HTC One M9: Android Police Review

[Zod1010]

Re: Android Police Review

If the M7 and M8 were incredible phones, then the M9 is guaranteed to follow in their footsteps, especially as they have made improvements to the brilliant M8.

That’s simply not a true statement. Past performance is not a guarantee of future success. If you don’t believe me, ask the good folks at Blackberry. ;-)

I'm an M8 owner who had been anticipating simply moving to the M9, as my Verizon Edge contract allows me to do. However, I think it's exceptionally optimistic to believe your experience will differ significantly from that of the vast majority of qualified reviewers. Yes, in the coming months HTC *may* make software tweaks that improve camera performance, reduce CPU overheating, increase battery life and improve Sense 7. But the same could be said of every smart phone manufacturer on the planet. However, I refuse to buy a troubled product under the hopeful belief that the manufacturer will eventually correct all the shortcomings they were unable to correct before going to market.

I anticipate waiting to see how the LG G4 stacks up, as well as seeing how the new Samsung products perform after a few weeks of ownership. And if in that time, HTC makes right all that appears to be wrong, the M9 will certainly re-enter my consideration. For now, it’s looking like I may be going with an S6.

 

[Gruff35]

Re: Android Police Review

That’s simply not a true statement. Past performance is not a guarantee of future success. If you don’t believe me, ask the good folks at Blackberry. ;-)

I'm an M8 owner who had been anticipating simply moving to the M9, as my Verizon Edge contract allows me to do. However, I think it's exceptionally optimistic to believe your experience will differ significantly from that of the vast majority of qualified reviewers. Yes, in the coming months HTC *may* make software tweaks that improve camera performance, reduce CPU overheating, increase battery life and improve Sense 7. But the same could be said of every smart phone manufacturer on the planet. However, I refuse to buy a troubled product under the hopeful belief that the manufacturer will eventually correct all the shortcomings they were unable to correct before going to market.

I anticipate waiting to see how the LG G4 stacks up, as well as seeing how the new Samsung products perform after a few weeks of ownership. And if in that time, HTC makes right all that appears to be wrong, the M9 will certainly re-enter my consideration. For now, it’s looking like I may be going with an S6.

You made a really good point. Yet, people sit here and say HTC will do this and that to the M9 in order to make it better. Ummm no. If HTC could have made the M9 better, then the phone would come out of the box with a great camera and battery life better than the M8. If it takes HTC 2 years to get a 2015 flagship device 100% right, then maybe they shouldn't have put the phone out in 2015. You are just a guinea pig until the M10 arrives then you will see the M9 was a waste of money/time.

 

[Mystikal777]

Re: Android Police Review

Can you provide a link please?

HTC One M9 review | Smartphones | Reviews | Stuff

 

[Habiib]

Re: Android Police Review

Please don't suggest such a thing. While HTC might not be the "best" I honestly believe they are responsible for pushing a lot of "innovation" into Android. Like it or not, early Sense UI elements impacted vanilla Android, they were on the cutting edge of pushing display quality and technology, they tried things like the UltraPixel (which while not the greatest, at least got people to think about cameras differently), front facing speakers that sound good, and of course setting a high standard for build quality. Whether you like them or not, HTC has done a lot of good for everyone by raising the bar and making everyone else follow suit.

Posted via the Android Central App

Well I am an avid supporter of HTC and Sony, along with any other brand that suits my needs. I made that statement because on the surface, it appears that the existence of HTC seems to bring out more hate and conflict than anything else. Of course if they are no longer around, then that behavior will cease. If not seem them viewed in too favorable of light in recent years. If you read all the articles associated to HTC from the past two years and the comments in them, you'll see that HTC is not looked upon favorably by many (both the writers and commenters). I could be wrong though, but I have plenty of evidence to support my claim.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[SummersLastNight]

Re: Android Police Review

That’s simply not a true statement. Past performance is not a guarantee of future success. If you don’t believe me, ask the good folks at Blackberry. ;-)

I'm an M8 owner who had been anticipating simply moving to the M9, as my Verizon Edge contract allows me to do. However, I think it's exceptionally optimistic to believe your experience will differ significantly from that of the vast majority of qualified reviewers. Yes, in the coming months HTC *may* make software tweaks that improve camera performance, reduce CPU overheating, increase battery life and improve Sense 7. But the same could be said of every smart phone manufacturer on the planet. However, I refuse to buy a troubled product under the hopeful belief that the manufacturer will eventually correct all the shortcomings they were unable to correct before going to market.

