HTC One (M8)
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- AnonD-119701
- mYn
- 03 Jun 2014
I was expecting a natural progression from the One to the new One, and in many ways that is what I now have in my hand. The HTC One M8 is a carefully planned evolution of the already iconic M7, and the beginning of a progression which I hope will continue for some time.
HTC have gone beyond themselves with the new design. The casing is 90% metal not the 'metal/plastic/metal sandwich' of the M7 and the sides wrap around and close with the glass of the screen. It truly is a unibody, and the shape puts me in mind of a smoother, all metal, HTC One X (which had one of the best shaped casings of all the HTC phones in my opinion).
The M8 is so good to hold that I find myself taking it out and playing with it even when I don't need to use it.
The screen has the same resolution as the previous HTC One, but is stretched to a 5 inch diagonal from the previous 4.7 inch of the M7. Even though the pixels are wider spaced than the M7, they are still so dense that there is no noticeable difference between the two.The same superb screen in an even better hardware package.
The touch screen response is more accurate, and requires only the lightest of touches. This impression is supported by the French language tech site, Les Numeriques wo wrote that the M8 has the fastest touch screen response of any smartphone at 46ms.
The software has been upgraded in ways I wouldn't have imagined. I have always been a big fan of HTC Sense, and Sense 6 on the M8 is a big improvement. HTC has used some of the Snapdragon 801's mighty power to make the user experience more 'luxurious'. In several places I found touches which are almost subliminal, but give the user a distinct feel of smoothness, elegance and luxury without sacrificing performance. For the work I do on my phone, it has proven to be tireless. It hasn't lagged or stuttered at all, and the 'luxury touches' just make it feel smoother and faster still. Given my normal usage pattern I am averaging just short of 2 days before needing a charge.
I'm not a serious photographer (not even a decent hobby one) but I know my way around a photo and how to manipulate it. The new cameras and gallery software on the M8 are excellent. Several photo mags seem to agree too.
The original Ultrapixel camera and software tended to make over processed images but when most of the world used their phones to make Instagrams and Facebook selfies ... it was ideal for the job .. but there again, even I felt that there was scope for improvement.
On the M8, the 5Mpxl front-facing "selfie" camera is good enough to challenge a lot of rear-facing cams. It picks up great detail, and with the wider angle of the lens it can get everyone (or everything) into the photo. I took a selfie as a test and I hated it .. it showed every wrinkle and blemish perfectly .. my nose looks like orange peel !!! And to go with that it also has pretty good low-light performance.
Photos taken by the rear-facing Ultrapixel camera are sharper, clearer and less plagued by artifacts than those taken with the same sensor on my M7.
In my opinion, the basic image processing software has taken a quantum leap in terms of performance. In fully automatic mode the colour reproduction is more lifelike , the jpeg tiling artifacts are dramatically reduced, and gone is the nasty edge effect caused by the aggressive over-sharpening on the M7.
HTC have also added manual controls to the mix to give a photographer complete control over exposure, shutter speed, white balance etc. and even in auto mode there are controls for the user to set auto-max values to reduce over-enthusiastic tendencies in the automatic algorithm. For the more enthusiastic users of manual settings, regularly used settings can be saved as new presets which will come up on the camera selection menu once saved.
The twin-sensor arrangement allows for several depth-of-field effects and everyone who has seen me show off the effects is won over by how easy, and how clever they are. The more 'serious' photographers are equally impressed by the manual controls and the facility to save setups as presets. Overall, the photo quality is everything I need from a phone camera.
The video sound recording/reproduction is also excellent. I don't know if there is a noise-cancelling mic system, but it certainly seems to be able to differentiate the 'foreground' sounds extremely well.
The gallery, Zoe mode and highlight videos have also had a makeover. Gallery previews (and highlight videos) actually make use of the duo-camera effects when a photo contains the depth data, so I'm getting some fun results from these modes too.
The spherical panorama camera mode is also great. The results can be super with the right subject matter, and the HTC interface makes the actual act of taking the photos a breeze.
Being a musician, sound is important to me, both on headphones and through speakers. Boomsound on the M7 was good, but I always felt that the sound was 'deformed' by the Beats equalizer setting, and the sound from the speakers was a little narrow/weak without Beats.
On the M8, the sound from the Boomsound speakers and amplifiers is just plain bigger in every way. Not only is it a fair bit louder (HTC says 25%) but more importantly, the dynamic range is broader, the overall sound is clearer and the sound stage feels wider as a result. The sound quality of the M8 has improved in every way against the M7, and the M7 was the sound yardstick by which all other phones were judged in 2013. as soon as you get the chance please ... go out and try it. You won't be disappointed. If Boomsound on the M7 redefined smartphone speakers, the M8 redefined Boomsound itself.
