As expected, Sprint has launched the EVO Shift 4G, the smaller sibling device to the EVO 4G with sliding QWERTY keyboard, WiMax radio and Android 2.2.
Pricing for the smartphone is set at $249.99 after a new 2 year agreement before an additional $100 mail-in rebate, bringing the total to $149.99.
I feel HTC should have left out “EVO” from the name. Even though its processor is faster at 800 MHz than the 1 GHz in the HTC EVO 4G, it lacks what I feel are a few significant features
1. no front facing camera
2. non AMOLED screen
3. the screen is 0.7″ smaller
4. a miniscule microSD card included
5. the camera resolution
6. no camera flash
For $50 more, I’d recommend the Samsung EPIC 4G seeing you get so much more in features.
Very good points, except that the evo doesn’t have amoled either. Most htc phones don’t. Lets hope htc steps it up on processor and screen updates. I’m looking forward to the evo 2. Hopefully its soon since the epic went down in price.
Forgot to mention, the shift does have a flash for the camera.
Is the Shift’s MSM7630 really faster at 800 MHz than the Evo’s QSD8650 at 1GHz?
I find that very hard to believe.
I think the HTC slapped together the Shift with spare parts that they had to get rid of before they start production on the next generation of devices.
I don’t see why anyone would take the Shift over the Epic.
This editorial summarizes my feelings pretty well:
http://pocketnow.com/thought/dear-htc-please-step-up-your-game
HTC was outclassed at CES. They might have something at MWC, but probably nothing for us Americans. Motorola and Samsung are taking care of us. Hopefully Sprint gets some of the devices Motorola and Samsung showed off at CES. if the HTC Shift is all we have to look forward to on Sprint then look for Sprint to start losing customers again as Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile launch these awesome new devices on their 4G networks.
Phoneman,
This has been discussed so many times on phonenews that its getting old but i’ll say it again.
The 800mhz 2nd gen snapdragon cpu is MUCH faster than the older 1st gen snap dragon cpu in the evo. Its GPU is also much faster
Just read any of the reviews online for the tmobile G2
Are there any links to actual benchmarks for the Shift’s MSM7630 at 800 MHz compared to the Evo’s QSD8650 at 1GHz?
I know HTC and Sprint fans will be quick to assume it’s faster, but is there any actual proof? I just find it hard to believe that going backward is actually forward.
If you recall, when the HTC Wizard was released and the GSM version had a much lower clock speed than the CDMA version, all the GSM and HTC fans said it was actually faster because it did more per clock cycle. A few months later all those same people were blasting HTC for putting a much slower chip in the GSM version. So it’s not like there is no history here.
The CPU argument is missing one key component. The CPU is ONLY faster because of the smaller screen size and other variables of these smaller units. The EVO and its other large brethren are significantly different in their screen and resolution. Suggest you Google the benchmarks and read the fine print. And this is mostly comparing graphic response, not all the other “stuff” we would consider. For example, how fast does it process multitasking and moving from one app to another or swiping. Again, these benchmarks are out there, which if they reveal why, the screen size and resolution being a factor. Less to display and refresh on 3.6″ vs. 4.3″. The 800 mhz CPU is NOT faster than a 1000 ghz processor, even with the 2nd generation modifications. Dual core will make the true difference.
AndroidFan, screen size has little-to-nothing to do with CPU performance. The graphics chipset drives the screen, and while a larger screen can drain a device’s resources… it is not relevant here.
Sprint and HTC are correct in billing the EVO Shift 4G as faster than the original. Just like how a 1.6 GHz PowerPC G5 took down a 2 GHz Pentium 4 with ease, often with multiple times the power left over.
@ Christopher Price- I build my own systems, and you MAKE a VERY GOOD point here- so many of these people who talk about these phones, seem to be unaware of the nature of revisions in hardware, etc. GOOD POINT.