The HTC HD Mini is the Taiwanese gadget cobbler’s latest phone to use Windows Mobile 6.5. The OS is on its way out, so how does this skinned version stack up under closer inspection? And does the HTC Sense skin makes things nice and easy? Read our HTC HD Mini review: user interface to find out.
Read the rest of our HTC HD Mini review:
HTC HD Mini review: overall verdict
HTC HD Mini review: design and build
HTC HD Mini review: screen
Using the HTC HD Mini is a straightforward experience, aided in no small part by HTC’s decision to tweak Windows Mobile 6.5 to within an inch of its life. There’s not a Start button in sight. Instead you get the HTC Sense layer on top of the familiar honeycomb menu system, accessible by the dedicated Windows button.
Sense is not the slick, updated version seen on the Desire and Legend, but instead the older Windows edition. Coming from the Friend Stream-packing newbie, it’s hard not to be disappointed with what’s on offer. You do get easy, homescreen access to Mail, Messages, Internet, Twitter and Weather, but rendering is nowhere near as sleek as on Android, with the fonts appearing dated and the feel just not up to the HTC HD Mini’s Google-based stablemates.
That’s not to say the Sense is hard to use. It’s still breezy and you can tweak it to deliver real time info. It just feels like a step down when other phones are already besting it. And then there’s Windows Mobile. This is a platform that looks dated and with Windows Phone 7 on its way, the HTC HD Mini will soon be obsolete in terms of software. The main menu structure is easy enough to scooch around, but start digging down further into different settings and you’re served up a plethora of difficult to navigate options which plague the Windows Mobile experience.
It’s difficult to recommend the HTC HD Mini over other, sharper Android phones. HTC Sense is great, but knowing that there’s a newer, cleverer edition out there plays on your mind while you use it. The OS, also, feels out of date and not up to speed with the latest mobile skills. While we’re not suggesting that the HTC HD Mini is hard to use per se, only the most hardcore of Windows Mobile fans would suggest this is up there with its rivals. HTC’s insistence on sticking with the Big M’s ageing system seems bizarre and lets the HD Mini down big time.
Read the rest of our HTC HD Mini review:
HTC HD Mini review: overall verdict
HTC HD Mini review: design and build
HTC HD Mini review: screen
