HTC Sense User Interface
HTC has a been a long partner of Google and it’s Android mobile phone Operating System. In fact, the very first smartphone to feature the Android OS was an HTC phone. This was the HTC Dream, released in the US in October of 2008. Since April 2009, over one million units have been sold, a testament to the user friendliness and expandability this operating system offers, combined with the strong hardware offered by HTC.
While many manufacturers offer the Android OS standard on handsets which have different hardware and form factors, these manufacturers have been free to modify the user interface of the operating system to their own unique specification. HTC also went along with this trend, customizing not only their line of Android phones, but the ones that support the Brew and Windows Mobile operating systems as well. One new phone is called the Htc Sense.
Htc Sense – Features and Applications
Based around popular smartphone operating systems, namely Android and Windows Mobile, the HTC Sense UI supports the same flexible applications available from their respective app stores. However, phones running on HTC Sense already come built in with usefull apps which cater to a wide variety of consumers, from casual internet users to the more business savvy.
HTC Sense on Android Phones
Android based HTC phones also feature various widgets. Bookmarking makes it easy to navigate to different parts of the phone with the touch of the screen. The calculator is also a widget that has also been a long standard of any cellphone you might find on the market. A calendar widget makes it easy to schedule appointments, while being able to set clocks displaying times of different parts of the world make the phone suitable for businessmen who travel a lot.
Shortcuts to the FM Radio, friend stream to keep track of friends on Facebook or Twitter, and mail alerts also show up on the home screen for easy access. Shortcuts to your messages, music, pictures and videos make managing media with text messaging a snap. People who want to know current events and stocks can leave a news, stocks or weather widget on, which can be synced to a variety of different media outlets.
Applications are also what made Android shoot to the top of the smartphone heap, and while it may have the flexible HTC Sense interface on the surface, expandibility is as endless as it ever was. Built in to every smartphone with the HTC Sense UI are apps such as the camera app, adding features such as face detection and even a mirror that utilizes the phone’s front camera. A picture gallery makes managing snapped pictures easy and painless. In addition to the usual calculator, calendar, desk clock and contact management, the standard music player includes a browser to sort through your music with. The HTC modified home screen makes it easy to navigate towards internet applications, such as checking your email, the modified web browser and “Peep” Twitter application. Some HTC phones come with built in LED flashlights, adding a utilitarian touch to an already feature-packed device.
HTC Sense on Windows Mobile
HTC phones running on Windows Mobile feature the Today screen. This plugin is made up of tabs that are viewed by touching one of the visible icons or by sliding a finger along the bottom bar of the UI. Tabs located on both sides of the current tab can be easily accessed by swiping in the intended direction. Messages, both SMS and Email, as well as the Calendar icons update to show any unread messages or activities unattended to respectively. Other applications can be tethered to the Today screen, providing a seamless and smooth UI experience for the user.
Future Plans and Updates to the HTC Sense UI
While Apple is slated to release their iOS 5 in the near future, the new Sense 3.0 UI update may put up stiff competition in the aesthetics department of smartphone operating systems. The HTC Sensation smartphone is one of the first Android handsets to include the update, with updates to other HTC smartphones planned in the future.
The new functions that Sense 3.0 introduces includes the new lock screen, as well as existing Android apps being updated to keep up with the brand new Sense 3.0 engine. These app and widget updates include live animated widgets like the weather and clock. Other more important applications such as SMS updates and email have also been given the Sense 3.0 makeover.
Access for shortcuts to other applications is possible directly from the lock screen simply by holding a finger on the app you’d like to open and then moving it to the lock button. This also works for the camera app as well, making it particularly handy if you feel the need to quickly snap a picture while your phone is still in lock mode.
HTC is slated to release the Sense 3.0 OS on other HTC devices in addition to the dual-core Sensation and EVO 3D smartphones. Even the the upcoming Flyer tablet which will be released soon is set to include the update.
While HTC is expected to introduce a myriad of tabled devices and smartphones within the year which run Sense 3.0, this update will seemingly remain exclusive to the current high end devices that HTC has to offer. However, this does not mean that older devices will be without an update completely as, according to the HTC Twitter feed, they are currently “working to incorporate other aspects” of the Sense 3.0 update that may be functional on older hardware. More phones will pop out better then the htc sense in the near future.