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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BoloMKXXVIII - Monday, March 25, 2013 - link
Nobody uses the SD card slot or removable battery? I replace my battery yearly. Hard to do with the HTC 1 or Iphone. The microSD card slot is not as necessary with a phone with 32 or 64 GB of storage but a lot of phones still come with a measely 8 or 16 GB.jmunjr - Thursday, March 28, 2013 - link
Nobody? I swap batteries all the time. I don't have to worry about charging my phone when I have a freshly charged battery at hand, and I can go on a several day trip without charging if I use just 2-3 batteries(at least 2 being extended batteries)... It really sucks when I don't have access to charging and don't have an extra battery. It must suck for people who can't charge and can't change the battery.I also can say my phone is MUCH easier to handle with an oversized extended batterry since I have such big hands. Any time I use a skinny phone made for little people I have trouble. Once I add the extended battery/cover I instantly can use the phone with one hand...
As for the SD card, yes I could conceivably live without it but O do swap cards from time to time. I prefer to have the option mainly for external content. Storing apps on the SD card is not preferable for me for this reason, but being able to have lots data accessible while offline is nice.
mohnish82 - Saturday, March 30, 2013 - link
I miss the SD card with my GNex while using Linux. The MTP crap doesn't work well in Linux. Had to go SSH route.darwinosx - Friday, March 22, 2013 - link
I don't like the grossly oversaturated screens Samsung uses. Given a choice I much prefer the HTC One screen. Whats odd is that Samsung does not use their best display technologies on their phones and tablets.krumme - Friday, March 22, 2013 - link
Nonsense. On a s3 you can change profile to neutral, and its far better picture for photos than their best pls screens. On the S4 you can change to rgb adobe. Satisfied?Ne0 - Friday, March 22, 2013 - link
That's why there's the Screen Mode option of Dynamic (if you like over saturation), Standard, Natural (what I choose), and Movie. You have options.RichPaterno - Saturday, April 20, 2013 - link
Why is it that people who like the GS3 display never seem to notice the bluish tint inherent in these GS phones? Side by side with my HTC one x, the bluish tint is really noticeable and quite annoyings44 - Thursday, March 21, 2013 - link
As I said elsewhere, HTC has designed the best Android device for iOS users who aren't going to switch anyway.This seems a poor market strategy, but if you actually ARE going to switch, that would be big.
danbob999 - Thursday, March 21, 2013 - link
good pointflyingpants1 - Thursday, March 21, 2013 - link
Yes, very good point. If you're going to switch from an iPhone, why not switch to a device with the benefits of removable battery/microsd?