HTC’s first 4G smartphone – the HTC Evo – launches today on Sprint’s WiMAX network for $299.99, before a $100 mail-in rebate, for new or renewing subscribers.
The Evo carries a $10 “Premium Data” surcharge, making its minimum monthly cost $79.99. Sprint says that extra fee doesn’t just cover 4G service but also reflects the odds of the Evo’s features leading its users to spend more time online.
It features:
- Android 2.1, offering more than 35,000 apps.
- 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor.
- Two cameras – an 8.0 megapixel auto-focus camera with HD-capable video camcorder and a forward-facing 1.3 megapixel camera.
- Mobile video chat.
- Built-in support for creating a mobile Wi-Fi access point.
- Simultaneous voice and data in 4G and certain Wi-Fi coverage areas.
- A 3.5-mm headset jack, microSD slot, and micro-HDMI output
- A custom Web browser, optimized for the large 4.3-inch display.
Sprint’s HTC EVO 4G customers can pay $69.99 for Sprint’s Everything Data 450 plan, plus the $10 Premium Data add-on, totaling just $79.99 per month for unlimited Web, texting and calling. An optional charge of $29.99 per month turns on HTC EVO 4G’s mobile hotspot, allowing users to connect their laptop via Wi-Fi.
Qik’s video app is unique among other video apps in that it allows Simple Video Chat. Most can use the basic, free service, but a $5/month upgrade plan brings EVO users additional, premium features.
To start a video chat, you launch the app then select a person to call from a contact list. If the recipient of your video chat invitation is also running Qik on their phone, one click is all that is needed before a video chat connection is established.
If they don’t have Qik, a unique URL is generated which is then sent via SMS so the recipient can watch the live video via their mobile browser.
Whilst chatting, the user can toggle between front and back cameras on the HTC Evo, choosing to chat face-to-face or stream action live and when finished will be stored inside the app for later viewing.
All the features are availabe for free till July 15. After that, various Premium options will be available for $5/month.
The EVO phone, of course, uses the Sprint/Clearwire WiMAX network for data. Voice calls use Sprint’s CDMA network. Reviews are available from Engadget, ZDNet, Mobile Crunch and PC Magazine.
Phone Scoop compared WiMAX vs. HSPA+ and found that Sprint’s WiMAX network and T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network delivered roughly similar download speeds, just shy of 3 Mbps on average.
I am a Clear subscriber in Portland and currently use Clear’s 4G USB modem ($69) with their USB performance dock (a small booster antenna), with their unlimited ($40/month) plan. I typically get speeds between 6-9 Mbps in my downtown location.
PC Magazine tested America’s largest cellular networks in 18 cities. They ran approximately 1,000 rounds of tests (totaling more than 10,000 individual tests) in 20 cities, but threw out two cities, Las Vegas and Philadelphia, because of technical problems. Here’s their city-by-city summary.
