In the year 2013, few things are as hyped as a new premium smartphone. By contrast, HTC has been relatively quiet about the new HTC One. HTC has fallen far behind Apple and Samsung in sales, and it hopes this is the top-end phone to revive its fortunes.
First impressions, thankfully, are great. The One is a gorgeous phone, and it wipes the floor with the Sony Xperia Z. The combination of metal rear, bevelled metal edges and edge-to-edge screen are class itself, and make the Xperia Z feel square and tacky, despite its glass rear. The HTC One’s curved back also makes it comfortable to hold - a minor downside is that it’s tricky to type when it’s lying flat on a desk.
The metal-backed HTC One is a thing of beauty, and even out-classes the Sony Xperia Z’s glass chassis
I was also seriously impressed with the screen. It’s a 4.7in model with a Full HD 1, 920x1, 080 resolution, leading to a huge pixel density figure of 468ppi. When compared side-by-side with the Xperia Z’s display, I preferred the HTC One’s screen, thanks to its superb contrast. It has incredibly deep blacks (for an LCD at least), and test photos showed rich, vibrant colours and plenty of shadow detail.
The HTC One wins out when it comes to web browsing performance. It has a quad-core 1.7GHz processor, and completed Sunspider JavaScript benchmark in a super-fast 1, 123ms. This is far faster than the 1, 890ms seen from the Xperia Z. This difference was borne out in subjective web browsing tests. Both phones rendered graphics heavy web pages at a similar speed, but when zoomed in and panning around a web page, the Xperia Z would stutter when coming across a large image – a problem I didn’t have with the HTC One.
Luckily, HTC has provided a huge 2, 300mAh battery to power the fast processor and bright screen. The handset managed 8h 32m in continuous video playback test, which is a strong result and bodes well for all-day battery life.
SENSE 5.0
An Android smartphone can be beautifully designed and have an amazing screen and top-notch chipset, but none of this will make any difference if the software is rubbish. HTC sails closer to the wind than most on this front, as it heavily customized Android with its latest Sense interface.
Sense has always divided opinion, but this time HTC has really pushed the boat out. Running on top of Android 4.1.2 is Sense 5.0, and with it comes the end of the traditional Android home screen, with its mix of widgets and icons. Instead, you get what HTC calls BlinkFeed. This consists of a rolling grid of tiles, containing information aggregated from various news websites and your social media feeds.
You can add all the major social media services, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Flickr, but the choice of news websites is quite narrow; you get the Guardian, the Independent and Reuters for news, and CNET and TechCrunch for technology. For those used to getting their content from a wide variety of sources the BlinkFeed selection will seem very narrow.
BlinkFeed replaces the standard Android home screen, and shows you news feeds and social networks in chronological order. BlinkFeed is a clever idea which is in tune with how many people actually use their smartphones; to keep an eye on what’s happening in the world and among people they know. Of course, if you prefer to use your Android smartphone to check your calendar widget at a glance on your home screen before opening your email, you will most likely hate it.
The standard Android home screen isn’t completely dead and gone, though. Swiping right from the BlinkFeed takes you to a standard Android home screen with space for the usual apps and widgets, and you can add up to three more screens if you need more room.
MUSO CORNER
HTC has made a big deal about music playback ever since it first stuck a Beats by Dr. Dre logo on one of its phones, and the One is no exception. It has what HTC calls BoomSound – a pair of stereo speakers at the top and bottom of the phone - or left and right when watching video in landscape orientation.
Amazingly, these speakers sound reasonably good. It’s the best sound quality I’ve ever heard from a phone, but the bar is set pretty low. The speakers are loud and produce audio with some definition, but the sound is certainly harsh with a definite high-end emphasis, but that’s to be expected from speakers this size.
The One also has built-in twin microphones, which HTC says are designed for recording gigs.
ULTRA PIXELS ARE THE NEW MEGAPIXELS
As if replacing the Android homescreen wasn’t radical enough, HTC has also gone against popular convention with the One’s camera. HTC has made a sensor using what it calls Ultra Pixels. These are larger-than-average pixels, which means that instead of having 12 or more megapixels on a small sensor, the HTC One only has four megapixels.
HTC also claims the camera lets in 300% more light than a standard smartphone model. In my test I found that the HTC One produces sharper photos, but the Sony Xperia Z has more accurate colours. However, when taking shots outdoors I noticed the limitations of the HTC One’s low megapixel count. Photos were fine at short and medium distances, but detail tails off significantly in the distance, leading to smudgy details and pixilation.
Like all smartphone cameras, HTC One’s model is a compromise. If you mainly use your phone for taking indoor shots of friends and family, you’ll definitely appreciate the impressive low-light performance. It’s also fine for outdoor snaps, but if you like your smartphone to be a replacement for a compact camera for holiday snaps, you’re better off with choosing one with a higher-resolution sensor such as the Sony Xperia Z, or even maybe the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S4.
VERDICT
HTC has pulled off a blinder with the HTC One. It’s a gorgeous phone with a beautiful screen, and I think it’s a more desirable handset than the Sony Xperia Z.
Given you can move BlinkFeed out of view, the HTC should appeal to everyone. It will be especially tempting to those who crave the low-light capabilities of its camera. Its metal chassis is also a big selling point - and one, based on past models, that is unlikely to appear on the Samsung Galaxy S4.
Hardware Details
Main display size 4.7in
Native resolution 1, 920 x 1, 080
CCD effective megapixels 4.1-megapixel
GPS
Internal memory 32768 Mb
Memory card support none
Operating frequencies GSM 850/900/1800/1900, 3G 850/900/1900/2100, LTE 800/1800/2600
Wireless data LTE
Size 137x68x9mm
Weight 143g
Features
Operating system Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
Microsoft Office compatibility Word, Excel, PowerPoint
FM Radio
Accessories headphones, data cable, charger