The HTC Rezound is an Android smartphone aimed at audiophiles -- it's the first to have integrated Beats audio technology. It also features a dual-core processor, 16GB of internal storage, a 4.3-inch display, 4G LTE, and an 8 megapixel camera.
The smartphone is available from Verizon Wireless for $300 with a new two-year service contract. That price is higher than the typical $200 or $250, but the Rezound comes with a pair of Beats earbuds that are valued at $120.
Build & Design
At first glance, the Rezound looks like most of its modern smartphone cousins -- mostly black, and dominated by a large touchscreen display. But it shares design inspiration with the HTC Droid Incredible, with subtle red accents on the face buttons and around the camera lens, plus the small Beats audio logo on the bottom of the back cover.
There's nothing over-the-top flashy here, but those red accents combine nicely with a hematite-colored wraparound bezel and a partially knurled back cover. Remove that cover and you'll see that the interior of the phone and the battery are red, just like the Incredible. And all of those elements come together to create an attractive and even sexy-looking handset.
The Rezound is just slightly larger than the HTC Amaze 4G and the HTC EVO Design, but it's still comfortable to use one-handed. It's somewhat lighter than you might think it should be when you first pick it up. It's solidly built, but doesn't feel heavy or bricklike at all.
Display
This model was designed for audiophiles, but it's got a fantastic 4.3-inch super LCD screen. It offers true HD 720p with a resolution of 1280 by 720, a first for HTC. Photos and video look just fantastic, and with the right gaming apps the graphics are so sharp it feels like you could just fall into the fantasy world being depicted.
My only complaint about the screen is that it's super reflective, so I saw myself in the display more than with other smartphones I've reviewed recently. It's not a huge deal, but it's annoying at first until you get used to it.
Keyboard
You'll be using a virtual on-screen keyboard for text entry on the Rezound, since there's no physical keyboard here. It works well, with large keys, and I didn't have any problems with hitting the wrong virtual keys.
The word completion feature also works well, offering suggestions without being too aggressive and "correcting" things that you didn't type incorrectly in the first place.
Other Buttons & Controls
The Power button and headphone jack are on the top edge of the device, and the Volume control button is on the right edge. The Volume button in particular is a little annoying, because it's extremely low profile and hard to find with your finger when you aren't looking at the phone.
The charge/sync port is on the bottom left side of the phone, and it uses a proprietary connector, not the micro-USB connector you'd typically expect. That's frustrating since micro-USB is the de facto standard (at least for everything except the iPhone), but this is the second HTC phone I've reviewed recently with this weird connector.
You'll get a pair of Beats earbuds in the box with the Rezound. I was surprised that they didn't come with the storage pouch and extra ear tips that come with the headphones when you purchase them separately at retail. I'm not sure whether this is an oversight since this is a loaner unit or whether those extras just aren't included with the Rezound.
A 16GB microSD card is also included, so you'll have plenty of room for apps, games, ebooks, and all of the music you'll want to listen to when you're on the go. The card slot is located under the back cover, right by the battery, which you'll have to take out to access the card.
PERFORMANCE
With Android OS 2.3.4 (Gingerbread) runing on a 1.5GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM, the HTC Rezound is fast and powerful, and this showed up in the testing. It received a score of 2176 on the Quadrant benchmark test, a very respectable result. It did well on the Net Speed test as well, with download speed of 2276 kbps, an upload speed of 990 kbps and a ping of 33.
Beyond the numbers, the Rezound is simply a joy to use. I know that it can't anticipate what I'm going to do next, but it certainly feels that way, responding to my every swipe, tap, and button press with lightning speed. If you don't want to wait around for *anything* at all, whether it's loading or switching apps, the Rezound should make you happy.
Communication
Sound quality is excellent -- every call come through crystal clear, and a couple of my test callers didn't even notice that I was using a cell phone. There were no issues at all with background noise, or with strange sounding, clipped, or muffled voices. Since the trend these days is for folks to give up their traditional home phones and just use a mobile phone, voice quality is more important than ever, and the Rezound delivers on that front.
