CTIA: Can Sprint, HTC make 3D matter on the phone?

ORLANDO -- The verdict is still out on 3D on the TV and the movie screen, but that’s not stopping Sprint and HTC from introducing the industry’s first 3D smartphone at this week’s CTIA show, adding 3D and other capabilities to the already notable (for its size, mainly) HTC Evo.

The new HTC Evo 3D will include a QHD screen that allows users to view 3D content without 3D glasses. The device runs on Sprint’s 4G network (Sprint touted 22 devices now running on that WiMax network), which should help users download potentially bandwidth-heavy 3D video.

=If there’s limited 3D content available for larger screens, there’s even less that would be suitable for viewing on a phone screen. But Sprint and HTC are hoping to address that by including the ability to capture 3D photos and video on the device. That novelty could spur a user-generated 3D content surge (or not…if smartphone users don’t take to the idea). Sprint is also working with Blockbuster to bring 3D movies and other content to the device.

The HTC Evo 3D will include the Gingerbread 2.3 version of Android, features a QHD 4.3 inch display, dual 5-megapixel cameras and a dual-core 1.2 Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, among other capabilities.

At the CTIA press event touting the new device, Sprint CEO Dan Hesse and HTC Americas President Jason Mackenzie said the phone could be a game changer. The “real magic” comes when users “capture their own videos and pictures in 3D,” said Mackenzie, noting that HTC has made its mark in the industry with hardware and software (with the HTC Sense UI) that show “all Android phones are not created equal.”

To that end, HTC and Sprint also announced the HTC Evo View 4G, a 7-inch Android based tablet. Among the notable features on that device is the HTC Scribe digital pen accessory, which lets users take notes and otherwise mark up and interact with tablet content.

HTC joins Samsung in launching new Android-based tablets at the show.