Until recently, buying a Windows Phone probably meant buying a
Nokia phone. But it doesn't need to be that way. HTC has just turned its
flagship Android smartphone, the HTC One (M8), into the best
all-purpose Windows Phone you can buy.
Shedding its Google coil and migrating to Windows, The HTC One (M8) may
be the first flagship phone in history to double-dip on its operating
system. But more importantly, it tests the faithfulness of iOS and
Android devotees who might be willing to switch to the Windows Phone way
of life if only "the right device came along." Does that describe you?
What Is It?
In 2013, HTC dropped jaws with the original HTC One, also known as the
M7, primarily because of its design. Machined from a single solid block
of aluminum,
we lauded the M7 for its stunning appearance and performance. A year later, HTC notched up the screen size and updated the specs with the HTC One M8, creating one of the best smartphones you can buy.
Now, that very same M8 is available for Windows Phone on Verizon for $100 on-contract. (It will also come to
AT&T and T-Mobile
once that exclusivity expires.) Basically, the M8 for Windows is the
same as its Android twin, despite a few branding birthmarks. And it's
not just their similar facades. The phones run on the same Snapdragon
801 processor, with the same 4 UltraPixel camera, same lovely 1080p
display, same BoomSound speakers, same battery, same everything
underneath the hood. But after you press the power button, it's all
Windows, whether you like it or not.
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The M8 may represent a big moment for Windows Phone. HTC's design
chops could possibly entice people to finally purchase a Microsoft
device. According to IDC,
only 2.5 percent of smartphone owners worldwide have a Windows Phone in
their pocket, and that's not likely to change so long as
foreign-looking Nokia phones are the only possible choices. Here's the
plan: Put Windows Phone on a device that some may recognize as an
Android phone—or just recognize as well-designed—and see what happens.
Here is What Happens
Powering up that same great M8 but seeing the Windows Phone logo is a
strange sight. In some ways, Microsoft's OS makes me feel more at home
than Android. Maybe it's Windows Phone's highly customizable home screen
and Live Tiles—those active little icons constantly displaying relevant
news, weather, and social media happenings— that makes the One feel
more personable to me. HTC's Android skin, Sense 6.0, feels less lively
and aesthetically in sync with the One's aluminum exterior. As far as
I'm concerned, Windows Phone just looks slicker on the One.
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Until the One M8, Windows Phone woes also extended to its monotonous
hardware design. Luckily, this is now the best looking Windows Phone you
can buy. The Lumia 930 (Icon), Nokia's current flagship, looks bulky
and simple compared to the M8's elegance. Plus, the phone's aluminum
frame and curved back makes it incredibly comfortable to hold.
That doesn't help if it's a gigantic pain to
use, but I actually found that Microsoft's third-place OS
doesn't require as painful a transition as it did just 12 months ago.
Now equipped with its own virtual assistant, Cortana, and a Swype-like keyboard, the operating system feels more competitive with Android than ever before.
Strangely, Android still feels a little bit snappier than Windows Phone
on the exact same hardware. Windows tile animations just take a little
bit longer than the competition. But it's not something I noticed until I
sat down with both devices side-by-side for an extended period, and it
wasn't much of an annoyance.
What might annoy you is the lack of app selection, even though Windows
Phone is doing better than before. With the HTC One for Windows in hand,
I did the ceremonial Downloading Of The Apps as one does when getting a
new smartphone. Twitter: check. Crunchyroll: perfect. Spotify: great.
Instagram… Beta? Well, that's weird but okay. Where is SoundCloud?
Flickr is MIA. The Windows Phone email client is also kind of terrible
if you're coming from a multiple Gmail existence, and I wasn't able to
find an unofficial client that worked well. Mobile work correspondence
just became much more taxing for me, and for many that's reason enough
to look elsewhere.
And, as always, prepare for app envy every time you read about a
wonderful new app in the pages of your favorite gadget blog. "Available
for iOS and Android" is still the boilerplate that developers tack onto
their app store releases, and that's not likely to change anytime soon.
While the Windows Phone community is doing a decent job of playing
catch-up, I don't really want to settle for unofficial clones of many
programs I want. If you plan on signing up for Windows Phone (and still,
there's many reasons you might like it), just know that you will walk
down a road with fewer doors.
Despite housing the same 2600mAh battery, HTC claims the Windows Phone
M8 actually gets two hours more talk time. Since I didn't have anyone to
talk to for 22 hours straight, I can't confirm that, but I did get
through a day and a half of mixed usage on a full charge. Since I
habitually forget to plug in my phone overnight, that was just about
perfect.
When HTC announced the M8 for Windows, the company also re-introduced
the Dot View Case, a neatly designed wrap cover that displays
information like weather, battery life, and calendar events through its
pixelated design. With Windows Phone, you can launch the Cortana voice
assistant even when the case is closed. The process takes some getting
used to, but after a couple of days I was returning a Cortana Activation
Success Rate — which I totally just made up — of about 90 percent. Not
bad.
Unfortunately, you just can't do a lot with Cortana that way. You can
only issue one command through the case before she's done listening. For
example, if you ask "Cortana, what is the weather like today?" she'll
joyfully give you an answer. But if you were to follow up with something
like, "Do I have any appointments?" she'll just sit there and make you
feel like an idiot. Slowly, the nuisance begins to outweigh the
convenience. I ditched the case entirely.
