Let me say a short bit of history before I begin stating why this is the case:
About two months ago, I purchased a Galaxy S III in white after moving on from a Galaxy Nexus (LOVED this phone btw). Although the Galaxy Nexus has been the ONLY phone in the last 3 years that I have managed to keep longer than 3 months (kept it for almost a year), I did enjoy the Galaxy S III to a certain extent. After a while, I decided to try out the HTC ONe Series for one simple reason: hardware quality.
One of the main beefs with the Galaxy Series has been the lack of a solid hardware quality. They are made out of what seems to be "dollar store" plastic, although this has changed a bit toward the positive with the GSIII. However, I have always been willing to pay the extra dollar for great hardware. For example, I will not purchase a PC made out plastic, it must be made of magnesium or aluminum or something that makes me feel like I have a quality product when I hold it. For this reason, I purchased an iPhone (which I only could stand for two months before disliking the OS completely) once upon a time. Needless to say, I LOVE great hardware.
So, I decided to leave the Galaxy S III to try out something that felt better in my hand, and that had great hardware casing quality: THe HTC One series, in this case, the Evo 4G LTE. I will say that from day 1, I have loved holding the device, but then I found more, and I was intrigued.
First, the stand is actually very, very useful. I used to think that such thing would be a minor detail that most people wouldn't use, but I use it ALL THE TIME. Second, the camera is marginally better than that of the S3 according to my tests, and of course, my subjectivity. Not to mention I love the layout of the camera, and the ability to control exposure and ISO, something that I really actually use!
Third, Sense is miles ahead of touchwiz when it comes to an overall skin experience. Touchwiz just isn't there yet... I don't quite know why I didn't like it, but it didn't feel like it meshed with Android 4.0. Sense DOES.
Fourth, THE SCREEEEEN!!! This screen is miles ahead of the Galaxy S3. I read reviews about both devices before I made up my mind, and in general, it seemed as if reviewers were giving a very positive review of the screen on the GS3. However, I don't think it compares. The screen on the HTC is miles better, brighter, and looks much, much crisper. I suppose the pentile critics are correct.... I know it is the same resolution, but the screen on my Evo looks a thousand times better.
Fifth, I thought BEATS audio was just a gimmick. I am an audiophile. The most expensive part of my Home Theater is my sound system (Klipsch Towers with 7.1 surround), my computer speaker is Bose Dock Series 10, my car has a Alpine aftermarket sound system, and I have Audio Techniqua headphones. Needless to say, I love good sound. I thought the GS3 sounded decent, I had no issues with it. When I plugged in my headphones to the Evo, I was shocked. I didn't know it was going to be ANY different, but instead, I heard things I never had before. The music was punchier, clearer and a bit louder (although not much). I was SOLD at this point.
Finally, the phone is faster. Yes. Faster. After using the GS3 for about two months, I can tell you, objectively, that the HTC Series is faster than the Galaxy S 3. Is it MUCH faster? No. But it is noticeably faster. I loved this. I like it when I can just do what I want on my phone without having to wait for it, and the Evo does just that.
Verdict: there is one thing I did not mention: I had my Galaxy S 3 on Verizon. Because of my job, I get hefty discounts on service with Sprint so I got a phone with them in addition to my other device. I wanted to just try out Sprint, and see what they are like. Their data speeds are EXTREMELY slow, so I was going to return the device.
However, the device is just too good to give up. I love the feel, the screen, the speed, the music, the camera, and I ESPECIALLY love Sprint's integration with Google Voice and Google Wallet, two apps from google that I use a lot. For these reasons, I am going to keep the phone. Yeah, I will have two phones under my Google Voice number, and some of you will call me stupid for doing so. However, a phone is what I use 70% of the time when I am on the go and it is worth it, especially with a device this good.
RANT OVER.
About two months ago, I purchased a Galaxy S III in white after moving on from a Galaxy Nexus (LOVED this phone btw). Although the Galaxy Nexus has been the ONLY phone in the last 3 years that I have managed to keep longer than 3 months (kept it for almost a year), I did enjoy the Galaxy S III to a certain extent. After a while, I decided to try out the HTC ONe Series for one simple reason: hardware quality.
One of the main beefs with the Galaxy Series has been the lack of a solid hardware quality. They are made out of what seems to be "dollar store" plastic, although this has changed a bit toward the positive with the GSIII. However, I have always been willing to pay the extra dollar for great hardware. For example, I will not purchase a PC made out plastic, it must be made of magnesium or aluminum or something that makes me feel like I have a quality product when I hold it. For this reason, I purchased an iPhone (which I only could stand for two months before disliking the OS completely) once upon a time. Needless to say, I LOVE great hardware.
So, I decided to leave the Galaxy S III to try out something that felt better in my hand, and that had great hardware casing quality: THe HTC One series, in this case, the Evo 4G LTE. I will say that from day 1, I have loved holding the device, but then I found more, and I was intrigued.
First, the stand is actually very, very useful. I used to think that such thing would be a minor detail that most people wouldn't use, but I use it ALL THE TIME. Second, the camera is marginally better than that of the S3 according to my tests, and of course, my subjectivity. Not to mention I love the layout of the camera, and the ability to control exposure and ISO, something that I really actually use!
Third, Sense is miles ahead of touchwiz when it comes to an overall skin experience. Touchwiz just isn't there yet... I don't quite know why I didn't like it, but it didn't feel like it meshed with Android 4.0. Sense DOES.
Fourth, THE SCREEEEEN!!! This screen is miles ahead of the Galaxy S3. I read reviews about both devices before I made up my mind, and in general, it seemed as if reviewers were giving a very positive review of the screen on the GS3. However, I don't think it compares. The screen on the HTC is miles better, brighter, and looks much, much crisper. I suppose the pentile critics are correct.... I know it is the same resolution, but the screen on my Evo looks a thousand times better.
Fifth, I thought BEATS audio was just a gimmick. I am an audiophile. The most expensive part of my Home Theater is my sound system (Klipsch Towers with 7.1 surround), my computer speaker is Bose Dock Series 10, my car has a Alpine aftermarket sound system, and I have Audio Techniqua headphones. Needless to say, I love good sound. I thought the GS3 sounded decent, I had no issues with it. When I plugged in my headphones to the Evo, I was shocked. I didn't know it was going to be ANY different, but instead, I heard things I never had before. The music was punchier, clearer and a bit louder (although not much). I was SOLD at this point.
Finally, the phone is faster. Yes. Faster. After using the GS3 for about two months, I can tell you, objectively, that the HTC Series is faster than the Galaxy S 3. Is it MUCH faster? No. But it is noticeably faster. I loved this. I like it when I can just do what I want on my phone without having to wait for it, and the Evo does just that.
Verdict: there is one thing I did not mention: I had my Galaxy S 3 on Verizon. Because of my job, I get hefty discounts on service with Sprint so I got a phone with them in addition to my other device. I wanted to just try out Sprint, and see what they are like. Their data speeds are EXTREMELY slow, so I was going to return the device.
However, the device is just too good to give up. I love the feel, the screen, the speed, the music, the camera, and I ESPECIALLY love Sprint's integration with Google Voice and Google Wallet, two apps from google that I use a lot. For these reasons, I am going to keep the phone. Yeah, I will have two phones under my Google Voice number, and some of you will call me stupid for doing so. However, a phone is what I use 70% of the time when I am on the go and it is worth it, especially with a device this good.
RANT OVER.