employing Same," and have practically identical abstracts.  Typhoon is alleging that HTC and the other manufacturers named in the case, knowingly and willingly infringed upon their patents.  Typhoon has already settles with a few other companies over their touch screen products.  I'm sure we'll see a few rounds of settlements with Typhoon before the end of the year, followed by licensing agreements.  What does this mean for us who love these touch screen devices?  HTC will have to either swallow a few extra dollars in producing every touch screen device or they'll end up passing the extra cost onto us.