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Showing posts with label HTC. Show all posts
Monday, October 21, 2013

Processors and chili peppers: How HTC is like Hoy Fung, the company behind ...


Earlier today Quartz profiled David Tran, the man behind the Sriracha hot sauce, an international sensation that has been used in everything from sushi and potato chips to soup and PF Chang's meals. Tran told Quartz that he hasn't raised the wholesale price of the sauce since he started selling it 30 years ago, that he doesn't know where it's sold, and that he doesn't care about profits. He just wants to make a good hot sauce.


It seems that HTC is beginning to think the same way. It still cares about profits, of course, but it no longer seems willing to compete with Samsung or Apple for mobile dominance. The company simply wants to make good smartphones, tablets, and wearable computers.


'The market is really big. HTC is a small company. For us to stay competitive and survive is not a huge problem,' HTC CEO Peter Chou told the Financial Times, adding that HTC needs only to snag five percent of the global smartphone market to remain in business. 'People need to look at it that way, rather than [saying] we have to beat the other guy who has a 50 percent market share.'


HTC might need to fade into the background in order to do that. The company has reportedly engaged in talks with Amazon to build its smartphone, a long-anticipated device that might require the experience a manufacturer like HTC has to build. It previously released the first -and so far only - smartphone to ship with Facebook Home pre-installed, and it also developed co-branded products like the Droid Incredible for Verizon or the MyTouch series for T-Mobile. HTC makes good products; it simply isn't good at selling them.


The company has denied that it is for sale despite declining marketshare and financial results. (It posted its first quarterly loss earlier this month.) That doesn't mean that it won't partner with other companies to use its product expertise while mitigating its relatively weak sales and marketing efforts, though. HTC might be taking a page from Tran's playbook by focusing on its products instead of the less-glamorous aspects of the smartphone business.


Tran has long avoided working with larger companies. 'People who come here are never interested in the product, only in the profits,' he told Quartz. Sriracha is a hot sauce first and a money-maker second.


HTC attempted to do something similar with its smartphones. Analysts have wondered at the company's insistence on using high-end materials and focusing on product design instead of profitability. These decisions led to thin margins and supply issues, which contributed to the company's financial troubles. Chou tells the Financial Times that HTC remains 'diehard about design' despite all those setbacks.


On the surface, HTC and Tran face very different problems. HTC's products are less popular than they were before; Sriracha is becoming more popular every year. HTC failed to effectively advertise its products and in turn ceded more of the smartphone market to Samsung; Tran says that he can't advertise Sriracha because he wouldn't be able to meet demand. HTC is working with metal and glass and silicon to make electronics; Tran is working with peppers and spices and garlic to make hot sauce.


But underneath all that, it seems that HTC and Tran have more in common than you might think. Both are focused on making the best product and making sure it gets to people who want it without worrying about competing with other, larger companies. Both have their fervent admirers and their dismissive nay-sayers. And both are trying to stay true to their original mission despite constant pressure from other businesses, customers, and pundits.


[Image courtesy ilovememphis]
HTC

HTC sets sights on wearable tech market, but won't rush in

CEO Peter Chou says HTC is 'excited' about the possibility of getting into the wearable-tech space.




(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)


HTC is having its fair share of trouble in the smartphone market, but the company sees new opportunities in wearable technology and tablets, its two top executives said in an interview.


Speaking to Financial Times in an interview published on Monday, HTC CEO Peter Chou said the wearable technology market is 'a critical segment for us,' but he's not so sure now is the time to jump into the space.


'It's still too early,' Chou said of the wearable technology space. 'It has to meet a need, otherwise it's just a gimmick or concept, it's not for people's day-to-day lives.'


Chou's comments come as interest in wearable technology continues to grow. Samsung, one of HTC's biggest competitors, jumped into the wearable market in September with its Galaxy Gear smartwatch. Products like the Pebble Watch, Sony SmartWatch 2, and FitBit Force are already trying to claim a spot in the wearable-tech space, and both Google and Apple are rumored to be working on smartwatches. Where HTC plans to fit into that lineup is unknown.


Until Chou decides it's time to jump into wearable technology, his company will be focusing heavily on tablets, he told Financial Times. HTC, which has been practically silent on the tablet front, is planning something big for the space, its chairwoman Cher Wang told Financial Times, and will launch the slate when the time is right.


