We’ve already seen US Network Sprint update its HTC Hero to Android 2.1, but today the BIG NEWS we’ve been waiting for has arrived – HTC has rolled out a version of the update that’s for its own-brand version of the phone, the one it sells in Europe.
The small catch is that it’s for HTC Hero owners in Taiwan. However, the good news is HTC’s finally finished with the update for generic Hero phones. Android 2.1 works on the hardware. The previously reported June date for the European Hero update might actually turn out to be true!
Now, how many months do you think it will take HTC to translate all those menu screens into English? Link via Engadget.
UPDATE:
A reader who’s installed this ROM on a rooted HTC Hero had the following to say in a comment…
“I have a rooted HTC Hero and loaded this ROM this afternoon, it’s got Chinese AND English as language options, The translation is already complete.
“There are only minor tweaks for Europe needed, like removing some of the Chinese/Taiwanese specific social networking apps like KKBox and such and putting back things like Facebook (which you can download form the store anyway).
“The only things missing over the 2.1 Desire ROM are the live wallpapers and updated Picasa based gallery. (I am assuming these were both ommited for performance reasons). Other than that, the ROM is extremely polished, and VERY fast, much more responsive than 1.5 and faster than the current crop of hacked 2.1 ROMS.”
Motorola’s latest flagship dual-core Android monster is a massive, original powerhouse, that’s a big improvement on previous MOTOBLUR mobiles – but still isn’t a total winner.
A slim and glamorous phone from Sony Ericsson, with the sharpest display around. It’s no powerhouse and the screen’s not the biggest out there, but we don’t mind. Because it’s cute.
LG’s first glasses-free 3D phone is a heavy, fat monster, with a clever 3D effect that works rather well. As a smartphone, though, it’s heavy and underwhelming.
A very shiny thing from Sony Ericsson, with a 3.7″ screen and Android 2.3.3 inside. But is it exciting enough to win fans in today’s spec-obsessed market? Can man live on one core alone?
INQ’s Android phone is an interesting “boutique” piece of hardware, packed with unique interface customisations that go far beyond the headline Facebook integration. We like it a lot.
Mark
/ June 4, 2010It’s not going to be far off. I have a rooted HTC Hero and loaded this ROM this afternoon, it’s got Chinese AND English as language options, The translation is already complete.
There are only minor tweaks for Europe needed, like removing some of the Chinese/Taiwanese specific social networking apps like KKBox and such and putting back things like Facebook (which you can download form the store anyway).
The only things missing over the 2.1 Desire ROM are the live wallpapers and updated Picasa based gallery. (I am assuming these were both ommited for performance reasons). Other than that, the ROM is extremely polished, and VERY fast, much more responsive than 1.5 and faster than the current crop of hacked 2.1 ROMS.
The delay here for unrooted users, is how long it takes your network operator to clag all THEIR useless crap in there.
Ravi
/ January 13, 2011Hey hi,
i have rooted my htc GSM hero[Taiwan] to cmod 2.2. but it’s showing less performance .so, I wanted to get back to Android 2.1 update official. where can i download and now how can i install it on my hero. plz.,help me….
Gary C
/ June 4, 2010Mark! You hero. Thanks for that. I’ll stick this in the post for all the people who don’t bother scrolling this far down.