Smartphone without compromise
SINGAPORE—Introducing to the world a new series of smartphones, HTC unveils the HTC One Series with what could possibly be the most exciting phones in the market today.
Lennard Hoornik, HTC South Asia Pacific president, led the presentation of the HTC ONE Series, starting with HTC One X, a lightweight but durable smartphone with polycarbonate unibody, making it resistant to stains and scratches. HTC One X also features a full 4.7-inch contoured Corning Gorilla Glass display and optical lamination, for wider viewing angles and reduced reflections to improve visibility during day time.
HTC One X is powered by a 1.5 GHz quadcore NVIDIA Tegra 3 mobile processor for clear graphics and faster applications, with an integrated fifth battery saver core, which handles low-powered tasks like music, videos, and active standby.
During the interview, Hoornik repeatedly slammed the phone on a table without making as much as a tiny scratch, attesting to the One X being “lightweight, but very, very strong material, with polished sides, giving it a gorgeous finish.”
“In Manila, it’s very hot, and when people use their phone, sweat tends to transfer to their phones and water comes in to the tiny grills. So we make the micro-holes—they are smaller than water drop—so that water won’t come in [inside the phone],” Hoornik explains.
Fastest camera
“If you look carefully on how people use their phone, you’ll see that number one is to make phone calls, and number two is to take pictures. There are lots of texting in the Philippines, but don’t forget Facebook in the Philippines is huge, one of the biggest in the world. Filipinos love taking pictures and uploading them like crazy. So we’ve made sure to create the fastest camera in the world,” says Hoornik.
Activating in 0.7 seconds, and an auto-focus that takes just 0.2 seconds to get ready, One X enables the user to take up to 99 continuous shots at 4 frames per second by holding the shutter button. The 8-megapixel camera is automatically synchronized with Dropbox, to store and share up to 11,000 pictures.
Powered by HTC ImageSense, photos can be taken even in conditions such as low lighting, dark or bright backlighting. Another impressive function is the Video Pic, which allows the user to shoot videos and snap photos at the same time. The user could capture images that catch his attention even while taking videos simply by tapping the shutter button.
Car Mode
HTC One Series comes with custom-tuned Beats Audio, giving quality sound system whether the phone is used for music player, Youtube, videos, games or Internet radio apps.
A simple accessory called the HTC Car Stereo Clip also connects the user to music through online radio stations or play music from the phone through the car speakers. Taking into consideration the safety of the users when using their phones while driving, HTC One X comes with a unique feature called the Car Mode.
“In the car, it’s dangerous [using a phone] if not properly done, so we came up with something clever called Car Mode, which has everything; it can help you in navigation, you can play songs, but it’s very big (the display) so it’s safe to use. You can make phone calls, and it automatically goes to Car Mode,” says Hoornik.
Media Link
Probably the most impressive feature of the HTC One X is the Media Link, which connects the phone to a TV with a three-finger swipe action. Just plug the Media Link HD accessory into the HDMI port of any TV and the phone automatically configures to the accessory via WiFi. The Media Link enables the TV screen to function like a desktop, a mirror site of your HTC One X, or play movies, videos, games, or business presentations, and the user can choose to either control what is displayed onscreen or use the phone for other tasks.
HTC One V
Also presented in the launch was the HTC One V, which is the entry level in the One Series. Powered with 5.0-megapixel camera, HTC One V, like the One X, also activates in 0.7 seconds and auto-focus in 0.2 seconds, and can also capture up to 99 continuous shots. The phone features a simple, aluminum unibody design, and is also integrated with Beats Audio technology.
Later this quarter, HTC will launch the One S, another inclusion to its One Series to strengthen its lineup in the smartphone market.
Hoornik sums up the power of multi-function in the HTC One Series: “This is not just your phone. This is your camera, this is your music device, your game device, your setup box—this is your everything. You can do your whole life in this device, and all this power in one device that is in your pocket.”
The HTC One X and One V are already available in the Philippines. The Media Link HDMI and Stereo Clip are sold separately.
