Some Boost Mobile users got a taste of 4G last year, when the carrier gained access to Sprint's abandoned '4G' WiMAX network. But now Boost has access to Sprint's speedy, shiny new 4G LTE network, which blows WiMAX away. It's still not available in most markets, but you should go for LTE if you're interested in a faster online experience in the future. Right now, the $299.99 HTC One SV is your best bet. It's a little pricey, but 4G LTE support, along with plenty of power and a high-quality, stylish design, make it our new Editors' Choice for smartphones on Boost.

Design, Network, Plans, and Call Quality

The HTC One SV is the nicest looking phone on Boost, hands down. Sure, the flaming orangey-red color probably isn't to everyone's taste, but it's certainly eye-catching. The phone has a black, glass front panel, with red buttons and red detail on the earpiece speaker grille. There's a metallic-looking band around the slanted edge of the phone, separating the front from the polycarbonate back. At 5.04 by 2.63 by 0.63 inches (HWD) and 4.3 ounces, the phone will fit into most hand sizes like a glove.

The 4.3-inch, 800-by-480 Super LCD2 isn't the highest-resolution display available on Boost (that would be the 4 inch, 960-by-540-pixel panel on HTC's EVO Design 4G)See it at Amazon UK. But it gets super bright, and has excellent viewing angles, which make it great for multimedia. The three haptic feedback-enabled touch buttons below the display are responsive, and typing felt fine on the on-screen, Swype-enabled keyboard.

Boost uses Sprint's network, and the One SV is just one of two phones to feature 4G LTE support—if you can get it, that is. It's only available in a limited number of cities right now, so chances are you'll be stuck with significantly slower speeds until it comes to your town. In last year's Fastest Mobile Networks tests we found Sprint's 3G network to be the slowest of the nationwide networks. We got a chance to test Sprint's 4G LTE network and found it to be a vast improvement.

 

That said, if you fall into the limited LTE coverage zone, Boost offers some incredible deals. Monthly plans cost $55 per month, and get you unlimited talk, texts, and data. There is a slight catch on that unlimited data: After 2.5GB of full-speed data usage per month, your speeds will be throttled significantly until the end of your billing cycle. But your monthly payment reduces by $5 after every six months you pay your bill on time, until you reach $40 per month. $40 per month for unlimited everything is about as cheap as you can get.

Sprint LTE is limited in New York City, where we tested the One SV, so all of our tests were conducted over 3G. Call quality is average. Calls made with the phone sound clear and natural, with good noise cancellation. But earpiece volume is rather low, which made it difficult to hear calls I took outside. The speakerphone sounds loud enough to hear in the car, but not if you're driving with the radio on and the windows open. I had no trouble connecting to a Jawbone Era Bluetooth headset  and standard Android voice dialing worked fine. Battery life was good at 9 hours and 1 minute of talk time over 3G.

Android and Apps

The One SV is powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm S4 processor. That's not as fast as the 1.5GHz dual-core chip in the Boost Force, though both phones turned in similar benchmark scores, and both perform admirably in day-to-day use. That makes the One SV one of the fastest phones on Boost. Combine that with 4G LTE or Wi-Fi and you should be very satisfied with the phone's performance.

(Next page: Multimedia, Camera, and Conclusions)