With LG and Samsung making their big unveils at MWC 2016 — LG’s G5 and Samsung’s Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge — we knew that even if HTC is not going to make a major release in the event, it will still launch its next handset, the HTC 10, not that long after its competitors.
However, now the company has started teasing about its upcoming flagship device. This time, it is pretty much a make or break situation for the Taiwanese corp, as the former flagship, the One M9, was able to bring design refinement but had fallen short elsewhere.
This handset needs to hold such an optimum mix of performance, design and cost efficiency, that it will finally bring HTC back on track.
Now, we will be discussing the technical and design aspects of the handset.
Design and Dimensions
With the HTC One M9, we saw a major change; that was the front placement of the fingerprint sensor/home button. This had caused the removal of the front firing BoomSound speakers.
Fans were not satisfied with the omission of this particular feature, even when the designers of the handset had included in a DAC that was developed to improve the performance of the audio via the headsets. This resulted in the deviation of the handset from the design aesthetics that we had seen in previous HTC handsets.
However, the HTC One 10 will reportedly follow the design aesthetics of the A9. This would still mean the absence of the BoomSound speakers, but will lead to a much slimmer overall form factor.
According to reports by Venture Beat, there will also be degree of waterproofing in the device. SlashGear has said that the purported measurement of the device will be 144.6 x 69.7 x 9.6mm.
Display
Not much is known about 10’s display. However, a report by @Evleaks suggests that the device will support an LCD panel, while another rumor by @OnLeaks claimed that it will be a 5.15 inches wide display with 2560X1440 pixels resolution.
Specs and Software
Early speculations were suggesting that the HTC One 10 will pack a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820. The allegations have been confirmed by the CPU maker a few days ago, “The power of #Snapdragon meets the #powerof10. Are you ready for next week?”
According to a big specs leak that was reported by Venture Beat, to support the processor, the device will come with 4GB of onboard RAM and 32GB of internal storage. Later, OnLeaks had confirmed the leak as well.
Also read: HTC’s Sense 8 UI screenshots leaked, to feature ‘Freestyle’ Home Screen layouts
As for the software, we are sure that the device will come with Android Version 6.0.1 Marshmallow straight out of the box, seeing that its predecessors have already started to receive the update. Sense 8.0 will ostensibly be skinned upon Google’s mobile OS.
Camera
Cameras wise, we have seen a lot of different arrangements and technologies from HTC, ranging from dual camera setups to UltraPixel sensors.
There have been rumors that the device will come with a 12-megapixel UltraPixel sensor and a wider f/1.9 aperture. According to a tweet from @LlabToofer, the smartphone may come with a 12MP sensor by Sony that has 1.55 µm pixels.
In an interview with CNET, CEO chair Cher Wang said that the phone will have a “very, very compelling camera experience“, but refrained from saying anything else.
Battery
We are not sure of the battery capacity of the device and there have not been many talks about it. However, as it will come with the 820 chipsets, we are quite positive that the HTC 10 will be backed by Qualcomm’s Quick charge 3.0.
Pricing and Availability
The handset’s price would be in the range of 650$ to 800$. We don’t think that the pricing of the HTC 10 will go below this frame, owing to the specs that it will taut and past installments’ launch-prices.
A couple of weeks ago, the company has confirmed that the release date of the HTC 10 is April 12th. We estimate that a few weeks after the release, the phone will hit most European shelves and the U.S. as well.
What are your expectations from the HTC 10? Let us know in the comments below.