High Tech Computer (HTC) will be the contractor for T-Mobile USA's forthcoming UMA (unlicensed mobile access)-enabled smartphone, the Shadow II, making the Taiwan-based handset maker a new supplier of UMA handsets for the US wireless service provider in addition to Nokia, Samsung Electronics and RIM (Research in Motion), according to market sources.

With the orders for the Shadow II from T-Mobile USA, HTC will be the first handset maker worldwide to roll out Windows Mobile-based UMA handsets, the sources said.

The Shadow II will also be T-Mobile USA's first Windows Mobile-based UMA handset, with the company planning to launch the device in the fourth quarter of this year, the sources cited T-Mobile USA's product roadmap as indicating.