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Just two years ago, such results for an Android smartphone were par for the course, but now we have enough devices that can work for one and a half to two days. Yes, this requires increasing the battery capacity - and 3500-4000 mAh batteries are no longer uncommon, so the performance of the HTC One M9+ is not at all impressive. Get ready to carry external battery or power adapter.

Competitors

Like any top Android smartphone, the HTC One M9+ is full of competitors. Essentially it competes with any flagship that came out in the last 12-15 months. But the closest in spirit will be Sony Xperia Z3+, built on the Qualcomm platform and similar in price. If a metal body is fundamentally important to you, then you can consider the HTC One M9+ in comparison with the iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 6S Plus. Yes, there's another one operating system with all that it implies, but in terms of ergonomics, the new HTC product is very similar to Apple smartphone. And for a comfortable migration from iOS to Android and back, there has long been a lot of software available completely free of charge.

conclusions

HTC has once again produced a very controversial smartphone. The two previous flagships left generally pleasant impressions, but with a slight aftertaste. I can say the same about the HTC One M9+. If we approach it formally, the device has become better than its predecessor - mainly thanks to the screen and fingerprint scanner, but there are also dubious innovations like a second camera on the back and an obvious drawback - poor battery life.

Apparently, the price for HTC One M9 Plus will be astronomical. The psychological “space” will begin somewhere beyond the 50,000 ruble mark. But is the difference of more than 10 thousand worth the few features that distinguish this smartphone from the base One M9 model? The word Plus contains a little more large screen, higher resolution, Mediatek processor instead of Qualcomm, an additional camera, and an under-screen fingerprint scanner.

Design

One M9 Plus looks practically same as standard M9, adjusted for increased dimensions, of course. True, the recognizable front panel with speakers above and below the screen has changed slightly. We added a fingerprint sensor, which also functions as the Home button. This panel now divides the bottom speaker grille in two. No, it's not ugly at all, but it's not so elegant. And in combination with the asymmetrically located grille of the upper speaker, it turns out rather clumsy.

There is also a small innovation on the reverse side. The main camera lens has become round, and subjectively now gives the impression of a larger element than the black square in the M9. In this case, the lens under the wide protective glass remained the same, and the matrix did not change. It's kind of like putting a sock in your panties or foam rubber in your bra. Fingerprints remain on the glass, and the chances of hitting it against some sharp corner increase. Plus, another 2.1 megapixel camera appeared on the rear panel, which determines the depth of the scene. Hello M8!

At the same time, all controls and slots remained exactly in the same places. On the right is an embossed power button and a pair of smooth keys for adjusting the volume. There is also a nano-SIM slot on the right side, and a microSD memory card slot on the left.

The audio jack is located next to the micro-USB port, at the bottom. It's not that I often use headphones while charging my phone, but it happens from time to time, and I would prefer to have these jacks further apart so the wires don't get in the way.

The color scheme is still unusual: the front part of the all-aluminum body is painted bronze, the ends are also painted, but in a brighter shade, and rear end entirely silver. In addition, a gray and gold version of the device will also be available for sale.

Display

New Super LCD matrix with QHD resolution(1440 x 2560 pixels) and a diagonal of 5.2 inches - this, apparently, is exactly what everything was started for. Cool display, no doubt, but, as always in such cases, I want to ask: what? Show that HTC can build such a display into a smartphone? So there seemed to be no doubt. Improve the picture? I honestly don't see much of a difference between Full HD and QHD when I don't have a macro lens handy to compare. Perhaps the picture on such a display turns out to be a little more juicy and clear, but this is not the difference between VGA and FullHD - it is almost invisible to the eye.

Iron

The hardware in the M9 Plus is also new. Or rather another one. This model uses a chip MediaTek Helio X10- an eight-core 64-bit processor that fully matches the capabilities of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 installed in the HTC One M9.

The question here is rather the price of components: Qualcomm chips are rumored to cost smartphone manufacturers more than similar MediaTek solutions. That is, in this case, there is absolutely no need to worry about the fact that the device will not work. Any applications, top games - the Helio X10, combined with 3 GB of RAM, copes with all tasks with a bang. But the hardware still heats up quite a bit, especially when the camera is running for a long time.

Cameras

HTC One M9 Plus already has three cameras. That same ultrapixel has migrated to the front panel, and now the owners HTC flagships They will take selfies with a 4-megapixel sensor. It turns out pretty good, by the way. But in this sense, there are no changes regarding One M9.

Another thing is the main camera. The main sensor remained the same - 20 megapixels, but an auxiliary sensor also appeared - 2.1 megapixels. It helps the smartphone determine the depth of the scene, so that the user can then change something “in post-production.” You can shift the focus, add some animation effects like falling snow or leaves, create a 3D GIF, and so on.

To do all this, you need to switch to Duo mode in advance, in which both cameras work, because by default only the main one is used. Such “double” shooting will take significantly more time. But overall, this is a good piece of entertainment in the spirit of “it will look great on Instagram!”