I anticipate waiting to see how the LG G4 stacks up, as well as seeing how the new Samsung products perform after a few weeks of ownership. And if in that time, HTC makes right all that appears to be wrong, the M9 will certainly re-enter my consideration. For now, it’s looking like I may be going with an S6.

As a user of a BlackBerry Z10 I would have to say that their BB10 OS is actually great. But they allowed themselves to fall behind and made such a great OS a little too late and lost their market share.

The OS is fluid and has some elements I will miss greatly when I switch to the M9 such as the HUB and the swiping gestures that are so simple and just make sense.

It is not without it flaws though, clearly, as I am switching to Android. The main reason being the app gap and the focus on enterprise vs. Consumer. No high end touch device is lined up so I'm filing out.

Reviews online are just that. Until I try something out for myself I will never know if it works for me. Reviewers in tech see and touch everything so they compare it all. Does that mean it isn't good for your needs? Not at all.

If you are passing up on the M9, then pass up on posting about it and move on to a forum critiquing the next device you will actually buy.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Adam_ation]

Re: Android Police Review

If you are passing up on the M9, then pass up on posting about it and move on to a forum critiquing the next device you will actually buy.

Posted via Android Central App

This! If everyone adhered to this statement the world would be a better place - Adam

 

[Zod1010]

Re: Android Police Review

As a user of a BlackBerry Z10 I would have to say that their BB10 OS is actually great. But they allowed themselves to fall behind and made such a great OS a little too late and lost their market share.

The point I was making with Blackberry was a simple one; past performance is not a guarantee of future success, as the poster had suggested it was.

Reviewers in tech see and touch everything so they compare it all.

And that's precisely why they have value. Most of us do not have time to compare it all, so we read reviews to help guide us. And when consensus begins to build around a product, as it has around the M9, it acts as a pretty strong barometer.

If you are passing up on the M9, then pass up on posting about it and move on to a forum critiquing the next device you will actually buy.

First, it wasn’t until this specific thread that I had reached the conclusion I shared. I have not been trolling the forum, slamming the M9. I posted my opinion once, in the thread that helped lead me to that opinion. Second, thank you for sharing with me your guidelines on forum posting.

 

[Jason_A]

Actually, from a journalistic standpoint, I would say the M7 and M8 were both reviewed pretty favorably. But those reviews all sounded very much like the M9 review... beautiful build quality, great speakers, great/smooth/fast UI, and good overall experience - mediocre camera, weird power button placement, M8 was slippery (some people really hate the black bar).

If you look at other phone reviews, when you get to the section on the speakers, they almost always compare against BoomSound. When they talk about an OEM skin, it's often compared with Sense. When they talk about build quality, it's often in relation to HTC's build quality. HTCs problem seems to be that they can't make a perfect phone - there's always an area or two where they come up short. That used to be the case with every phone (and to be honest, will be the case with every phone, probably always)... but others seem to be making greater strides in some of the areas HTC is still struggling - camera in particular. There will be compromises with every phone - everyone needs to decide what compromises they want to make and which are deal breakers.

Another interesting thing I've noticed. I'd call most of the M9 reviews "luke warm". At least that's how I've interpreted most of them. Most have had some very positive things to say, while pointing out some of the short comings. A couple have gone so far as to call the camera "bad" in low light. But overall, I have only seen one that makes the M9 out to be a "bad" phone overall. Some people here seem to be taking the reviews to be horrible in every regard, which I'm just not seeing. I think personal biases can be strong with some people

If HTC disappears, people won't complain about HTC. It just means the complainers will move to a new forum (Motorola, LG, etc) and do their complaining there.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Alex_NJ]

Re: Android Police Review

As I said earlier I've ruled out the M9, and that left me with my thoughts for the day on which way to go.

And the decision I made I did not consider a possibility until yesterday

Several times I've been ready to hit the pre order button on the S6 32GB, but as each review came out and interrupted my order, it refrained me from doing so, I just don't believe I want a phone where I get up for work at 8am, and decide to go out for drinks after work and not have a phone to call a taxi at 11pm. That's not practical.

I looked at the Oneplus One but hardware problems stopped me, the iPhone 6 is overpriced and worse battery and I kept coming back to wishing the M9 was just a bit better.

