HTC Rhyme / Reviews

Firstly I would like to say well done to HTC for realising there is a gap in the market for a phone designed with women in mind. Also they deserve credit for including the premium accessories in the box. This is something that they are actually doing more of with the introduction of the beats branded phones. However this master stroke will potentially prove to be a double edged sword as it has limited sales to half the market and also there is no demand for accessories to be made as they are all included. I think the charm is a bit of a gimmick and I cannot expect to see it being used again.

Read original review at Coolsmartphone.

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The Rhyme has great build quality, beautiful customization, great earphones, and an interesting accessory. However, its specs are nothing out of the ordinary. A single-core CPU is quite common for Android phones these days, and a 5 MP camera is also nothing to write home about. The Wi-Fi reception issue only damages its cause further. All in all, this phone isn't a great deal.

Read original review at TechTree.

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HTC knows how to do smartphones-as-boys’-toys, but rarely does it try the same for women. But before you plump for the Rhyme, ask yourself these questions and observe the answers before you buy. Do you need more power? HTC Sensation. More style? HTC Desire S. Less money? HTC Wildfire S.

Read original review at What Mobile.

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The Rhyme is a medium sized and weighted handset. It's 61x119mm, which we found fits very nicely in the palm of the hand - a tiny bit larger than the Iphone 4S for reference. You can easily reach every corner of the screen with your thumb without stretching. The phone isn't the lightest around, but at 130g it's hardly going to strain your wrist. The Rhyme is a reasonable 10.9mm thick.

Regardless of the numbers, we found the performance of the Rhyme to be very impressive. Swiping between home screens was slick and lightning fast, while opening apps didn't prove to be a problem for the phone. We expected a bit of a slowdown with tasks like graphically rich web browsing and gaming, but the Rhyme remained solidly responsive throughout.

The Rhyme has decent connectivity behind the scenes, including WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS and digital living network alliance (DLNA) technology.

The Rhyme ships with the latest version Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread. Although Google has launched Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, HTC makes up for this a bit with version 3.5 of its Sense user interface.

Unlike previous versions of the HTC Sense overlay there is no app tray at the bottom of the home screen. Instead you have a button for the app menu and a button for the dialler. The main home screen has a clock with weather and a set of icons down the side for mail, messages, music and the like. These can be expanded to view more detailed information, but there's no room for anything additional.

HTC provides a 1600mAh battery with the device ,which is about average. We got a couple of days use out of the Rhyme with a reasonable amount of use, but heavier users will probably need to charge it every night. We found that having the docking station helped keep it topped up.

Read original review at The Inquirer.

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HTC has tagged the Rhyme with an MRP of Rs.29,999, but you can find it in shops for Rs.27,500 or maybe even a bit less online. The problem is that, it’s arrived to the party a bit late, since there are more powerful phones priced above and below it, forcing one to think twice before buying it. Your other choices are the Xperia Arc S, which sits at 29K, the Xperia Pro which is 26K and HTC’s own Incredible S, which is cheaper at 25K. All these phones are superior in terms of screen size (except for the Xperia Pro) and bigger 8MP cameras and they are available in colours that would appeal to everybody, so why would you buy the Rhyme?

There’s no denying that it’s a great phone, as far as Android phones go and the new Sense 3.5 interface simply makes the experience better. But I don’t think I could live with it knowing very well that that if I had spent just a little bit more (or less), I could have got a much better phone. At about 18K-20K, we’d say it makes a good buy, but not at the current pricing. Now, come on HTC, release Sense 3.5 for the other handsets as well.

Read original review at tech2.

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HTC don't like to call it a smartphone, let alone mention Android anywhere in the conversation. However women are clearly the HTC Rhyme's demographic whether HTC admits it or not. Rich in features and generously accessorized, on top of being quite attractive, it will easily connect with its target audience.

It doesn't look like a particularly hard one to make either. Decisively similar to the Desire S, the only actual difference being the updated Sense UI, the Rhyme is still keen on offering robust user experience and good performance.

It's the paintjobs and the set of accessories that help it stand out. Comes pricey for a single-core phone but all the extra stuff in the box certainly counts.

Read original review at GSMArena.

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HTC would do well to release a series of phones like the Rhyme. I don’t mean more phones for women, but rather a batch of phones that are not superphones but that come with great accessories. There are plenty of users out there who would rather avoid Verizon’s $299 superphone fee, but still want a decent device. The added incentive of the goodies would sway most users away from other platforms pretty quickly, especially considering how nice the charging speaker dock is.

Read original review at Geek.

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What struck me about the Rhyme was the build quality and just how useful the docking station was. I wanted one of these docking stations for my existing Android smartphone. Plonking the phone onto the cradle / docking station in the office or at home – it just felt natural. The phone starts to charge, it switches to landscape mode and you can listen to music from the in-built speakers. The viewing angle was perfect, and as an interface it was beautiful. I could imagine future models perhaps sync’ing with you computer and downloading your days travel and other items without you even thinking.

I also liked the flat-cable 3.5mm wired headset. There was a lot less tangling going on and the in-line volume control box was a great addition. That charm was interesting too. It does take a bit of thought – you need to ensure that the charm has been plugged in before you pop it into your bag, but it does mean a lot less checking of your phone, plus my wife told me that it looked quite cool.

As for the phone itself, this felt incredibly nippy and it was very quick to snap pictures. The HTC Sense interface has never felt better and the HTC Friendstream interface kept you up-to-date with your Facebook and Twitter friends. Pictures and video were easily shared and you could use the mass-storage capability to quickly move images to your computer.

The battery lasted a day without charge but, whilst checking the battery life in the “Settings” option we noticed something a little strange. For reasons we can’t understand, someone (perhaps by mistake) had given this unit the Bluetooth name of “Desire S”. That made me think a little because, if we’re honest, this phone isn’t a great deal different from the HTC Desire S we received a short while back. It’s got pretty similar specs… 1 GHz CPU, check. 5 megapixel rear camera, check. Front-facing VGA camera, check. Sensors, WiFi, microSD expansion, 3.5mm audio port, unibody design, check, check, check and check.

So what makes the HTC Rhyme and different to the HTC Desire S? The truth is, it’s the accessories. The rear connectors, the dock, the purple colour and the charm – these are the only real differentiators here.

Read original review at Coolsmartphone.

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Overall there isn't much to dislike about HTC Rhyme: it's a solid performer, and despite the aim of cutting down on some of the geekery of HTC Sense, you'll still find it is fully-functional. Sure, there are places where we think it is a little over-engineered, but you certainly get a lot in the HTC Rhyme package.

Read original review at Pocket-lint.

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Like all of HTC’s other phones, build quality is excellent and reminds us a little of the old Desire S. Its rubberised and aluminium unibody form factor looks like it’ll survive a fall, but if you’re used to a larger phone like the Sensation, it’ll feel a little light at 130g. The screen is a little small for my liking, coming off the 4.3-inch EVO 3D, but iPhone users will have no trouble appreciating the Rhyme’s sharp S-LCD 3.7-inch screen. The only downside is the lack of Gorilla Glass, which is a disappointing omission considering we’re supposed to throw this phone in our handbags along with our keys so that we can make the most of its LED charm.

Read original review at Gizmodo.

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