HTC Sensation dual-core Android handset on sale in May

HTC is the latest smartphone manufacturer to announce a dual-core smartphone, with its entertainment-orientated Sensation due to go on sale in the UK from May.

Announced today, the HTC Sensation has a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm MSM 8260 processor, 768MB of RAM and runs Android 2.3.

The 43in screen’s resolution has been upped from what seemed to be the Android standard of 480×800 to 540×960. This gives is the same vertical resolution as on the Apple iPhone 4, but slightly less horizontal resolution (the iPhone 4 has 640 pixels). Part of the reason for this is that the Sensation has a 16:9 aspect ratio.

HTC claims that “users can watch movies like they were meant to be seen – in their full cinematic glory, with no cropping or letterboxing”. Given that few movies are shot with a 16:9 aspect ratio (2.39:1 and 1.85:1 are both more common, while 16:9 tends to be for TV), you’ll still end up with thin black bars. That said, the high pixel density of the screen should make movies look fantastic.

To tie in with the entertainment theme, the phone will be the launch platform for HTC Watch, which is an application and service that gives you an entire library of movies to watch (rental or purchase). HTC has said that the service uses progressive download technology, so you can start watching before you finish downloading an entire film.

As well as all this the phone has an 8-megapixel camera, which can shoot 1080p video at up to 30fps, complete with stereo sound. There’ll also be the latest version of HTC Sense, which includes a new lockscreen that you can customise with real-time information, such as social media updates, photos, weather and stock updates.

Pricing has not yet been announced, although the handset will be available on Vodafone in May and you can currently register interest for the HTC Sensation.