An stock Evo is already an excellent phone. IMO, a rooted Evo is a better phone. Depending on the ROM you choose, it can run faster & smoother, with better battery life, though some of them do some functions better, some not as well. Any of them can be a bit buggy sometimes, so it pays to keep up with and flash updates. Beyond that, there's free tethering (with or without cable), unlocked nand, root apps, themes and mods, etc.
The responses you receive in this forum will most likely favor rooting. Responses from the stock forum above might be more objective or middle of the road. Either way, YMMV.
Note: If you do choose to root and flash, do not [repeat: DO NOT] accept any OTA updates from Sprint. Every single one of them has unrooted the phone, plugged the exploit, and generally created problems with rooted phones. Wait on updated ROMs that incorporate the changes. They come within a couple of days, sometimes within hours, and once in awhile, even before Sprint drops the OTA.