Therefore, I've just purchased a second-hand M8 16GB for £150. I pick it up tomorrow.

This will be on a short contract and will allow me to have all of the benefits of HTC without the hefty price tag.

My current phone is an iPhone 4S so it will be a huge upgrade anyway.

What I want out of a phone: A good screen, good speakers, mediocre camera, fluid UI, metal build, long battery life, Android lollipop, expandable storage.

When all of the firmware's have been updated for 2015 phones I will reassess and decide. Hopefully they will be cheaper too.

I'm now off to go research the joys of owning an M8

It's been a pleasure guys

Decision made yaaaaaaay (provided my purchase all goes smoothly)

 

[Gruff35]

Actually, from a journalistic standpoint, I would say the M7 and M8 were both reviewed pretty favorably. But those reviews all sounded very much like the M9 review... beautiful build quality, great speakers, great/smooth/fast UI, and good overall experience - mediocre camera, weird power button placement, M8 was slippery (some people really hate the black bar).

If you look at other phone reviews, when you get to the section on the speakers, they almost always compare against BoomSound. When they talk about an OEM skin, it's often compared with Sense. When they talk about build quality, it's often in relation to HTC's build quality. HTCs problem seems to be that they can't make a perfect phone - there's always an area or two where they come up short. That used to be the case with every phone (and to be honest, will be the case with every phone, probably always)... but others seem to be making greater strides in some of the areas HTC is still struggling - camera in particular. There will be compromises with every phone - everyone needs to decide what compromises they want to make and which are deal breakers.

Another interesting thing I've noticed. I'd call most of the M9 reviews "luke warm". At least that's how I've interpreted most of them. Most have had some very positive things to say, while pointing out some of the short comings. A couple have gone so far as to call the camera "bad" in low light. But overall, I have only seen one that makes the M9 out to be a "bad" phone overall. Some people here seem to be taking the reviews to be horrible in every regard, which I'm just not seeing. I think personal biases can be strong with some people

If HTC disappears, people won't complain about HTC. It just means the complainers will move to a new forum (Motorola, LG, etc) and do their complaining there.

Posted via the Android Central App

Willing to bet Samsung would buy HTC and start using Sense. Then they could take on Apple because everyone would move to the Samsung camp.....

 

[bigrey81]

Re: Android Police Review

You know what, I honestly respect your decision and you've been very mature and open about all of this. I too won't be getting the M9, however I will be getting another HTC device. It's going to be between the Desire Eye or the M8. The only thing that has pushed be away is the battery life. Sans a software update to fix the battery life woes, I'll hold off on the M9. In all honestly this forum and the behavior I've seen in it is the absolute worst I've ever seen in recent memory.

Posted via the Android Central App

I think the bad battery life has to do with lolllipop cause the Sammy crew is complaining about that also

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Jason_A]

Willing to bet Samsung would buy HTC and start using Sense. Then they could take on Apple because everyone would move to the Samsung camp.....

Samsung is good at stealing stuff... If they wanted Sense on their phones, it would already be there

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[msm0511]

Re: Android Police Review

This makes me sad, and is the final straw for me.

I'm going to find an alternative phone and stop following any updates on the M9. It's clearly not the phone for me. Pre-announcement it was almost a no brainer that I'd be purchasing it, but not ALL of the reviews can be wrong. And I'm not prepared to wait it out incase they release improved firmware.

I am currently trying to get my hands on a Harman Kardon M8 as I like the colour scheme, but I just need to check the phone will work in the UK as it was never released here.

My other alternatives are the S6, or get the Oneplus One and wait for this to all blow over.

I wish you all the best with your M9's, if I were to recommend the device to anyone at this stage, it would be to heavy gamer's as this seems like the only use for it.

Peace

If you're thinking about the OnePlus One, shouldn't you wait for the next one? I think I read somewhere about the 2nd recently.

 

[Habiib]

Re: Android Police Review

I think the bad battery life has to do with lolllipop cause the Sammy crew is complaining about that also

Posted via the Android Central App

You know what, although I don't have enough evidence to support my gut feeling, I'm 100% certain there is something going on with the software that's causing the less than expected battery life I've been seeing from both the M9 and S6. So I'm wondering if it's the customized software or the underlying OS and its services that are causing it.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[clevin]

Re: Android Police Review

Therefore, I've just purchased a second-hand M8 16GB for £150. I pick it up tomorrow.

