Abra Kadabra: Vodafone summons the HTC Magic
Vodafone and HTC came together today to announce the HTC Magic, the latest Android handset we named and outed yesterday. As the world’s first touchscreen-only Android phone, the Magic isn’t that much of an improvement over the G1 though it does have a nicer look to it and some spec improvements behind it. Details as to when the Magic will launch are hazy at best but the Vodafone UK website states it will be “Arriving in April.” Being a Vodafone exclusive, customers in the UK, Spain, France and Germany will be the first in line to get the Magic while Italian mobile aficionados will be able to purchase the Magic as a non-exclusive. After that it’s anyone’s guess as to where else thing thing will show up, be it under the Vodafone name or otherwise. Here’s to hoping it makes its way to this side of the world as soon as possible. Now to the specs:
- Android OS
- Quad-band EDGE / dual-band 7.2Mbps HSDPA (900/2100 MHz)
- 512MHz Qualcomm® MSM7201a
- 512MB ROM / 192MB RAM
- 3.2″ HVGA touchscreen display (though the presser and Voda say QVGA, Android does not play nice with QVGA displays)
- Virtual QWERTY keypad, trackball
- 3.2 megapixel camear w/ AF (no flash)
- WiFi 802.11 b/g
- GPS
- Bluetooth 2.0
- microSD
- 1340 mAh battery
- Talktime: 400 min 3G / 450 min GSM
- Standby: 660 hours 3G / 420 hours GSM
- 113mm x 55mm x 13.65mm, 118.5g
- Available in black and/or white depending on market
Not bad and not great, but we’re happy the Magic is a bit more refined compared to the banana-faced G1. Some of the basics however, such as a 3.5mm audio jack and an LED flash are unfortunately still MIA. Why HTC, why?
Jeté the jump for the full press release.
Vodafone and HTC unveil Android-powered HTC Magic
BARCELONA — Feb 17, 2009 — Vodafone and HTC Corporation today announced the HTC Magic smartphone, Vodafone’s first Android-powered mobile, which will be available in the spring.
The stylish new handset is exclusive to Vodafone in the UK, Spain, Germany and France (SFR) and available on a non-exclusive basis in Italy. Customers can ensure that they are the first to receive information about the HTC Magic’s availability, pricing and pre-ordering by registering their interest via their local Vodafone website from today.
The introduction of the HTC Magic is the result of a successful relationship between Vodafone and HTC, and Vodafone’s joining, late last year, of the Open Handset Alliance.
A tablet-style device, with a sleek design and unprecedented compactness for a smartphone featuring the Android platform, the HTC Magic enables a superior mobile internet experience, providing broad flexibility for personalisation via the application-rich Android Market. Available in white in the UK, Spain and France, black in Germany and in both colours in Italy, the HTC Magic will be for sale in several other Vodafone markets over the next few months.
“Delivering an unbeatable mobile internet experience for our customers is a priority for Vodafone, so we are very excited to be introducing our first Android-powered smartphone in the spring,” says Patrick Chomet, Global Director of Terminals, Vodafone Group. “Following our joining of the Open Handset Alliance, we have worked very closely with HTC to bring this cool new phone to the market. Our customers want to access a wide range of the most attractive mobile devices to help them make the most of their time – the HTC Magic helps meet that need.”
“The HTC Magic embodies the compact style and sophistication for which HTC has come to be known, with the powerful and intuitive internet experience for which the Android platform was designed,” says Peter Chou, president and CEO, HTC Corporation. “We are proud of our partnership with Vodafone and excited about making the Android-powered HTC Magic available to Vodafone customers in Europe.”
“The announcement of the HTC Magic is an important step for Android and the Open Handset Alliance,” says Andy Rubin, Senior Director of Mobile Platforms at Google. “With it, Vodafone is opening up the mobile web for consumers across Europe and giving more third-party developers a platform on which they can build the next wave of killer applications.”
Available from free on various price plans, the HTC Magic has a 3.2” QVGA touch screen display and features a trackball and navigational buttons for quick, easy access. The HTC Magic includes a variety of email options such as Google Mail™, POP3 and IMAP as well as Google Talk™ for instant messaging.
The HTC Magic has a variety of powerful mobile internet capabilities beginning with an Android-optimised Webkit browser. It also features the popular Google™ applications, Google Maps™ and Google Search™ as well as favourites like YouTube™. In addition, Android Market allows for quick and easy downloading of games and applications utilising Vodafone’s fast and reliable network.
Full details of availability and pricing will be available in the future in local Vodafone markets.
HOLY CRAP, THE CLOCKS MATCH!
And I repeat my comment from the Diamond2/TP2 thread – what is it with HTC and no camera flash?! Come on!
this is what the G1 should have been. great looking device – rare from HTC.
Doesnt it seem strange that with the supposed customisability of Android all the devices so far look the same? Why hasnt anyone released a different homescreen or theme?
Bored by this.
Is this using Cupcake? How are they offering the touch QWERTY?
I like this better than the G1. Is it on T-Mobz (US) roadmap?
I know nothing’s guaranteed but if this is going to Verizon’s sister company is there hope of it coming to Verizon?
What bannana face. I love my g1 bgr is so against t-mob they dog everything they do. What does att and verizon pay u or what? Nothing wrong with being the young guy in the bunch. Tmo has lots of room to grow.let them the sprint ship is going down tmo can take that spot in 3 to 4 yrs the g1 is the best device out their now. U can’t say the storm or instinct or iphone are better, let’s be real!!!! And I doubt this will be the g2 just another android phone with a diff provider. This was prob gonna be for sprint and they didn’t want it.f&ck it
Cool phone, it would be sexier in black tough.
@g1 abuser
Please go away and come back when you can formulate coherent sentences.
Ummm… No 3G???
Is this a joke?
Though I love my G1, I think that as of right now, the iphone is the best phone out. I’m just waiting for “you know what” to make my G1 better.
Also this phone looks nice but the only thing different is appearance wise, and the android version it’s running. Loving the video record option and key board.
The HTC Magic compares really well against the iphone and blackberry storm.
http://www.clashem.com/phones.php?id1=2&id2=717&id3=1147
I’m really excited
@boogalooboy: I keyed on that as well – for something that was marketed as being open and customizable, it’s so far only been released on ONE device, and every device it’s been previewed on has looked EXACTLY the same.
@G1fan: it has 3G, just not North American freqs.
Those standby numbers can’t be correct… 27.5 days in 3G?? And GSM standby is less?
Can you turn the phone sideways and type? Will the keyboard rotate to a landscape layout? I haven’t seen this and am wondering if it’s not a part of this phone… Also – no 3.5mm headphone jack. Bummer, but I could get over that.
@Summer – Yes. You can see the rotation in this video.
http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-videos/htc-magic-google-android-phone-hands-on.aspx