Hands-on with the T-Mobile Shadow @ CES Las Vegas 2009!

It’s been a long time coming, this new T-Mobile Shadow II. Actually, the T-Mobile Shadow successor will be known as the… wait for it… T-Mobile Shadow! Sure, a name like “Shadow II” might be a little obvious, but at least it helps differentiate the two handsets. Since when did we start naming the sequels the same as the original?

Naming oddness aside, the new T-Mobile Shadow is in fact a decent Windows Mobile Standard (in other words, no touchscreen) smartphone. We had a chance to gets some hands-on time with the handset at the Pepcom Digital Experience event in Las Vegas, and we’ve got the pics to prove it!

T-Mobile launched the Shadow brand with the original T-Mobile Shadow. The aim with the Shadow brand was to bring smartphone features down to the entry-level market – a consumer smartphone, if you will. With this next-generation T-Mobile Shadow (remember, same name, new phone), T-Mobile is looking to capture more of the consumer smartphone market. The vertical slider mechanism is smooth and solid (as we’d expect from a handset made by HTC), giving the entire handset a high quality feel. Add to that a 2 megapixel camera, WiFi, and support for T-Mobile HotSpot calling, and you’ve got yourself one seriously capable entry-level smartphone.

Unfortunately, and expectedly, T-Mobile decided to leave out support for the 1700Mhz frequency band that would allow the Shadow to surf T-Mobile’s 3G network. But, remember, this is an entry-level smartphone. On the upside, the WiFi radio will ensure that you’re speeding down the mobile information superhighway whenever you’re within reach of a WiFi hotspot.

We’re still looking to see the T-Mobile Shadow hitting retail channels on January 28, which vibes well with T-Mobile’s own target in the “coming weeks.”