'When the [HTC] tablet comes out it will be something nice and disruptive,' Wang told the Financial Times. 'There are a lot of devices to innovate . . . Ubiquitous intelligence is not just wearables.'


Looking ahead, Chou and Wang will either improve HTC's market position, or thrust it deeper into obscurity. A recent report from the Financial Times said Chou will temporarily give up some of his responsibilities to Wang so he can focus on product design and other key decisions that could improve the company's market position. Wang, meanwhile, will handle how the business is run.


In either case, Chou and Wang have some work cut out for them. HTC reported a net loss of NT$2.97 billion ($101 million) in the three-month period ended September 30, its first quarterly net loss since going public in 2002. During the same period a year ago, HTC generated a net profit of NT$3.9 billion.


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Today's a good day if you're an HTC One owner on T-Mobile. The company has started rolling out their Android 4.3 upgrade, just as we were promised. The upgrade brings us up to version 3.24.531.3. Android 4.3 brings a lot of under-the-hood changes such as OpenGL 3.0, ANT+ support and the TRIM garbage collection system to keep your device smooth over time.



On the HTC Sense side of things, the upgrade will bring us updated BlinkFeed features, including support for Instagram posts muddled in with all the rest of your news and social updates. You can also make video highlights as long as you want them to be.


We're not sure how big (in size) this upgrade will be, but HTC recommends you connect to WiFi, charge your battery up to at least 30% and set aside at least 20 minutes to complete the whole thing. Be sure to find instructions for updating below, and let us know if things go well for you in the comments section.


To manually perform the update, follow these steps below:

1. From the Home screen, tap All apps and then tap Settings.


3. Tap Software updates.


5. Tap OK to download the update.


6. Tap OK to start the upgrade process. The status of the download can be viewed in the Notifications pull down.


7. Once the download is complete, you will be prompted to install from the Notifications pull down menu. Tap the System update notification to begin the upgrade process.


8. Tap OK to begin the update process to software version 3.24.531.3.


9. The device will reboot and begin installation. You will not be able to use your device during the installation process (approximately 10 minutes).


10. When the system update is complete, the device will boot up normally. When prompted, tap OK to continue.



HTC

HTC chief offloads duties in bid to stem financial downturn

Summary: To stem the company's decline, HTC's chief executive is offloading some of his responsibilities to the company's chairwoman. Described as a 'temporary' move, it comes just months after former executives described his succession stubbornness.


(Image: CNET)


HTC may still be dubbing itself as 'quietly brilliant,' but many analysts and industry watchers are wondering if the firm isn't in fact publicly sinking.


In an interview with London's Financial Times (paywalled), HTC's chief executive Peter Chou confirmed he has offloaded some of his day-to-day operational responsibilities to the company's chairwoman and co-founder, Cher Wang.


According to the interview, Chou was 'too busy' focused on innovation and the product lineup. Meanwhile, Wang has increased her scope at the company to include sales, marketing, and engaging with supplier relationships as the company attempts to stave off full-blown financial collapse.


In August, former insiders who spoke to the Reuters news agency blamed Chou for his leadership and 'shoot-from-the-hip' decision-making. According to one report, he sketched a few designed on a whiteboard, with an included price point and a launch date - just three months later - but didn't account for the time needed for third-party manufacturers to build the device, or garner the marketing needed to advertise the device.


Since then, many executives have left the company, at least half-a-dozen executives have left the smartphone maker over the past two years, including its chief operating officer and chief financial officer.


The latest person to leave is HTC's former public relations chief Lorian Wong, who reportedly left the Taiwanese phone maker for personal reasons, just four months after she was brought into the role.


Founded in 1997, the company rose to prominence during the mid-to-late 2000s, but began to suffer financially not long after the 2008 global economic crisis subsided in the new decade.


Just as others were pushed out of the smartphone market, notably BlackBerry and Nokia, whose futures remain uncertain after a prospective and successful sell-off respectively, HTC has also dwindled in its former strong position in market share rankings.


Now, HTC has just 2.6 percent of the global smartphone share, down from more than 11 percent in 2011. Its share price has also plummeted by more than half year-to-date.


