HTC Flaunts Sprint EVO 4G LTE Camera Performance; Will New Smartphone Upset Galaxy Nexus Sales On Sprint? (Specs Comparison)

Mobile operator Sprint recently released Google's flagship Android ICS phone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, for around $199.99 on a 2-year contract. In an attempt to expand its basket of offerings Sprint will start taking pre-orders from May 7 for HTC Evo 4G LTE with a price tag of $199.99 on contract. The smartphone is due to hit stores sometime this month.

The HTC EVO 4G LTE, Sprint's variant of the HTC One X, is anticipated to be a heavyweight handset to enter the market. Already, AT&T's HTC One X has got rave reviews from tech experts who have said the model is worth every penny spent on it. Hence Sprint customers are expecting the same experience from HTC EVO 4G LTE, which is rumored to be launched as early as May 18.

HTC recently shared a new picture album on its social website which shows off the smartphone's camera performance capabilities and the ImageSense technology. The album consists of 9 pictures which were solely shot by American photographer and former child actor Meeno Peluce, using the HTC Evo 4G LTE.

Well, after taking a look at this album, users will definitely find the camera performance commendable enough to drop the idea of buying any other smartphone and flock to HTC Evo 4G LTE. At the same time, Sprint's version of the HTC Evo 4G LTE will feature all the USPs which the smartphone is known for, like a microSD card slot and a good 2,000 mAh battery.

Hence the big question over here is whether Sprint buyers will choose an HTC Evo 4G LTE over other killer smartphones available on the operator's list. Yes, the talk is about Galaxy Nexus, which, only after three days of its announcement on Sprint, was completely sold out through pre-orders. Currently the operator is in the process of getting more stocks of the phone to meet customer needs.

As a treat to its customers, Sprint has also promised the availability of the Galaxy Nexus backed by the 4G LTE capability and the Google Wallet feature (Google's mobile payment service missing in Verizon Galaxy Nexus).

So, does the HTC Evo 4G LTE have enough firepower to upset Galaxy Nexus sales on Sprint? Well, here is a brief analysis of all the specs and pricing details of both the power-puffed smartphones. Take a look and decide which out of the two is worth your wallet and suitable for your next phone upgrade.

Sprint HTC Evo 4G LTE Vs Sprint Galaxy Nexus -- Specs Comparison

Processor

HTC Evo 4G LTE, also known as the Sprint version of HTC One X, will not be powered by its quad-core 1.5 GHz Tegra 3 processor. However, the handset would be loaded with the same processor which is integrated in AT&T variant of One X for US -- the latest 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 MSM8960 processor accompanied by 1GB of RAM.

On the other side of the hedge Galaxy Nexus is powered by a 1.2GHz Cortex-A9 dual-core CPU and TI OMAP 4460 chipset. The Sprint version Galaxy Nexus will have a single 32GB variant of internal storage with 1 GB RAM and no microSD slot option for memory expansion.

HTC Evo 4G LTE scores high as the handset would be offering a 16GB built-in storage and also a microSD card slot for memory expansion up to 32GB.

Operating System

Both the smartphones run on Android 4.0 ICS which features multi-tasking, rich notifications, resizable widgets and new lock screen actions. On the brighter side for Galaxy Nexus, the smartphone can be upgraded to Android 4.0.4, a slightly higher version.

On the hand hand, HTC Evo 4G LTE has much more to offer as the handset, along with the latest OS, is topped by HTC Sense UI version 4.0. Additionally, HTC offers 25GB of Dropbox storage free for 2 years, Beats Audio integration and enhanced video and photo capabilities.

Form Factor

HTC Evo 4G LTE has a candybar form factor and has a minor inferiority from the Galaxy Nexus screen as the pixel density for HTC Evo 4G LTE is 312ppi as compared to Nexus's pixel density of 316ppi. However, at the same time, HTC Evo 4G LTE is backed by Corning Gorilla Glass protection.

On the other hand, Galaxy Nexus sports a premium curved slim design and measures around 135.5 x 67.94 x 9.47 mm in dimension and have a weight of 150 grams while, HTC Evo 4G LTE figures dimensions of around 134.8 x 68.9 x 8.9 mm and weighs about 134 grams.

Also, Galaxy Nexus flaunts a Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 1,280 x 720 pixels. The 4.65-inch device includes an oleophobic coating as well as multi-touch functionality. Well, on the other end, HTC Evo 4G LTE features 4.7-inch Super IPS LCD2 touchscreen with 720p resolution.

Connectivity

In the following segment, HTC Evo 4G LTE features Wi-Fi with DLNA sharing and hotspot functionality, Bluetooth version 4.0, NFC, assisted GPS and microUSB version 2.0 with MHL support. However, there is no FM Radio support in HTC Evo.

On the other hand, Galaxy Nexus features a Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n with DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot as well as NFC for contactless mobile payments. Galaxy Nexus supports Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP wireless technology.

While both HTC Evo 4G LTE and Galaxy Nexus are backed by the 4G LTE capability, right now Sprint customers will have to wait for the 4G usage and continue using these smartphones on simple 3G connectivity. Sprint's 4G connectivity upgrade is still in the process to match up with both handsets' connection capabilities. Six cities are expected to go live with Sprint 4G LTE by the middle of the year, most likely around June. These are Atlanta, Dallas, San Antonio, Houston, Kansas City and Baltimore. The carrier has said that it will be able to cover 123 million users with 4G service by the end of the year, increasing to 250 million by the end of 2013.

At the same time, within a week of Sprint Galaxy Nexus release, some owners of the new phone reportedly had 3G connectivity issues and had to forcibly switch to Wi-Fi connectivity to continue with their work. However, the network provider has resolved this issue and has released software update to fix the difficulties connecting to Sprint's network. On the other hand, we will have to wait and watch till the release of HTC Evo 4G LTE to know if the handset would run into any data connectivity issues.

Camera

Galaxy Nexus boasts a 5 megapixel rear-facing camera which features autofocus, LED flash, touchfocus, geo-tagging and face detection. It lets the user record video of 1080p and also comes with a 1.3 megapixels front-facing camera.

On the other hand, HTC Evo 4G LTE has a big camera upgrade, with an 8 megapixel camera accompanied with LED flash support. It records 1080p videos at 30fps with stereo sound recording. It also scores high with its VGA 1.3-megapixel camera in the device that is capable of recording 720p videos.

Battery

HTC Evo 4G LTE has an internal, 2000mAh non-removable battery, but it is better than One X's 1,800mAh battery. Turning to Galaxy Nexus, it comes with a Li-Ion 1750mAh standard battery which allows a stand by time of up to 290 hours on 2G and 270 hours on 3G networks. It offers a talk time of up to 17 hours 40 minutes on 2G and 8 hours 20 minutes on 3G networks. Additionally, in this section Galaxy Nexus get the advantage as it has a removable battery which can be replaced by the user if damaged.

It's decision time now. HTC Evo 4G LTE or Galaxy Nexus -- Which will be your first Sprint phone?