HTC was probably one of the first few companies to come out with a phone boasting of a rounded metal back and plastic antenna inserts. T...
HTC was probably one of the first few companies to come out with a phone boasting of a rounded metal back and plastic antenna inserts. That was a really long time ago. The company has, like clockwork, stuck with metal for its flagship line-up for as long as one can remember. With the U Ultra, however, it has tried something way out of its league. The U Ultra comes with what HTC calls a liquid design wherein the phone is carved out of highly polished glass -- Corning's Gorilla Glass 5 -- that reflects light differently when viewed at different angles. The outer frame is, meanwhile, carved out of metal. That's Samsung territory, some would say and it is. A glass-and-steel sandwich design may not be a new concept, but, there's a certain bit of originality about the U Ultra that only a certain HTC could have conjured. The same is true about its choice of colours. The U Ultra is one trippy smartphone, especially in Sapphire Blue. Brilliant Black and Cosmetic Pink are available for those looking for something (a little) more sober. But whatever colour you chose, remember, you will be the centre of attention when you're out and about. The U Ultra is after all so beautiful, it hurts. It's not a phone that everybody can handle. It's like taking sides. You'd either love it, or you'd absolutely hate it. There's no middle ground.
The U Ultra comes with a 5.7-inch screen with a Quad-HD (1440x2560 pixels) resolution. The panel, a Super LCD 5, is the same that HTC used in the 10 and it's still as gorgeous as ever. HTC says its LCD 5 panel is 30 per cent more colourful and 50 per cent more responsive to touch than its predecessor. The U Ultra is powered by a 2.15GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor clubbed with 4GB RAM and 64GB internal memory which is further expandable by up to 2TB via a hybrid microSD card slot. While not exactly next-gen, the Snapdragon 821 inside the U Ultra when combined with HTC's Android 7.0 Nougat-based Sense UI
the U Ultra clicks 16:9 photos at 9-megapixel and 4:3 photos at full 12-megapixel. There's also an option to click perfect 1:1 square photos at 9-megapixel. Additionally, HTC has also incorporated four always-on low-power microphones inside the phone to assist in recording 3D audio while shooting videos.
The HTC 10 was a pretty fabulous smartphone. In fact, the best from camp HTC in a long, long time. The U Ultra is simply a more powerful and beautiful version of it. It could be a whole lot smarter too, in the days to come, when HTC rolls out Sense Companion. Chances are if you liked the 10, you'd like the U Ultra as well even at its atrocious price of Rs 59,990. If not, the Google Pixel XL sells at around the same price and it already has Google Assistant (which by the way will be coming to the HTC 10 soon), similar hardware, better rear camera but no microSD card support. Alternatively, the iPhone 7 Plus comes with water-proofing and better audio. Clearly, you win some and you lose some.
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