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We’ve long been hearing about Verizon’s DROID Incredible 4G but we haven’t been able to get a look at the thing. That changed today as Android Police received shots of device in all its glory. It’s an interesting design that features the unique backplate that the DROID Incredible series has come to be known for.
There’s a red, raised power button on the top of the phone, gun metal sides and three capacitive buttons. This is sure to be an entry into the HTC One series and it’s perhaps the most exhaustive change from the original devices yet. It’s said that the back of the device is interchangeable which could mean there will be a removable battery, but it’s hard to say for sure.
You can see that the device also has HTC Sense 4.0, which means we’re getting Android 4.0 and like a Snapdragon S4 processor due to the LTE radios sure to be inside.
The display is 4 inches, though it’s not know if this is to be recognized as a One X with a smaller screen or a One S. I guess it doesn’t really matter as Verizon’s transformed the device enough to set itself apart. Find more shots at the source link. [Android Police]
looks the the rezound. nothing new to see here.
if you buy your phones based on looks alone, then yea, nothing new
if you care at all about hardware, then theres some new stuff going on
I thought I was the only one thinking that!
In comparison to previous Incredibles, that looks cheap and the grey looks tacky. The OG Inc had the best build quality hands down.
And seriously, chrome? WTF!
It’s not grey, just matte black. The contrast in the pic is a little washed out (probably to show detail).
So, I guess this is just a more affordable Rezound? Wont the Rezound price drop to about the same though once this is finally released?
Not quite.
The S4 is a huuuuge upgrade over the S3 in the Rezound.
Other than speed, that will bring a big battery boost, so there’s another improvement over the Rezound.
It should also be much lighter than the Rezound, which is a bit of a brick @ 6oz
Also Sense 4 (without having to root)
Most likely a better camera, although the Rezound has the edge in the FFC department.
Honestly, the only thing the Rezound has going for it is that nice screen (which is the best on Verizon to date)
I think its physical similarity to the Rezound (including its apparent thickness, from the photos) calls into question whether it’s actually an S4 and not just a Rezound with a smaller display.
The most optimistic perspective is that it could be a One S with a slightly smaller screen and a gigantic battery. I’m not holding my breath though.
I don’t know why the physical similarity should call the processor into question. The processor is one of the only things that we’ve been (mostly) sure about since the beginning.
This is definitely closer to a One S than a Rezound.
We’ve only been MOSTLY sure about the processor. It’s entirely possible that the leak about it being an S4 was erroneous, or that a change was made during development. (It wouldn’t be the first time something like that happened.)
Additionally, it’s exceedingly rare for Verizon to get a new phone at anywhere near the same time as other carriers (both due to being CDMA, and seemingly having a longer QC process). It wouldn’t be crazy for them to get a pre-One design while the One series is hitting all of the other carriers.
There aren’t many reasons why the Incredible 4G would need to be significantly thicker than a One S. Off the top of my head:
-It needs more space due to the poorer thermal performance arising from using an older processor
-It needs more space for a separate LTE radio because it’s not an S4
-It needs extra thickness due to a smaller form-factor (due to a smaller screen)(if this is the case, it would have been smarter to just stick with the 4.3″ display)
-It has an absolutely gigantic battery (which probably wouldn’t be necessary if it had an S4, although it might be desirable anyway)
Note: I’m not saying it’s definitely derived from the Rezound. I’m just saying that its appearance makes that look like a reasonable possibility.
The same leaked benchmark tests that accurately showed the qHD resolution also showed the Adreno 225 GPU, which points to a S4.
I think that’s more of a compelling justification that it has the S4 than any of your reasons why it might not (especially the first one).
As for the extra thickness…
I don’t think it’s necessarily the radio that takes up all the extra space in LTE phones… I think it’s the separate antenna that does it. (I could be wrong here)
Also, presumably a removable battery takes up more space than a non-removable one (which seems to be why most super-thin phones have a non-removable battery). It’s not known for sure, but it seems like this phone has a removable battery.
The extra thickness due to smaller form factor could be the case too.
I wouldn’t bet on the gigantic battery reason, since the phone is supposedly very lightweight.
On top of that… The best justification that it’s not a new Rezound is… well… the fact that it’s just not. It’s the next phone in the Incredible series, not a new Rezound model.
newer, faster, more efficient processor, 4 inch screen for those who dont want 4.3+ phones.
ComeonApril21st, comeonApril21st, comeonApril21st….
I like that it’s supposedly a 4″ screen. I’ve been waiting for a reasonably sized midrange or better android phone on Verizon.
That said, it looks a heck of a lot like something derived from the Rezound instead of the One series, which is exceptionally disappointing (both aesthetically and due to the possibility that its internals might also be more like the Rezound than the One).
4 inch screen!
Does anyone else feel like the Droid brand is a bit diluted? Maybe it’s just me, but it feels like several “Droid” devices targeting widely varying audiences is released every few months… note I said “feels” like, I’m sure this isn’t actually the case ;) but I stopped paying attention to this brand long ago.
