HtcLocations
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HTC Locations update for Windows Phone brings offline navigation
Nokia's Windows Phones have given us offline navigation for a while courtesy of the Drive app, and HTC's old Locations app has had some downloadable maps too -- but only for a few select Android users. That's just changed, however, with Titan owners reporting a major update to the Mango version of Locations that brings the same offline functionality as Android. We took a peek and everything seemed hunky-dory, including turn-by-turn voice navigation for both walking and driving, although wander lust quickly had us downloading maps we'll never need.[Thanks, Siddharth]
HTC Desire HD review
Did you know that the word "jumbo" originated from the name of an African elephant famed for being the largest of his kind? HTC will be well familiar with that tag having already rattled off the HD2, EVO 4G, and HD7 in a smartphone-dwarfing 4.3-inch form factor. And while that may not be the largest screen you can have your Android confectionery on today, it's arguably the upper limit of what we might consider a pocketable device. The HTC Desire HD follows, and seeks to improve upon, its laudable predecessors with an aluminum unibody construction, WVGA (800 x 480) display, 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash plus 720p video, and a modern 1GHz CPU. That hardware is put at the service of Android's latest Froyo offering, complemented with an updated Sense that includes a web interface for controlling and discovering your phone remotely. It's a rich spec sheet, that much is unquestionable, but you're not just here for tenuous wildlife-related metaphors, you want to know if the whole is equal to, or perhaps even more than, the sum of its parts. Join us after the break for a deeper look at the Desire HD.%Gallery-105849%
TomTom maps get loaded onto HTC Locations, promise 'zero-wait navigation experience'
Look out, Google Maps Navigation -- here comes a little friendly competition from across the pond. While we'd heard the term HTC Locations bandied about a bit during the company's London launch of the Desire HD, now it looks as if both HTC and TomTom are ready to make their newfound friendship official. TomTom will be partnering with HTC in order to provide maps for phones loaded with HTC Locations, which is hailed as a new mapping system that results in a "zero-wait navigation experience." Initially, at least, it'll only be available on the new HTC Desire HD and HTC Desire Z smartphones in Europe and Asia, but the outfit promises to extend that to a wide variety of future phones and geographies. It should be noted, however, that while map and location content come preloaded on HTC Locations, turn-by-turn by guidance has to be purchased separately.
HTC Desire HD detailed in appropriately HD video
Feeling like you're insufficiently saturated with Desire HD info? HTC's got your back, as usual, with one of its expansive video overviews, setting the specs and features you already know about to a background of soothing music and cutesy visuals. Nothing wrong with that, we say, and it makes for a great sales pitch if you're trying to convince your significant other of the life-changing benefits of purchasing said handset. Skip past the break, set your eyeballs to 720p mode, and enjoy the show.
HTC Sense's new map pre-caching demoed on video
If you were paying attention during HTC's keynote earlier this morning, you'll have noted Peter Chou dropped a big old promise on us all: no more waiting for maps to load when zooming or scrolling. Pre-cached maps are one of the headline new features in the upgraded Sense that accompanies the Desire HD and Desire Z's announcement today, so we naturally had to go have a peek for ourselves. Requiring no internet connection, the Desire HD on hand sauntered through the streets of Sao Paulo and it was true that there were none of the aggravating grey squares of doom that we've grown used to when panning around. What isn't true, however, is HTC's claim that there's no waiting to be done. Responsiveness on these maps is far from perfect and patience will still need to be exercised. Notably, HTC said that you'll be able to download city maps free of charge, but navigation and other additional services will cost you. A final note is merited for the use of the phone's digital compass to rotate the map with you -- so that the map adjusts itself to whatever direction you point the phone. A very classy little inclusion. Eric Lin was on hand to answer the question of when this new Sense might trickle down to the classic Desire or other handsets in HTC's portfolio. Well, his answer was a non-answer: no roadmap or schedule has been set and HTC isn't ruling anything out just yet.
