Being called Mozart you might expect this handset to major in music, but its prowess definitely lies in imaging.
The Mozart is an exclusive handset to Orange, and they’ve bagged the model that will be most attractive to photographers.
Since Apple introduced the unibody design, HTC has been dabbling with the same production process on selected models, such as the HTC Legend. Now it has used it again here, creating a solid and weighty offering, with a nicer (but more expensive) look and feel over the virtually identical Trophy.
What really puts it above the rest is in the camera department, with an 8-megapixel autofocus camera that is paired up to a Xenon flash. The drawback is that there’s no LED lamp to use for video recording, or aid focussing in low-light.
As a result, I experienced a series of issues when trying to take photographs in particularly dark locations – from out of focus shots to incorrect light metering that resulted in the flash firing at a brightness lower than you’d get form an ordinary LED lamp.
In fact, in my time using both the Mozart and the HD7, I actually got more consistent shots on the HD7. However, when you do take photos in more normal situations, the extra pixels on the Mozart (8-megapixels over 5) do make a big difference. Hopefully future firmware updates will tweak the camera further.
Video recording also seemed to suffer from dropped frames, which must be an issue with the camera sensor and the necessary drivers, as the hardware specification on every HTC phone, and indeed every Windows Phone, is the same.
The screen on the Mozart is great, with an incredibly quick refresh rate and none of the blurring experienced on the flagship HD7 model. Like the Trophy, the smaller screen makes for smaller pixels and gives the impression that the screen is a far higher resolution.
And, despite being exclusive to Orange, there’s none of the usual takeover of the user interface with branding because of Microsoft’s strict rules. Besides the HTC hub, with apps like a photo enhancer and ‘Attentive Phone’ to let you mute the phone by flipping it over, or ring louder when in a pocket, there are apps for Orange Wednesday, managing your account and a daily news feed, plus an Orange colour scheme. And that’s it.
Although video recording isn’t perfect, this is definitely the model for wannabe snappers.
Verdict
The Mozart is the handset that offers up the best overall cameraphone experience, with an 8-megapixel sensor, autofocus, Xenon flash and HD video capture. However, the video capture left us a little disappointed. The standard requirement to allow the camera to start up even when the phone is locked is a feature that really works well here, making it possible to take pictures quicker than rival handsets. It’s also well built with the unibody design, and more ‘phone-like’ than the HD7. If you’re not after the largest screen available, the Mozart is a hard one to beat.
