HTC One M9: ArsTechnica review - outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

[clevin]

Ars is one of my most trusted website, reviews are usually in depth and provide many good prospective.

HTC One M9 review: HTC’s flagship feels like an afterthought | Ars Technica

 

[Alex_NJ]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

I'll give this review plenty attention

 

[Alex_NJ]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Oh wow, that was just needless brutality.

He even said Sense was pointless. I'd say that review was just too far

 

[msm0511]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

I usually put a lot of stock in Ars reviews, but that seemed unprofessional, poorly written, needlessly harsh, and full of mistakes. For example, 1. the heat issue was supposedly fixed. All reviewers updated their reviews to mention that. Nothing from Ars. 2. The 3x3 grid is easily changed, just like on older versions of Sense. 3. They call Sense a heavy skin, when most others call it one of the lightest skins available on Android. I'm for once, not putting much stock in the Ars review. And no, I'm not just taking up for HTC. Usually their reviews are several pages with much more detail, and generally no snark. This was just a bad article.

 

[Alex_NJ]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

RIght now, as I post, I'm 70% going to get an S6, so I am by far an HTC fan. And I'm coming from an iPhone.

But that review was so far from the other reviews it makes no sense, it's almost worth not considering it as a proper review.

He hated it from the first line to the very last

 

[aallison1882]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Oh wow, that was just needless brutality.

He even said Sense was pointless. I'd say that review was just too far

Agreed. The vibe of that review just felt negative. I've read reviews from other sites that even though there were negative elements to the review, I still felt the review overall had a positive vibe.

I'm not sold on the new features in Sense, but Sense is still (IMHO) the best Android experience. I even prefer it over stock... As for the placement issue with the power button, why so much emphasis on it??? Every phone I get has the power button in a different place, I get use to it within the first week or so. The slight differences in the camera pics between the devices. I mean overall the M9's don't look bad (minus the low light one). And can we get over the fact the design didn't change. I'm sorry but the iPhone 6 still resembles an iPhone 3, just slimmer and bigger and the Galaxy S6 still resembles a Galaxy S4, it again taller, slimmer and has less rounded corners. Oh yeah and now made of "premium materials. What I am saying is when you can tell a phone by looks from one generation to another then the design was not revamped/overhauled/completely redesigned.... it was evolutionary and iterative not revolutionary.

Okay enough ranting...

 

[trsbbs]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

This person seems to have an ongoing issue with HTC.
Gets stuck and can't see around a couple of items that are taste driven only.


Not worth the read...

Posted via an old & tired BlackBerry Z10

 

[msm0511]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

But that review was so far from the other reviews it makes no sense, it's almost worth not considering it as a proper review.

He hated it from the first line to the very last

That's what I thought as well. I'm throwing in the trash bin of reviews. I'm coming from an iPhone as well, but had the M8 previously.

 

[msm0511]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Agreed. The vibe of that review just felt negative. I've read reviews from other sites that even though there were negative elements to the review, I still felt the review overall had a positive vibe.

I'm not sold on the new features in Sense, but Sense is still (IMHO) the best Android experience. I even prefer it over stock... As for the placement issue with the power button, why so much emphasis on it??? Every phone I get has the power button in a different place, I get use to it within the first week or so. The slight differences in the camera pics between the devices. I mean overall the M9's don't look bad (minus the low light one). And can we get over the fact the design didn't change. I'm sorry but the iPhone 6 still resembles an iPhone 3, just slimmer and bigger and the Galaxy S6 still resembles a Galaxy S4, it again taller, slimmer and has less rounded corners. Oh yeah and now made of "premium materials. What I am saying is when you can tell a phone by looks from one generation to another then the design was not revamped/overhauled/completely redesigned.... it was evolutionary and iterative not revolutionary.

Okay enough ranting...

It seemed more than just negative, biased rather than negative. He didn't even point out that the power button has a texture to it, and if after the entire reviewing process he/she couldn't feel the texture, there seems to be something wrong with the reviewer more than the placement. The fact that he commended Samsung's TouchWiz over Sense makes no sense to me at all. I've never seen a reviewer prefer TouchWiz over Sense. I agree with the camera comparisons you mentioned as well. Side note, why was he using a iPhone 5s over a 6 anyway?

