HTC Desire HD - Android™


The latest Android™ smartphones from HTC are "spin-offs" from the original HTC Desire. They are HTC Desire Z and HTC Desire HD. Then there was the small form Androids, HTC Aria and Wildfire which came before HTC Desire along with HTC Legend earlier this year in 2010, which added to the earliest line-up of Dream, Magic, Hero and Tattoo. Both Desire and Legend are operating on Android™ 2.1 Eclair which is a newer operating system, compared to the earlier models. HTC Desire was actually the Google Nexus One in a HTC outfit. Just look at their similarities in form. If you didn't know, the hyped Google phone or Nexus One is actually manufactured by HTC. Apparantly, Google decided to choose Nexus One's original planned manufacturer, Samsung, to manufacture the 2nd Google phone, Nexus S. Sounds familiar? That is because Samsung is trying very hard recreate what their success of the Galaxy S onto the Nexus S.

So why the same name again? Is HTC trying to take us for a ride by improving on the internals of Desire and market it as a new phone?
No.
In fact, HTC is building the Desire series to be a league of top-end Android™. Desire was a success, no doubt. However, its flaws had to be addressed, especially when a strong Galaxy S is gaining market share. Desire Z was released, with a slightly toned down processing power but gains a physical landscape keyboard, giving the whole screen estate to the more important things. The name "Z" probably came from the design of the keyboard that flips out from behind the screen is a complicated Z-shape. Desire HD, however, does not have a physical keyboard, but actually gained more estate to a whopping screen size of 4.3", similar to that of HD2. Desire HD also retains the 1GHz processing power and gained much more internal memory, however, the optical trackpad was sacrificed.
Desire HD will follow the footsteps of the original Desire, a remarkable smartphone where everything from inside to outside has been redesigned.

I waited a long time for the Desire HD to be released.
I knew I had to sacrifice the Tattoo. I traded-in the Tattoo, while its value is still there.
Desire HD was sold out at launch, I had to wait for re-stock.
Checking out my telco daily, paid off when this fine lady, called me and gave me express sign-up on my fourth visit.
This is how bad I wanted the Desire HD!

HTC DESIRE HD
c/w Android™ 2.2 Froyo
S$248
HTC Desire HD has an unrivaled 4.3-inch LCD capacitive multi-touch display with a 480 x 800 WVGA resolution. Though there was no increase in resolution apart from increased screen size, little to no resolution loss is visible with the naked eye. The 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with a faster 768MB RAM. Desire HD comes with 1.5GB of internal storage. HTC Sense™ UI (user interface) and HTCSense.com completes the Android™ experience. HTC Desire HD runs on the newer Android™ 2.2 (Froyo). HTC Desire HD is also equipped with an 8MP auto-focus camera and dual-LED flash. The camera also supports 720p HD video recording. The ambient light sensor helps the smartphone saves precious battery juice. Other standard HTC Android™ features include: G-sensor (accelerometer for orientation detection), 3.5mm stereo audio jack, Adobe Flash 10.1, GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth (improved with file transfer and object push protocols for file transfer), tethering via USB and WiFi (internet sharing via USB) as well as microSDHC card support up to 32GB.
HTC Desire HD also comes preinstalled with Facebook for Android™, FriendStream (one app that consolidates all social network updates), Android™ Market, Google Maps and a whole lot more package of Google-related applications.
Switching from Android to Android is easy, since contact lists and calenders are stored on Google account on the internet. All other data are stored on the microSDHC card. You can easily switch to another Android phone with the hassle of moving information over.


Unboxing of HTC Desire HD
Standard Android™ packing layout. Interestingly, Desire HD being a bigger phone than Desire, ends up in smaller box!






Contents c/w HTC Desire HD
HTC usually provides the minimum essentials in the box. My HTC Desire HD comes with a Samsung 8GB microSDHC card. Once again, HTC has redesigned their power adapter. This time round, they really impressed me with the design, which comes in the most travel-friendly size. The USB cable is the same as HTC Desire and Nokia, and not the standard mini-USB.






HTC Desire HD
Seek and impress.

Desire HD is equipped with an 8-megapixel auto-focus camera.

Rear speaker may not not be as impressive after all.
Dual LED flash light is hardly necessary, since the camera has got good ISO.

Equipped with DOLBY MOBILE and SRS WOW.
The 3.5mm earpiece jack is not located at the bottom, beside the USB port.

Volume controls are found just outside the battery door.
The front speaker is much more impressive that the rear. Beside the speaker is a sensor.

Physical buttons were replaced with touch-sensitive symbols.
Removing and putting on the battery compartment door is a pain.

miniSDHC and SIM card are located in another easy-to-open bottom compartment.



Comparison
Desire HD and my other toys






HTC Desire HD in the Hands
Desire HD fits perfectly in a guy's palm, but might be tad big for ladies.



HTC Desire HD Instant Boot-up & Improved Sense UI
HTC Desire HD boasts its instant boot-up. This is indeed true. The initial boot-up may take slightly longer. However, subsequent boot ups are so fast that HTC Desire HD does not show the usual "HTC Quietly Brilliant" splash screen but only plays the jingle. This splash screen only appears in the shutdown sequence.
The Sense UI on the Desire HD is not very much different on the surface, but some improvements over the Desire is the "Personalize" tab, that replaces the "+" tab. Touching this tab brings up a page where users can change Scene (theme), Wallpaper and Skin. Skin is an interesting feature that changes the way Sense UI look. Apart from the display changes, user can also find the usual Add Widget, App, Shortcut & Folder function. User can also change Sound settings and Alarm settings in this tab.


Verdict
It is clear that I am an Android™ supporter and will never pick up an iPhone. The reason is simple, I have experienced the wonders of Android™ and the rich mobile-computing experience and Google cloud support. These advantages are good enough for me to give up the temptation of more apps on the iPhone. I also believe, in time to come, Android™ Market will catch up as well.
HTC being the leader of Android™ phones manufacturer, is constantly making their Android™ phones smarter and more user-friendly. Hence, I had no doubt choosing HTC over Samsung or LG.
The HTC Desire HD has addressed the most bugging issue of HTC Desire, internal memory. The upsized 1.5GB might not be impressive, but does allows the end-user to load in more apps. The bigger screen estate is definitely a bonus for people like me, who have big fingers and is constantly on the web browser. I was actually quite impressed by the camera on the HTC Desire and now, HTC Desire HD. Never had I been so impressed with the pictures that are coming out from a mobile phone. On the down side, I do miss the optical trackpad, which I am quite reliant on.
I have already justified my reason to choose HTC Desire, the features of the Desire HD is like a dream come reality.
HTC Desire HD is well worth the wait.
I am certain this is going to be phone of the year again!



DISCLAIMER
Please respect the copyrights of the photographs and content in this post. Please support my work by linking back to this post via this address: http://mybearbrick.blogspot.com/2010/12/htc-desire-hd-android.html

This is an individual and independent user review, for more information on the official product, please refer to: http://www.htc.com/www/product/desirehd/overview.html

Comments

Laurens said…
ani kin hooted & reviewed liao ah?