I dream (yes, dream) of a device that feels like an HTC Wizard in a slide-out keyboard form factor, with less thickness, 3G connectivity, and a sleek and sexy exterior. With early leaked pictures of the HTC Herald, many thought that perhaps such a dream device was coming to fruition. Regarding size, the Herald is relatively thin at 18mm compared to the Wizard’s 22mm.

A few days later, we find Arne Hess from the::unwired telling us that according to a very reliable source, the Herald will come without 3G UTMS/HSDPA connectivity goodness. It’s essentially a successor to the Wizard, which also means that it will be priced in the “budget” range.

We surmised that the Herald could be the successor to the 3G Hermes, but if we take a look at the release cycle of HTC, it wouldn’t make much sense. HTC spaces out the release of “similar” devices quite a bit – for example, we probably won’t see a successor to the HTC Star Trek until next year.

I’ve got high expectations for successor of the Hermes. It’s got a proven form factor and exciting features, but could stand to lose some weight. Time will tell!