HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE review: In small packages

Final words

Powerful hardware, LTE network connectivity, (mostly) good software experience - there is plenty to fall for when you look at the HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE. The smartphone has essentially carved a niche in the US market, which is yet to be explored by the competition.

There are still plenty of people out there (including some in our office), who believe that any screen larger than 4" is simply pushing the envelope a bit too far. If you are among them, the DROID Incredible 4G LTE seems like a smartphone perfectly tailored to your needs.

Of course, the smartphone isn't without its issues. Our biggest beef with the device comes from what Verizon Wireless has done with an otherwise superb combination of Android ICS and HTC Sense 4.0. The amount of bloatware is simply too much to handle and you can't get rid (or even hide) most of it. The Wi-Fi indicator in the notification area is particularly annoying - it has no place there.

As for the rest of the smartphone's shortcomings, we do believe that they are much easier to live with, as they mostly boil down to individual preferences.

The HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE is cleverly priced at $149.99 with a two-year commitment to Verizon Wireless. This is a good deal, which puts a lot of smartphone in your pocket.

Like we briefly suggested above, the HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE is currently without direct completion on the market. This is pretty remarkable, given the nature of the Android realm, and the huge number of devices to choose from for almost every taste. If you are looking for the most current hardware, packed in a small body, the DROID is the device for you.

In case you are willing to save a bit of money and compromise a bit on the specs, take a look at the Samsung Galaxy Exhilarate fir AT&T, and its T-Mobile cousin the Galaxy S Blaze 4G, Both devices offer 4" displays and dual-core CPUs from yesteryear. The Exhilarate costs $49.99, while the Galaxy S Blaze 4G can be found as low as free on a contract.

Samsung Exhilarate i577 • Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G T769

The Pantech Burst is also a cheap pocket-friendly alternative, which will cost you nothing on a contract, but can't quite match the processing power or the ICS experience of the HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE. The same goes for the LG Viper 4G LTE.

LG Viper 4G LTE LS840 • Pantech Burst

We are not going to recommend you the giant screen beasts on this instance. Our guess is that, if you are looking at the HTC DROID Incredible 4G LTE, you will consider them a tad too large to handle comfortably.

The DROID is yet another solid offering by HTC. Curiously enough, it is the one that has the greatest chance of being successful on the US market. As you probably know, the One Series models have a serious competition from the Samsung Galaxy S III, while the Incredible 4G LTE has its niche almost all to itself.

We are left a bit puzzled (just like with the HTC Evo 4G LTE) as to why would the Taiwanese giant not release a global version of the device. We strongly believe that its powerful hardware and pocketable body will enjoy quite some success in non-US markets as well, but maybe HTC is just too afraid of cannibalizing the One S sales.