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HTC Status phone with Facebook button to be carried by AT&T

Yup, that little blue Facebook button will be getting pressed a lot on the HTC Status.
Yup, that little blue Facebook button will be getting pressed a lot on the HTC Status.HTC
By Suzanne Choney

The first U.S. cellphone with a dedicated, hard-key button for Facebook was unveiled Wednesday by HTC. The phone is called the HTC Status, and it will be available this summer from AT&T, although no specific date or pricing was announced.

In February, HTC said it would make the HTC ChaCha and HTC Salsa models, both with such Facebook buttons, available in some countries outside the U.S. (The Status essentially is the U.S. version of the ChaCha, now available in the United Kingdom.)

The HTC Status "lets you share just about anything with just one touch, including music, photos, location and status updates. HTC Status also features a chat widget that allows you to, at a glance, see when your friends are online. You can start a live instant chat and juggle between as many private conversations as you want, all straight from the device," HTC said in a press release.

The Android phone, with a 2.6-inch touchscreen and 5-megapixel camera, has these Facebook-oriented features that take advantage of the button dedicated to connecting with the social networking site, HTC says:

  • One touch to share: Press the Facebook share button from your home screen to instantly post on your wall.
  • Snap, shoot, share: Take a picture or shoot a video and share it instantly with a press of the Facebook share button. You can even post pictures automatically as you’re taking them.
  • Quick-on-the-draw check-in: Just long press the Facebook share button to check in your location with Facebook Places.
  • Be first with the news:  See something cool on the Web? Share your latest find with a quick press of the Facebook share button.
  • Post to your wall —or a friend’s wall: From the home screen, a quick tap of the Facebook HTC share button makes sharing anything on your mind quick and easy.
  • Share what you’re listening to: The Facebook share button glows when you’re listening to music, to let you know you can share. Let your friends in on the music you love with the push of a button.

Also, each time receive or make a call, "you see your friend’s profile picture and latest status update right on the call screen. If it’s their birthday that week, you’ll see that, too."

Here are some of the Status' tech specs:

  • Platform: Android 2.3 + HTC Sense
  • Display: 2.6-inch touch screen with 480-by-320 resolution
  • Network: Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 UMTS/HSDPA 850/1900
  • Memory: 512 MB RAM, 512 MB ROM
  • Processor: MSM7227, 800 MHz
  • Battery: Rechargeable lithium-ion battery, 1250 mAh
  • Front and back cameras:  5 MP main camera with autofocus and LED flash, VGA front-facing camera

For more information about the Status, check HTC's website here.

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Suzanne Choney