When Phones Were Laptops: HTC Universal, 2005

In 2026, shrinking a laptop to handheld size requires a folding phone, some kinda stand, a keyboard and a mouse: at least $2,000 worth of gear carried in a minimum of two pockets. Twenty years ago (as with many things) the “pocket laptop” was much simpler. On this episode of When Phones Were Fun, we're rewinding to 2005, when a company that would come to be beloved for its “High Tech Computers” has just dropped the most ambitious mobile computer of its time. You might know it as the O2 XDA Exec or the T-Mobile MDA Pro or the iMate JasJar – but its true name is the HTC Universal. [ABOUT THIS VIDEO] This is the latest in a series of MrMobile videos exploring the mobile tech world's most vibrant period in design and experimentation. In “When Phones Were Fun,” Michael Fisher re-reviews cellphones from the golden age of mobile, the decade-long span from the turn of the century to approximately 2013. This episode was produced with two HTC Universal units, one purchased by MrMobile and the other donated by Charles Goin. MrMobile does not offer manufacturers the opportunity to preview, edit or approve content before publication. Neither HTC nor any other manufacturer provided compensation in exchange for this coverage. [SOCIALIZE] https://instagram.com/themrmobile https://threads.com/captain2phones https://twitter.com/captain2phones https://mrmobile.tech [DISCLOSURES] Additional information concerning MrMobile’s ethics policy can be found here: https://mrmobile.tech/ethics