I will respectfully disagree on the S6 and iPhone 6 design differences from their respective iterations you mentioned though. Those devices only look similar from the front. From the rear and side views they are completely different from their past iterations.

 

[TBoltJ]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Thanks for the link clevin. To be honest, I haven't thought about many of the author's points, especially his view of OEM software, but I cant say I really disagree with the facts and conclusions given (says the man with a camera that takes purple pictures). I love the M7 design and am drawn to its redesign/upgrade, it just wasnt done well. If not for the stupid cameras on these things I really have no reason to replace my M7. Its a great design and better than the other two as the logo and the home bar share the space. As was implied, it should be the "One" line of phones, not the flagship sparkly new toy. Sparkly should be another phone. They need a shiny new "incredible" for the masses.

 

[aallison1882]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

It seemed more than just negative, biased rather than negative. He didn't even point out that the power button has a texture to it, and if after the entire reviewing process he/she couldn't feel the texture, there seems to be something wrong with the reviewer more than the placement. The fact that he commended Samsung's TouchWiz over Sense makes no sense to me at all. I've never seen a reviewer prefer TouchWiz over Sense. I agree with the camera comparisons you mentioned as well. Side note, why was he using a iPhone 5s over a 6 anyway?

I will respectfully disagree on the S6 and iPhone 6 design differences from their respective iterations you mentioned though. Those devices only look similar from the front. From the rear and side views they are completely different from their past iterations.

I agree the S6 and iPhone 6 are noticeably different from their respective kin and HTC would have benefited by making the M9 visually different from the M8. Either way, the point I was trying to get at is phone design is more of evolution of design than revolution. Definitely not saying the HTC shouldn't have changed the design though, but I do think that the negativity is a little much.

 

[Adam_ation]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Really shoddy review, its almost asif he was being overly negative in order to get more attention - Adam

 

[Gruff35]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

One too many fanboys.

Nobody can sit here and say the new power button location isn't stupid. It should have been on the left side of the phone. What happens when you use a cell phone holder for navigation in your vehicle? Guess the holder will be pushed right up against the power button.

Sense 7 is actually version 6.5. All it needed was the themes added onto it. The rest of the stuff HTC did was a waste of time.

The M9's lack of change is really disappointing, not because we're advocating change for change's sake, but because the M8 left a lot of room for improvement. As it stands, the M9's huge bezels make it look and feel dated and much larger than it needs to be. The One line was to be for premium devices, but recycling the same design doesn't say "premium." It says "cheap."

I must agree with his last line. The phone does look cheap and poorly put together. It was like people didn't use the device in the real world before adding that gold lip to the edges or moving the power button. If you think the M9 is beautiful, ask a few friends to give you their honest opinion.

That square lens looks horrible. Turn a silver M9 and M8 face down on their screens. Ask random people to pick the most aesthetically pleasing phone. The M8 would own the M9. Circle beats square every single time.

Two people on that website have gotten an M8 for $0 to $1 on contract. Yeah, that's what I would do too.

 

[clevin]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Ars has been always sharp, they never mince words and single out things pretty harshly (they attacked samsung for manipulating benchmark last year, for example). I am not HTC expert to be 100% certain of their complaints (I only owned a HOX a few years back), but I do think that large bezel is something HTC need to shed in M10.

For other aspect of the review, if you don't like their article, that is okay, just read the chart. Considering not many review nowadays actually present any real data, these chart may be something more solid to rely on.

 

[aallison1882]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Ars has been always sharp, they never mince words and single out things pretty harshly (they attacked samsung for manipulating benchmark last year, for example). I am not HTC expert to be 100% certain of their complaints (I only owned a HOX a few years back), but I do think that large bezel is something HTC need to shed in M10.

For other aspect of the review, if you don't like their article, that is okay, just read the chart. Considering not many review nowadays actually present any real data, these chart may be something more solid to rely on.