The company saw a 70 percent fall in net profit during its 2012 first quarter. Its revenue has fallen by shy of 35 percent compared to the same period a year ago, with the company still reeling from a painful January where revenues fell by almost 50 percent.


HTC in April suffered a massive profit plunge in April following the delayed flagship HTC One, and again in August.


There is a glimmer of light in the back of the company's eyes, however, as numerous reports point to HTC making a comeback into the mainstream smartphone market by teaming up with Amazon, which is reportedly looking to enter the highly-competitive space.


Amazon, earlier this year, and in a rare public reaction, refuted earlier claims it would release a smartphone this year. But numerous reports from The Wall Street Journal and others, including the Financial Times, suggested a device was almost certainly on deck.


However, if Amazon, which has carved out a significant market share in the tablet space with its Kindle range of tablets - despite the razor-thin margins and low profits - doesn't believe it can garner the same level of attention, it may bail on its development efforts to date, according to reports.


'We are open minded to those kinds of opportunities always but we can't specifically talk about any particular one,' according to Chou in another interview posted Sunday by the Financial Times ( paywalled), without budging any further on comment.


HTC

HTC CEO sheds off some company duties to focus on innovation


If there was any doubt that HTC was in some hot water, this news should probably dispel all that. HTC CEO Peter Chou has stepped back from some of his duties in order to focus on putting the company back on the smartphone map.



The situation isn't as bad some other smartphone manufacturer out there, but HTC is definitely experiencing a fall from grace. The HTC One, which we found to be quite impressive in our in-depth review, failed to boost the company to the top as much as it had hoped. Its marketing campaign, which involved hiring big shot Hollywood actors, which surely cost a lot, was a flash in the pan. Its latest smartphone, the giant HTC One Max, arrived late and left us feeling quite underwhelmed.


It should come as no surprise, then, that HTC would undergo a bit of reshuffling. CEO Peter Chou will be relinquishing some of his duties, handing them over to HTC chairwoman and co-founder Cher Wang. She will now also be handling sales, marketing and supplier relationship, along with her other existing duties. Co-founder H. T. Chou has also returned to the company to steer the ship of some phone projects.


It seems that Peter Chou, however, will still retain the title of CEO, for whatever reason, and will be focusing on innovation and product development, which sounds all too vague at this point. HTC has not yet given an official statement regarding this and it remains to be seen if there will also be changes further down the line.


SOURCE: Reuters


HTC

Visualized: Qualcomm takes the red pill, uses 130 HTC Ones to capture slo


Don't lie: we know that at least once in the last fourteen years, each and every one of you have pretended you were in the middle of an action scene from y'know, the slo-mo 'bullet time' pan shots that circle around Neo as he fights Agent Smith. Even if you can't bring yourself to admit it, our friends at Qualcomm seem especially inspired by this cinematic effect; enough, at least, to collaborate with HTC to create the 'Snapdragon Ultimate Photo Booth.' This rig, which is a result of daisy-chaining 130 One devices together, is meant to showcase the power of Qualcomm's SoCs to mimic the sci-fi masterpiece. While bullet time is now frequently used in today's movies, it's not every day that we get to see the concept recreated using nothing but smartphones. Check out the minute-long video below, which features break dancers, fire breathers and plenty of other creative ideas.


HTC

HTC: our tablet will be 'disruptive,' wearables are a 'critical' market


HTC leaders Peter Chou and Cher Wang believe wearables are a 'critical segment' for the company, but say HTC won't put out a gimmicky 'version one' product. The comments came in a joint interview with the Financial Times. '[A smartwatch] has to meet a need, otherwise if it's just a gimmick or concept,' says CEO Chou. The CEO, who is handing over some responsibilities to focus on new products, believes current smartwatches fall short as they aren't useful in 'people's day-to-day lives,' and that represents a big opportunity for HTC to release something better.


It's an opportunity HTC has already looked into: the company apparently worked on a smartwatch with Microsoft 'several years ago.' Although Chou doesn't go so far as to reveal any particular product in the works, he's very clear on the potential of smartwatches: 'people laughed at us when we came out with the first smartphone... now everyone has a smartphone. I'm pretty sure wearables will be the same, but don't judge from what is in the market [now].'


'[The HTC tablet] will be something nice and disruptive.'

