T-MOBILE TOUCH PRO 2 AVAILABLE AUGUST 12 ON...T-MOBILE + A DEBATE ON WINDOWS MOBILE

HTC's latest Windows Mobile QWERTY-phone now has an official release date with T-Mobile. Check out more info on the HTC Touch Pro 2 for T-Mobile after the jump, and a nice question to ponder...

We've already covered this little device quite a lot on this blog, so you needn't be bored with another spec sheet and list of fun facts about this latest T-Mobile smartphone. The HTC Touch Pro 2 offers a 480x800 screen, Windows Mobile 6.1, a keyboard, and every other conceivable standard smartphone feature released in the last five years. Decide for yourself.

But on that note, I've noticed that of all cell phone OS's (besides the obvious Symbian S40), Windows Mobile appears to be aging the worst. When companies like RIM can take their OS and completely revamp it for the newest generation of Blackberries, we get the same clunky, slow, and unresponsive Windows Mobile we've had for years.

And frankly, it's not worth it.

It's nowhere even close to as fluid as even a Windows XP machine, nor does it have features that haven't been enhanced or revolutionized by Google or Apple's offerings. So why do we continue to insist on buying Windows Mobile phones? Software providers are reaching out to other companies, and proprietary is a word that is being phased out by the month. Do we have some sort of spiritual connection between the words "smartphone" and "Windows Mobile" that needs a fix every once in a while?

What do you think: is Windows Mobile really showing its age, or am I just a new-age, free-thinking hippie? Sound off in the comments.

[via Engadget]