Review: HTC HD2

The 1Ghz Snapdragon processor helps things buzz along nicely, with the HD2 always seeming very responsive under our fingers. HTC has dropped its Sense UI – originally seen in its Android devices – into the HD2, and this means a very finger friendly experience from the outset.

The now traditional HTC slide bar beneath the screen gives you quick access to a range of applications. There is Twitter client and Footprints (which geolocates your favourite places via the built in GPS) on this bar as well as things like music, contacts (of which you can see nine favourite on screen at once and scroll down for more), messages, Web favourites, calendar, pictures, music, stock quotes and weather.

The weather app in particular is fabulous from a graphics point of view. On the first day we worked with the HD2 there was fog in our area and the weather app showed animated billowing clouds covering the whole of the screen. You can customise the shortcut bar if you need to, reordering and removing shortcuts, but not adding ones to your favourite apps, which is a shame.

Of course this is a 3G device with HSDPA to 7.2Mbps and HSUPA to 2Mbps. There’s no front camera for two way video calling, but the camera whose lens is on the back of the device shoots at 5 megapixels, has a dual LED flash and takes pretty nice photos.

It is a shame there is no side button shortcut for the camera, but HTC has gone minimal on side buttons, choosing to have just a volume rocker on the left side.

Windows Mobile’s applications have been augmented by an FM radio, and there is a 3.5mm headset jack on the bottom edge of the casing, where it sits next to the microUSB port that serves for mains power attachment and PC connection.

There are four relatively small buttons on the front of the casing. Three offer Call, End and Home while the fourth is a rocker offering the Back and Windows keys.

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