London - HTC fans rejoice – HTC HD2, the latest smartphone offering from the Taiwanese company, has finally reached the UK shores and can be had for free from UK wireless carrier Vodafone.

Yes folks! You can get the HD2 for free, for 2-year, £35 per month contract that gives you 900 free minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited calls to landlines and unlimited mobile internet (subject to 500MB fair usage policy) and webmail per month.

There's also a 2-year, £40 per month contract that gives you 1200 minutes of free talk time, unlimited calls to landlines and unlimited mobile internet (subject to 500MB fair usage policy) and webmail per month.

Vodafone is also offering 18-month, £40 per month contract that gives you 900 free minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited calls to landlines and unlimited mobile internet (subject to 500MB fair usage policy) and webmail per month.

And, there's also a 18-month, £45 per month option that offers you 1200 free minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited calls to landlines and unlimited mobile internet (subject to 500MB fair usage policy) and webmail per month.

But what's so exciting about the HD2? Well, you'd have to living under the ground if you do not know the answer to that one. That's because the HD2 is one of the meanest smartphones to be launched in 2009.

HTC HD2 boasts of a 4.3-inch WVGA capacitive touchscreen with a whopping 480x800 resolution, runs on the latest Windows Mobile 6.5 platform and is powered by a Qualcomm 1Ghz Snapdragon processor that not only makes the device road-ready for mobile internet use but also boasts of lightning-fast response when switching between applications, enjoying multimedia or playing games.

The HD2 is also the first Windows Mobile-based phone to come equipped with HTC Sense UI, which is based on the principles: "Make it mine," "Stay Close" and "Discover the Unexpected." This allows the user to create his own environment, to conveniently communicate with contacts through multiple channels, while the innovative features make the difference between local phone and online disappear. HTC Sense slightly resembles the TouchFlo which we have seen on other models, but HTC Sense, which lets you create personal widgets and screens for your own personalization and is capable of multitasking, takes things just that little bit further.

Other features include a 5-Megapixel camera with dual LED flash and auto-focus, WiFi, GPS, HSUPA, 3G HSDPA, GPRS, EDGE, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, FM radio, HTML (Opera) browser, virtual touchscreen-based keyboard, G-sensor (like accelerometer in the iPhone that senses if you rotate the device and changes the display to match), proximity sensor (to conserve battery life) and ambient light sensor, 448MB internal memory, microSD card slot, support for multiple audio and video formats, digital compass, FM Radio, HTC Footprints (geo-tagging), micro-USB connector, built-in stereo speakers and a standard 3.5mm headphone jack.

The HD2 will also be the first Windows Mobile-based device to reportedly come with the "pinch to zoom" option.

The smartphone will also have integrated applications that connect directly for Facebook, Twitter and YouTube allowing users to access data more easily.

The quadband smartphone, which measures 4.7x2.6x0.4 inches (121x67x11 mm) and weighs 5.5 ounces (157gm), is powered by a decent 1230mAh Li-Ion battery that has enough juice to power the phone up to 380 minutes (talk time) and up to 490 hours (standby time).

Besides Vodafone, the HD2 will also be available from wireless carrier T-Mobile and O2 and the latter's partner Carphone Warehouse on contract basis, which begins from £15 per month (customers need to fork out £260 for the phone initially) and goes up to £35 per month.

Alternatively, the HD2 is also available SIM-free and contract free for pre-order on Amazon UK but this version costs around £550. However, words are out that if you pre-order the HD2 from Amazon UK, you can claim a free HTC Mono Bluetooth Headset and free home delivery.

The HD2 is also available for pre-order on Clove in the UK where it is priced at £505. Clove promises to start shipping the smartphone from November 11. However, note that Clove price does not include shipping costs and there are no freebies around.

Other sites like Expansys and Insight are reportedly offering the HD2 SIM-free for £500 and £486 respectively.