HTC to throw its two Sense into Windows Phone 7 and Gingerbread

Even though Microsoft says that it won't allow other companies to mess around with its Windows Phone 7, Drew Bamford, the head of HTC's user experience design team, says that even with Microsoft in control of the software, HTC still can add its own "experience" to the OS. Bamford said, "Microsoft has taken firmer control of the core experience [in Windows Phone 7], but we can still innovate," he said.  He added that the future version of Sense will not completely be integrated into the OS like it is in Windows Mobile 6.5 where Sense replaced the Windows Mobile core applications with its own. "We won't be able to replace as much of the core Windows Phone experience," says Bamford, "but we will augment it."

Another OS expected to be updated this year is Google's Android. The Gingerbread version of the open source OS is expected to be more polished which would mean that HTC would have fewer things to add. Still, Bamford expects that Google's changes to the software-due out by the end of 2010-won't stop his company from improving the software. He said, "Google may focus more on improving the user interface on the stock Android [software], but I don't think they'll preclude manufacturer customization."

How will Sense change? While the current version is focused on social networking, the newer version will be about sharing media like apps, movies, videos and books. Overseas, this change has already been started. On the HTC Wildfire, launched in Europe and India, the Sense UI features a Widget that allows the user to recommend applications to friends. This function is expected to be added to other phones. HTC also wants its phones to better synchronize with the cloud so users can access and use data anywhere. While we don't know what Sense is going to look like in the future, the result should be more innovative and helpful tools that mesh well with the underlying OS.

HTC Wildfire Specifications

source: Forbes