HTC Desire S Vs. Desire HD

Today will compare between two popular and similar phones, the HTC desire S and the Desire HD. Consider this as a user review rather than a detailed expert comparison between the two phones. So, let's talk about the features and spot some differences between the two competitors:

Size, weight and appearance:

Both devices have a slim and nice design, the Desire HD is bigger, has a wider screen (4.3 inches compared with 3.7 inches of the Desire S) and it is a bit heavier, too.

• Weight (with battery): Desire S: 130g, Desire HD: 164g.

• Appearance: Both phones are trendy and sleek, the Desire S has more curved angles and is smaller, I don't think that the Desire HD will be easy to handle for girls or people with small hands but many people like its angulated appearance.

Both have an unusual feature: the battery door has the antenna in it!

Display:
The Desire HD has a bigger screen as mentioned above, both have a capacitive touch screens with 480x800px resolution. The touch screen is what you use for typing and input, there is no physical qwerty keyboard in either of the phones, the bigger screen will make using the virtual keyboard easier. Of course, the bigger screen means a better browsing and media experience but I would preferred if it came with a better battery.

Both screens are of the Gorilla glass type and support multi-touch.
Note that with S-LCD screens, you will have to increase the brightness in direct sunlight.

Processor and memory:
There is nothing unique to any of the 2 to compare between, the specs are really similar. Both devices have a 1 GHz processor and 768MB of RAM, which is sufficient for average usage and you won't probably notice any slowing while using them.
Internal memory in both is similar (1.1GB in the HTC Desire S Vs. 1.5GB in the Desire HD)

Other hardware features they both share: GPS, A-GPS support, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, Micro SD and SDHC support for external memory and microUSB ports.

Both phones also have compasses, proximity sensors and accelerometers.

Battery life:
The HTC Desire S has a 1450 mAh battery while the Desire HD comes with a 1230 mAh one.
Talk time is 9.16 hours for the Desire HD and 9.83 hours for the Desire S. I think it would have been better if the Desire HD was equipped with a better battery to support the larger screen. The screen seems to be consuming about 30-40 % of the battery power. My Desire S can easily last for more than a day and a half with average usage including WiFi and 3G for a few hours and some calls. I try to save on battery power by reducing brightness and unnecessary stuff.

Software:
The HTC Desire HD runs Android 2.2 (Froyo) while the Desire S runs the 2.3 (gingerbread) version. Both phones have the attractive Sense UI. There are thousands of applications and games for Android phones available at the Android Market. Both have browser flash support.

Camera:

The Desire HD can record HD at 30 fps but only if the ISO is increased to 800 but I'm not sure if there is another way to do it.
Both phones have autofocus, face detection and various effects to apply. The Desire HD excels in this area, although if you want to use video calling and chatting on skype for example, you would prefer a phone with two cameras.

Summary:

The choice is not that easy but it really helps to identify your priorities and what is more important in the phone you want to buy. The HTC Desire HD has a better camera and a larger screen but the battery drains quickly with extensive use. The Desire S has a good camera and a battery with more capacity and is smaller, it also comes with a newer OS version. Do you want a better camera and a better browsing experience or do you care more about smaller size and a battery that lasts longer?

Performance is almost identical because both phones have the same processor speed and RAM. It is not really about the specifications, it is about what do you want from the phone and what is your price range? In my case, I ended up choosing the HTC Desire S and I'm happy with my choice.