Got my HD7 on the UK launch day! You will not be disappointed! October 25, 2010

Reviewer:  Liam 

Had this phone for a few days now, not going to blab on in too much detail, all I will say is don't listen to all the bad reviews out there; try it for yourself!

I'll split a few of my favourite things up into bullet points:

- The phone is incredibly quick booting.

- The UI is beautiful and so smooth to use in comparison to other smartphones.

- The build quality is solid and it feels like a good phone in your hand with the metal surround instead of cheap plastic.

- The apps already on the store are of good quality and run very well on the phone, expecting a load more on the US release.

- Skydrive integration with the Office Hub and your photo's is very useful allowing super quick upload to the cloud.

- The one touch camera launch from the lock screen is very handy & the flash is super bright with double LED.

A few people have mentioned it doesn't have an AMOLED screen but for me the screen seems very good quality and is very nice to use with it being 4.3" it gives plenty to look at but this is just my preference.

Only real bad points at the moment are the lack of apps which should be fixed by the US launch as mentioned above and a few little buggy issues but nothing major as im guessing these will be fixed ASAP.

Liam

Exceeded my high expectations November 26, 2010

Reviewer:  Jeffrey H. Harwell "jharwellnorman"  (Norman, Oklahoma, USA) -

I've had the HD7 for about 10 days, now, and am extremely pleased. My previous smartphone was a Blackberry Curve, which was a great phone when I bought it, but it had gotten pretty out-of-date. But my university has a contract with ATT, and my RIM was with T-Mobile, and we never got the Blackberry to sync with the Exchange server. So I decided that my next phone would be a Windows phone, but held out for WP7.

I'm thrilled with the easy integration with the Exchange server. All I had to do was enter my network ID and password, and the Exchange server name, and it immediately synchronized. You do this by choosing manual configuration. The phone also keeps track of my Hotmail and Gmail accounts, but allows me to keep them separate, which is good. My Outlook calendar has its own hub on the start page, and when I come out of stand-by the phone automatically displays my next appointment on Outlook. You don't have to sync with Exchange on you desktop or laptop, the phone syncs automatically over the phone network.

I really like the People Hub. It synchronizes my contacts across Facebook, Twitter and my Outlook address book. I've pinned my wife's icon to the start page, and with one click I can choose between calls to her cell, to home, text to the cell, email, or checking her last Facebook posting. Same for my kids.

There are great Facebook and Twitter apps available that do everything I want very easily. Also very satisfied with the weather, news, and tech news apps I've downloded. I've also added a really cool flashlight app that has my friends with iPhones jealous.

I was surprised to find an Office hub. It has mobile versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. I can open all the attachments I receive by email, and can even edit them and email them. There is an Adobe reader, as well, for PDF. The PowerPoint slides are very clear, and you can zoom them, as well. Haven't tried to connect to an external display, but the output port is micro USB, so it should be easy.

The Pictures hub is really interesting. Not only can I use the Zune software interface on my PC to move pictures from my PC to the phone, but the hub also consolidates pictures from Facebook and I can browse my friends Facebook pictures from it, as well.

The phone comes with IE as the browser, but I have no complaints. It's quite fast, though it doesn't support flash, yet. Click on the hardware search button and if I'm on the start screen I go to Bing, but if I'm on the web it goes to Google. I've also added a Google search app that I've pinned to the start page.

The maps are beautiful and well integrated with the GPS, so it's easy to locate yourself on a map of where ever your are, with good search options for local search. Much superior to the map/search integration on my old Blackberry Curve.

I'm not a gamer, but had no trouble finding Tetris, Solitare and Blockbreaker apps.

Overall, I give the phone 5 stars. It was worth the wait. It does everything I had hoped and has even exceeded by highest expectations. I'm looking forward to the first upgrades, as I do miss the cut-and-paste and Flash. But I'm quite happy with the phone and will gladly wait.

Extremely Impressed November 12, 2010

Reviewer:  JackBurton 

Ok I was originally skeptical about how this OS would turn out. But I have to say MS did a great job here. There is much to love with this 1.0 version of the OS. Some skeptics were saying it was too late to play catch up. Well they are wrong and all i can say is that the OS is beautiful and flows like a dream from one transition to the next. I find myself just flowing along as I check my facebook, email and news feeds etc. The live tiles are an excellent addition and make the phone feel truelly alive like a personal assistant rather than a device you make work for you. Initial claims by some tech sites that apps load too slow and that the OS is buggy are false. There are so many features here I could go on and on about how it all works together to make all of your services feel as one. At least take my advice and play around with one for a bit you will walk away with a good feeling for the product.

