The one caveat for those planning to buy HTC's latest smartphone powerhouse is that the HD2 will be running Windows Mobile 6.5. The soon to-be-obsolete OS will be replaced by the newest, snazziest contender in the mobile space, Windows Phone 7 Series, later this year. So what are you to do if you want your 4.3-inch capacitive touchscreen and 1GHz Snapdragon processor now, but don't want to be stuck with old software later? You hack that thing!
A hacker--with no regard for the concept of official firmware--over at HTCPedia forums has managed to port the Windows 7 Phone Series OS to the HD2. The hacker, who goes by the handle tom_codon, claims everything is working great, including Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth; he even has the video to prove it.
However, it appears that the graphics driver isn't yet up to par with the rest of the software, as evidenced in the video by the laggy screen transitions. Hopefully this will be rectified as the OS matures.
With any luck, HTC and Microsoft get the hint and work together to release a Windows Phone 7 update for the HD2. Although hackers can always find a way, an official release announcement would mean that Windows Phone 7 diehards can start getting behind the platform as soon as possible. With Windows Phone 7 entering a crowded market full of iPhone, Android, and Blackberry, any head start it can get will be a good thing.
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