With the popular success with the EVO 4G and the EVO 3D, Sprint has built quite an Android brand with the series. The latest edition to the brand is the EVO Design 4G which combines features from the EVO 4G and 3G into one device. Some of you may think this was a pointless effort by HTC, as Sprint already has the original EVO 4G, the EVO Shift 4G, and the EVO 3D. We have recently got a hold of a review unit to put it through our standards. Read past the break to check out our analysis.
At first glance, the EVO Design made by HTC is reminiscent of the Droid Incredible 2 in appearance. The EVO Design is an extremely well-built Android device from a manufacturers standpoint. Using a combination of brushed aluminum & matte finish materials for a lightweight, solid device that will be the perfect size & weight for most consumers. Keeping up ahead of the curve, HTC offers a new way to access the battery by opening the bottom rear & sliding it out along with the microSD card as well. HTC keep innovating devices with little subtleties like that.
The 4inch qHD Super LCD display w/ 960 x 540 resolution which makes everything looks superb on the screen’s device. Offering great viewing angles for a sharp & crisp visuals especially at 240 ppi (pixels per inch). The qHD resolution looks as good as the more recent Android releases as the small screen makes the small details look vibrant. I think qHD display loses its effect on a bigger screen but on a 4 or 4.3inch size is just the right size to be great on the eyes. An unexpected great treat for owners.
The EVO Design is armed with a 1520 mAh battery which will get through most of the day. I was able to get longer battery life when using Spotify (8 hours) rather than Google Music (less than 5 hours). When using phone with normal email, Tweeting, phone calls, Facebook, & texting; I get around close to 10 hours of usage. Definitely adequate to keep up with most consumers needs.
The Design has a 1.5GHz single-core processor w/ 768MB of RAM & 4GB of storage inside of it. Definitely reads like a mid-level Android device released around a year ago but it sure doesn’t perform like it. The specs combined w/ Android 2.3 & HTC’s Sense UI works as smooth as silk for a remarkable Android experience. I got damn near no lag what so ever using it throughout the span of two-weeks. Thumbs up to HTC & Sprint for getting the performance right.
The Design 4G is equipped it with a 1.3MP front-facing & 5MP rear-facing cameras. The front shooter works as well as any others with grainy results. The rear-shooter is good quality 5MP lens combined with Sense’s camera options makes a great mobile shooter on-the-go. Don’t get me wrong this lens doesn’t best the iPhone 4’s 5MP camera but it gets the job done. The latest EVO is also capable of shooting video in 720p HD which produces decent results for capturing moments on-the-go.
Based on the specs the EVO Design 4G is armed with, some may think that it is lacking compared to today’s standards. Surprisingly enough the Design 4G is a stable performing mid-level Android device that is well crafted-even by early 2012 standards. This joins the Droid Incredible 2 as an all-around ideal Android phone in our eyes. Near-Android perfection in our books. With Sprint moving its 4G network from WiMAX to LTE, this maybe one of the last great all-around WiMAX devices. I definitely had no complaints with this device whatsoever.
You may think we wouldn’t suggest for Sprint subscribers to buy this but it is actually the opposite. Making the list to receive the Android 4.0 update, this mid-level device is still a great buy for those who maybe interested. It is currently on sale for $99 on contract at Sprint and only $39.99 on contract at Amazon.
