HTC has been a prominent purveyor of Android smartphones from the outset, but there's now more competition than ever in the high-end sector — notably from Samsung with its Galaxy S II , LG with its Optimus 2X , and the recently released Motorola Atrix .

The Sensation is HTC's flagship device for 2011, and as such it sports the all-important dual-core processor that means it can compete with other high end smartphones. The dual core processor is only part of the story, though. Does the HTC Sensation have enough all-round features to stand out?

Our review sample came from Vodafone , where it's free on a £35 month contract; SIM-free the HTC Sensation costs a shade under £500 (e.g. £498 inc. VAT or £415 ex. VAT from Clove Technology ).

Design
The HTC Sensation offers solid build quality and an attractive physical design. The backplate is part metal, part plastic, and unusually it curves around the edges of the casing, with the main section slotting into an overhanging lip on the top edge. One consequence is that you can't remove the backplate while the left-side-mounted Micro-USB connection is in use.

Source: ZDNet UK