HTC EVO View 4G Tablet Review
$349.99
Video Controls
Due to the differing music interface, we wondered if we'd see a new video interface, and alas, the HTC EVO View 4G does not have the stock controls common to most Honeycomb tablets. This is far from being a good thing, however, as the rather unobtrusive control interface for Honeycomb is pretty great. Even though the play/pause button and scrub bar is opaque, it disappears very quickly to make way for your video file to take up as much screen area as possible.
Video Management
Videos can be either bought from the Play Store, or they can be transferred to your device via the included USB cable to the gallery. From the gallery, you can browse your files via thumbnails, or you can browse the "Personal Videos" tab in Play Movies app for titles you've purchased. If you'd like to find more, you can always browse the rentals tab as well, or browse the appropriate section in the Play Store.
Video Formats
One of the great things about having an Android tablet is the fact that you can find things like alternate players with added file support, or codecs in the Play Store to get your files working the way you want. While HTC wasn't exactly forthcoming about which file formats it supports natively, you could always download Mobo Player to handle your video playback with dramatically expanded file support.
Internet Video
Included in the software for the HTC EVO View 4G is a YouTube app very common to Android tablets, and it's probably the best way to browse the popular video-streaming site. With a gallery of title icons and a redesign that's specific only to tablets, the app does a great job of optimizing the experience for its users.
Video Battery Life
With the backlight cranked, all wireless disabled, and all additional processes turned off, the HTC EVO View 4G has a comparatively wretched battery life of 4 hours, 52 minutes playing back video. It's not terribly surprising that a smaller battery might give a shorter battery life, but even this is a little surprising. This is not enough for a long flight by any stretch of the imagination.
