HTC Status

Design:

If RIM were to have made a white BlackBerry, it might look like the HTC Status. Weighing in at 4.2 ounces, the 4.5 x 2.5 x 0.4-inch Status fit easily into our pocket. And with its dirt free lines and rounded corners, the handset has a touch of futuristic elegance.

One of the more attractive design accents is that the keyboard curves upward slightly, allowing the phone to rest comfortably against our face during phone calls.

Most of the front is a silvery metal, with a white plastic QWERTY keyboard and chin. The white plastic dominates the back, but it's separated by a metal band. Directly above the keyboard sit the call and end call buttons. The blue Facebook button rests in the bottom-right corner.

A 5-megapixel camera with flash and a smaller speaker occupy the Status' rear, while a headphone jack and the power button sit up top. The left side of the phone houses a long silver volume button and a USB port. A 2GB microSD card is located beneath the battery, which wouldn't be so bad if removing the silver battery cover wasn't like breaking into Fort Knox. It took us 10 minutes to remove the cover, with each attempt making us feel like we were on the verge of destroying the phone.

Display:

Not only does the position have a small 2.6-inch screen, but its low 480 x 320-pixel resolution made text hard to read. Watching video wasn't very fun. The darker space scenes in Katy Perry's "E.T." video were barely visible, while the normally vivid colors appeared muted. We also had problem making out the screen outdoors on a bright sunny day.

Apps:

Aside from Facebook, the position has several other useful apps. We found the Mirror app good for checking our teeth after lunch. HTC Hub breaks down the Android Market into manageable categories including Apps, Plugins, Ringtones, and Wallpapers. HTC Likes makes shopping for apps more public: It lists featured and most-popular apps and allows shoppers to remark and share with friends.

further apps include AT&T FamilyMap, AT&T Navigator, Google Maps, Live TV, Twitter, and YouTube.

In order to help those migrating from an older Android device, the Status has an app called Transfer, which will move relations, SMS, and calendar events to the Status via Bluetooth. When we tried using this app with an HTC EVO 4G, it took more than 20 minutes to move just a quarter of our information.

Camera

The 5-megapixel camera performed better than expected in my tests. My snapshots came out crisp and clear, though colors did seem a bit washed out. I also had some trouble capturing moving subjects. Video clips looked polite, too.

The camera offers some special effects -- you can, for example, apply filters such a sepia and aqua tones to your snaps. And the phone also includes a forward-facing VGA camera for self portraits.