Hands-on with the HTC HD7

A hands-on the with the first European WP7 phones - HTC 7 Mozart, LG Optimus 7 and Samsung Omnia 7, can be found here.
Visit our hands-on with AT&T's Windows Phone 7 smartphones as well.

Although it might not have been there during Microsoft's big event with AT&T, especially when it's the competition we're talking about, but the HTC HD7 for T-Mobile happened to receive its own separate event – rightfully so. T-Mobile is surely looking to lay claim to what's arguably the most highly anticipated device to sport the next-gen platform, and from what we've been able to check out so far, the HTC HD7 can proclaim itself as the device that will get the mobile platform into the hands of consumers. Having their own shindig away from the festivities held by AT&T and Microsoft, the low key T-Mobile event in itself held a treasure trove of HTC HD7 units littered all around for everyone to experience.

Fittingly so, the hardware is pretty typical of what we've seen employed with the HTC HD2 and HTC EVO 4G – which borrows heavily between the two. Not to say that it's a bad thing, but it doesn't have that wow factor as it did with previous devices. Regardless, it's still nonetheless a fantastic industrial designed smartphone that radiates the kind of quality you expect out of HTC's camp. Packing a customary 4.3” display, there is no arguing that you'll be able to visually see everything so clearly – and even more when it's Windows Phone 7 eye candy all around.




The handset employs a matte touch coating for its rear, which happens to be sturdy due to its metal like exterior, but perfectly hugs your hand with its curved rear. And just like the HTC EVO 4G, we find a wider kickstand which will enable it to stay upright for all your movie watching experience without the scare of it falling over. Needless to say that it's a big jewel in T-Mobile's arsenal, but even more when it quickly finds itself among the elite Windows Phone 7 devices out there.

T-Mobile is adding some interesting premium features to the Windows Phone 7 experience with its inclusion of Netflix, T-Mobile TV, and Slacker Radio. We were happy to see that Netflix instant streaming is available in all of its glory and will undoubtedly provide a lot of entertainment with its larger than life display.




Naturally, the experience with Windows Phone 7 on a device like the HTC HD7 is undeniably fantastic since we didn't experience any slowdown or lag when navigating around the platform. Ultimately, the HTC HD7 is the one sure device to get consumers all around excited since it combines the two best items we expect out of most handsets – beautiful hardware combined with a seamless experience.

HTC HD7 Specifications