HTC has announced a new Android device today, continuing it’s jumping-of-ship from Windows Mobile to the Gooogle OS. The Tattoo will be the second device to feature HTCs new “Sense” user-interface after the Hero. And UK operator 3 has announced that the “Twitter phone“, the Mini 3G from INQ will be on sale in 3 stores soon. Both devices will hit shelves by early-October.
The Tattoo:
There is some very high-concept blather in the press releases about HTC Sense. There’s a lot of talk about philosophies of design and core principles. The three main concepts that HTC is pushing when it comes to sense are “Make it Mine, Stay Close and Discover the Unexpected.” But what does it actually mean by that?
Make it Mine: customisation. People like being able to differentiate their mobile from everyone elses, so HTC has created what it calls Scenes. It’s nothing new really – each “Scene” is just a mobile desktop that you can put the widgets and services of your choice on. There are seven scenes that you can quickly switch between, so you can create one for Morning, one for Work, one for Going Out – whatever you like.
Stay Close: communication. Really, all they mean by “stay close” is that you can use your phone to communicate with people via voice, SMS, mail, IM, etc. Somewhat like the “Pulse” function from Yahoo! Mobile, Sense will integrate the contact details, social network updates and photos, and other information, of a single contact into one view.
Discover the unexpected: this is a catch-all phrase that all of the other functions of the phone fall into. For example, turning the phone onto it’s face (which is a more and more common feature in handsets these days) falls under “the unexpected”. Somehow.
The Tattoo itself is a nice looking handset. It has a touch-screen, with some buttons below. It comes with a headphone jack, slots for extra SD memory cards, full 3G and wireless connectivity and a 3.2MP camera. As an Android smartphone, it also has quick access to the full suites of Google mobile services. The device should be available in Europe at the start of October, but there’s no word on prices yet.
The Twitter phone:
The Mini 3G is the follow-up to INQs earlier device, which was completely centred around Facebook. The new device is Twitter oriented. The question here is, seeing as Twitter works from SMS which is common to all mobile devices in the world, how do you customise an entire device around it?
The Mini 3G was developed by INQ in association with Twitter. It comes with a pre-loaded app that feeds Twitter updates directly to your homescreen. The Mini 3G itself is a candy-bard phone with a regular 9 button keypad (there is a full QWERTY keyboard version of the device as well, called the Chat 3G).
The device can use other communication channels as well. It has access to IM, Facebook, Gmail and Skype, for example. Handily, it can be used as a portable modem for your computer or laptop.
Prices:
For a niche phone like this, price is everything. And the price is pretty good. The device itself comes in at a fairly reasonable 60 pounds sterling, which is under 70 euro. But that’s on pre-pay. The real value of this phone is apparent for bill pay – where the device comes free with unlimited SMS for 15 pounds a month.
What we think?
1) The Tattoo. I have high hopes for the Tattoo, but it ALL depends on how much it costs. For me, the Tattoo represents an area where Android should be able to make an absolute killing – reasonably price smartphones. The device is nothing spectacular. It’s moderately low-end as smartphones go, but it can perform all of the functions you would want your device to perform. And as new stats are showing, the Android Market has more the quadrupled in size since March, reaching over 10,000 applications. The argument that Android devices can’t match iPhones for the number of available apps is looking less and less valid. As long as the price is right, it’s a perfect mid-range device.
2) The Mini 3G. I honestly think this is a fantastic device. It’s highly targeted at low-income Twitter users, and it is extremely well adapted for that use. Nobody else will look at it twice, but if you’re a penniless Twitter addict this is the phone for you.
