With a stunning, contoured body, the HTC Incredible S captures and displays videos in crystal clear HD, while its 4-inch WVGA Super LCD display and stereo surround sound provides a vibrant cinematic experience. It also features a 8-megapixel camera and 1.3-megapixel front facing camera.

It's not easy to find something you love. Some people loved the HTC Desire for the balance it brings to portability and performance. Others wanted more out of its screen real estate, and chose to side with the HTC Desire HD and its 4.3-inch screen. But there are those sourcing for an option in-between both sizes. Fortunately, HTC managed to fulfill such a wish with the HTC Incredible S. In a way, the Incredible S is an amalgamation of the Desire and Desire HD, sporting a 4-inch S-LCD display and the power of a 1GHz Snapdragon processor to keep things in order.

As we explored the exterior of the Incredible S, we found it to have a solid and non-slippery grip. This is attributed to the matte material used to encase the Incredible S, providing not just a firm grip, but a more pleasing look to the body. More importantly, you can set your mind at ease without constantly wiping the device to rid it of fingerprint smudges. There's however no escaping smudges on the 4-inch display, but that is easily rectified with a non-glossy protective screen cover that's easily found at any mobile retail shop.

Putting the fact that the 4-inch S-LCD screen will be a fingerprint magnet, we were initially baffled by the absence of the usual shortcut buttons below the screen. As it turns out, they do exist, but hidden when the Incredible S is powered down. The moment we kick started the Incredible S (by pressing the power button on the top right), the four touch sensitive shortcuts lit up by small LED lights beneath it. Interestingly, once we changed the screen orientation, the four shortcuts followed suit to light up by adapting the appropriate portrait or landscape orientation - a nifty touch indeed!

By far, the Incredible S looks pretty much like any other smartphones of the same form factor - at least on the front face. Once we flipped it over, we noted that the rounded corners of the Incredible S converged in a raised ridge towards the middle. As we spent more time with the Incredible S, we realized the uneven design isn't just for show. Due to the raised ridge, the borders are slightly sunken in, creating a groove for one to get a firmer grip on the Incredible S. On the same track, with this raised design, we noticed how the microUSB port (which is oddly placed at the lower left side) was also slightly raised, making it easier for us to plug in our micro-USB cables

While its hardware is neither groundbreaking nor fanciful, the HTC Incredible S is a suitable buffer device for those in need of a new smartphone with a guaranteed Android 2.3 update.