Smart phones are just small computers, and one thing that almost defines a computer is the fact that you can find some way to rip out its operational guts and replace them with something you like better. Some of us think this is not only beneficial, but that it can be fun! There is a risk, of course, that things will not go right and you’ll end up making your device a ‘brick’.

The process is called ‘rooting’ when you apply it to an Android phone (‘jailbreaking’ on the iPhone). Some Androids root easier than others, and thanks to the work of some really courageous and brilliant people, rooting the Sprint HTC EVO 4g is pretty easy nowadays!

There is a certain risk- not only can you make your phone a brick, it may make it tougher to get it serviced or it may just stop doing some of the things you want. On the other hand, there are a lot of benefits. You can finally dump the programs the maker or carrier dumps in it; you can find new operating systems (called ROMs in the Android world (and they technically are not ‘operating systems’, but it’s close enough for my purposes.)) that offer benefits you are looking for, like better battery life or free wireless tethering; and you can spend entire evenings of just messing around with things!

What finally pushed me over the rooting edge was an article at the site “Good and Evo” entitled “How to convince your significant other to root her EVO 4g” Darn it- I wanted all those benefits! I am a Techno-Warrior! I could do this! Especially since I remembered that shortly before this article came out, there was a related one- “Complete Guide: How to root, backup, and flash new ROM and kernal to your EVO 4G“. This excellent article walks one through the process very carefully and easily. The programs ‘ROM Manager‘ and ‘Titanium Backup’ really do make a big difference- with your initial rooting and working with other ROMs later. Another thing that added to my courage was another article on the same site- “How to unroot your EVO 4G“.

Like I usually do, I started the project later at night than was smart, but it did not take nearly as long as I was afraid it would. What I did not figure on was how much time afterwards I would mess around with stuff. I also forgot that all of my settings, like alarms, would be erased- oops!

The step-by-step instructions were a delight to follow- well-documented and described. The only glitch I ran into was step 6 in ‘Flashing a Custom ROM’-the whole  ’press and hold ‘Volume Down’ and then press ‘Power’ until the menu comes up.’ What this and similar instructions forgets to mention is that this works when powering back up after a re-boot, like taking the battery out does. Once I figured that out, it was smooth sailing. Just to get the hang of things, I used the ‘Sprint Lovers ROM’ mentioned in the article.

Major Lesson One: Rooting erases pretty much everything… Well, sort of. See this article to learn “How to switch ROMS on your rooted EVO 4G without losing data“- which is almost a commercial for the helpful program ‘MyBackup Root.’ It took me a while to reinstall everything. Not really a big deal, I used to do it all the time when I would wipe and rebuild my computers. I enjoy the chance to do some housecleaning… but I forgot that things like ringtones, alarms, etc. would get lost. Especially annoying when you use your phone as your main alarm clock.

Major Lesson Two: There are a LOT of ROMs out there! From the light and easy, but still cool versions like Fresh and Sprint Lovers, to more geek-powered versions like Ultimate Droid or the ‘Gold Standard’ Cyanogenmod. There are also some mediocre ROMS, so watch reviews. The ‘Good and Evo’ site above has a semi-regular column on reader’s reviews of various ROMS. Remember- things you fall in love with in one version do not necessarily show up in others. To make things even more interesting, you can also change kernals- the very heart of your Android- to get different features.

Major Lesson Three: At some point installing many ROMS, you will be asked if you want to reconnect to your Google account. When you get to the question about restoring or syncing all of your Google stuff, you need to think for a second. If all of your stuff is backed up in Google (normally a good idea), then when you answer ‘yes’ to this, it is going to try to redownload all 100 or so of the apps you had, all at once. It takes for-gosh dang-ever, and it has locked me up a couple times, necessitating a complete wiping of the memory caches and restarting the process.

I have become rather fearless in changing my system now. I’ve tried out four major ROMS (the ones listed above), and plan on trialling several others over the next month or so.  Every time I am done, I get this clean fresh feeling and a sense of accomplishment- all for a lot less than the cost of a new phone. It’s even cheaper than a new case would be!

By the way- take a look at the software mentioned as well- ROM Manager, Titanium Backup, and My Backup Root at your favorite app store- they are great additions to your Android tool kit!

Filed in categories: Android related, News

Tagged: evo, HTC, Root, rooting

Rooting the HTC EVO 4G originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 26, 2011 at 10:00 am.

Today HTC announced the HTC Sensation 4G Android multimedia superphone that is coming exclusively to T-Mobile. The Sensation has some good stuff under the hood, including a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 1.2 GHz processor and an 8 megapixel camera with 1080p video.This is the first device to feature HTC Watch. HTC Watch gives you access to the latest premium movies and TV shows that you can watch on the HTC Sensation 4G’s qHD 4.3-inch widescreen super LCD display. Purchased content can be viewed on up to five HTC devices. The HTC Sensation 4G will be available in the U.S. exclusively at T-Mobile USA this summer. Pricing will be released closer to availability. Full press release after the jump.

HTC unveils multimedia superphone,

the HTC Sensation^™ 4G

HTC brings one of its most advanced smartphones ever to the United States, exclusively for T-Mobile customers.

BELLEVUE, Wash. — April 12, 2011 — HTC Corp., a global leader in mobile innovation and design, today introduced the HTC Sensation 4G, a smartphone that shines a spotlight on entertainment with HTC’s new HTC Watch^™ video service. Crafted with premium design elements, the HTC Sensation 4G features the company’s latest customer-focused HTC Sense^™ experience that puts people at the center by making their smartphones work in a more simple and natural way. The HTC Sensation 4G will be available in the U.S. exclusively from T-Mobile USA beginning this summer.

“Consumers have quickly transformed smartphones into consumer lifestyle hubs — pocket-sized entertainment centers that enable people to take their favorite multimedia content with them wherever they go. The new HTC Watch service makes it fun and easy for people to access premium movies and TV shows while on the go,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corp. “The HTC Sensation 4G combines this great multimedia experience with the latest HTC Sense experience in a premium device that delivers a powerful and unprecedented smartphone to our customers.”

“The HTC Sensation 4G delivers the ultimate in speed and entertainment on America’s Largest 4G network,” said Andrew Sherrard, senior vice president of marketing for T-Mobile USA. “With a lightning-fast, dual-core processor and 4G speeds, customers will experience the difference when accessing rich media and content on the HTC Sensation 4G’s beautiful qHD display. We look forward to adding the HTC Sensation 4G to our industry-leading lineup of 4G smartphones.”

Premium Design and Materials

Tapping into HTC’s trademark design language, the HTC Sensation 4G’s premium look and feel is enhanced by its rounded edges and aluminum unibody construction, and the touch screen surface is protected by a contoured screen that feels more natural as a finger glides across it. The 4.3-inch qHD display delivers high-resolution widescreen viewing and gives the HTC Sensation 4G slender proportions that feel natural in a person’s hand. At the heart of the HTC Sensation 4G beats a powerful, 1.2-gigahertz, dual-core, Qualcomm^® Snapdragon^™ processor, which enables gorgeous graphics and all-around fast performance.

