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Last year HTC and Verizon released one of the best Android phones of the time with the HTC Incredible. Recently the two decided to get together again and release a newer updated version of the Incredible. While at a quick glance the updated version doesn’t look to be much of an upgrade, it is in fact a rather pleasant improvement on an already great phone.

As I stated a face value there isn’t much different between the two phones. However the big change is in the processor. Despite sporting a same processor speed their two different generations of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processor line. The newer processor sports a slightly better technology which helps improve upon the battery life. There is no way around it, this phone is fast. The combination of an updated processor with a bump in RAM shows right away as you unlock the phone.

Navigating the phone is a pleasure and there have been no issues so far with switching between apps. HTC has done a lot of work to try and keep Sense a relevant UI in the Android market and in Sense 2.1 there are some improved elements to the Sense interface. One such improvement that is seen right away is when you pull down the notification banner you are presented with recently used apps. While the Home button double-tap has always been present, this is just another easy way to get into previously closed apps. Aside from enhancements to the general UI you can tell HTC has worked hard on making the experience fluid. Sense previously ran clunky on some of the initial Android handsets but not anymore.

Probably the largest improvement with the new Incredible is the battery life. There is a bump in the battery size and with the combination of the latest generation snapdragon the battery life is phenomenal. In my initial use of the phone I got roughly 11 hours of battery life with moderate use in a low signal area. When I was able to spend time in a better reception area I saw the battery life shine as I was able to get 30 hours of life from the phone moderate use, and this included 2 hours of media streaming. Any fan of Android that has been disappointed with battery life will be really happy with this device.

The other enjoyable aspect of this phone is the wonderful 4” SuperLCD screen. It’s not “retina display” but it is nice enhancement. Colors are more vibrant and browsing media is actually enjoyable. On some of the previous Android phones I had used I always found issues in clarity of the icons and media but not so much on the Incredible 2.

I think this is a definite upgrade over the original Incredible and I would definitely recommend to any Verizon customer looking for a new phone who does not need 4G. At 199 on a 2-year contract it’s a pretty reasonable price that should have no issues keeping up with the next-gen phones short of not offering 4G.