The Tattoo does, however, come with the version 1.6 of Android - aka 'Donut' - which adds a few features to the 1.5 'Cupcake' release - though it's not up to 2.0 standard. The phone also incorporates HTC's Sense user interface.
The neat Sense UI has time-specific home screens
Sense comes with seven home screens - you brush sideways to access each of them - to which you can add any combination of application and shortcut widgets from the main menu and from the ever-expanding Android Market, which has acquired a new, cleaner look.
You can now also use "scenes", which allow you to have different groups of widgets for different days or times. So you might set one for the working week, for example, with your business apps to the fore, and another for the weekend, when you can focus on social networking and music.
There's also a new search box which allows you to find keywords throughout all your apps and memory. A handy battery usage indicator tucked away in the "About Phone" section of the menu shows which apps have been draining your battery's power, with percentage ratings of just how much juice each has been using.
There have been a few tweaks to the camera software too though, now that we've mentioned it, it should come as no surprise that the 3.2Mp camera is less than stunning. HTC has yet to produce a camera that can rival more sophisticated models from the likes of Nokia or Sony Ericsson. In its favour, the Tattoo's snapper is quick to start - about three seconds - and can deliver a maximum picture resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels, as well as offering geotagging and a timer.
But there's no dedicated shutter button on the side, no flash, no autofocus and not a lot else.
With no flash or frills, the 3.2Mp camera doesn't fail to disappoint
Android 1.6 brings a new digital zoom bar at the side of the screen and an onscreen switch for quick changing between still and video modes, plus a quick gallery link. Picture quality is OK, but there's not a great deal of depth, it doesn’t handle dark scenes very well, and bleaches out too easily in bright sunlight.
Next page: Screen Shots
COMMENTS
Hurrah for 3.5mm plugs
Glad to see they've got a normal headphone socket - perhaps manufacturers are finally realising that stupid proprietary connectors are a major source of phone rage and user grumpiness.
Best phone by HTC
I would prefer to go with HTC Tattoo Smartphone because it has a clean finish, pleasant to the eye and touch. Despite a plastic shell, not creak under the fingers. Same goes for the touchscreen which does not suffer, unless treated wild, no particular weakness. For probably a target of early adopters who want to install a Android smartphone, the silver finish, with a gradient of black, and the logo of the operating system from Google back to the Tattoo are young and apparatus connected.
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2009/11/10/review_smartphone_htc_tattoo/
re screen res
yes, skype for instance isn't in the market when I search for it
I like the phone although the battery life is atrocious.
Screen resolution and android apps
I had heard that because of the low screen resolution a lot of android apps aren't compatible with the phone and don't even show up in the app store. This isn't mentioned in the review, is it indeed the case?
Camera
the on-screen digital zoom bar and camera/video toggle are features of Android 1.5 as well.
