HTC One M8 Eye Complete Specs Prices Pros & Cons

Overview

The HTC One (M8 Eye) is a variant of the popular HTC One M8 smartphone and was announced and released in October 2014. It was designed as an innovative device that balanced impressive hardware with intuitive software. Though it has since been discontinued, it remains a notable example of HTC's design and engineering prowess during that period.

Design and Build

The HTC One (M8 Eye) boasts an elegant design similar to its predecessor, featuring a high-quality metal body that offers a premium feel. Its dimensions are 146.4 x 70.6 x 9.4 mm, and it weighs 160 grams, making it comfortable to hold and carry. The device uses a nano-SIM card and was available in several color options, including Gunmetal Gray, Glacial Silver, and Amber Gold. Its overall aesthetic appeal is enhanced by the sleek and seamless transition between the display and the metal frame.

Display

The smartphone sports a 5.0-inch Super LCD3 display, which offers vibrant colors and excellent viewing angles. The screen resolution is 1080 x 1920 pixels, providing a pixel density of approximately 441 ppi. This high pixel density ensures crisp and clear images, making it suitable for enjoying multimedia content and playing games. The display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass, adding durability against scratches and minor impacts.

Performance

Under the hood, the HTC One (M8 Eye) is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chipset built on the 28nm process. It houses a quad-core 2.3 GHz Krait 400 CPU, coupled with an Adreno 330 GPU. This combination delivers smooth performance, capable of handling demanding applications and multitasking efficiently. The device comes equipped with 2GB of RAM, which supports seamless switching between apps and ensures a fluid user experience.

Software

The device originally shipped with Android 4.4.4 KitKat and supports an upgrade to Android 6.1 Marshmallow. It also features HTC's Sense UI 7, which provides a customized user interface, offering additional personalization options and features that enhance the Android experience. The software is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, with various enhancements over the stock Android.

Camera

The HTC One (M8 Eye) includes an impressive camera setup. The main camera features a 13 MP sensor with an aperture of f/2.0 and a 28mm wide lens. The dual-LED dual-tone flash, HDR, and panorama features aid in capturing high-quality images with accurate color reproduction and good contrast, even in low-light conditions. Additionally, the phone comes with a 2 MP depth sensor, which facilitates depth-of-field effects, bringing professional-style photography features to the user's fingertips. The rear camera can record videos at 1080p at 60fps and 720p at 120fps, with support for HDR and stereo sound recording.

The front-facing camera is 5 MP, capable of capturing sharp selfies with HDR support, and can record 1080p videos at 30fps, making it suitable for video calls and vlogs.

Audio and Connectivity

HTC was renowned for its premium audio technology, and the One (M8 Eye) was no exception. It includes stereo speakers that deliver rich and immersive audio experiences. Moreover, it retains a 3.5mm headphone jack, allowing users to enjoy music through traditional wired headphones.

In terms of connectivity, the device supports multiple technologies, including GSM, HSPA, and LTE, providing strong network performance for calls and data. It includes Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n with dual-band support, Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP and aptX for high-quality wireless audio streaming, GPS with GLONASS for precise navigation, FM radio, and a microUSB 2.0 port for charging and file transfers. However, it does not support NFC.

Sensors and Miscellaneous Features

The HTC One (M8 Eye) includes a suite of sensors such as an accelerometer, gyro, proximity sensor, and compass, contributing to an enhanced user experience through features like auto-rotation, navigation, and gaming. Despite the advancements, the device does not incorporate biometric sensors such as a fingerprint reader, which were becoming more common at the time of its release.

Battery

The device is powered by a non-removable Li-Po 2600 mAh battery, which was fairly standard for high-end smartphones of that era. It provides a standby time of up to 310 hours and a talk time of up to 24 hours on 3G networks, ensuring reliable day-long usage for most users. The power-efficient Snapdragon processor helps in managing battery consumption, contributing to the overall battery life.

Storage

The HTC One (M8 Eye) comes with an internal storage capacity of 16GB, with the option to expand via a dedicated microSDXC card slot. This allows users to increase the storage space significantly, accommodating more apps, photos, music, and videos. Combined with cloud storage solutions, users could efficiently manage and access a large library of digital content.

Release and Legacy

Released in October 2014, the HTC One (M8 Eye) entered a highly competitive smartphone market, aiming to attract users seeking both performance and style. Despite being overshadowed by flagship devices from competitors, the M8 Eye retained a loyal user base due to its premium design and reliable performance. Though it has been discontinued, its influence can be seen in later HTC models that continued to adopt and improve upon its design and features.

Conclusion

The HTC One (M8 Eye) is remembered as a solid performer with an attractive design that showcased HTC's capability to blend aesthetics with functionality. Even as technology advances and new devices enter the market, the M8 Eye holds a special place as a memorable device for its users. Its combination of style, performance, and camera capabilities made it a worthy contender in the smartphone arena of its time.