4 of the best Windows phones

 Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 phones are the underdogs of the smartphone race, but that doesn't mean a Windows Phone handset isn't a solid contender for a space in your pocket. The Windows Phone operating system features an easy-to-use interface with a tile design you can organize to suit your needs. Many of the tiles for Windows Phone are live tiles that constantly update with new information such as the temperature outside or the price of your favorite stock. You'll get the information you need with a glance at your phone rather than needing to open up an app.

But a great operating system is nothing without great hardware to run it on, and there are quite a few excellent Windows Phone handsets out there. Here are a few of our personal favorites.

. Nokia Lumia 900

The Nokia Lumia 900 is going to be one of the first LTE Windows Phones on the block when it's released in the United States. Nokia signed a deal with Microsoft last year to focus some of its smartphone efforts on the Windows Phone platform, and the Lumia 900 is one of the first phones the manufacturer made for the operating system. Besides running on AT&T's speedy LTE network, the Lumia 900 is a standout handset because of its unique design. The phone has a svelte polycarbonate body with curved edges reminiscent of an older iPod nano. The Lumia 900 comes with free access to Nokia's Pandora-like music service, as well as free turn-by-turn navigation through Nokia Maps.

2. HTC Titan II

The HTC Titan II is another Windows Phone headed to AT&T's LTE network. The phone has a 4.7-inch super-LCD touchscreen — one of the best available on any Windows Phone — for watching videos and surfing the web. Its 1.5GHz Snapdragon processor ensures everything you do on the phone runs quickly and smoothly. The Titan II comes sporting a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera (pretty impressive megapixels for any smartphone) for snapping photos on the go and shooting 720p high-definition video, plus a 1.3-megapixel forward-facing camera for taking pictures of yourself or video chatting.

3. HTC Arrive

If you like having a physical keyboard to type e-mails and text messages on, then the HTC Arrive may be the right Windows Phone option for you. The Arrive has a full, slide-out QWERTY keyboard for updating your Facebook status or sending tweets on the go, and the 3.6-inch tilt-up display lets you check things out from the best angle possible as you type. The phone also has a 5-megapixel camera with 720p video recording. The HTC Arrive is available currently from Sprint.

4. Samsung Focus S

The Samsung Focus S has a slim, 0.33-inch form factor, an extremely rich and vivid 4.27-inch Super AMOLED Plus display, and 8-megapixel rear-facing and 1.3-megapixel forward-facing cameras for creating your own content. Currently available on AT&T, it offers 16GB of built-in storage and looks and feels very similar to Samsung's Galaxy S Android handset.