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HTC and Facebook – MWC 2011

We have already looked at HTC Desire S, Incredible S and Wildfire S. the company has presented them today during the press conference. What else to add to the already published previews of these phones? Yes, the phones are not spectacular, I, personally, do not approve of the complete transition to sensor buttons and of the attempt to justify it by adding such features as shifting buttons during orientation change as in HTC Incredible S. Some understandably do not like the looks – some the price tags. In terms of new ideas this press conference is nothing to look at, I may even call it dull. But there is another interesting facet, though not relevant to the Russian market.

The company has presented two new Android smartphones with only one distinctive feature – the hard Facebook button and the better phone's functionality with this social network.

The first phone is HTC ChaCha. It is a candy bar 2.6" touch screen (320x480) phone with a QWERTY-key pad. Beneath the key pad to the right is the Facebook button. Depending on the running application the key has different functions. If the browser is open the button sends the social network's URL to the open tab. If the music player is running the button sends the info on what you are listening right now to Facebook. This button may also immediately upload the picture you have just taken and other things.

The second smartphone is HTC Salsa. Technically this device is closer to HTC Wildfire, it has 3.4" touch screen with HVGA resolution (320x480), a 5MP camera with autofocus, 512 MB od system memory and Android 2.3 as the OS. It also features the Facebook key.

These smartphones have been designed for the American and the European markets. They are not going to be sold in Russia simply because Facebook is not yet that popular here. Another point is important here: it seems to me that the partnership with Facebook is a very beneficial move for HTC. Not only in terms of receiving advertising from one of the most popular sites in the world but also because today Facebook is rapidly gaining popularity again as it happened a few years ago, and the very concept of social networks is getting more and more associated with the concepts of the web and the Internet itself. Sooner or later one of the major manufacturers ought to start cooperating with Facebook and release phones with extra functions for this network – and HTC did it.

Friends, I invite you to discuss the topic of HTC/Facebook partnership and its consequences (advantages/disadvantages) for the companies and us, the consumers, on the forum (no flaming, please).

Do you want to talk about this? Please, go to our Forum and let your opinion to be known to the author and everybody else.

Artem Lutfullin (artem@mobile-review.com)
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Translated by Robert Mugattarov (mugattarov@gmail.com)