Scanner

And yet, in my opinion, the main difference between the M9 Plus and its predecessor is presence of a fingerprint scanner. In total, today there are three options for the location of such sensors in smartphones: under the screen, on the side or on the back panel. It seems to me that the most convenient location is at the end, but, firstly, maybe this is a matter of taste, and secondly, when the fingerprint scanner is located under the screen, this is also quite an option.

In this case, this touch panel works quite quickly, especially considering that to wake up the smartphone from sleep mode it is not necessary to first press the power button - you can immediately put your finger on the scanner, the gadget will wake up, and then the finger pattern will be read. The whole process takes about a second. In a word, it's not annoying. And once you get the hang of it, you can even take your smartphone out of your pocket and unlock it at the same time.

It would also be cool to set up payment confirmation for purchases with using NFC(Wallet application) using a fingerprint scanner, but, alas, this option is not available - you have to enter your PIN every time.

Battery

The battery capacity of the M9 Plus corresponds to the standard M9. 2840 mAh is pretty good in principle, but it’s worth taking into account the more power-hungry display, which, as you know, is the first among energy consumers in smartphones. In short, in my case, when I solve 50% of work tasks on the go from a smartphone, it Discharges in 8 hours at best. From the latest observations - from 100 to 3% charge in six hours of work using the camera, Chrome and constant chatting.

Software

This smartphone works under Android control 5.0.2. Excellent firmware, everything works without brakes. The hardware and display size allow you to install almost any software that is available on this gadget. Google Play. But there is one annoying thing - migration from a previous smartphone. When you turn on the gadget for the first time, it offers transfer "all settings" from the old smartphone to the new one. At first glance, everything is great: devices connect via Wi-Fi and transfer all content, including photos, videos, music, messages and passwords from Wi-Fi points, literally in about 20 minutes. Only by “all settings” I also mean Google account and that's all installed applications. But for some reason HTC forgot about this important detail. Or this is some kind of insurmountable Android obstacle, who knows. They would have written it right away: all settings except account Google, and there would have been no questions at all, but a residue still remained.

Competitors

Funny situation. HTC almost immediately after the announcement of the basic One M9 released the Plus version, and thereby created a competitor to its own flagship. The difference in diagonal is not so high, and a fingerprint scanner and a dual camera are not the most necessary options.

But if we take a formal approach to the question, then the rivals of the HTC One M9 Plus should include, for example, the Sony Xperia Z5. It has the same size display, but with Full resolution HD, and filling comparable in power. In this case, the device will most likely work a little longer - due to the lower display resolution.

Summary

HTC One M9 Plus is a really powerful, technologically advanced smartphone. It is well assembled, it has a good design, powerful hardware, an excellent interface, but all this is covered by the presence of almost the same HTC One M9 but with mother-of-pearl buttons, which is cheaper and does not run out of battery as quickly. Additional camera, a fingerprint scanner and a screen with a huge resolution are not advantages for which I would pay more than 10 thousand rubles on top.

Released (summer 2015) on Russian market flagship smartphone 2015 – One M9. As you remember from our review, the flagship was a failure. Too little has changed, and some things have even worsened compared to its predecessor, and this is for 40 thousand rubles. Meanwhile, in China, HTC showed a model that was supposed to become a real flagship. An enlarged screen, a first for HTC Quad HD resolution, a dual camera lost somewhere in the “simple” One M9, and even a fingerprint scanner – everything, at first glance, is not bad. How is it really going?
The smartphone is not officially sold in Russia.

Design and usability of HTC One M9 Plus

We all remember well that there are almost no designers left at HTC. And if the One M7 at one time seemed the best smartphone in terms of appearance, the next One M8 already reminded someone of either a kettle or a refrigerator due to its unique shape and texture metal case. In 2015, when popular the thinnest smartphones made of glass and metal (hello, Samsung and Sony), HTC presented the One M9 in the same body as its two predecessors.


Metal is good, but the third generation in a row appearance HTC smartphones are no longer impressive.

The HTC One M9+ is no different from the M9, except for being slightly larger. The metal of the case is processed according to the same principle of anodic oxidation, as a result, parts of the case differ in both color and structure; It takes three hours to work on one body. To put it simply, the sides are polished from top to bottom, the back is polished across, and the golden color here is not as noticeable as on the overly glamorous iPhone and Samsung.

But HTC's design problems remain: the bezels are wide and the body is too thick for 2015 standards.


The only couple of details that distinguish the One M9+ from the M9 are the fingerprint scanner under the screen and the second camera above the main one. It’s strange that the international flagship (the simple One M9) abandoned it, but returned it to the Chinese one.

HTC One M9 Plus screen

Hurray, progress has finally caught up with HTC and in the new smartphone you can already see a Quad HD screen! In fact, resolution is not the main thing. It’s just that One M7, M8, M9 had the same quality matrix, and in 2015 the dim screen of One M9 looked frankly pale compared to the same Full HD matrices of competitors. Now the M9+ has a new matrix with different characteristics. If it were Full HD, it would still look much better than its predecessor. So this time HTC can be praised for its screen.

