We'd figured that Sprint and partner Clearwire were going to have a devil of a time rolling out WiMAX this year in New York City; urban canyons are always tricky, of course, but their oddball 2500MHz spectrum allocation isn't the best at penetrating buildings and other structures, either. On that note, we'd been tipped earlier this week that a reader was seeing some weak WiMAX reception for the first time on his
EVO 4G near Coney Island (see a shot after the break), and now, we've been able to independently confirm it on one of our own units -- in saturated Midtown, no less -- though we weren't able to do much with it beyond get a notification that a "4G network is available." Clearly this isn't ready for primetime use, but it's a good sign that these guys have officially started lighting up a few cells here and there. 1080p streaming, anyone?
[Thanks, r0ckstar_23]
Update: We're getting tipped that folks are seeing some occasional 4G action in LA and San Francisco, so keep a close eye on those EVOs!
posted June 16th 2010 3:33PM
so mr blurry cam works for you guys?
I don't understand why they didn't just take a screenshot with the device....
@one2gamble
hey mr blurry cam
http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/09/htc-evo-4g-meets-magnetic-macro-lens-shoots-gorgeous-closeups/
@Plazmic Flame
lol - I was just thinking the same thing. Hey, fellas - grab "ShootMe" from the market. Root need not apply to the EVO for it to work.
Oh, and please don't ever mock a blurry cam again ... not after these pics.
@whySoSerious Wow, thanks for ShootMe App tip. And I'm glad it works on non-rooted EVO's
@one2gamble The first pic is one of our EVOs, the second is from a tipster. You'll note which one is in focus.
@Nilay Patel
My fault... I apologize. Take advantage of the screencap abilities, though!
@Plazmic Flame Taking a screenshot on an Android device either requires a specific app (and it looks like those apps may require the device to be rooted to work) or connecting the device to the DDMS debugger on a PC, which is a tad impractical for out on the road. This is one thing that iPhone definitely does a much better job of than Android.
@Vexorg
Actually the ShootMe app doesn't require root for the EVO (not sure about other Android phones). It runs in the background if you allow it to and all you do is give your phone a nice shake and it takes a snapshot for you and saves it onto your SD card. It's a pretty nice app.
tmobiles 3g is faster... who gives a crap
@Vexorg
Really? Cause I just hit sym orange and p and I have a screen shot of anything. That's better than any other phones imo.
@Plazmic Flame I get great speeds when i'm in LA! fastest i've seen is 5mb down. woot!
@one2gamble
those blurry shots kind of suck. My friend gets 4G in Salt Lake City which is supposed to be "officially" coming soon. He clocks at about 3mbs.
WiMIN
Expanding huh. Nice...
@EggoEspada, a friend I know speed tested 4G in LA and got 4mb down and 1mb up. It is still being setup though so hopefully faster.
Drove around Los Angeles today while a friend was in town, I have an EVO and got my first signal when I picked them up in downtown L.A., speedtest clocked in at about 3.6 MPS down and 1 MPS up, next drove to Santa Monica for lunch and noticed that pretty much anywhere from the 405 to the coast had pretty good coverage for 4G, speeds were slower but signal was stronger, I am guessing more people were using it or something cause I had full signal, as compared to 2 bars of 4G coverage in downtown, but only got about 1.8 MBS down and .9 MBS up. Best results were when I was driving my guest to LAX on the 405 and had about 2 bars of 4G service while stuck in traffic because of an accident and clocked in at 4.5 MBS down and 1 MBS up (I hear the up is capped at 1 MBS). I was pretty impressed, my phone did get hot and actually reset itself at one point, but this happened when I very first switched the 4G on in downtown, after that it ran like a top. Can't wait for the official roll out in L.A.!
@EggoEspada
yeah bru this is the NOW NETWORK :D tehehee
Still on the edge of getting this or the iPhone 4. Saw part of the Brazil-NK game streaming on the EVO through Sprint TV. and it's been rooted. Awesome!!
@(Unverified) Go with the Evo, I am a previous iPhone user and the Evo blows it away, even with the iPhone 4 coming out. I have rooted my Evo and installed Overclock Widget, my battery life is awesome now, I have been running 24 hours plus on a single charge on my Evo doing normal day to day tasks (Downloading Apps, Mp3's, listening to music, video, etc)
@Unverified User
Trust me u won't go go wrong with the EVO, its an awesome device
@(Unverified)
It really depends on your needs and uses honestly. They're both really amazing phones that are about equal as far as trade-offs between positives and negatives go. If you want deep customization, ability to change your UI (it comes with Sense but it also comes preinstalled with the stock Launcher and you can download any of the home replacement screens from the market, I recommend launcher pro) and deep social networking integration and the best google app quality then go for the EVO (big screen as well).
