HTC EVO 4G LTE smartphone given glowing reviews on first listen

ETX Daily Up

The latest smartphone from Taiwanese mobile device manufacturer HTC is hitting the right chord with reviewers as they get their first hands- and ears-on with the device.

The handset is called the HTC EVO 4G LTE (as opposed to the HTC EVO 4G which was launched in 2010) and sports a large display, advanced camera features and high quality voice technology.

Gizmodo dubbed it “One Serious Piece of Slick” and went as far as to say “it might just enter the market as the best Android phone money can buy.” Engadget said its HD Voice experience -- a feature that improves the quality of voice communications using dual microphones and special encoders -- was “impressive.” BGR said that it’s “a cut above almost every device currently on the market, it doesn’t quite recapture the magic created by the EVO 4G, which was among the first of its kind.”

Not everyone was so excited about the HTC EVO 4G LTE. Ovum analyst Jan Dawson told Reuters, “I don't think there's anything in this phone that will make customers move from another carrier."

So what makes the smartphone stand out from the rest of the Android powerhouse pack? Asides from being the first US device to offer HD Voice, it features a 4.7” HD display, a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, Beats Audio, an 8MP camera with simultaneous video and still photo capture plus an auto-adjusting flash and an anodized black frame with a distinctive red multiposition kickstand.

To see how the HTC EVO 4G LTE measures up against the HTC One X, the LG Viper 4G LTE, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus the HTC EVO 4G and the HTC EVO 3D, visit The Verge.

The HTC EVO 4G LTE will be launched in the second quarter of 2012 for a price of $199.99 on a two-year contract. Presales start on May 7.

In other smartphone news, an image of what is rumored to be the much-awaited Samsung Galaxy S III has been leaked on the web in the form of a press invitation. The device render (which may or may not be a fake) shows a curved, slim, metallic device that looks quite different from Samsung’s previous smartphones. If the invite does prove to be real, the device will be unveiled at a press event in London on May 22.