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Image Gallery: HTC Hero Google Android device running on Sprint

It has been just about a year since the first Google Android device launch on a US carrier, the T-Mobile G1. It seems to me that adoption of Android has been quite slow by US carriers, but Sprint came through in a big way with the upcoming HTC Hero device that is the best Android device on the market. It has better features than the Apple iPhone and is my recommendation for a Sprint customer looking for a functional touchscreen device.
By Matthew Miller, Contributing Writer
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1 of 24 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

It has been just about a year since the first Google Android device launch on a US carrier, the T-Mobile G1. It seems to me that adoption of Android has been quite slow by US carriers, but Sprint came through in a big way with the upcoming HTC Hero device that is the best Android device on the market. It has better features than the Apple iPhone and is my recommendation for a Sprint customer looking for a functional touchscreen device.

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2 of 24 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

The back is silver with soft touch covering so you can grip the device with no worries.

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3 of 24 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

HTC included a decent 5 megapixel camera on the Hero.

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4 of 24 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

I love that HTC keeps using the miniUSB port on their devices for charging and connection to your PC.

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5 of 24 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

The use of a 3.5mm headset jack was very welcome on the HTC Hero.

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There is a volume toggle bar on the upper left side of the Hero.

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The entire back comes off to reveal the battery and access to the microSD card slot.

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Here you can see the back cover does need to come off to access the microSD card.

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A brushed silver panel appears along the bottom where four integrated buttons and two dedicated buttons (send and end) can be found.

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The send and end keys are small, yet distinct on the bottom panel. A large white trackball is present for easy navigation on the device.

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There is some branding on the front above the display.

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12 of 24 Matthew Miller/ZDNET

Here is a shot of a fairly standard home screen view with widgets and shortcuts.

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HTC includes their own Twitter application called Peep.

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Sprint premium services are included on the Hero.

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You can see a number of applications loaded on the HTC Hero.

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Thankfully, Sprint and TeleNav include the outstanding Sprint Navigation application and service on the Hero.

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I enjoy following NFL football and it is enjoyable on the HTC Hero with this Sprint service.

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Sprint also includes their NASCAR application for following the latest racing news.

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HTC has several of their own applications included as well, including Footprints.

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The Scenes provided by HTC allow you to have multiple custom home screens that you can easy switch to with just a couple of taps.

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Here you can see another Scene that was setup by default on the device.

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I can now enjoy The Office on the train into work thanks to Sprint TV.

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