As we prepare for HTC’s official launch event today, we’re starting to see some details appear on HTC’s own website of the much rumored Hero. Through some URL trickery, we’ve managed to unearth several details that confirm the previous rumors. Hero includes the new HTC Sense widget-based interface that puts at-a-glance info right up front on the home screen where it belongs. A new Scenes profile feature lets you transform your phones focus from business to weekend mode. Viewing your contacts shows the usual data in addition to the interactions you’ve had through social networking status updates and photos from the likes of Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, and Twitter. A dedicated search button searches the phone as well as services like Twitter. In fact, like Palm’s Pre, the HTC Hero seems ready to fully integrate your local data with all your subscribed social media sites. The biggest deal here, however, might just be that HTC is touting this as the first Android device to support Flash out of the box.
Inside you’ll find Qualcomm’s MSM7200A proc running Android at 528MHz, 512MB/288MB ROM/RAM, 3.2-inch TFT-LCD with 320 x 480 pixel rez, 900/2100MHz HSPA and Quad-band GSM, trackball, GPS, 802.11b/g WiFi, 3.5mm audio jack, G-sensor, compass, and 5 megapixel auto-focus cam with microSD expansion. It’s all there baby. The White version of the device has an industry-first Teflon coating (right, just like your pans) to keep things clean and grime free. Multi-touch and anti-fingerprint coating too. Hero arrives in Europe in July with T-Mobile and Orange, Asia later in the summer, and North America even later in 2009. Stay tuned for a full hands-on, but for now, enjoy the press shots in the gallery below and the new video after the break!
We’re going to need some real time with the device to make a final opinion, but we’re cautiously optimistic that HTC has a winner with its new Hero. The beveled edges along the back makes the handset sit comfortably in the hand and the new Sense UI riding a capacitive touchscreen and people-centric approach to managing your information is absolutely dreamy at first blush. The on-screen keyboard also seems quite useable with a nice simulated haptic forced-feedback bounce when you stike each key in either landscape or portrait mode. This intuitive one-hander isn’t shy with the specs either as we’ve already seen in the official press release. Our only concern is possible sluggishness from the Qualcomm processor that cause the graphic transitions to stutter a bit and results in screen rotations that feel dangerously uncomfortable. But we were told that the device we saw was running pre-production firmware so there’s still time to tweak — though not much with a July European launch. We had a sit down with HTC execs and learned that the Hero is not a “Google Experience” device. As such, you won’t find the Google logo anywhere on the device (no big deal) but you also won’t be downloading any apps over the air — sideloading only kids. Not a deal breaker but an annoying and seamingly arbitrary limitation nonetheless. We’re upping video and pics over this janky WiFi as we speak so check back for updates. In the meantime, check the HTC produced pics below and video after the break.
