HTC HD2 And Sprint Hero Receive Upgrade TreatmentHTC HD2 And Sprint Hero Receive Upgrade Treatment
At last. Sprint has made Android 2.1 available to the HTC Hero Android device. Additionally, T-Mobile has made a significant software update available to the HTC HD2. What do these updates offer?
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At last. Sprint has made Android 2.1 available to the HTC Hero Android device. Additionally, T-Mobile has made a significant software update available to the HTC HD2. What do these updates offer?HD2 Update
HTC's HD2 runs Windows Mobile 6.5.3. In the time that I've used it, I've notice it to be a bit unstable. In fact, the more you load it up with apps and content, the more bogged down it tends to become. Thankfully, T-Mobile is offering a minor firmware upgrade that irons out some of the bugs.
The update requires users to download the software to a PC and then install via USB. T-Mobile takes pains to mention that the update will completely erase everything on the phone and restore it to factory settings. That means all your settings and personalized stuff will be nixed -- including purchased apps and media. T-Mobile warns users to back up their phone's settings and data to Microsoft's My Phone cloud service and their media to a hard drive or microSD card before performing the update.
You can find the instructions here.
Hero Update
The shift from Android 1.5 to Android 2.1 is pretty huge, and HTC Hero owners should be excited about it. The number of new features is staggering. What's annoying is that Sprint isn't offering the update over the air. Instead, users have to download the system software to their computer and install it via USB cable. That annoyance aside, there's a lot to like.
Feature Enhancements
Sync support for contacts from multiple data sources including Exchange
Enhanced device settings
Exchanges support
Merged folders across multiple accounts for Inbox, Unread and Flagged email
Support for built-in flash
Improved Android keyboard layout and responsiveness
Smarter dictionary
Refreshed user interface with actionable browser URL bar
Support for double-tap zoom
Calendar Agenda view with infinite scrolling
Attendee status and guest invites
Ability to search MMS and SMS messages
Auto-delete of older messages when short on storage
Universal Search
Google Navigator
Enhanced Google Maps
Enhanced Android Market and apps
Known Issue Fixes
Keypad backlight optimization
Bulk Bluetooth contact push
Various Bluetooth fixes
Increased speed and performance
Swipe to Unlock/Mute/Speakerphone
New camera features
Pandora enhancements
New Developer APIs
Turn on/off Bluetooth, device and service discovery and send/receive data
New APIs for contacts sync adapters to connect to any backend
Centralized account manager API to securely store and access authentication tokens/passwords across one or more services
New Contact APIs that allow for data from multiple accounts
Support for third-party sync adapters
HTML5 support
Database API support for client-side databases using SQL
Application cache support for offline applications
Geolocation API support to provide location information about the device
Video tag support in fullscreen mode
New Platform Technologies
Completely revamped graphics architecture for improved performance, enabling better hardware acceleration
New Bluetooth profile support
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