Chou and Wang also spoke frankly about the company's plans beyond smartphones and watches. HTC has worked on a number of tablets in recent years, but hasn't released a tablet since the ill-fated Flyer and Jetstream tablets came out in 2011. Last we heard, the company had canned plans for a 10.1-inch Windows RT tablet, but was persisting with a pair of 7-inch tablets, one running Windows RT and another running Android. However, HTC is now referring to the upcoming reentry to tablets as a singular device. 'When the tablet comes out it will be something nice and disruptive,' says Wang.


HTC appears to be backing away from Windows Phone

Just over a week ago, the Financial Times reported that HTC is working with Amazon on a smartphone. Producing the long-rumored Amazon phone would be a huge boon to HTC's struggling finances. Although Chou refused to verify the Amazon report, he says that HTC is 'open minded to those kinds of opportunities.' Chou also hints that HTC's long history as a Microsoft partner - the company cut its teeth as an OEM manufacturer of Pocket PC and Windows Mobile devices - is in trouble. He says that Windows Phone sales have been 'pretty small,' adding that the company doesn't yet know how to position a Windows Phone in the market.


HTC

HTC CEO Chou hands chairwoman more responsibilities: 'I was...


HTC's co-founder and chairwoman Cher Wang has increased her operational role at the company to lighten the load on CEO Peter Chou. 'I have become very focused in the past couple of months. Before that I was too busy,' said Chou to the Financial Times. 'I took on too many things. I need to be more focused on innovation and [the] product portfolio.' The move is said to be temporary.


Wang's expanded duties see her working six days a week, rather than two, and handling marketing, sales, and relationships with suppliers. Chou, meanwhile, will concentrate on future product development, and said that the company would see 'a good result next year.' HTC recently posted the first loss in its history as a public company, and late last year Chou reportedly pledged to resign as CEO if the One smartphone was not a success.


HTC

HTC CEO said to hand off duties to focus on reversing decline

Peter Chou sheds sales and marketing responsibilities at the beleaguered handset maker to focus on innovation and product development, the Financial Times reports.




(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)


The chief executive officer of HTC is handing off some of his duties to the company's chairwoman and founder as the struggling handset maker fights to regain market share, the Financial Times reported Sunday.


Peter Chou will temporarily relinquish some of his responsibilities to Cher Wang to focus on innovation and product development to focus on reversing a market share slide that recently resulted in the company's first quarterly net loss in more than 10 years. Wang, who has remained active in the company she founded in 1997, has ramped up her day-to-day duties to include sales, marketing, and supplier relationships, the newspaper reported.


'I have become very focused in the past couple of months. Before that I was too busy,' Chou said in an interview with the Financial Times. 'I took on too many things. I need to be more focused on innovation and [the] product portfolio.'


After years of strong sales momentum, the company suffered a recent dropoff in sales. However, its flagship HTC One has so far failed to revive the struggling brand in the face of fierce competition from Apple and Samsung.


Earlier this month, the Taiwanese handset maker reported a net loss of NT$2.97 billion ($101 million) in the three-month period ended September 30, its first quarterly net loss since going public in 2002. That loss stands in contrast to the net profit of NT$3.9 billion the company reported for the year-ago period.


The change in responsibilities comes just days after HTC's head of public relations resigned after four months on the job. Vice President and Head of Global PR, Corporate, and Internal Communications Lorain Wong -- who was in charge revitalizing of the struggling company's image -- resigned for personal reasons. Several executives have left the company in recent months, including Chief Operating Officer Matthew Costello, who left in June, and HTC Asia CEO Lennard Hoornik, who left in May.


HTC

Euro HTC One Android 4.3 update coming in '3 to 5 weeks'

Official estimate from HTC UK Twitter account

HTC One devices across the U.S. and Canada have been receiving updates to Android 4.3 over the past several weeks, but so far we've yet to hear anything official on release timing for the European version of the device. Today, however, the official HTC UK Twitter account has given us our clearest indication yet as to when we can expect the update on UK devices - and unfortunately there's still a bit of waiting to be done.


'We are expecting to release #JellyBean 4.3 update in the UK in 3-5 weeks,' tweets @HTC_UK. That'll be mid-to-late November, then.