The rest of Sense 6 is equally impressive. I love Blinkfeed and Sense TV and whilst HTC have improved the interface and their internals and made them even easier to use, they will still feel familiar to any sense 5 user.
One Sentence
I would find it very hard to identify even a single weakness in this device which would make me regret upgrading from an M7 to an M8, and I can recommend it to anyone looking to upgrade their phone this year.
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- AnonD-116479
- tes
- 03 Jun 2014
elie, 03 Jun 2014I just have my new m8 yesterday but i couldn't find the ext... moreWatch this video, I think it's better to watch this video rather than I explain it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfsD3jNEsfw
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- elie
- g54
- 03 Jun 2014
I just have my new m8 yesterday but i couldn't find the extrem power saving mode ? Only i have the normal power saver
Please any help ?
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- AnonD-116479
- tet
- 03 Jun 2014
AnonD-269962, 02 Jun 2014hey all.. i just got my HTC ONE M8.. and i just noticed it ... moreHTC headquarters located in Taiwan, but they are manufacturing in China. My M8 is made in China as well.
It's same as Apple headquarters located in California, USA. But they are manufacturing in China.
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- Vinesh
- nXI
- 03 Jun 2014
Hi Guys,
I bought my M8, now 5 days with my M8, simply loving every bit of it. Superb phone, worth the money spent on it. I am in Oman and Z2 and S5 were there around the same price range, but i preffered M8 and now i am really happy with my choice.....Feeling terrific.
- N
- Nőddý
- uuf
- 03 Jun 2014
hmmmm guyz which one iz da best. ....htc one m8 OR sony xperia z2
- ?
- Anonymous
- 39n
- 03 Jun 2014
Is the camera lens scratched out of the box? Poor quality? I am going with the S5 instead of this?
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- AnonD-269962
- jGL
- 02 Jun 2014
hey all.. i just got my HTC ONE M8.. and i just noticed it says on the box that its "MADE IN CHINA".. i wanted to know are HTC mobile sets also being made in CHINA or they are only made in TAIWAN??
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- Naman777
- utB
- 02 Jun 2014
AnonD-269896, 02 Jun 2014Hi i m using IPhone5. Want to change my phone. wht would b... moreYou should take HTC One(M8). I am myself using it right now and I'm really happy with my choice.
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- AnonD-119255
- Hkq
- 02 Jun 2014
AnonD-269719, 02 Jun 2014Actually i bought this phone before a week, this is the bes... moreYou are 100% write Hasira.htc m8 competitor only iphone 7(not 6).lg g3,note 4 and xperia z3 only.
- R
- Raja
- 6Pa
- 02 Jun 2014
eesa, 02 Jun 2014thks dude..... i use iphone5.... it is the best ..uniq soft... moreI phone also made china for your information
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- AnonD-269896
- vwj
- 02 Jun 2014
Hi
i m using IPhone5. Want to change my phone. wht would be the best option. IPhone5S Only or HTC M8?
Would you please suggest.
- U
- Uday
- vwj
- 02 Jun 2014
Hi,
i have Iphone5, now looking for change, would you please suggest which one will be best M8 or Iphone5S.
- S
- Shantanu
- Ia8
- 02 Jun 2014
You guyz really think iphone( which is for dummies ) can really compete with M8 ( the smartest phone in market ).You need check your brain-eye co-ordination.
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- AnonD-116479
- tet
- 02 Jun 2014
eesa, 02 Jun 2014thks dude..... i use iphone5.... it is the best ..uniq soft... moreiPhone 5 is not a competitor for HTC M8. Probably iPhone 6.
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- eesa
- JFx
- 02 Jun 2014
AnonD-269719, 02 Jun 2014Actually i bought this phone before a week, this is the bes... morethks dude..... i use iphone5.... it is the best ..uniq software ..not like samsung , HTC, china phones..
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- feutbal
- f09
- 02 Jun 2014
Best phone ever. Thank U HTC
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- AnonD-86645
- au{
- 02 Jun 2014
there is noting i can say this is more than perfect
and beauty
ui sense 6 ...wow super fast and smote i love it
s5 is just a average phone when you touch this phone
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- AnonD-269719
- Let
- 02 Jun 2014
Actually i bought this phone before a week, this is the best phone i have used till date (I have used Iphone5, samsung Note-2, Sony Z1 for past one and half years), feels better in hands, better quality build, working fine, speed is good. the camera is good too with the options provided to the photos taken (not with the best quality photos at the moment)
Iphone5/5s is good but here in Oman we cant have 4g if using iphone
Samsung s5 is having good specifications but it doesnot seem to be a better looking phone as HTC one m8, i checked both teh phones in hand before buying this and i felt better with HTC
but this is my opinion please do check the opinion from others and finalize before you buy
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- android crusader
- Fv4
- 02 Jun 2014
iPhones suck get a m8