HTC Sense

Complementing the HTC Sensation 4G’s premium design is the latest HTC Sense experience that boasts a host of new features and enhancements, helping people have more fun and get more done. For instance, HTC Sense introduces a customizable active lock screen experience that transforms the lock screen into a real-time window to the most important information and content, such as social updates, photos, weather or stock updates that are viewed by simply waking up the display. In addition, the new active lock screen becomes a customizable gateway, which lets people quickly jump to the most-used features, such as making a phone call, sending an email, taking a picture or anything else, with the same quick gesture usually used to unlock the phone. For instance, the camera can be launched right from the lock screen with a single motion, saving precious seconds when you’re trying to capture the action. Sharper graphics, vibrant animations and new widgets make HTC Sense look better than ever and, by continuing to focus on all of the aspects, both large and small, that make HTC Sense special, HTC introduces a more cinematic and immersive weather experience with stunning imagery and audible weather effects.

HTC Sense also makes it easy to have fun by enabling people to capture and share special moments. The HTC Sensation 4G’s 8-megapixel camera doesn’t just shoot gorgeous photos — with the new instant capture feature, it lets people capture the moments they want without worrying about missing or keeping up with the action. The HTC Sensation also shoots full HD video in 1080p resolution, with full stereo sound, at up to 30 frames per second, giving you smooth video that is better than many other phones. With the new Video Trimmer tool, people can crop their clips to the perfect size for easy sharing with friends and family.

HTC Watch

The HTC Sensation 4G is a smartphone that is built from the ground up for a sophisticated, evolved multimedia experience. The 4.3-inch widescreen display means that users can watch movies like they were meant to be seen — in their full cinematic glory, with no cropping or letterboxing. The HTC Sensation 4G is also the first smartphone to feature HTC Watch — an application and service that puts an entire library of the latest, premium movies and TV shows right at your fingertips, letting people discover the latest video content in an easy and visually engaging way. HTC Watch uses progressive download technology that makes it possible to watch videos without waiting for a huge file to finish downloading. HTC Watch offers the choice of renting or buying videos and, if purchased, lets you watch them on up to five different HTC devices.

About HTC

HTC Corp. (HTC) is one of the fastest-growing companies in the mobile industry. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC creates innovative smartphones and tablets that better serve the lives and needs of individuals. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.

Filed in categories: Android related, News

Tagged: Android, HTC

The HTC Sensation 4G Multimedia Superphone is coming to T-Mobile originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 12, 2011 at 5:45 pm.

Carbonfiberskin.tk offers a pre-cut, sharp-looking carbon fiber skin for the HTC EVO 4G’s back cover for $25. Not a bad deal, but they also offer a ‘DIY’ option for a mere $5- that looks like it would fit a lot of things nicely! The question is “How easy is it to install and customize?” I ordered one in just to answer this burning question.

The company offers free S&H for either options, so I plunked down my $5 and got a plain business letter-sized envelope in the mail a few days later with a 5″ x 3.5″ chunk of self-adhesive black ‘basketweave’ pattern carbon fiber vinyl. It feels great to the touch, but feels more like a textured shelf paper than what I would expect real carbon fiber to feel like. There were no directions enclosed, but they are on the site.

Rough-trimmed skin and EVO battery cover

The site directions are not illustrated, and perhaps not as clear as they could be in a few places. The overall process is not hard- peel the backing, stick it to a clean battery cover, heat gently with a hair dryer, smooth into place, cut off excess with a new, sharp-tipped Xacto knife, sit back and admire.

Of course, there are a few minor roadblocks in the real world. The untrimmed cover is bigger than you really need so you can trim off almost 3/4″ from the end- and I suggest you use this little chunk for practice if you are unsure of your mad skillz. I made a minor tactical error in trying to have as little excess as I could on two sides- it is best to leave a little bit of a margin all the way around.

Battery cover laying on skin

Heating and smoothing was easy- my industrial hot air gun did it nicely but I am sure your puny little civilian hair dryers would work as well. The back conformed nicely to the mild contours of the EVO. I let it cool a bit then started the trimming.

Stuck in place, before heating

My new Xacto blade was sharp enough that if I was not careful, I was shaving plastic off the battery door, but several techniques quickly developed. I was able to stick the blade tip in my cutting mat and slide the cover along it, almost like using a band saw. Using it like a whittling knife to carefully slice off little bits took care of the few imperfect cuts I made.

Trimmed and holes cut out- you can see the roughness of the speaker holes.

Cutting out the interior holes was easy, especially since I could access them from the back. The speaker holes, however, are a pain. The site suggests poking them with a needle and warms they often close up from the heat and pressure of your pocket. Poking them from the inside left a rough patch on the cover. Poking them from the inside a little and then using a bigger pin from the outside helped a bit- but the adhesive sticks to the needle and smears. A small application of heat smooths the cover again, but closes up most of the holes. I tried a hot needle and it only worked a little better. You may choose to just use a template and cut a circle around the speaker holes and peel the carbon fiber covering off.

Elapsed time- something under 10 minutes of actual work, a little more time experimenting with various techniques. Satisfaction rating- a lot higher than I’ve had with a lot of pre-cut things that are so frustrating to align perfectly. Durability- time will tell, but it feels good so far.

Finished!

Could you do it on other devices? I think so, as long as there is not a lot of contour and you can get to where you need to make cut-outs. I’d like to try it on my laptop’s lid and around the keyboard if I could get the film at a good price. I assume it will not conform around the lip of the lid, but it should work on the flattish areas nicely.

Filed in categories: Android related, Reviews

Tagged: evo, HTC

Carbonfiberskin.tk’s DIY Carbon Fiber HTC EVO Skin Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on February 2, 2011 at 4:27 pm.

This is an amazing phone to hold and use. I haven’t been this enchanted by an electronic gadget in quite some time. It seems like it can do everything- sometimes almost reading my mind. Of course, there is the occasional ‘huh’ moment trying to figure something out that should be a piece of cake, but overall it is a nice machine!

The HTC EVO 4G (Sprint) shares many of the characteristics of the HTC Incredible, amply reviewed earlier by Bryan Sherman. The packaging, set-up, Sense UI, main camera, HTC Sync, available apps, and even battery life are all similar to what he found in this series with the HTC Incredible.

So what makes the EVO different and amazing? The big things are a massive screen, a front-facing camera, and no trackball. Let’s look at a few specifics-

Size. Here is how the EVO stacks up to the Palm Tx and iPhone:

• HTC EVO: 4.8″ x 2.6″ x 0.5″, 5 oz, 4.3″ screen
• Palm Tx: 4.8″ x 3.1″ x 0.6″, 5.3oz, 4″ screen
• iPhone: 4.5″ x 2.4″ x 0.5″, 4.8oz, 3.5″ screen

It feels very different in my hand than my old Blackberry or most other cell phones. Many people have commented that it feels ‘big’, but I think that depends on a lot on what you have been using. I think the size and gentle back curvature fit my hand nicely, but I am also used to carrying my old Palm Tx everywhere.

Buttons: The EVO has 4 flat buttons along the front- home, menu, back, and search- no trackball, nothing protrusive. The power button is on top, and there are volume control buttons on the upper right side.

In fact, the lack of a trackball, hard camera button, etc. is a glitch in some apps that assume that all Android phones have one- but I am sure most of them will be updated soon.

The buttons are also pretty sensitive. One small nuisance I have been having lately is brushing a button that takes me somewhere I did not want to be.

Speed. the 1Ghz Snapdragon processor is fast, even on a regular 3G network. Speedtest.net’s Android app shows mine at 917kbps download and 1866kbps upload at best so far. I have only rarely had to wait for the processor to finish any task I have asked of it. It is also a multi-tasker- a nice feature for us old Palm users!

