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HTC U11 review

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Comments (18)
  1. Maybell Bauch says:

    Having the U11 for almost 2 weeks now I gotta say that the edge sense feature is pretty good. Specially handy for taking photos. No need to reach for the on-screen button and fearing that I’ll drop the phone in the process, I have a good grip of the phone at all times. It even works well in low light shots. 

    I wouldn’t say it feels like a gimmick and the more I use it, the more useful it becomes. I’m looking forward for the add-ons to be released for the edge sense to see what else I can do with it.

  2. Prof. Chesley Auer says:

    maybe even white front it would be ok.

    but they didnt make it.

    🙁

  3. wcole says:

    i hate front and back are not same color.

    i dont want black on front. 

    i want same as the back.  🙁

    i wont buy because of it.

    otherwise i was gonna buy.

    i had black phone for 3 years and am tired of looking black bezels.

  4. ebert.amira says:

    @amakrses You are gonna miss out. 

  5. vandervort.angeline says:

    @amakrses The black front is easier on eyes than white one, especially in dark. It also makes you feel more in-tune with your device’s display imo.

  6. rodriguez.sylvan says:

    I think this is one of the better first look pieces I have read in a while. Facts with caution go a long ways in keeping journalistic integrity – something that is lacking in so many other sites today. So, thank you for that. I’ll chime in with my two cents now that I have had a bit of time to play with my U11.

    Screen: While 18:9 or larger ratios may be the wave of the future, the problem with them is that it’s not the future yet. I know some people may say they buy a phone to last 2-3 years, but the fact is, the U11 has the “common” screen ratio right now and when you watch something like an HD video on it vs. the S8, you will actually see a larger picture from the U11. Crazy, but true. The crop factor of the S8 makes the image smaller than the U11’s screen. For now, this point goes to the standard of today, not the one of tomorrow.

    Processor: This thing is fast. Faster than fast. There’s no lagging, slowing or even bogging down a bit in the U11. I’m shocked how well the 835 performs in this beast. I’m still not 1000% setup in mine yet, but it’s a beautiful piece of tech as far as the processing power goes.

    Connectivity: Yep, LTE, 3G, VoLTE, it’s all here. Good stuff too.

    Audio: I have always been a louder than clearer type person. The old HTC M7 sounded great to me, the M8 got softer, but cleaner. I liked the M7 better. My Note 5 gave it a decent run with their “room” controls, but nothing really ever touched that M7 for sound quality – Until now. The new chamber system that they have designed into the U11 is not only loud, but extremely clear. Very well done by the design team. The audio via USB-C is also a stunning surprise to me. Using the 3.5mm adapter, even dollar store earbuds sound like premium earphones. I now understand why they ditched the analog jack in favor of digital sound. They can tweak it before it comes out to sound better.

    Camera: I was impressed with the S8 camera, but the U11 dances circles around it. Low light images almost need to be toned down they can become so bright. The level of noise is also extremely low as well. It’s about as good as a smartphone camera can get.

    My Verdict: If you are in to audio and video, check out the U11. If you are a completely audio buff with a huge collection of FLAC audio, then you NEED TO GET THE U11. The audio system is enough on it’s own to sway so many people to the device. When you toss in the camera for the photography buffs, the brilliant screen for video lovers and the power and performance of the device for the tech fan, you have something that will appeal to almost everyone. Of course, the hard part there is that HTC need to get  

  7. Kody Macejkovic says:

    the word about the U11 without having the deep pockets of a Samsung or Apple.  There’s no use in making the greatest devices ever if nobody ever hears about them.

    PS – I also wanted to chime in on the battery subject. 3000mAh is plenty to make it through my day. I usually start off at about 5 AM and run through 7 PM that evening and have about 50% left on my U11. That’s with the usual day of emailing, chatting, a bit of light gaming and social networking. I would say, on average, about 4 hours of SOT to 15 hours of off charger time. I typically get back about 50% in 45 minutes with the QC 3.0.

    Thanks again for the very well done review!

  8. xbruen says:

    Edge Sense isn’t a gimmick. Let the readers decide! It’s a natural and Intuitive way of interacting with your smartphone! It makes one handed use of your device a lot more feasible in situations where you wouldn’t normally expect it to. It can be assigned to many functions and HTC will support third party actions with Edge Sense as well.

    Battery life seems pretty impressive to me. I just pulled through 26 hours with 4.30 hours of Screen on Time. Impressive, ain’t it? Software optimisation plays an important role because it just doesn’t depend on battery capacity!

