HTC Hero Gets Android 2.1 Update

Smartphone maker HTC is to roll out a firmware-over-the-air (FOTA) update to upgrade European owners of its Hero smartphone to Android 2.1.

The 80MB update will bring some of software features available on the newer HTC Legend to the Hero. The company did not specify when the update will be available as a manual download.

The company said: "Your phone will receive a notification of this update when it is made available. Simply press OK to accept the update via a data connection such as Wi-Fi or GPRS/3G."

After the update, users can confirm that the download has installed correctly by checking the firmware version of their phone.

HTC's support site warns users to make back-ups of all data stored on their smartphone, and apply an earlier FOTA update before installing the new operating system.

Given the size of the download, users are advised to apply the update using a wireless network connection or unlimited data plan.

HTC says that applications already installed on the phone will not be deleted by the update.