hello there. i stumbled in this not so old question and i cant resist on posting my experience with this great gadget from HTC.
well, imho, ive been using my sensation since september 2011. i bought it with a plan, stock rom, and locked to a network.
eversince i bought this smartphone (really smart), the only thing that frustrate me everyday is the battery. it wont last a day with continuous usage (camera, video, mp3 player, games).
in standby mode or normal use, it drained 50% of its energy. maybe of the not so needed bloatwares presinstalled.
with these in mind, although im not sure of its illegal here in my country, i unlocked it (htcdev), rooted it, installed so many different ROMs (ARHD 6.8, DARKmANTRA aSIANIC, MIUI v4 MIUI, AOKP, AOSP, and now currently JellyBam 4.1.0 by iGio90). with these ROMs my sensation stands out in the crowd. im really proud of taking out with me everytime and showoff with my friend's samsung and LG phones, which i think shamed them all. hehehe. my sensation can be a tablet (although small for a tablet) a phablet, a smartphone), a camera (thanks for the Android 4.2 transformation pack at xda) with photosphere, panorama, and a videocam, an mp3 player and a lot more. of course because it was rooted. it's really really my own now since i can do whatever i want with it without worrying of bricking it.
its a stable phone, can be customized to your liking through cooked ROMs.
my two kids dropped it rolled down the stairs, cracked the glass but its still working to my surprise. ive changed the digitizer with the display because they are both came with.
the battery performed well in normal usage and an ovenight standby consumed only 2% of its power, speed is amazing. the UI, well goodbye sense, welcome JellyBam UI.
say it and it is all there is with this HTC Sensation. i havent used with Samsung's galaxies yet. but why bought SGs when im already satisfied with sensation.
of course it cannot still make you a cup of coffee.
in short, this fone is not a smartphone, it should be an amazing phone.
thank you and have a nice day.
PS: its on my personal opinion and experience.
im from the Philippines by the way, and we have no T-Mobile here.