HTC’S Snap Smartphone

HTC’S Snap smartphone is a gadget for its times—hard times that is—as the global financial crisis makes no-frills functionality a fashion statement.

HTC Snap is designed for business on the move

The Snap is designed for doing business on the move, not lounging around and watching videos or snacking on music.

It has a small but crisp, 2.4in LED backlit screen with 320 by 240 pixel resolution and dimensions are svelte for this type of device. The Snap weighs in at just 120 grams and measures 117mm by 62mm by 12mm.

As well as being trim, it’s pleasant to hold, with its rounded, soft-to-feel, matt plastic case.

There’s no fancy touchscreen technology here, just a four-row keypad and a trackball for navigation, backed up by six navigation keys and a volume rocker switch on the left of the case.

Navigation with the trackball is neat. On the home screen you scroll down from the clock to a ladder of screens with different themes and then scroll right to reach deeper menus.

The messaging screen, for instance, scrolls through screens for missed calls, voicemails, text SMS, media messages and email.

Space on the keypad is tight and, while it’s not as comfortable to use as the excellent keypad on RIM’s BlackBerry Bold, it’s good enough for tapping out emails and short notes.

The software stack sits on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system, with the Office Mobile versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote ready and waiting for work.

The review unit was latched to the Telstra Next G network and the telco has exclusive distribution dibs on the Snap until November.

The HSDPA radio is capable of downloading at 7.2Mbps, although you are unlikely to ever see anything like that speed in the real world.

Processing grunt comes by way of a Qualcomm 528MHz processor married to 192MB of memory and 256MB of ROM for the firmware. A microSD card slot hidden under the battery cover provides extra storage if desired.

There’s 802.11g WiFi for avoiding 3G data charges when there are WiFi access points about, GPS (but no included turn-by-turn navigation software), Bluetooth and a big, fat 1500 milliamp hour battery for long days on the road.

Those wanting multimedia luxury features should look elsewhere. The camera is a fixed-focus, 2.0 megapixel get-you-by affair and there’s no 3.5mm jack for plugging in a pair of buds and settling back to the delights of a long music playlist. Instead, the USB port doubles as an outlet for the included headphones.

I was impressed by the Snap’s business-only approach to smartphoning, but I found the $779 price tag quite steep for a no-frills device.

Most buyers will score the Snap on a plan and never see the unit’s true cost, but it would have been more appropriate if the sticker had reflected the economic hard times.

HTC - SNAP

Features: Four row keypad, WiFi and 2.4in LED backlit screen

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