As for the hardware ,I think pretty good the large screen works well here and the phone feels pretty sturdy.

There are some things that need to be fixed as it is with any new OS but I can see what is in the near future for this phone. For one some apps will not run while the phone is locked. MS said they are now allowing 3rd party apps to do this as long as they demonstrate that it will not overconsume the battery..which I think is a good thing. I like how ou can get to past apps using the back button but there also needs to be some kind of fast app switching.

All in all I am extremely happy with my phone and OS. Take my advice, at least take a look at this OS first hand with an open mind before forming an opinion.

Outstanding Phone! November 12, 2010

Reviewer:  Hiruu  (All around the World, baby!) -

I've been eyeing this OS for a long time (over a year), and I had an unlimited Blackberry thru work, so I really had no pressing need for a new phone, but WOW...what a difference. This found is simply amazing from both the hardware side, and the software side. I can rave about the OS to no end, but it does have a few glitches and areas needed for improvement. On the hardware front, this thing is super impressive, and I've found no major cause for compliant since getting mine on launch day from T-Mobile. Well, one actually, and it's the lack of accessories for the phone. The plastic case was $30 bucks, and they didn't even have screen covers, so I ordered a HD2 online, and will return this case when it arrives.

Pros:
- Super fast, Sleek and Powerful OS and Phone.
- Great Sounds and the Camera is pretty nice as well
- Unlimited plan for data rocks!
- Great amount of apps to start off
- Xbox Live integration is superb, and for any serious Xbox gamers, you have to consider this OS.

Cons:
- More Apps are needed, great start, but Microsoft needed to keep pushing this angle very hard.
- Battery life - but I'll use the tip provided be another reviewer to wear down my battery 3-4 times for a stronger charge.
- The opening tile screen is sleek, new and a great way to outlay functions, but the follow on screen for apps sucks. Once you have A LOT, it is going to be a pain to navigate thru them all. This needs to be fixed in the first update.

Windows Phone 7 is the real deal, and while I can't speak for the service or devices on AT&T, I can say that this HTC HD7 is as good as anything I've seen, and I've played around with IPhones, Nexus and Evo extensively.

Gorgeous screen and elegant presentation with some hiccups December 18, 2010

Reviewer:  Pikmin  (Allentown, PA) -

I switch to Windows Phone 7 (WP7) from BlackBerry Bold (BB). The 4.3" screen size is big and gorgeous, slightly larger than ATT Galaxy S or Verizon Droid X. WP7 is rich in animation and smooth screen transitions (sometimes I think it is too much). It is completely a different experience from BB. However, I have the following aggravations and complaints about WP7 and HTC HD7:
(1) poor battery performance
(2) weak quality of speaker phone
(3) does not support T-mobile UMA network (a shame!). I brought my BB overseas and called home via the hotel wi-fi network with no international charge. No need to use Skype or third party app because T-mobile supports UMA network.
(4) I cannot use my own MP3/WMA/midi file as ringtones. It is such an embarrassment that WP7 does not support custom ringtones. (Microsoft states it's not currently possible to add ringtones to your Windows Phone 7. Read the online how-to help)
(5) bare-bone features and built-in apps. Connection Manager is missing. There is not much customization in WP7.

One of the beauties of BB is the real keyboard. Obviously HTC HD7 does not have it. I program each key in the BB keyboard to speed dial. I just hold the key then the phone dials the programmed number. There is a dedicated button to enable speaker phone. I miss those features. I can do the same thing in WP7 with more clicks and taps. There is no "one-touch" speed dial like BB. The virtual keyboard of WP7 is not bad. I need to familiarize it.

To copy pictures and media files from PC to WP7, I use Zune Software. Anyway, I already install it to synch with Zune media player. The syncing procedure is much simpler than Microsoft Active Sync (for Windows Mobile 6.5 or earlier). Zune is also useful for download and install apps from Marketplace. I prefer to shop for apps and install the apps into WP7 from Zune software. If I use WP7 to listen music, there is a silent gap for a few seconds between one track to the next one. It is annoying, because some music expects uninterrupted transition to the next track. Zune media player does not have such silent gap. It is a WP7 bug.

Internet and email interfaces are excellent and much better than stylus-oriented Windows Mobile 6.5, but I can customize the font size, enable Java Script, browser profile, user agent, etc and much much more with BB. I can't with WP7. People question why it takes 3 years for Microsoft to develop Windows Phone platform after the launch of iPhone. I think Microsoft releases WP7 is "rush" mode and sacrifices customizations and numerous features. When should I wait for the copy-paste feature?