Many reviews of the speed of the EVO compare it to other devices and find it lagging or sluggish. I have not noticed this but have also not compared it head to head against the iPhone or other Androids. I think it is more responsive than my Blackberry was, but that is not hard to do.

The ‘star’ of the EVO is the 4G network. I don’t have that and have not been to a city yet that does. Reports of 4G experiences vary and often include words like ‘fast’, ‘spotty’, and “not quite there”, but this is a great 3G phone without it.

Kickstand. This is a pretty minor feature, and only really works in landscape mode, but it is a great example of a ‘why didn’t they do this long ago’ thinking. I’d like it better if the Sense screens supported landscape mode so I could use it as a desktop information device when charging. By the way, the kickstand is anchored to the frame of the phone, not just the rather thin back.

Front camera. The 8 megapixel main camera is killer, but this thing also has a 1.3mp front facing camera. There are rumors that it flips everything (bug or feature?) and I have not found how to use it yet, so this may have to wait.

Screen: One of the cool things about the old Palm period was that each PDA had a better screen than the last. I have no idea how the EVO screen stacks up against other Andriods but I am seriously in love with this huge, bright screen!

Battery. To be fair, I need to report that most reviews of the EVO have blasted the battery life. This has never been a deal-breaker for me since I have the luxury of letting things charge in the office as well as at home or in my car, but it is not a very long-lived battery on its own.

You can try some apps, some tricks and settings, etc. but the best option is probably a bigger battery, with even bigger ones rumored for the summer. (Note- I’ve been told that the HTC Hero battery fits, but have not confirmed it for myself yet.) Since it uses a standard micro-USB to charge, you can also use several external battery options, like the previously reviewed Tekkeon unit, but you would probably want something smaller.

Qix and Sprint HotSpot. These features sound wonderful-a videophone and a wireless modem for your laptop respectively, but they also cost extra for their services, and with the cost of the phone, combined with the $10 extra data cost, and the need for one of the ‘Everything’ plans, I just am not paying for it right now. I am going to try to see if I can find a way to tether without it, perhaps using PDANet or something.

The real measure of a device is not just the specs, though. What is it like in actual use? Here are some ways I have used this phone this week:

As a web device. The Internet comes up quickly with the default browser, and it works more like a laptop than any other hand-held device I have used. In landscape mode, it is eerily similar to using a small netbook!

The EVO on my HP Mini 1000. Forgive the smudges and flecks!

You use gestures to move around- swiping, wiping, pinching, etc. Occasionally, I found myself triggering some unexpected modes- fast scroll, very slow scroll, etc. but it usually works smoothly. Touching a link could be a problem since most pages open with small text, but you can pull the page out to zoom and it becomes a pice of cake to touch the right spot. This zooming also makes it easier to find a font or image size that makes the best match between your vision and the screen size- nice!

A feature I did not see a lot of hype on is that this phone will connect via a cellular connection, or optionally, via a wi-fi connection. This comes in handy sometimes, as I will mention below.

Another interesting feature is Voice Search, via Google. Open the Voice Search window, speak, and it finds what you said. I have not used it a lot, but without any pre-training, it exactly identified 4 for 4 of my searches!

As a phone. Doesn’t it just figure that no one would call me this week? This is a very capable phone. Voices sound kind of hollow or harsh, but they are loud and clear. You can access commonly needed controls easily, and you can make lots of interesting, but familiar adjustments. (It reminds me more of my Palm Centro than my Blackberry Curve in this sense.)

You can multi-task to an extent during a call. If you can link up to the ‘net via a wi-fi connection, you can even surf during a call. The phone senses it’s proximity to the face and turns off the screen when talking, so you need to enable speaker phone for this.

A combination of the power button and a security ‘screen swipe’ prevents ‘pocket dialing’, and you can adjust these settings.

As a book reader. I do a LOT of reading on-line, and the EVO is a good electronic reader. The big bright screen is obviously the top selling point but I have to say that I miss the ‘autoscroll’ feature that was so common on Palm reading apps. The ability to use gestures to adjust text size, and the auto-portrait/landscape sensing is nice. I really think I prefer a D-pad or similar control for scrolling over the swiping all the time.

As an music player. The default player is OK (note that the Sense UI music page and the Music app are slightly different but obviously connected- the app has more options). Sound quality is a bit hollow and much better over the headphones, volume is good. The interface is easy, etc. Adding to or creating playlists, for example, is pretty straightforward. If you mount the EVO as a disk drive, you can add music via drag and drop.

As a movie player. This one is schizophrenic. It handles YouTube, etc. nicely (and supposedly much better on the 4G), but it is difficult to get your other downloaded or ripped movies and videos to play- you have to get them to the right format with the right settings- shades of the Palm Tx again! I bet they would look great when you do it, though.

As a camera (still or video). Very nice 8Mp pictures, and no hard camera button, but otherwise about what you would expect. A minor quirk is that runs in landscape mode.

Taking a picture of taking a picture of a picture of a picture.

As a keyboard. Whether it is just a website URL, a text-message, or a longer bit, you will probably use the keyboard. If possible, use it in landscape mode- the portrait mode is more cramped side to side. The board is nothing special. The word prediction is average or maybe a bit less, and it seems to take it forever to learn new words. It also seems to respond differently in some apps than in others. There are other on-screen keyboards available with mixed reviews.

Not quite as wide as a netbook keyboard, but it does do prediction.

Personally, I’m waiting for it to connect to a Bluetooth keyboard, which it does not currently do well according to forums, but that may change in version 2.2. I’d even go for a  version of Palm’s old Graffiti!

As a game player. This is going to depend on your style, tastes, and which apps you load, but I would rank it far above a Blackberry, and maybe not quite as good, overall, as a Palm. The ability of some games to use the sensors is fun, but the lack of a trackball or other hard buttons makes other games harder. Many games look great on the big screen, others look sadly pixilated or dated. Sometimes, I even just wish I had a (gasp!) stylus to help selections.

Spider Solitaire in two versions- the EVO's has no 'back' option! Dang!

As a tool. There are a lot of apps that I use at work or around the house, from a level that gives numeric readings, to bar code scanners, to a great Google-powered night sky map. For the most part, this works great, and the combination of cameras, sensors and GPS capabilities mean there are probably thousands more ideas just around the corner.

My laptop is not quite level.

As a laptop. One reason to consider a phone like this is to further the trend of replacing laptops with cell phones. Other than the keyboard and battery, I would say this one is pretty much there. It has good storage, can store to the cloud (such as via DropBox), has a great screen, and is eminently portable.

This device has so many features that even after almost a week, I have not tried them all- like voice commands.

To be fair, this is a very cool phone, but not a perfect one. I would bet that this will soon reveal itself to be a transitional phone with something cooler coming out in a while. A couple other quickie dislikes would include a very thin, but apparently well-secured back (I expect we will see replacements soon) and not many accessories just for it yet. It also has a certain amount of ‘bloatware’, like Sprint Football, NASCAR, Sprint TV, and Peep. I am sure each has many fans, but they are tough to uninstall or ignore.

The HTC EVO 4G from Sprint. I love it, flaws and all. I mean this in a good way- it feels like the heyday of Palm, when the unit could do anything and the world was opening up with new things every day.

Filed in categories: Android related, Reviews

Tagged: evo, HTC, smart phone, Sprint

HTC EVO 4G from Sprint Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on June 11, 2010 at 11:00 am.

Done! I’ve pre-ordered what is supposed to be the hottest new phone being offered in the US- Sprint’s HC EVO 4G. As far as I can tell, only Radio Shack is doing this.