Bravo! Too many people fell into the trap of wanting the newest. Fact is newest is never best in value/price ratio. They may not even be better than older generation phones.

Truth is most phones nowadays can last more than 2 years, with replaceable battery, more than 4 years, there is no need to force upgrade if current generation products aren't as good as one would like.

 

[msm0511]

Re: Android Police Review

As I said earlier I've ruled out the M9, and that left me with my thoughts for the day on which way to go.

And the decision I made I did not consider a possibility until yesterday

Several times I've been ready to hit the pre order button on the S6 32GB, but as each review came out and interrupted my order, it refrained me from doing so, I just don't believe I want a phone where I get up for work at 8am, and decide to go out for drinks after work and not have a phone to call a taxi at 11pm. That's not practical.

I looked at the Oneplus One but hardware problems stopped me, the iPhone 6 is overpriced and worse battery and I kept coming back to wishing the M9 was just a bit better.

Therefore, I've just purchased a second-hand M8 16GB for £150. I pick it up tomorrow.

This will be on a short contract and will allow me to have all of the benefits of HTC without the hefty price tag.

My current phone is an iPhone 4S so it will be a huge upgrade anyway.

What I want out of a phone: A good screen, good speakers, mediocre camera, fluid UI, metal build, long battery life, Android lollipop, expandable storage.

When all of the firmware's have been updated for 2015 phones I will reassess and decide. Hopefully they will be cheaper too.

I'm now off to go research the joys of owning an M8

It's been a pleasure guys

Decision made yaaaaaaay (provided my purchase all goes smoothly)

I think you'll really like the M8. I did when I had it. You can find some tips for taking better pics in the M8 forums. I've thought about getting another M8 over the M9, but still haven't 100% made up my mind.

 

[msm0511]

Re: Android Police Review

Bravo! Too many people fell into the trap of wanting the newest. Fact is newest is never best in value/price ratio. They may not even be better than older generation phones.

Truth is most phones nowadays can last more than 2 years, with replaceable battery, more than 4 years, there is no need to force upgrade if current generation products aren't as good as one would like.

My only drawback for getting another M8 over the M9 is that stupid lens cover over the camera. I kinda remember it getting easily scratched.

 

[neo905]

My only drawback for getting another M8 over the M9 is that stupid lens cover over the camera. I kinda remember it getting easily scratched.

I'm pretty sure I heard that was an early production units issue that had it. If you bought a new one the likelihood is it wouldn't suffer from it.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[msm0511]

Re: Android Police Review

I'm pretty sure I heard that was an early production units issue that had it. If you bought a new one the likelihood is it would suffer from it.

Posted via the Android Central App

Good to know.

 

[johnts]

Re: Android Police Review

As a user of a BlackBerry Z10 I would have to say that their BB10 OS is actually great. But they allowed themselves to fall behind and made such a great OS a little too late and lost their market share.

The OS is fluid and has some elements I will miss greatly when I switch to the M9 such as the HUB and the swiping gestures that are so simple and just make sense.

It is not without it flaws though, clearly, as I am switching to Android. The main reason being the app gap and the focus on enterprise vs. Consumer. No high end touch device is lined up so I'm filing out.

Reviews online are just that. Until I try something out for myself I will never know if it works for me. Reviewers in tech see and touch everything so they compare it all. Does that mean it isn't good for your needs? Not at all.

If you are passing up on the M9, then pass up on posting about it and move on to a forum critiquing the next device you will actually buy.

Posted via Android Central App

I am also a Z10 user that was planning on going to the M9. Still leaning that way as I played with an S6 at Best Buy yesterday and that thing just seems so fragile.
My wife has an S4 and constantly has email problems. It won't send on wi-fi but turn off wi-fi and it goes. There have been other issues with it also. I also had an S4 for a week when I was on my 4th Z10. The S4 was to be my replacement, but the browser lag on that was awful. Luckily I loaded a software leak on the Z10 and it's been fine since, and through many updates after that.
Like this user, if BB had a new touchscreen high end, I would go that way as the OS is much more fluid that Android. Since it also runs Android apps, it's really the best of both worlds.
This all being said, I will be watching the actual user reviews of the M9, S6, and the LG4, before I make my choice.