I wasn't able to test the mobile hotspot feature, since it wasn't activated on the test account that came with the phone. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth work just as expected though, so no matter how you choose to stay connected, the Rezound performs like a champ.
The same is true of the social networking experience, thanks to HTC Friendstream, which consolidates all of your friends and online social activities into one manageable flow of information. HTC Peep and the official Facebook app are also on hand if you prefer to use them instead.
The email and web browsing experiences are Android-standard; there's nothing particularly new or innovative here. Everything just works, with all of your messages and the web pages you want to browse loading quickly and effortlessly, no crashes or synchronization problems at all.
If IM is your thing, the Mobile IM app will keep you connected with your AIM, Windows Live, and Yahoo buddies on the go.
Productivity
All of the standard PIM apps are on the Rezound, and they work just as expected, keeping you on track with multiple Google Calendars on display as well as your contacts, a calculator, a clock, and your tasks. The task app is pretty basic, but it works -- however it does not sync with Google Tasks, which is a disappointment.
Polaris Office is included for all of your Microsoft Office document viewing needs; you can also create Word and Excel files on the go. A handy barcode scanning shopper app is also included, plus a voice recorder, voice dialer, and voice search apps.
Navigational duties are handled by your choice of Google Maps or Verizon's VZ Navigator. Choose Google's navigation service and you'll be able to enter your destination using voice recognition and also choose among three different routes.
Entertainment
Considering the inclusion of Beats audio technology, it should come as no suprise that the HTC Rezound simply shines when it comes to entertainment. Whether you're using the built-in music player, Google Music, or the Amazon Cloud Player, you're in for a real treat when you plug in those Beats earbuds and start rocking out to your favorite tunes. Music sounds the way it's supposed to sound, not a pale imitation of what it should be.
The external speaker quality isn't anywhere near as good as the experience you'll get when using the included Beats headphones, but it's better than what you'd typically get. You can make the music extremely loud if you like, with no distortion, though you won't get the thumping bass and ultra-clear melody with the speaker.
One note of caution needs to be inserted here -- the Beats headphones are noise-isolating and produce an immersive music and entertainment experience. That's definitely a positive for this device, but you do need to be mindful of your environment. If you're listening to music while walking around town, keep the volume low and pay extra attention to your surroundings to avoid accident or injury.
Need for Speed Hot Pursuit and Let's Golf 2 demos are included with the Rezound, though you'll have to download the necessary files when you launch the app the first time. That's an extra 333MB of storage for Need for Speed, but it's worth it -- the game looks and plays beautifully on the smartphone.
The Google Books app is preloaded, or you can download the Amazon Kindle app or your favorite ebook reading app from the Android Market.
Camera
The 8 megapixel camera takes very good photos -- not quite as spectacular as the HTC Amaze 4G, but still good enough to share with family and friends. There are plenty of options, such as the ability to enhance a photo immediately after you take it, plus scene selections, direct sharing options, and much more.
The zoom is slightly disappointing, both because it's hard to use due to the annoying volume button, but also because the loss of quality is just a bit more than I would expect. It doesn't take horrible photos, but you may need to get as close to the action as possible to ensure that you get the best shots.
 |
 |
 |
 |
Battery Life
I was able to get through just a couple of days with heavy use, but that should be expected considering how much more I tend to use this device in comparison with other phones I've reviewed. I always give loaner devices a good workout during the review period, of course.
But when music and movies sound this good, you're more likely to watch them during the public transit commute home, for example, instead of randomly surfing the Web or checking your email. That extra entertainment is a bigger drain on the battery, but it seems that the Rezound is up to the challenge. Battery life could be longer, of course, but I'm satisfied with the results I was able to achieve.
Conclusion
The HTC Rezound is an impressive device and an all-around winner. It has landed the #1 spot on my "if I needed to buy a phone" list, and is probably at the top of any gift recipient's list that you might be shopping for this holiday season.
It sounds great, it looks great, and it performs exceptionally well in every respect; if it weren't for the lack of micro-USB charging it would come very close to being the perfect device. If you can afford the relatively high price of admission, the Rezound is more than worthy of your consideration. Highly recommended.
Pros
Cons
