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HTC Desire HD2 Rugged |
The HTC HD2 is, hands down, the greatest Windows Mobile phone in the world.
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That may not excite many people, as Windows phones have been notoriously flawed and unsatisfying, but HTC have hit the ground running with their effort. The customised user interface is so beautifully vivid and crisp even looking up your emails is a visual delight. Also, the HD2 is a very large handset, at 109mm the screen doesn’t feel cramped and the icons feel tiny and well spaced out.
Touch-Dream
It wasn’t that long ago that the craze in the technological world was to make things tiny, there were phones as big as match boxes and phones shaped like USB drives. We thank the technological geniuses that those days are long gone, we want our phones BIG, we want our screens to be flashy and crisp. Luckily, the HD2 has the biggest screen out of any mobile phone currently on the market and it doesn’t feel too big and it doesn’t look like a remote control with a screen, which most large handsets suffer the stigma of.
Having a large touchscreen feels as if you are using a touchscreen as it is meant to be used, surfing the net is a dream and watching videos is as good as on any portable DVD player. This device comes with a new and improved OS, Windows Mobile 6.5, but we believe the fact that it’s on a handset created by HTC is what makes it so easy and satisfying to use. The generously giant screen isn’t just excellent on the eyes but it’s fantastic on the fingers, with such a big screen tapping anything has never been so easy.
HTC’s design is fantastic as always, they have made a capacitive touchscreen that is responsive to the lightest of touches and will not have you jabbing at the screen furiously. The home screen feels modern and fun with its sliding menu bar, for navigating to key area of the phone, and the simple animations added to the most boring of apps, the weather.
App me like a hurricane
Being a part of Microsoft makes Windows Mobile a perfect platform for awesome app developers. There is an abundance of excellent apps available for this device you just needs a couple of days to get used to Windows Marketplace for Mobile, as many of the better apps are difficult to find without knowing where to look. Another advantage of being on Windows Mobile is the ability to search online for apps, you are not tied down to the Windows Marketplace to kit out your handset.
HTC have also thought about those who are prone to losing their handsets as the My Phone service backs up your files from anywhere so you can manage them over the internet. It is such an easier way of backing up your device as no USB cable is needed, and its free!
Multi-touch
The on-screen keyboard is fantastic, it’s well spaced out and easy to press without making mistakes. Every button also provides a clever shortcut to add numbers or symbols to what you are typing without the need of flicking in-between keyboards, which makes it feel like a proper desktop.
Another stand-out feature of the HD2 is the 5-megapixel camera with two blindingly bright LED photo lights. Most smart phones of this calibre are not quite up to date with the strength of its camera but the HD2 is fantastic. Focussing is as simple as tapping the screen, thanks to its capacitive touchscreen, and it offers video recording capabilities.
Conclusion
The HTC HD2 is not only a fantastic boost to a failing career in mobile phone technology for Windows, but it also pushes its competitors to improve. It’s epic screen is perfect and makes watching the clouds move on the weather app a thing of beauty. It’s on-screen keyboard is one of our favourites of all mobile phone touchscreen handsets. The Windows Marketplace for Mobile could be a little better but with the ability to get apps online as well this really isn’t a problem, with one search on google for useful apps you will be fine.
The camera is great and its ability to link all your contact info through your social-networking site is brilliant. We find it annoying that it’s so hard to find a flaw in this handset even the batter life is fantastic, which is amazing considering the animated backgrounds and detail on screen.
Features:
- Android OS, v2.2 (Froyo)
- Qualcomm Snapdragon QSD8255 1 GHz processor
- SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
- HTML
- Stereo FM radio with RDS
- A-GPS support
- Digital compass
- Dedicated search key
- Google Search, Maps, Gmail
- YouTube, Google Talk, Picasa integration
- MP3/AAC+/WAV/WMA9 player
- MP4/H.263/H.264/WMV9 player
- Facebook, Flickr, Twitter applications
- Adobe Flash 10.1
- Voice memo
- T9
Specifications:
- Width: 123 mm
- Depth: 68 mm
- Height: 11.8 mm
- Weight: 164 g
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