HTC Evo Shift 4G gets pictured

By Kyle Gibb
last updated

Well, what do we have here? After hearing bits and pieces about the Sprint-bound HTC EVO Shift 4G from various sources -- including seeing the ROM, a case and the phone in Sprint's inventory system -- we finally have a picture of the device formerly known as the "HTC Knight" with its keyboard open. By all indications the device is pretty much a Sprint 4G version of the G2/Desire Z/Merge. The picture seems to confirm the rumor that the phone will not have video-calling, as a front-facing camera seems to be absent. (And know that this guy's wearing a hard-shell case in the picture -- it's not actually that thick.) 

Still, this should be a great phone for Sprint users whenever the carrier decides to launch it. Hop on over to the Android Central Forums to discuss the phone to your hearts content! [SprintUsers] Thanks to r0fl for the tip!

Kyle Gibb
Kyle Gibb
78 Comments
  • Htc just take the G2 or the desire Z and put a CDMA radio in it and release it on sprint
  • yup that's the idea.
  • is that ROFL on top by the sun?
  • I hope to god it is a god its a fake. I think it looks ugly.
  • Thats a fake image just look at the top were the weather weget is looks like computer pen makings
  • The person that posted the image on sprintusers is named "r0fl". So, that is just his signature on the image. It's not fake.
  • hahaa ROFL! .. i still think it's real though..
  • I wonder if the hinge is going to be a normal slider hinge or the kooky Z hinge...
  • Would be better if they went for the tried and true slider mechanism. Have heard reports of the Z hinge not being super reliable.
  • Great! I really liked the G2 but I want to move to Sprint. So this could be a good option for me. I can't wait to get my hands on it. I'm also anxious to see what Sprint phones are announced at CES in a few weeks.
  • I hope it has that G2 hinge, its sick. No quick keys? And it looks like a ffc by the speaker grill... I'm so using my family members upgrade for this and giving him my evo lol. Virtual trackpad on the keyboard?
  • I still want the EVO - not a fan of physical keyboards anymore.
  • Luckily you can have the choice of both with Android
  • That's probably a sensor and not a camera. Go evo!
  • I love the trackpad instead of a dpad
  • I love the trackball instead of the touch screen. j/k
  • MEH. I just want an updated version of the Evo coming out next summer. Faster GPU/CPU, more RAM and more ROM space.
    Maybe a higher resolution screen.
    Thinner is not required but welcome.
  • +100, awaiting Evo 2.
  • Also +100 Although nobody cares about how much "ROM" a phone has. Would be nice to have more RAM and Flash memory, though. More speed (CPU/GPU) is always welcome and more battery life would be the best improvement. Personally, I would also much prefer physical buttons on the bottom & a trackball.
  • ROM space allows for more apps without loss of performance. Apps2sd is nice but you lose performance with it.
    Even with a class 6 card.
  • Agree on the whole, hopefully with a slightly less power hungry chipset. Quite honestly, I don't understand the desire for a trackball/pad on a fully touch screen display. Dumbphones, yes. Crackberries, yes. WinMo 6x, yes. Fully touch screen displays, unnecessary...especially on larger screens like the EVO.
  • ......
  • screen too small, no dedicated number row, hate g2 sliding mech, meh, i'll stick with my rooted android 2.2.1 samsung epic.
  • What is the small white looking circle just below the ear piece? Looks like it could be a front faceing camera???
  • Could also be a light sensor or LED.
  • no front camera would be a shift in the wrong direction, i'd say.
  • It looks like there's a front camera above the HTC logo on the top-left of the front of the phone. (when in portrait mode)
  • I hope they don't really plan to place the name "Evo" on a phone with such a small screen. Kinda dilutes the name.
  • It's not exactly a tiny screen. Assuming it's a 4" display, it's only slightly smaller than the EVO, and slightly larger than the Nexus One. It's probably the ideal size for QWERTY slider type of devices. 2.8, 3.2, and 3.5 inch screens...now those are tiny.
  • I thought it claimed to be a 3.6" screen... and that is a LOT smaller than the Evo's 4.3".
  • Not really feeling it.
  • Sprint can you offer a good phone that is not 4G? I get the game you're playing but it's kind of annoying.
  • All phones are going to be 4g. [Whether it be WiMAX, LTE, HPAA +] I don't know why that bothers you so much.
  • Tend to agree with you. With Sprint and Verizon now offering '4G' networks, and AT&T and TMO will follow at some point down the road. It only makes sense they will start offering a greater number of high end smart and feature phones that can access both networks. It's really the same as offering digital/analog handsets years ago or the 1x/3G handsets of today.
  • some of us still do not have 4g service and in order to get one of the two only nice phone on sprint they are charging you the extra 10.00 even if you don't get the service thats why it bothers some of us, did that answer your question?
  • As has been pointed out numerous times in the past. The $10 fee is not a 4G charge. It is a charge Sprint slapped/will slap on all their high-end smart phones.
  • which happens to be only two and the both have the 4g on it, do not let them fool you the $10.00 extra is for the wimax.
  • let me ask you a question if the nexus s phone which is a 3g only phone and is consider to be a high-end smart phone come to sprint, do you think they will charge the extra 10.00 because is a high-end phone? if you think yes then my friend you are mistaken.
  • I am just going by what I have read/seen. Personally, I think it is a 4G tax, but Sprint flatly denied it.
  • i am with you, i would like to get an epic like with out the keyboard, i hate keyboards it makes phone look too bulky and too loose.
