HTC 10 Review; The One To Beat

The HTC 10 is here and pre-orders for the device have already opened. I have already given you my first impressions of the device and today I have an unboxing video, a camera test, and a full review of the device ready. Put simply, the HTC 10 is the best device to come out of HTC yet and it might just be my new favorite Android smartphone. It pairs a sleek aluminum design with a very clean software experience that is fast thanks to great hardware.

HTC has not been a company that has struggled with design and this is no different with the HTC 10. I have to say that out of three main Android flagships, the other two being Samsung’s S7 duo and LG’s G5, HTC has come out on top in terms of design. I am testing out the Carbon Gray variant of the device and it looks great. It is a very sleek and is a pleasing design, the back and sides are very smooth to the touch. It feels like a hefty device and has an overall solid build.

There is slight hump or ridge around the camera on the back, similar to the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. The back of the device is curved which makes it very comfortable to hold in the hand. The edges of the device on the back are chamfered and are shiny, which adds a pop to the style of the device. Similar to the A9, there antenna likes are slightly darker and go around the device, this is also very similar to that of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. Branding is also very minimal on this unlocked variant, with a subtle HTC logo on the back.

The front of the device is black, this is true for the silver variant as well. The home button is at the bottom of the display, along with a back and multitasking button. I am very pleased to see the return of these physical buttons, it is much nicer then having them built into the operating system. The home button acts as a fingerprint sensor and is almost on par with Touch ID 2.0 on the iPhones and is noticeably faster than the Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge. Similar to the LG G5, the fingerprint sensor will give you haptic feedback. HTC has taken this one step further by providing haptic feedback whenever you touch the home button.

Above the screen you will find the ear piece, that also acts a crucial part of the BoomSound HiFi setup, along with a 5 megapixel front facing camera. The top of the device is home to a headphone jack, while the bottom features a USB Type C port, a microphone, and a speaker. HTC has opted for USB Type C and includes a cable and a Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 Enabled wall-plug in the box. The left hand side of the device is home to the micro SD card slot. The right hand side is home to a volume rocker, the SIM card slot, and the power button. In order to make it easier to find, the power button has a rigid design and it accomplishes the task.

Not only did HTC get design right, but they have built an incredibly smooth user experience when it comes to software. Unlike other companies that opt for a very heavy skin being placed on top of Android and pre-loading several duplicate applications, HTC decided to go with a different direction. And while it resembles the feel of a Nexus device, it is certainly not one, as they still provide some different applications and offer several themes. But by removing the usual gang of pre-loaded applications that serve the same purposes as the ones offered by Google, it makes for a much cleaner experience.

HTC engineered the software experience so that it would run faster, by removing duplicated applications and bloatware, you get extra memory out of the box. It also clears up what would normally be running in the background, allowing you to set up the device faster and to use the device in a quicker way. Boost+ takes this a step further, and will monitor how the CPU and memory are being used. It will also reduce the amount of power an application can use when it is running in the background. And if you are playing a performance intensive game, you can allocate more power towards it. You can even lock specific applications and require an extra pin or fingerprint scan to open them. I have to say that Boost+ replaces enhances the experience and really allows you to customize the experience of using an application to the exact way you need it.

Themes have always been a unique aspect of HTC’s software and they are back on the HTC 10. This time around they move away from the usually barriers of were you can place applications and lets you literally put them anywhere. You can even turn the icons into stickers and have them blend into the background. This is possible through the Freestyle Layout and it is certainly a unique take on the Android experience. It really puts the customization in the end users hands and lets you decide how you want your phone to look and operate.

Powering the HTC 10 is a very fast 64-bit 2.2GHz Snapdragon 820 Quad Core Processor with 4GB of RAM. Put simply, thanks to the enhancements and cleaning up of Android that HTC did, the phone is incredibly fast and smooth to use. This is essentially the same processor that is in the S7, S7 Edge, and G5; But the HTC 10 runs the smoothest. It really shows that pairing the processor with an equally clean software experience is key and can make waves when it comes to performance. The device scored a super high 132371 score on the AnTuTu benchmarking platform, this beats out many of the other top devices. Put simply, the HTC 10 is the one to beat when it comes to performance of the device.

