Anyone living in the UK should consider themselves lucky as HTC has officially announced that the HTC 7 Pro is heading to the British Isles in February. The HTC 7 Pro is the fourth Windows Phone 7 handset to hit the UK since HTC unveiled their lineup in October of last year. Like its predecessor (HTC Touch Pro 2), the HTC 7 pro features a large 5 row QWERTY keyboard with a 3.6 inch tilting screen. But that’s where the similarities end. In the inside, the HTC 7 Pro features a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 512 MB of RAM, 576 MB of ROM, 5 MP camera with LED flash, Bluetooth 2.1, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, and a 1500 mAh Lithium Ion battery.
Along with the HTC 7 Pro, HTC will also be launching the pearl white HTC Gratia (aka the HTC Aria). The HTC Gratia will certainly not be turning any head, but its lightweight spec sheet should translate into extra savings for customers once the device hits store shelves.
HTC’s press release makes no mention as to when the HTC7 Pro and HTC Gratia will be available, but they indicate that the HTC 7 Pro will be available at Brightpoint GB and Brightstar while the Gratia will be exclusively available through Brighstar. We’re hoping that HTC will be announcing their carrier partnerships for the two devices once Mobile World Congress gets under way in a few weeks.
HTC 7 PRO AND HTC GRATIA TO COME TO THE UK IN FEBRUARY
LONDON, UK – January 20, 2011 – HTC Corporation, a global designer of smartphones, today announces the launch of HTC 7 Pro and HTC Gratia in the UK from February 2011.
“We are proud to be able to add two new phones to our already diverse UK product portfolio,” said Jon French, executive director, HTC UK, Ireland and South Africa. “Both phones offer the stand-out design and innovation for which HTC has become renowned. With the fresh and exciting mobile experience of the Windows Phone 7 platform, HTC 7 Pro is for users who want to combine the ultimate in business efficiency with the ability to take full advantage of their leisure time. The elegant HTC Gratia is designed for those people looking for a compact yet powerful Android smartphone.”
HTC 7 Pro
HTC 7 Pro combines powerful business features with multimedia performance and flexibility that make it the ideal phone both during and outside of work hours. The screen slides open and tilts to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard for fast, comfortable typing, while productivity features such as the ability to sort, scan and manage Outlook email, open and edit the latest Office documents and keep track of the markets with HTC’s stocks application, offer new ways to get more out of the business day.
With a tilting 3.6″ screen, the power of a 1Ghz processor and cutting edge technology such as Dolby MobileTM and SRS WOW HDTM, the HTC 7 Pro delivers a rich multimedia experience. The integration of many popular Microsoft services such as Xbox LIVE, Windows Live, Bing and Zune makes this handset the ideal companion for business users who want to take their entertainment with them wherever they go.
The unique Hub and Tile interface of Windows Phone 7 makes information quick and easy to access by grouping it into Hubs such as People, Pictures, Games, Music & Video, Office and Marketplace content and displaying the most up-to-date information on the homescreen Tile. Users will also be able to access exclusive applications and utilities through the HTC Hub. These include a weather and stocks application and a photo enhancer that enables special effects to be applied before sharing photos with friends.
HTC Gratia
Available in Pearl White, the HTC Gratia is sleek and lightweight – measuring just over four inches in length, weighing 4.06 ounces and featuring a seamless, rubberised and beveled back cover that opens to show a vibrant yellow inner chassis.
This user-friendly and powerful smartphone runs Android 2.2 and the acclaimed HTC SenseTM – offering an experience that makes your phone work in a more personal and natural way. HTC Sense offers a number of unexpected features designed to bring a smile to your face, such as making the phone ring louder if it is in your bag or your pocket, but automatically decreasing the ringer volume when you pick it up to answer a call.
HTC Gratia also comes with Friend Stream – an application that helps you keep in touch with friends and family by bringing all of your Facebook, Twitter and Flickr updates into one single, organised flow of updates.
Availability
From February 2011 the HTC 7 Pro will be available in the UK through HTC’s distribution partner Brightpoint GB and Brightstar with HTC Gratia available through Brightstar only.
Source: Engadget
