HTC is hands down one of my favorite phone manufacturer’s, however I find it quite comical they refuse to admit one of their newer additions to the Verizon line is NOT specifically targeted at women. Personally, I’m not a typical girly girl BUT this phone did make me actual put on heels and get cute when I carried it out…but, I digress.
The HTC Rhyme is in no way heavy on all the geeky goodness most of us gadget heads live and breathe for BUT for the Fashionista with a penchant for the color Plum-this phone is perfection. Don’t get me wrong it has all the staples you expect from an HTC smartphone such as; Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread) with HTC Sense, 1 GHz Processor, 5 MP camera with auto focus and power LED flash, HD 720p video recording and VGA front-facing camera. OK, maybe we expect dual core processors and 8 MP cameras but I promise you it’s still a contender. Maybe the revamped home screen can tempt you? The clock and weather widget no longer monopolize the more compact than usual 3.7-inch WVGA touchscreen, it has been moved to the lower right corner. You’ll also notice the home screen widgets are nicely tucked along the left side of the screen no longer lined up under the clock.
In addition to the native pre-installed full screen widgets like Friend Stream and People (Contacts) there’s the newly included Endomondo. Endomondo is a sports community based on free real-time GPS tracking of running, cycling, etc. It’s great for people that like to track their own progress or have a sport network where you can challenge and/or support others. You can log in with your Facebook info, signup using your email address or create an account on Endomondo.com directly. I think the app is a perfect complement to the tangle free headphones. The headphones have flat wires and with an integrated microphone and remote that include convenient buttons to control music and answer/end calls. I personally hate in ear headphones so I opted for my Jawbone. I did give it a real honest try but they were very uncomfortable so I can’t speak to sound quality as I couldn’t stand them more than 30 seconds in my ears.
In the box you’ll also find a multifunctional Docking Station and a Charm Call Indicator. If you’re interested you can purchase a Bluetooth headset, a Bluetooth speaker and an armband separately. The Docking Station charges your phone and immediately activates Dock Mode, turning your phone into an all in one alarm, picture frame and music player. I found this a refreshing change compared to the Dock I bought separately for my EVO for $50 (but I’m not upset). The advantage isn’t really that the Dock is included with the Rhyme but that it’s actually very convenient and easy to use. After a long tiring day in the office I was able to mindlessly place the phone on the Dock and turn over, as opposed to the Dock for the EVO that forces me to carefully place my phone at a tilt, after a long day in the office I feel like I am using a Rubik’s Cube because I have to place it at an exact angle or my phone falls off the dresser or doesn’t sit correctly so the ports don’t connect rendering the entire point of charging useless.
A lot of people have been bashing the cube shaped Charm Call Indicator whether they simply don’t like how it looks or haven’t quite figured out how to use it correctly-personally I liked it. Not only because it was a perfect complement to an outfit I wore out to dinner one night, but I found it very useful because I am one of those people that keeps their phone on silent-ALL DAY. As I sat across the dinner table the little purple cube flashed to let me know when I had an incoming or missed call or when I received a text message. It continued to flash until I cleared the notification, which, surprisingly, wasn’t as annoying as it sounds. It was noticeable enough for me to see it with my bag on the seat next to me, but the person across the table didn’t seem to notice the 50 text messages I got during dinner. It also attached very nicely and seamlessly to my purse with the somewhat small metal clip attached to the lanyard type cord. I simply wrapped the cord around one of my straps and then put the cord in the metal piece and voila ! a great accessory.
I am not usually a picture taking type of girl but the cool features on this camera forced me to snap a couple. I didn’t have to upload my pictures to Photoshop to add effects like Vignette and Distortion. It also had options to take pictures in action, portrait burst and HDR and panorama modes. Which did eliminate for the most part the need to carry my digital camera and also gave me something new to play with.
The Rhyme is currently available for $199 with a new 2-year agreement on Verizon Wireless. When you consider what you would pay with another phone buying the accessories separately I think it’s worth it. I won’t make any snide remarks about the women who felt HTC was calling them the inferior android user with this “woman-only†phone. I didn’t take offense I actually appreciated the fashion inspired offering and found that in my office the majority of the woman I came across were more interested in the Rhyme than my EVO 3D or my iPhone. It’s soft to the touch yet sturdy feeling, sleek and fits in my back pocket when I’m not carrying a purse and in all honesty if it was available on my carrier I would add it to my personal phone collection. Some people are happy with mid range phones and don’t require top of the line gadgets with all the bells and whistles (bells and whistles don’t necessarily make it a better phone). The pretty phones can also tempt those of us that do require bells and whistles. It doesn’t just have looks it does have substance. With moderate use I actually only charged the phone once every 2 days. With constant use of email, text, YouTube and Angry Birds I actually went a full 8 hour day without having to charge and when I did place it on the Dock for the night I still had more than ¼ of battery life remaining.
Admittedly, the love of curvaceous things that feel smooth to the touch is not gender specific, BUT come on HTC bag charms that glow are obviously screaming “For Girls Onlyâ€. Even if you do offer it outside the US for other colors I can’t picture a man carrying this device in public.
