HTC One E8 Hands-On And First Look: The King's Vizier With Perfect Pricing

By Anuj

| Updated: Monday, July 14, 2014, 13:51 [IST]

Rating:

4.5/5

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PROS

Awesome Design
Beautiful Display
Super Fast Processor
Retail Price
Nice Camera

CONS

Non-removable Battery
Missing Business Features

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Over the past few years, the tech industry has undergone a profound transformation. Inspired by the ever changing fashion industry, leading handset manufacturers have made an attempt to bring out "fast fashion" phones. From the first Apple iPhone to the latest HTC One (M8), these two handsets are not only luxurious, but they also represent the current young brigade living in the digital age.

And at times, it is hard to make a difference between the fast changing fashion and the products we consume on a daily basis. If Italy has a special role to play in the world of fashion, than we cannot ignore Taiwan for its contribution in the world of technology.

Taiwan is home to the world's greatest technology companies. HTC, obviously being a great Taiwan-based handset manufacturer, is busy co-relating its new phone with popular fashion. After all we are smitten by the word "fashion" these days. Certainly, HTC has managed to churn out a fashionable phone that is not only affordable but it can bring the Renaissance if promoted on a large scale.

Dubbed the "fashion edition" of the original M8, the One (E8) has finally landed here in India. At a premium price of Rs. 34,990, the One (E8) could emerge as a direct competitor to the Samsung Galaxy S5, which also retails in a similar price range. So what is the One (E8)? Is it a cheaper version of the One (M8)? When can I buy the HTC One (E8)? At the launch of the HTC One (E8) on July 11 in New Delhi, we got to experience the device for the first time. Now, we're ready to share our first experience with you all. Here is a first look of the HTC One (E8).

HTC One (E8) - Form Factor, Design and Operating System

The HTC One (E8) is damn gorgeous handset when you compare to the Samsung Galaxy S5. Not only the former phone looks expansive in nature, it has traditional HTC build, and how can we forget to say "wow", when we held the device for the first time.

Unlike the HTC One (M8), which is crafted out of metallic body, the One (E8) is a plastic phone. The One (E8), however, is much more refined against any plastic phone out there in the market. The curve design gives the HTC One (E8) a prolific look. HTC has also slim down the bezels to adjust the width. At 14.642 x 7.067 x 0.985, 145g, the phone seems light in weight, and the exact measurements shows HTC's impressive design approach.

Just like the HTC One (E8), the One (E8) sports a 5-inch Full HD display (441ppi). Not only the screen size is fairly decent, but the screen resolution is not over the top. The screen's response times are OK, and same can be said about colors. Also, Black levels are deep and contrast ratio isn't that bad.

The HTC One (E8) runs on the latest Android 4.4 and a new version of HTC's custom Android interface - Sense 6. Although HTC says it has been redesigned from the scratch, it's fairly similar to the version we saw on the last year's HTC One (M7). Yes indeed, visually you may find some difference, but otherwise the Sense UI hasn't changed much. Notably, HTC's BlinkFeed has marginally improved, though. In the applications department, Kids Mode (not exclusive to HTC), is a must have app if your child is notorious. Basically, the app offer a safe environment for kids without any misuse of the device.