HTC Evo vs. Droid X

[HoldenCaufield]

Hey Everyone,
Brand new member here, so I thought I'd make my first post to try to get info about something I don't think has been talked about much here.
But first, I'm currently an iPhone user on ATT. I'm out of contract in a couple of days, and I think I'm going to jump ship for android. I'm pretty exited about it.
Apple's "Hold different" approach, and their closed-ness is getting me pretty down.

So as in title: EVO or X? I've seen comparison reviews, and know the specs. I'm just hoping to get some honest "real world experience" opinions. I also know that the Droid X isn't even out yet, and that's probably why this hasn't been discussed yet. But if anyone has really USED both, I'd really appreciate your opinion. FWIW, I'm mostly into media, web browsing, news, blogs etc. Nothing too heavy.

Also, any real world experience with either Sprint or Verizon would be appreciated as well. I'm located in the Denver area, and it's actually pretty hard to find anything bad being said about either carrier's coverage. Sprint does have that whole WIMAX thing going for it here. They are supposed to launch by the end of the year.

Well, thanks for reading, and hope to hear from you soon.

 

[WindShear]

If you are staying in the Denver area the signals of both VZW and Sprint are good. Sprint customer service is abyssimal no matter where you are. If you travel outside Denver area, I'd go with VZW.

 

[dieseldum]

thats not true sprint is alot better than ever i travel alot and dont have any troubles if i do then it roams on vzw its all included in simply everything plan so it doesnt matter
vzw like att you will pay for every little nic nac sprint is simply all can eat football nascar
simply everything with no cap on data plan
and the evo is awsome i cant put it down the navigation is great also. and it doesnt matter if roaming or not you can still be on internet or anything else you normally do...

 

[grainysand]

Does it matter much to you that the Droid X has a more powerful processor/GPU (same frequency, though) than the EVO? That's about the only deciding factor I can think of.

 

[opticalshadow]

well i havent seen much of the droid x but i know its specs are suposed to be better then the evo's. which means it will last a bit longer in the obsolete list and be a bit more of a power house. but if your contract is up in a few days and the x wont be out by then are you going to wait around for it without a phone?

 

[HoldenCaufield]

No, I'll stay on att until I figure out where I'm going next. Just mentioned being out of contract because it means that I'm basically a free agent. I know the droid isn't out for another few days.
I've seen some of the side by side comparisons (fwiw, youtube has a few) and they seem to be pretty much the same in the speed department. Despite different processors. MMV, though, I don't know a lot about that. If in real life the droid was really faster, that would be a big deal to me.
Evo has flash, which probably slows the browser down a bit. Idk how big of a deal flash is, but it sure seems to be a big selling point of android over apple. What do you think?
Also, evo has that front camera and the 4g network. Not so sure I necessarily want the front camera. But it would be nice to have if video conf took off in the next few months.
But the droid does seem to be a little more loaded up, with the multiple mic's. Also, it looks like it has a better screen and takes better pics/video than evo.

My deal is that I'm just trying to make the best choice for now, because I don't upgrade/change phones until I am eligible for upgrade prices. I gather that I may be out of the norm here. It seems a lot of people will swap phones and carriers almost on whim. I can't imagine how much they must spend on phones.
Anyway, I realize that both phones are great ones. And both Sprint and Verizon will probably kick att's butt. I'm a pretty analytical dude and I'm trying to gather as much info as I can before committing to something for 2 years. That's a long time in tech years.
I started out thinking I'd go with EVO, no brainer. But the more I think, I'm starting to lean toward droid x. But just slightly for now.
Also, what do you guys think are the major differences, if any, between the two android skins: Sense and (pared down) motoblur? Is that more like comparing apples and oranges? Or does one do things better in real life than the other?

Thanks for the help so far. You guys are awesome. I'm going to ditch my iJunk soon thanks to you and this forum. Well, and because Jobs is an arrogant dick.

 

[So-Low Da Don]

To me Sense is better, and the CPU is pretty much the same in both but the GPU is better in X, but that's oif you're into gaming. But the EVO is better for movies because of the kickstand, and also front cam... that's why I chose the EVO, but now I'm waiting for the EPIC 4G!

 

[So-Low Da Don]

4G is also ftw! Web Browsing is way better with 4G and you never have to worry about lag on the EVO or X

 

[linuss]

4G is also ftw! Web Browsing is way better with 4G and you never have to worry about lag on the EVO or X

Except 4g really isn't that much faster than 3g at the moment.


Especially if you take in to account T-Mobiles HSPA+ which currently beats Sprints 4g, and is only only going to get better when actual HSPA+ phones come out this year.

 

[Gamble]

The Droid X's CPU AND GPU are better than the EVO, not just the gpu. Check this benchmark video comparing the EVO and X on 2.1, and a Nexus One on 2.2 aka Froyo.

YouTube - Droid X benchmark tests


Some of the things that the EVO has that the Droid X doesn't:

- front facing camera: Ask yourself realistically how much you'd actually use it if you consider this an advantage.
- Sense UI: Some love it, some hate it. Overall the UI is great and the general consensus likes it.
- WiMax aka 4G coverage: While not true 4G, it is fast but is only in a few areas at the moment. It noticeably drains the battery when in use.
- Can be rooted and custom ROMs can be flashed: If you don't know the benefits to this, check elsewhere on this forum.
- The EVO can be overclocked to 1.? Ghz, while overclocking for the Droid X is currently unknown. The Droid X may have an encrypted bootloader, which means it can be rooted but custom ROMs may not be able to be flashed.

Some things the Droid X has that the EVO doesn't:

- Faster and more powerful CPU and GPU. 1Ghz OMAP outclasses the 1Ghz Snapdragon. Reference the benchmark test.
- Thinner overall. Even though the Droid X is slightly longer than the EVO, it is noticeably thinner. Anyone that's held both of them says the X feels alot smaller, even though it's actually slightly longer than the EVO.
- It DOES NOT have Motoblur. This is proven in our own Phandroid review, Motorola's website, Phonearena review, etc. It has Moto Widgets, that can be resized. If you like Sense, you can simulate it with apps like Launcher Pro, Beautiful Widgets, etc.
- Long battery life. The Droid X has a longer lasting battery than the EVO. It has been reported to have a talk time of 9 hours 30 minutes by phonearena: Motorola DROID X MB810 Review (Phone Arena Reviews)


With all of that said, both of the phones are at the top of the class. I would base my decision mostly off of the coverage for Spint vs Verizon in your area. None of this makes a difference if you can't make a phone call. At the current pace, both of the phones will be outclassed by Winter anyway.