New to TP2 - sluggish all around

[Rezalg]

I am new to smartphones and this forum...got an HTC TP2 from Amazon that is a Verizon model. I use it w/ATT service. I have no voice commands whatsoever and overall it is sluggish. Scrolling through the tabs at the bottom of the home page even stalls. Have not added anything to it. Is there a way to say 86 the overlay and just use the Win interface - or are there other/better ways to speed it up. I don't even know how to upgrade the ROM which I read about here. Any help appreciated. Be gentle w/me. I work on computers, so I am not a tech idiot - just don't know phones.