MANILA, Philippines—The charm of the Android platform plus the innovation called HTC Sense—a set of cloud-supported features that enhance user experience—have boosted global sales of HTC smartphones.
HTC sold a total of 9.7 million smartphones in the first quarter, 192 percent more than the year-ago level.
HTC country manager Mark Sergio said the improved sales also translated to a significant increase in brand awareness, which grew four times in a span of 18 months.
“The brand awareness for HTC is now at 50 percent,” said Sergio, adding that the company enjoyed double-digit sales worldwide.
New products launched in the first quarter of the year (Inspire 4G, Thunderbolt, EVO Shift 4G, Desire S, Incredible S) were met with strong customer demand and numerous accolades at the Mobile World Congress, he said.
This and the announcement of new products such as products like Wildfire S, ChaCha, Salsa, Flyer, EVO 3D and Sensation show HTC’s strong focus on technology and innovations.
Also, Sergio announced the availability in the local market of another Android device, the HTC Desire S.
HTC Desire, which features a 3.7 capacitive display (480 x 800 WVGA resolution), has the look and feel of a high-end HTC phone. Similar to other HTC phones, it features a unibody build as it is wholly carved out of a single piece of aluminum.
Powered by a 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile CPU, the HTC Desire S has front and back camera. The front camera comes in handy for video calls. The back camera features a 5 megapixel resolution and is capable of HD video recording.
The phone also features the new HTC Sense 3.0, a faster Web browser, and the map services installed in the device that now covers 83 countries. Using the maps for navigation purposes is free, according to Sergio.
“The HTC Sense puts the user at the center. It integrates a lot of features that concentrate on how the user uses the phone,” said Sergio.
HTC Sense allows the automatic silencing of the phone once it is flipped down, and navigation of roads with not just a map but also a compass. A tap on a word or phrase automatically brings the user to Wikipedia, Google, YouTube or the dictionary. From a website (HTC Sense.com), you can also make the phone ring, lock it, erase the data, or send a message to it.
The HTC Desire S retails for P27,000.