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Hands on with the HTC HD2

CNET gets a hands-on look at one of the sexiest Windows Mobile devices, the HTC HD2.

Bonnie Cha Former Editor
Bonnie Cha was a former chief correspondent for CNET Crave, covering every kind of tech toy imaginable (with a special obsession for robots and Star Wars-related stuff). When she's not scoping out stories, you can find her checking out live music or surfing in the chilly waters of Northern California.
Bonnie Cha
2 min read
HTC HD2
HTC HD2 Bonnie Cha/CNET

Of all the Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphones announced this week at CTIA Fall 2009, the HTC HD2 is arguably the sexiest and most powerful of the bunch.

The HD2 boasts a 4.3-inch WVGA (480x800) capacitive touch screen and is powered by Qualcomm's new 1GHz Snapdragon mobile processor, all while measuring just 0.43 inches in thickness. It also offers an HTC Sense user experience, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, a 5-megapixel camera, a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack--the works.

With those kind of impressive specs and sexy looks, can you blame us for being disappointed when it was a no-show at Wednesday night's Mobile Focus event? Well, someone must have heard our nighttime prayers because HTC America's vice president of sales and marketing, Jason Mackenzie, presented us with a surprise this morning: the HTC HD2.

Though it wasn't running final software, we were impressed with the phone's responsiveness, the customizable user interface, and then there's the screen, oh, the beautiful screen. Images and text absolutely pop and you can see so much more at a glance given the extra-large screen. Perhaps the best part? HTC has added multitouch capabilities so, like the iPhone and Palm Pre, you can pinch your fingers to zoom in and out of Web pages, photos, and e-mails.

When can you get your hands on this thing? Well, as SlashGear reported Wednesday, HTC CEO Peter Chou said the company is working on a U.S.-compatible version of the HD2 for release in 2010. HTC America would neither confirm nor deny this, but Mackenzie added that the intent for the device is global distribution. When asked about possible U.S. carriers, Mackenzie didn't get into specifics but did say that the good thing about the HD2 is that it wouldn't be hard to pitch, and we certainly agree.

So while we wait, you can check out some hands-on photos of the HTC HD2 below. We'll add more commentary and first impressions soon, but feel free to get the discussion going on your thoughts of the HD2.