HTC Surround hands-on (photos)

Along with the LG Quantum, the HTC Surround will be available this holiday season as part of AT&T's Windows Phone 7 line. The Surround carries a price tag of $199.99 with a two-year contract.

HTC has always made solid hardware, and the Surround is no exception. The phone features a 3.8-inch touch screen and has a slim profile while still feeling very solid in the hand.

What's unique about the HTC Surround is that it features slide-out Yamaha speakers with surround sound. Though we were in a noisy room for the launch event, we could still hear music coming from the speakers. We'll have to wait till we get the phone in for testing to really judge the quality, however.

On back of the speakers, there is a kickstand, so...

...you can place the phone on a flat surface and enjoy music and video without having to hold it in your hand.

All three of AT&T's Windows Phone 7 devices will include U-Verse Mobile, an app that allows you to download and watch TV shows from your phone. The service, however, costs $9.99 per month.

Bing Maps is tightly integrated into Windows Phone 7. You can use voice search to find businesses close to your current location. It also offers aerial maps and turn-by-turn navigation.

Windows Phone 7 brings a much improved mobile browsing experience with Internet Explorer 8. Though we found it rather slow during our technical preview, the Surround did a pretty decent job of loading CNET's full Web site.