HTC One E9+ review: Positive charge

Beautiful 5.5-inch QHD display

The HTC One E9+ has the largest QHD display in the company's lineup at 5.5 inches (certain apps report it at 5.46 inches, but we're fine with calling it 5.5). At this diagonal 1,440 x 2,560px translate into 534ppi, which is crazy sharp, though the smaller 5.2-inch QHD panels on the One M9+ and One ME will obviously boast an even higher ppi.

HTC One E9+ display

The display has great viewing angles and delivers spot-on colors, though its rendition is somewhat different from the One M9's. If anything, its colors are even more accurate, where the M9 has a slight greenish tint. Unlike other manufacturers, HTC doesn't give you the option to tweak the white balance to your liking, nor are there presets, but chances are you wouldn't want to anyway.

Our microscope revealed a standard RGB pattern with equal numbers of red, green and blue subpixels.

The display isn't overly bright at 100%, but for what it lacks in brightness it more than makes up in contrast. The deep blacks help for a stellar figure, which beats everything we've tested, except the Xperia Z1 Compact.

At 50%, brightness actually drops to a little more than 40% of maximum. Mind you, with HTC's custom brightness toggle you can only set it precisely from within the menus. It does roughly correspond to the 2-bar position on the toggle.

The HTC One E9+ is a decent performer in the sunlight legibility test, getting almost the same score as the One M9 before it.

