For reasons seemingly known only to Peter Chou himself, HTC has mostly steered clear of producing high-quality physical QWERTY devices running Android, despite the fact that there might be no phone manufacturer in the world more skilled at making them (let us remind you of the
Touch Pro2, among many others dating back the better part of a decade). Anyhow, we caught wind last month of a possible entry in the form of the so-called "Vision," but we didn't have any visuals -- just
a user agent profile that may or may not amount to anything. Well, that seems to be changing today with a couple blurry shots out of a Croatian site that allegedly shows the goods featuring a 3.7-inch display, a 1GHz processor (Snapdragon, we assume), and Android 2.1 with Sense (the launcher looks like stock Android in this photo, but the status bar is clearly HTC custom). At a glance, it doesn't seem to be the prettiest thing in the world -- but for a form factor traditionally associated with power users and suits, this might be just the ticket.
[Thanks, Ivan]
posted July 4th 2010 6:03PM
Hopefully this is for T-Mobile USA. We need more decent Android phones!
@Dafrety
Why does the keyboard landscape seem to be very small?
Go HTC, go!
@Dafrety
Need something better than snapdragon though. Like the chips Motorola and apple uses, they're better for games and stuff.
Wow! This would be a nice complement to my N1.. I'm just hoping it's GSM.
@Dafrety I wish HTC would keep a line. For example, if they keep going with the Mytouch series or if they start the Evo series... etc.
They keep releasing phones with new names all the time. They seem kind of "wannabe" like.
They need to keep a series so people actually recognize the phones in public.
HTC Vision, Aria, Evo, Dream, Magic, etc... Can get kind of annoying.
@Dafrety I looked at the site Engadget linked. It looks like hes selling the phone...
:O
@Dafrety Actually, AT&T needs more good Android phones.
@Kedar Totally agree. They have absolutely no brand presence. People can't remember a Hero from an Aria from Incredible from any other android phone. Great for Google but will mean nothing to the carriers, and nothing to brand loyalty.
@LCDBox
AT&T does need more good Android phones, but apparently they don't want any good ones. Why do they keep crippling them?
@Dafrety it looks cheap :/. Need more nice qwerty android phones though.
@Dafrety : I wants this?
@Dafrety
Christopher Reeves is quality controlling their android phones.
Too soon?
@Apple Google Microsoft
go by a PSP/DS if you want a handheld gaming system.
@EggoEspada that is correct
@Dafrety
Hear, hear!
@Apple Google Microsoft
...what?
iPhone 4 uses a modified Samsung S5PC110
Motorola Droid X uses a Texas Instruments OMAP3630-1000
iPhone 3GS uses a Samsung S5L8920
Motorola Droid uses a TI OMAP 3430
I think what you meant to say was the chips that Apple and Samsung use... Which are all Samsung processors.
or maybe you meant PowerVR graphics?
or something?
@Dafrety you KNOW why!
@Kedar They don't need to. HTC is known to all carriers as one of the best manufactures. Usually, they leave it to the carriers to brand and advertise the phone. while HTC continues to do what they do best, and that is build phones. I'm glad they don't waste time and resources with PR and branding.
There's a reason why their slogan is "Quietly Brilliant"
@Kedar Carriers usually pick the names. The same way the Galaxy S phones aren't called Galaxy S but Vibrant, Captivate, Epic and Fascinate. T-Mobile wanted myTouch, Google and T-Mobile wanted G1, Sprint wanted Evo 4G, Verizon wanted Droid Incredible.
If the carrier is putting up money for advertising and it's a "big deal" phone, they're going to name it and there's not much the manufacturer can do.
Awh, no really good full qwerty HTC phone yet:[
@JonnyB
When xda or ppcgeeks fixes the last few issues with Android and the tough pro 2 it will be the best qwerty Android phone ever made. HTC upgrade the processor and put Android on touchpro 2 hardware and release them on all carriers and they will sell like crack at a crackhouse
I have nothing to say. Just downranke me please :), thanks.. Oh yeah apple sucks major deeeeeeez walnuts! ok downrank me now, thanks :)
@JonnyB
I can't help but feel tremendously LET DOWN. I hope this isn't the Vision... The Epic 4G dances circles around this phone...
- It was rumored to have a 4.3" screen with a never before seen technology on a phone (like Pixel Qi).... this is a 3.7" screen with usual technology.
- It was rumored to run Gingerbread, this is a customized Android version.
- It was rumored to have a front cam, this does not have one.
- It was rumored to have a dual-core processor, this has same ol' Snapdragon, which Hummingbird pwns.
- It's not what I would call a good looking phone.
