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HTC Desire

For users considering buying a Google Nexus, or those who are jealous of a friend that already owns a Nexus, good news is at hand: HTC has unveiled a new handset that overtakes the Nexus and some wags have even referred to the new HTC device as the Nexus Two. The new phone which had originally been pencilled as the HTC Bravo has been unveiled with the name HTC Desire and is set to both impress and enthral tech junkies and casual users alike.

With such similar specifications to Google’s Nexus One the questions circling around for many people were ‘what extra will you get from the HTC Desire that you don’t get from the Nexus?’, ‘Will it be worth it when it eventually arrives in shops?’, and ‘Is the extra wait of a couple of months going to be worthwhile?’ Fortunately, tech journalists and reviewers got a taste of the new HTC Desire at the recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona to help provide some greater insight into what the Desire has to offer as well as get some hands-on experience with the new model.

Google Nexus One

On first impressions the HTC Desire appears to be almost the spitting image of the Nexus One, with an almost identical 3.7-inch WVGA AMOLED screen as well as similar rounded curves and the top-positioned power button. The Desire’s internal specifications are also very similar to those found in the Nexus, featuring as it does the same 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor allowing for ultra-rapid applications and browsing as well as a microSD slot for performing memory capacity upgrades. GPS and AGPS functions and 512MB of flash memory as well as 256MB of RAM help round off some of the device’s other key features, though one other big plus for many users is the device’s integral compass which can be readily and easily used along with the various different augmented reality applications found on the phone.

The Desire is also Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and HSDPA ready, as you might expect from a high end smartphone. It also comes complete with a 5-megapixel camera, which is a decent spec, and features a useful LED flash – great for those low-lighting snaps. The camera is even capable of capturing 800×480 video and can be accessed via the feature shortcuts which can be found on the home, menu, back and search options.

So, to one of the principle questions: What actually is the difference between the Desire and the Nexus?

HTC Desire

The first point to mention here is that Google’s device scores points for its active voice cancellation, and the user cannot use voice recognition to text on the Desire. This， however, is just one (not especially major) point, and HTC’s Desire has trimmed and improved upon some of the features found on Google’s device to make this slight drawback seem un-noteworthy. For example, the Desire has done away with the front-positioned mechanical trackball and the on-screen touch-sensitive button and has replaced them with actual shortcut keys. There is also an optical navigation button on the Desire, which works much more precisely than other hardware-based alternatives.

HTC have clearly sensed the way the wind is blowing in the market in replacing the trackball, and it is a decision that Blackberry themselves have also taken. There have long been concerns that trackballs are apt to fail and break which can atrophy possible phone usage – not something a user on an 18-month contract want s to happen. The Desire, however, provides the user with such great touch response from the on-screen display that users might never actually use the navigation button at all.

HTC Desire

The Desire’s handset also features HTC Sense UI, the same as is found on their Hero handset, although it has been improved to suit the Desire’s design in particular. It is faster on the Desire, for instance, and with extra added contract features it blows the Nexus One out of the water. Sense also features what is known as a helicopter view, and it operates in much the same way as Expose does on the Mac. The user simply pinches the home screen in order to display all home screen pages currently running and can then simply tap in order to go to the desired program or pinch back out again as needed as multi-touch is fully supported.

The inclusion of Flash Lite 4 also allows the user to view videos straight out of the box (a feature still not offered by the much-celebrated iPhone) and you can also select text on-screen and get it instantly translated or look it up on Wikipedia – two great little bonuses for those dealing with large amounts of information regularly. Along with the ultra-fast Android 2.1 operating system the Desire is completely user-friendly, and runs at a great lick.

HTC is pretty much a big name mobile phone manufacturer these days. The Taiwanese company has been busy with Google’s Android operating system and is also expected to be coming up with new Windows Phone 7 device.

They were part of the Mobile World Congress this February at Barcelona, Spain. They showed off the HTC Desire and the HTC Legend. The two Android devices have been expected to arrive by March so it was not surprising to see them being readied, though it was a bit of a news that the Desire got a name change (it was originally the Bravo).

The Desire runs on a Snapdragon processor clocked at 1GHz. It uses a 3.7 inch AMOLED capacitive touch screen and a 5 mega pixel camera with 720p D1 video recording capability. It is considered to be the basis for the Nexus One. The Legend on the other hand is a successor to the Hero with its 600 MHz processor, 3.2 inch AMOLED touch screen and 5 mega pixel camera. One new device at the MWC is the HTC HD Mini which features the new Windows Mobile 6.5.3 Maldives operating system.

Aside from the devices shown at the MWC, HTC has also a couple of new smart phones coming later this 2010. The first is the HTC Scorpion that is expected to arrive sometime later this year as a high end competitor in the Android market. The HTC Incredible on the other hand boasts specs closer to the Desire.

It will also have a 3.7 inch touch screen, a 1 GHz Snapdragon and a 5 megapixel camera with dual LED flash. The Incredible is currently a Verizon exclusive for now, though we would not be surprised if it gets a new name and is brought over to the UK soon.

Get to know more about the HTC Incredible at Tech Radar.

When you have four new products coming out, it is not surprising that the marketing budget will be pretty large.

HTC just reported that it will be having its largest marketing spend, ever. The HTC Desire, Legend, HD Mini and Smart are going to be coming out around March which means that plenty of money will be allocated into marketing the devices.

The Mobile World Congress at Barcelona, Spain has already brought those four mobile devices to our attention, but with the commercial release of the phones coming up, it is not surprising that HTC wants the rest of the world to know. The Taiwanese company has a pretty good reputation when it comes to the reliability and efficiency of their mobile devices, and a big marketing spend is just the thing they need to get the word out.

Anyway, for those of you who missed out on what the four new phones are, here’s a quick recap of the HTC devices:

The whole lineup is lead by the HTC Desire. This phone was originally known as the HTC Bravo and just got a name change when the device was shown off at the MWC. Specs wise, the phone has kept the same specs when it was first announced. It runs at a speed of 1GHz thanks to the Snapdragon CPU, perfect for handling heavy apps. The 5 mega pixel camera comes with D1 video quality recording and the 3.7 inch AMOLED capacitive touch screen gives accurate controls and clear graphics.

The HTC Legend is the sequel to the Hero (which makes it famous) and will have a 600 MHz Qualcomm CPU. The HTC HD Mini is a WinMo 6.5.3 Maldives device while the HTC Smart is an “entry level” smart phone that is exclusive to O2 Mobile.

Read more about the HTC marketing spend at Mobile Today UK.