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HTC HD7

19 Oct 2010

Positioned as the flagship amongst HTC's fleet of Windows Phone 7 devices, the HTC HD7 comes with a generous 4.3-inch screen, Dolby Mobile, SRS surround sound and HTC Hub to complement toe Windows Phone 7 experience.

Tags: htc, microsoft, mobile phones, microsoft windows phone 7

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HWZ's Overall Rating: 8.0

Design:

8.5

Features:

8.5

User-Friendliness:

Performance:

7.5

Value:

7.5

HTC-exclusive apps

Decent video and audio playback

Useful kickstand

Bad buttons placement and design

Low battery mileage

Average imaging quality

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		<h2>More articles (2)</h2>
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			<a href="/review-htc-hd7-built-mobile-entertainment" alt="/product-htc-hd7/review?review=94610">HTC HD7 - Built for Mobile Entertainment </a>			</li>
					<li >
			<a href="/feature-microsoft-windows-phone-7-launch" alt="/product-htc-hd7/review?review=89945">Microsoft Windows Phone 7 Launch</a>			</li>
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			<h2 class="header-green">HTC HD7 - Built for Mobile Entertainment </h2>
		<span class="byline">Reviewed by Wong Casandra on Tuesday, 16 Nov 2010</span>
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		 		<h2 class="page-title">Overview &amp; Design</h2>
		 		<h3 class="page_title">HTC HD7 - Built for Entertainment</h3>
<p>As most avid readers of our site would known, the tidal wave of the Windows Phone 7 (WP7) OS&nbsp;has arrived, kicking off first with <a target="_blank" href="http://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/product-guide/view/90439/review/90445">LG Optimus 7</a>, and now the new HTC HD7 smartphone. HTC has had its fair share of Microsoft Window Mobile phones in its lineup from the HTC HD2, which garnered much attention for its large 4.3-inch screen, to the HTC Touch Diamond2. Unsurprisingly, HTC is one of the forerunners in a close partnership with Microsoft's Windows Mobile 7, and at the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/product-guide/features/view/89945">recent Microsoft Windows Phone launch</a> on the 12th of October, they unveiled a total of three HTC WP7 smartphones including the subject of our review, the flagship HTC HD7.&nbsp;</p>
<p>For those still foreign to the Windows Phone 7 OS, here's a short recap on what's the user experience about. Users familiar with Windows Mobile 6.5 will find themselves working with a totally new interface comprising of live tiles, hubs and apps. While the former's primary area of concentration is on productivity, Windows Phone 7 has rather aggressively branched out into social aspects of mobile user experience, namely its close integration with Facebook and Xbox Live.</p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img height="400" width="316" title="The HTC HD7 looking smart with a streamlined button layout and a clean Windows Phone 7 interface." alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01419_01.jpg" /></p>
<p>The HTC HD7 sports a huge 4.3-inch screen - the biggest one on the WP7 bandwagon so far - that&nbsp;sits nicely beside the existing family of 4.3-inch touch screen behemoths like the HTC HD2 and HTC Desire HD. That's not the only thing striking about the phone; the slim HD7 is built rather fashionably&nbsp;in the same vein as other HTC devices. The downside here is that the huge screen and its glossy sides are fingerprint magnets. The large screen size also means that the phone has rather large dimensions that it might not fit well in your pocket. On the upside, the phone feels sturdy with a rather heavy body.</p>
<p>Like the LG Optimus 7, the phone adheres to Microsoft's design guideline, such as sporting a 480 x 800 pixels resolution display as well as the three essential buttons on the face of the phone among others. However, the buttons aren't the physical type, but are touch-sensitive. While they are extremely responsive (even to light taps), they sometimes get in the way of navigation due to their proximity to the screen. The phone's other physical buttons don't fare well either. For example, the power button on the top is a thin and flat strip that is a nightmare to press. The experience is made worse since you have to constantly interact with it to unlock or lock your screen. The volume and camera buttons on the right profile are also equally flat and thin, but they are decidedly easier to press because of their more favorable positions.</p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img height="210" width="500" title="It is easy to spot the power button, but unfortunately, it is too flat and takes too much effort to start or lock/unlock the phone." alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01417_03_Cropped_0.jpg" /></p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img height="225" width="500" title="The Volume and Camera buttons are thin and flat as well, but are easier to press due to their position on the right profile. Besides the screen, take note that the glossy sides are also fingerprint magnets." alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01411_04_Cropped.jpg" /></p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img height="230" width="500" title="The ports have been laid out nicely side-by-side on the bottom with easy access - i.e., no covers to pry open. " alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01410_02_Cropped.jpg" /></p>
<p>We have encountered some bad experience with previous HTC phones with regards to removing battery covers, but we managed to easily snap it off the HD7. The bad thing is that the cover is made out of thin plastic and feels fragile, so do exercise caution and exert less force when opening it.&nbsp;</p>
<p class="rtecenter">&nbsp;<img height="361" width="500" title="There's a small gap that makes it easier to pry open the cover to the battery compartment." alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01412_Cropped.jpg" /></p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img height="332" width="500" title="The back is predominantly plastic, with the battery compartment taking the top half of the real estate. As you can see, the battery has to be removed first before you can remove or insert the SIM card. There's no SD card compartment here, but you can rely on the phone's hefty 16GB internal storage." alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01415_06.jpg" /></p>
<p>The obvious unique feature of the HD7 is that it comes with an aluminum kickstand that rests on top of the camera and dual LED flashes. The kickstand does not protect the lens, but works as a stand that can easily be propped for viewing photos or videos (think of it as a miniature photo frame). It feels sturdy and can be easily flipped out or snapped back without any cause for concern.</p>
<p class="rtecenter">&nbsp;<img height="390" width="500" title="The kickstand feels stable and props the HD7 at a good viewing angle for viewing photos or videos." alt="" src="/files/images/DSC01413_06.jpg" /></p>			</div>
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