HTC Rhyme

The battery life is fairly strong on this handset, capable of between one and two days of use, depending on how active your social networking life is. We managed a day-and-a-half of use and were pleased with that.

Also of note how easy the Rhyme is to charge: simply rest it into the recess of the powered dock. Seriously, why doesn’t every phone have this?

On the down side, HTC’s Sense 3.5 isn’t the good experience it is on the Desire S, with a second or two lag noticeable with many of the operations accessed via the menu soft buttons.

Being an Optus phone, some of the telco’s own software gets in the way of first time use. For example, with two call apps – the native Android plus an Optus one – it can be confusing as to which to use. You can select and set your preference here, of course, but better collaboration between HTC and Optus would have eliminated the need for any action at all.

HTC provides some neat features with its camera, throwing in a quick panorama mode and some vintage camera effects that can be applied to any image shot. Image quality, however, isn’t up to what we’ve seen from iPhone and Sony Ericsson smartphones, with pronounced noise even in those images captured in daylight. Nevertheless, the photos will be fine for sharing on Facebook or Twitter.

Conclusion

It’s easy to admire the assortment of accessories HTC has bundled with the Rhyme. The Charm is a neat gimmick, and provides a point of difference that will appeal to some, but it’s the dock that’s the real winner. And while the absence of Gorilla Glass is disappointing – life inside a handbag can be rough – the Rhyme is a solid phone for anyone – of any gender – seeking a look-good phone.