Android Central understands that when the update arrives it'll bring with it HTC's latest Sense 5.5 UI - as opposed to the Sense 5.0-based software rolling out to U.S. devices - which might explain the additional time required to get everything finalized. So HTC One owners in Europe might have to hold on just a little longer, but the update should be worth the wait in the end.


Source: @HTC_UK



'AC's resident Brit, cooking up piping-hot bowls of European Android coverage every day.'
HTC

HTC's CEO Peter Chou steps back to focus on product development

Peter Chou, the CEO of HTC has stepped back from some of his executive duties in order to focus his attention to product development. His duties have been handed over to Cher Wang – HTC's co-founder and chairwoman.



The move is described as a temporary one. Ms. Wang has increased her involvement in day to day operations including sales, supplier relations, and marketing. The latter has been acknowledged as a weak link by the company.


Mr. Chou confirmed the changes in an interview with The Financial Times. He explained them with the need to focus more on innovation, as well as on developing the product portfolio.


It is no secret that HTC has been going through a difficult period which resulted in the Taiwanese manufacturer posting its first quarterly loss earlier this month. Peter Chou has been under a lot of criticism lately for the company's far from great performance.


Source (registration required) | Via


HTC
Sunday, October 20, 2013

Weekly Roundup: HTC One Max review, PS Vita review, Apple confirms iPad ...


This week HTC unveiled its first phablet-like device -- the One Max -- which sports a 5.9-inch 1080p display, a fingerprint scanner and an upgraded battery. All of these additions come at a price: downgraded build quality, and a thicker 10.3mm spine. Ultimately the Max's bulky design, finicky fingerprint scanner and low-res camera make it a step down from the original One. Read on for more.



A year and a half later, Sony's back with an updated version of its handheld gaming device. The new PlayStation Vita hasn't changed much from the original model, but even small tweaks make the device significantly better. Namely, the new model is 20 percent thinner and 15 percent lighter. Barring the switch from OLED to LCD screens (which we think is a downgrade), the new Vita offers a healthy number of tempting improvements over the original version. Click through for more.



We've been hearing whispers of a new 'bendable and unbreakable' smartphone from LG for some time now, but this week Engadget got its hands on a trio of renders of the upcoming device. According to our sources, the phone -- appropriately called the G Flex -- will come out sometime next month with a curved 6-inch display. Unlike Samsung's Galaxy Round, which was announced last week, the Flex will bend orthogonally from top to bottom. Head on up for more info, and another image of the leaked device.



The rumors are true folks; this week Apple confirmed its October 22nd event, teasing that the company still has 'a lot to cover.' What exactly are we expecting to see? Chances are Apple will unveil a refreshed iPad, iPad mini and line of MacBook Pros. Plus -- with the recent release of the OS X Mavericks Gold Master -- we're likely to hear something related to Apple's desktop operating system. Regardless of the news, we'll be covering the event live starting at 10AM PT this Tuesday. Click the link above for more, and stay tuned for our rumor roundup.


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Carrier branded HTC One units in the U.S. have finally begun receiving the Android 4.3 update. Customers were dutifully updated about the roll out process by HTC Americas president Jason Mackenzie. It was he who revealed that Android 4.3 roll out for carrier branded devices would miss its previously scheduled release date at the end of last month, and it was he who broke world that Sprint HTC One owners were the first ones to receive this update. AT&T subscribers were the second in line to receive the update on their devices. Mackenzie has now revealed via Twitter that T-Mobile HTC One Android 4.3 update will finally begin rolling out on Monday, October 21st.


A few days back Mackenzie had said that T-Mobile customers should expected the update to reach them within a couple of days, but apparently the roll out hit a snag, which caused it to be pushed back to October 21st. Mackenzie replied to a query on Twitter, saying that the update has been held until Monday due to an unexpected delay. That's not too bad though, the release has only been set back by a few days. Barring any unexpected snags, the update should begin to be rolled out to T-Mobile HTC One users tomorrow.


HTC

HTC CEO steps back to focus on fixing smartphone slide: FT


Credit: Reuters/Toby Melville


HTC CEO, Peter Chou, speaks during the launch of the HTC One smartphone in London February 19, 2013.


Chief executive Peter Chou is temporarily focusing on innovation and product development after HTC's latest One handset failed to arrest a slide in the company's share of the global smartphone business, the newspaper reported.


