[Touch Pro2, Tilt 2 Windows Mobile General] fade2black101:
I have an unbranded European version of the phone on the UK Vodafone network, so I'm not sure how much help I can be. But I thought I would offer some advice based on my own experiences.

Firstly I assume the version of WM6.5 you upgraded to is the Sense 2.1 version and not Sense 2.5? I remember when I first upgraded I immediately noticed a big slowdown in comparison to the WM6.1 version which flew. If it's any help, you'll soon learn to live with the slowdown and eventually it will become "normal" and it's only when you downgrade you'll realise the difference.

In terms of speeding up the device there is not much you can do, apart from reduce the ram usage. There are a couple of cabs which significantly lower the ram usage.

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=532948

Secondly you might want to install an app called "memmaid" or "sktools" and disable certain processes and apps from starting up. Admittedly I don't really know what most of these processes do, but I've generally found these ones are ok to disable:

certenroll

notificationmanager

htcsipsrvc

gpsprivacy

softwaredisable

htcservices

dtpt

sqmupload

btagsvc

ssw

ussd

htcap

The same goes for startup applications where I have found these are ok to disable. (ignore the apps that are not installed on your device)

poutlook

speedbmonitor

delwmptempfolder

htcstartup

pkg

spbmobileshell (I have a switcher between this and Sense interface so dont need it on startup)

memmaidtweaks

superstarter.exe

Also, I remember seeing certain apps u can download from here that strip certain branded roms of all the bloatware. As my Touch Pro 2 is not branded, I've never used one and don't have any knowledge on them. But I'm sure someone on here will gladly point you in the right direction for a Verizon one. (If it indeed exists)

You might also want to install "advancedconfig" where you can tweak certain things in your phone to speed it up a bit.

I realise you don't want to go down the custom rom route, but unfortunately it may the only way to achieve what you want. I've now customised my official WM6.5 Sense 2.1 rom to how I want it (whilst waiting for my upgrade so I can switch to something like the HTC Desire on Android) and therefore don't use a custom rom, but I've tested the vast majority of the custom roms and I'm sure you'll find something you like. In your case, I'd suggest a hybrid of WM6.1 with the Sense 2.5 interface. If you can get your head around the lack of smooth scrolling in certain apps and what-not, you'll find a nice balance of speed and a very pretty sense 2.5 interface. (I personally couldn't get my head around it haha!)

I'd very much like to use a custom rom as I quite like Sense 2.5, but there was always a problem with the text message app. Be it the very slow "HTC Messaging" or the problem with the unread count after disabling it. I haven't tried a custom rom in a few months now so I'm not sure if this has been resolved. If so, can someone please let me know as I can't keep hard resetting my phone to test.

Anywayz good luck, and I hope this helped a bit. I don't come on this site too often but I will bookmark this page and try and remember to check it so if you have any questions, feel free to ask.