WP7 is very promising. It is not the best phone now, but it will. I gave it 4 stars.

bottom line review on the hd7 December 31, 2010

Reviewer:  Benji J. Koshy "Amazonian"  (CA, USA) -

Good starter product for windows 7. I'm typing this review on the phone. I still use an Nokia n900. Still prefer that over this one for a few reasons, but those are wearing thin. anyway, what's good:
1. Gorgeous screen, great resolution, great wp7 interface idea. The phone looks very professional with the clean clutter free, background free interface.
2. Lighting, quite adequate for me so far, might become a problem in sunlight, one of the inherent problems with a glossy screen.
3. Speed, processor and UI responsiveness to touch, rotation, switching apps, etc. are all great.

Problems with the phone design:
1. It is thin and slippery, easy to drop.
2. Speaker is very trebly sounding, and only mono. The fake grills in front make you expect great stereo sound, but that's not the case.
3. Lacks qwerty keyboard. In my opinion and experience, touchscreen keyboards won't come close to physical keys in terms of typing. Although, to be fair, I have seen kids type really fast on iPhone screens, so its a matter of time or preference.
4. Pink hue of camera.simply kills the whole thing for be. I'm expecting a fix soon from HTC. This is the second time, the hd2 had the same issue.

Problems with windows OS.
1. Inputting words, its hard to make corrections within a word, by default, the cursor only goes to the beginning or end of a word. To edit within a word, you have to press and hold and then manipulate a cursor that pops up, to where you want it in a word. Not an easy task, you'll find that your finger gets in the way.
2. When in landscape mode, the keyboard takes up a lot of room, you see very little screen.
3. BIG ONE: and I hate mobile for this - Bluetooth to other phones is blocked again. Transfer my 800 contacts for me then [...]!!!!
4. no cursor keys. Impossible to move the cursor backwards forward up or down. Have to stop typing and meddle on the screen, try it, not an easy thing to do. Really kills speed of workflow.
5. No decent task switching yet. Have to go back to home screen, then to apps screen to switch apps. The fact that they didn't think of this yet makes me wonder why these guys were hired in the first place, but I'm not a coder or software specialist, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.
6. No way to kill apps. It seems like they remain open in the background, so I'm not sure how wp7 handles the processing, but so far it hasn't affected speed of operation.
7. Haven't found a way yet to import contacts from other phones. Kind of ridiculous don't you think? It will list contacts from Facebook & Google, but not all our contacts are on there.
8. There's more, maybe I'll edit this post later, but have to go now.

Excellent phone November 21, 2010

Reviewer:  John R Young 

I have had my HD7 since the day it was released in the US, November 8, 2010. My previous phone was a T-mobile Dash running Windows Mobile Smartphone 6. I must say, the new Windows Phone 7 is simply fantastic. I have used my sister's iPhone 3G and I have used my brother's HTC Incredible which are both really nice phones. But the HD7 simply beats both of them. I love the 4.3" screen. It makes viewing easier and typing is much more accurate and a better experience than I expected, especcially when flipped horizontally, but even vertically the keyboard is good. The touchscreen keyboard was probably my biggest concern, but I must say, Microsoft did a fantastic job with that. I like the simple interface. Connecting to my work's secure WiFi network was a breeze, and the phone is very snappy (compared to my older, slower phone). While the app store is small, it is adding new apps every day and all of the apps I am personally interested in are there. What is missing is a good astronomy app, but I'm sure one will show up soon enough. :-)
Overall, Microsoft has done a fantastic job with the OS on the first release and it will only improve and get better. And HTC has put together a decent first release device. Of course, some upgrades I would love to see in the future to a similar device would be: a little better camera (although this one is much better than my Dash) and more memory (I could use more than 16 gigs). Microsoft for its part needs to add as soon as possible: multi-tasking, more apps (whatever it can do to encourage more app writing), and a fix to a problem I discovered related to synching your Outlook email with an Exchange 2003 SP2 server (you can't connect to the Global Address List).

This Phone's Screen Keyboard Kicks Competition Out of the Water!! November 17, 2010

Reviewer:  Katherine Metzger  (Washington) -

After years of messing with friends' smart phones, and dealing with my outdated cell, I decided it was time for me to upgrade to a smartphone. While I wasn't very keen on the HD7's screen keyboard, I was pleasantly surprised with how easily and accurately I could type. In the past, my experiences with on screen keyboards have been frustrating, slow, and inaccurate - the iPhone's touch keyboard in particular comes to mind. Even my boyfriend who swears against touchscreen keyboards was amazed with how easily he could type without having the wrong keys pressed.