Cher Wang, chairwoman and company co-founder, is stepping up her duties to include sales, marketing and supplier relationship, it said.


H. T. Chou, another co-founder, has returned to the company to head certain phone projects, said a source with knowledge of the matter.


HTC, which posted its first quarterly loss this month, has been laid low by the product and marketing might of Apple and Samsung - woes that have been exacerbated by supply-chain constraints and internal turmoil.


Once ranked among the top five phonemakers by shipments, HTC this year fell out of the top 10, according to Gartner.


HTC officials were not immediately available for comment.


Shares of HTC fell 1.1 percent minutes after market opened, lagging the main index's 0.06 percent dip.


(Reporting by Faith Hung; Editing by Stephen Coates)


HTC

Weekly Roundup: HTC One Max review, PS Vita review, Apple confirms iPad ...


This week HTC unveiled its first phablet-like device -- the One Max -- which sports a 5.9-inch 1080p display, a fingerprint scanner and an upgraded battery. All of these additions come at a price: downgraded build quality, and a thicker 10.3mm spine. Ultimately the Max's bulky design, finicky fingerprint scanner and low-res camera make it a step down from the original One. Read on for more.



A year and a half later, Sony's back with an updated version of its handheld gaming device. The new PlayStation Vita hasn't changed much from the original model, but even small tweaks make the device significantly better. Namely, the new model is 20 percent thinner and 15 percent lighter. Barring the switch from OLED to LCD screens (which we think is a downgrade), the new Vita offers a healthy number of tempting improvements over the original version. Click through for more.



We've been hearing whispers of a new 'bendable and unbreakable' smartphone from LG for some time now, but this week Engadget got its hands on a trio of renders of the upcoming device. According to our sources, the phone -- appropriately called the G Flex -- will come out sometime next month with a curved 6-inch display. Unlike Samsung's Galaxy Round, which was announced last week, the Flex will bend orthogonally from top to bottom. Head on up for more info, and another image of the leaked device.



The rumors are true folks; this week Apple confirmed its October 22nd event, teasing that the company still has 'a lot to cover.' What exactly are we expecting to see? Chances are Apple will unveil a refreshed iPad, iPad mini and line of MacBook Pros. Plus -- with the recent release of the OS X Mavericks Gold Master -- we're likely to hear something related to Apple's desktop operating system. Regardless of the news, we'll be covering the event live starting at 10AM PT this Tuesday. Click the link above for more, and stay tuned for our rumor roundup.


HTC

HTC's CEO Sheds Some Operational Responsibility To Focus On Product Amid ...


Today the Financial Times reported that HTC's CEO Peter Chou will relinquish some of his daily operational responsibilities to Cher Wang, another of the company's founders. Chou will use his now freer schedule to focus on HTC's smartphones themselves.


HTC is a company in trouble. Ascendent during the early boom times of the Android ecosystem, HTC has suffered from bleeding market share, sliding revenue, and a recent nine-figure quarterly loss (USD). Its much-hyped One handset has failed to turn its fortunes. The company is losing money for the first time in its more than decade-long history as a public company.


For the three month period ending August 30th, 2012, HTC had around 12.3% market share. During the same period in 2013, HTC had roughly 6% market share. The market might have expanded, lessening the implied unit decline, but HTC is certainly struggling to connect with consumers.


Better focus on product could salvage its position in its current war with Samsung.


Is Chou being fired? The Financial Times intimates that he is not, describing his move as 'temporary.' Chou provided comment to the newspaper, stating that he had taken on 'too many things.' Now, he is 'very focused.' Without phones that can compete with offerings from companies that control their own platform (Google, Apple, and Microsoft), and produce their own hardware (Google, Apple, and [soon] Microsoft), HTC has little chance of rebound. So, the focus on product is a step in the right direction.


If Chou is on the way out, it likely won't be voluntary. He said in June: 'There are a lot of rumors that say I would quit, but I never said that. I'm not going to find another job.'


Top Image Credit: Kārlis Dambrāns
HTC
Saturday, October 19, 2013

Why HTC One Still Beats Moto X Hardware

The HTC came home with me almost a month ago and it's still the best phone I've ever owned. After reading our review of the Moto X and comparing it to the Samsung Galaxy S4 I think it's the best Android phone available today, even though HTC released it almost half a year ago now.


