In order to focus on some select features and compete with the likes of Samsung, LG and Google, HTC will launch only six to seven smartphones in 2017. This is half the number of phones the Taiwanese giant released last year.
Chialin Chang, President of Smartphone and Connected Device Business, HTC sad, ” The company will only unveil six to seven smartphone in 2017.”
Commenting on the HTC U Ultra and U Play, he said – “We’re not trying to emphasise AI (artificial intelligence); we’re trying to emphasise companionship.” If you are not aware HTC’s latest smartphones, the U Play and the U Ultra comes with Sense Companion which is a virtual assistant made out of Google’s Awareness API and some third-party data. In other words, the new Sense Companion can learn the way one uses his/her device and recommend actions accordingly. For example, based on your commute and working hours, Sense Companion can suggest you the alarms for the next day.
Commenting on the future roadmap Chang said, “HTC may launch a few Desire devices for the fun and affordable markets.” However, he didn’t share any information about the devices or the possible launch dates.
Nevertheless, in an event last week in the US, HTC unveiled the new HTC U Ultra and the HTC U Play. Both the devices come with a glass design and a new AI-based voice assistant named Sense Companion (mentioned above). The U Ultra comes with a 5.7-inch QHD display with a screen resolution of 2560×1440 pixels along with a secondary display of 2.0-inch with 160×1040 pixels resolution. Under the hood, the smartphone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Processor coupled with Adreno 530 GPU. The device is backed by a 4GB of RAM and comes in two storage option namely 64GB and 128 GB, which is further expandable.
On the other hand, the U Play comes with a 5.2-inch full HD display with a screen resolution of 1920×1080 IPS LCD display. The smartphone is powered by an octa-core MediaTek Helio P10 processor and will be made available in 3GB RAM and 32GB, and 4GB RAM/64GB storage options. On the camera front, the device is equipped with a 16-megapixel rear camera with BSI sensor, OIS, PDAF, f2/2.0 aperture, while for the front there is a 16-megapixel front shooter with f/2.0 aperture.
To know more about the HTC U Ultra and HTC U Play, visit here.