HTC HD2 for T-Mobile Review

Introduction:

At long last, one of the greatest Windows Mobile powered devices to have ever been conceived has finally touched down to an awaiting market that has been starved from experiencing a truly mammoth smartphone. T-Mobile has been fortunate enough to lay claim to possibly one of the last great Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphones of our time with the HTC HD2 and will surely have a huge following. Interestingly enough, it’s entering the US market, which rarely sees any major standouts in the Windows Mobile front; possibly except for the HTC Touch Pro2. With Android at full steam, the HTC HD2 is looking to make a stand because there is just more to it than meets the eye.

The package contains:
•    HTC HD2
•    Wall Charger
•    USB Cable
•    Stereo Headset
•    Start Guide

Design:

This version is identical to the European version in almost every way, but there is no denying that it exudes one of the best industrial designs seen on any phone to date. Although it may prove to be one massive device when holding in the hand, its thin profile makes it equally impressive due to the fact that it holds within itself a mind-boggling large display. The HTC HD2 gets treated to some fine material that adds to its overall appeal, durability, and workmanship – which all goes to show the impressive nature of this smartphone. If there is anything that the HTC HD2 can claim for itself in terms of design, it has to be that it truly embodies the essence of what near perfection looks like.


Feasting your eyes to its larger than life 4.3” WVGA capacitive touchscreen with support for 65k colors is utterly extraordinary and breath taking at first – there are just very few devices that are capable of captivating the attention of people like the HD2. Every inch of the display explodes with rich detail and subtle colors that will leave everyone gazing at it for the first time to see their jaw drop to the floor. Aside from the volume rocker, the only other dedicated hardware buttons are found below the display – which have a pretty distinct feel to them. On the rear, you can find the 5-megapixel auto-focusing camera with dual-LED flash and the speaker phone found next to it. After removing the metallic back cover, you gain access to the battery, SIM card slot, and microSD slot.

User Interface / Software:

There is no denying that the Sense UI running on top of Windows Mobile 6.5 is able to move so swiftly without few hiccups thanks to the 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. Instead of having to run separate applications, the Sense UI simply allows everything to be done directly from the home screen – and it does it so well while adding a small snippet of graphical eye candy.


Thanks to the spacious real estate on the smartphone, the HTC HD2’s on-screen QWERTY keyboard makes for one experience that doesn’t hinder the process of speed typing. We thoroughly enjoyed at how quickly and accurately the phone was able to keep up with our quick fingers while composing a message.



Web browsing on the device is such a joy thanks to Opera Mobile and support for multi-touch that allows specific finger gestures to zoom in or out. Moreover, the speed of page rendering and smoothness of scrolling, as well as the detailed layout of web pages goes to show the raw processing power it packs under the hood to make the experience surreal.


There are a few new applications and other neat goodies that come along with T-Mobile’s giant that completes the multimedia experience. First, you’ll quickly find the Blockbuster app that allows you to purchase movies from their library and stream it directly to the handset. If reading some popular novels or paperbacks are your kind of thing, then the Barnes & Noble eReader app will be the perfect solution for you – it simply gives owners the ability to purchase ebooks. Thirdly, long flights won’t be as boring as they used to because owners get 6 months of free access to Gogo Inflight Internet service. All you have to do is just connect via Wi-Fi on select flights and you’ll be cruising the web in style for all those lengthy flights. Although it may not be considered something new, this version of the HTC HD2 comes packed with MobiTV service from the onset. And finally, Transformers fans will be proud to know that they can watch either of the big budgeted movies at any given time.



Performance:

The HTC HD2 managed to perform well in the calling department as voices on both ends were accompanied with very little distortion or background noise. However, voices had a distinct screechy tone to them when we switched over to the speaker phone – which made it slightly less audible due to the weak power of it. Nonetheless, the experience is more than satisfying for most users, but we'd recommend using either a wired or wireless headset as opposed to the speaker phone, for those cases when you jast need your hands to be free.

Conclusion:

It’s almost unimaginable that Windows Mobile can be at the forefront of the news, but the HTC HD2 can clearly stand its ground as being hailed as one of the greatest Windows Mobile devices to ever be created. T-Mobile customers are getting an added bonus with increased RAM and ROM, as well as all the neat multimedia features and apps that encapsulate its status as being one powerhouse smartphone that can prove to still be a hit. HTC clearly knows how to fashion a solid device that can transform the mind share of many people who view the aging Windows Mobile platform as becoming irrelevant. Luckily though, the HTC HD2 supplants itself at the top of the competition where others see it as a viable force due to the fact that it packs more stuff than meets the eye.

For more details on the HTC HD2, see our review of its European version, which is almost identical.