  9. mallory03 says:

    Having the U11 for almost 2 weeks now I gotta say that the edge sense feature is pretty good. Specially handy for taking photos. No need to reach for the on-screen button and fearing that I’ll drop the phone in the process, I have a good grip of the phone at all times. It even works well in low light shots. 

    I wouldn’t say it feels like a gimmick and the more I use it, the more useful it becomes. I’m looking forward for the add-ons to be released for the edge sense to see what else I can do with it.

  10. Brennon Bode says:

    maybe even white front it would be ok.

    but they didnt make it.

    🙁

  11. margarett.eichmann says:

    i hate front and back are not same color.

    i dont want black on front. 

    i want same as the back.  🙁

    i wont buy because of it.

    otherwise i was gonna buy.

    i had black phone for 3 years and am tired of looking black bezels.

  12. richmond.zemlak says:

    @amakrses You are gonna miss out. 

  13. elyse64 says:

    @amakrses The black front is easier on eyes than white one, especially in dark. It also makes you feel more in-tune with your device’s display imo.

  14. corene78 says:

    hi

  15. mlebsack says:

    I think this is one of the better first look pieces I have read in a while. Facts with caution go a long ways in keeping journalistic integrity – something that is lacking in so many other sites today. So, thank you for that. I’ll chime in with my two cents now that I have had a bit of time to play with my U11.

    Screen: While 18:9 or larger ratios may be the wave of the future, the problem with them is that it’s not the future yet. I know some people may say they buy a phone to last 2-3 years, but the fact is, the U11 has the “common” screen ratio right now and when you watch something like an HD video on it vs. the S8, you will actually see a larger picture from the U11. Crazy, but true. The crop factor of the S8 makes the image smaller than the U11’s screen. For now, this point goes to the standard of today, not the one of tomorrow.

    Processor: This thing is fast. Faster than fast. There’s no lagging, slowing or even bogging down a bit in the U11. I’m shocked how well the 835 performs in this beast. I’m still not 1000% setup in mine yet, but it’s a beautiful piece of tech as far as the processing power goes.

    Connectivity: Yep, LTE, 3G, VoLTE, it’s all here. Good stuff too.

    Audio: I have always been a louder than clearer type person. The old HTC M7 sounded great to me, the M8 got softer, but cleaner. I liked the M7 better. My Note 5 gave it a decent run with their “room” controls, but nothing really ever touched that M7 for sound quality – Until now. The new chamber system that they have designed into the U11 is not only loud, but extremely clear. Very well done by the design team. The audio via USB-C is also a stunning surprise to me. Using the 3.5mm adapter, even dollar store earbuds sound like premium earphones. I now understand why they ditched the analog jack in favor of digital sound. They can tweak it before it comes out to sound better.

    Camera: I was impressed with the S8 camera, but the U11 dances circles around it. Low light images almost need to be toned down they can become so bright. The level of noise is also extremely low as well. It’s about as good as a smartphone camera can get.

    My Verdict: If you are in to audio and video, check out the U11. If you are a completely audio buff with a huge collection of FLAC audio, then you NEED TO GET THE U11. The audio system is enough on it’s own to sway so many people to the device. When you toss in the camera for the photography buffs, the brilliant screen for video lovers and the power and performance of the device for the tech fan, you have something that will appeal to almost everyone. Of course, the hard part there is that HTC need to get  

  16. cokon says:

    the word about the U11 without having the deep pockets of a Samsung or Apple.  There’s no use in making the greatest devices ever if nobody ever hears about them.

    PS – I also wanted to chime in on the battery subject. 3000mAh is plenty to make it through my day. I usually start off at about 5 AM and run through 7 PM that evening and have about 50% left on my U11. That’s with the usual day of emailing, chatting, a bit of light gaming and social networking. I would say, on average, about 4 hours of SOT to 15 hours of off charger time. I typically get back about 50% in 45 minutes with the QC 3.0.

    Thanks again for the very well done review!

  17. Ashton Goldner MD says:

    Edge Sense isn’t a gimmick. Let the readers decide! It’s a natural and Intuitive way of interacting with your smartphone! It makes one handed use of your device a lot more feasible in situations where you wouldn’t normally expect it to. It can be assigned to many functions and HTC will support third party actions with Edge Sense as well.

    Battery life seems pretty impressive to me. I just pulled through 26 hours with 4.30 hours of Screen on Time. Impressive, ain’t it? Software optimisation plays an important role because it just doesn’t depend on battery capacity!

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