Review: HTC 8XT for Sprint
Screen
The 8XT has a 4.3-inch LCD with a disappointing 800 x 480 pixels. (The 8X offered 1280 x 720.) Individual pixels were too easy to spot, and it was not as sharp or clear when compared directly to the 8X. Text, icons, and graphics looked decent on the display, but could have been better. Though it has a lower resolution, the 8XT's screen is still bright and colorful. The 8XT's screen was easy to use indoors and out. I had no trouble at all using the 8XT as a camera even under a bright sun.
Signal
I was able to test the HTC 8XT across New Jersey and New York City over the course of several weeks. It performed just fine on Sprint's CDMA 3G network. In fact, it scored above average marks when compared to other devices I've tested on Sprint's 3G network in this area of the country. I was not able to make it to one of the limited areas in which Sprint provides 4G LTE service. The 8XT consistently connected calls on the first attempt, and never missed or dropped any calls. Data speeds were painfully slow over EVDO 3G.
Sound
The 8XT is a very good voice phone. Calls that I connected were loud and clear. Voices were always easy to hear and understand, and I thought they sounded warm and present. The volume of the earpiece isn't rock-concert loud, but it's loud enough for most environments. The same goes for the speakerphone. Thanks to the dual BoomSound speakers, call quality via the speakerphone was just as good as through the earpiece, and it's plenty loud for most uses. I was easily able to hear it over the raucous lunch crowd at my favorite mid-day meal spot. Ringtones and alerts will pretty much always get your attention, and the vibrate alert is jarringly strong.
Battery
The HTC 8XT should get most people through a full day with moderate use. If you're using your smartphone to check email occasionally, fire off social networking updates, and listen to some music, you can bank on a full day. If you lean towards more productivity functions, such as editing Word documents, extended web browsing and searching, taking pictures/video, and watching video for more than 30 minutes a day, expect the battery to give out just past dinner time. As with all phones, your mileage will vary. It's a shame the battery is sealed in.
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