Navigating around the phone is fast and intuitive - not to mention colorful! I love the vertical scrolling tiles much more than pages of icons like other smart phones use.

Once you hook up your email/facebook accounts, and load in your old phone's contacts, the phone finds matches between them, loads their facebook pictures, and makes navigating through social networking while on the go very convenient.

Since the phone is new and still "bare bones" it does lack a lot of customization that its competition has (like being able to have custom ringtones), Microsoft has already addressed that there will be a patch in early January, which will give the Windows Phones much more customizability than they currently offer. I love being able to personalize all my gadgets, so I was really disappointed when I found out I couldn't give certain people specific ring tones yet. Another downside of being so new is the lack of apps other smart phones like iPhones and Androids have, but more apps are available on the marketplace each day. Compared to other v1.0 smartphones, the windows phone excels at being a smartphone.

Easily, the best phone I have ever had. March 3, 2011

Reviewer:  David Lee  (Anaheim, CA) -

I absolutely love this phone. I have owned a lot of phones, Windows Mobile 5, 6, 6.5, Android all the way from 1.5 to 2.3, and iPhone 3G, and the HD7 blows them all out of the water. It's so dang smoothe!

It's just the perfect phone. Windows Phone 7 seems to have been made for this phone specifically. It has a good quality build... it feels sturdy. It's nice looking, has a huge screen, easy to use right out of the box, easy to sync with Zune. I just can't say enough great things about this phone. It even takes some pretty decent pictures, which is hard to find in any phone, regardless of MP.

Just amazing.

great phone! November 10, 2010

Reviewer:  M. Lim "Ober"  (Glendale, AZ) -

I got this phone from tmobile store on release day (11/08/10) and I can't stop looking at it or stop using the new Windows Phone 7. It is just so freaking smoothing and fast!

some cons about this phone:

1. the battery doesn't full charge itself until you discharge/drain the battery 3 or 4 times. if this isn't done, the phone will never be fully charge
2. the camera, when shooting white background such as snow, you see a purple haze which is captured in the final output. Some people got it bad and some people, like myself, only see a bit of it, mostly in the center.
3. doesn't have HSPA+.

It will only get better! November 14, 2010

Reviewer:  Jerry H.  (Bowie, MD, US) -

I like the phone and love the Windows Phone 7 operating system. (See update below)

Pros:
-Clean, uncluttered interface
-Very responsive
-Extremely stable (not one freeze or slowdown in 4 days)
-16gb of flash memory
-Multiple MS Exchange ActiveSync accounts allowed
-Call quality (clarity) is decent
-Screen colors are natural though a bit washed out
-Email and SMS are excellent and work well with the contacts list
-Combined calendar and contacts for all Exchange accounts
-No checkerboard pattern in the browser; it's usable even while the page is loading

Cons:
-Non-removable memory
-Battery life is bad (OK, I am pushing 3 email accounts)
-Picture quality is less than expected; pictures appear fuzzy
-The camera shutter button is too stiff; you really have to mash it
-No "4G" service, only 3G
-Too many key presses for some functions
-Reception wavers greatly; my former always 3G service is now often EDGE
-The hard plastic ridge at the top of the phone rubs against my ear
-The battery icon shows partially charged even when the phone is fully charged
-Earpiece volume is low; speakerphone volume is even worse
-Too many programs (especially 3rd-party ones) work only in portrait orientation

Windows Mobile 7 issues:
-Must use Zune to load media on the phone
-Must email documents to oneself or use Sharepoint to add them to the phone
-A lot of DRM-secured media cannot be added to the phone; Zune ignores it
-No real task manager; multitasking is limited and cumbersome
-App Marketplace searches done from the phone bring up everything, including music

Summary:
Despite its issues, I do like the phone and the OS. Having said that, however, if the Dell Venue Pro becomes available during my 14 day trial period, I will return the HTC and buy the Dell. Either way, Windows Phone 7 is a winner.

Update: April 10, 2011
I kept the HD7 and I have raised my rating from 3 stars to 4 stars. The OS for this phone is amazing, and with the recent upgrade from Microsoft it is even better. It now has cut and paste and the system runs even faster--not that it was slow before. Also, I understand that the Microsoft Marketplace now has more than 10,000 apps.

Windows Phone 7 remains the most stable smartphone OS I have ever used, including Android, Maemo, Windows Mobile and Symbian. It simply refuses to crash.

Some people have complained that the phone lacks directional keys. That's not quite correct. Simply hold your finger in an edible text field and a movable cursor will appear. It works very well, although it requires a little more patience with the new cut and paste feature.

