Sprint HTC EVO Shift 4G Preview and Hands-On at CES 2011
By Brad Molen on 08 Jan 11Live from CES 2011, I recently had the opportunity to sit down with the HTC crew and chat about mobile phones, our hopes and dreams, and obviously play around with some of the newest phones that were announced at CES this week. One such device I was able to play with was the HTC EVO Shift 4G.
One thing to note on the EVO Shift, as a Sprint executive kindly assured me, is that this isn’t a EVO 4G sequel. It’s not an increase in specs from the original in any way. Instead, it appears that this is Sprint’s version of the DROID lineup, paving the path to potentially placing several EVO-branded devices in the future. For now, though, it’s just the second one, so let’s not get too carried away.
The Shift offers up a 3.6″ display and makes up for the smaller screen by throwing in a full QWERTY keyboard. Here are some other specs on the EVO Shift 4G:
- Android 2.2 with HTC Sense UI
- Access to Sprint’s 4G WiMax network
- Built-in hotspot
- 5 MP camera with flash and 720p HD video capture
- 15.24 mm thick
- 5.9 ounces
- 1500 mAh battery and 6 hours battery life
- WiFi b/g/n
- 512 MB RAM with 2 GB internal storage
- MicroSDHC support
The QWERTY keyboard causes the phone to be thicker than usual. One interesting thing about the thickness, however, is that when combined with a smaller 3.6″ screen, it actually makes it bearable. When looking at the back of the Shift the edge appears to go down and inward, making it much less boxy. It’s still thicker than I like. But at least it’s not a barge that you’re holding in your hand.
But see for yourself in the video and photo gallery!
Buy the HTC EVO Shift 4G at Amazon.
If you liked the post, you might find these interesting too:
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- HTC Evo Shift 4G now official, Sprint will sell it starting January 9
- Sprint’s HTC Knight / Evo Shift 4G appears again
- Nokia N99 – Slider with QWERTY Keyboard and Numerical Keypad to boot?
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