The Snap is HTC’s first smartphone with a front-mounted Qwerty keyboard since the S640 at the end 2006.

It is a surprise that it has taken the company so long to produce a follow up since the intervening period has seen this once purely business-oriented form factor make the crossover into the consumer market thanks to the likes of the BlackBerry Curve 8900 and the Nokia E71.

What is less of a surprise is that the Snap seems designed to sit alongside these two models, with the Curve in particular a notable influence.

Specs & info
Price: £276
Operating system: Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard
Processor: Qualcomm 528 MHz
Memory: ROM: 256 MB, RAM: 192 MB
Dimensions: 116.5 x 61.5 x 12mm
Weight: 120g
Display size: 2.4”
Display resolution: 320 x 240 pixels
Expansion slot: microSD

As a non-touch screen smartphone (the Snap runs Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard) the unit’s primary navigation mechanism is a BlackBerry-style trackball located beneath the screen. With a little work it performs brilliantly – almost identical to a BlackBerry, in fact. We found that it lacked sensitivity under the default settings, but with plenty of options to tweak soon had it running exactly as we wanted.

Beneath the trackball and main navigation buttons sites the Qwerty keyboard. A device like this lives and dies on the strength of its keyboard, and HTC have got it absolutely right on the Snap. The individual keys are larger than average and have sufficient travel to provide enough feedback to make typing at speed a reality. It is one of the best we have seen.

The rest of the hardware is pretty safe, bland even, with no real design flourishes that will either attract or repel potential customers. The unit is thin, and the soft finish plastic casing makes it feel comfortable in the hand. Neither design nor build quality match the predominantly metal E71, but are in line with what you would expect from a BlackBerry.

The specs on the Snap are in line with other models on the market. With wi-fi, GPS, Bluetooth, HSDPA there are no obvious gaps in functionality (but likewise no true USPs). The camera disappoints, at just two megapixels, with no flash and output only suitable for quick snaps rather than serious photography. We would also have preferred a higher resolution screen than the 320×240 pixels we have here. The display, it should also be noted, does not perform too well in bright light.

HTC has paid more attention to the software, with some nice additions, some strange omissions, and one near-killer feature.

That additions include some of the apps that have become the staple of HTC’s Touch range of devices, including a photo viewer and media player.

The omissions include a lack of effective customisations of the OS: a new communications manager show how the system could have looked, but mostly it is just regular Windows Mobile throughout. This includes the somewhat confused menus, the inability to create new documents in Office Mobile, and Internet Explorer 6.

The latter is the best effort yet, and is compliant with a wide range of web technologies (including Flash video), but is also slow and prone to seizing up when handling anything too complicated.

For the most part, though, Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard is more user friendly than its touch screen counterpart, with the Home screen especially functional – this was the inspiration for the forthcoming Windows Mobile 6.5. We also found the OS to be fast and stable.

HTC’s piece de resistance in the Snap comes in the form of Inner Circle. In essence this new application is a mere filter for your email inbox, enabling you to cut through the clutter in order to view only messages from select contacts, but it is a great feature that we expect other smartphone manufacturers to adopt in due course.

It integrates well with the standard email and contacts apps in order that you can easily choose the members of your ‘Inner Circle’, and is fast and very straightforward when in action. While not a major selling point for the phone in its own right Inner Circle is undoubtedly a feature that you will use, and is especially effective for anyone who gets a lot of mail but doesn’t need to see all of it when they are on the road.

So what to make of the HTC Snap? It’s a smartphone that ticks all the boxes but lacks that real piece of inspiration that lifts it above the competition. The keyboard is excellent, and we really like Inner Circle, but neither are sufficient to make the phone a must-have ahead of the Nokia E71 or one of the recent BlackBerrys.

Ultimately it will be the OS that sells this handset. While the Snap is unlikely to make the leap into consumer success, if you do want or need a Windows phone in this form factor then this is clearly the best of what is, admittedly, a mediocre selection.

Essential verdict

Performance: 8
Design: 7
Features: 8
Value: 7
Overall score: 7/10

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