Re: The HTC 10 is official - Initial impressions
So, the HTC 10 is finally official, and boy, does it look good (to me anyway). Here are my very first initial impressions based on what I've seen. Note that they are always subject to change over time.
- I love the design. Although the front looks a bit like a cross between an iPhone and a recent Galaxy device, to me, it blends the best of both and it looks great in black. At the back, it reminds me a whole lot about my old One M7, AND I loved that thing to death.
- Hardware package is your basic run-of-the-mill 2016 Android flagship. Snapdragon 820 processor, 32GB of storage (possibly UFS), 4GB of memory, expandable storage with support for Marshmallow's Adoptable storage feature, a 5.2-inch QHD Super LCD 5 display and a 3000mAh battery that supports Quick Charge 3.0.
- HTC Sense continues to be my favorite third-party Android skin, and from what I've seen, the latest version of Sense seems to be blending in the best of stock Android while retaining many parts of HTC's design. Performance looks to be extremely snappy (Sense has usually been one of the snappiest skins when it comes to Android) and I think it looks good in stock form. Don't like the way it looks? There's a theme engine for that.
- Ah, but we can't talk about a HTC flagship without mentioning the camera. Well, looks like the 10 might be the first HTC flagship in a while with a competitive camera. The 10 looks to be packing in the same 12MP Sony IMX377 unit from the Nexus 6P, featuring 1.55-micron pixels for better low-light performance. It's paired up with an f/1.8 aperture and OIS. Interestingly, the front camera is 5MP with a 1.34-micron pixel size, along with OIS. Yep, OIS on the front camera. Based on the hardware, looks like HTC nailed the sweet spot for the camera. Let's hope the software processing is up to snuff.
- No dual stereo speakers on the front. But, there's a stereo 24-bit DAC and an improved headphone amplifier. Audio that isn't 24-bit can also be upscaled by the software. Looks like it ain't a slouch in audio.
- It also has USB Type-C. Looks to be based on USB 3.1 Gen 1. Much faster data transfer speeds? We hope.
- A 3000mAh battery + QHD display. Seems like a recipe for average battery life, but given that the One M8 lasted pretty damn long on a measly 2600mAh cell, maybe this might last longer than we expect. QC 3.0 is onboard if you run low on battery during the day, though.
Overall, I am liking this phone. Wondering what everyone else thinks of it.
loved your break down, heres a few of my thoughts..
Hardware:
few companies take as much care in the feel of a device as HTC has. even with their failures the devices a built incredibly well. the HTC 10 is no exception. where HTC has fallen down in the past is putting their great ideas into a great experience. the biggest indicator of this is the cameras of the one series. this time around they seemed to have finally gotten this right, not only are we seeing a great camera, but the entire focus and marketing effort is around experience. also, capacitive buttons, interesting choice, actually has me willing to return to actual buttons..
Software:
HTC Sense, always been a little on the fence with this one. sometimes their ui choices seemed odd or out of place, but it was always very streamlined. recently HTC has been moving away from the heavy skinning style ui like samsung towards a native android experience. with sense 8 it looks like that change is complete, its hard to imagine how HTC could remove any more of their UI without making it stock android! what is left is 'personality' without bloat. i always liked certain elements of sense, and with sense 8 those elements are now front and center, with all the dead branches trimmed off. to me the choices HTC made in design are perfect, and have me genuinely excited for a ui other than the Google Experience Launcher.
Impression:
i have owned 2 HTC phones, the nexus one, and the htc one m7. of all the phones i have owned only 4 of them have ever left me with a desire to return...
HTC Nexus One:
why? the pure undying nature of it. so many times have i left this phone and come back to it. at the end i was just hacking it for the pure pleasure of playing with it. i will always remember the day i installed lollipop on it.
LG Optimus G:
why? this thing took a beating. i've fallen on it, trip and sent it flying onto cement, dropped it down stairs, dropped it in water, curbed it.. the plastic casing around the glass is cracking.
HTC One M7:
why? the experience. i have not have a phone that i enjoyed using as much as this phone. in my entire time of using it i only had two complaints, camera and battery.
Oneplus One:
why? the journey. had it stolen from my carry-on bag, recovered from a drug rehab in malibu a week later, shipped back to me in time to take it up a mountain and capture some awesome pics. this phone was so fun, and so frustrating.
the HTC 10 has me excited for that experience i found on the m7, and from all of the news i've seen this looks like its captured the soul of it again.
for reference, the phones i have used: (not in any real order)
moto g, moto x (gen1), nexus one, nexus 5, nexus 6, nexus 5x, oneplus one, LGOG, galaxy s3, galaxy note 1, htc one m7
up to 2TB, Flex Storage supported
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