HTC Shift Finally Available (in Europe), New Features Announced Just to Tease Us

After a looooong delay, the HTC Shift is finally here! Make that over there. The company announced today at the GSMA Mobile World Congress that this ultra-mobile PC is available through Telefonica in Spain and Orange in the UK for 1199 Euros. And the 1.8-pound Vista-powered machine, complete with 7-inch slide-and-tilt screen, will soon be available through TIM in Italy and in specialized retailers across Europe. So was it worth the wait? Based on the new features HTC has announced, we’d say definitely maybe.

The two most compelling additions are Origami 2.0 software and SnapVUE technology. Microsoft Origami Experience 2.0 includes a new finger-friendly browser, RSS Reader, and media player, as well as Origami Now, providing one-touch access to e-mail, calendar, weather and to-do lists on one screen. Not that you need to boot up fully to keep on top of your inbox. SnapVUE provides access to emails, calendar, SMS messages and contacts instantly, which should help Shift owners get up to three days of battery life. Other standard specs include HSDPA 3G mobile broadband, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a 40GB hard drive, and Windows Media Player 11. So why are we telling you are this? Because HTC still plans to bring the Shift to the U.S. this year. Let’s hope it’s sooner than later.