HTC Gratia

The basics

In a smartphone world currently dominated by 4-inch behemoths, the surprisingly compact 3.2-inch HTC Gratia makes a pleasant change. It's still packed with features, however, and gets a pin-sharp screen. Read on to find out if it can better its larger siblings.

The good

It's increasingly difficult to find a compact touchscreen smartphone these days, with most manufacturers producing bigger and bigger devices. If you're looking for something a little smaller, the HTC Gratia has a lot to offer, with its compact size and cute styling at the top of the list.

The 3.2-inch screen on the HTC Gratia offers a couple of advantages. As well as providing a smaller and more pocket-friendly footprint, it's also more power efficient than larger panels, helping the HTC Gratia to a battery life that lasts for a couple of days between charges.

The HTC Gratia runs Android 2.2, and gets HTC's Sense user interface as well. It's a slick and easy to use OS, and although the Sense skin won't please all users, it does make Android look a little more complete. With the Android Marketplace also thriving, there are thousands of apps to get the best out of the HTC Gratia.

The bad

The main problem with the HTC Gratia, is that there's little to recommend it over other Android handsets aside from the size and battery life. Devices like the HTC Legend offer better styling, better build quality and better screens, making it difficult to justify the HTC Gratia's existence.

The bottom line

The HTC Gratia is a nice smartphone, but it simply lacks any stand-out features. It's worth a look if you simply want a small handset with a decent battery life, but there are better all-round devices on the market.