HTC Hero

“The Hero represents a valiant effort from HTC -- though unfortunately, the company appears to have bitten off more than its last-generation hardware can chew. If this build of Android were to be loaded atop the guts of a 3GS or Pre, the performance would likely be astounding, but fused with the two-year old architecture of previous devices, it's mostly disappointing. We're not saying this isn't the best build of Android on the market -- we think it is. What we are saying is that this build is a bit too much for a device like the Hero to handle, and that makes for an uneven, sometimes frustrating experience. Going into the review, we desperately wanted to love this phone, but given the combination of a few poor hardware choices and an OS which outclasses the device it runs on, we can only recommend that you enter at your own risk. HTC has an explosive entry in the smartphone category with what its done on the software side... now it just needs the hardware to match.”

“If you can stand the Hero's occasional sluggishness, it's a fantastic smart phone packed with great features. We like its distinctive looks, and the innovative user interface brings Android much closer to being as fun and good-looking as the iPhone OS, while being far more customisable. Occasional lag and Android's rough edges mean it's not quite an iPhone killer, but it's definitely fighting in the same class”

“A lot has happened since the first Google phone arrived 12 months ago. So it makes sense for HTC to finally make a legitimate stab at upgrading the Android operating system, now that Palm has its web-errific Pre, the iPhone graduated to video (not to mention cut-and-paste!), and Motorola just unveiled the Cliq, the first non-HTC phone to run Android.HTC's third Android phone, the Hero, is available on Sprint in the United States. It's almost identical to the Hero released in Europe last July. And compared to previous HTC handsets (cough, the G1) the phone boasts refinements that make it superior, at least on paper: HTC has ditched the freakishly curved bottom of the G1, enlarged the trackball, tossed in a 5-MP camera and, like the MyTouch, abandoned the physical QWERTY keyboard. On the software end, HTC has done some impressive stuff. The Sense UI, a custom interface that HTC created to make Android more usable, is attractive, fairly logical and flashy. (Literally: It now supports websites with Adobe Flash.) And HTC's gone full-on multitouch, too, adopting the pinch-and-flick gestures iPhone-Pre users are accustomed to. It could use a little fine tuning though — when zooming in and out the motion is more herky-jerky than a Dodge Dart with a busted tranny.”

“The HTC Hero is a great handset that I thoroughly enjoyed using. Its older brother, the Magic, was great fun when I tested it a while back, but the Hero is better still and I'd happily use one as my everyday phone. It's quite something for me to heartily recommend a touchscreen device, as (being a heavy texter/emailer) I've always been skeptical about using one full-time, but this is the first device that I've reviewed in 18 months that has triggered my 'I need this gadget' impulse. The mix of the fun Android UI, with HTC's 'Sense' concept sprinkled on top is surely a winning formula, and aside from a lack of features on the otherwise fine camera and music player, the device has no real flaws to speak of.Overall, I can happily give the HTC Hero a Highly Recommended rating without any second thoughts whatsoever. No other device that I've tested has been so easy to set up and so intuitive to use, whilst also being fun and functional. If you can get over the odd chin (I quite like it, actually) then this is surely a device to seriously consider.”