The Evo is first 4G phone, with a dream list of specs--can it live up to expectations?
Posted 06.04.2010 at 2:02 pm
14 Comments
HTC Evo 4G
John Mahoney
The phone of the hour (well, at least until Apple unveils the next iPhone on Monday) is Sprint's HTC Evo 4G, and it goes on sale today. We've been using a review unit for the past week, and here are our impressions.
What's New
The Evo is the first phone to fully support WiMax, the faster next-gen network standard ("4G"). There have been WiMax phones before, but they were handicapped by their inability to downgrade to 3G when the faster next-gen network wasn't available. The HTC Evo 4G is the first handset to do both, which is good news for heavy mobile-Web browsers who want the extra boost of 4G speed, but don't want all that power zapping their battery life all the time. The 3G downgrade is also nice if you, say, want to make a phone call on your phone -- shocking, I know.
What's Good
Sprint's 4G network is the crowning glory of the Evo, allowing it to stream live 720p video without a blip; sadly, though, NYC's 4G network is still pending. But it's not all talk: When we first toyed with the Evo in March in Las Vegas, it was on 4G; and it flew. Aside from that, it's a gorgeous piece of hardware: its humongous 4.3-inch OLED screen is the sharpest I've seen on a handset, which is good considering it needs to do justice to its eight-megapixel camera and all the HD videos you're sure to watch.
HTC Evo 4G w/ iPhone 3GS: It's a big one John Mahoney
What's Bad
Ever since the T-Mobile G1, Android phone owners have never been able to leave their chargers at home, so it's not in the least bit surprising that that Evo (with its massive, bright screen) can scarcely make it through the daylight hours on a single charge; unless, of course, you don't mind cutting Android off at the knees, disabling auto-updating on your homescreen widgets, email syncing and the like. A bad deal, indeed. And, considering how heavy the phone is (it weighs nearly as much as a fully dressed quarter-pounder with cheese), it'd be nice if a little of that heft was used on a larger battery instead of giving up valuable real estate for a novel little kickstand that you'll probably only use a half-dozen times.
HTC Evo 4G Back: John Mahoney
The Price
$199 (with $100 mail-in rebate and two-year contract).
The Verdict
The Evo 4G is a giant of a phone, which is both a blessing and a curse. The large screen makes typing on its virtual keyboard more comfortable than smaller Android handsets like the Nexus One, but damn is it heavy. For all we love about its design and guts (it packs a 1GHz Snapdragon processor), all that zip is what ultimately becomes its downfall. All told, it's a phone for media addicts who are willing to sacrifice a pocketable cellphone for a gorgeous slab (and its charging cable).
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There was a two hour wait for this in my backwoods nowhere town.
6 months and it'll be outdated. Don't bother.
and in 6 more months, whatever made this obsolete will itself become obsolete, so you probably shouldn't bother with that either. 6 months later (thats 18 months from now for those keeping score) there will be yet another phone obsoleting the obsoletor and so on and so forth.
"it will be obsolete in 6 months" is a TERRIBLE argument for avoiding new tech. no one would ever buy anything if that argument had a leg to stand on.
Finally, Popsci talking about Android based phones.
Too bad that they talk bad with non sense excuses =/ I didn't see a "What's Bad" section on the iPad announce, sigh, the money...
Uh, by the way: Why didn't you add on "What's Good" that EVO has a Free for All OS? And that can load Flash, and it has the fastest Internet browser...
Stop hiding information about Android. Apple is way overrated, we need more Android publicity or Apple will dominate the market and will make technology fall.
So let me edit this article for you.
The HTC Evo has some weight, but what wouldn't if you are packing a 4.3" Touchscreen LCD packed with a 1GHz Snapdragon Processor accompanied by two, yes I said TWO cameras consisting of one 1.3 MP front facing camera ( Webcam, Skype etc., ) and an additional 8 MP camera on the backside.
- So you are saying its easier to carry around a cellphone and your high quality digital camera? o.O
- I also think you would agree that even the smallest netbook is heavy if you think this cellphone has "damn its heavy" weight to it.
Whats Good:
1Ghz Snapdragon Processor
8MP Camera
Optional WIFI hotspot
4G internet where available
Surprisingly FAST 3G internet
HDMI Port ( wow? )
4.3" Touchscreen
And who can forget the Android part of this phone..........
Attention all Android users:
You must learn how to use Android to fully enjoy it. One of the most basic functions of the operating system is that you, gasp, make the decision of whether you would like long battery life or constant sync.
Turn off a setting under "Accounts and Sync" called "Background Sync" and you will triple your battery life. Then you won't need to wait with baited breath for the shiny new, beautifully designed, crap sandwich that Apple might come out with in a few months. I know, it'll be sooo shiny, you'll instantly have street cred at Starbucks and Pop-sci might publish your opinion on other, more swarthy options like Android.
Oh, and that kick stand? I've been yearning for one since about 2003.
I must say I get tired off all the iphone buzz, but I still think it will continue to be the leader in the mobile phone industry.
EVO seems too big to fit in my pocket...
It might even be obsolete in less than 6 months. But Abremms is 100% correct. Poor excuse not to purchase the HTC Evo simply on the basis of it being obsolete within a few months. If you can't afford it then that's a whole other story. But it's called progress. EVERYTHING gets improved within months. TV's, appliances, phones, computers, clothing, etc. As for the comments about the unit being too big and heavy, well realistically what can you expect with a device that contains all that capability. Quite frankly it gets to be a bit annoying having a device that's the size of your thumb nail. Oh but carrying around the iPad is ok? C'mon really now.
unlike the iphone at least you can get a warantee and insurance on the htc. so if it breaks in your pocket or something, if it fits, they'll replace it. unfortunately that's where it will be for a while since they don't sell hardly any accessories for it yet, though there's a dozen different options for the iphone.
another thing that i like about the htc is that its totally customizable, down to the rom. you can't do that on the iphone.
Speaking of customizing, someone needs to make a "Mobil fit" app using the accelerometer and the app as a fitness coach. i know i would buy it.
I'm guessing that's Corinne Iozzio's iPhone in the photo above...
So far, I'm extremely happy with the EVO! Full disclosure: I was using a Windows Mobile phone on AT&T so I'm not a very tough customer. However, the EVO is very fast and dependable. The battery life does suffer a bit but with so many different apps to easily control services (GPS, Bluetooth, 4G, 3G, sync, etc.), I've had no battery troubles at all. There are even apps that will adjust the above service settings based on your daily schedule to automatically disable the work exchange account sync process after hours! (as you can tell, I'm new to Android!) It is a big phone, but because it's so thin, it easily slips into the pocket and becomes fairly unnoticeable.
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