In a media gathering last week just before April ended, HTC Philippines launched their first new Android phone for the year, the HTC Desire S. Banking on the popularity of their HTC Desire (which also won our Phone of the Year for 2010), the Desire S is a slightly upgraded version of the Desire. Why tinker with something that is not broken right?
The HTC Desire S features the same size as that of the HTC Desire but with a different shell. It is carved from a single aluminum block taking a design cue from the HTC Legend. It even has a slight raised chin for a better grip. Also gone are the physical buttons and optical trackpoint of the original Desire. Instead they are replaced with dedicated capacitive touch buttons.
Under the hood, it is now powered with a Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon 1GHz processor which is a teeny bit powerful than the Desire’s Qualcomm QSD8250 1GHz. It also features Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS and has a 1GB internal storage that you can work with. Same 5-megapixel camera can be found here but you can now record 720p HD videos with it. What’s missing? HTCSense.com integration found on the Desire Z and Desire HD. Oh and an HDMI out.
The HTC Desire S is still a viable choice if you’re looking for a premium mid-high-end phone. But with an SRP of Php27,000, would you rather get the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc? New Smart postpaid subscribers on Plan 2000 can get the Desire S for free!
HTC Desire S Specs:
- 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon
- Android 2.3 Gingerbread
- 3.7-inch capacitive SLCD Gorilla Glass display (480 x 800)
- HTC Sense UI
- 1.1 GB ROM, 768 MB RAM, microSD up to 32GB
- HSDPA, 14.4 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps
- Bluetooth 2.1
- Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot
- 5 MP autofocus camera with LED flash, VGA front cam
- Video recording at 720p @ 30fps
- GPS + AGPS
- 115 x 59.8 x 11.6 mm
- 130 g
- SRP: Php27,000
