Why is that mobile phones always have to come with a pair of headphones barely good enough to grace the inside of a Christmas cracker? Well, finally there's now an exception to that rule - the HTC Sensation XE.
Billed as the phone of choice for music lovers, the HTC Sensation XE does not disappoint. As one of the first phones to emerge after HTC's deal with Dr Dre's headphone brand Beats by Dre, the phone comes with pre-installed Beats Audio software to improve clarity and offer an impressive bass boost option.
The Beats headphones themselves are the real deal; metal encased in-ear buds that sound distortion-free even at volumes to clear a train carriage. If you like your music bass-heavy, you're in for a treat. There's also an in-line remote for pausing and skipping tracks. And if all that isn't enough, the distinctive black and red design looks the part as well.
Connectivity is also a big draw here. The phone's music player can stream tracks on to any compatible hi-fi, TV or other device. Away from music, the phone is still feature heavy - most notably, there's a 1.5Ghz dual-processor for laptop levels of speed and an 8MP camera with HD video recording. But it's as the first phone to really deliver on its mp3 player promise that the Sensation XE stands out. Available with multiple operators and Sim-free
