MoBile MaNia

Vodafone and HTC Corporation have announced the HTC Magic smartphone, Vodafone’s first Android-powered mobile, which will be available in the spring. The introduction of the HTC Magic is the result of a successful relationship between Vodafone and HTC, and Vodafone’s joining, late last year, of the Open Handset Alliance.

“The HTC Magic embodies the compact style and sophistication for which HTC has come to be known, with the powerful and intuitive internet experience for which the Android platform was designed,” says Peter Chou, president and CEO, HTC Corporation. “We are proud of our partnership with Vodafone and excited about making the Android-powered HTC Magic available to Vodafone customers in Europe.”


The HTC Magic has -

• a 3.2-inch QVGA touch screen display
• Features a trackball and navigational buttons for quick, easy access
• Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate
• Handwriting recognition
• MicroSD card support
• Wi-Fi, 3G, EDGE/GPRS
• Bluetooth only for mono headset, USB (mini)
• 3 megapixel AF camera
• GPS

The HTC Magic includes a variety of email options such as Google Mail, POP3 and IMAP. In addition, Android Market allows for quick and easy downloading of games and applications utilizing Vodafone’s  network.

Improved screen Office tools very functional Helpful keypad Can open attachments

Slow and sluggish Touchscreen doesn't work properly Slow speed undermines TouchFLO ActiveSync doesn't work properly Bad battery life No Wi-fi

HTC Touch was pitted as one of the iPhone Killers. It was also, as we found out, one of HTC's quirkiest launches. However, soon after the original design failure (do read the previous review, if you want to know what I am talking about) word got around about the HTC Dual, a better, more robust avatar its predecessor.

The new HTC Touch Dual features significant changes, not only with regard to the form factor, which is a welcome relief (I shall explain later); it has at the same time tweaked some existing features. Having said all this, I expected HTC to work up the magic and deliver a clear winner this time. Yet it's not all in vain. Let's dig deeper.

Form Factor
To begin with, the Touch Dual is taller, and some extra ounces have been gained in the process. It feels bulky than the original though, and a bit narrower too. If you compare the dimensions, here is what they look like: 107 x 55 x 15.8 mm (Touch Dual) as against 99.9 x 58 x 13.9 mm (Touch). The Dual weighs 120g, while the predecessor came in at 112g. It isn't that big a difference.


What has changed is the addition of the 12-key numeric keypad, which opens up once the front portion is slid. This makes it really convenient to type messages, even while negotiating bumpy roads. I have written in my previous review about the downsides of having a small QWERTY keypad and trying to write anything while you are traveling. This is true especially in a country like India, where bad roads are a big problem. You just cant keep your hands steady even for a second.
One of the silliest quirks of the HTC Touch happened to be the hot-swap slots. This time the side housing has been shifted to a more conventional encasing. For the SIM card you will need to go past the battery cover and the battery itself. Objectively, this isn't that bad, considering the problem one had to access the the SIM card HSS. At least, this time you don't need to grow long nails to get it out. The memory card slot is round the bend on the left side.

The Touch Dual makes use of the MiniUSB interface (on the left), and on top you will see the volume keys. Having the USB slot, charging slot, and earphone jack all in one spot is a bad idea. You can't use one while using the other. The right side has only the camera key, while the back has the camera, self-portrait mirror and speaker.


The problem with having the speaker at the back is that when the phone is kept on a soft surface, the sound gets absorbed or muffled, so if you get a call when you phone is on the bed, you may not hear it in the next room. The front panel is equipped with a 2.6-inch screen that has a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels, and thats about it.