HTC U12 Life announced with Snapdragon 636, dual-tone Pixel-like finish

As expected, HTC has taken the wrappers off the lighter version of its U12 Plus flagship with the launch of the HTC U12 Life. The successors to last year’s U11 Life has been announced at the IFA 2018 event in Berlin and offers mid-range specifications, dual rear cameras and a design that lets you forget the original U12 Plus, all of that for a price of £300 (approx. Rs 27,620).

The U12 Life features a 6-inch FHD+ (2160 x 1080) display with an aspect ratio of 18:9 and 1500:1 contrast ratio. It’s interesting to see HTC isn’t yet willing to embrace a notch on top but the company has worked toward reducing the bottom and top bezels to expand the screen space.

The HTC device packs in the midrange Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 Processor with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage, with a 128GB version set to be available in certain regions. The device comes with a hybrid SIM slot which means you can either use Dual SIM cards or swap one for a micro SD card. All of this is fuelled by a 3,600mAh battery which is significantly a step up from the U11 Life’s 2,600mAh power unit.

Where the smartphone doesn’t appear as a mid-tier device is its design, as HTC is using a dual-tone finish on the ‘acrylic glass’ unibody. The finish is made in such a way that the upper rear panel looks as much shiny as a Google Pixel phone while the rest of the portion is made less slippery to increase the grip.

There’s a dual camera setup at the back with a 16MP + 5MP sensor while the front facing camera only equips a single 13MP lens, all of which makes of a f/2.0 aperture. HTC is also providing the U12 Life with HDR support for improved low light imaging through its front camera. The device will ship with Android 8.1 Oreo with HTC’s Sense UI on top.

The HTC U12 Life comes in Twilight Purple and Moonlight Blue colour versions and will be retailed for an asking price of £300 (approx. Rs 27,620).