Apple is normally known for fancy packaging, but it seems HTC has added a touch of class to the HTC Touch Diamond experience with this mysterious 6-sided black box. Check out our exclusive photo gallery of the unboxing.
We're normally used to uninspiring cardboard packaging from phone vendors other than Apple, which is why HTC raised some eyebrows with their Touch Diamond.
[See our photo gallery on the right]
The classy touch-screen 3G phone is not only a rival to the iPhone, but HTC are giving Apple a run for their money with the packaging as well, that we're dubbing "the Monolith".
As you can see in the photos, the 6-sided Touch box stands out a mile. The box has a matt-black finish - slide open the flaps and you get a box-inside-a-box, with a piano black shiny finish. Inside is the Touch Diamond, with bud phones, and all the ugly bits and pieces like cabling and charger hidden away underneath.
As we've reported before, the Touch Diamond is one of the first phones in the world with Windows Mobile 6.1, and should provide a classy alternative to the iPhone (though some may beg to differ when it comes to the Touch interface. We'll give you our conclusion soon).
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| The HTC Touch Diamond, with cues from Space Odessy 2001 |
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| Look, it's a box within a box. Can't be good for the environment though |
You get 3G, GPS, camera, WiFi, 4GB storage, all in an 11.5mm high chassis. The phone itself is only 110grams, a huge difference to some of the very chunky smartphones on the market. Crucially, the phone offers 7.2Mbps HSDPA on Telstra's wide-ranging Next-G network.

Other key features include:
- TouchFLO 3D interface, which includes swanky menus incorporating rolodex menus of your contacts, and animated weather forecasts
- 4GB memory built-in
- 2.8in VGA screen
- GPS
- 3.2Mp camera
- Windows Mobile Professional 6.1
Stay tuned for review.