As a mid-level Android phone, HTC's 'Wildfire S' (not to be confused with the original 'Wildfire') has received a number of positive reviews since its release at the start of the year. I had never owned an HTC phone before, and therefore didn't know what to expect from the brand - the following review accounts my experiences of using the device whilst taking a thorough look at the handset's pros and cons.

Design, Appearance, & Price
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Borrowing very much from the iPhone school of minimal design, the Wildfire S is a beautiful looking phone, with rounded edges and an aluminium screen surround. It's a shame that the back of the phone is made from plastic, as the battery cover feels a little cheaper than the rest of the construction. That said, the phone is really comfortable to hold, and has a pleasing weightyness about it. From Amazon, the sim-free Wildfire S (in white) currently retails at £189.99, whereas the black version costs £10 more at £199.99. The phone's screen is excellent - made from glass it won't scratch unless you subject it to some really rough treatment; at 3.2 inches, it isn't quite as large as the iPhone's 3.5" retina display, but I've personally found it to be big enough for my needs. It's easy to view too, with a wide viewing angle and a 320 x 480 pixel resolution.

Software
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Running Android 2.3 (in combination with HTC's own 'Sense' interface), the Wildfire S feels really intuitive to use, and is set up by default with apps running on multiple screens. I prefer not to have open apps, so when I first bought the phone I spent a while customising the device to my personal preference. The majority of Wildfire S apps can be navigated via pinch-to-zoom controls, which really makes surfing the web and flicking through photos quick and easy. That said, as it's not one of HTC's premium phones, the Wildfire S is a bit limited with a 600mhz processor - in practice, this means that although the phone's native apps run really smoothly, the more demanding games that can be downloaded from the Android store will have the potential to be a little stuttery. For me this isn't an issue, as I don't really use my mobile for gaming anyway.

Features, Sound Quality, & Texting
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In terms of the Wildfire's features, the HTC has the majority of mod-cons that you would expect from a current gen smartphone - the basics include the microSD card slot, USB input, headphone jack, and five megapixel camera. The quality of the camera is actually much better than I would have expected, with shots demonstrating nicely saturated colours and not too much image noise - there's also an LED flash which does a good job of illuminating subjects in dark conditions. In all honesty, the video recorder fares less well, with a slightly stuttery frame rate and not enough detail in the darker tones - however, it isn't awful.

From the perspective of sound quality, the Wildfire S is perfectly acceptable with a reasonable clear ear piece (depending on reception), and a decent maximum volume setting. There's also a speakerphone option which works especially well. Texting is simple too, with a clean interface and advanced predictive entry settings. The default touch screen keyboard can be a little fiddly, but I find that this can be rectified by flipping the phone on its side and writing texts in the landscape format - this way, the keyboard expands slightly and you get a bit more space between each key. The Wildfire S's only real downside is the battery life - and although it's acceptable, I have used phones in the past which have been better. With light use (moderate texting, and one or two phone calls a day) the phone will last for just under two days - however, the frequent web browsers amongst you will have to charge every day. It's a shame that HTC decided to use a 1230 mah battery, as a larger capacity cell would have given the average user a bit more mileage.

Final Word
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Overall, the HTC Wildfire S is an excellent mid-level smartphone which packs in the features and is a pleasure to use. It's a really nice looking phone, which provides a much cheaper option for those who are looking for an iPhone-esque handset at a fraction of the cost. The phone is arguably aimed at younger users, although the fact that it's endlessly customiseable means that it's a handset which would be suitable for all - recommended.