I stopped at my local Shack and did not see any signs of the phone coming or an in-store ad for this program, but there are a lot of signs there so I may have missed it.

The manager wrote my order up. He had several pages on a clip board that guided him through the process, including checking that I am a Sprint customer and eligible for an upgrade. I had to buy a $50 gift card that I could use for the phone, accessories, or anything else I wanted. It seemed like an interesting way to get me to make a deposit. $50- no tax, that is all I spent so far.

Now, the odd bits…

No mention was made of the $20 accessories card. I’ll ask when I pick it up.

The paperwork specifically says that they can hold it for the first 2 days of the launch, which should mean it would be available on Sunday the 6th- but you have  to make an appointment to get the phone (odd in itself, but they must expect crowds in some markets) and the appointment grid is set up for Friday and Saturday, so I have an appointment for both Fri. and Mon.

I am rather amazed by the lack of mock-ups, photos, etc. in the stores- it is a pretty quiet roll-out for a pretty interesting phone.

I did just find out that the much-ballyhooed 4G network is only in a very limited number of cities right now, but as far as I can tell, all EVO owners will be tagged for an extra $10/month for the 4G experience.

Now for some planning… what apps do I want and need? What tests need to be run on this baby? What do YOU want to know from the review when I finally get it?

I’ll probably post an initial review, and then a couple of follow-ups in the tradition of some other smartphone reviews. Now to find something to do until the 6th. Grrr!

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: Android, HTC, Smartphone

HTC EVO 4G (Sprint)- Preordered! originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 25, 2010 at 9:15 am.

I’ll be pre-ordering one of these ‘wonder phones’ from Sprint this week. If you have not heard about the HTC EVO 4G, it’s an Android phone that features a 4.3″ screen, 2 cameras- an 8 meg main camera and a 1.3 meg front-facing camera, a kick stand, multitasking, 4g speed capabilities, and more.

They are due out June 4th, and here in Omaha we generally do not get a lot of units when a hot device is released. I’m going to let you know how the process goes and what I think about the device when I get it.

Fingers crossed

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: HTC

HTC EVO 4G (Sprint) originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 24, 2010 at 11:00 am.

My week with the HTC Incredible turned into almost 2 weeks, but still it didn’t seem long enough. Even after the brief hour I spent with it to create the First Looks post, I knew I was going to like this phone.

Now after a week, the standout features for me were:

• Speed (1 GHz Snapdragon processor)
• Physical Size
• Screen size (480 x 800 3.7″)
• Sense UI

Specifications

• Android 2.1 with Sense UI
• 3.7″ 480 x 800 AMOLED Display
• 8 GB internal memory
• 512 MB ROM
• 512 MB RAM (actually had over 748 MB available)
• 8 GB internal storage (shows as 6.6 GB internal and is in addition to any SD card you add)
• Optical Joystick
• Bluetooth 2.1
• 12-pin micro-USB port
• microSD slot (no card included) up to 32 GB (Verizon’s site says 16 GB, HTC 32)
• AC Adapter and micro-USB cable

Battery Life and Charging

After using this for almost 2 weeks, I found the battery to be pretty much on par with most App phones. By that I mean barely satisfactory. Most days, the charge lasted all day, but on 2 days I ran out early. No surprise that these were the first days when I was playing testing extensively. If you are looking for an App phone, there are not  significantly better options, and given the fact that this phone is running at 1 GHz, the battery life is good, compared to its peers.

I love a slim phone, but you know what manufacturers? Bit the bullet, add some thickness and give me more battery life. Given the design of the Incredible, I have a glimmer of hope that they could release an extended battery with a new back. I would be all over that option.

I do love the fact that phones now typically charge via USB. This way I can charge it on my laptop, or use the car adapter I already own that has a USB port. I get tired of all the AC Adapters I have collected.

Memory

I was surprised that the phone did not come with an SD card. However, it has 8 GB built-in, so this is not a big issue. My biggest surprise was Phone Memory. The specs claim 512 MB. On my phone it displays 748 MB of total space. I wonder if this is pulled off by using some of the internal storage. The 8 GM of internal memory shows up as 6.6 GB.

Bottom line, the 748 MB of phone memory coupled with the 8(6.6) GB of memory is a great start. Add in that you can add a 32 MB micro SD card (which are quite expensive right now) and the memory and storage of this device is quite impressive.

Screen

I love the screen. By default it is set to automatically adjust, and after some experimentation I left it set there. I had one commenter ask how it worked in direct sunlight, and set to auto it worked fine. On par with my G1. You wouldn’t want to spend a lot of time using it in direct sunlight, but it works. If the light is turned off, it is not viewable at all, but I did not leave it set to off.

If you look at the screen at an angle, you can see a gridwork of dots. I was going to take a shot of it for the review, but returned it before I did. That indicates not only my poor memory, but also that it was not a big deal for me.

Form Factor

I loved the form factor. After adjusting to it, it felt very natural. Now that I am adjusting back to my G1, the G1 seems like a brick. I did find that I hit the volume buttons unintentionally a few times, and it is easy to hit the power when you are taking off and putting on the back, but those were the only issues with the form factor for me.

Controls

The optical joystick worked fine. I still am not a fan of the touchscreen buttons at the bottom. They contributed to some unintentional taps when working on the screen, but as I adjusted to the device, that became less of an issue.

I really miss physical call and hangup buttons. It’s warm now, but I wonder what it will be like using the phones with gloves in the cold. Also, with a physical call button I can launch a call from anywhere on my phone. Since the phone button is part of the home screen, I now have to go to one of the home screens to launch the phone.

Camera

This is a really good camera for a phone. It does fairly well in low-light, and I like the fact that you can use the touch screen to pick on off-center focus. The video worked well, and I loved that I could upload to Flickr and YouTube directly to my phone.

Bottom Line

This is a (if not THE) top-of-the-line Android phone. HTC has really made a name for itself in phone design. It will be interesting to see how the EVO performs when it is finally released, but right now, if someone asked me for the best choice for Android phones, I can’t think of anything to beat the Incredible if you don’t care about a physical keyboard or the Droid if you want a keyboard. At the risk of sounding like I am sucking up to the folks at Verizon, who have provided units to test, they are really making a case for being the best provider for Android phones.

Filed in categories: Android related, Reviews

Tagged: HTC, incredible, verizon

HTC Incredible Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 7, 2010 at 5:17 pm.

One of the big differences with HTC phones is the inclusion of the Sense UI. I first encountered it with the Droid Eris and really liked it. You can read my earlier post on the topic for more details. The downside of the Sense UI is that it can delay getting an update to the latest Android OS. I know the Eris is still not on 2.1, but the Incredible is running Android 2.1 and the Sense UI.

The Home Screens

One change with the Sense is that there are 7 home screens instead of 3. I believe the latest Android OS also provides more home screens now, but this was new to me with the Eris. Another nice feature of the Sense UI is that you can now get thumbnails of all your home screens. You access this view by hitting the Home button from the center home screen, or pinching on any home screen. This is a great way to maneuver to the desired home screen.

Scenes

What if 7 home screens aren’t enough for you? Sense also provides a feature called Scenes. This is a way to save your 7-screen setup, including wallpaper. The phone comes with 7 different scenes configured, and you can create and save your own:

This lets you easily change the configuration of your phone for different uses. I could see this being helpful if you want to have certain widgets (and backgrounds) for work, others for home and still others for being out and about.