Cameras have been a struggle for HTC in the past, but they might have just gotten it right or at least better with the HTC 10. The main lens on the back is a 12 megapixel UltraPixel 2 camera with Laser AutoFocus, OIS, a f/1.8 aperture, and a dual tone LED flash. It can also record video in up to 4K quality with Hi-Res Audio. You can see how this camera performed with both photos and videos, in our HTC 10 Camera Test. I have to say that the back camera performs really well, it is certainly on par with both the Galaxy S7 and that of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. When taking photos in direct sunlight it manages to still capture a good shot and in low light it performs well.

The camera on the front is superb, it might even be the best lens for selfies on the market. The 5 megapixel front facing lens features OIS or Optical Image Stabilization, this is a first for any front facing lens. The results are fantastic and the images look really good to say the least.

HTC is not retiring BoomSound, it is back and this time it is BoomSound HiFi. In fact it is a 24-bit Hi-Resolution audio set-up, with a tweeter being built into the earpiece and the woofer is on bottom. I have to say I am little disappointed with BoomSound not being front and center and more, but this new placement does not make the sound any worse. The downside is that you can’t place the phone screen down, as it covers up the tweeter. The sound quality is pretty sweet, while an S7 or iPhone 6s can match the loudness, the quality and clarity is where the HTC 10 shines. While it is not the biggest difference, you will not notice as much distortion on the HTC 10 and overall it gives you a more true sound.

In terms of a display, HTC has opted for a 5.2-inch Quad HD 2560 X 1440 Super LCD 5 display on the HTC 10. It performs well, and while it might not be as bright as the Super AMOLED on the Galaxy S7 or as super sharp as the Retina display on the iPhone 6s, it does perform better than the LG G5. It also produces color in a very vibrant and true to life format, as it has a wide color gamete. While the phone itself is not water or dust resistant, HTC did opt for a layer of Gorilla Glass on top of the display. I think a 5.2-inch size fits the device well and it makes it the device operable with one hand.

One of the most important features of any smartphone would have to be how long it can last you. Now, inside the HTC 10 is a 3,000mAh battery. HTC is saying that the device should last you a very large 2 days, in my initial testing I was able to get around a day and a half of normal use. When I pushed it to the limit with a lot of usage, including streaming, capturing, typing, and gaming, it was closer to a long day of battery life. I will say that having the Rapid Charging capabilities is great and it will charge over 50% of the device in just 30 minutes.

I would like to call out a big connectivity feature and that is that the HTC 10 has AirPlay support out of the box. Yes even though this is an Android smartphone, you will be able to send audio and video to an Apple TV or AirPlay enabled device. The HTC 10 will also run on 4G LTE networks with several bands on board, in the US it will use a nano SIM card.

The HTC 10 is not a perfect smartphone, it is a very good refinement and comes very close to perfection. However, it is the best smartphone HTC has ever made and is now my favorite Android smartphone on the market. The areas that HTC has chosen to focus on make it a much better device than that of the A9 or M9. It can go head to head against the Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge, and even the LG G5. It manages to take the same processor and RAM setup inside those devices and make it run faster thanks to key software enhancements. The front facing camera is awesome and takes really good selfies, while the back camera is a big improvement over previous HTC smartphones. While it is not waterproof or dust resistant, it has a very nice design that makes aluminum sleek and smooth. Not to mention you won’t get it covered in fingerprints, which does occur on Samsung’s S7 and S7 Edge. Battery life is nothing to rave about, but it will get you full a through day. And the display gets the job done and will be good for a majority of consumers. The place to ride home on the HTC 10 would have to be the software and hardware performance, in that they are the first company to truly back away from bloatware and to give more control of the device to the end-user.

I would have to say that if you are currently in the market for a new smartphone and if you want an Android device, you should definitely take a look at the HTC 10. In the United States it will be directly available from Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile. AT&T is not currently directly offering the device, but the unlocked variant that HTC will be offering will work on the carrier. Verizon will be the first carrier in the United States to get the device.

The HTC 10 will begin shipping in Early May, but is available for pre-order direct from HTC today. It will retail for $699 unlocked and will come with 32GB of internal storage. It will be available in your choice of either Glacier Silver and Carbon Gray, plus you get UhOh Protection for 12 months as well. Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile will announce pricing for their respective device payment plans closer to launch, hopefully within the next few weeks.

On a final note, if you are looking for an Android smartphone, the HTC 10 would be my recommendation and top choice.

We would like to thank HTC for providing us with a HTC 10″ for us to review.