Another HTC Hero Review: Keyboard, Phone, Battery life
Filed under: Cell Phones, Handsets | By: Peter Chubb
Posted on: October 12, 2009 | 9 Comments
So much has been covered already on the HTC Hero device, which is coming to Sprint Nextel. As we mentioned yesterday, there are a few subtle changes to the design of the handset, which we think is for the better. There are three important areas that needs to be looked at more closely, and that is the Keyboard, the battery life and the phone itself.
We know that the keyboard is virtual, and The Examiner agrees that the system works very well offering the user superb feedback. Things do seem a little cramped, but that will not take that long to get used too, iPhone users are still trying to get on with theirs.
The all-important battery is a 1500 mAh, not the best available, but will outperform the iPhone battery. If you are a heavy user, such as using the GPS and surfing the web as well as spending many hours on making calls, then the HTC Hero battery will last a good day.
The phone itself has been made to a high standard; the sound quality is spot on. The Hero also offers what is believed to be the best speakerphone from any cell phone currently on the market. The HTC hero is Sprints first Android handset, it does not live up to all the hype that has surrounded the phone, but The Examiner recommends the Hero over the Palm Pre.
CLICK HERE to keep updated with the latest news, share a comment or problems with products and services. Follow us on twitter or read more HTC Hero news.
I’ve got a Pre and the sound quality is average at best. I’m going to stop by a store and play around with the Hero but hold off on my decision until I play with the Moment.
I’ve had the Hero since 10/12 and the battery absolutely sucks. It was fully charged 4 hours ago and is now close to dead. I haven’t made a single call, the GPS, Bluetooth and WiFi are all turned off, and no mail is syncing. This is ridiculous.
I got my Hero on the 11th and love the phone but HATE the battery. With WIFI and bluetooth turned off and my mail sync set to every 5 minutes the battery migt last 7 hours.
Make sure you check other forums for battery issues. Their is an issue that is keeping the phone in call lock mode (even though the screen goes off) and is causing the battery to drain as if you were on a call.
The HTC hero in itself is an amazing phone, a lil small yes, and the feedback is a lil slower when typing. I do miss my iPhone due to ease of use with the keyboard and web browsing. Ive had the Hero for 3 days now and have yet to get but half a day out of the battery. But I have been using it quite excessively customizing it and playing around with the features. Perhaps a nicely made case that doubles as an extended battery? that would be nice. had one on my iphone and it lasted 2 days with moderate use.
I would everyone to call HTC and SPRINT to report the battery problem. I myself started the day with a fully charged battery. I made two phone calls totalling a little over 5 mins. 3 hours off the charger and the battery is dead. All I have on is the bluetooth, and of course the phone.
I am also not getting good reception at all.
Sprint 30 Day Exchange is sending me a brand new phone to see if the unit is just defective. However it seems many people are reporting the same problem.
Kinda reminds me of the trouble that Apple had with the iPhone.
I had the same issue with my battery from day one (Sat. 1O-11-O9). But 2 days ago I learned of an app thru Android Market that will allow you to turn on certain features & conserve battery life.
Look for Power Manager and also search battery meters, I have one that displays the actual % in the status bar, & allows you to customize even more settings.
I have had my phone unplugged for about 11 hours, with no GPS, no Bluetooth, and have made 4 calls about an hour in total, and am down to 65%.
Hope it helps you like it did me.
My HTC Hero review and comments!!!!!!
One thing users might be overlooking is that in nearly every application including Browser, When you press the menu key….there is a pop-up menu, with forward and back arrows and other options including bookmarks.
Hit Menu in nearly every app and “voila”….more options…fast and just what you need….like a genie in a cell phone.
Too many reviews with too many fly by night people that seem to only know half of what the device can do.
I have spent over a week 8 hours a day loading apps, trying fixes for improving battery life, (thanks to countless posts on Sprint discussion forums and others) including getting rid of any Advanced Task managers because the phone manages apps fine and app conflicts with the Droid functions.
