Is this what the M9 should have been?

[Alex_NJ]

HTC's Butterfly 3 makes you wonder why the M9 exists


Does anyone know if this has Boomsound?

 

[joewoo]

It does... And a slightly smaller battery

 

[pcsguy88]

I'd sacrifice the metal case and 5% of battery for those specs.

 

[Habiib]

No this is not what the M9 should have been in my opinion. Aside from the IP rating, I'm not seeing what this has over the M9 that would make a big difference. Even with the 13MP FF shooter, if it's the same module as the Desire Eye, then I don't see it having better quality than the Ultrapixel camera on the M9. Maybe spec whores might drool over this, but they aren't that bright to begin with. Also this does have BoomSound. The arrangement is akin to how the Desire Eye has it.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[blastthedull]

I reckon M9 was supposed to be M8s perhaps? Well, the M9 wasn't that big release to call it a new trendy phone and wasn't that minor to add an "S" letter at the end of the model. They've done quite a good update but, to be honest, I did not feel any significant difference in speed as well as in productivity whilst working on m8 and m9. Apparently, for those who found m8's camera with ultrapixels good for their needs, shouldn't bother upgrading to m9 just because they want more pixels. I liked the m8's image quality and wouldn't clearly state that m9's one is better in times. Anyway, all I am trying to say that it isn't mandatory to upgrade right away unless you are a big fan of wanting the most emerging releases.

 

[That70sGAdawg]

I'm SO sick of these whiney "reviews" disappointed that The M9 is not SO different than the M8. Apple puts out an "S" model every two years with a slight processor update, and a camera tweak and the iSheep swoon!! Get another phone or stop Bitchin people!! Everyone has a return period if you are not happy.

 

[drone3]

I'm SO sick of these whiney "reviews" disappointed that The M9 is not SO different than the M8. Apple puts out an "S" model every two years with a slight processor update, and a camera tweak and the iSheep swoon!! Get another phone or stop Bitchin people!! Everyone has a return period if you are not happy.

You definitely have a point, but I think your comparison works better from the M7 to the M8, also we often compare android phones to android phones, and we also build expectations of certain android OEM's.

When the M7 was released it was revolutionary, a lot of those M7 buyers were waiting for the revolutionary M9, but compared to what Samsung and recently LG have released specifically in terms of both screen and camera the M9 has not really been able to compete. The M9 is a lovely device, but for the phone nerds among us, HTC failed to measure its users expectations and it's aggressive competition.

dreaming of electric sheep

 

[fernandezhjr]

^^^Great another S6 user chiming in. The M9 may not be a revolutionary release, that doesn't happen with every release, but it is still high end. Just because the S6 takes a lil better pics doesn't make it a better phone. It makes it a better camera, and not by much. The M9 is better than the S6 in almost everything else. Then when you throw in that laggy atrocity called Touchwiz, well you can keep that on y'all's side of the fence. I find it interesting that so many S6 users are commenting on a phone that they don't even have.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

[SYMAWD]

I like my M9. I had my Rezound for 2.5 years, then a DNA for almost 1 year. Both of those were excellent and the M9 just builds on them. Although the Rezound had some extremely good camera software, but the M9's is good enough and if you shoot in RAW, you can just take a minute to edit it and make it look great.

 

[pcsguy88]

I just know the M series wipes the floor with other Android devices for my personal tastes. I have no problem with incremental steps (especially when most upgrade bi-yearly), but no part of the next year should take a step back. So far the M9 seems to do this with the screen (why???), the speaker volume and possibly the battery life although I blame that on software for now. The silver and gold M9 is easily the most attractive phone or portable device I have ever laid eyes or hands on by a country mile, so there is that.

 

[drone3]

^^^Great another S6 user chiming in. The M9 may not be a revolutionary release, that doesn't happen with every release, but it is still high end. Just because the S6 takes a lil better pics doesn't make it a better phone. It makes it a better camera, and not by much. The M9 is better than the S6 in almost everything else. Then when you throw in that laggy atrocity called Touchwiz, well you can keep that on y'all's side of the fence. I find it interesting that so many S6 users are commenting on a phone that they don't even have.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

I agree with you the M9 is better in a lot of areas especially design/build, speakers and Sense, I hate touchwizz. The M7 was the best phone I ever had, and if the M10 has a better screen & camera I will definitely get it. Just giving my point of view, that's all.

dreaming of electric sheep

 

[neo905]

I usually keep a phone for two years. But I bought the M9 with an out clause after one year because I just wasn't that confident I wanted to keep it for 2 years. I've gotten over the design change disappointment awhile back. At this point, it will come down to the camera and battery and SOC optimization. If they can improve in those areas enough I will keep it for 2 years because overall I have been happy with the phone.

