HTC may be pushing the Touch as next big thing in the world of smartphones, but we think its other new model is the one that deserves all the limelight. It doesn't get a sexy name, but the S710 is the most flexible and user-friendly Windows Mobile device we've seen for a while - and that's something that HTC should be shouting about.

The S710 has a familiar candybar design and looks similar to the three handsets that HTC previously produced for Orange under its SPV brand (the last of which is still available as the SPV C600). Its about the same size as the HTC Touch (a bit narrower and quite a bit thicker), has the same rubbery finish and feels just as solidly made. The big difference, however, is that the S710 has not just one, but two keyboards tucked away inside its compact frame.

The first of those two keyboards is the numeric keypad that sits below the S710's screen. This has large, positive keys and is more than up to the task of dialling phone numbers and entering short bits of information, thanks to the excellent XT9 predictive text. For more involved input, however, the handset slides apart to reveal a full Qwerty keyboard built into its bottom half.

Opening it causes the screen to flip into landscape mode and the arrangement is quite a comfortable one when it comes to typing longer text messages and emails. The keys are quite small and could do with a slightly higher profile, but they have a positive click and work well for two-thumbed typing.

Two keyboards aren't the only reason for the S710's smooth operation, though. While the HTC Touch gets the full 'Professional' version of Microsoft's new Windows Mobile 6 , the S710 makes do with 'Standard'. The differences are largely inconsequential (the fact that you can only edit existing and not create new Office documents with Standard being the most annoying), but the big one is that WM6 Standard is designed for use on smartphones without a touch-sensitive screen. This means that the keyboard is the only way to interact with S710 and this makes for swift, painless one-handed operation at all times - something that the HTC Touch can't manage.

Specification-wise, the S710 and Touch are neck and neck, but the S710 feels much snappier in use (no doubt because there's less going on behind the scenes). They have the same pin-sharp screen too and although the S710's is a little bit smaller, it's a lot clearer, since there's no touch-sensitive layer sitting on top of it.

So, we like the S710 a lot, but that's not to say that there isn't room for improvement. There's no 3G and the sliding keyboard could do with a stronger detent to stop it from opening in your pocket, but there are really the only criticisms we can level at the S710. Given our low opinion of Windows Mobile in the first place, that's really saying something. So, forget the ambitious but flawed Touch, it's the S710 that should really be in everyone's pocket.

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