HTC HD2 v. iPhone, so who is the winner ?

For instance, it has a slightly quirky multi-touch browsing feature and initial tests have revealed that the multi-touch feature seems to be slightly lagging compared to other smartphones despite HD2 running on 1Ghz Snapdragon processor. The lag is especially noticeable when the accelerometer doesn't work right away when browsing the Internet.

Also when it comes to form factor, iPhone scores over HTC HD2. Unlike HD2, which measures 121x67x11 mm and weighs 157gm, iPhone measures only 115.5x62.1x12.3mm and weighs a mere 135 gm. Which means that iPhone is less bulky, more comfortable to hold and feels less heavy in the pocket.

Moreover, the internal memory of HD2 seems slightly lacking as at 512MB, you will pretty much find yourself running low on space soon enough. Which is unfortunate as considering that HD2 is being billed as a heavy-duty multimedia phone thanks to its large screen, it hardly has sufficient space for storing media files, particularly videos. Of course, you could get a high capacity SD card for the SD card slot, but you will still want your other files and map data stored internally on the device. In comparison, iPhone comes with option of 16GB or 32GB storage capacity (though it lacks a memory card slot to expand on its built-in storage).

Also, though HD2 is capable of multi-tasking (thanks to HTC Sense), yet, the function hogs a lot of memory and there is still some lag when opening and switching applications.

The HD2 also does not have a dedicated QWERTY keyboard so messaging is not as fast and easy, but at least the onscreen keyboard helps.

Moreover, HD2's Windows Mobile 6.5 platform, though the latest, still is far behind the critically acclaimed iPhone OS and even Google's Android OS.

And, though HD2 allows you access to Windows Marketplace, a service similar to the iPhone's App Store that allows users to download tons of software and applications on to their device, the offering is pretty limited (around 200 apps) compared to 90,000 apps available in Apple App Store.

Also, HTC could have done better by installing Windows Mobile 7 instead of the Windows 6.5, which is seen as a stop-gap measure before Windows 7 is launched by Microsoft next year.

Of course, the GUI in Windows 6.5 is more friendly than its predecessor Windows Mobile 6.1, more simplified (similar to Zune) and less fiddly. In fact, everything from e-mail to Bluetooth is now set up through better looking wizards and the whole thing is really targeted at users looking to make the upgrade from a feature phone to a smartphone.

HD2 also does not have video recording capability like iPhone.

But, the biggest drawback of Windows Mobile 6.5 is that unlike Google Android, Symbian S60 and iPhone, there is no "real" multi-touch feature in Windows Mobile 6.5 and one still needs to use a stylus for certain application, such as Windows Media Player. Rather, unfortunate, considering that Windows Mobile 6.5 release was meant to be a move-away from the use of the stylus and toward more touch-friendly icons and buttons.