HTC First: A Specifications Review

The HTC First is a curious one. On one hand, it is the smartphone on which the brand new Facebook Home will debut. On the other, it is just another Android phone. There is perhaps no other phone in recent memory where the spotlight has been more on the software rather than the hardware components. Having said that, the specifications sheet of the HTC First isn’t really lacking in any aspect. There is a capable processor under the hood and the HD display is just about right. But let’s take a closer look at each of the parts that make up the whole of HTC First. OS – Android 4.1 Jelly Bean with Facebook HomeClearly, Android’s Jelly Bean UI is buried deep underneath all the Facebook Home customisation. In this regard, the HTC First is no different from several non-Nexus phones. However, Home itself is a different take on Android skins. The changes start with the lockscreen which also displays notifications. You can check out each notification or gather them all and save them for later perusal. The app drawer is accessed by dragging your profile picture up. Dragging the picture to the right takes you to the last opened app, while on the left is the Messenger, which unifies SMSes and Facebook messages. The first screen within the app drawer will always be populated with your pinned apps, while your entire collection is a right-swipe away. The homescreen for Facebook Home is actually called cover feed. Photos and posts that would normally show in your News Feed on Facebook will show on your cover feed. You can swipe back and forth through them to view them at your own pace. Double tapping a photo or status means you have ‘Liked’ it and you can even quickly comment. Chat heads are an essential part of the Home experience. Basically, they let you quickly read and reply to messages while you're using other apps. They appear on the top of any open app and you can tap on a head to reply. You can use your finger to move chat heads around your screen and drag them to the bottom of the screen to close them when you're done chatting. You'll also get your text message notifications through these chat heads.The app launcher also allows you to update your status, post a photo or check into a location. These are located on the top of the pinned apps list. Click here for full story