HTC roadmap reveals P6550 ‘Sedna’ enterprise handset

Much as I hate to use the phrase, this new HTC smartphone is bound to be heralded by some as an "iPhone killer".  Hardware-wise it's quite the beast; the P6550 'Sedna' packs a 3.5-inch QVGA touchscreen, Windows Mobile 6.0, quad-band GSM as well as HSDPA and WiFi into a vaguely Touch-like chassis.

The full specs make for interesting reading - an optional credit card reader, anyone?  Rumour has it that this is set to be HTC's further foray into the potentially-lucrative enterprise market, who will likely get a kick out of the dual MMC/SDIO expansion slots and A-GPS.

• Qualcomm MSM7200, 400MHz chipset
• Memory: 256 MP ROM, 64 or 128 RAM, Optional 1GB NAND Flash
• Windows Mobile 6.0
• Quad-band: GSM 850/900/1800/1900, EDGE, GPRS
• WCDMA tri-band 2100 or 850/1900 MHz, HSDPA 7.2 Mbps
• Wi-Fi b/g, Bluetooth, miniUSB
• 3.5″ QVGA TFT touchscreen
• 3 mpx camera with aoutofocus
• A-GPS
• Fingerprint reader
• 2 MMC/SDIO expansion slots
• Dimensions: 137×72x21 mm
• Optional credit card reader/extended battery

Personally I think that hardware is pretty much irrelavent, and that the iPhone will only be toppled by a company who grasps the simplicity and ease of use that the handset's OS so exemplifies.  The mediocre HTC Touch has already demonstrated that it takes more than a flimsy WM6 overlay to turn an interesting phone into an exciting one, and I'm yet to see any indication that Microsoft's mobile platform has that potential.