Hands-On: Incredible 2, a Phone That Lives Up to its Name

Friday, 27 May 2011 13:00

Hands-On: Incredible 2, a Phone That Lives Up to its Name

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Hands-On: Incredible 2, a Phone That Lives Up to its Name

For the most part, HTC's Incredible 2 lives up to its name. Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

I scoffed when HTC first released the “Incredible 2.” Not at its hardware or features necessarily, but rather for its presumptuous name.

But after spending some time with the device itself, I can safely say the phone’s title is no misnomer (if not a little overconfident).

The phone bucks the trend of huge, power-hungry phones we’re seeing debut in today’s mobile market. At 4.75 by 2.5 inches and less than a half-inch thick, the phone’s size felt like the third bear’s bed from Goldilocks: not too big, not too small, but just right.

It fit comfortably in hand, and the matte resin finish on its unibody design felt much nicer to the touch than the glossier plastic we’ve seen on other phones.

Moving on to the specs: Unfortunately, the Incredible 2 lacks access to Verizon’s 4G network. But considering the phone’s relatively compact size, it seems like less of a media consumption device — like, say, HTC’s Thunderbolt — and more of a phone focused on making calls, so you may not need those high data speeds.

The phone’s major draw, for example, is focused mainly on globetrotters: The Incredible 2 is a so-called “world phone,” operating on both CDMA and GSM frequencies. So while you won’t be able to access Verizon’s 4G speeds, at least you can chat up your pals while you’re abroad.

That’s not to say that the Incredible 2 isn’t capable of showing media off. The phone’s 4-inch screen displayed images in crystal clarity, and despite a lack of 4G, YouTube videos played well running on Verizon’s 3G network. And with DLNA capability, you can stream video and audio to friendly peripheral devices, like your big screen. There isn’t, however, any HDMI output on the phone, limiting your media-out capabilities somewhat.

There’s also a number of subtle under-the-hood upgrades from the previous generation. For one, the Incredible 2 comes with an adequate 768 MB of RAM, compared to the Incredible 1’s 512 MB. Not a huge boost, but coupled with a 1-GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, it seemed like enough to keep apps running smoothly. Although the first Incredible used a 1-GHz Snapdragon as well, the Incredible 2 features the second generation of the processor, which is manufactured using Qualcomm’s 45nm technology. Essentially, that means increases in both performance and battery life.

The Incredible 2 also has a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera for video chat, which the first Incredible didn’t have. The mandatory back-facing 8-megapixel camera is capable of 720p video capture, and handles photos just like any other current smartphone.

One cool aesthetic plus — the orientation of the four home keys rotates as you switch between portrait and landscape mode. A minor tweak, but attention to details like this are what get Android users excited.

The biggest detractors for my taste — one, it’s not shipping with Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread), but rather 2.2 (Froyo). Nearly every phone I’ve tested this year (save the Xperia Play) has shipped with the last generation of Android on it, and frankly, it’s annoying. On occasion we’re promised future device updates, but we never see exact dates. Hopefully Android’s new cross-company partnership will keep future phones up to date.

The other qualm is the user interface. For the life of me, I can’t get past the custom skin HTC includes on its phones. Call me a purist, but I’m partial to stock Android, no frills. HTC’s Sense interface brings with it a bevy of cluttered menu screens, all filled with HTC’s take on regular Android phone apps (Twitter, for example, becomes “Peep” on a Sense-skinned phone). It’s mainly for HTC to differentiate its phones from the glut of other Android offerings out there.

But these aren’t glaring issues. If you don’t mind a skinned phone, they won’t affect usability in any major way.

Overall, I’d recommend the Incredible 2 to those who want a phone first, and a media player second, and especially if you want to stay connected while you travel abroad.