Product Listing

HTC Desire S - Keeping Desire(S) in Check

By Wong Casandra - 15 May 2011
Launch SRP: S$688

Features & Performance - Part II

Multimedia & Battery Life Performance

The Desire S maintains the same 3.7-inch screen as the Desire's, a comfortable size that isn't too intimidating or too crammed. The screen however is an LCD panel and pales in comparison with its AMOLED counterparts. Nonetheless, the screen itself is still brilliant with solid blacks and strong colors. Those aside, the phone comes with an acceptable 800 x 480 pixels resolution that is sufficient for comfortable video playback.

One issue that we had was that the automatic screen brightness setting keeps the screen overtly bright, a flaw which we find consistent across HTC's Android smartphones. Audio-wise, the phone performed pretty admirably, featuring SRS enhancement and Equalizer modes (headphones only) that help make the experience a better one.

If you have been following our reviews closely, you should be well aware that camera capabilities on the HTC smartphones have yet to impress us; hopefully this time, the Desire S can change our opinions for the better.

Tucked at the back, the 5-megapixel camera with auto focus and LED flash capabilities. For video enthusiasts, the camera supports 720p HD video recording as well.

Results on the resolution chart were average; otherwise, the camera fared well in the other areas, namely showcasing rather accurate white balancing and colors.

Sadly, details are blurred along the edges. We also spotted artifacts littered across the photo, obscuring more details.
 

The vertical and horizontal LPH readings were 1000, which is about average for a 5-megapixel camera. Its white balance skewed slightly towards the cooler hues, but otherwise, colors were accurate and vibrant. We weren't too happy with its performance when it came to the test shot as the photo was riddled with artifacts and showcased prominent blurring along the edges.

As usual, we compared the Desire S's battery performance with a selected group of devices chosen based on their similarities across battery capacities, display sizes, resolution and processing power. This standard battery test consists of looping a 240 x 320 pixels resolution video clip at 100% volume and screen brightness, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth active with push email or data being pulled at regular intervals. For this handset, we compared it against other similar Android devices such as HTC Incredible S, Samsung Nexus S and HTC Desire. 

Specifications/Device HTC Desire S  HTC Incredible S Samsung Nexus S HTC Desire
Processor
  • 1GHz
  • 1GHz
  • 1GHz
  • 1GHz
Display Size
  • 3.7-inch
  • 4.0-inch
  • 4.0-inch
  • 3.7-inch
Display Type
  • S-LCD
  • S-LCD
  • S-LCD
  • AMOLED/S-LCD
Display Resolution
  • 480 x 800 pixels
  • 480 x 800 pixels
  • 480 x 800 pixels
  • 480 x 800 pixels
Dimensions
  • 115 x 59.8 x 11.63mm
  • 120 x 64 x 11.7mm
  • 124.74 x 64 x 11.5mm
  • 119 x 60 x 11.9 mm
Weight
  • 130g
  • 135.3g
  • 140g
  • 135g
Battery
  • 1450mAh
  • 1450mAh
  • 1500mAh
  • 1400mAh

 


Fortunately, the HTC Desire S did quite well in the battery against its competitors, coming up tops in all three aspects. While its results were not significantly higher than the HTC Desire, it lasted much longer than the HTC Incredible S, which was announced at the same time as the Desire S was. Given that the specifications (including display types, dimensions and weight) for all four phones are very similar, this will be an important factor when it comes to making a purchase decision.

However, the larger screen size of 4-inch for both the Samsung Nexus S and Incredible S would naturally have drained more of the phones' batteries. As a side note, the HTC Desire S's battery results still paled in comparison with the likes of Google Nexus S and Samsung Galaxy S.

Notably, while rationing the phone for normal day-to-day operations, the phone could last for at least a full day. If you are a light user, you can possibly stretch it out to about 1.5 to 2 days' worth of usage, especially if you only turn on your 3G periodically.

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8.5
  • Design 8.5
  • Features 8.5
  • User-Friendliness 8.5
  • Performance 8
  • Value 9
The Good
Sturdy aluminum build
Acceptable battery life
Smooth user experience
The Bad
Lackluster camera capabilities
No groundbreaking improvements
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