First Android phone packs a big punch

Bhaskar Hazarika
Financial Chronicle
It’s called HTC Magic. The first phone with Android software from Google has hit the Indian market. And it packs a strong punch. Offering Google’s suite of services such as Gmail, Search, YouTube and Maps, the device is looking to make a mark for itself. Although it’s the second Android-based phone globally, Magic is the first device available to Indian subscribers.

It is light weight and has a sleek, curvy design. The swipe feature — left and right from the home screen is easy and the icons can be dragged and dropped just by long pressing them. Recently downloaded applications and menu functions, sorted alphabetically, can be dragged up from the bottom. The manufacturer has given us a one-touch clutter free handset. It’s 3G capable, and hopefully once the third generation networks start working in India, the phone will be able to automatically work with them.

Turning the phone to a landscape mode brings up the virtual Qwerty keyboard with large keys and predictive text. Email set up is simple since the phone is powered by Google and adding a new account involves just entering an email address and password.

The browsing experience is smooth. Entering a new web address (which also doubles as a search bar, with auto-complete feature) takes you to a large screen version of the site, which you can either zoom out of using the on screen zoom buttons, or hit the magnifying pane to see the whole page. The YouTube video experience is decent. The camera on the HTC Magic, though, has not received much appreciation despite being a 3.2 megapixel sensor without flash.

Optimistic about the market, Andy Rubin, senior director for mobile platforms for Google had earlier announced that around 18 phones based on the Android operating system would be available worldwide by the year-end. For the Indian market, two more operators are in line for Android handsets — Samsung and Motorola. A Motorola spokesperson said, “we will be shipping Android products this year and are excited about the upcoming portfolio.”

Other features in the phone include stereo Bluetooth, seamless integration with Google apps, Wi-Fi and quick access to music. A negative, though, is its lack of full Outlook syncing support and the standard 3.5-millimetre headset jack. Also, the camera editing and personal organiser options are slim, and the landscape keyboard is unavailable in some applications. It is a little high priced at Rs 30,000.