HTC Hero

smilodon · July 24, 2009, 05:17:34 PM

I have to admit I didn't actually think to ask if it could make and receive calls :blink:

I went into the Orange shop on the pretext of wanting a contract phone and got a look at the Hero. Amazingly Orange expected me to sign up without actually seeing a working model. They were under the illusion that I would take a two year contract based on a sticky screen cover that showed me what the real phone would look like when it was turned on :lmfao:

After a bit of a moan it turned out that they did have a working Hero I could see if I really wanted to. I think one of the managers had just bought it and was charging it up before they went home for the weekend?

Anyway without blue-tooth or wifi active it sailed along with no lag at all. I did have a couple of observations though.

The little chin is great. It's probably very subjective but I really liked how the phone fitted in my hand and felt when held up to make a call.

The little track ball looks plastic and a bit cheap.

Although it has the seven much touted screens, they're not kept up to date in real time. By that I mean that while one screen could show you a Twitter feed when it's in the background it will not go and fetch new tweets. Only when you view that screen will it update. It also affects the clock, which when you look at it's page will show you the last time it was active and will then scroll quickly to the correct time. I thought this was just a cool animation but the clock really is briefly wrong when you check the screen. So there isn't any real multitasking going on with Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, the weather gadget etc. However I guess that isn't really suprising, as having all those applications active together would eat up battery. Also there would be a fair amount of data used syncing everything across the web all the time.

I think you have to take reviews with a small pinch of salt sometimes. The Endgadget review was quite complimentary about the camera but several other reviews I have read say it's pretty aweful and not much better than the iPhones crappy offering. Some reviews say the phone is laggy and some say it's pretty slick. It's hard to know who is right. However after reading quite a few reviews the general consensus seems to be that it's a stunning phone but for

slight lag when under load
unremarkable camera
average as a media player

So if you want a blisteringly fast and responsive OS and are joined at the hip to iTunes the iPhone 3GS might be a better choice?

So the Hero is still on my 'must have' list. Just bloody launch the thing SIM free.

delanvital · July 24, 2009, 05:33:43 PM

Cheers for that review. I was wondering - can the OS on the Magic be upgraded to the equivalent of the Hero? Or is all the fancy functions on the Hero made for that specifically? I have seen the video of the interface of both, and they appear quite different (and I know HTC customise Android quite a bit) but are HTC both of them nonetheless... argh, I can't make up my mind, whether to wait for the Hero and pay more, or get the Magic now at a bargain.

smilodon · July 24, 2009, 05:35:58 PM

See I cannot update my post and have to add a new one. Damn you Penfold Sir, damn your eyes!

Just found this review which sort of proves my point. In some respects they could be reviewing different phones!
http://phandroid.com/2009/07/23/htc-hero-review/

Both phones run Android 1.5 I think. The Hero has a different front end 'skin' but underneath their the same, more or less.

delanvital · July 24, 2009, 05:40:56 PM

Quote from: smilodon;283729See I cannot update my post and have to add a new one. Damn you Penfold Sir, damn your eyes!

Just found this review which sort of proves my point. In some respects they could be reviewing different phones!
http://phandroid.com/2009/07/23/htc-hero-review/

Both phones run Android 1.5 I think. The Hero has a different front end 'skin' but underneath their the same, more or less.

Magic is 1.5, that I know. I wonder if it would be possible to upgrade the "skin"? :g:

smilodon · July 25, 2009, 10:04:16 AM

Not sure but if you have a Windows Mobile it looks like you can have the Hero Sense UI look on your phone as well. I don't think the designer has finished it yet but it seems he's working on a Windows version here
http://www.throttlelauncher.com/portal/Table/Downloads/ThrottleLauncher/

OldBloke · July 25, 2009, 10:19:26 AM

Quote from: smilodon;283829Not sure but if you have a Windows Mobile it looks like you can have the Hero Sense UI look on your phone as well. I don't think the designer has finished it yet but it seems he's working on a Windows version here
http://www.throttlelauncher.com/portal/Table/Downloads/ThrottleLauncher/

Yeah. I saw that too and was amazed at what these guys can do.

Bob · July 25, 2009, 01:12:21 PM

Quote from: smilodon;283725Anyway without blue-tooth or wifi active it sailed along with no lag at all. I did have a couple of observations though.

I'm glad you had this impression after testing it. I have been pretty much in love with this phone since the first time I saw it, but after Endgadget I almost ended up heartbroken.

So I guess I should wait till I'm able to get my hands on it and test it personally. Just hoping it won't take too long before it's available here in Norway as well

smilodon · July 25, 2009, 02:09:51 PM

I only had a few minutes with the phone so it's not a definitive test. I'm not going to believe one review exclusively though, as there does seem to be some difference of opinion about how well it works.

I've watched many you-tube videos of pre release units being reviewed. It seems clear it's not as smooth as an iPhone but I think Endgadget seemed to be a bit overly critical of the phone. There was certainly a lag when scrolling between calendar screen but it didn't seem very pronounced at all. Not something I'm that worried about.

T-Bag · July 25, 2009, 05:33:56 PM

Went into the phone shops near me today and they only had the display models, not a test version. But size wise it looks very smart, and the chin is quite cool. Only problem would be in and out of pockets, but because the phone is so slim I doubt that would be too bad.

smilodon · July 25, 2009, 07:46:34 PM

The chin seemed to curve nicely round my belly fat when in the pocket so no issues their

I am a bit amazed that the mobile phone shops seem to have missed that a smart phone is a mini computer not just a phone. If you're buying a Ã,Â£50 PAYG effort then who cares what it looks like turned on. But a Ã,Â£400 smart phone isn't something people will buy or sign up to long contracts without actually seeing what they're getting.

In the same way mobile companies need to catch up and lighten up to the fact that more and more customers want to upgrade their software on a smart phone and so don't want the thing locked up tighter than Fort Knox, they also don't want to sign their lives away based on a sicky screen label and a few magaizine reviews. Time to wake up.

OldBloke · July 27, 2009, 10:39:21 PM

HTC Hero now available on Orange at mobiles.co.uk

TeaLeaf · July 27, 2009, 11:01:57 PM

Is that the Orange version or the unlocked version though, they all seem to be contract linked :sad:

OldBloke · July 28, 2009, 12:00:13 AM

Quote from: TeaLeaf;284254Is that the Orange version or the unlocked version though, they all seem to be contract linked :sad:

My wife's HTC Diamond 2 was a totally unlocked/unbranded phone with an Orange SIM. This will, I'm sure, be the same.

TeaLeaf · July 28, 2009, 07:33:21 AM

As I am already with Orange that might be the way forward for me. Might have to give them a call today and discuss. The data allowance is a bit small though.

smilodon · July 28, 2009, 08:20:54 AM

The phone I saw in the Orange shop looked pretty generic. It certainly didn't have the normal little orange logo on the back. The only difference was that it was grey rather than the unbranded white. It also says in the blurb that it's fully unlocked.