HTC Hero caught flashing some Android in the wild?

by Chris Ziegler posted May 5th 2009 at 3:21AM

Remember that shockingly pink (false color, we presume) Hero that was allegedly part of HTC's planned Android lineup for 2009? CodeAndroid appears to have nabbed the first in-the-wild shots of the very phone, and it's got every bit as much "chin" in real life as it did in those fuchsia renders. That could be good or bad news depending on just how strongly you feel about the G1's unforgettable cosmetics, but also notable here is that we appear to have an honest-to-goodness 3.5mm headphone jack up top -- a first for an HTC Android device -- and an utter lack of any d-pad. The trackball is certainly gone, so unless there's some wild touch-sensitive area below the screen, it seems like the touchscreen might be the only way to navigate. How this phone ultimately stacks up against its stablemates when it hits the market later this year remains to be seen, but at a quick glance, we'd say the Magic's looking more like a beauty queen than ever.

Filed under: Handsets, HTC, Android

Tags: android, g3, hero, htc, in the wild, InTheWild, rumor

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

youngcalihottie @ May 5th 2009 3:26AM

way to keep taking the ease of input backwards htc.
first remove the keyboard.
now remove the trackball.
hell, make the next model without a touch screen even.

Neutral

smover @ May 5th 2009 2:02PM

the Magic has no 3.5mm jack.. 'nuff said ;) Finally an interesting Android device !!

Neutral

WhatADouche @ May 5th 2009 8:50AM

LOL @ "hell, make the next model without a touch screen even". I just wonder what is up with HTC and their "Android chins"? The RAZR had a chin but at least Motorola made an effort to seamlessly blend it into the phone to make it more aesthetically pleasing. HTC ought to follow their example.

Neutral

deusinvictus @ May 5th 2009 4:19PM

I remember reading an interview with someone at HTC that said the chin was to help protect the trackball without recessing it to the point it's hard to use (like the pearl flip), so then Why the fuck is there a chin on this thing, and the biggest yet at that?!

Neutral

Dannyboy @ May 7th 2009 11:26AM

When is there going to be an android device with the blackberry form factor a la the Kogan Agora? And really, what the hell happened to the Kogan Agora. Last we heard it was back to the drawing board, but is this thing coming out anytime soon? I love Android as an OS, but I really miss the form factor of my Moto Q. This shouldn't be that hard to do..... come on Samsung/HTC/Moto.... one of you has to realize that not all people like a full touchscreen or having to slide their phone open all the time. Make it happen!