HTC Surround User Reviews

The metal midsection, face plate, kickstand & the surround speakers adds a significant weight to the phone, but it looks good & feels solid in hand, the hardware specs are sufficient for a smooth & snappy Windows phone experience.

Had this phone for about 4 months. When I heard Windows was releasing a phone I thought the capibilities were going to be vast, but sadly they were not. I ended up starting up another line just to get the Motorola Atrix & get away from the phone. Definitely a phone for just "glance & go" people.

I just recently ordered the HTC Surround from At&t as a upgrade from my outdated and nearly obselete LG Vu and may i just say that i am super-siced. I have been reading all types of reviews and critiques on this phone an i cannot wait until I have it in my hands. Ive been doing so much research on this phone im almost an expert on it. My surround is en-route to my house and should be there tomorrow or tuesday at the latest. I have harldy read anything too negative about it, but i really want it in my hands so I can experience it for myself. I personally think HTC is really stepping their game up. I know many people with HTC brand phones from the incredible to the inspire and i am seeing more people with HTC phones than iPhones and I think its good for Windows to get a piece of the almost Apple dominated megabrand pie. The HTC Surround seems like a refreshing phone that will revolutionize the smartphone industry.

Apple: Take Note

I feel that it is important to follow up on my original review (“A breath of fresh air for smartphones”) since I have had the phone for 5 months.

I feel that the Start screen is so intuitive. It's very customizable and personal - you'll see that you can pin almost anything there.

MarketPlace has grown 10-fold (or more!) since my last review. There are lots of useful apps that make use of the system interface and device features. It's funny because almost every action on this phone is beautiful.

Some annoyances or problems... First, I totally killed the touchscreen just one week after I got the phone by dropping it *just* right. Luckily I was under a return policy and easily exchanged it. So be careful! Battery life leaves something to be desired but I have never found myself stranded. I'm a heavy data, Bluetooth, and GPS user.

Sometimes apps close unexpectedly. This is an annoyance, not a problem. I can't explain why certain apps (Facebook, Tech News Now) close, but they usually work perfectly once relaunched. Some nice things about Settings Hub: Bluetooth will automatically pair with a device. The device automatically checks for updates from Microsoft and will alert you when one is available.

I'm 110% satisfied with my HTC Surround. I wasn't thrilled with Apple or the Android devices available at the time and I see a lot of potential in this mobile OS. Microsoft seems *very* dedicated to getting Windows Phone 7 at the top of the smartphone arena.

I love this phone, i thought it would be full of glitches since its new but its not to bad. the screen is unresponsive sometimes but very rarely. takes a second to dial a number after you tell it to call, and the app market crashes every once in a while.

Ordered this phone last week and received it in mail Wednesday.

Straight out of the box, it worked like a charm. Had absolutely zero issues setting anything up. If you have MS Exchange email for work (like me), you will need help from an IT admin, but aside from that, importing ANY other email is absolutely seamless (Hotmail, GMail, Yahoo, any ISP, etc). Hotmail sets up automatically when you sync with your Windows Live ID, as does your XBL and Zune accounts, if they are tied to the same Windows Live ID. Honestly, a trained monkey could set this device up.

Wifi setup is as simple as turning it on and putting in your WEP/WPA/WPA2 security key (unless your network is unsecured).
Browsing in IE is seamless both in portrait and landscape modes.
I never want another tactile QWERTY keyboard (sorry LG Quantum), as typing on the virtual keyboard is a pleasure (hard to have a key stick on you if there's no key).
The slide-out speaker absolutely rocks and doesn't sound tinny at all. Still trying to figure out the 'surround sound' part though (have only had phone for 2 days). Kickstand rocks.
I can type without issue with just my thumb while holding the phone in portrait with little to no typos (buttons are a bit small, but I don't have issues, and I'm a pretty big guy).
Zune integration is 100% perfect. It's like Microsoft took a ZuneHD and added all of the other features to make it a smartphone.

You owe Microsoft another chance. Pick up a WP7!

The Windows Phone 7 user interface is absolutely beautiful. You'll find that everything you want/need to do can be done quickly and easily. The live tiles make perfect sense, rather than having separate and individual apps and services. The Surround's speaker is alarmingly impressive - the sound quality is exceptional. HTC Hub is a fun and aesthetically pleasing animated live tile. I find myself tapping into it constantly.

The Windows Phone 7 interface is quite refreshing and pleasant to use. A "traditional" smartphone right now relies on a home screen full of little icons/apps - quite messy looking, in my opinion. The WP7 home screen is full of customizable tiles--which are animated and show certain information--that simply make sense. The People hub combines all your contacts, along with their social networking updates. Mail and E-mail hubs are intuitive and easy to use. Music & Video hub combines all your media, both online and on the device, along with an actual radio. Internet Explorer is now a browser you can rely on and enjoy using. It displays web pages exactly as you see them at home - both in portait or landscape modes.

Overall, I feel iOS and Android are dated-looking user interfaces when compared to WP7. Go and check this phone out at an AT&T store - you will be impressed.