The HTC One: A Remarkable Device, Anand’s mini Review
by Anand Lal Shimpi on March 21, 2013 4:49 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- HTC
- Mobile
- HTC One
Final Words and the Galaxy S 4 Comparison
The One is without a doubt the best Android smartphone I’ve ever used. HTC’s build quality and materials choices have been steadily improving over the past couple of years and I honestly don’t know a more fitting name for its latest flagship other than the One - it’s the one to get. Even iPhone users looking for something different might be tempted by the One.
For me it’s the camera performance and the highlights reel that really seal the deal. The fact that the One is an excellent looking device built out of top notch materials is just icing on the cake.
The rest of the spec list is equally fitting. I’m glad to see 802.11ac make the list. The great speakers and display are both useful and impressive.
Sense took a real step towards subtlety with 5.0, and it’s finally at a point where I don’t really mind the customizations. My preference is still for vanilla Android, but the latest iteration of Sense is far closer than it has ever been. The real trick is ensuring timely updates with major Android releases. If you’re an infrequent smartphone upgrader, the Nexus line is still the best option there.
Despite how well the One does in the build quality, looks and camera departments, HTC has an uphill battle ahead of itself. Samsung is clearly the dominating incumbent in the Android space, and it has the luxury of an order of magnitude higher quarterly revenues to support its smartphone business. If there ever was a David v Goliath race in the smartphone space, it would be between HTC and Samsung.
Zoe and the highlights reel are great features that need marketing to demonstrate and spread their word. The litany of new camera and interaction features that accompany the Galaxy S 4 will likely translate very well to cleverly crafted TV ads. I’d argue that HTC’s camera features (great low light performance, highlights reel) are more useful to me personally, but Samsung’s features (touchless scrolling, dual camera, smart pause) are easier sells to the mainstream smartphone market. Similarly, design and materials choices are obvious advantages for the One, but it’s easier to market a thinner and lighter phone.
Ultimately, HTC appears to have built a great phone for enthusiasts and one that can be marketed, with some effort, to the mainstream. Samsung, by comparison, seems to have its targets set squarely at the mainstream and it has the features and the marketing budget to really capture the attention of that audience. You can argue about the merits of features like the ability to automatically pause video based on whether or not you’re looking at it - personally I’d take better camera performance - but that’s a much easier feature to explain in a TV commercial than why larger pixels matter.
The One is expected to be widely available beginning next month.
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CeriseCogburn - Monday, March 25, 2013 - link
iPhone users don't need to see the screen, they just need to know they have their personal self esteem status and stupidity in tact. Plus there's always market worship. And iPhone "genius" help. Plus it's the greatest cultural excuse for that Starbucks or other coffee, and they don't want to be shunned by all the other mind numbed robots who haven't noticed and never want to that apple is now losing and has been for some time.Believe me the stories I've heard and seen in person are amazing.
Gathomblipoob - Wednesday, March 27, 2013 - link
As a iPhone 5 user who is looking at testing out the HTC One, I resent every word you posted among a lot of generally well-thought-out and helpful comments. I tend to use what works for me; I'm not a slave to brand. Are you sure it's not YOUR self-esteem you're trying to shore up?ex2bot - Friday, March 29, 2013 - link
We really don't need to see the screen because we are confident in our prettiness and attractive square jaws. And you're jealous. Your own dog even thinks we're prettier, Bob. Yes, we Apple users even know you're real name. We're so secure that we intentionally made a grammatical error in the previous sentence. You can't fake that kind of confidence (imagine a charming, disarming smile with a bright flash on a corner tooth).Keep it real.
Bot
- not sent from my beloved iPhone
Steebie - Thursday, April 4, 2013 - link
I think there are a million reasons Samsung chooses pentile displays...for start:Longer battery life
Brighter colors (which people seem to prefer over accurate colors)
Assembly line issues
Cost
Who knows why else?
krumme - Friday, March 22, 2013 - link
The screen on the gs3 is far sharper than the gs2. Your numbers is misleading. Go read Brians article about s3, to the the right comparisons regardless if its pentile or not.Thats not to say you cant see pixels on s3, i think i can be far sharper, but its not like those number let us to beliewe.
Steebie - Thursday, April 4, 2013 - link
Have you ever held a pentile screen side by side with an LCD screen? The difference in sharpness is something that can't be argued.nerd1 - Thursday, March 21, 2013 - link
AMOLED has non-matched blacks and with 1080p resolution it still gives >300ppi for red and blues, exceeding most people's eyesight. So basically even though it's pentile, it's still not worse than iPhone in terms of resolution.Thud2 - Monday, April 15, 2013 - link
Nerd1! i you have reaffirmed my trust in you! Your impartiality is confirmed! Very informed post!Thud2 - Monday, April 15, 2013 - link
looking at the One and my bosses iphone I think the One is definitely betterdv220s - Saturday, March 23, 2013 - link
I hear the GS4's screen isn't completely Pentile. There's actually 3 sub pixels per pixel like the Note 2 but they aren't the standard RGB pixels. 1 long blue sub pixel and red and green sub pixels stacked on top of each other