Finally we have our Hands-On on one of Best Windows 7 Phone by HTC ie the HD7 which has the highest screen size and some amazing features. The moment we had the phone on our hand we felt that this is some real big phone when compared to using the iPhone 3GS all the time.
Design & Looks :
The phone looks just awesome but on a side note does look like a very delicate big piece of glass which if would fall down would shatter into pieces. Hence, there is always important to ensure that you buy a hard body case for the handset to make sure the risks of breakage are lowest.
The moment you put the phone on your hands you will feel that you have held a premium phone which would be atleast $500+ priced and the moment you unlock the screen you would get a beautiful tiled screen. Following this the main front part of the phone has a 4.3″ screen with speakers on the top and bottom. The steel speakers on the top & bottom of the front part is not on the front but placed bit backside giving you a space at that location.
Next on the backside there is a large camera sensor with a kickstand on the top of it which allows you to use the same as a stand to watch movies on your phone easily. Below that is a HTC logo followed by an irremovable bottom with the Windows Phone logo. On the top part of the phone is the lock switch and on the bottom is the reset button, 3.5mm headphone jack & mini USB slot to connect the phone to the power adapter or the PC for transferring files.
Most of the smart phones have the audio jack on the top which allows you to easily listen to music or make phone calls while the phone is on your top pocket but with the jack available in the bottom, this task becomes hard because the phone has to be kept upside down.
Camera :
One of the best reasons for buying this phone is that, it offers you with a 5MP camera powered with a dual flash. These days different smartphones are being launched with a Camera quality in the range of 8-12MP but the HD7 is powered with a comparatively lower MP but also with a dual LED Flash. The Camera Settings are very simple with a very limited number of options available to make changes. The lens would automatically focus on the object after 1-2 seconds and optimize for the best snap.
Camera Settings :
- Scenes – Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Sports, Beach, Backlight, Candlelight, Macro
- Effects – grayscale, Negative, Sepia, Solarize
- Resolution – QVGA (320 X 240), VGA (640 X 480), 1M (1280 X 960), 2M (2048 X 1536) & 5M (2592 X 1944)
- Metering Mode – Center, Average, Spot
- Flickr Adjustment – Auto, 50Hz & 60Hz
If you are planning to buy this phone considering the 5Mp then it’s not suggested because the quality is not really impressive and it’s just another normal camera with no special features. You can check the photos which were taken in this review to get an idea on the quality which we got using the HD7.
Sample Snaps with different effects :
Video Camera : The HTC HD7 can record videos at a 720P HD quality which is normally at 25fps again which depends on the conditions. You can enable the Video Camera with the Dual LED Flash mode in case you are on low light or taking the video in the night-time. Below is a sample quality checkup video taken at the highest available resolution.
Phone Interface :
When you Switch ON the phone, you would be welcomed with the ‘Windows Phone’ phrase following which after 5 seconds the main screen would be up, which is super speedy when compared other mobiles in the market like Nokia N8 which even after booting up take a lot of time in finding media, loading widgets etc. Next the interface would show you a few tiled boxes giving you an easy access to different options on the phone. The first and foremost option is the Phone or the Cellular Network option which once tapped would show you the last phone calls list and an option to move to the dial pad. Next to this is the ‘People’ section which would allow you to check out the contacts photos and other details found through the emails contacts.
Next there are different icons or tiles on the screen giving you access to different apps. You can easily sort them, remove them or add new apps on the main screen. It’s all set on the basis of a long touch and them drag and drop function. Along with this next to the tiles on the top right there is an arrow which leads you to the settings page.
All the settings of different apps and functions are very easy to manage and with a single tap you can make changes to different settings.
On Screen Photos :
Conclusion :
Conclusion :
Overall we are quite impressed with the phone and all the features of the same. The hardware part of the phone, configurations, body and other stuff is impressive but we are yet to review the marketplace and the Microsoft OS because of the country limitations and are currently able to access the apps which came pre-installed under the HTC Hub. Apart to this the handset looks totally classy and its worth the money considering we paid Rs 36,000 or $800 for the handset which came unlocked allowing us to use with any cellular network and there was no need to jailbreak. The camera is impressive and this is mainly because of the Dual-LED flash support which allows us to take great photos.
Unboxing Video :
Great Post.You explained each & every little concept of it.Keep it up.
All pictures good, except the first one. It’s very blurred.
Heard from a friend in US and he says that he can get it in 600 USD. Any recommendations?
The Windows Phone 7 is the simplest interface of mobile operating systems one has seen. Android although being open-source is not as simple as the former is. Sleek and beautiful, making the already large and gorgeous looking HD7 a better looking model than the iPhone and the Samsung Galaxy S device.