The whole “Droid” thing was a bad decision from the start. It would be fine if it was just that one line of phones, but they slapped “Droid” in front of everything so that it pretty much meant nothing. In fact, it’s probably Verizon’s fault that half of the population doesn’t know the difference between “Droid” and “Android”
Personally, I considered it a small victory that I got my OG Incredible BEFORE Verizon slapped the Droid branding on it. I’ve never referred to it as the “Droid Incredible.” I got the plain white box that said just “HTC Incredible” not the weird Droided-out lime green and black box. Comparison shots: http://twitpic.com/1vo1lv , http://twitpic.com/1vo1t4 , http://twitpic.com/1vo25h
I too get annoyed with people who don’t know the difference between Droid and Android, but from a marketing and business stand point, the “Droid” marketing campaign was genius and a major win for Verizon.
How was that a major win? By alienating half of your customers and marketing your phones to only males?
The OG Droid hit 1 million sales faster than the OG iphone. The Droid campaign put Android on the map in the U.S. Clearly you didn’t know a lot of females back 2 – 3 years ago when the iphone wasn’t on verizon. Many of my female friends had the OG Droid or the Droid Eris. The campaign was a success.
it always kills me a little inside because when I tell an iSheep what kind of phone I have, I have to say a droid. Its an atrix, but they wouldn’t know the difference between a banana and a orange android phone-wise
This article is riddled with typos and bad writing…
“You can see that the device also has HTC Sense 4.0, which means we’re
getting Android 4.0 and like a Snapdragon S4 processor due to the LTE
radios sure to be inside.”
Even if you fix the typo to read “likely” (which is what I’m assuming was meant) the structure of that sentence makes no sense. Taking out the bit about Android 4.0, which is accurate, the sentence is implying that Sense 4.0 implies Snapdragon S4 due to LTE radios? What? Sense 4 only implies ICS, which you got right. The thing that points to the S4 is the GPU, which was leaked earlier… that’s the only thing that points to the S4…other than the fact tha HTC is using it a lot on it’s LTE phones these days (which I guess is what you were getting at with “due to LTE radios” although the way you said it didn’t make sense)
And the other typo…
“The display is 4 inches, though it’s not know if this is…
(Should be “known”)
So you just got to be THAT guy huh?
As you can see… the two typos I pointed out weren’t the focus of my comment. It was mostly about his statement that didn’t make any sense.
”
other than the fact tha HTC is using”
it’s supposed to be “that”…idiot
It’s one thing to make a typo in a comment… It’s another thing when you’re producing actual content. Proofreading never hurts.
qHD with a pentile matrix amoled screen?
If only it were 720p samoled+ or even LCD.
Seems like it IS the rezound… Oh well.
Rezound 2?Seriously, looks like a good entry in the Incredible line.
VZW is lagging on new hardware
Considering how awesome the ceramic aluminum HTC One S looks, this thing is pathetic.
BUT, if it has the S4 (Krait), along with a 4.0″ AMOLED and LTE, I’d probably buy it. I’ve been waiting for a reasonably sized LTE phone and hoping it wouldn’t be the next iPhone first.
Same here. I still have a release-day Droid Eris, so I’m getting desperate.
If this is a One X dirrivient why are they chopping off almost a full inch of screen real estate?
because it’s not… it’s closer to the One S, but still pretty different
If there gonna use capacitive buttons then they might as well put the search and menu button back! At least with on-screen ones you can customize.
The ” Droid” branding has suffered for a while now with its failure to stand at the top of current handsets with new releases. Verizon has either allowed or pushed for manufacturers to released midiocre handsets followed by slightly better handsets within months. When this branding started on verizon the slogan” Droid does” accompanied by stellar hardware gave android fans fuel to rag all iphone users now they can hardly talk amongst other android phones. A brand that started out leading the os has blended in with less attractive handsets. They should really put out less handsets with this branding that atleast arguably battles for android supremacy. With that said this phone isnt that attractive to me at all.
There is no way this phone is at all related to the One series. It looks like mix of Inc 2 and Rezound. Vzw fail.
And damn look at the date. January. They sure do test a long time
Now that you point it out, that date is suspicious. Why would the photos only leak now if they were taken in January?
I am all over this phone. I love my OG Incredible, but when I upgrade, this is it. And yeah, IT’S A 4″ SCREEN!! Finally, a 4G phone with good specs that isn’t too big to keep comfortably in my pocket.
How about a Note derivative?
I need a bigger screen than 4″… I’ll keep my Rezound, even tho I want Sense 4. Oh well…
My incredible (original) was probably the best form factor of a phone I ever had… I am going to test one in person when I can. Still not a fan of HTC again but want to give them a second shot.
Also an original Incredible owner. After GB a great phone. I need a bigger screen , and this isn’t the one
I just stepped from 2 years with my DInc to HTC’s Rezound… camera is crazy good and the screen is jaw-droppingly beautiful.
As a current Thunderbolt owner who upgrades in November, I really hope this is supposed to be Verizon’s version of the One S, I really want buy HTC again when I upgrade, I believe the hardware is better, and while their are software bugs sometimes they eventually work them out, not give up on them for the better part of a year, I’m looking at you Samsung for my wifi drain on my AT&T SGSII.
I won’t buy a phone will less than a 4.3 inch screen, 4.6 – 4.7 720p is the screen I really want for my next phone. But this is something I might suggest for people who want smaller phones.
I have to agree that the back cover is really ugly though, I always cover mine up with cases though so backs don’t effect my purchasing decisions.