Not discounting their review but there are items that I don't agree with which are subjective and user preference. That's the area that I felt the review was harsh.

As for benchmark data, I agree with you, not all reviews present hard data. And I agree it is the best way to compare apples to apples across devices especially when there is a degree of personal bias from the reviewer's hands on impression. As with benchmark data though, I feel that any one stat is irrelevant on its own. They all need scrutinized as a whole package.

I view the stats for phones in a very similar way that I do for cars. 350 hp is only a number and doesn't necessarily mean a vehicle is fast. The torque, gear ratio, vehicle weight, rev limit, etc all need taken into account.

That being said the M9 its a little disappointing but by no means a bad phone. It's just not what it could have been or needed to be for that matter.

 

[aallison1882]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

One too many fanboys.

Nobody can sit here and say the new power button location isn't stupid. It should have been on the left side of the phone. What happens when you use a cell phone holder for navigation in your vehicle? Guess the holder will be pushed right up against the power button.

Sense 7 is actually version 6.5. All it needed was the themes added onto it. The rest of the stuff HTC did was a waste of time.

The M9's lack of change is really disappointing, not because we're advocating change for change's sake, but because the M8 left a lot of room for improvement. As it stands, the M9's huge bezels make it look and feel dated and much larger than it needs to be. The One line was to be for premium devices, but recycling the same design doesn't say "premium." It says "cheap."

I must agree with his last line. The phone does look cheap and poorly put together. It was like people didn't use the device in the real world before adding that gold lip to the edges or moving the power button. If you think the M9 is beautiful, ask a few friends to give you their honest opinion.

That square lens looks horrible. Turn a silver M9 and M8 face down on their screens. Ask random people to pick the most aesthetically pleasing phone. The M8 would own the M9. Circle beats square every single time.

Two people on that website have gotten an M8 for $0 to $1 on contract. Yeah, that's what I would do too.

Is your opinion that square lens look horrible limited to the M9 or in general to include phones in the galaxy line as well?

 

[Higguns]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

on the S6 and iPhone 6 design differences from their respective iterations you mentioned though. Those devices only look similar from the front. From the rear and side views they are completely different from their past iterations.

What part of the phone are you looking at when you use it?

Throw a case on the S6 and it will look just like an S4 or S5.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Adranalyne]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Wow. I'm not a fan of the M9, but that was a different level of harsh. I can't see how so many were such large fans of the M8, but somehow hate the M9. I feel like reviewers are piling on at this point. Hell, not even the S5 got this kind of response and it was the third iteration without much change just like the M9 is.

It's sad because it's still a decent phone and these kind of scathing reviews are just going to hurt the company to a point it may not recover. And that's not good for anyone, no matter how you feel about HTC.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[msm0511]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

What part of the phone are you looking at when you use it?

Throw a case on the S6 and it will look just like an S4 or S5.

Posted via the Android Central App

I generally don't use cases. Maybe a bumper sometimes. I always have a heavy duty case for hiking or vacations, but day to day I go naked.

 

[Gruff35]

Re: Ars review is out, outperforming M8, 6hr web battery, dated design

Wow. I'm not a fan of the M9, but that was a different level of harsh. I can't see how so many were such large fans of the M8, but somehow hate the M9. I feel like reviewers are piling on at this point. Hell, not even the S5 got this kind of response and it was the third iteration without much change just like the M9 is.

It's sad because it's still a decent phone and these kind of scathing reviews are just going to hurt the company to a point it may not recover. And that's not good for anyone, no matter how you feel about HTC.

Posted via the Android Central App

Someone at HTC had to say this isn't a good idea to repeat a device 3 years in a row. But some people will buy anything HTC. I learned that lesson with the EVO 3D only to vow to never repeat that again. Chou must have lost his mind to use the same design or he didn't care. He was dressed like Steve Jobs at MWC. Chou < Jobs

But then again, smartphone manufacturers don't always put the latest and greatest features in a phone. They save those things for future implementation. Like the M10.


Another review...ouch: http://www.wired.com/2015/03/review-htc-one-m9/