Sunlight contrast ratio

• Nokia 808 PureView
  4.698
• Samsung Galaxy E7
  4.485
• Samsung Galaxy A3
  4.241
• Samsung Galaxy S6
  4.124
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  4.033
• Apple iPhone 5
  3.997
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  3.997
• Samsung Galaxy A5
  3.895
• Apple iPhone 6
  3.838
• Motorola Moto X (2014)
  3.816
• Samsung Galaxy Note Edge
  3.799
• Samsung Galaxy A7
  3.679
• Oppo R5
  3.678
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  3.675
• Nokia Lumia 930
  3.567
• Apple iPhone 5s
  3.565
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  3.549
• Nokia Lumia 735
  3.547
• Motorola Nexus 6
  3.543
• Alcatel Idol X+
  3.527
• Apple iPhone 5c
  3.512
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  3.509
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  3.487
• LG G Flex2
  3.465
• YotaPhone 2
  3.453
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  3.42
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  3.419
• Samsung Galaxy S5 Active
  3.406
• Nokia Lumia 925
  3.402
• Gionee Elife S5.5
  3.386
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  3.352
• Samsung Omnia W
  3.301
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  3.174
• Samsung I9000 Galaxy S
  3.155
• Samsung Ativ S
  3.129
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  3.127
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  3.118
• Nokia N9
  3.069
• Microsoft Lumia 640 XL
  3.065
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  3.023
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  2.97
• Samsung Galaxy Premier
  2.958
• Sony Xperia Z1
  2.95
• HTC One S
  2.901
• Lenovo S90 Sisley
  2.892
• Samsung I8730 Galaxy Express
  2.861
• BlackBerry Q10
  2.856
• Samsung I9100 Galaxy S II
  2.832
• Sony Xperia Z3+
  2.824
• HTC Desire Eye
  2.815
• Gionee Elife S5.1
  2.812
• Samsung Galaxy S II Plus
  2.801
• BlackBerry Z30
  2.79
• Meizu MX4 Pro
  2.765
• Sony Xperia ZR
  2.672
• Huawei Ascend P1
  2.655
• Xiaomi Mi 4i
  2.641
• Sony Xperia Z3
  2.618
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  2.616
• Sony Xperia T3
  2.609
• BlackBerry Passport
  2.595
• Microsoft Lumia 640
  2.563
• Nokia Lumia 900
  2.562
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  2.546
• HTC One Max
  2.537
• Nokia Lumia 720
  2.512
• HTC One
  2.504
• Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
  2.503
• Motorola Moto G
  2.477
• vivo Xshot
  2.465
• Sony Xperia Z
  2.462
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  2.424
• Samsung Galaxy S III mini
  2.422
• Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro
  2.416
• LG G Flex
  2.407
• HTC Desire 820
  2.372
• HTC One (M8)
  2.371
• Meizu MX4
  2.366
• Motorola RAZR i
  2.366
• Meizu m1 note
  2.362
• Sony Xperia ZL
  2.352
• HTC One M9
  2.334
• LG G4
  2.317
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  2.307
• HTC One E9+
  2.305
• HTC One (M8) for Windows
  2.291
• Oppo R1x
  2.281
• Oppo Find 7a
  2.279
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  2.272
• Apple iPhone 4S
  2.269
• HTC Desire 600 dual sim
  2.262
• Nokia Asha 311
  2.25
• Xiaomi Mi Note
  2.234
• Motorola Moto G (2014)
  2.233
• LG Nexus 5
  2.228
• Huawei P8
  2.196
• Nokia Lumia 820
  2.193
• HTC One (E8)
  2.185
• Oppo N3
  2.181
• Nokia Lumia 920
  2.17
• Huawei Honor 6
  2.169
• HTC One X
  2.158
• Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML
  2.149
• LG Aka
  2.145
• Nokia N8
  2.144
• Nokia Lumia 620
  2.142
• Archos 50 Diamond
  2.134
• Nokia 515
  2.134
• HTC Desire 500
  2.129
• Sony Xperia C3 Dual
  2.12
• Sony Xperia acro S
  2.119
• Xiaomi Redmi Note
  2.119
• Nokia Lumia 1020
  2.103
• Oppo Find 5
  2.088
• Sony Xperia SL
  2.078
• Nokia Lumia 630
  2.056
• BlackBerry Z10
  2.051
• Huawei Ascend Mate7
  2.024
• Samsung I9295 Galaxy S4 Active
  2.022
• Apple iPhone 4
  2.016
• HTC One mini
  2.003
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  2.001
• Huawei Ascend P7
  1.992
• LG G2
  1.976
• Sony Xperia E4g
  1.972
• OnePlus One
  1.961
• Oppo R819
  1.957
• Sony Ericsson Xperia ray
  1.955
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  1.952
• Sony Xperia Z2
  1.944
• Sony Xperia E3
  1.943
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  1.941
• HTC One mini 2
  1.94
• Samsung Galaxy Camera
  1.938
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime
  1.935
• Sony Xperia J
  1.932
• Acer CloudMobile S500
  1.931
• ZTE Blade S6
  1.927
• LG Nexus 4
  1.926
• LG G Pro 2
  1.922
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  1.913
• Nokia Asha 308
  1.911
• HTC Butterfly 2
  1.905
• Sony Xperia T
  1.894
• Nokia Lumia 830
  1.887
• HTC Desire X
  1.878
• HTC Butterfly
  1.873
• HTC Windows Phone 8X
  1.873
• HTC Butterfly S
  1.867
• Huawei Ascend P6
  1.865
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  1.845
• LG G2 mini
  1.838
• LG G3
  1.82
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  1.813
• HTC Desire 616 dual sim
  1.797
• Sony Xperia V
  1.792
• HTC Desire 816
  1.783
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  1.772
• HTC Desire 700 dual sim
  1.769
• Sony Xperia U
  1.758
• Meizu MX3
  1.754
• LG Optimus G
  1.753
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  1.74
• Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact
  1.735
• Acer Liquid Jade S
  1.734
• Sony Xperia SP
  1.733
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  1.691
• Oppo Find 7
  1.691
• HTC One V
  1.685
• BlackBerry Q5
  1.682
• LG Optimus Vu
  1.68
• Motorola Moto E (2nd Gen)
  1.675
• Xiaomi Mi Pad 7.9
  1.672
• LG Optimus GJ
  1.666
• LG Optimus 3D Max
  1.658
• HTC Desire V
  1.646
• Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2
  1.632
• Samsung Galaxy Ace 3
  1.622
• Microsoft Lumia 532
  1.615
• Jolla Jolla
  1.605
• Microsoft Lumia 435
  1.598
• Sony Xperia Z Ultra
  1.578
• Sony Xperia go
  1.577
• Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 I8160
  1.566
• Samsung Galaxy Core
  1.563
• LG Optimus G Pro
  1.552
• Motorola Moto E
  1.545
• LG Optimus 3D
  1.542
• Nokia Asha 302
  1.537
• Samsung Galaxy Core Prime
  1.507
• BlackBerry Curve 9320
  1.488
• Sony Xperia M
  1.473
• Oppo N1
  1.47
• Sony Xperia E4
  1.467
• Meizu MX 4-core
  1.462
• Nokia Lumia 610
  1.432
• Samsung Galaxy S Duos
  1.4
• Microsoft Lumia 535
  1.393
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo
  1.393
• Sony Xperia M2
  1.393
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  1.38
• Sony Xperia E1
  1.372
• Nokia Lumia 625
  1.371
• Gigabyte GSmart G1355
  1.361
• Sony Xperia L
  1.351
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 5.8
  1.35
• Xiaomi Redmi 1S
  1.35
• HTC Desire 510
  1.34
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  1.331
• Sony Xperia miro
  1.324
• Samsung I9082 Galaxy Grand
  1.321
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  1.315
• Xiaomi Redmi 2
  1.311
• HTC Desire C
  1.3
• Nokia X
  1.291
• Sony Xperia C
  1.283
• Nokia Asha 503
  1.281
• Nokia Asha 501
  1.27
• LG Optimus L7
  1.269
• Nokia Lumia 510
  1.268
• Samsung Galaxy Fame
  1.245
• LG Optimus L9
  1.227
• Meizu MX
  1.221
• Samsung Galaxy Young
  1.22
• Sony Xperia E
  1.215
• Nokia XL
  1.204
• Sony Xperia E dual
  1.203
• Asus Memo Pad 7 ME176C
  1.198
• Samsung Galaxy Pocket
  1.18
• Nokia Asha 305
  1.178
• Nokia Asha 306
  1.175
• Sony Xperia neo L
  1.169
• Sony Xperia tipo
  1.166
• Nokia Lumia 520
  1.161
• Samsung S6802 Galaxy Ace Duos
  1.148
• Samsung Galaxy mini 2
  1.114

