As we explained and illustrated in our HTC Hero Review, the phone is pretty darn awesome. The general consensus was one of optimism with a fairly widespread irritation of slight lagginess. Not enough lag to detract from the overall success of the phone, but enough to notice.
Presto-Remove-O: Paul from Modaco got ahold of the upcoming firmware update that among other things like bugfixes and Java inclusion, removes the lag lingered:
By the time the HTC Hero hits Sprint on October 11th or soon thereafter, it’ll me as polished and quick as polished and quick can be. And for those lucky lads who already own the Hero, don’t worry – your cure to minor lag is on the way shortly.