Widgets

The widget enhancement could fill a whole series of posts. The HTC Widgets included provide multiple options and enhancements. The Music is a good example. It is better looking than the Android widget, and comes in two sizes, full screen and half-screen.

I also like the Clock widget. It provides a lot of creative clock faces including multiple time zone options.

Exchange Support

As with all current Android phones (2.0 or later) the Incredible supports Exchange. It incorporates your exchange calendar with all your other calendars.

Now to be fair, mine is a little complicated. Since I do a lot of testing I have one calendar listed three different ways. Abreon Calendar is the Google Sync calendar of my exchange account (my G1 does not support Exchange, and is my working phone), Exchange is the exchange account synced via wireless, and PC Sync is the PC version using HTC Sync I discussed previously.

Your exchange mail is not incorporated into the main mail program. You need to access it through another mail icon. For me, I like this, I don’t want my work mail in the same place, but for some this is a disappointment.

Another nice addition is QuickOffice. I was able to view an attached excel worksheet with it, and the included PDF Viewer let me see an attached PDF.

Getting Social

The Sense also builds on the Android 2.0/2.1 social account management. The big thing for me is Flickr support. If I didn’t already adore the Sense UI, this would make me want it. Here is just a sample of my accounts screen:

The duplicate Twitter accounts are for Twitter’s own Twitter app and Peep. I think this gives me insight into why the Twitter application for Android requires 2.1, since it uses this account setup.

The Peep twitter application is not bad. I have to say I do prefer Twidroid and my new favorite TweetCaster to it or Twitter’s own application.

The integration is really nice. The phone will try to link accounts for you, and you can go in and link more:

It automatically linked Bob’s Flickr, Google (Gmail) and Facebook accounts. If it incorrectly links (it is pretty conservative about declaring a match) you can tap on the green bar to unlink. You can also link others that it did not find.

As mentioned, I love the Flickr integration. My photo gallery now linked to my Flickr account for easy upload and browsing. Also, I can easily upload video shot on the phone to my linked YouTube account. Here is an example. it is large, so it waited until I connected by Wi-Fi to actually upload. Warning, it’s a video of my kid. I liked it as a test though, since lighting was not great and the dark wood surroundings:

Not bad for low-light. The musicians were on the other side of the platform. The unconverted version is a little crisper than what YouTube did to it, but even that did a nice job.

Conclusion

I think the Sense UI is a great add to this phone. The additional integration it offers, as well as user interface enhancements makes this phone not only more functional, but more pleasant to use.

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: Android, HTC, incredible, verizon

A Week with the HTC Incredible – Sense UI originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 4, 2010 at 12:39 pm.

Don’t you hate it when you want to do something and someone tells you that you are doing it wrong? Well let me get this out of the way. If you are planning on using your shiny new Android phone to sync data on your PC, you are doing it wrong. One of the really powerful things about the Android OS is the cloud. It is designed around the idea that your phone is accessing all your data directly rather than tying it to a PC. However, some folks need to synchronize with the data on their PC. For that, HTC has created HTC Sync.

Now that I am done telling you that you are doing it wrong, let me add, I love the fact that HTC includes this ability with their phones. Like it or not, there are some folks that need to sync with their PC. Now the bad news, the HTC Sync runs on Windows, so if your PC is a Mac, you are out of luck.

The software for HTC Sync is actually included on the HTC Incredible. When you mount the disk drive you see this:

You can run the HTC Sync install application right off the phone. I installed the application as a “Typical Application”, that is, I let it install it all instead of picking settings. Once you install it, you will need to set your Sync Settings. On my machine it found MS Outlook, and Windows Address Book (Outlook Express).

You can choose to sync your Contacts and/or Calendar, and you can choose to make it automatic whenever you connect your phone to your PC, or manual.

If you have no location information on your Window’s PC (I didn’t) you’ll need to enter what area code you are in. When syncing, you can see details:

When you go into settings, you can control things like how it manages conflicts:

You can also choose a repair option to overwrite your phone or your PC:

On your phone, your PC Sync calendar becomes another calendar. Here is an example where I have an event on my Google calendar, and a slightly re-worded one on my Exchange calendar:

Notice that each calendar has a unique color code. I could not find where to change the color. Also, I now have my exchange appointment duplicated by PC Sync. Since my Outlook is an Exchange account, there is no reason for me to use HTC Sync (except to write a review of it). If you do both, you will end up with these duplicates.

When you connect your phone to your PC you get a nice option screen:

Once you set up HTC Sync, that option will start the sync.

HTC Sync is a nice add for anyone that needs to sync with a desktop Outlook or Outlook Express account. It may violate the spirit of Android, but if you need it, it is essential.

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: Android, HTC, incredible, verizon

A Week with the HTC Incredible – HTC Sync originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on May 3, 2010 at 4:34 pm.

For day three I managed to track down a Nexus user in Cincinnati through Twitter.  Tim was kind enough to meet up for the opportunity to check out the Incredible while I checked out the Nexus.

These two phones are both HTC phones, and very similar in specifications and size.

Controls

Both phones sport the touchscreen buttons that seem to be the thing anymore. I was surprised to see them in a different order. Nexus arranges them Back-Menu-Home-Search while the Incredible arranges them Home-Menu-Back-Search. Not a big issue, unless you get to test lots of phones. I really wish they would settle on a standard order for buttons.

The Nexus has the same physical “track ball” that my G1 has while the Incredible using an optical one. I assume the move away from physical buttons and navigation controls is to make the devices more rugged. I miss a physical call and hang up button though, especially when it is cold and I have gloves on.

Memory

The biggest difference is that the Incredible comes with 8 GB of storage, but not as an SD card. It is actually built into the phone. In addition, you can add an SD card. The only issue with this strategy is that you need an SD card for many applications. It will be interesting to see if they rewrite applications (like QIK)  to work with the built-in memory instead of requiring an SD card. The huge plus is that you have 8 GB built-in. When you decide you want more memory you add an SD card without losing the original 8. Since this supports up to a 32 GB SD card, that mean you can get 40 GB on this phone.

Well, almost 40 GB. Of course you lose some in the formatting, and if you look at the right screen, there is only 6.6 of the 8 GB available. Also, I noticed that the Phone memory is listed as 748 MB, but the specs say 512 MB. Not sure where that is coming from, perhaps that is where some of the missing 1.4 GB has gone?

Camera

Another difference is the camera. The Incredible comes with an 8 megapixel camera with 2 LED flashes. I have not put it through a lot of tests, but I have been surprised at how well it works, Typically you lose light sensitivity as pixels increase, but this does quite well.

Here is a shot with the flash:

Here is one without the flash:

And one more shot, I pulled over to the side of the road to grab this quick picture, proving yet again that the best camera you have is the one with you:

I think all in all the Incredible is a great upgrade over the Nexus. Nothing earth shattering, but a nice evolution. I am also a big Sense UI fan, so that is a big add for me. Of course, that’s for another post…

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: Android, HTC, incredible, verizon

A Week with the HTC Incredible – Day 3 originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 30, 2010 at 12:00 pm.

On Friday I was provided the opportunity to play with the HTC Incredible. The only stipulation was that I could not post or tweet about it until today.

This is Verizon’s new Android phone. Some of the notable things about it are the use of the 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, a large display, and an 8 MP camera. I hope to get to spend some more time with it soon, to provide more details, but here are my first impressions.

