HTC Unveils Desire HD and Desire Z For Business

HTC today took the wrappings off two new Android devices – the Desire HD, optimised for multimedia content, and the Desire Z, aimed at the business market.

The much-anticipated HTC Desire HD, known under the code-name Ace, is the first phone to use the new 1GHz Qualcomm 8255 Snapdragon processor, and runs on the updated Android 2.2 OS. It has an aluminium “unibody”, a large 4.3-inch touchscreen and an 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash and the ability to record 720p HD video.

In an attempt by HTC to capitalise on the phone’s multimedia capabilities, the Desire HD also integrates both Dolby Mobile and SRS, as well as improved photo tools and support for a number of different video codecs. Its internal storage has been expanded accordingly, and there is also a microSD slot for good measure.

The device’s specs were published as early as July on the the blog of UK retailer Supertrader, following reported “leaks all over the Internet”. HTC says the Desire HD will be launching on all the UK networks, apart from O2, in mid-October.

HTC targets business market

HTC also unveiled the Desire Z, code-named Vision, with a “pop hinge” that opens up to reveal a qwerty keyboard. It has a 3.7-inch touchscreen and an 800MHz processor, also running Android 2.2. It features a 5 megapixel camera and 720p HD video recording.

The keyboard is on a “Z-hinge”, which HTC says allows for a more comfortable typing position, and is particularly aimed at business users, who tend to prefer physical keyboards to touchscreens.

HTC was also touting the latest version of its Sense user interface, together with a soon-to-be-launched website, HTCSense.com, that CEO Peter Chou said will allow users to “manage, control and customise their experience from their phone or their PC”.

HTCSense.com will reportedly backup and archive the user’s data in the cloud – allowing them to access it from any web-connected computer. It also enables users to set off their phone’s ringer when it’s on silent, forward calls to another number, lock a phone remotely in the case of loss or theft and add a message to the home screen asking for it back.

Users are even able to wipe all the phone’s data via the website, if it has been irretrievably lost, and then reinstall it from the backup when they get a new handset.

HTC and Android

Back in July, HTC said that its net income had jumped 33 percent for the second quarter due to strong Android sales, and its total revenues increased by 58.45 percent year-over-year.

“HTC has actually done a pretty good job of coming out of the gate as a brand,” said Roger Kay, principal analyst for Endpoint Technologies, at the time. “The products look good, they’ve got a good environment, they’ve chosen good fonts for the name – they’ve hitched their products to Android, which has paid off.”

A recent report by Gartner also predicted that Android would become the number two mobile operating system in the world behind Symbian, edging past RIM and Apple’s iOS this year.