Moreover, the keyboard is clearly inferior to the EPIC 4G's in many ways, it deserves a whole post on its own.
Disappointed :(
@TareG
Couldn't agree with you more. The samsung is better tech and better looking design and keyboard. It will probably be my next phone..
@TareG
So basically what you're saying is that you're disappointed that this phone is not using as of yet un-invented components that the chip makers are saying is months away and it's not running code Google hasn't written yet?
@DefPoet
i agree, i really am surprised there is now awesome slider yet. I think to really fully have the smartphone experience you need to have a slide out keyboard, that way you can feel like your on a laptop.
im still waiting for something like this and preferably with some up and down keys n things, i hate how all the new phones have no arrow keys on the front.
@Tes
I'm only disappointed if this is Project Emerand (a.k.a HTC Vision), if it's just the Nexus One Enterprise, and it most likely is, then I'm just "meh".
@TareG Yeah what the hell!! I said the same thing to myself when I saw this. Damnit I hope this isnt really Vision...
@JonnyB
Really? This keyboard looks most similar to the Touch Pro 2, which is still heralded as the best QWERTY of any mobile phone. It's at least a step in the right direction.
@TareG I'm glad you're disappointed. That's what you get for believing RUMORS.
It looks like a revised HTC Touch Pro 2. I have mixed feelings about how it looks. Love the keyboard though.
@prewreckless
It looks like they put together leftovers of the Desire and TP2... I hope the screen at least tilts...
Even if it does, the EPIC easily pwns it in so many ways :(
@prewreckless I hope it is.
The keyboard on the TP2 is BLISS.
No 5 row QWERTY? You did it on the Dream, why is it so hard to duplicate on the Slide and Vision, HTC?
@jordanjay29 +1
@jordanjay29
I'll settle for a capacitive Touch Pro 2 with Android, a headphone jack, and Snapdragon OR a Desire with a Touch Pro 2 keyboard tacked on underneath it.
Release that to all 4 major US carriers and you'll sell a respectable number. Just do it HTC.
@BigJayDogg3
You can settle, I'll wait for the high-end phone with a 5 row properly-aligned QWERTY, 3.5mm headphone jack, front-facing camera, high resolution display, good quality screen and GSM bands for T-Mobile USA. ;)
@jordanjay29 That's exactly what I want but for Verizon.
@Edobe
Come join the Jedi on Sprint and win the Epic battle.
@DefPoet
The Epic is such an Epic phone.
It's like an Evo, but with a faster processor, a nicer display and a better camera. And then BAM! FIVE ROW QWERTY M*****FUCKER!!!
@DefPoet
I'd switch back to Sprint if they played nice in my area. Oh, and if they didn't tack on $10 in fees/taxes/surcharges.
Cool the evo still looks a little better.
Why is that keyboard so thin? Looks worst than the clik. This better not be the vision or twist or whatever it is called
Ugh. We need more keyboards like the Touch Pro2's, five rows and correctly offset.
@PhoenixFox +1.
I've taken to running Android on my Touch Pro2 (WinMo isn't my thing) just because the keyboard makes all the trouble easily worth it.
I've still longed for a decent phone with a good screen and a physical keyboard much like the TP2's. I thought the MyTouch 3G Slide was it, but it wasn't.
It might be only 4 rows, but if it feels anything like the TP2's keyboard, it won't matter.
@PhoenixFox ... FWIW I had a Touch Pro2 and you are right, it was (and remains) the best keyboard ever made for a phone.
In fact I opined after using that TP2 keyboard that HTC makes the best smartphone keyboards on the planet.
I will be buying the Samsung Galaxy S when it debuts, but in the interim I bought my GF a myTouch Slide to replace our G1. Buying it sight unseen, but trusting the rave reviews of the Slide, I also trusted that the keyboard would be excellent since it's an HTC product.
I was right. Although four rows (which is fine to me) the keyboard on the Slide is just as perfect as the one on my old Touch Pro2.
For those who don't know what we are talking about, HTC keyboards have a sharp, crisp, quality feel to them. When pressing the keys they react quickly and when running one's fingers over the keys they feel like the well engineered keys that they are.
That looks like the stock 2.1 launcher to me, not Rosie.
But the icons and notification bar are themed...
They probably haven't decided how to implement Sense 2.1 in landscape yet, I'm guessing.
@Fabolous Its probably a holder. I'm sure this will ship with Sense UI Froyo.
@Fabolous They may have just turned sense off, in which it would look like the photo above. Nice to know it has that feature but like you said it may also be unfinished in which they haven't implemented a landscape mode, yet.