What makes this phone a better option than even the new Motorola Moto X for Android buyers? Granted, the Moto X looks like a very nice handset, with an impressive build quality and the interesting color customizations. Still, four things put the HTC One slightly ahead of the newer Moto X. They include hardware quality, the display, camera video and photo quality and excellent sound.



Before looking into the strengths of the HTC One over the Moto X, let me admit that the Moto X software looks impressive. It listens to the user while being ready to obey commands at all times, as the following ad demonstrates:


Still, for users who don't talk to their phones much, unless they're in a call, this feature may go unused.


HTC One Hardware Compared to the Moto X

Before using the HTC One I wondered why so many people thought a metal body on a phone always made it so much better. As a Samsung Galaxy S3 and S4 user I reasoned that plastic was lighter and therefore better? True, but it's also more flimsy.


The HTC One feels sturdier than every other phone out there, except maybe iPhone 4 and newer. The HTC One screen looks great, the buttons feel firm and even the micro-USB doesn't seem like it will bend or fall apart, unlike other micro-USB phone connectors.


Add the features below to these and we get a better phone. What's more, look at the list of specs below where the HTC One beats the Moto X.


Pixel density for a crisper display. The HTC One offers 468ppi compared to 316 on the Moto X HTC One gives us 100mAh more battery power Double the storage at with 32GB compared to 16GB on the Moto X HTC One Display Compared to the Moto X

We like the HTC One display over the Moto X. They both look very good, but images and text appear clearer on the HTC One thanks to the higher resolution and greater pixel density mentioned above. As a result it offers a crisper reading experience. Video looks richer and images seem more detailed. Playing games will benefit as well from a higher res screen.


HTC One Camera Compared to the Moto X

Both phones seem to offer nice photographic features and options, but we like HTC One camera better. For example, take the excellent Zoe feature on the HTC camera. It takes a short video and a series of shots at full resolution. The user can find the best frame in the short video and it saves the corresponding picture from the series of photos taken to the photo gallery. We love this feature for getting great action shots or group shots. It also pre-rolls the camera so, even if the user hits the shutter button late, she can still get the image.


In our review of the Moto X, editor Josh Smith said about the camera:


Motorola makes a big deal about the camera in the Moto X, ... but the camera relies on automatic detection of exposure and focus too much in many cases.


That's not a complaint we had with the HTC One.


Here's a low light video sample taken with the HTC One that proves how good the HTC One sensor handles a challenging photographic setting like low light.


Here's an image sample from the HTC One camera in low light with a lot of backlighting. While the sky looks blown out, the rest of the shot offers good color and lighting despite an extremely difficult backlighting. Few phone cameras would take as good an image.



Some users will buy into the megapixel marketing light since the Moto X offers a 10MP sensor. However, the 4MP sensor on the HTC One makes better shots for displaying on a screen and for printing smaller images at 5×7 or lower.


HTC One Sound Compared to the Moto X

The HTC One's two front facing speakers, we get better sound on the HTC One compared to the Moto X. In our Moto X review editor Josh Smith, wrote:


As for audio quality, Motorola delivers respectable sound but overall it is not up to par with the HTC One's BoomSound front-facing speakers that deliver clearer, louder music and audio for movies.


That's four key areas where the HTC One shines. That's why it's still the best Android handset available. We'll see if it can reign supreme after we get ahold of the new Nexus 5 coming very soon, by all signs.


HTC

HTC's head of global PR leaving company after only four months


Lorain Wong was hired as HTC's head of global PR in June of this year. Four months later she is making her exit. The departure is only the latest in a string of company executives taking their leave from a company that has seen better days. Wong is the the third high-ranking PR team member to resign from HTC in the past two years.


Though Wong's run as part of HTC's executive team has ended, she will remain a consultant for the Taiwanese smartphone maker for at least the next few months. The circumstances surrounding her departure were described as personal.


HTC has been working to rebound from a trend of that has seen the company take financial losses quarter after quarter, but the worst might be yet to come. The company is in the midst of an expensive, global marketing push that looks to reshape the image of Android device manufacturer. So far the results have been less than positive.


