The Android thread

Do you mean Desire HD? I'm pretty sure the Desire had an unlocked bootloader. Either way, the Inspire(US Desire HD) required a Gold Card and fairly long-winded process to root and unlock. I actually messed it up several times, but I've always been very bad at following instructions. If you can be sure to do exactly what the walkthrough says, you'll be fine, and if you do mess it up, bricking is extremely unlikely.
 
There's only so much one can do with a slab touchscreen form factor though.

I'm not feeling like pulling images right now, but if you look at pictures of say the HD2 next to the N1 the differences in design language should be pretty clear. The HD2 has much cleaner and angular lines and used darker materials whereas the N1 and many other recent HTC phones look really rounded off and use a whole mishmash of colours and finishes on the body. Even phones like the original Droid Incredible which are pretty angular don't really please me either, what with the topographic battery cover and weird pink accents everywhere.

Wait, i'm confused. Are you saying you *like* the design of the HD2 or the newer HTC models?
 
Wait, i'm confused. Are you saying you *like* the design of the HD2 or the newer HTC models?

It's not a huge issue, but what I was saying is I liked the HD2 design (which is the phone I have now) but haven't really been liking HTC's designs since the HD2, now that Nexus prototype posted on the last page looks more like the HD2 than any HTC phone since, though admittedly it's only a crappy shot from one angle and thus not much to go by at all.
 
I prefer it the other way around. I don't like the rectangle-with-rounded-off-corners designs. I think phones like the Galaxy S and Motorola Defy look too much like they are trying to be iPhones. Especially when they are black with a silver rim. For me, HTC really developed a distinctive design language with phones like the Hero, Legend, Desire, Wildfire and Nexus One. I guess I just like the look of curves over straight lines. For example, I like the look of the Sensation better than the Thunderbolt.
 
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I have a question about my HTC Desire. I'm on the Telstra network and want to get rid of the all the crappy bloatware that they put on it. Now after reading about it I realise that I need to use a Goldcard but does that require rooting it first? Can I de-brand the phone without rooting it? And if the answer is no, how easy is it to root my Desire.

The Desire is insanely easy to root. Just use this : http://unrevoked.com/#desire

I didn't need a goldcard at all when I rooted mine.

Incase you're interested in S-off (Custom splash screen, etc): http://alpharev.nl/

As for getting rid of bloatware, IIRC once you have root access then you should be able to remove it using something like titanium backup. Or you could try a 3rd party rom.

OFFTOPIC:
I need suggestions for a photo album widget like the one in HTC Sense which allows you to scroll back and forth betwee a gallery on the homescreen.
 
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The Desire is insanely easy to root. Just use this : http://unrevoked.com/#desire

I didn't need a goldcard at all when I rooted mine.

Incase you're interested in S-off (Custom splash screen, etc): http://alpharev.nl/

As for getting rid of bloatware, IIRC once you have root access then you should be able to remove it using something like titanium backup. Or you could try a 3rd party rom.

OFFTOPIC:
I need suggestions for a photo album widget like the one in HTC Sense which allows you to scroll back and forth betwee a gallery on the homescreen.

Thanks for the feedback. All done and rooted, it was easier than I thought.
 
It's not a huge issue, but what I was saying is I liked the HD2 design (which is the phone I have now) but haven't really been liking HTC's designs since the HD2, now that Nexus prototype posted on the last page looks more like the HD2 than any HTC phone since, though admittedly it's only a crappy shot from one angle and thus not much to go by at all.

I agree. Personally, I'm more a fan of the angular edged design compared to the rounded edges of phones like the N1 or Desire. The new Nexus phone really has me interested.
 
It's not a huge issue, but what I was saying is I liked the HD2 design (which is the phone I have now) but haven't really been liking HTC's designs since the HD2, now that Nexus prototype posted on the last page looks more like the HD2 than any HTC phone since, though admittedly it's only a crappy shot from one angle and thus not much to go by at all.
I have loved the design on the Evo since before I first got it. My old N1, however, is my favorite phone to hold, simply because of the materials used and how nice it feels in the hand. It's heavy, but not too heavy, if that makes any sense.
 
I agree. The Inspire is much nicer to hold than the Captivate, but when I occasionally handle a friend's N1 I'm reminded of how perfect its design is. That's why I want the Sensation.
 
I really really hope AT&T gets a physically unchanged version, and an unlocked bootloader would be great. If it is locked, I'll just try to wait until xda has their way with it, but the GSII would be very tempting in the meantime. That is, if the GSII isn't held up by an injunction from Apple.
 
How can anyone dislike this?

HTC-Sensation.jpg

I still insist on my old point of capacitive buttons being shit compared to proper physical buttons. But since no manufacturer does those anymore, this is about the best one can get nowadays.
 
I really really hope AT&T gets a physically unchanged version, and an unlocked bootloader would be great. If it is locked, I'll just try to wait until xda has their way with it, but the GSII would be very tempting in the meantime. That is, if the GSII isn't held up by an injunction from Apple.
HTC has said they have reversed their policy on locked bootloaders, which will include all upcoming phones, which includes the Sensation.
 
i read somewhere the sensation's screen wasn't all that great compared to the ones found on other phones right now (colours, viewing angle, that sort of thing). i sincerely hope they were wrong and / or lying...
 
I've read the same, and it's a potentially major issue for me since I use my phone for music in the car most days, with it sitting in front of the stereo. The Inspire is already difficult to see when it's bright out, which is why I was really leaning toward GSII with an OtterBox case to make it more sturdy, but I heart HTC, and the Sensation may have bluetooth 4.0, which I need.
 
I think you need a good transflexive screen to see it in bright light, or SAMOLED+, but then you're stuck with a Samsung.
 
Ugh, so it turns out the G2X I bought has a non-functioning GPS. I went to the T-Mobile store and apparently this is a model wide problem with a pending software fix "sometime in mid-summer".

So, any thoughts on what I should do? My options are to replace the phone (within the next 10 days) with another model, no questions asked, or to wait it out till a fix is sent.
 
How can anyone dislike this?

I personally don't care (since we're giving our style opinions out). Touchscreen brick phones are 95% screen on the front, the only time you flip it over to the back is to subsequently pop it off to get at the battery, and the device as a whole spends most of its time hidden away in your pocket. Design is still hugely important, because it should feel good in your hands and have accessible controls, but looks? Function over form all the way, for me.
 
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