Switching to Handcent or Chomp and killing Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and mobile data….not only save battery life but after doing a reset (i.e. turning the phone off with the end call button and then turning it back on will reset the awake tine……so you can monitor IF the phone is actually turning off……I am getting 9-20% awake time depending on usage now.
Go to Menu, Settings, scroll to About Phone, tap, taps on Status, scroll to bottom and compare Up Time to Awake Time to monitor your battery drain. Note: you can hit end call after noting the “awake time” and check it in a few minutes..and if it doesn’t change….then your Hero is sleeping like it should.
Also, adding too many apps at any one time WILL overload the memory temporarily and eventually KILL the phone function and begin a series of force close tabs….You will not get the phone back without deleting apps…and may not be able to access a forced reset.
Get X-Uninstaller and delete the last 5-6 apps you downloaded…and the phone comes back….give it a rest for a day and then slowly add a few apps at a time.
So far, I have over 75-100 apps and my Hero flies…..no widgets except “Quick Settings’…an “all in one management” app - with all the widgets in one - that need to be turned off when not necessary to save battery life…….
I also have Handcent, Fast Call, Voicemail, and a screen dimmer APP called Brightness Level on my main page and that’s it.
Also, My Backup Pro is pretty powerful for saving data and apps to the SD card and restores after resets if they are absolutely necessary.
Flexillis Mobile Security is an extremely good app to keep your device safe. It has anti virus scanning/protection plus a firewall. Its backup function will backup your contacts, photos, call log, mms, sms’s and pretty much anything else you want it to their online site. And there is a phone locater also as part of this app.
Power Manager is great for battery monitoring.
There’s so much this phone can do and it seems that way too many novices flying by the seat of their pants are in a rush to get on you-tube with their video reviews, in addition the bloggers and so called tech journalists offering VERY limited knowledge of EVERYTHING the HERO does.
And comparing it to the IPhone. The IPhone is great, but droid just may challenge Apple to reinvent themselves. And we benefit from the tech wars. Something new has come along and bashers and defenders are slinging their opinions and more. Why not just do comparisons, take the high road and lay off the slams. You don’t and I DO! Tech is as diverse as people, We are all different. What a concept. Diversity!
Verizon’s Motorola Droid will have a bigger screen and 2.0 firmware, but will not be that much faster. The Moment will please some desiring a real keyboard. And then the differences get into personal preference.
As more people start adding apps and crashing due to what I have already mentioned, they will either give up or exchange for a simpler phone……or stick with it and “get it”! Play with it for a few weeks and then read the MANUAL. And then start researching on Google. There’s a ton of droid info. Opps, did I say GOOGLE? Yes my HTC Hero says that on the back, made in mid September. Rev A.
Have fun. It took me 3 phone lockups and hard resets to “get it’ and then two more phone lockups….BUT this time I started deleting the last 5 or 6 apps I installed and now I am back up in 10 minutes instead of days…..ALL that to get to where I am now. Cruzin’ with a killer phone and sticking with HTC and Sprint.
A slightly bigger screen and faster processor would be nice in a Gen 2 phone, but I can wait. So much to do with this amazing piece of technology, it will take months to exhaust the possibilities” and push it and the addition apps to the max.
By the way, I am one torqued off Palm Treo 650 user who was abandoned when they went stupid and lost the PDA/Smartphone race several years ago. The Pre is promising but too small a screen for my 59 year old eyes. I wish them well, but are they listening to what the market wants? NOT!
I was so close to an IPhone, researched everything for weeks and then researched the Hero and android operating system. WinMo lost. They’re dead and need a new mission statement and goal.
Just a few thoughts from someone who’s lived with the Hero and decided to stick with Sprint like I have for the past 7 years.
And I am not a paid reviewer, endorser or even work in the tech industry. I just played with, crashed and kept on looking for answers till I feel like I am the master of my HERO, and NOT the other way around!
Best of luck to all the “Droid” pioneers. Droid DOES!!!!