While HTC isn’t a major figure in the smartphone market nowadays, it used to be a popular brand that was known for its premium grade flagship handsets. A good example of this is undoubtedly the HTC One (M7), so let’s look back at what made this device standout from the lot.
What made the HTC One (M7) Special?
With the launch of the HTC One (starting from the M7), the Taiwanese company had showcased that it was far ahead in certain aspects compared to its rivals. This was especially true in terms of hardware. The One M7 was launched back in February of 2013 and was met with an overall positive reception for a number of reasons, despite it technically failing in the market, commercially speaking. In its launch year, many articles had surfaced talking about the best smartphones of the year, and the HTC One made the list every time, if not outright topping it.
Its iconic metallic unibody was one of its highlighting features. Keep in mind, this design was a novelty back when plastic rear panels were still common in flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S4 and glass panels were just emerging as well. Even by today’s standards, the phone has a solid build quality, which was further complemented by the company’s Sense software. This was the custom skin that ran on top of Android OS and was one of the best UI’s back when stock Android wasn’t considered too appealing.
During the time of its launch, Samsung was dominating the high end Android market with the Galaxy S4, but the HTC One M7 was thought to be a close competitor in the same segment. Reviewers were divided between the two phones, but many had even agreed that the One M7 was in a league of its own in terms of design and build quality.
Impact & Future Influence
While a metallic body and stereo speakers are not ground breaking features any more, HTC’s One series helped in influencing the industry and popularized them. In 2013, stereo speakers weren’t as common, and its partnership with Beats Audio for its BoomSound speakers was iconic as well. Furthermore, the smartphone was touted for its unique user experience, with its HTC BlinkFeed receiving a lot of praises. The BlinkFeed is positioned on the left of the home screen, which is a common feature in modern day Android smartphones.
This feature also tied in with social media apps, or even news feeds as well for up to date info related to politics, sports, and much more. So, it is clear that the HTC One has made its mark in the smartphone industry. While the UltraPixel camera technology did not deliver the performance it had claimed, the company did bet right on the concept that larger megapixel count isn’t everything. Rather, a larger aperture and pixel size helps in letting in more light, which helps in better low light performance. In the future, other brands would follow suit and ship their devices with image sensors that have larger pixel sizes to offer a better photographic experience.
Design, Specs, & Price
The HTC One M7 sported a 4.7 inch LCD screen with a FHD resolution. It had a large notch and chin, which houses the dual front facing stereo speakers. The top notch also featured the 2.1 megapixel selfie camera. While the smartphone is nearly a decade old, its display had a 469ppi pixel density that allowed for a crisp viewing experience. Under the hood, it ran on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 SoC, paired with 2GB of RAM and up to 64GB of internal storage. This was a flagship chip in 2013, since Qualcomm hadn’t launched its Snapdragon 800 series yet.
On the rear, it featured a 4 megapixel camera, which had OIS support and a pixel size of 2µm (hence the name UltraPixel). It was powered by a 2300mAh battery pack that was non removable, which also wasn’t common nearly 10 years ago. As mentioned above, the design of the HTC One M7 helped it stand out in the crowd, which was even more evident in its brighter color options like Red, Blue, Gold. The smartphone had launched with a price tag of 650 Euros (roughly 743 US Dollars). In other words, it was quite expensive. But back then, it offered an experience like no other.
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