For a smart phone which is responsive and has a friendly interface, the HTC Legend delivers a whole lot more.

Smaller and slimmer than the iPhone, the HTC Legend boasts an aluminium exterior. This not only feels good when you’re holding the phone in your hand (although try not to press too hard against your ear when you’re on a call), but lends the phone a polished, smooth look. Complemented by the black plastic surrounding the camera lens and the battery on the reverse of the phone, the design is sleek and simple.

 

The design is also minimal on the HTC Legend – the 3.2 inch screen takes up the majority of space on the front with space for the optical trackball beneath. Capacitive and AMOLED, the screen is fast to react to your finger commands, displaying images in vibrant and rich colours. The optical trackball, which also features on the HTC Desire, gives you the option to navigate screen-free and is more precise than the trackball on the HTC Hero.

 

Thanks to the swift screen, typing on the HTC Legend is a joy. Responding to the lightest of touches in the shortest of time, you can type your messages on the virtual keyboard effortlessly. The predictive nature of the keyboard ensures your messages are free from errors and can be tapped very quickly. This is especially good considering the Legend’s social networking integration – you can interact online with ease on sites like Facebook and Twitter. And the Friend Stream element of the Sense user interface displays any updates from your social networking sites in the one place for easy management. The strong on-screen keyboard lets you make the most of the email, instant messaging, text and MMS options on the phone too.

 

Using the Sense interface means the HTC Legend comes with 7 home screens, all of which you can fill with apps of your choice – running on the Android platform, you have access to the Android Marketplace for additional apps and games to download onto your handset. A new feature of the latest version of Sense which the Legend sports, is the ability to view all 7 screens on one, for quickly selecting the screen you want. Called Leap, this ability lets you pinch the corners of the screen and then press the one you want, saving you the inconvenience of scrolling through all the screens.

 

Whether you are listening to music, browsing online or looking through your photographs, the internal processor on the HTC Legend ensures the experience is enjoyable. The processor is powerful and lets you use an app or change between apps with ease – the only downside to all this power is a reduced battery life. Like the iPhone, you can’t rely on the Legend for more than about 8 or 9 hours in between charges.

 

However, the HTC Legend is a joy to use and lets you stay in touch, find your way, take photos and make videos, tune into your favourite radio station, and watch footage on YouTube – and all within a stylish, slim frame.