Also, this is just a general smartphone observation but I wish early adopters at launch weren't left being beta testers for several months until they iron out software and firmware issues. This is a trend in the industry I am finding unacceptable for the amount we are expected to pay for these devices.

 

[fernandezhjr]

I just know the M series wipes the floor with other Android devices for my personal tastes. I have no problem with incremental steps (especially when most upgrade bi-yearly), but no part of the next year should take a step back. So far the M9 seems to do this with the screen (why???), the speaker volume and possibly the battery life although I blame that on software for now. The silver and gold M9 is easily the most attractive phone or portable device I have ever laid eyes or hands on by a country mile, so there is that.

As I have mentioned before, I never had the M8 before, but what I'm reading is it is a trade off, loudness for sound quality. If that is the case, being an audiophile, I gladly accept it. The screen seems to be slightly miscalibrated. I faced this with Nexus 4. With the N4, which I had rooted, I was able to recalibrate the colors and bring out better vibrancy. This could be improved upon by HTC with an update, but I wouldn't hold my breath for that. This seems to be one of the areas that manufacturers place less importance on once released.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

[fernandezhjr]

I usually keep a phone for two years. But I bought the M9 with an out clause after one year because I just wasn't that confident I wanted to keep it for 2 years. I've gotten over the design change disappointment awhile back. At this point, it will come down to the camera and battery and SOC optimization. If they can improve in those areas enough I will keep it for 2 years because overall I have been happy with the phone.

Also, this is just a general smartphone observation but I wish early adopters at launch weren't left being beta testers for several months until they iron out software and firmware issues. This is a trend in the industry I am finding unacceptable for the amount we are expected to pay for these devices.

I also keep my phones for two years. I recently had a Nexus 4 and skipped the 5. I considered the 6, but the screen is too big for my liking, so I moved over to the M9. I have also noticed the trend you mention. I view that as a "beat the other guy out the gate" trend. Unfortunately, this is not good for us consumers.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

[pcsguy88]

As I have mentioned before, I never had the M8 before, but what I'm reading is it is a trade off, loudness for sound quality. If that is the case, being an audiophile, I gladly accept it. The screen seems to be slightly miscalibrated. I faced this with Nexus 4. With the N4, which I had rooted, I was able to recalibrate the colors and bring out better vibrancy. This could be improved upon by HTC with an update, but I wouldn't hold my breath for that. This seems to be one of the areas that manufacturers place less importance on once released.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

Sound quality is all in the software as anyone with an M8 HK who has toggled the Harmon Kardon software on and off during their favorite songs knows. I'm hopeful the Dolby software is comparable. I honestly think the lower volume is due to the speaker grills being aluminum as opposed to the old plastic ones. The addition of the wrap around aluminum shell is actually my favorite feature of the M9. Yeah, I'm that shallow.

 

[fernandezhjr]

Sound quality is all in the software as anyone with an M8 HK who has toggled the Harmon Kardon software on and off during their favorite songs knows. I'm hopeful the Dolby software is comparable. I honestly think the lower volume is due to the speaker grills being aluminum as opposed to the old plastic ones. The addition of the wrap around aluminum shell is actually my favorite feature of the M9. Yeah, I'm that shallow.

I haven't run any real sound tests yet, but quality will be mostly associated with frequency range. Playing lower frequencies will get you better sound quality, but also affect the ability to get louder, especially with tiny speakers. If it is software related, than I would think this could be easily adjusted to ones liking with a good equalizer. On my N4, I installed Viper4Android and that app was amazing. I think you have to be rooted for that one though.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

[anon(21022)]

I don't know if this is what the M9 should have been, but it's the closest we're gonna get here in Japan without importing a phone and playing shenanigans with carriers to get it working, and losing Japan-specific features.

In my own experience, after owning a few Sharp, Fujitsu, Sony, Kyocera and HTC smartphones, the HTCs have consistently been the most stable and usable out of the bunch. Not too bloated, no wifi or tethering problems (I regularly need to reboot my Sony ZL2 to get wifi or tethering working again), useful software (yes I even like Blinkfeed and their lockscreen), usable cameras (did get hit by the purple camera on the M7 but that's past history now), etc.

So seeing this announcement right when I'm nearly done my monthly payments for my ZL2, gets me very tempted to upgrade