HTC have only recently become a serious top player; notable handsets like the Hero and Magic have almost seemed to become successes overnight. But HTC don’t rest on their laurels and at MWC they have released not one new model, not two, but three.

Two are on the Android operating system but the third, is a compact device, on Windows Mobile (HTC getting back to their roots)…

First-up, the Legend. Built with a very similar design to the popular Hero but from a single aluminium sheet with no joins, it boasts a 3.2” touchscreen with a superb clarity and resolution. For those who still aren’t quite convinced by pure-touchscreen ala the iPhone, there is an optical trackpad for swift and easy navigation around the Android operating-system.

Next, the Desire (if there’s nothing else to say about HTC, no one can deny they have a flare for names that beats their rivals hands-down… A Desire, or an X6? One sounds like a sleek sex-machine while the other conjures up images of a car.). This handset shares remarkable similarities to the Nexus One, which is surely more than coincidence as HTC manufactured the Nexus One. It has one of the largest screens on the market at 3.7” and it runs a very desirable (excuse the pun) 1GHz processor, making multitasking and opening programs a breeze with no noticeable delays. This is a welcome addition for the consumers, as slow-running phones lacking the ability to multitask seamlessly has been a large annoyance for as long as phone manufacturers have promised their devices could do it. As a final positive point, the Desire supports Flash, making web browsing a wonderful experience where you won’t need to worry about accessing your favourite sites.

Now we have the Android phones analysed, it’s time to look at the HD Mini operating on WinMo. The HD Mini is, as you may have guessed, just a smaller version of the popular HD2. Mini versions may be something we’ll be seeing more of, with Nokia also catching on with the N97 Mini. Interestingly, and different to the HD2, the Mini has the option to work as a wifi hotspot, which means other devices looking for a network connection can share its 3G to access the web.

Finally, we’ll take a quick look at HTC Sense, because HTC says it’s improved the UI. Sense simply resides in Android and bunches all the contacts to your phone book, meaning you can simply open contacts and talk to them by your favourite means – Facebook, email, text etc. The upgrade also puts a Friend Stream widget on the phone which integrates all the social networking sites to one place so the updates are all shown together in one tidy place. If you’re wondering how to get your hands on this, it comes pre-bundled on the Desire and Legend and Hero owners can grab it as a free update.

by Rich White