Low speakerphone and earpiece volume are still an issue, and the speakerphone sometimes cuts in and out at the beginning of a speakerphone call, but call quality is acceptable.

I also like that I can update Word and Excel documents from my MS Live account and have them update on the phone.

My only major complaint about the HD7 is the thin ridge around the bezel of the phone. Turning the phone face down during a call engages the speakerphone; turning it face down when it rings silences the ringer. Without the ridge around the bezel the screen could get scratched. And making the ridge narrow allows for more screen real estate. However, with the low volume forcing you to press the phone against your ear, it's like pressing the dull end of a butter knife against your ear. It's sounds like a minor complaint, but when your mobile phone is used as much as mine is it's not minor.

Anyway, I'm sold on the OS at least and I can't wait for the next wave of Windows Phones.

The Best Gadget I Have Ever Owned November 19, 2010

Reviewer:  D. Fisher "DarrowWolfe"  (DarrowWolfe) -

So let's start with the complaints:
--> Its a big phone, the screen has over 4" of viewing area.
--> The screen, although bright and beautiful, is not quite up to par with the other Phone 7s out there.
--> HTC managed to put buttons just about everywhere where you hold it. So if you're call goes quiet all of the sudden it is probably your thumb pushing in on the side.
--> Office Mobile better get beefed up soon or Microsoft is going to lose what little potential edge they have in this phone.

And that's where my complaints end. Microsoft did a very wise thing to scrap their traditional tiny Windows concept for Mobile devices and made the user interface fun and inviting. Although there aren't a ton of Apps available right now for Windows Phone 7s I am not necessarily the type to overload a phone or computer with a lot of extra software.

The Windows Phone OS is easy and very responsive to flicks, pinches, and presses on the HD7. The coolest thing about the HD7 and Phone 7, however, was when I typed in my Windows Live ID and the phone filled up with some 200 hundred of my contacts within seconds. I connected to my work's Exchange server and all of my business contacts and email came up in seconds. The call quality is stellar (although I can only compare it to the previous three cell phones I've owned, all of which were terrible)and calls have not broken up on me at all yet.

Best surprises:
--> Kick stand!
--> I never thought I would actually enjoy playing around on a cell phone. Even test driving the Droid X and iPhone I never really understood people's attachment to cell phones.
--> This phone is one of the best sounding MP3 players I've heard yet! I was not expecting anything at all when it came to sound quality but HTC really put some effort in making this phone a real entertainment machine [using the headphones, that is. The built-in stereo speakers are only useful for conference style calls].

The battery life takes me through a day as long as I make sure to turn the WiFi off when I leave my house. With the WiFi turned on the battery life is almost exactly half of normal. Please note, I have had this phone for one week so I have as of yet had something buggy happen with the phone. I'm sure the bugs will come as I use it more and add more Apps.

Best smartphone ever November 29, 2010

Reviewer:  T. Davis  (Seattle, WA USA) -

As a phone the HD7 has been great so far. As a smartphone it's been easier to navigate and use than Windows Mobile 6 or 6.5, iPhone 4, or any of the Blackberries. Synce and wireless sync have been quick. It auto-discovers and logs in to wireless access points much more effectively than any of the other smartphones I've used.

Office Mobile 7 is easier than ever with the massive screen on this device, and works great with cloud-based docs on skydrive and Office Live 2011. Ability to open, navigate, and edit Office files on the device is a huge plus. With its kickstand and huge screen, it's also useful for lunch-table powerpoint shows or visio diagramming.

The camera works great and I love the simplicity of automatic sync with skydrive. Within seconds of taking a picture, or minutes of taking a video, it's already copied from the phone onto protected storage.

solid, flawless, useful phone with a large screen November 14, 2010

Reviewer:  ZN "ZN" 

I have used this phone for 3 days. I have to give it a 5 star as it is fast, nice looking, very very reliable. its extra large screen allows a better touch keyboard. configuring everything is simple/easy. comparing this with earlier verson of MS phone, it's day and night. i got all the apps needed (stock, weather..) for free.

One of the better T-Mobile phones November 22, 2010

Reviewer:  emancipator 

In this review I'll talk both about the HTC HD7 in general, with another section that focuses somewhat briefly on Windows Phone 7 - starting with the HD7.

Pros:
* Sleek design that has a nice heft to it.
* Huge, vibrant display.
* The HD7 is quite quick performance wise.
* 16GB's of storage
* The screen is extremely durable.
* Good call quality.
* Large screen makes the on-screen keyboard a dream to use.