Windows Phone Refined, But Not Redefined
The HTC One M8 may be a solid Windows Phone, but it isn't a universally
better one. For one thing, Lumia phones with AMOLED screens make
pitch-black backgrounds blend seamlessly into the bezel, whereas the M8
for Windows' IPS LCD keeps that screen disappointingly visible. For
another, the Nokia Lumia 930 absolutely mops the floor with HTC in the
photography department. One of the prime reasons to get a Windows Phone
is to have access to a Lumia camera and applications, and HTC's weird
Duo Camera just doesn't cut it for me. HTC isn't bad, but the best
Lumias make me want to throw away my point-and-shoot cameras.
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Top: HTC One M8 for Windows; Bottom: Nokia Lumia 930
By Android standards, the Duo Camera was just OK, and it's painfully
obvious when pitted against the Nokia Lumia 930's superior 20-megapixel
PureView sensor. In comparison, the HTC One M8 can't match the 930's
color reproduction and contrast. The red door looks much more red and
the blue sky is actually blue, not a strange aqua color. The Lumia 930
also has a dedicated physical shutter button, and I also never noticed
how essential it was until it was gone. During a particularly rowdy
moshing session at a punk show, I had to fumble with my Dot View Case,
type in a passcode, find the right Live Tile, and then line up my shot.
By then, the song ended. A shutter button would've helped me avoid
stinging disappointment.
HTC gets an A for effort for keeping all the Duo Camera's features in
the Windows Phone transition. If you're not familiar, "Duo" refers to
the camera's dual-lens setup that captures not only the normal flat
image, but also how far away objects are in the scene. This allows for
debatably useful features like Dimension Plus, which distorts photos to
give them a 3D-like effect you can see when you tilt the phone back and
forth. Still, that experience only lives on your phone. It's just a neat
trick to show friends. More useful is UFocus, which can artificially
apply camera blur for a really neat bokeh effect, but it only works well
if there's a dominant subject in the foreground.
However, HTC does brings some of its own apps to Windows Phone which
are quite welcome. We get Blinkfeed, a excellent replacement for
Microsoft's stock news aggregator, which I permanently removed from the
home screen as soon as possible. This app blends in well with Windows
Phone due to its Live Tile support and tile-like design within the app,
which always felt a little misplaced on Android. It can also integrate
with your social media accounts, making more of a one-stop shop for
news. The One M8's included IR blaster can also turn your smartphone
into a TV remote with HTC's Sense TV app, a feature uncommon for Windows
Phone in general.
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Have I mentioned that this phone looks really great? I've fallen in
love with the Windows Phone customizable home screen and Live Tiles set
up, and they fit this phone so well. Somehow the marriage of HTC's
physical design and Microsoft's elegant mobile OS made the overall
experience more enjoyable than navigating yet another Nokia phone.
Although the app drawer and email client need some attention, when I
look at the HTC One M8 for Windows I see an all-around great Windows
Phone that shows it can hang tough with Android.
I also cannot stress enough that dual BoomSound front-firing speakers
are the best speakers on any smartphone ever, with the possible
exception of
the new Moto X
(which I've yet to test). Often I'd have to cup the end of my Nexus 5
with my hand (and my iPhone 5 before that) so I could actually hear
videos. The One makes that hand origami unnecessary. I still have no
idea why more manufacturers don't put speakers on the front of the
device. It hurts my brain just thinking about it.
When I first turned on this device, I bemoaned having to set up my
front-page Live Tiles, dig into the Windows Phone Store to get what
apps—official or unofficial—that I could, and reorient myself to a
statistically third-place OS. Now, only a week later, I don't want to
say goodbye to this handset.
No Like
Ultimately, I will leave the M8 for Windows behind. For all the great
additions HTC brought over to Windows Phone, the camera is just
mediocre—much like it was for Android—and the camera app has even less
functionality here. Compared to Lumia, the HTC One falls short in both
editing options and quality. There's also no quick access to the camera
app, like with the 930's physical button, or even a gesture on the lock
screen.
Then
there's the app problem, but at this point, that's just a permanent
addition in the fine print when you sign up for Windows Phone. It's just
a part of the deal. For me, it's a dealbreaker.
Should You Buy It?
If you like apps? No. Then again, if you do like apps I'm not sure why
you're reading a Windows Phone review in the first place. But if you
want eye-candy hardware, wrapped in a well-designed OS, then this phone
could be a great pocket companion.
The only other Windows Phone in the running is the Lumia 930 as it
offers comparable performance at the same-ish size. Luckily, both appeal
to different people. The 930 and other Nokia high-end phones are much
more friendly for dedicated camera users, folks who want
higher-than-average quality in their photos. But if you're mostly
slapping on Instagram filters and posting to social, the One M8 for
Windows will do a fine job.
One M8 for Windows Specs
- Network: Verizon (T-Mobile and AT&T coming soon)
- OS: Windows Phone 8.1.1
- CPU: 2.3 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801
- Screen: 5-inch 1920 x 1080 LCD display (441 PPI)
- RAM: 2GB
- Storage: 32GB
- Camera: 4 "UltraPixel" rear / 5MP front
- Battery: 2600 mAh Li-Po
- Dimensions: 5.76 x 2.78 x 0.37 in
- Weight: 5.64 ounces
- Price: $100 (32GB) on contract with Verizon
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