HTC Sensation Sim Free Mobile Phone

I've had a HTC phone ever since the Orange M5000, through TytnII, HTC HD, HD2 and HTC Desire; so it's fair to say I like HTC.

I decided to skip the Desire HD, as it wasn't a big enough jump, and plumbed for the Sensation in all its dual core goodness.

I have to say I'm pretty pleased with it; the screen is large and easy to read, the GUI is lovely and fast, all the normal Market Place apps are there, and everything I've bought previously on the Market installs without a problem.

As others say - the battery life is about a day with a decent amount of Smart Phone usage. Not had any trouble with wifi or 3g connectivity or with dropped calls.

In fact the only small gripe I have (don't think anyone else has mentioned this) - is with the micro USB connector. It's recessed so some of my USB cables don't plug in far enough. Easily fixed with a Stanley knife and a quick shave of some of the plastic from the end of the cable but watch those fingers ;-).

For all the smart things this phone can do, I mainly use the internet connectivity - which is quick and simple, though I prefer the free Dolphin HD browser to the pre-loaded app.

I would recommend this phone to anyone - in fact I guess I just have.

There are some surprisingly poor reviews for this device, I have, overall been very pleased with this device, I got mine through Vodafone and have been using it for over a month.

Yes the device does get warm if you're playing games for a long time, but not to the point of burning my hands, a little warmer than say my nexus one when doing the same task.

The screen is vibrant and responsive, as is the Sense UI.

The battery life, I usually get a little over 24 hours with probably above average use; browsing the web, playing games, watching you tube, making calls, texting/email and I have no problems with any of them. I'm yet to have a go at using the device to connect to my TV to watch a film because you have to purchase an adapter.

The screen shows 4x5 = 20 icons in the apps view, and 4x4 =16 on the various home screens but it does depend on the size of your widgets as to how many you can put in there. The lock screen, quick access feature is great and I use it pretty much every time I open the device to take me to one of my 4 most used areas.

Android is a personal preference I have ipod touches, and I find the android and sense UI to be more to my personal way of using a device, if you're of a similar mind set you'll enjoy this phone, if you love/want an iphone then you'll be dissapointed because this isn't an iphone, I'm tired of apple, windows, android debates, it all comes down to personal preference, what you want to do with the device and how you're used to working.

Final point on signal, I've not had a single dropped call from this device, the device picks up H consistently and is fast at getting email and browsing when I'm out and about, which is an improvement over my Nexus One.

In summary, I spent a long time trying to decide between this and the Galaxy S II, I prefer the sense UI and that's what swayed me to the sensation over the Galaxy as the spec is very similar. If you're looking for a dual core, HTC device with a large screen then I would recommend this device, I'm very happy with mine.

I finally decided to ditch my old Nokia 5800 last month and opted for the new HTC Sensation. For those reading this I've never had an HTC before and I've never used Android.

The handset feels solid - much more so than my old Nokia. The back plate gives it excellent rigidity and the three tone design is nice looking, with the aluminium giving it a premium feel. All of the buttons (volume, power, case release) are all in good locations - no chance of accidentally pressing them. The case release is easy to press unlike some of my previous phones.

The screen is excellent and the Gorilla Glass has yet to be scratched. In terms of touch sensitivity I've found it a major, major improvement on my old handset. It really is a joy to use.

In terms of battery - yes, it does deplete quite quickly, my old Nokia could last a good week with general use. I'm now quite used to charging it each and every night. But what you suffer for having to charge most evenings the phone more than makes up for in features and power.

I've found that the handset gets slightly "warm" whilst playing games/high quality video but not uncomfortably so - it simply feels like a lukewarm mug (this after an hour or so!). In fact I wouldn't see it as an issue at all really and I have no idea what some people are doing to get it really hot. If you're concerned by this - don't be.

The size of the device is obviously much larger than my old phone but I quickly got used to handling it and it fits snugly in the hand. I use two hands to text generally so people who prefer to use just one may take a while to get used to it.

Sound quality on calls is very good, though perhaps slightly quieter than I'm used to. Music quality is also excellent, although perhaps lacking quite the bass kick and energy I'm used to. The SRS effects do help here as do a good set of headphones. Updating Album art is a doddle and for the first time ever all of my phone music has art with it!

Video playback is crisp and clear, and with 3rd party apps it plays 720p MKV files well.

App installation, as you would expect is very easy and everything runs very smoothly, with apps opening instantly.

I found using Android very simple - and only now am I referring to the manual to do some more complicated operations. Straight out of the box and I was away!

If you want a well priced, media focused phone with a great screen and interface look no further. I always used to think I could live perfectly well without my phone. Now I don't think it possible and I certainly can't see myself buying any other handset than HTC in the future.