Cons:
* Can't swap out Micro SD card without voiding the warranty.
* The display has some viewing angle issues, and the black levels aren't great.
* Accidental touches of the 3 main buttons (back, search and home) happen a little too often.
* Camera and video quality are pretty pedestrian.
* The battery cover feels ridiculously cheap, compared to the rest of the phones construction.
* Annoying `GSM buzzing' noise when using headphones.

?
* Touch sensitive buttons are love-or-hate.
* The kickstand on the back of the phone - why?

Design and aesthetics

The HD7 has a very sleek look to it, there is nothing exceptionally exciting about the look of it but it is certainly quite good looking in general. The phone is big, very big but pretty reasonably thin and also pocket able. Dark chrome sides wrap around the entire side of the phone, with the bezel just around the screen being an un-obstructive black. The back of the phone is a gun metal grey with a few brushed metal accents that look very nice - with the entire back being smooth to the touch. A few more details about the front of the phone that stand out are the touch sensitive buttons, and the two gaps at the top and bottom of the phone that have a mesh grille over them - they sure look like speakers, but alas they are not. Just for looks. Speaking of just for looks, what is with the kickstand? It works fine, but while the display on the HD7 is quite large, it's not large enough to sit on a table with the kickstand up and watch as if it's a television. I just don't understand the need for it.

The buttons in general are love-hate with me. On the love side, we have the camera, power and volume rocker buttons that work perfectly fine and are designed in such a way as to not stand out in an odd way from the rest of the phone. On the hate (well, maybe more like `annoying') side are the three main touch sensitive buttons. They are just too easy to accidently brush against with some part of your hand - there have been more times than I can count that I was exited out of something I was doing because of it. But on the plus side the phone gives off a quick rumble as feedback when you do push one of the touch sensitive buttons.

Also of note are the Micro USB and standard 3.5 mm headphone jack on the bottom of the phone. I'm sure the USB connection being on the bottom will come in handy for whatever dock will inevitably be released.
Also, no stereo speakers to be found here - there is one speaker on the back of the phone. It's simply passable, it sounds fine and doesn't distort but it's also not exceptionally loud (or quiet.) It's just kind of `there.' You're never going to hear it and think to yourself `man, this sounds great' or vice versa.

Display

And then we have the display. As I'm sure many of you know, it's freaking huge - and quite honestly I think 4.3" displays are about as big as you can put on a phone without it just being ridiculous. The display in optimal conditions looks downright beautiful - it's vibrant, colors and text look extremely nice and bright on it -- but being a WVGA screen it has associated black level and screen angle problems. Colors get washed out and text gets slightly harder to read when the phone is held at an angle, and also any completely black screen that is displayed never actually looks black.
If you've used a phone or media player with an OLED screen, then these problems will immediately stand out to you, if not, then you probably won't notice.
The touch screen is also very responsive, never had a problem with it not registering swipes or touches, but as in keeping with mobile phone tradition - the screen will look pretty greasy after a little use (get your shirt sleeve ready.)

Bits and pieces

The sound quality when using headphones (for the record, I use Sennheiser HD555's and Klipsh Image S2's) is surprisingly good. The HD7 replaces my Zune HD for playing media and while I was expecting a slight step down, it really wasn't. It's not quite as loud as the Zune HD, but it compares really well with it. And if you're worried that you won't get any of the EQ presets (yes, presets - there is no custom EQ) HTC has you covered. HTC makes a free app which lets you tinker around with EQ presets to your heart's content along with some surround sound options which are...well, I'm sure someone will like them - I didn't. I find EQ presets to be complete garbage on any portable media but again, I've seen some people raving about the HTC EQ app so there are people out there who like it - so file this one under `to each their own.' : )

Also, ever hear that annoying buzzing noise when you have your phone on and near speakers? Yeah, you're going to hear that quite a bit with headphones on. Faint, but it is there.
And about the speed: the phone is quite snappy, you can fly in and out of different menus at will with no slowdown. The only slowdown I ever encountered was with third party apps, one in particular was almost un-useable because its slow speed. I'll chalk that up to no fault of HTC.

Windows Phone 7

Windows Phone 7 is really something special, especially when you remember this is the first run of this new OS. A lot of things are amazingly well thought out, but like many things it's not perfect.
Also for full disclosure, aside from Xbox Live, I'll be skipping my thoughts on most of the social service integration (such as facebook), as I do not use them.