Connectivity

The HTC One E9+ comes with dual-SIM slots and each card supports quad-band 2G. Only one of those cards can benefit from the quad-band 3G and some 10 bands of 4G support, where Cat.4 is supported for download speeds of up to a theoretical maximum of 150Mbps.

There's a GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS and Beidou support for even more accurate positioning across the globe.

Local connectivity features include Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands) with DLNA and Wi-Fi Hotspot.

The HTC Connect feature works over the DLNA protocol to provide smoother integration of your phone to your home-entertainment setup, with supported devices of course. Those include multi-room speakers adhering to the Qualcomm AllPlay standard; DLNA and Miracast-compatible devices, Bluetooth speakers, as well as HTC-certified devices carrying the HTC Connect logo.

Bluetooth 4.1 is on board, which sorts LTE interference issues. Version 4.1 is said to be more power-efficient and supports direct communication between connected peripherals, keeping your smartphone out of it. There's also NFC support.

An MHL-enabled micro-USB 2.0 port sits on the bottom of the phone with USB host, for connecting external storage or wired peripherals. A standard 3.5mm headphone jack on top lets you plug in your headphones of choice.

The One E9+ accepts nano-SIM cards. The microSD slot lets you extend the 32GB of built-in storage to up to 2TB, although we are yet to see such a monstrous card in the real world.

Battery life test

The HTC One E9+ comes with a 2,800mAh battery, which is not user replaceable. We had our reservations before we kicked off our battery test routine, because the battery capacity is actually smaller than what the M9 has, and the E9+ has both a larger screen area to light up as well as much more pixels.

That said, the One E9+ is powered by an entirely different chipset, and the Snapdragon 810 inside the M9 isn't exactly famous for its efficiency, so there was still hope.

In the end, although the One E9+ is no miracle worker, it managed well with what it's got. That's not to say that we're happy with the 7 hours of video playback or the 8-hour web browsing record, on the contrary. But credit must be given to HTC for actually squeezing more or less the same screen-on usage times out of the E9+ as it did from the M9, despite the increase in diagonal and resolution.

The less than 12 hours of 3G talk times also don't stand very well with a high-end device, which is made to be used.

Truth be told, there is an area in which the One E9+ does excel. With a single SIM card inside, the smartphone can remain in 3G standby for a little short of 14 days, which drops to about 12 and half days if you pop in a second SIM. Now, while that's half of the manufacturer's claims, it's still a respectable achievement in real usage terms.

All of the above adds up to a decent but far from spectacular endurance rating of 58 hours (59h with a single SIM). What the number means is that under the hypothetical scenario that you use the One E9+ for an hour each of video playback, web browsing and voice calls per day, it'll last you for about two and a half days.

It's worth noting that there's a variable which influences the standby times and, therefore, the overall endurance rating. BlinkFeed refreshes once every hour when connected to Wi-Fi. Depending on the number of sources you have selected that may mean up to a 30% hit in standby times, robbing the E9+ of the only admirable aspect of its battery life.

However, that only results in a three-hour drop in the overall rating, so it's negligible in the grand scheme of things. Just bear in mind that if you absolutely must squeeze every minute of battery life, you'd better disable BlinkFeed.

Our battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you want to learn more about it.