HTC Tattoo Android phone launched
HTC Tattoo, the second Android mobile phone from HTC Corporation, has been launched in Europe.
HTC Tattoo is a touchscreen smartphone which will come at a price below its predecessor HTC Hero.
Photo: HTC Tattoo android phone
The HTC Tattoo (see photos) has initially been launched in Europe. The company has not disclosed the price of the HTC Tattoo, but it is confirmed that it will cost less than the Hero since its tech specs are lighter.
The TFT-LCD display on the HTC Tattoo mobile phone is 2.8 inches in size with 240X320 resolution in QVGA, while the HTC Hero had a 3.2 inch touchscreen interface with a 320 X480 screen with HVGA.
The HTC Tattoo sports a 3 megapixel (MP) camera on its back, smaller than the 5 megapixel (MP) autofocus camera on the HTC Hero. The processor powering the HTC Tattoo is Qualcomm® MSM7225™, 528 MHz, the same as in the HTC Hero.
Photo:HTC Tattoo android phone back view
The HTC Android Tattoo runs on the open-source Android mobile operating system, pioneered by Google. Its interesting that HTC, which sells the largest number of smartphones with Windows Mobile Operating System, also sells the largest number of Android powered smartphones.
BlackBerry and iPhone have their own proprietary operating systems, while Nokia uses Symbian in their smartphones.
The HTC Tattoo comes with a RAM of 256 MB and ROM of 512 MB. The HTC Tattoo’s size is: 106 mm long x 55.2 wide and 14 mm thick. ( 4.17 x 2.17 x 0.55 inches).
The company says it is small and compact, and fits well into the arm or the pocket. The size is smaller than the HTC Hero too. The HTC Tattoo comes at a weight of 113 grams ( 3.99 ounces) including its battery.
The company says the HTC Tattoo’s rechargeable Lithium-ion battery has the following specs:
Capacity: 1100 mAh;
Talk time: Up to 342 minutes for WCDMA; Up to 390 minutes for GSM;
Standby time: Up to 520 hours for WCDMA; Up to 340 hours for GSM.
HTC said that mobile works in HSPA and WCDMA network in Europe and Asia at 900/2100 MHz.
The company promises up to 384 kbps up-link and 7.2 Mbps down-link speeds, but adds that these speeds are also dependent on the specific cellular network operator. The HTC Tattoo works on Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE at 850/900/1800/1900 MHz.
Connectivity options for the HTC Tattoo include a GPS chip with built-in GPS antenna. The HTC press release did not make it clear whether it will be assisted GPS. Built-in GPS means you can use it as a navigation device and for geotagging photographs.
There is also Bluetooth® 2.0 with Enhanced Data Rate on the HTC Tattoo and A2DP for wireless stereo headsets, besides a built-in FM Radio.
The HTC Tattoo is WiFi-enabled with specifications of IEEE 802.11 b/g for seamless internet access at WiFI hotspots. The HTC Tattoo also comes with an HTC ExtUSB (11-pin mini-USB 2.0) and a 3.5 mm audio jack.
HTC Tattoo android phone photo
Like its big brother HTC Hero, the HTC Tattoo also has multimedia capabilities, (see pictures) and comes with a media player which can play files files in MP3, AAC (AAC, AAC+, AAC-LC), AMR-NB, WAV, MIDI and Windows Media Audio 9 formats.
Supported vieo formats on the HTC Tattoo include MPEG-4, H.263, H.264 and Windows Media® Video 9.
The HTC Tattoo is outfitted with a microSD memory card (SD 2.0 compatible) expansion slot to save additional music, videos and files. A digital compass is part of the Tattoo package.
Why the name Tattoo? HTC has pegged its latest Android smartphone as a fully customisable phone, where users can decide how the phone looks, and hence the name. You can change skins, colours, designs and phone covers.
Those who wish to put weather and news on their home page can customise a perfect homepage for themselves, while those keen on social networks on the Internet like Facebook and Twitter can customise the HTC Tattoo for their own perfect phone.
The HTC Tattoo uses the HTC Sense, a completely customisable user interface.
Android is at the heart of the HTC Tattoo. The Android operating system runs on the Linux open-source kernel. It was initially developed by Google and later by the Open Handset Alliance.
Open Handset Alliance includes about 50 companies with Google, HTC, Intel, Motorola, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, Samsung, LG, T-Mobile, Nvidia, and Wind River Systems.
Other mobile smartphones running the Android system include HTC Dream, HTC Magic, HTC Hero, Huawei U8230, Lenovo Ophone, Motorola Heron, Motorola Sholes, Motorola Morrison, Philips V900, Qigi i6, Samsung Galaxy, Samsung InstinctQ and the Sciphone Dream G2.
It is rumored that the upcoming Sony Ericsson Xperia X3 will also run the the Android operating system.