Today we take a look at the HTC Desire android smart phone that is making its North American debut on that Telus network, the phone was originally released in Europe earlier in march of this year and is finally finding its way to North America.
Looks
If you liked the looks of the nexus one you certainly will love the look of the HTC desire, this phone could definitely be the younger brother of the famed nexus one who will phone that is no longer made. The style and the layout of this phone is almost identical to the nexus one other than the buttons at the bottom and coloring. On the front it has a home button, menu button, back button, search button and a directional navigation button that easily allows you to scroll through screens and applications with ease. The size of the phone is 119x60x11.9mm and weighs in for a total of 135g and fits nicely in the palm of your hand. The front casing is a gunmetal gray and the lower button part is a dark charcoal that wraps all the way around to the back end is almost like are rubberized hard plastic that makes for easy gripping. It has a standard up and down volume rocker, 3.5mm audio of jack and 2.0 many USB Port. Overall this is an extremely sexy looking android smart phone and if you missed an out on the nexus one this is definitely the closest thing you’ll get to that style.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTRhxNfD-b0&hd=1
Hardware
The HTC desire is powered by a Qualcomm snapdragon USD 8250 1 GHz processor which is standard on high and smart phones these days and is easily capable of running all software and applications with ease. The phone comes with 576 MB of ram, 256 MB of internal storage and includes a four GB SD Micro card that is expandable up to 32GB in size. It comes with wi-fi 802.11 B/G, blue tooth and micro USB. The hardware on this phone is only slightly dated in certain areas compared to the highest and android smart phones that have recently been released only due to the fact that this phone was originally released in Europe earlier this year. The only hardware drawbacks internal storage and wi-fi lacking ‘N’ classification. They should not discourage users has this phone is plenty powerful enough for any user and easily glides through all of the applications and software that this phone will you use.
Screen
Originally this phone debuted with AMOLED touchscreen but unfortunately due to shortage of this product in the smart phone market HTC had to change the screen technology. It is now outfitted with fact SLCD that provides a resolution of 480×800 WVGA which has a size of 3.7 inches. In terms of screen quality the new technology that they have placed on this phone is very good although AMOLED technology is better it is in short supply and not readily available on most smart phones at this point so it really is not an option. Overall you be very happy with the vibrant colors, excellent clarity and very detailed display.
Battery
The battery life on any android smart phone will vary based on your personal usage and whether or not you are using applications heavily or have applications that consumed data in the background. HTC has rated this phone for up to 360 HRS in 3G and talk time of up to 6:30:00 in 3G. The HTC Desire seems to have a fairly good battery that does not get too hot and does not drain quickly. Through my testing I found battery life to be average which with a powerhouse of a smart phone like this is very satisfactory.
Operating System
The HTC desire runs android 2.1 operating system which will allow users to use all of the android market and latest applications. The 2.1 OS runs very smoothly on this phone but should be seeing an update to android 2.2 froyo in the next few months. The HTC desire in Europe is just starting to get android 2.2 updates as we speak so it should make its way to North America fairly soon.
Software
The one great thing about a buying in HTC android smart phone is Sense UI which is HTC’s proprietary software running on top of android operating system. The user interface allows for easy navigation and simple use to get the most out of your android smart phone. It comes with several applications that run within the home screen via widgets. The software runs like a charm and extremely smooth and is easy to navigate with the optical track bad or the touch of the screen. HTC Sense UI is designed to beautifully throughout the software with tons of a eye candy that gave the phone are real sharp look and extreme functionality. The software allows you in the settings to customize the look and feel of your phone by allowing you to change the layout based on your needs. How they do that is by allowing you to customize your home screen for when you’re at work, play, socializing or however you want the phone to look. HTC Desire along with Sense UI create a wonderful software experience they will truly enjoy.
Applications
Just to give you a list of all the wonderful widgets provided on the HTC desire we start off with bookmarks, calendar, an amazing looking clock, footprints for pictures, friends stream to connect you with all year’s social Media Networks, music, news contacts, stock prices, twitter and weather. The phone also comes with the standard android smart phone applications and is well of course access to the android market where you can add any application of your choice. The HTC applications are designed beautifully and fit very well with the look of the software to make a very sleek looking and designed user interface and applications. A lot of thought has gone into the applications that came with this phone as they are highly usable and functional bowl.
Keyboard
The phone comes with HTC’s version of a touchscreen keyboard which is a fairly good keyboard. Personally I’m not here just friend of HTC keyboards depending on the phone of course this one is very similar to the nexus one keyboard which at times I find to be a little inaccurate. I highly suggest installing a third party application keyboard from the android market that will give you a higher accuracy. I prefer to use Swiftkey beta or Swype for those who prefer, I may be picky on how my keyboards work so deftly give it a try and see if it suits your needs if not don’t be worried as you can find plenty of keyboards on the android market that will suit your needs.
Camera and Video
The HTC desire comes with a 5MP, 2592x 1944 pixels, Autofocus, LED flash with the Geo tagging and also has a video camera that shoots in 800×480 pixels @15fps. This is a certainly a middle of the road camera as it is definitely not the worst and not the best. You’ll get the job done for you and provide quality pictures. The video only runs that 15 fps that is not exactly ideal for action video but we’ll take care of static video needs.
Call Quality
Call quality is above average it’s very clear and crisp and is certainly provides excellent sound.
Pros:
- The looks and sharp design
- User interface software
- CPU
- Applications
Cons:
- Keyboard
- Lack of N wireless
Conclusions and Final thoughts:
Considering that this phone actually debuted back in march in Europe and how fast smart phone technology is improving tells you a lot on how wonderful other job HTC did in designing the desire. Hardware and software this phone is up there with their latest in current smart phones on the market. You’ll be hard pressed to find a better smart phone available anywhere. The HTC desire is the androidheadlines.com recommended buy because of its overall impressive and complete smart phone design. Unfortunately the Google Nexus One is no longer available for sale but the HTC Desire is definitely the next best thing available. This phone can be purchased via Telus Canada online or in store for the low price of only $79.99 on a three year contract.
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