HTC EVO3D
Hardware
The hardware on the HTC EVO 3D is a mixed bag for me. The build quality, while good, is not quite up to the expectations that have been set by the rest of the market. There are certain creaks and leaks in the seams of the phone, especially where the back cover snaps into place. There are also hints of light leakage around the bottom on the front of the phone that are very noticeable in dark conditions. Despite these faults, the EVO 3D handled nicely, even though I feel it is a bit thick at 12.2mm (0.48in) when compared with other phones on the market now.
The front of the phone is dominated by the 4.3-inch, qHD (540 x 960 pixel) display, and the four capacitive Android buttons at the bottom. The display's resolution is great, though the sharpness is not what I would have expected from a screen with this kind of pixel density. This may have to do with the special layer above the LCD that enables the glasses-free 3D effect. I assume that this special layer is also the culprit behind the narrow viewing angles that are present on the EVO 3D. The display is all too quick to wash out when viewed from even a slight angle, and is put to shame by the iPhone 4's touchscreen or any Super AMOLED-equipped Samsung. Thankfully, colors appeared to be accurate, and the display was visible enough in sunlight.
Above the screen is front-facing camera and the speaker grill, which hides a bright notification light - something I am always thrilled to find. The front is framed by a metal rim that has been painted or anodized with a black color. The back of the phone is a single piece of soft-touch plastic that features a ribbed design for added grip. The rear cover is essentially the back housing of the phone, much like HTC's Sensation 4G, though since the EVO 3D does not have any aluminum in the back cover, build quality and overall feel are compromised compared to the Sensation 4G.
I would be remiss not to point out the aluminum camera shutter key on the EVO 3D. It is the best camera button I have ever seen on a phone, as it is large and satisfying to use. It is dual-stage, so half-pressing will initiate autofocus, while a full press will take the picture. It is much a like the shutter key found on decent point and shoot cameras. Next to that is the (also aluminum) toggle to switch between 2D and 3D picture and video capture.
Usability
The HTC EVO 3D is powered by the same 1.2GHz, dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor present in the Sensation 4G. Thanks to the speedy chip and the increased RAM found in the EVO 3D (1GB verses 768MB in the Sensation), everything that you do on the phone is smooth as silk. Lag when swiping between homescreens and scrolling through long lists is a thing of the past. The app tray snaps right open when launched, as do many applications. The EVO 3D is the first phone that I have used that can handle a live wallpaper without becoming a stuttering mess.
Usability
Android 2.3 Gingerbread is running on the EVO 3D, though you would not know it thanks to HTC's heavy Sense 3.0 interface. Sense has grown from a necessity to fix what was missing in older versions of Android, to an over-the-top visual effects showcase that doesn't always offer enhanced useability over stock Android. For instance, the home screen carousel is so quick to snap into its infinite rotation of home screens when you swipe across it that it can be very difficult to just page one or two screens over from where you are. The effect is very visually pleasing, but after the first few times you have seen it, it just gets in the way of what you are trying to do. It also seems as if there are times when the phone could be even faster if there were not a series of frivolous animations that play before every action on the phone.
Other areas where HTC has tried to improve Android with Sense but fallen flat are the new notification bar and the app tray. The notification bar has a bunch of shortcuts to access recently used applications and toggle common settings, which are both good things. The frustrating part about it is when a notification comes in, you have to swipe down the entire bar to get an idea of what it is. Other Android interfaces allow you to get a peek at the notification by just swiping the notification bar part of the way down so you can go back to what you were doing if it is not important. The app tray that comes with Sense 3.0 is vertically scrolling like traditional Android. However, it is paginated, meaning that it will stop at pre-determined points, forcing you to scroll multiple times to get to the bottom. This can be quite annoying and time consuming when you have a lot of apps and want to get to the bottom of the list. Pagination makes sense and works well when apps are organized in a horizontally scrolling tray, but it does not when in a vertical orientation.
