HTC Sensation review

HTC's dual-core wonder finally arrives - let battle commence!

The definitive HTC Sensation review
The definitive HTC Sensation review

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HTC sensation review

The camera on the HTC Sensation is an 8MP effort with dual-LED flash and autofocus - pretty much ticking all the boxes on offer aside from a Xenon flash, but then again some comprimises have to be made to keep the width down.

The autofocus is a good feature though, and one we've seen from the likes of the Desire HD and Desire S in the past, where tapping the screen will alter the focus of the photo. This extends to exposure values as well, meaning that if you're trying snap something in a darker area, the Sensation will work out the optimum light levels needed.

The shutter speed is pretty nifty on the Sensation too, with the camera loading very quickly from the lock screen if you choose it as one of the 'ring options' we mentioned in the interface section, with photos taken in around three seconds after pulling the phone out of our pocket.

There are the usual plethora of shooting options on offer - from the pointless negative/grayscale/sepia range to more useful ISO, white balance and exposure sliders, the HTC Sensation is a camera phone that offers more than enough functionality to take some decent snaps.

HTC sensation review

The standard settings show a decent amount of contrast and a good level of sharpness for a well-lit shot

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HTC sensation review

With a bright background, the object being photographed quickly gets lost as the camera looks to focus on the clouds

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HTC sensation review

Forcing the camera to focus on the tower doesn't really seem to help the exposure, which is odd considering it's so adept at doing so for video recording

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HTC sensation review

The HTC Sensation doesn't have a macro mode, instead choosing to automatically work out the focal length, with some surprisingly good shots

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HTC sensation review

The VGA front facing camera is perfectly acceptable for self shots if you happen to meet a famous lion

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HTC sensation review

This is a standard photo in a darker corner of London

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HTC sensation review

But with the exposure turned up, you can see a signifcant difference in detail without much penalty on the shutter speed

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HTC sensation review

This poncey cocktail is shot in fairly dark conditions but still maintains a decent level of detail

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HTC sensation review

This shot was taken at speed using the quick unlock function - the Sensation does not appear to be adept at fast moving photos

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HTC sensation review

The Sensation is good at capturing changeable conditions, although the lighter section of the photo is quite over-exposed

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HTC sensation review

This photo is taken indoors with the auto focus turned on

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HTC sensation review

With the auto focus turned off, you can see the white balance is quite heavily skewed, showing how good the automatic mode is

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HTC sensation review

The dual LED flash is quite poor given its brightness - the throw of the light is minimal

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Gareth Beavis
Formerly Global Editor in Chief

Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grown with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.