HTC’s roads are inscrutable, especially since the company said it would not comment on its plans for the future. And the year begins for them with a presentation that by agenda we did not expect, and is that in fact it is a new line that we have seen in leaks and invitation: the HTC U Ultra is already official.
The phone has been presented highlighting the design and colors, highlighting the sapphire crystal in its construction, although it is not on all models. What also is confirmed of its specifications is the secondary screen, in the style of the LG X Screen.
HTC U Ultra, technical specifications
| HTC U ULTRA | |
| PHYSICAL DIMENSIONS | 162.41 x 79.79 x 7.99 mm, weight 170 grams |
| SCREEN | 5.7 inch + 2 inch secondary display with Gorilla Glass 5 (64GB model) or sapphire crystal (128GB model) |
| RESOLUTION | Primary: 1440 x 2560 (density of about 516 dpi) Secondary: 160 x 1040 (about 520 dpi) |
| PROCESSOR | Qualcomm MSM8996 Snapdragon 821 |
| NUCLEUS | Quad Core 2 x 2.15 GHz Kryo + 2 x 1.6 GHz Kryo |
| GRAPH | Adreno 530 |
| RAM | 4GB |
| MEMORY | 64/128 GB (expandable with microSD) |
| SOFTWARE VERSION | Android 7.0 + HTC Sense |
| REAR CAMERA | 12 megapixels, f / 1.8, OIS, 4K video, 1 / 2.3 inch sensor (1.5μm pixel size) |
| FRONT CAMERA | 16 megapixels, f / 2.0, video at 1080p |
| BATTERY | 3000 mAh (non-removable), Quick Charge 3.0 |
| CONNECTIVITY | USB 3.1, Bluetooth 4.2, Wi-Fi 802.11ac NFC, GPS, GLONASS, Beidou |
| PRICE | $749 (to be confirmed) |
Born to be bright
Design is a key part of HTC’s new line. Speaking about it both before and during the event, the phones feature a glossy surface different from that of the HTC One line, as well as its finish and material. This time the chosen one for the screen is sapphire crystal, a material that for some years sounds in the mobile scene as an alternative, although we will only see it in the 128 GB model.
So, the front if we remember something more to earlier smartphones of the brand like the HTC 10. This time the brand has resorted to a combination in construction reminiscent of the Samsung Galaxy S (without screen and curved corners, of course), with a reader on the front, curved edges of metal and glossy rear with square camera The case of the U Ultra, since in the U Play is round).
Screen not, screens
The other feature that has stood out in the terminal is the integration of a 2-inch accessory screen, something LG has already introduced in its V-line with the LG V10. A small accessory screen for notifications that integrates into the top of the main, which is 5.7 inches with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. The material will be Gorilla Glass 5 or sapphire crystal according to model (64 GB or 128 GB respectively).
In this way, the secondary screen will default to the date; time and battery charge if the main battery is off, as well as calendar notifications, the most frequently used user or favorite contacts when activated. This is one of the points that sets it apart from the other member of the U line, the HTC U Play, which remains only with the main screen.
You may also like to read another article on YellowTube: LG V20, duality screens and cameras come with better sound and metal body
Artificial intelligence according to HTC
The artificial intelligence is another concept that is repeated more and more in the technological current and the mobile scene does not escape to it. In this case the Taiwanese have talked about accelerating intelligence to refer to Sense Companion, which is born as they have emphasized to make the life of the user easier.
How do you want to achieve it? As we have seen, is a kind of assistant that learns from our use and activity, such as the content we visualize, the most frequent apps or our hours of sleep. A series of personalized suggestions that will be the result of the analysis of the software and will be displayed on the secondary screen, are told in detail the companions.
Guts that ring us to 2016
New Year is not always new life, and the new flagship of HTC carries a powerful processor, but not the newest Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 835. The Ultra U mount a Snapdragon 821 accompanied by 4 GB of RAM, unlike his younger brother with whom they have opted for a MediaTek Helio P10 (and same RAM).
All this is responsible for moving version 7.0 of Android with the usual clothing of the house in terms of software, adding HTC Sense, although here the fundamental innovation is the one we have seen with Sense Companion.
Much noise and “few” cameras
HTC has already tasted the dual camera, which is now quite fashionable with the HTC One M8 and has not yet repeated experiment with any of its later flagship. In this case, the main camera has a 12-megapixel sensor similar to the HTC 10, with optical image stabilizer and updated software. And from the front stand out the wide angle, of course for group selfies.
On the other hand, what also have emphasized is the audio, both the input and the output. The HTC U Ultra integrates four omnidirectional microphones that are also active constantly, which can be used at any time Sense Companion. The microphones promise to capture voice in a field of about 2 meters.
With the U Ultra, also BoomSound returns with a dedicated woofer, along with the new U sonics platform that promises to adapt to the user by configuring a specific sound profile. And as for the connection for audio, another of the fashionable themes in the mobile scene, the HTC U Ultra uses the USB type-C for audio, saying goodbye to the 3.5mm jack.
HTC U Ultra, price and availability
At the moment we have price and availability data for the United States, with the starting price being $749 for the 64 GB model and being available for booking from today in this country. On the model of sapphire crystal, the price will be around $900 and will arrive some time later.
The colors in which the phones will be available, protagonists of the event, are blue, pink, black and white.