The HTC EVO 3D integrates a 3D camera and gaming into a 4G handset. It features Android OS 2.3 (Gingerbread) running on a 1.2 MHz dual core processor with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Sprint Hotspot capabilities. The HTC Sense UI with Friendstream for an enhanced social networking experience rounds out the package.
The HTC EVO 3D is available exclusively from Sprint Wireless for $200 with a new two-year service contract. It is $550 sans contract.
BUILD & DESIGN
The HTC EVO 3D is all black and looks modern, but doesn't have any particularly distinctive design elements to make it stand out, unless you could the red ring around the two lenses necessary for the 3D camera on the back of the phone.
This is a big phone, but it's longer than it is wide, so it fits nicely in the hand. It's pocketable, but it works better than some again since it is slightly narrower than the norm. One thing I need to point out here is that it sometimes gets very warm. At one point I actually had to take it out of my pocket because my thigh was getting uncomfortably warm. I don't know if the review unit had some sort of defect or whether that's just the norm for this model, but it was something I haven't experienced with any of the other devices I've reviewed.
The EVO 3D is also heavier than the other phones I've recently reviewed. At six ounces with the battery it isn't too bad, but another point that I felt should be mentioned -- this definitely isn't the device for someone who needs the absolutely smallest and lightest phone available.
The back of the phone is highly textured in a striped pattern that I really don't care for. It looks OK, but the ridges are high enough and sharp enough that they're really not comfortable when you grip the phone tightly. If it were my permanent device to keep, instead of just a loaner, I would buy a case for it ASAP because I really don't like the feel of the naked device.
Display
The 4.3-inch, 960 x 540 (qHD ) display is bright and clear, and in the word I would use to describe it is a cliche, but it's true: gorgeous. No matter whether you're looking at your calendar, sharing photos with your friends, playing games, or watching videos, you'll enjoy the experience. It's perfectly viewable inside and out, though outside you might need to angle it a bit so that you don't see your own reflection instead of the information you're trying to view on the EVO 3D's screen.
Things really get interesting when you start sharing the photos you've taken with the 3D camera. The 3D effects are really quite good, and you don't even have to wear those funny glasses. Slanting the display a bit increases the effect, but overall I'm really impressed.
Keyboard
There's no physical keyboard here, so you'll be using the onscreeen keyboard. It's fine for basic messaging and email, and I appreciate the fact that the number keys are all in a row, instead of organized in a telephone keypad layout. The keys are a little cramped since the display is slightly narrower than what I think of as standard for today's smartphones, but the size isn't too bad.
One small problem comes up if you tend to place your phone on a desk or table when you're entering large amounts of text -- since the phone has two camera lenses on the back, it rocks every time you press a key on the left side of the keyboard. It's slightly frustrating, but still easier than holding the phone up the entire time you're composing a long email, because it is rather heavy.
Other Buttons & Controls
The power button is on the top right edge of the phone, wtih the volume buttons, 2D/3D switch, and camera button on the right side. The charge/sync port is on the mid-top left edge of the device. That placement is slightly awkward if you want to use the phone while it's charging, but it's bearable.
PERFORMANCE
I found the HTC EVO 3D to be highly responsive, no matter what task I asked it to perform. The Quadrant benchmark scores are good, coming in at 1954, faster than all of the comparison devices. This shouldn't come as any surprise since it's powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor.
The device also has 1GB of internal storage and 1GB of RAM, and of course you can bump that up substantially when you add a microSD card for additional storage.
Communication
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth plus the Sprint Hotspot mobile internet-sharing feature work just as I would expect, though I was a little disappointed in the voice quality issues I experienced while testing this device. Calls come through loud and clear, but just slightly distorted, as if you're talking to someone and it sounds like they have a cold. You can still recognize their voice, but it's just not quite right.
It's also easy for my callers on the other side of the line to tell that I'm using a cell phone. With other devices I wouldn't be too surprised, but I've come to hold HTC to a higher standard due to this company's consistent quality, so the EVO 3D was slightly disappointing in this regard.
