Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
HTC U11
- Thread starter nviz22
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Standard, you mean on only two or three phones, two of them being the same model?
[doublepost=1494942927][/doublepost]Not to be rude here, but I find it funny, and a bit ironic, that people lambast HTC and then furiously masturbate over how awesome the Pixel is. EVERY review mentions it as the "Google Pixel" and how well "Google" did on the camera, yada yada yada. These are the same technical illiterates that say things like "Google Earth found this". I SMDH every time I hear stuff like this.
This announcement went by with nary a whisper.
Still soaking it in, but so far, it looks to be another typical HTC announcement. Kind of quiet, but also kind of promising, some interesting and novel features, and once again, the promise of a good camera (best, apparently). I'm personally not fond of the design which looks almost like the Ultra previously, nor do I think the bezels and general front design can compete with the S8 or the G6.
Either way, it's not too early to say this isn't the device that is going to catapult them to the front of the pack.
[doublepost=1494946932][/doublepost]Look at these size comparisons:
Sorry, but with 2017 flagships, those bezels don't fly. It's not just about the bezels, it's the overall size, too.
The only thing worse here is the iPhone Plus. The HTC U11 isn't far from that design, though.
Still soaking it in, but so far, it looks to be another typical HTC announcement. Kind of quiet, but also kind of promising, some interesting and novel features, and once again, the promise of a good camera (best, apparently). I'm personally not fond of the design which looks almost like the Ultra previously, nor do I think the bezels and general front design can compete with the S8 or the G6.
Either way, it's not too early to say this isn't the device that is going to catapult them to the front of the pack.
[doublepost=1494946932][/doublepost]Look at these size comparisons:
Sorry, but with 2017 flagships, those bezels don't fly. It's not just about the bezels, it's the overall size, too.
The only thing worse here is the iPhone Plus. The HTC U11 isn't far from that design, though.
Last edited:
Sorry, I meant the device is releasing later.
I don't know how production schedules work, but I'm sure the later production of the device means software can be more up to date. Whereas with the S8 and G6, they were in production earlier so the software they had to work with at the time was older.
Personally, 7.1 vs 7.0 isn't going to make or break my decision between the S8 and the U11. In fact, as Android becomes so feature-rich and powerful, each iteration of the software excites me less and less. This is a good thing, though, because it means the software is so far along already.
I would get the HTC over the S8 any day. I find it completely stupid that there's a dedicated button to launch Bixby but you can see on the HTC, you can swipe left to get into Blinkfeed. Remember on older Samsung phones when the swipe left took you that flipboard news thing? Did they have a dedicated button solely for that? Nope.
I say this almost every year: I think it's awesome that there are flagship options, each with their own little strengths and unique-features, for the consumer.
Don't like the S8, you have the G6. Don't like the G6, you have the U11. Then later on, we'll have OnePlus and Google's Pixel 2.
The choices of Android are not just growing, but growing better.
gotcha. IIRC, there's was a pretty big step up in performance and battery savings (and I think Bluetooth issues, at least in the Pixel) from 7.0 -> 7.1. If that's the case, I'd like to have 7.1 (7.1.2 if I'm really picky) to help with those issues in 7.0.
Those are not choices of Android, those are hardware specific features I'm talking about. Android is the OS, not the phone.
Man I feel bad for HTC, I was really rooting for them. The HTC 10 defined the work lackluster, and the U11 seems to carry that on, even with what looks like a total gimmick with the edge sense junk. I'm a bit surprised at the size of the bezels, they are huge and it's 2017 the year of no bezels. Take the bottom bezel, I really love that they put the capacitive buttons at the level of the home button, but then they have all that extra bezel over the home button which seems wasted.
Kinda bummed to see HTC nosediving like this, I was hoping their awesome VR division would take off and not get sucked in with the cellphone business. At this point I have to believe it's not lack of innovation, but maybe lack of being able to actually make a cutting edge phone. Maybe it's their hardware partners, or their factory technology, or something along the chain that makes them keep making mid class looking phones.
[doublepost=1494965639][/doublepost]
I think you have an excellent point, we are a bit hypocritical when regarding the pixel. Personally I've always lambasted Google for their massive bezels, right from the very first leak. It's a phone from 2014 living in 2017. But I think the appeal of the pixel, which HTC doesn't have, is that it is the very first one to get anything new Google puts out. Looking at any other Android phone makes me want to puke when I think about waiting 8+ months after Android O gets released to get it on my phone. Google also was smart and did extensive marketing and got the carriers involved, at least better than any other oem except for Samsung.
I think the squeeze feature is pretty gimmicky, too. Anytime you need to apply pressure to something that isn't tactile (like an actual button), it's the wrong design choice. I haven't looked into it very much, but it basically can help launch apps, right? Isn't that something software can do?
Just like 3D Touch with the iPhone, there should be no need to apply pressure where software can be the solution. I shouldn't have to be measuring the amount of pressure I press on non-tactile things, like screens or the sides of devices.
Yeah I was thinking 3dt was bad enough, but someone actually figured out how to make 3dt worse!
Don't want to derail this thread but I agree with your overall sentiment on touch features, and specific Apple's implementation. Initially I found it interesting, I thought it might open up some new avenues. The more I've used it, the more I've grown to dislike it. I do no like the sensation of having to press into a screen to launch a behavior. I don't mind the current "fake' home button set up because that is supposed to provide a tactile feel. Doing likewise with a screen, however, feels off. I think it's going in the wrong direction.
100% me too.
I initially thought 3D Touch was pretty nifty, too, and something iOS needed since it's such a static OS, but in practice, it's very limited, doesn't offer much (the only time it's useful is the cursor movement on the keyboard, and even then it's a bit annoying because it doesn't always register and I have to press harder or try again -- annoying), and, as you said, just doesn't feel right.
You really said it best, the sensation of having to press down harder than normal on a screen to achieve something is kind of stupid when it's a touch screen that should just require a tap. Again, requiring pressure where software can solve it.
The same thing applies to HTC's edge sense feature. However, we'll see how it is in practice. It would've been more interesting if you could do more, like slide up/down the sides to increase/decrease volume or something.
I hate 3DT because it plays havoc with the long press. You have to have a deft touch on the display or you end up activating the wrong feature. I rarely use it.
I can't condemn this HTC squeeze option without trying it, but I wonder how nicely it will play with cases. I can see a lot of ways this will annoy people and never be used by some buyers. I hope in actual practice it works well and feels compelling.
I look at this phone and I'm excited for the camera and for what I hope is a seamless access to Google Assistant and to Alexa. I quite like Alexa and it would be fun to have "her" quirky self on a phone. I also bet this will work great as a phone. The most clear, best sounding calls I've ever made or received came over my HTC 10 on AT&T.
But I can't understand why they built such a beautiful glass chassis and didn't make it capable of wireless charging. If they had to forgo wireless charging to keep it at a certain price point, fine. Then make a strong metal body. Otherwise please don't bother with glass. People are going to put these phones in cases due to the glass.
I like LCD panels but the one on my HTC 10 is a battery hog.
Don't get me started about the removal of the headphone jack.
I would think cases aren't an issue as the squeeze feature is triggered by pressure and not touch.
HTC U11 Mobile review: The new DxOMark leader
https://www.dxomark.com/Mobiles/HTC-U11-Mobile-review-The-new-DxOMark-leader
https://www.dxomark.com/Mobiles/HTC-U11-Mobile-review-The-new-DxOMark-leader