The UI

WP7's UI is beautiful in a minimalistic sort of way. It gets out of your way, and lets you get where you need to go with no real hassle - while also showing a huge amount of info via the live tiles on the home screen. The calendar tile shows upcoming events (as well as on the lock screen), the email and messaging tiles have information on unread messages - etc. Third party apps can also be coded to take advantage of this, although up to this point most do not. As of this writing less than 10 apps do, which is a shame.
Just about anything can be pinned to the home screen -- apps, specific albums, specific files from Microsoft Office - etc. Very handy if you need to get to that OneNote file really quick. You can even pin a location from Bing Maps on it.

On-screen Keyboard

I wanted to give WP7's keyboard its own little space in this review, to simply point out how nice it is. With the HD7 especially it's simply a dream to use. The large screen of the HD7 makes the keyboard, especially in landscape mode so easy and natural to use with two hands. And the little well thought out details on the keyboard make it a really enjoyable experience. Double tapping space for a period, the way you can quickly jump back and forth between different sets of punctuation marks and numbers - it's just great overall.
Zune

Another smart decision was to use Zune (Microsoft's line of portable media players, and the associated Zune PC software) as Windows Phone 7's music and video suite. It honestly is like having a Zune HD inside your phone - as a heavy user of the Zune HD for over a year I can tell you right now you compromise nothing when switching over to using the HD7 as your primary music player. In a lot of ways it's better, the most important way is you now have a constant data connection with your phone to browse, stream and download music from the Zune marketplace whenever you like - not just when you're using a Wi-Fi connection.
There are a few things you'll leave behind when switching from the Zune HD to WP7. One is the Smart DJ (takes a song or artist and finds similar music) feature is not in WP7, nor is the `social' where you could see what your friends have been listening to from your device.

Xbox Live

This surprised me with how well it works. First off, not every WP7 game gets the Xbox Live treatment. Only the games on the Zune marketplace with a big, bold `Xbox Live' banner get that. They have achievements and leaderboards which is all pretty well done.
But the revelation here is the way you can check your Xbox Live friends list and see what they're up to, look at every game you've played at see what achievements you've earned and what you're missing, check messages, edit your profile and edit your avatar. It's really great.

Internet Explorer

I've been using IE quite a bit on this phone. I was worried, because the browser included within the Zune HD is really quite honestly middling at best. However, Microsoft really seems to have taken the complaints of the Zune HD's browser, fixed (most) of them and packed in WP7 with great results. Still no flash support, but you probably already knew that.
Standing out to me the most is the sheer speed of the browser. It's quick to render pages and super snappy when pinching to zoom or swiping to scroll around pages. Also you get (a finite number of) tabs to work with, and a perfectly acceptable bookmark system.
Though one thing that bothers me is when in landscape mode within the browser, I can't seem to find a way to bring up the address bar and have to reorient the phone in my hand back to portrait mode. It's extremely annoying, and I hope that I'm just missing something here and there is a way to do it.

(WP7)Bits and pieces

Windows Phone 7 being the first run of a brand new mobile OS, it's got some issues. The most glaring to me personally, is that you can't use a custom file for a ringtone or any other alert. It's not a deal breaker, but it's...odd. Also missing is a copy and paste feature, which is slated to be included in a software update sometime in early 2011, which will make plenty of people very happy.
Also I've noticed a few awkward bugs with the software, such as Internet Explorer crashing, exiting you back to the home screen and simply refusing to open again until you reboot the phone.

Conclusion

The HD7 is a great phone, and I'd definitely recommend it for someone looking to get a large displayed phone on T-Mobile, and WP7 only sweetens the deal.
The few quirks with the phone such as display angles and such really only become a big deal to anyone who has used something significantly better, and even then it's still fine. WP7 is something really special, and I also don't hesitate to recommend giving it a whirl with the HD7 or otherwise - any odd mis-step with the OS will likely (or has been confirmed to) to fixed right up with upcoming updates, such as copy and paste or custom ringtones and alerts (I mean, they have to add that at some point, right? Right?)
I give the HTC HD7 a "great, but not perfect" 4 stars.

Great Phone, Easy to use, Beautiful Win Mobile7 November 18, 2010

Reviewer:  Paul Woszczyk 

I bought the phone a week ago. So far no problems at all. Works just perfect. 3 days ago i give it to my wife, she does not want to give it back to me. You have to play with the phone to realy understand how great it is. Netflix rocks! Facebook unbelivable! perfect aps. Amazon have the phone for $49.00, so i am getting second one for myself. (I have Android G1, HTC HD2, Iphone for few weeks). HTC HD7 is simple to use, very easy, text and email is sooo easy, very good internet browser, and nice games. You sinc the phone with ZUNE, and Win Live. You do not need Microsoft My Phone. HTC Hub is cool.