The 4G performance was quite good; I was able to connect using 4G at both my office and my home quite easily, which is something I wasn't able to do with the Conquer. Oddly enough, while my download speeds skyrocketed, upload speeds on 4G were much slower. On 3G speeds ranged from 172-256 kbps for downloads and 91-107 kbps for uploads, but on 4G I was able to get between 1139-1170 kbps downloads but only 60-61 kbps uploads.
The social networking experience is a great one of course, with Facebook for HTC Sense, HTC Peep for all of your Twitter happenings, and FriendStream to tie everything together. I've always appreciated the way that the HTC Sense UI really unifies the social networking experience, linking together your regular contacts with your online friends to keep the contact list clean but also so that when you tap on a name you get all of the relevant information, including their recent posts and photos, instead of just their phone number and address.
The email experience is exactly the same as any other device based on the Android operating system, so there aren't any surprises here. You can choose which labels to keep synced, star messages, mark them as spam, etc. The Web experience is a very good one, especially on 4G, with very fast loading pages.
Productivity
There's nothing new in the PIM (personal information management) experience here; you get the standard calendar and contacts apps, and of course everything syncs with your Google account.
There is something new when it comes to Microsoft Office apps, however, because the EVO 3D comes with Polaris Office instead of the more usual Quickoffice or ThinkOffice. I found it to be a capable replacement, though it took some getting used to, as I had never used this particular package before now.
Navigational duties are handled by Google Maps or TeleNav, which can be used for free or there's a premium subscription option for $4.99 per month. No matter which app I used, my location was pinpointed quickly and accurately. I was able to find point-of-interest (POI) information quickly as well, with TeleNav generally offering slightly better/more up-to-date information than Google Maps, though Google Maps provided better directions.
Entertainment
There's nothing special about the music player here, just the standard app that organizes your music by artist, album, or song. Sound quality, even with the external speaker, is top notch and you can easily share music with your friends without having to resort to plugging in your headphones and handing them over.
There are several 3D games from which to chose; they made it easy by including a "3D Games" shortcut right at the top of the applications menu that takes you straight to a web site where you can see your options and purchase a game by charging it to your phone bill.
I picked Asphalt 6 3D from Gameloft and was very impressed. There's a real sense of speed and immersion in the game that you just can't get from playing on a regular device with a standard display. I didn't experience any sort of eyestrain or headache problems either, and I played the game extensively. If racing isn't your thing, you can also choose Let's Gofl 2 3D, Assassin's Creed Altair's Chronicles, or N.O.V.A. Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance 3D for the reasonable price of $4.99 each.
No preloaded ebook readers, though you can get whatever you might want, such as the Amazon Kindle app, free from the Android Market.
Camera
The camera on the HTC EVO 3D generally takes great shots, including 3D photos and video in 720p. The regular photos are captured with a 5 megapixel camera, which is fine for everyday shots. There were a few exposure issues when I tried to take photos of sunny landscapes, but ones of people, pets, objects, etc. turned out well.
3D photos are captured at just two megapixel resolution, but they still look good and the effects are truly amazing. Even better, you can stream photos to your television if you want to enjoy them on the big screen. The only caveat is that 3D photos have to be captured in landscape mode, due to the arrangement of the cameras.
The LED flash was surprisingly helpful. It won't light up a pitch dark room, but it does a good job of filling in and making lower light photos possible. There's also a 1.3 megapixel camera on the front of the phone for use with video calling software.
Battery Life
I was pleasantly surprised in this area, with the EVO 3D easily lasting several days on one charge. The battery drained more quickly than I expected at certain times, mainly because was using the camera to take so many photos and playing around with capturing things in 3D, but I'm generally pleased by the battery performance of this device.
CONCLUSION
The HTC EVO 3D is a lot of fun, but I'm not sure that all of the tradeoffs are worth it unless you're more interested in the 3D camera than anything else. It's fairly heavy, and the voice quality is somewhat disappointing. And I know it's somewhat nitpicky, but the pattern on the back of the phone really is uncomfortable to hold for long periods.
Having said that, it's great fun to have a 3D camera in your pocket, and I can imagine that anyone who has a 3D TV and wants to show off their cool photos will have a lot of fun with it. If you're not that interested in the 3D camera or 3D games, you might want to look at some other phones, because there's probably a better match for you.
Pros
Cons
