Enterprise Mobility: HTC Surround Borrows from Google Nexus One: iFixit Teardown

HTC Surround Borrows from Google Nexus One: iFixit Teardown

by Michelle Maisto

HTC Surround

Microsoft, HTC and AT&T introduced the Windows Phone 7—running HTC Surround—Oct. 11, calling it "the ultimate multimedia device." It retails for $200 with a new two-year contract.

Similar to Nexus One

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, shown here introducing the Surround and its Windows Phone 7 OS, might think its "a different kind of phone," but the iFixit team found it to be a lot like the Google Nexus One.

Dual Speakers

Eliminating the need for earbuds, the Surround has a considerable slide-out dual-speaker system with Dolby surround sound, and it can be propped on a kickstand.

Durable

Good news: The Fixit team found the speaker grilles slider mechanism (encased in red in the photo) to be pretty "hefty," so it "should hold up to years of opening and closing."

Internal Storage

Another discovery: The Surrounds "internal storage" is actually a 16GB microSDHC card, hidden behind some silver tape and two stickers warning that going any further will void the users warranty.

Chips

Five of the six major chips packages on the Surround are identical to those in the Nexus One, while the sixth is a "revised" version of the Google phones chip, reports iFixit. Seen here in orange is the Qualcomm 1GHz Snapdragon processor.

Good Call Quality

Like the Nexus One, the HTC Surround uses dual microphones and an Audience-made voice processor to cancel out background noise for better call quality.

Repair Rating

The iFixit team liked the phone, calling it "solid" and "capable," as well "audioriffic." But as it doesnt lend itself to easy repairs. The team gave it a 5 out of 10 on its "repairability" scale.