O2 to offer HTC smartphone with Windows Phone 7

O2 has nabbed what it is calling an 'exclusive' deal for its customers to offer a HTC smartphone running Windows Phone 7, Microsoft’s new mobile operating system (OS).

The HTC HD7 phone has a 4.3in touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera that enables HD video recording and 16GB of memory. To make it easier to find favourite applications and tools the OS has bundled these together so they can be accessed through a series of hubs.

The People hub, opened from the personalised start screen, is where all contacts sit alongside Facebook and Windows Live friends, pictures and feeds. The Games hub can connect to customers' Xbox Live profiles and is where they can play games against their Xbox Live friends, join leaderboards and earn achievements.

The Office hub allows customers to view and edit Word, Powerpoint and Excel documents, and create notes in One Note Mobile, which the user can sync wirelessly online. Movies, music and TV are accessible through the Music and Video hub.

Steve Alder, O2 general manager for devices, said: "Windows Phone 7 is a completely fresh start for Microsoft and brings them right into the smartphone space. The large memory and big screen on the HTC HD7, a great exclusive for O2, means that our customers will get the very best experience out of Windows Phone 7."

The HTC HD7, which is currently exclusive to O2, will be available from 21 October on the company's Pay Monthly Smartphone and Pay as You Go (PAYG) tariffs.

The HTC HD7 is free on the network operator’s 24-month tariff that comes with 900 minutes, unlimited texts and 750MB UK data for £40 a month. The phone will cost £379 on O2's PAYG tariffs.