By Claire Reilly

SYDNEY, NSW: HTC has capitalised on the smartphone boom with the release overnight of their newest Android-powered offerings, the Desire S and Wildfire S.

The Desire S and Wildfire S are due to be released exclusively with Telstra, and have been billed by Ben Hodgson, HTC Country Manager Australia and New Zealand, as a the first of HTC’s second generation smartphones.

First of the second generation? That’s curious – wasn’t the Incredible S released just one month ago?

When asked by Current.com.au whether this new dual release made the Incredible S redundant, Hodgson was insistent that each phone had its place in the market.

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So what sets these mobiles apart from the plethora of other smartphones in stores right now? The secret is apparently all in the unique HTC Sense software, according to HTC’s Sales Development Specialist Richard Veale.

Speaking to Current.com.au, Veale said that HTC Sense offers users an interface that is designed to work in conjunction with Android 2.3 Gingerbread to create a “slicker and nicer experience”.

 “HTC Sense is what we do to make Android individual to you,” said Veale. That means nifty widgets that allow you to “personalise” every aspect of your phone, and a multi-screen display with seven virtual screens that the user can scroll through, or display all at once (in the style of Apple’s Exposé feature).

HTC Territory Manager for NSW, Robert Yandell, said the connection between HTC hardware and the HTC Sense Software is one of the keys to the success of the new smartphones.

Yandell recognised that when a device is created by one company and uses software from another, those two elements “don’t always go hand in hand”. But the streamlining of software and hardware on the HTC Wildfire S and Desire S “reassures” consumers.

The user interface is certainly slick – the multi-screen helicopter view can show individual screens all at once (like the blades of a helicopter) making it easy to navigate, and the touch screen is quite responsive (although there were a few teething problems selecting smaller links whilst browsing).

HTC began working with the Android software in April 2010, and it’s clear that they’ve had time to develop it for their phones and work out the kinks.

It remains to be seen whether the simultaneous release of these two smartphones (on the eve of another mobile launch by competitor Samsung) will flood the market. However, HTC and Telstra have stood by the release arguing that the two phones satisfy different ’desires’ in customers, so to speak.

“The HTC Desire S hits the sweet spot for people who want a premium Android smartphone experience,” said HTC’s Ben Hodgson. “The Wildfire S is affordable and compact without compromising the quality customers have come to expect from HTC.”

With a lower price-point and a focus on social networking, including Telstra’s Tribe app and the HTC Friend Stream app that collates Facebook and Twitter feeds into the one stream, the Wildfire S is “tailored especially for our younger customers” according to Andrew Volard, Director Telstra Mobile Products.

Volard was also on hand at the launch to announce pricing and release dates for the two phones.

The Desire S will be available exclusively through Telstra from 31 May, either with the $59 Freedom Connect Plan, which includes $550 worth of calls, unlimited standard national texts and 1.5GB data, or for an outright cost of $648 RRP.

The Wildfire S will be available from 19 July for an outright cost of $360 RRP, with Telstra plans to be announced closer to the release date.

The high-end HTC Desire S.


HTC Desire S Specs, as supplied by HTC:

Processor: 1 GHz processor.
Platform: Android™ 2.3 (Gingerbread) with HTC Sense.
Memory: Internal phone storage: 1.1 GB, RAM: 768 MB, microSD card (SD 2.0 compatible).
Dimensions: 115mm x 59.8mm x 11.63mm.
Weight: 130 grams with battery.
Display: 3.7-inch touch screen with 480 x 800 resolution.
Battery: Rechargeable Lithium-ion battery (1450 mAh capacity).
Camera: 5 megapixel colour camera with auto focus and power LED flash
Video: 720p HD video recording .
Video Supported Formats: 3gp, .3g2, .mp4, .wmv (Windows Media Video 9), .avi (MP4 ASP and MP3), .xvid (MP4 ASP and MP3)
Connectivity: Bluetooth 2.1, Wi-Fi, DLNA, Standard micro-USB 2.0, 3.5 mm stereo audio jack.
Expansion Slot: microSD™ memory card (SD 2.0 compatible).
Talk time: Up to 435 minutes (WCDMA).
Standby time: Up to 455 hours (WCDMA).
Subject to network and phone usage.

 

The HTC Wildfire S.

HTC Wildfire S Specs, as supplied by HTC:

Processor: 600 MHz processor.
Platform: Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) with HTC Sense.
Dimensions: 101.3mm x 59.4mm x 12.4mm.
Weight: 105 grams with battery.
Display: 3.2-inch touch screen with 320 x 480 resolution.
Battery: Rechargeable Lithium-ion battery (1230 mAh capacity).
Camera: 5 megapixel colour camera with auto focus and flash (on rear of phone)
Connectivity: Bluetooth 3.0, Wi-Fi, Standard micro-USB 2.0, 3.5 mm stereo audio jack.
Video Supported Formats: 3gp, .3g2, .mp4, .wmv (Windows Media Video 9)
Expansion Slot: microSD™ memory card (SD 2.0 compatible).
Talk time: Up to 250 minutes (WCDMA).
Standby time: Up to 570 hours (WCDMA).
Subject to network and phone usage.