Here is quick list of the Incredible’s features from the press release:

• Android 2.1 with HTC Sense experience
• 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon(tm) processor for maximum responsiveness
• Friend Stream for unified Flickr, Facebook and Twitter updates
• “Leap” view for quick access to all seven home screen panels
• 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash for crisp, detailed images
• Razor-sharp 3.7 inch WVGA (480×800) AMOLED capacitive touch display
• Optical joystick for smooth navigation
• Dedicated, touch-sensitive Home, Menu, Back and Search keys
• Proximity sensor, light sensor and digital compass
• Integrated GPS
• Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
• 3.5 mm headset jack

The Phone

All I had to compare it to that day was my old G1. Here is a side by side:

I set both phones to maximum brightness, and this is at an angle, but you can see the Incredible is brighter, and the display is larger.

Since there is no keyboard, the Incredible is much thinner:

I am happy to see that most new phones come with a standard headphone jack. It is located on top with the power button:

The side contains the USB port and volume controls:

This may seem strange, but I was also happy to see that the USB port does not have a cover. In my experience they are a pain, and not long for your device. The cover for my G1 fell off months ago. I am a little concerned with the type of connector. It did not look like a standard MicroUSB port. One of my first tests will be to see if a standard MicroUSB plug works. I really do not need yet another cable to keep around.

First Impressions

This is a very sleek phone. It does not have a physical keyboard, so it is very thin. The screen is very responsive, bright, and beautiful. The screen is the same size as he Droid, but a slightly different resolution (480 x 800 vs. the Droid’s 480 x 854). I would be interested to see the two side by side, and may try to meet-up with someone I know who has a Droid.

The phone switches very smoothly between portrait and landscape, it gives you the 2-finger zoom features everyone seems to love, and lets you tap to choose what the camera focuses on. Here is a quick video, no audio:

The Camera

I was actually concerned with the fact that it is an 8 MP camera. A lot of times more pixels means less low-light ability. My quick picture was a surprise. It looked really good in a low-light environment. I also liked that you could tap to focus off-center. I didn’t think to send the picture to my account so that I could show a sample, but I will definitely look at the camera in more detail. It looks like a winner.

All in all this looks like a very impressive phone. It is taking all my strength to not say it is incredible.  It will initially be priced the same as the Droid  ($199) with rebate. You sacrifice a few pixels and a keyboard for a faster processor, the Sense UI and what appears to be a much better camera. I hope to have more to post soon.

Filed in categories: Android related, Wireless

Tagged: Android, HTC, verizon

HTC Incredible First Looks originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 19, 2010 at 12:35 pm.

I found this video on YouTube of HTC presenting an overview of the Sense interface. This is a really good explanation of the value this adds to Android, and Windows Mobile.

Filed in categories: Android related, Windows Mobile related

Tagged: Android, HTC, Windows Mobile

Video – HTC Sense originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on November 25, 2009 at 2:36 pm.

The Droid Eris is the first Android phone with the Sense UI I have been able to play with. I was suspicious about the add-on (see previous post) but was pleasantly surprised.

What’s in the box:

• Phone
• USB Cable
• Power Adapter

I love the fact that the prongs in the power adapter fold into the unit. This is a really good design, and it is a shame the Droid did not do the same. Obviously not a make or break feature, but well thought out.

Connections

HTC loves their oddly shaped mini-USB port. Luckily a normal cable will fit, though the HTC cable won’t fit into a standard mini-USB port. It also comes with a headphone jack. Again, I am happy to see this becoming the norm.

Styling

To be fair, I am an HTC fan. I remember the jealousy I experienced when a colleague first showed off his HTC Touch phone. The styling on this phone is reminiscent of that. It feels solid, and had the rubberized finish of other HTC phones. I was never crazy about the G1′s design, but this is a step up.

Here is a stack with the G1 at the base, and the Droid and Eris on top.

It may not seem that slimmer in this picture, but it is. Add into it the soft curves and the Eris feels a lot smaller than the droid.

Controls

I like the inclusion of the Call and End Call buttons on the phone. I never was a huge fan of the trackball on my G1, but the one on the Eris seems to work better to me.

I really miss a dedicated camera button. This is the first Android phone I have used without one. When you launch the camera, pushing the trackball serves as the shutter. Not as smooth as the shutter button on my G1 and he Droid, and you lose the functionality of a long press on the shutter to open the camera in the first place.

Phone Quality

I sometimes forget these are phones, with all the bells and whistles. Both this Droid Eris, and the Droid phone haa great call quality. I would give the edge to the Motorola Droid, but not by much.

Operating System

The Eris ships with Android 1.5, but adds the Sense UI. I really like the Sense UI, and consider this close to a wash versus Android 2.0. I am also sure they are working to update the Sense UI for Android 2.0. As I mentioned in the previous post, this is the cost of the custom UIs, you are probably going to see a slight delay on the latest and greatest OS.

Speed

The Eris has the same processor speed as the G1, but with more memory and the UI, it feels noticeably faster than my G1.

Keyboard

This phone does not come with a physical keyboard. I expected this to be a big deal, I have grown to like the keyboard on my G1, and never enjoyed using the virtual keyboard on my wife’s iPod Touch. I was wrong. This keyboard is intelligently designed, and a joy to use. The key is to use a light touch. The screen is very responsive, and the harder you press the wider your contact is. Here is a comparison:

Droid Eris:

Droid:

I really like the fact that the Eris keyboard has a button to close it (the bottom-left) and the quick access to settings (the gear icon next to it).

Conclusions

I highly recommend you look at the other postings in this series, but I really liked this phone. It is not an easy call between it and the Droid. I still feel comfortable with my comparison of the Droid Eris vs. Droid. Depending on your preferences, one of these two phones may be a clear winner. I still keep going back and forth, but my deep set geek traits leans slightly to the Motorola Droid. But last week it was to the Eris, so who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Filed in categories: Android related, Reviews

Tagged: Android, eris, HTC, verizon

HTC Droid Eris Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on November 16, 2009 at 6:52 am.

One of the key differences with the Doid Eris is the UI that HTC has developed for their Android phones. The Sense UI provides a smoother interface to the stock Android interface. I am seeing this trend in a lot of phones. Motorola has the Blur, Samsung the Cube, and I am sure there will be more to follow.

Here I want to focus on what the Sense UI brings to the party. I’ll break it down to:

• UI Enhancements
• Widgets
• Core Extensions
• Extra Applications

I have mixed emotions on the current supplemental UI trend. On the one hand, anything that makes the phone more accessible has got to be a good thing, on the other hand, I am afraid that it fragments the market. Someone using an HTC phone may not take to the Motorola version as quickly. Of course, that is probably exactly why the handset manufacturers are embracing this trend.

Another issue, that is apparent with both the Droid and the Eris, is the delay in getting the latest Android OS. The Droid ships with Android 2.0 and without Motorola’s Blur interface. I can only assume this is because the Blur is not ready to work with Eclair. The Eris ships with Android 1.5 and the Sense UI, and I have heard they are working on updating the UI to work with 2.0. So if you want to have the latest and greatest, the UI add-ons are going to delay that for you.

UI Enhancements

First and foremost, the Sense UI means that the UI for your Android phone is going to look a little different.

The Icons in the Notification bar are redesigned to be smaller, and also have a different look. Another change is the bottom of the screen. In the Standard Android OS you get a single centered tab that you tap to see the applications tray. With the Sense UI the center button is now the Phone button, used to launch the phone app, and the applications button is moved to the left with a new add button on the right.

