HTC has presented its new flagship smartphone, the HTC U11. The successor to the HTC 10 sees the company coming with a new design. Rather than the metal unibody, which HTC says is all too common in the market now, it designed a metal frame with a glass body for the U11. As the glass is built up in multiple layers, the smartphone reflects the light in a range of colours depending on how it's held. In addition, the phone is dust- and water-proof (IP67).
Also new is the 'Edge Sense' functionality. The bottom left and right sides of the phone are touch sensitive, allowing users to activate certain functions by squeezing the phone in these places. This can be used to activate Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa or HTC's own Sense Companiion, or other common features such as focus and take a picture or dictating a message. Users can also customise the Edge Sense functions.
In terms of technical specifications, the HTC U11 is in line with other high-end phones on the market. It comes with a 5.5-inch S-LCD5 screen with 2K/QHD resolution. It runs the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor with 4 GB memory and 64 GB internal storage, as well as comes with a microSD memory card slot and 3,300 mAh battery.
HTC also highlighted the camera features, which it claims are the best of any smartphone on the market. Similar to the Samsung Galaxy S8, it offers a 12-megapixel camera sensor and f/1.7 lens to take photos even in the lowest light, while the front camera comes with 16 megapixels. The Auto HDR Boost promises sharp photos without a wait.
In terms of audio, the U11 comes with BoomSound Hi-Fi Edition speakers and 24-bit high-res audio as well as four microphones and acoustic focus for enhanced recording. With the new UltraSonic headphones, users get active noise cancellation and personalised sound settings, and a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter with bult-in DAC brings the same sound to other types of headphones.
The HTC U11 will sell from June for a recommend price of EUR 749 in a choice of blue, silver or black. At this level, it carries a slight price advantage over other high-end models and previous HTC flagship phones.
