FOR two weeks, I was in touch with my inner Windows Mobile child, thanks to the HTC Touch Cruise that I was reviewing. I enjoyed the brief fling, and will now think more fondly again of Windows Mobile devices, considering that I haven’t used a Windows-based gadget as my personal phone since my old O2 XDA II.

Here’s a photo of Mikaela, my MacBook Pro (well, the MacBook Pro the office assigned to me, anyway; yeah, I still use Windows on my Mac for some of my tasks via Boot Camp), saying goodbye to the HTC Touch Cruise. It was nice syncing and Bluetoothing with you while it lasted.

The first thing you’ll notice about the HTC Touch Cruise is its sleek design and that big 2.8 inch LCD screen, which is a boon if you’re after multimedia. As the name makes clear, however, this isn’t meant to be ogled, but to be touched. I’ve always gotten a kick out of touchscreen devices (but no, I don’t have an iPhone or an iPod Touch yet, heh), and thanks to my Nintendo DS, which now belongs to my six-year-old daughter Sam, I’m pretty comfy using a stylus as an input device.

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I’M writing this blog entry via wifi using the Opera browser on the HTC Touch Cruise Windows Mobile handheld that I’m reviewing.

This isn’t the full review yet, just a quick update to show the device in action. I’ve always believed that if it’s possible to write the review using the product you’re testing, you should do it

Here’s a photo I took of my six-year-old daughter Sam with the Touch Cruise’s 3-megapixel camera. It’s Saturday morning here in the Philippines, and almost the moment she woke up, Sam started reading her copy of the latest issue of K-Zone.

Sent this pic to Photobucket via e-mail — I set up my Gmail account on this device.

Will keep you updated.

WE know that USB is pretty cool and all sorts of devices have come out making use of this technology. But this one takes the cake. It’s the USB Humping Dog which does nothing but… well, it’s pretty obvious what it does, right, heh

This thing is actually for sale at Digital World Tokyo. They come in three breeds — Beagle, Dalmatian and Chocolate Labrador.

The USB Humping Dog doesn’t contain any flash memory, OK — these dogs are made for humping, and that’s what they’ll do.

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A FEW days ago, I blogged about the iPhone launch in the US and included an Agence France-Presse photo of Jonathan (not John, as he was identified in the AFP caption) Mariano, who was first in line at the Apple Store at The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles, California.

In that blog entry, I wondered aloud if Mariano was a Filipino, and guess what? He is! He posted a comment on that blog entry simply saying, “Pinoy ako (I am a Filipino)!” and included a link to his blog that documents the iPhone launch in LA and his unexpected brush with fame when he turned out to be the first in line.

How cool is that?

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ASK people what’s the one gadget they can’t live without, and chances are the answer will be the mobile phone. That’s what I would answer too.

What I’m interested to know, however, is what applications you like using on your mobile phone. We obviously use our cell phones for more than just making calls. In fact, in an age when mobile phones are also cameras, videocams, GPS devices, TV sets, computers, and what have you, it’s almost an afterthought to say, “Oh, by the way, you can also use it to make phone calls.”

How do you use your mobile phone for non-voice applications? Do you regularly check your e-mail using your cell phone, say, using the Gmail mobile app?

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