HTC unveils Tattoo - Android on a budget

HTC Tattoo - Android on the cheap
HTC Tattoo - Android on the cheap

HTC has rolled back the years and brought out a new phone - the Tattoo - that offers customisable covers and Android on a budget.

The new Tattoo will only cost £25 per month on an 18-month contract with a free phone, and is likely to appear on PAYG in the near future as well.


The HTC Tattoo will bring the company's new Sense UI, which debuted to much fanfare on the HTC Hero recently, meaning multiple home screens, a huge amount of customisation potential and of course all the Android Google goodies.

But one of the main talking points (for teenagers / tech journalists who like painting mobile phones) is the ability to choose new custom covers or even design and create your own fascia - although if you don't mind ruining your iPhone you could do that now.

Make it your own

It also packs a 3.2MP camera with auto-focus, a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microSD slot, so it's pretty well equipped on the hardware side for a phone at this price point.

"Everyone wants their own phone to feel like it was specifically made for them. The Tattoo, with HTC Sense, represents an easy way to shape your own distinct mobile experience and really make it your own," said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC.

"The HTC Tattoo ensures that you can create the most engaging and appropriate mobile experience through simple yet powerful personalization."

This is the same phone we saw pictured a couple of months ago - so it looks like the rumours HTC is planning a budget Android phone are true.

The Tattoo has a UK release date set for later in October, although no word on which network is going to stock it, or whether it will be exclusive. If we were betting, we'd go for T-Orange after the earlier announcement though.

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.