The Phone button seems redundant on the Eris. One of the things I like about it is that it has the familiar green call and red hang-up buttons on the phone. You don’t ever need to tap the phone button on the screen. The add button is, well, a nice add. I know folks new to Android can be confused how to add things to the home pages, now it is more obvious. Experienced users can still use the long-press to add an item.

The home page now has Seven pages, rather than the standard three. This comes in really handy with the new widgets that HTC provides. When you go to add an item on a page, you get a number of options:

We’ll cover the new HTC Widgets later. Shortcuts are not actually changed in Sense UI, but it is helpful to look at what you can create. You can add shortcuts to a:

• Bookmark
• Gmail label
• Mail Inbox
• Music Playlist
• Person
• Program

I really like the ability to add a person. You can select how to contact them and create a direct dial to their mobile, home, work or even SMS them.

Other refinements I discussed in the First Looks: Droid Eris including improved media player interface, lock-out screen that lets you quickly control music player and enhanced widgets.

HTC Widgets

I could do a whole series of post on the HTC Widgets. I love the enhanced music widget, the mail widget, and the messaging widget. They take up a lot of real estate on the screen, but make your information quickly accessible. The Photo Frame is an enhancement on the Picture Frame widget in Android. You can tap on the picture to view it from the HTC widget. HTC also has a Photo Album widget that allows you to quickly browse through the pictures in an album by simply flicking up and down on the widget screen.

Core Extensions

These are the features you don’t necessarily see, but enhance the experience nonetheless. A big one is Exchange support. This did not exist in Android before 2.0. I like the implementation in the Sense UI a little better. Your calendar events appear in one unified calendar, no need to check a separate Corporate Calendar application. You can also set a signature for your Exchange, POP and IMAP accounts. You can’t do this in the stock Android 2.0 mail application. You can, of course, download a replacement mail application on the Market that would allow you to do it, but it is nice to have it built-in.

The Sense UI also takes Facebook integration a step farther and adds Flickr integration. You can attach your Facebook friends and Flickr contacts to your contact list. Now as updates occur to these contacts, you get a notice on your phone. Here you can see upcoming birthdays, and a list of updates folks made in Facebook and Flickr:

If I tap on my name I can see a summary of all my Facebook notifications:

If I tap on an individual I see the details of their update:

This has been one of the nicest features of the Sense UI for me. I will really miss this when I am back on the G1.

Extra Applications

HTC also includes some applications with the Sense UI. Two that I especially like are the Voice Recorder and Peep.

The Voice recorder is a very simple recorder for your phone. You can record on your phone, and set the recording as a ringtone, right from the application. Nothing fancy, and there are apps in the Market that do similar things, but a nice add.

Peep is my favorite, though. It is a Twitter client for your Sense UI Android phone. It is the smoothest Twitter client for Android that I have used. It does not have the multi-account features of other clients, but works wonderfully.

It provides simple tools across the bottom to access you Twitter stream, any mentions, direct mentions and favorites. You can choose among photo hosts for picture attachments and URL shorteners. Not an exhaustive list, but can choose from more than one.

Conclusions

I really like this UI. All things being equal, I would choose an Android phone with the Sense UI over one without. Of course all things are not equal. Unfortunately using the Sense UI today means being on Android 1.5. The only other negative I found was that the home page will not rotate to landscape view. Not a huge deal, and I am not sure this will change, some of the widgets would not fit in a landscape view.

I hope I get to try out some of the other UIs, but this one does show the promise of the enhancements.

Update

I forgot to mention another really nice feature of the Sense UI, Scenes. Scenes are alternate looks and arrangements of your 7-screen home.

Each theme has a different wallpaper and set of widgets that apply to the scenario. You can save and name your own layouts. It’s a really nice feature than expands the UI even farther.

Also, the Sense UI supports multi-touch pinch to zoom-out, spread to zoom-in in the browser and picture view.

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: Android, eris, HTC, Sense UI

Droid Eris: The Sense UI originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on November 14, 2009 at 12:49 am.

Sprint customers will finally get a taste of Android on October 11, with the HTC Hero. The HTC Hero offers synchronization for built-in Google mobile services, including Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, and YouTube as well as access to more than 8,000 applications built on the Android platform. This is the model that I’ve been interested in trying out since my review of the G1 back in January. Full press release after the jump.

The Innovation and Openness of a True Mobile Internet Experience Coming Soon to America’s Most Dependable 3G Network from Sprint on HTC Hero with Google

HTC Hero fact sheet (pdf)
HTC Hero Competitive and Value Matrix (pdf)
View high-resolution images

Sprint’s first device with the Android™ platform available Oct. 11; Pre-register for HTC Hero today at www.sprint.com/hero

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. & BELLEVUE, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sep. 3, 2009– Sprint (NYSE:S) and HTC Corporation today announced the upcoming arrival of the much-anticipated HTC Hero™ from Sprint, the first wireless device offering the combination of the open and innovative Android platform with the high-speed connectivity of America’s most dependable 3G network¹ (EVDO Rev. A.) Offering a rich mobile Internet experience, the much-anticipated HTC Hero offers synchronization for built-in Google mobile services, including Google Search™, Google Maps™, Gmail™, and YouTube™ as well as access to thousands of applications built on the Android platform.

Beginning on Oct. 11, customers will be able to purchase HTC Hero through all Sprint retail channels including Web (www.sprint.com), Telesales (1-800-SPRINT1) and our national retail partner Best Buy for $179.99 (excluding taxes) after a $50 instant savings and a $100 mail-in rebate with a two-year service agreement. Pre-registration begins today at www.sprint.com/hero.

“The arrival of HTC Hero and the Android platform to Sprint’s network is an important milestone for our customers and the U.S. wireless industry,” said Kevin Packingham, senior vice president of product development for Sprint. “With the dependability and coverage of Sprint’s 3G network, HTC Hero users will appreciate a much better experience than is possible now with any other Android phone operating in the United States. They will enjoy the robust potential to personalize their wireless experience as well as the best value in wireless with a Simply Everything plan from Sprint.”

Access to countless applications

As a charter member of the Open Handset Alliance™, Sprint is actively engaged with the Android community. Through Android Market™, HTC Hero users have access to more than 8,000 useful applications, widgets and fun games to download and install on their phone, with many more to come. Thousands of developers are working to introduce new Android applications every day.

ShopSavvy^TM, Twitter^TM, Shazam^TM, amazon.com^®, USA Today^®, Flixster^®, PacMan^TM, CraigslistChecker^TM, and MySpace^TM Mobile are among the countless well-liked applications already available on Android Market. Pandora^®, the popular personal radio application, is launching on Android devices and will be available on the HTC Hero from Sprint.

“Sprint and HTC are helping to drive openness and innovation in the mobile industry with the introduction of the Android-powered HTC Hero,” said Andy Rubin, vice president, mobile platforms at Google. “As the world’s first truly open mobile platform built with the Internet in mind, Android provides to consumers the same Internet services they have become accustomed to on their desktop PC. Offering access to thousands of applications, a suite of Google™ services, and unique personalization features, the HTC Hero offers a compelling mobile experience.”

Sprint has employed an open Internet approach, and the Sprint Application Developer Program has been providing tools for third-party developers, since Sprint first launched the Wireless Web on its phones in 2001. Application developers will have a chance to learn more about Android at Sprint’s ninth annual developer conference this fall. The Sprint Open Developer Conference, Oct. 26-28 in Santa Clara, Calif., is open to all attendees and will feature information on developing applications for a range of platforms, including Android.