If you don't mind being a bit more restricted but want Apple's smooth and fluid UI, ease of use, the best choice in apps and media through itunes and an awesome music player then go for the iPhone.
They cater to somewhat different crowds.
@sfox8 Excellent post, although as an EVO user I have to mention that the music situation on android is due to get better soon when its acquistion of simplify bears fruit. And of course if you live in a 4G area thats a huge plus.
Although I will say I generally got better reception indoors with AT&T although sprint is almost always fine. If you're a stickler for indoors 3g that's also something to consider
@(Unverified)
If you didn't preorder the iPhone yesterday... good luck getting one anytime soon. Might as well just pick up the EVO.
@(Unverified)
About the most honest and truthful review you'll ever get;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WenAs_8IZXM
If you're willing to settle for less...get the EVO.
@ebon
I think you meant biased.
@ebon ROTFL. so if I'm to believe that video the only people unhappy with the EVO are people with ADD and enjoy jumping around the screen like a jack russell terrier on meth.
@John Doe
Nah, but you can believe the droves of people that are unhappy with having to glue the device back together...
@(Unverified)
Don't settle for a cheap, half-assed experience with the EVO. Get something that won't be outdated garbage in a month.
@ebon Right, if you would prefer to have a phone that is outdated before the day it was announced, go with the iPhone 4.
@ronaldo0501
At least I wouldn't have to be gluing the damn thing back together. Want a POS? Get an EVO.
@ebon, yeah, I find myself gluing the screen down everyday, you're correct, the EVO is a POS.
/sarcasm
@ebon Yeah you don't want to get the Evo 4G because it will be outdated in the month, you want to ge tthe iPhone because it's already outdated!!! WTF shut up and go home fanboy
Remember fellas, the 4g network is meant for porn....
Thanks Steve. happy merking.
@chipmaga
and we all know porn always wins.. Just ask betamax and hddvd
I want it in LA
Hurry up Sprint! Cuz I don't wanna pay the $10 fee for no 4G :/
@manifest3r I'm getting 4g service in century city!
@xeren
lies!
@manifest3r
I am seeing 4g in downtown LA too. I tried to "tip" engadget about it last week, but they ignored me. Apparently sprint is rolling out the 4g to test it, but there is no guarantee that it will remain live until the officially launch it.
http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2010/06/10/sprint-4g-lights-up-in-los-angeles-but-only-temporarily/
@manifest3r 4G is a marketing thing. It's like being able to access a wifi network that covers a whole city. The $10 also means uncapped 3g as well as Wimax so no worries about going over that 5GB cap when you install PDANet or Wireless Tether. Either way, still equal to or less than the cost of other carriers with coverage only beaten by Verizon and even then only in more rural areas.
@Bandigolo, I believe he meant, 4 Girls! LOL, j/k, there are spots around the Los Angeles are where folks have been getting a 4G signal. I remember before the EVO launched, there were some folks reporting they were getting 4G signals on their Overdrive in West Hollywood.
@jerbear Sprint never caps data on their smartphones in the first place.
@cloud858rk
very true... i have everything data450 on sprint... have had it for 8 months and have never had a data cap.. sprint data via the phone has has always been unlimited.. very nice for teathering to the laptop! :)
I was gonna go out and buy the Evo, but now I kinda want to wait and see how the Sprint Galaxy S Pro works out. 4 inch display with qwerty keyboard and snapdragon? sounds great
@husher Actually the Galaxy S has a 1ghz hummingbird not a 1ghz snapdragon(although the hummingbird processor is supposed to be better)
@husher Hummingbird not snapdragon, which hummingbird has the better gpu btw.
@donatom3 Ahh. Thanks for the info.It's always nice to get positive info.
Looks like they're testing in the SF Bay Area too. A RadioShack salesman was telling me that 4G coverage would go on and off all the time, according to the 4G icon on the Sprint Overdrive unit they had on display.
@drew9
sounds simmilar to a 3G connectino with an iPhone
@benchase7 LMFAO