Both the MT4G and HD7 have 3.5mm headset jacks, microUSB ports, power buttons, and physical camera buttons.
The HD7 does have a slick kickstand around the camera lens and I personally find these quite useful for enjoying media on the go.
The MT4G has physical hardware buttons and an optical trackpad while the HD7 has three touch sensitive areas below the viewable display. They both seem to work fine, but I tend to like the physical buttons a bit more.
A major difference is that the MT4G has removable storage media with support for microSD cards up to 32GB with 1.2 GB of integrated user accessible flash memory. The HD7 is limited to just the 16GB internal memory with no expansion capabilities.
They both feel good in your hand and seems to be built well. The volume button on the HD7 is a bit loose in the opening though and on the eval unit I had for about a week this has gotten looser and actually rattles a bit if you shake the device. The back removable battery cover of the HD7 is a bit cheap and thin feeling while the metal one on the MT4G is quite solid. The MT4G feels better in my hand with the narrower body and much better curves and angles with a denser, more solid feeling.
I am also a fan of the MT4G colors and think T-Mobile and HTC could have made the piece on the back of the HD7 surrounding the camera pink or some other color to be a bit unique.
Overall, my personal preference for the hardware is with the MT4G.
Windows Phone 7 is a pretty OS with slick animations and fast performance. There are some issues that bug me about the operating system though and these include:
Many of these can be fixed with software updates (Microsoft already stated cut, copy, and past will indeed be fixed with an update very soon) and some with application releases. I am a huge podcast fan and would love to see Microsoft add support for discovering and downloading podcasts through the Zune integration. However, the true multi-tasking seen on the Android platform may never come to this platform and I don't think Windows Phone 7 will ever be as customizable as Android.
Some of the pros of Windows Phone 7 over Android 2.2 include:
I have been using Windows Phone 7 for a few months and the OS has been rock solid with no crashes and just a few lockups recently in the Marketplace. On the other hand, I regularly see force close pop-ups, even in Android 2.2 on the MT4G.
I think people will find the sheer speed, fluidity, and consistency in the Windows Phone 7 OS to be fun and refreshing, but after time the constant loading with dots flying across the screen tends to get tiresome. I like the live tiles for email, but these are needed for things such as Twitter apps and Facebook too as the Android OS is much better at notifications. Windows Phone 7 is quite glanceable, while you can try to do the same through widgets on Android.
Some things I love about the Android OS on the MT4G include:
Cons of Android on the MT4G for me include:
Looking over these bullet lists and some of my comments, it seems pretty clear to me that Android 2.2 on the MT4G is my preference as well. Windows Phone 7 is a very slick operating system with some good quality apps, games, and media services, but it also is a 1.0 release and has definite room for growth while Android has had a couple of years to get refined and optimized for the smartphone user.
The HD7 fits fine in my pocket and even though it is larger than the MT4G I do not find the size to be much of an issue. The HD7 is a bit slick though and the evaluation unit slipped from my hands a couple of times (this has rarely happened to me over years of using these smartphones) and is now scratched on top next to the power button. It still performs flawlessly though so that shows it is a bit durable too.
I have only had the MT4G for about a week, but have loved carrying it and using it during that time. As I mentioned earlier it feels great in your hand and has performed very well with just a few force closes and no resets or complete lock ups.
I love the hardware and form factor of the MT4G, but if I honestly look at the EVO 4G (I did give it my pick as the top device of 2010 a couple of times) then I see there is nothing the EVO 4G cannot do that the MT4G can (except for Swype). The EVO 4G actually has the added bonus of a larger display, kickstand, and better included services (Sprint TV, NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile, Sprint Football Live, Sprint Navigation) than the MT4G.
So, for me personally it looks like I am going to return the MT4G and keep the HTC HD7 and EVO 4G. I get to keep using the Windows Phone 7 OS and seeing it develop from the ground up while still having the capability and functionality of an Android device. My wife likes her MT4G and will be keeping it and with the HTC EVO 4G we can still video chat with each other using Qik. T-Mobile has some excellent smartphone choices and thankfully with my additional Sprint account I have the luxury of choosing an Android device on another carrier to satisfy my needs.
I am sure there are many of you having to make this same choice and I am curious about which way you are going and what you think of these two platforms so please leave comments.
UPDATE: My buddy, Chris Leckness, happens to be conducting the same exact evaluation as me with the myTouch 4G and HD7 so I recommend you head on over to his post on GottaBeMobile to see which way he is leaning. It sounds like we are coming to the same conclusion and like Chris I may just end up keeping both ;)