Developers can register to attend the conference at http://developer.sprint.com/devcon2009. HTC is a premier sponsor of the conference and will be giving a keynote address in addition to running several breakout sessions and coding camps focusing on HTC Hero and the Android platform.

Intuitive, user-focused and fun

HTC Hero is the first U.S. device to feature HTC Sense, an intuitive experience that was built with a guiding philosophy to put people at the center and allows the device to be completely customized to the wants and needs of the user. The device’s seven-panel wide home screen can be populated with customizable widgets that bring information to the surface.

HTC Hero users can easily create and switch between Scenes to reflect different moments or roles in their lives, such as work, social, travel and play. For example, a work Scene can be easily set up to include stock updates, work email and calendar, a play Scene could have music, weather, and a Twitter feed or a travel Scene could offer instant access to the local time, weather and maps.

“HTC Sense on HTC Hero revolves around three basic principles: Make it Mine, Stay Close and Discover the Unexpected. These principles are based on the recognition that people want their mobile device to conform to their needs and wants, easily keep them in touch with the most important people in their lives, and surprise them with small moments of joy and delight,” said Jason Mackenzie, vice president of HTC America. “Working with Sprint to introduce HTC Hero to the US was a natural fit, as both HTC Hero and Sprint’s Simply Everything plan are designed to give customers everything they need in a simple package.”

HTC Hero’s development focused on how real people use their phone, resulting in small but important touches to accentuate the mobile experience. HTC Hero can be silenced by simply turning it over. It offers an advanced smart dialer for quickly accessing contacts with just a few letters or numbers and a dedicated search key that automatically searches for only information relevant to the current function. When pressed in the mail application, the search will be for text within the mailbox, while a press of the same key from the browser will initiate a Google search.

Industry-leading features

HTC Hero features an integrated 5.0 MP camera and camcorder. It also offers easy access to personal and business e-mail, instant messaging and text messaging through POP, IMAP, and Exchange Active Sync accounts.

It is the first Sprint device to offer HTC Footprints™, an application experience that enables the user to chronicle their special moments by capturing a digital postcard on their phone. Once captured, Footprints provides the ability to take notes and an audio clip of that favorite restaurant or special place while identifying its specific location. In addition to identifying each postcard with its specific GPS coordinates, Footprints also auto-names each postcard with its general location or area.

HTC Hero is a full-featured smartphone with Wi-Fi capability, a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen with pinch-to-zoom capability and a fingerprint resistant coating, integrated GPS navigation, and trackball navigation. Additional features include:

• Stereo Bluetooth^® 2.0 Wireless technology
• accelerometer, light sensor and home screen widgets for improved usability
• multimedia capable with microSD slot (32GB capable, 2GB included)
• Sprint TV^® with live and on-demand programming
• NFL Mobile Live and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile^SM
• easy access to social networking sites, including Facebook^®, Flickr^® and Twitter
• visual voice mail for quick and easy access to specific voice mail messages

HTC Hero requires activation on a pricing plan offering unlimited data. Sprint’s Simply Everything^SM plan provides unlimited nationwide calling, texting, e-mail, social networking, Web browsing, GPS navigation, Sprint TV, streaming music, NFL Mobile Live, NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile and much more for only $99.99 per month. That’s a savings of $1,200 over two years vs. a comparable AT&T iPhone^® plan². Sprint Everything Data plans with unlimited messaging and data start at just $69.99 for 450 minutes with unlimited night and weekend calling starting at 7 p.m. (All price plans exclude Sprint surcharges and taxes.)

The Sprint Mobile Broadband Network (inclusive of data roaming) reaches more than 271 million people, 18,652 cities and 1,838 airports. The Sprint Networks (inclusive of data roaming) have more than twice the coverage of AT&T’s current 3G network and more than 20 times the coverage of T-Mobile’s current 3G network, both based on square miles³.

Sprint is the only wireless carrier to offer Ready Now service with trained retail associates to work one-on-one with customers to personalize their HTC Hero, set up features and demonstrate how it works before the customer leaves the store. Customers have the choice of sitting down with a Sprint retail associate at the time of purchase or they can schedule an appointment for a later time at www.sprint.com/storelocator.

About HTC

HTC Corporation (HTC) is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile phone industry and continues to pioneer industry-leading mobile experiences through design, usability and innovation that is sparked by how the mobile phone can improve how people live and communicate. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two wireless networks serving almost 49 million customers at the end of the second quarter of 2009; industry-leading mobile data services; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The company’s customer-focused strategy has led to improved first call resolution and customer care satisfaction scores. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.

¹ “Dependable” based on independent, third-party drive tests for 3G data connection success, session reliability and signal strength for the top 50 most populous markets from January 2008 to May 2009. Not all services available on 3G and coverage may default to separate network when 3G unavailable. Coverage may not be available everywhere. Customers should refer to sprint.com/coverage for details.

² Savings based on publicly available information comparing AT&T Nation Unlimited plus required iPhone data plan and optional unlimited text messaging totaling $149.99/month for AT&T as of publication date, excluding taxes, surcharges and fees. iPhone is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc.

³ Coverage comparison based on publicly available information as of 4/01/09 inclusive of Sprint roaming partners. Based on square miles. Coverage comparison based on publicly available information as of 4/1/09 inclusive of Sprint roaming partners. Based on square miles.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6042086〈=en

Source: Sprint Nextel

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: Android, HTC, Spotlight Gadgets

Sprint’s First Android Device – HTC Hero originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on September 3, 2009 at 2:45 pm.

HTC has announced the HTC Hero smartphone today and a new user interface called HTC Sense to go along with it. The Hero is a quad band GSM Android phone that has the same basic shape of the G1 that I reviewed awhile back. It still has the ‘chin’, but does not have the slide out keyboard. The slick new user interface looks very enticing to me. Check out this video demo. The Hero will be available in Europe next month, Asia this summer and in the US later this year. What do you Android fans think? I’ve actually been thinking about getting my G1 out of my phone drawer, installing cupcake and giving it another go. Wish it had HTC Sense though!

Filed in categories: Android related

Tagged: HTC, HTC Hero

HTC Sense user interface on the new HTC Hero looks yummy! originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on June 24, 2009 at 12:49 pm.

Today HTC has announced the Snap Windows Mobile 6.1 GSM smartphone. This is a successor to the HTC Dash and includes an interesting new feature called Inner Circle. With Inner Circle, emails that are most important to you (from a pre-selected group of people), can be accessed with a click of a button, so that you don’t need to wade through a lot of useless gunk to get to the stuff that you really want to read. 

The Snap has a 528 MHz processor, 192MB of RAM, WiFi, GPS, 2.0 megapixel camera and 1500mAh battery. It’s 4.59” x 2.42” x .47” and has a QWERTY keyboard. Yay! The jog ball looks interesting too.

I continue to use the HTC Dash aka Excalibur aka S620 off and on, so I’m very anxious to get my hands on the Snap to try it out. Here are some more pix of this device to provide you with some gadget lust. Click on the thumbnails to see the full-size images.

Note the fact that there is a dedicated MSN chat key, that also doubles as a FN key / camera key combo.

Will you buy one?

Filed in categories: Uncategorized

Tagged: HTC, Smartphone, Spotlight Gadgets, Windows Mobile

HTC announces the Snap QWERTY smartphone originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on April 1, 2009 at 9:00 am.