HTC HD2 about to launch on T-Mobile on March 24

I had the opportunity to play around with the new HTC HD2 smartphone while I was at HIMSS10. This is a really nice Windows Mobile smartphone! (of course, you have to be a Windows Mobile user to appreciate this device)

So what's so great about the HD2? It's very thin, sleek, it has 1 GHz processor, and it has a 4.3-inch WVGA capacitive screen with multi-touch support. This is the first Windows Phone to use a capacitive multi-touch screen. (supporting gestures like pinch-to-zoom)

The major drawback is that it's running Windows Mobile 6.5 instead of Windows Phone 7 Series. I suppose that could be both good and bad. If you'd like to run your old Windows Mobile applications, then you don't want to upgrade to Windows Phone 7 Series. I actually still have several old apps that I'd rather not re-purchase.

What's the best Windows Mobile phone?

The best Windows Mobile phone is still a Windows Mobile phone (meaning that it's not an iPhone or an Android smartphone, so how good could it really be?)

Do you agree with that?

I've been a loyal Windows Mobile user for many years. I've had numerous opportunities to switch to a different platform and I even made the jump and tried the BlackBerry Storm for a few weeks. I ended up going back to Windows Mobile.

Now, if I had to get a brand new Windows Mobile smartphone today, which would I choose? What's really the "best" Windows Phone out there?

I have two in mind:

1. If you want a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, then go with the HTC Touch Pro2 (also called the Tilt2 on AT&T). This is a great smartphone, but it lacks a capacitive touch screen, so you won't get any multi-touch gestures on this device.
2. If you don't need a physical keyboard, do you want a device that has a large capacitive touch screen? Then get the HTC HD2.  A 4.3" screen is very large compared to the 3.5" screen found on an Apple iPhone.

If you're not interested in the 2 above, then wait.  Consider a smartphone that doesn't run Windows Mobile.  OK, maybe I'm being too harsh on Microsoft (and I hope my friends and relatives who work for Microsoft don't take offense). Wait for a smartphone running Windows Mobile 7. We may see some this year. Get a smartphone that has a capacitive touch screen that is capable of multi-touch gestures like "pinch to zoom." Remember that you're probably going to replace a smartphone every 2-3 years, so don't spend too much money on a smartphone or its accessories.

The Best Windows Mobile Phone Yet

According to PC World, the HTC HD2 may be the "best" Windows Mobile smartphone yet. Wow! That's quite a statement. In fact, the editors at PC World include the HTC HD2 as part of the "Best of CES 2010." This is how they describe the HTC HD2:

superslim design, a 4.3-inch display, and a powerful 1GHz Snapdragon processor.

With a screen size of 4.3" and a slim form factor, this is almost like an Apple iPhone that has been stretched a bit. So, if you don't need a physical QWERTY keyboard and you really like the Windows Mobile platform, then you may want to get your hands on an HTC HD2. Make sure you have large pockets because this phone may be thin, but it's bulky in a different way because the device is so tall and wide.

Engadget describes the phone like this:

The massive, full touchscreen device boasts impressive specs: a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, a generous 4.3-inch, 800 x 480 capacitive WVGA touchscreen display, a 5 megapixel camera, GPS, and lots of other bells and whistles.

We're not used to seeing large smartphones like the HD2, but maybe 2010 is the year where we'll see a wide range of sizes so that each user can choose his/her optimal size. Some may prefer the smaller form factor, while others may prefer larger font and larger screens.

The HTC HD2 has a huge multi-touch screen!

The HTC HD2 will be the first Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone that has a multi-touch screen. On this smartphones, you'll get to use multi-touch gestures and the HTC Sense user interface that was first seen on the Android-based HTC Hero. The HD2 also has the largest screen of any Windows Mobile smartphone (or just about any smartphone for that matter). A 4.3" screen will look HUGE compared to the old 2.8" screens found on most older Windows Mobile smartphones. Even the 3.6" screens found on the new HTC Touch Pro2 and the HTC Touch Diamond2 will look small compared to 4.3 inches.



The HTC HD2 also has the fastest processor of any Windows Mobile smartphone. The Qualcomm 1 GHz Snapdragon mobile processor will blaze, but will it also drain the battery? The HD2 is slim, but maybe the battery is slim and wide. The HD2 is so slim that it lacks a hardware QWERTY keyboard, but who needs buttons when the screen is this big?


This may be the ideal medical smartphone for older healthcare providers who have difficulty reading small text. Will a large screen = larger text size? Let's hope so.