A refreshing change from iphone and Android phones February 17, 2011

Reviewer:  Dave  (San Diego, CA) -

HTC HD7 (Windows Mobile 7 phone):
Let me start by saying Microsoft's Living Tiles really differentiates this operating system over all the others, and in a very good way. They are very easy to view, create, and position. But most of all, they offer lots of information at a glance. Almost any type of link can be transformed into one of these tiles and setting up outlook or any other type of email is incredibly easy. Add T-Mobile's $10 data plan (200MB/month) and you've got a super-phone for very little cost.
I have noticed that by monitoring Outlook messages and occasionally surfing the internet, I never get close to using up the 200 MB max. However, having three types of email links downloading messages constantly will use up that 200 MB fairly quickly.By the way, for a great overview of all the Windows Mobile 7 features, check out: [...]
Getting on to the phone itself, I am very impressed by the camera - excellent clarity, especially with close-up and outdoor shots. Sending photos by email or to SkyDrive (Cloud storage for viewing from any computer) is extremely simple and quick.
Boot-up is also very fast compared to any other phone I have tried.
As a business phone, you just can't beat having Microsoft Office built-in. It includes Word, Excel, and Powerpoint and the HD7's huge 4.3 inch screen is great for viewing Excel spreadsheets as I do, often. For those who love music and videos, Zune is amazingly good, as is the Xbox live. The Need for Speed game is very entertaining. To be honest, I can't think of anything I'd like to change about this phone, especially after seeing what will be included in MS's update for Mobile 7, which will be out, shortly.

Great phone. Give it a chance November 14, 2010

Reviewer:  Elizabeth Nwosu  (columbus, OH USA) -

I bought the HTC HD7 yesterday (11/13/10) at my local t mobile store. I've already put all my old photos and videos on it using zune(really easy to sign up and get started). Right now I'm listening to slacker radio. I watched a netflix show yesterday.
I've got my insight and yahoo emails pinned to my home page, as well as the columbus metropolitan library website. You can pin almost anything to the home page. The tiled homepage is awesome. You can customize the color of the tiles & how you want them arranged.
The phone is really, really, really fast. I can't say enough about this phone. The more I explore, the more things I find. I don't use it for work or to write papers so the inabilty to cut & paste doesn't bother me.
I guess you just have to read the reviews to see if it's the right phone for you. There are lots of web sites that will tell you exactly what the phone can & can't do. For me, the inability to have customized ring tones is outweighed by all the things it can do. If you are interested in this windows phone, don't let the bad things people are saying disuade you. Read and learn for yourself to see if it's the phone for you. I'm very glad I didn't listen to the nay sayers.

After almost 1 year using this phone, it just became the ULTIMATE Smartphone!! October 1, 2011

Reviewer:  Mantrix "the Lord of the X-Dreams"  (Baton Rouge, LA USA) -

I will keep this review to the minimum because obviously the pros and cons of this phone have been discussed extensively in the previous posts from other users but I am a firm believer that an objective review can only be given when you have tested a product over a lengthy period of time, otherwise you end up with these 5 stars and 1 star reviews from users that have used the product for a couple of days only and even though these can be very useful for you to have an initial idea of what you my be getting yourself into,they do not say much about the RELIABILITY of the product; In this particular case, I must say that after the latest upgrade to MANGO 7.5, this set just got WAY BETTER than what it already was, the improvements made to the whole operating system are so "Radical" that I feel I am playing with a brand new phone over again, and if this is the kind of free upgrades you can expect from MICROSOFT for their devices, then I can undoubtedly say that after almost 1 year using this OS I will stay with WINDOWS PHONE for a long long time to come,

Cheers everybody and if you haven't tried this phone yet, give it a try, you will be glad you did

Perfect July 8, 2011

Reviewer:  Saint Tardamus 

Now THIS is a phone. I've always said that phones are a very personal thing. If you want to play with the OS and get into the code, then get an android. If you want to have a beautiful device, then go with an iPhone. If you just want a phone that works, and gives you everything you could dream of, get a windows phone.

This model has a beautiful screen, is very powerful, and has never given me any issues. Can I say that I love my phone? Because I do. It makes life easier and more fun. The complete integration with Office and Outlook means that I can be pretty much anywhere and stay connected to work. The excellent virtual keyboard means that I can get actual work done on my phone. The giant screen and connection to XBOX Live means that I can have lots of fun with my phone. The Netflix connection means that I will always have something to watch, no matter where I am.

My only detraction is that there is not Audible.com application yet. As soon as that is created, I'm done. No more phones for me. I will always go with a Windows Phone.