HTC One (M8) Hands-on Review: First Impressions Suggest Stiff Competition For The Samsung Galaxy S5

Today HTC unveiled the new HTC One, the much anticipated successor to identically named HTC One – 2013’s most critically acclaimed phone. To separate the two HTC is naming the new handset the ‘HTC One (M8)’ while it is now also referring to its predecessor as the ‘HTC One (M7)’. Yes the branding is something of a mess, but having attended the launch and had a half a day with my M8 review sample I can comfortably say in (almost) every other way HTC is onto another winner.
Design – Changes For The Better
At first glance no much looks to have changed, but on closer inspection HTC has made a number of subtle yet very welcome improvements.
The most obvious is the switch from a 4.7in to 5in 1080p Full HD screen which brings the M8 in line with the LG Nexus 5 (5in) and closer to the Samsung Galaxy S5 (5.1in) and LG G2 (5.2in). HTC is keeping quiet about the screen technology inside the M8, but with the bar already raised high the handset matches the razor sharp images of its rivals and appears to have better colour saturation and even wider viewing angles than the already excellent M7.



The downside is the jump in screen size has meant an increase in the overall size and weight of the M8. It now measures 146.36 x 70.6 x 9.35mm (5.76 x 2.78 x 0.37 inches) and weighs 160 grams (5.64 ounces) making it substantially bigger and heavier than the competition,. Even the 5.2in LG G2 comes in at 138.5 x 70.9 x 8.9 mm (5.45 x 2.79 x 0.35 in) and 143 g (5.04 oz).
Consequently the M8 feels heavy in the hand, but it has gentler curves and more tapered edges than the M7 so is actually more comfortable to hold. Furthermore the weight penalty is down to the M8’s superb build quality. The original HTC One was the first Android phone to challenge the iPhone in terms of build quality and the M8 arguably surpasses it.
The back is now 90% metal (with the antennas built in the body to avoid blocking signal) and there are fewer parts and seams with the metal now reaching right up to the glass. If you’ve been waiting for a truly luxurious feeling smartphone, the M8 is it and it feels leaps and bounds ahead of the plastic bodies used by the Galaxy S5, G2 and Nexus 5. HTC has also fitted the M8 with a microSD card, an omission many lamented from the original One.



Speed & Battery Life – Faster and Longer Lasting
In addition to the screen and chassis improvements, the M8 has also been given some notable specification upgrades. Powering it is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset with 2.3GHz quad-core CPU. This is a step up from the Snapdragon 800 in the Nexus 5 and G2 and matches what will be featured in the as yet unreleased Galaxy 5.
The leading smartphones are already lightning quick and the higher clocked chipset on the 801 gives it a further boost, but the real benefit for the M8 is its QuickCharge technology. This results in 75% faster battery charging and greater power efficiency which HTC claims will see the handset last well over a day on a single charge.



Furthermore HTC is introducing ‘extreme’ battery saving modes which HTC boasts will make the M8 last 2 weeks on standby, 60 hours with 20% charge, 30 hours with 10% charge and 15 hours with 5% charge. This is aided by an enlarged 2600mAh battery, up 300mAh on the M7.
One oddity is while the M8 has QuickCharge, the supplied charger is not QuickCharge compatible. HTC will release a QuickCharger charger at a later date, but it seems a bizarre corner to cut. I’ll take an in depth look at the M8′s real world performance when I post my full review.



Speakers – Louder and Even Better Bass
The M8 is also more media friendly. Its acclaimed front facing ‘BoomSound’ stereo speakers were already the best on the market in the M7 and they now have redesigned chambers and 25% greater amplification. From my initial impressions the tweaks pay dividends. They aren’t a radical improvement on the M7, but they have made the best better.
For those who like to listen to the radio or podcasts with their phone speaker the M8 will be a revelation and while we’d still advise earphones for music, YouTube clips sound pretty good with a surprising amount of bass. Given HTC ended its relationship with Beats, it doesn’t seem to have hurt the M8 one bit.