T-Mobile HTC HD2: What a difference a carrier makes
It's not often that a carrier-locked phone bests an unlocked version in anything other than a subsidized up-front cost, so when rumors surfaced late last year that T-Mobile would be bringing the HTC HD2 to the US in early 2010, I went ahead and purchased an international model anyway. Sure, it wouldn't be able to hop on to any of the 3G networks we have here, but I was only interested in it as a casual-use MID for around the house anyway, so WiFi was good enough for me.
I sized it up when it arrived but while I was trying to make it better with a handful of tweaks, there was some talk about T-Mobile carrying a much improved HD2. I started thinking about selling my current HD2 to get the upcoming one after learning about its beefier specs and new media-centric focus, and once pricing was revealed, the deed was done.
My international HD2 was packed up and shipped off across the country to the gadget-buying folks at Gazelle.com, who paid me more than enough to fund the purchase of the contract-free HD2 from T-Mobile that was released today. Take a look at the comparison chart of both models below, and you'll understand why I have absolutely no regrets.
Note: Many of the T-Mobile goodies have been extracted and baked into some custom ROMS cooked up in the xda-developers kitchen for other HD2s, but the chart reflects both model's out-of-the-box specs.
T-Mobile HTC HD2 |
International HTC HD2 |
|
Carrier |
T-Mobile | None |
WCDMA/ HSPA |
1700/2100MHz | 900/2100MHz |
Processor | 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon | |
RAM |
576MB | 448MB |
ROM |
1GB | 512MB |
Display |
4.3" capacitive touchscreen (800 x 480) | |
OS | Windows Mobile 6.5 with HTC Sense | |
Extra Applications and Media* |
Barnes & Noble eReader, Blockbuster Movies on Demand, MobiTV, Gogo Inflight Internet, TeleNav, Flashlight, Slacker Radio, DoubleTwist, Visual Voicemail, Mobile Backup, Transformers, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen |
WiFi Router |
Games | Teeter, Guitar Hero 5 Mobile, Millionaire 2010 demo, Ferrari GT Evolution demo, Prince of, Persia HD demo, Tetris demo |
Teeter |
Virtual Keyboard | Standard on-screen keyboard Swype |
Standard on-screen keyboard |
Camera |
5-megapixel (digital zoom, auto focus, dual LED flash) | |
Dimensions |
4.8" x 2.6" x 0.4" | 4.7" x 2.6" x 0.4" |
Weight |
5.54 ounces | |
Box Contents |
16GB microSD card Silicone case MicroUSB cable Travel charger Stereo headset |
2GB/8GB microSD card Leather sleeve MicroUSB cable Travel charger Stereo headset |
* Applications that are common to both versions are not mentioned.