[via Bloomberg]



HTC
Friday, October 18, 2013

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If you've wanted to know when the Android 4.3 update is coming to the HTC One, HTC Americas president Jason Mackenzie is the man to follow. It's from him that we first found out about the latest version of Android coming to our favorite aluminum handset this fall, and he was the one who provided more specific ETAs as time went on. Now he's revealed that the Android 4.3 update is scheduled to roll out to T-Mobile HTC One owners this upcoming Monday, the 21st.



Mackenzie announced earlier this week that T-Mobile customers could expect the 4.3 update within a handful of days, but things apparently hit a snag, and now the release has been pushed back until Monday. Still, better later than never. Soon T-Mobile customers will get to see what Sprint, AT&T, and C Spire Wireless customers are raving about. 9 out of 10 fictitious polled people agree, the update is worth the wait.


HTC

Which phablet is best? HTC One Max vs. Galaxy Note 3 vs. Sony Xperia Z Ultra

Bigger doesn't always mean better, but don't tell that to phone manufacturers. They seem to continue to find ways to add extra inches to devices, doing everything possible to really challenge the concept of portability. If a big screen is best for you, though, then your best suitors have all devices that recently hit the market. HTC just announced its One Max, an update to the flagship HTC One, that borrows the fingerprint sensor from the iPhone 5S in hopes of one-upping the competition. Meanwhile, Sony has finally brought its huge Xperia Z Ultra and its 6.4-inch screen overseas to the U.S. and Samsung has continued to have success with the latest version of its Galaxy Note handset, the Note 3. So if bigger is better, which bigger phone is best? We take a look at the specs to help us figure it out.


HTC One Max



Galaxy Note 3



Sony Xperia Z Ultra


DT Review Score

Review Pending


4 out of 5

Review Pending


Performance

It's hard to believe that being equipped with the still-fast Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 puts the HTC One Max at a disadvantage, but it does thanks to the Galaxy Note 3 and Xperia Z Ultra's use of the Snapdragon 800. The One Max doesn't lag behind all that much, but it is a step off the current standard. The Galaxy Note 3 adds an extra gigabyte of RAM, built with 3GB compared to 2GB for both the Xperia Z Ultra and One Max. None of these devices are underpowered, even with their impressive size, but Samsung's handset (and we use that term loosely unless you have particularly huge hands) has the slight advantage.


Display Size

Of course, it's hard not to talk about the screens on these phones. The Galaxy Note 3 is the smallest, a word that only applies to it in context of other handsets built for giants, with 'only' 5.7-inches. It's built at this size to make the most of the S Pen feature, which allows users to use the phone like an actual notebook by writing text or drawing menus for the phone to digitize. The HTC One Max only ups the ante slightly to 5.9 inches. Both devices are dwarfed by Sony's huge, almost technically tablet-sized 6.4-inch display on the Xperia Z Ultra. We haven't yet held the Z Ultra, but if it feels like the budget Galaxy Mega 6.3, it will fit the bill just fine.


Additional Features

Against most handsets, size would be the distinguishing feature for these devices. But going head-to-head, there has to be something else to set them apart. For the HTC One Max, it has its trademark BoomSound audio built in just like its predecessor. But to set it apart further, it's the first Android device to include a fingerprint sensor (well, since Apple made it popular, at least. The Motorola Atrix had one). This is sure to draw comparisons to the iPhone 5S, which has had issues, but judging by sales figures people seem to be more drawn to Touch ID than deterred. The Galaxy Note 3 has the aforementioned S Pen, which is really the feature that best justifies a large screen at all. Sony's Xperia Z Ultra is waterproof, which is handy for a phone of any size, but doesn't really add much value to the size aside from the fact that you won't have to buy another one if you drop it in the bathtub.


There's an incremental increase in size with all of these devices, and the Galaxy Note 3 is the smallest. It also appears to be the one that makes the most of its size thanks to its S Pen. The HTC One Max is intriguing because the HTC One is still a great handset and the larger update to it is sure to be just as good - and the addition of a fingerprint sensor gives it a feature relevant to current consumers. The Xperia Z Ultra is probably the least interesting outside of just its sheer size, but man is it big. That's a niche all its own, and one even the other phablets don't come close to matching. You'll be able to get your hands on all three devices soon to see which one feels best in your hand, assuming you can get your hand around any of them.


(Editor's Note: We will update this roundup once we have fully reviewed the One Max and Xperia Z Ultra.)
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