  • go for the other Galaxy S phones then. those are pretty much the epic without a keyboard. (granted that considering you're on sprint, your other choice is probably the Verizon version (it's called the vibrant i think.)
    or maybe find a cdma compatible version of the galaxy S from europe or asia
  • And once again.... I have absolutely NO USE for a SLIDER.
  • Lol, then don't buy it. Many do want a physical keyboard. Fortunately the Android and WP7 platforms give people a choice.
  • yea i understand but i want it on sprint, what i'm saying is that a phone like the Samsung vibrant or the fascinate would be nice on sprint, a 3g only phone.
  • And Right You Are. iLove Havin' A key Board, Mainly Because iCan Type Without Lookin'. But Another Reason, I've Seen My Friens Drop Thier All Touchscreen Phones And It Ends Up Messin' Up. So I Want To Go With The Epic 4G, Cuz iJust Love Its Key Board.
  • What's that circle next to the ear piece. Looks like a camera.
  • Notification light probably. too small for a camera
  • I looks just like the camera on my wife's EVO
  • It really does look like the top of the EVO, but on the opposite side of the speaker. I really hope that you're right and that it IS in fact a front facing camera!!
  • well i really wanted the g2 but had no desire transfering to tmobile from sprint.... thank you lord my question has been answered!
  • WELL SPRINT YOU CAN KEEP IT, DON'T LIKE IT.
  • Now I get it all the phones with out evo in them get sprint id!
  • All non HTC phones in other words.
  • Is that a case around the frame of the phone? so far this is looking clunky. not impressive.
  • Did you only look at the picture? The last sentence of the first paragraph says that there is a hard case on the phone.
  • I don't see myself giving up my evo for it, cause I use the video chat a lot n I love my big screen so is a nice phone but I'll stay with my evo til evo 2 comes out
  • I think the circle is an FFC. It looks just like the one on my Evo. The LED light on the Evo is in the earpiece, not outside of it. The FFC on the Evo is in the same position to the earpiece, just on the other side.
  • I don't know. My G2 has a circle on the front too... but it's just a sensor.
  • The Evo's sensor and LED are inside the earpiece. That is an FFC. Looks identical to the Evo FFC. This is an Evo phone, don't forget.
  • What happened to the Big Red Machine, Verizon Wireless? everyone else is coming out with the cool phones. WTF?
  • This pic looks 'shopped 4,200 ways. Poorly. Artifacts around the hardware buttons... a lame pasted screen. Meh. Go the device anyway.
  • +1 on the camera!! BIG MISTAKE SPRINT IF NO FRONT FACING CAMERA!!!
  • Agreed. Who the hell would launch a phone on 4g right now without video chat capabilities. It sort of is the porn reason to pay the extra 10 a month. Also, no gorilla glass or equivalent at the end of 2010 is just plain stupid. If this has plastic then it should be sh^t canned and those who approved it at HTC and Sprint fired. Even WebOs Pre2 (not that anyone will actually carry it) has gorilla glass.
  • Why? The vast majority of people will likely never use video chat. It's not really a make or break feature for most people.
  • That is absolutely not true. You are thinking in 2010 terms. Everyone I know that has a video chat phone (and with someone to chat with) uses it. And, this ranges in ages from 20 to 62 with anyone from students to doctors. But, people once made that argument about smart phones in general.
  • Just because Steve Jobs says it's the future, doesn't make it so. Most of the people that I know who have video capable phones don't use them. And most of them fall directly into that demographic you say everyone is doing it. So, your statement is absolutely not true. Video chat is a novelty, not a primary 'must have' feature.
  • It has a front facing camera! Again...the LED and sensor are INSIDE the earpiece on the Evo. That means that circle is a camera!
  • Photo shopped
  • Touch pad should've been on the left side so it can be used for gaming. Id buy this over the sony version if I had to choose between the 2.
  • I hope the HTC 2 looks nothing like this.
  • Wait...when did SenseUI go landscape capable?
  • Yes, that is an excellent question
  • With the new version of Sense on the Desire Z and Desire HD
  • Kewl! I hope that comes to the Evo with 2.3? I have always wondered why Sense wouldn't rotate.
  • Pretty sure that if you build a slider phone like this, there's really no choice, the homescreen has to be capable of landscape. I can't imagine it being that big a deal for them, my HTC TP and TP2 had Sense in landscape many tears ago, and if Launcher Pro and ADW Launcher can get it done, shouldn't be too tough.
  • As a fan of physical keyboards i look forward to see what this phone offers. I been wanting to wait but i don't think i will see a Tegra2 phone for at least 6 months or so (guessing). So this phone might be the one i been waiting for if it is indeed an EVO with a slider.
    I think after a year i can upgrade if sprint has a Tegra2 phone. Well see how it goes i just know i am ready for android phone now.
  • I was in that same boat for a long time. Waiting for a new Android phone that had a decent physical keyboard. Had an opportunity to play with the EVO at work before it came out and my mind was changed. It's gotten even better with the alternate keyboards like Swype. Physical keyboards do have a place, and I'm happy that both Android and WP7 have seen fit to offer that choice to consumers. I would guess late first quarter or mid year before we see a good array of devices built on tegra 2 or other next gen chipsets on the market. Just in time for EVO 2, or whatever the followup is called.
  • I think i am set on a physical keyboard although the larger screen and such on the evo are interesting. I will give it some play time this week ill stop off at the sprint store.