The Sprint HTC Hero: My Hands On Review And Why I Love It

The day the HTC Hero went on sale on the Sprint Network, and made sure that I had one to call my own before anyone else could raid my neighborhood store. I have been using it exclusively since activating, which meant putting my trusty Blackberry on the shelf for a time. No easy task.

The HTC Hero as of late has taken a back seat to the Motorola DROID released last week on the Verizon Network. Before that release, the Hero was the big boy on the block, but in my mind it still is. I have to say at the peril of my love and affection for my Blackberries, the Here is the most phone I’ve had since the Treo 600.

Of course the Hero is as far removed from the Treo 600 as Pluto is from the Sun. But what I mean by the statement is the fun of an entirely new handset experience that the 600 brought the user. The ability to customized it to ones hearts desire. The touchscreen computing in the palm of your hand, and the wealth of Palm apps that were being developed on a daily basis. That is the experience I am now enjoying again with the Hero. Having done the same thing to test out the HTC Touch Diamond Pro for a few weeks, I am already accustomed to the way HTC does things. But with the Touch Diamond, I couldn’t wait to get back to my Blackberry. This however, is a little different.

The form factor of the Hero is fantastic. The 112 x 56.2 x 14.35 mm ( 4.41 x 2.21 x 0.57 inches) feels great in the hand, it’s slim and lightweight –what makes it’s size even better is how it feels in the pocket, I don’t even notice it. The 320 x 480 pixels, 3.2 inches is beautiful, crisp and clear. It’s the closet screen to the iPhone i’ve seen, and believe me I’ve run my iPhone against the Hero on numerous occasions for numerous task. The Hero is every bit as fun as the iPhone. Mobile Safari is a better browser, but not by leaps and bounds. The Hero’s HTML browser is fast, very fast. It delivers web pages exactly the way Chrome or whatever browser you’re using on your Laptop/Desktop does. If you’re going to a password protected site that requires username/password, the browser immediately asks if you want to remember the info you’ve entered and then saves it before delivering the page. After that, there is no need to ever input the info again. Much better than the iPhone and the BB Browser. Even better than mobile Opera. Copy and paste is there for the ready, easy to get to and a snap to apply. If you’ve used a previous HTC device running the Windows Mobile OS, then you probably know what a nightmare text input can be on the tiny HTC keyboard. Not the case with the Hero. The QWERTY keyboard keys a large enough to react to input commands without pressing “T” and getting “R” and “Y” too. Most features and functions work in landscape mode, so typing in that mode is even better. No waiting for HTC to update so that typing an email or text can be done with the widest screen possible. HTC was thoughtful enough to give users that basic function right out of the box.

The Palm Pre and the Hero share the same 320×480 screen resolution, but the Pre registers a 3.1 screen size while the Hero comes in at 3.2. As you can see, that .1 seems to be a massive difference, and really stands out when using the two devices together. Reading is light years easier on the Hero. Touching the screen for commands is as well. When doing my comparisons with the Pre, the only things I can give the Pre are the ability to have programs stay open while working in another, and the camera. The Pres camera is hard to beat, but the 5.0 megapixel camera on the Hero is very good. Great zoom and fast snapping, however, not as fast as the Pre. Again, the Pre camera is wicked fast. But other than those two things, the Hero in my opinion is a much better device, even the way it feels in the hand. UPDATE: (Reader Michael left a great tip in the comments, one I had no idea of. A long press on the “Home” button while in an app –will bring up a screen with the list of apps that are currently open. Select the one you want and the app you are currently in goes on that list. Viola! Multitasking just like the Pre. So that takes away one of the two. HTC really should talk that up, I’m very surprised that it is not a much ballyoed feature.)

The Touchscreen is so responsive, quick and easy to use that I have forgotten there is a trackball. Being a Blackberry user, one would think I would immediately gravitate straight for it, nope. But I have been making it a point to use it for the past week, and I must say, it rocks. There is no click, it rolls smoothly like as though it’s rolling on a thin coat of oil. The trackball gives the user a great way to select cursor placement when writing, and when scrolling through long screens. So I have been training myself to use both as the compliment to each other that they were intended to be.

