Hello!
I decided to write material not on the main site, since I already had an acquaintance with the flagship model HTC U 11. However, a small but important nuance: I have not seen the live commercial version of the smartphone. That is, the entire description on Mobile-Review was made from the words of company representatives HTC and some non-final sample, similar to U 11.
As you know, just the other day there was a presentation Android Pay in Moscow (by the way, it took place in Nikolai Turubar's GadgetStudio bar). They talked about the service (hello, captain), but the most interesting thing for me was that HTC U 11 was shown on the sidelines in several colors. To make it clear what it has to do with HTC, it must be said that the company was a partner of the event: the company's gadgets acted as test subjects for checking Android Pay at the presentation.
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HTC U 11 in all its glory
The first thing to note in the final version of the U 11 is the color of the back panel. It is really deep, this was especially noticeable on the blue version of the device (although Evgeny Vildyaev and I did not agree on the exact definition of the color – something between blue and silver). I named a similar effect Liquid: on the smooth curves of the body, light shimmers beautifully, plays in the rays of the spotlights.
To be fair, it should be noted that the sample shown before the presentation in the office HTC was almost the same as the final version. So, in general, what was described earlier should be taken seriously. The only point was that the non-commercial device was completely black. Frankly speaking, he did not make an impression.
As for practicality, alas, it is not in the first place: fingerprints are noticeable, but they are easily erased.
Squeeze-unclench
The main feature of HTC U 11 is the compression recognition function – Sense Edge. Sensors are located on the side faces, they are sensitive to pressure on them. I tried to start the camera and played a little with the function, used the settings in which the compression strength is indicated.
We'll talk about how convenient it is in a full review after testing Sense Edge. At the moment it looks like a toy for a while.
They say that HTC U 11 has the best camera?
Main camera 12 MP Ultra Pixel 3 (module different from the module in HTC U Ultra, probably IMX362), pixel size 1.4 μm, aperture f = 1.7, 26 mm, dual-tone flash. Support for phase focus, optical stabilization.
The site DxOMark, notorious in narrow circles, tested the U 11 camera and delivered its verdict – 90 points!
It's fair to ask the question, 'So what?' In general, nothing unusual, except for the fact that this is the maximum number of points that a mobile camera could score at the moment. In order not to overwhelm you with boring details, briefly on the photo part came out like this:
- Fast focus
- Good detail
- Excellent exposure and dynamic range
- Precise white balance
- Minimum noise level
And from the minuses – a bluish tint in some photos, sometimes the sky is a little 'noise'.
The video is about the same.
However, I don’t think that this whole story with DxOMark just like that and there was no commercial interest on both sides.
By the way, I myself took some shots on U 11. I liked the photos, despite the non-final software.
Other bells and whistles
The developers HTC are talking about two stereo speakers in the U 11, in addition, they even came up with a sound chamber that should improve the quality of the sound output – highs, lows, and more. Alas, I didn’t have a chance to listen to music on the device, so we are again waiting for the smartphone for review. The smartphone records HiRes audio, USonic technology is present (as in the U-series).
Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 will be used as the processor, so there is no need to doubt the performance in games or the speed of animation, even taking into account the high resolution of the QuadHD screen.
Conclusion
The smartphone HTC U 11 will appear in early June at an unknown price. I don't really want to guess, but I will hope for the reasonableness of the company HTC. The success of this model will depend on the cost: if at the level of the Samsung Galaxy S8 (I mean not the 'gray' ones, but not the RRTs) – a failure, less – a potential buyer will have a chance to purchase a suitable device.
I look forward to your comments on the company's new product HTC!