Introduction:
- In a market flooded with smart-phone monotony a Hero arises in attempt to save users from the status quo. The Hero is manufactured by HTC and comes equipped with a myriad of features including a large 3.2 inch capacitive touch display, a capacious 1350 mAh battery, 3.5 mm stereo jack, a 5 megapixel auto focus camera, and a ground breaking SENSE UI layered over the celebrated Android OS. Unfortunately this Hero has its Kryptonite.
Box Contents:
- HTC HERO
- Battery
- USB Cable
- Universal Charging Plug
- Stereo Headset
- 2Gb micro SD
- Warranty
- Guide
Gallery/ Device Tour:
Design:
- Forgoing the traditional route of flamboyant superhero attire which requires the layering of underwear over tights, HTC outfitted the Hero with its own eye catching costume. The inimitable design manifests itself through a combination of old and new as the Hero’s overall architecture resembles that of a retro style cordless phone furnished with a modern capacitive touch screen and a contemporary slim line casing (112 x 56.2 x 14.4 mm). Finished in mostly matte white plastic, the phone repels fingerprints with a Teflon coating. The display is secured with a brushed aluminum rim which extends around the main hardware buttons situated on the ventral side of the device. In total the device feels good in hand with no loose parts to mar the mono-block construction. The weight of the device (135 grams) is on the lighter side as I prefer a heftier mobile. The inclusion of a metal back panel would have added to the overall quality and robustness of the device. In scrutinizing the battery cover my suspicions were raised as to its longevity due to the use of a sub par latch mechanism that would probably deteriorate over time. However if you do not constantly remove your battery cover to acess the Micro SD card, then this is a non issue. The angled chin of the phone houses a plastic trackball which is totally useless in the operation of this device. In fact, the removal of this trackball in conjunction with the chin would have made for a more compact phone – albeit the consequential loss of distinct design. On a positive note the chin itself, due to its angled nature, functions in protecting the display when propping the phone face down on a counter top. It also aids in a stealthy removal from a leather pouch.
Display:
- The Hero touts a generous 3.2 inch (320 x 480 pixels) capacitive touch screen display. With maximum screen brightness the Hero fairs well in most lighting conditions except direct sunlight. In effect users will want to find some shade when tinkering with their devices at high noon. The capacitive screen works flawlessly and its responsiveness is on par with my ipod touch. Needless to say, double taps are non existent.
UI:
- HTC has done it again. Following their ingenious conception of TF3D which was a svelte UI layered over the ghastly looking Windows Mobile interface, HTC has now created a ground breaking SENSE UI. This interface layers over the highly coveted Android operating system to make for an unparalleled user experience. For descriptive purposes we can separate the two components of this interface in to the X and Y dimensions found on a graph. The X axis consists of the core Android UI that props up an iconic menu screen in a vertical directionality. Operating in the horizontal direction along the Y axis is the Sense UI which allows up to seven home screens. Each home screen is customizable with HTC widgets and or Android widgets. Instead of boring you with words I have uploaded the following video (after the pictures) to show case the versatility and robustness of the Sense UI.
- Unlike many biased reviews that have criticized the Hero for having preproduction software – my experience was near flawless. There are absolutely no freeze ups, reboots, and memory errors. I only experienced lag when powering up the device. This hiccup is miniscule and only lasts a couple of seconds where after the processor revs up and the Sense UI flows like the Orinoco.
Multimedia:
- The Hero is a multimedia device offering a gamut of features which are only surpassed by Batman’s utility belt. Included in the multimedia arsenal are an intuitive photo browser, flawless video payback, GPS, a no frills music player, Android market, google maps, and an unmatched web browser. Bluetooth is severely compromised as it can only be used with a peripheral (headset). For some unexplainable reason Bluetooth file transfer between devices is unsupported. Fortunately this is where the Android market comes into play. This market offers applications for everything you would ever need on a mobile phone – including a full featured Bluetooth app. The market also saves the music player; currently lacking equalizer settings and base control; with a full array of MP3 playback controls. In fact the market offers alternate music players, allowing the user to define the extent of functionality not only with music playback but also the look and feel of the player. Another interesting application is the Task Killer, which allows you exit any unneeded processes running in the background. The result is more - free RAM to use other utilities like the true gem stone of the device – the web browser. Surfing the net is a joy with page renderings equal to those found on a desktop. Navigation is a breeze thanks to multi touch and finger friendly gestures. My only gripe is the extensive use of hardware keys during web browsing and would have hoped for more software centric controls.
Camera:
- The 5 megapixel auto focus camera is great for snapshots on the go. But the lack of a flash makes the camera useless in low light conditions. Regrettably the pictures still pale in comparison to image centric devices such as the Nokia n86 and n82.
Battery/ Usage:
- A capacious 1350 mAh battery powers the Hero for a full day and a half of heavy usage. This includes 2-3 hours of music playback, 40-50 texts, brief video playback, 1.5 hours of web browsing, and 15 – 20 minutes of calls. This is definitely on par with the battery life you would get from most Nokia phones and the Hero has the added power consuming -dual layered user interface and capacitive touch display to deal with. The only major draw back is the charge time. Analogous to other HTC mobiles, the Hero requires a full three hours for a complete charge.
Kryptonite/ Conclusion:
- With out a doubt, the HTC Hero is the most complete device I have used to date. Regrettably HTC opened a lead Box and unveiled that glowing green rock which brought my device to its knees. Two weeks into enjoying the Hero, the backlight for the hardware keys as well as the status indicator light ceased to function. In addition the headset jack failed leaving me with no music. To my disappointment, a soft – hard reset did not bring my device back to full functionality. In researching my problem I discovered that this is a common defect on the device– as documented on www.xdadevelopers.com. Ultimately I would instruct users on holding off on the purchase of this mobile phone until HTC works out the problem.
Pros (+)/ Cons (-):
+ Capacitive Touch Display
+ Good Battery Life
+ Sense UI
+ Android Market Apps
+ Excellent Web Browser
- Obvious Manufacturing Defect!!!
- Questionable Battery Cover Durability
- Bad External Speaker
