HTC's Hero Upgrade Hits Vodafone - HTC Legend Android Phone

HTC have now released their upgrade handset to the Hero which is also known as the Touch G2 on T-Mobile, the new HTC Legend takes on a very similar design but incorporates some new technology and features not found in the original model.The manufacture of the HTC Legend is also different to that of the Hero handset and closely resembles the recently released Google Nexus One (which is also manufactured by HTC) in as much as both phones are moulded from one piece of aluminium for extra robustness and strength.The Legend handset has been released alongside the new HTC Desire as a more compact phone using the original dimensions of the Hero's touch screen at 3.2 inches. This seems to be pretty standard with many manufacturers such as the Sony Ericsson Vivaz, Nokia X6 and Motorola Milestone.A major improvement over the previous HTC Hero is the inclusion of a new optical trackball rather than the rubbery one which is also found in the Nexus One phone, this new feature lets you simply slide your finger across to navigate the phones many screens and features.This same technology id also present in the HTC Desire and means that even with extended use there is no chance of the wear and tear found on the older trackball solution.The HTC Legend features a similar 5.0 mega pixel camera found in the older model which offers geo-tagging, auto focus and an LED flashlight for low light situations, the handset runs on the latest Android 2.1 operating system as found on the HTC Desire and Nexus One phones and over the top the manufacturer has included its own Sense user interface which make menu navigation a breeze.This new HTC device also incorporates the new FriendStream application which pulls together updates from social networking sites like Facebook, tweets from Twitter, emails and text messages for a continuous stream of friend activity all in one place.Unlike the previous Hero phone, the new HTC Legend's brushed aluminium body is far superior to the plastic finish of the older model, this should ensure the phones popularity as bringing this handset out of your pocket is likely to draw some attention.The distinctive angled base of the phone remains unchanged from the Hero handset and although many think it is to bring the microphone closer to the mouth when in conversation it actually acts as a protector to the main touch screen when the phone is sat face down.Competitors to the Legend include the HTC Desire form the same stable as well as the newly released Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, there are also good Android alternatives from other manufacturers including the Motorola Milestone, Samsung Galaxy Portal, Acer Liquid and LG GW620.The Legend is now available on a range of third party Vodafone pay monthly tariffs from free with further network launches expected over the coming days.