Google:

Android is a fairly new OS, but if you’ve ever owned a Treo, or are a Mac user, Android is going to feel very familiar, which is why I liked it instantly. There is nothing better than “Open Source.” This for me is where the iPhone loses it’s flavor. One of my great loves is customization, and the easier the better. There are so many ways to customize the way the Hero looks, feels and runs, that entire days can go by without looking up –both a good and bad thing. With HTC’s Sense UI, one would think there is no need for that. Sense UI is stunningly beautiful. All of the beautiful clocks and widgets that can be applied to any screen can keep the user busy for a good long time. And wallpapers, ohh the wallpapers! Most widgets, clocks, wallpapers and even apps themselves are FREE! Yes, I said free. The Android Market is a veritable who’s who of great apps and games, and the plus is that the bevy of them are free to download.

Shop For HTC Desktop Cradle

If you are a gmail or Google user period, this is where the Hero and any other Android device leaves the rest far behind. Gmail on the Hero is brilliant. Push email that is in constant sync with the desktop app. But not just Gmail. Contacts, Docs, task, Calendar, Google Voice, Google Reader, Maps any and everything Google is in constant sync with the Hero. Set up for each app is done without the user needing to think about a thing. Once the Username and Password is entered on one of the associated apps, any application associated with the account is active on the Hero, even when downloading a new Google app. Sprint’s 3G network really seems to aid Android’s Google connection. When I enter something in Calendar on either the desktop or the Hero, seconds later it is visible on the other end. The same goes for Gmail. In fact, there have been many times when I have received an email on the Hero 2 or 3 minutes before it showed up in the desktop Gmail app. Texting is quick and easy as well, and threaded texting is a beautiful affair on the Hero.

But the HTC Hero is supposed to be a mobile phone right? Right. So how does it stack up as a calling and receiving device? Excellent. Voice is crystal clear and volume is excellent. The calling feature is very easy to use and in some ways mirrors the Touch Pro series, but much, much better.

Battery:

Here is where I was in doubt for the first few days of my new Hero. Web surfing, talking and Android Market fun ate the battery up in record time. But this was an issue with the messaging application and a fantastic and far better third party sms app “ChompSMS.” All was needed was a battery pull after making Chomp the default. Since then the battery has been much improved. I can go for three quarters of the day with full use of web, gmail, rss, texting, talking and looking for more applications before needing to charge up again. One thing to remember, the Hero pretty much demands that you have a constant data connection. If you’re going on a plan that has limited or no data, forget about getting this one. But that has to also be taken under consideration when dealing with battery life. An extra battery wouldn’t be a bad thing to consider, and can be found and purchased here: Seidio Innocell 1750mAh Extended Battery or Seidio, Inc. BASI17HTP2 Innocell 1750mAh Extended Life Battery for Use With HTC Touch Pro 2 and HTC Hero (Black)

Conclusion:

The HTC Hero is a great device. I have not regretted the purchase for one minute, it is the most fun with a handset I’ve had since getting the iPhone, except I want to use the HTC Hero. If somehow the cellular Gods put the iPhone on the Sprint network, I do admit that it would be a tough decision for me. And when I factor in my Blackberries, yikes, I’ve got an issue. But the truth of the matter is the HTC Hero is extremely stable, beautiful and fun. The Google synchronicity is a huge plus, along with the Facebook, Twitter and MySpace integration the HTC Hero delivers everything I need with lighting speed and stability. The fact that I can waste time messing with the Sense UI’s beautiful interface is another huge plus. The size and thinness makes it an easy device to carry and hold. The Android Market and other third party outlets makes for hours good app downloading fun. MP3′s, movies, the included 2GB microSD, with slot upgradable to 32GB’s –makes it even more of a foe for the iPhone, and an actual real competitor for the Blackberry. In fact, I think my Blackberry will go on the less used 2nd line for a little while later.

Palm users, Google, linux, Mac and iPhone users will find the HTC Hero to be a worthy device. HTC has made Android a new powerhouse on the mobile OS playground. Along with the Motorola DROID and the Verizon version of the Hero, the DROID Eris –look for Android to make the other OS developers work harder than they ever expected to. If you are on the Sprint Network I suggest you give the Hero the once over.