HTC HD Mini

Discontinued
16th February 2010

The HTC HD Mini follows a recent fashion of making "mini" version of big handsets, in this case the HTC HD2. The HD2 is a really big handset, so can the HD Mini reproduce its features in a more pocketable form?

Well.. sort of. The main selling point with the HD2 is probably the large 4.3" 480 x 800 pixel touchscreen display. The HD Mini comes with a much smaller (although still practical) 3.2" 320 x 480 pixel panel. The other features really are pretty similar though - the HD Mini supports GPS with a digital compass, WiFi and 3.5G data connectivity and comes with Windows Mobile 6.5.3 plus a number of other software enhancements from HTC. Multimedia support includes an FM radio, Windows Media Player and a 3.5mm audio socket. There's 5 megapixel camera on the back with autofocus as well.

At 110 grams in weight and 103 x 58 x 12mm in size, the HD Mini sheds about 30% of the weight and footprint of the HD2, so the HD Mini is really no bigger than most standard mobile phones. However, the processor has also been cut back - it's just a 600MHz Qualcomm 7227 as opposed to the 1GHz processor in the HD2, but then the lower resolution screen will reduce the amount of processing that will be needed. The internal 1200 mAh battery provides up to 7 hours talktime on 3G and 20 days standby time.

One really unusual feature is that the HTC HD Mini is designed to look good with the back off, although in practical terms this is not something you'd do very often. Undo the four prominent screws on the back and there is a neatly designed inner panel that holds the SIM card and memory card. This isn't perhaps as pointless as it first looks - it will be one of the first things that customers see when unpacking the phone, and showing this sort of obsessive attention to detail will leave a positive impression in customers' minds.

Despite the "HD" name, the HTC Mini HD can really be considered as a small step up from last year's HTC Touch2, but it is still a powerful and useful Windows smartphone for those people who don't want to carry around something that's too big.

The HTC HD Mini should be available in Europe from April onwards.

HTC HD Mini Promo Video

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