Our HTC Wildfire S Review

The HTC Wildfire S is the third generation of the highly popular HTC Android devices. It is an entry level smart phone that replaces the earlier HTC Wildfire. HTC put quite a bit of thought into designing the Wildfire S. The smart phone had to be budget conscious enough for anyone making the leap from a regular mobile phone to a smart phone. At the same time, the HTC Wildfire S had to provide the tech savvy users the latest in apps, and a handset to handle all the apps.

Hardware

The folks at HTC stepped up to the smart phone plate and hit it out of the park with the Wildfire S. It offers a 600 MHz Qualcomm MSM7227 processor – faster and more fine tuned than previous iterations, 512MB of RAM and 512MB of ROM. What you will immediately notice is the display: updated and enhanced giving users a better display.

The Wildfire S offers a 5 Megapixel camera on the flipside of the camera. It comes with LED flash and auto focus. You also get Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS, 3.5mm headphone jack, micro USB port, and micro SD card slot. The smart phone is similar in appearance to the Desire S. The volume buttons are large and easy to operate. Instead of the typical unibody HTC design for the back cover, the Wildfire has a single molded piece of plastic for the back.

Software

The Wildfire S uses Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread with the HTC Sense 2.1 to top it off. As a bonus you can use HTCSense.com integration to track info from your phone and a lot more. You get the HUB download store, Wi-Fi hotspot functionality, and other software firsts.

The user interface gives users a great touch screen experience. If you are looking for speed you may want to look a little further. The browser loads slower than the Desire S browser and apps also load slower.

What We Liked

We are raving about the HTC Wildfire S and its ability to keep its signal. It comes with a clear and sharp earpiece and a wide range of volume control. You will also get good basic performance from the speakerphone options. The user’s manual quotes 350 minutes of 3G talk time and 570 3G standby. Does this compare to real life use? In reality you will discover a good day out of the phone on a full charge, possibly more.

Price is another selling point for the HTC Wildfire S. It is offered at a great price for many plans and as an upgrade. The value is good – you are getting a lot of phone for your money.

What We Disliked

There are a few drawbacks to even the best smart phones. The wildfire S could have a longer battery life say reviewers. Another complaint is ‘no secondary camera’. In today’s social media world even smart phones are in on posting. Second cameras allow you to snap a portrait and upload on the go. Finally, users are divided on texting options. Some users feel it is hard to text using the phone while others think it texts fine.

Our Final Verdict

Should you step up to a HTC Wildfire S? If you are looking for a mid-range smart phone the Wildfire S is a great selection. You get very attractive features and applications and one of the lowest priced Android Gingerbread devices.

Compare Handsets

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	HTC Wildfire S
General
Form Factor	Candybar
Dimensions	101.3 x 59.4 x 12.4 (mm)
Talk Time	350 mins
Standby Time	570 hours
Weight	105 g
Quad Band	Yes
Photo and Video
Integrated Camera	Yes
Camera	5.00 megapixels
Camera Flash	Yes
Video Player	Yes
Phone
Polyphonic Ringtones	Yes
Smart Phone	Yes
Internal Memory	512MB
Memory Card Type	MicroSD (max 32GB)
Messaging
Instant Messaging (IM)	Yes
Screen
Colour Screen	Yes
Touch Screen	Yes
Connectivity
3G	Yes
Bluetooth	Yes
Email	Yes
HSDPA	Yes
WAP	Yes
Web Browser	Yes
Wi-Fi	Yes
GPS	Yes
Music and Radio
MP3 Player	Yes
MP3 Ringtones	Yes
Additional Content
Downloadable Content	Yes
Downloadable Games	Yes
Downloadable Ringtones	Yes

HTC Wildfire S Full Specification

General

Photo and Video

Phone

Messaging

Screen

Connectivity

Music and Radio

Additional Content