Detailed screen testing

The screen of the HTC One M9+ smartphone uses a 5.2-inch diagonal IPS LCD panel. The resolution is 2560x1440 pixels (Quad HD), which provides a pixel density of 565 ppi. Needless to say, with such a pixel density, no hints of “grain” are visible.


The maximum brightness in the center of the screen reaches 435 cd/m2, and at the top edge – 500 cd/m2. The impressive difference, oddly enough, is not too noticeable, but the brightness reserve in previous HTC models was even higher. The contrast ratio is 1450:1, a very good result for an IPS LCD matrix. They clearly didn't skimp on the matrix. Anti-glare properties are good but not impressive: others top smartphones better resist external light. But the viewing angles are good without any discounts: only black color at an angle acquires a characteristic purple tint, and the image remains stable.

The average gamma value is 2.22, a practical reference value. But there is one “but”: the non-switchable backlight adjustment constantly intervenes, making the screen either brighter or dimmer, depending on the image. At the same time, it works delicately and smoothly, and not in “steps”, so that it can rarely be noticed by eye. Average color temperature is about 7500K. The color balance is very even, with a slight excess of blue components. The average Delta E error on the gray scale is 7.61.

The color gamut is very close to the sRGB standard, but the colors inside the triangle are somewhat oversaturated. Naturally, this tints the image. The average Delta E error on 24 ColorChecker templates is about 4.4. Despite certain distortions, color rendition is normal, although some tones will be embellished.

The HTC One M9+'s screen is definitely an improvement over its predecessors. In the One M9+ version, they finally got rid of the pronounced blue tint, and at the same time installed a more contrasting matrix. At the same time, the brightness of the screen is not so high (the former reserve has disappeared), and it is still unclear why the auto-backlight cannot be turned off. Color rendition is not particularly accurate, but it falls within reasonable standards. The HTC One M9+ screen can still hardly be called ideal, but this time the company went in the right direction by using a really high-quality LCD module.

Hardware platform and operating time of HTC One M9 Plus

HTC One M9+ was introduced in China and is aimed primarily at that market. It is not yet known whether the device will reach Russia. So the processor there is appropriate, MediaTek. On the one hand, all flagships should have the top-end Qualcomm Snapdragon 810. On the other, MediaTek is positioning its Helio X10 (or, in the old fashioned way, MT6795) as its main competitor Qualcomm flagship. Let's see what comes of it.
In benchmarks, the HTC One M9+ is inferior to all competitors by almost 2-3 times! In fact, the device works very smoothly, opens all resource-intensive applications, etc. The issue is obviously unoptimized benchmarks for the new processor, because the MediaTek Helio X10 appeared recently and is used in this HTC, in the just introduced Meizu MX5 and a couple of other devices. So there is no need to worry about the speed of the One M9+.


At the same time, the issue of overheating is not as acute here as in the case of Qualcomm. One M9+ gets warm in games and heavy benchmarks, but moderately.
But operating time is definitely not the strength of the new HTC One M9+. It feels like the device works the same as the regular One M9, that is, a day at most.
With a thickness of 9.6 mm, it would be possible to install a larger battery. Now it is only 2840 mAh (the same as in the M9, and this is with a Quad HD screen). For example, the 7.3 mm Sony Xperia Z3 has a 3100 mAh battery.

There is a microSD expansion slot, but a version with 2 SIM cards has not been announced (yet). The regular M9 never got it. The built-in memory in the device is 32 GB.

Interesting point: HTC has an agreement with Dolby Laboratories, and the One M9 family is Dolby certified. So smartphones receive a sound enhancement system (simulation of 5.1 channel on smartphone stereo speakers) and sound very powerful. You definitely won’t miss a call, and in some cases you don’t even need portable bluetooth speaker for a picnic in nature.

Well, the most important thing is the fingerprint scanner, it is included in Home button under the screen. It doesn't look too organic, but nothing can be done. We liked the accuracy, the scanner works great. The functionality is the most common: unlocking. No additional features such as access to certain programs(as in Huawei) is not here.

HTC One M9 Plus Software

HTC One M9+ runs Android 5.0 with new Sense shell 7, pleasing with abundance interesting features: the ability to adapt to the user (the most frequently used applications will be displayed in special widgets on the main screen), flexible settings interface (individual “themes” will concern not only the wallpaper, but also the entire design), support cloud services and much more.

HTC One M9 Plus Camera

As you may remember, the HTC One M8 used a dual Duo camera. There were interesting shooting options with changing focus and effects, but in the One M9 they removed the second camera (why?), We'll install a simple 20 MP module. The One M9+ brought back the Duo camera, which we're very happy about. In combination with the 20.7-megapixel main module, it is more useful than in the case of the M8.

Note that this is not the first case of application dual camera on a smartphone – remember Huawei Honor 6 Plus. The hardware solutions are very similar, but the software implementation is very different. Huawei focuses on the ability to change the aperture up to the enchanting f/0.95, and if you use it wisely, the results can be very intriguing and atypical for mobile photography(look what they are!). HTC has invested in “toys”: applying effects to the background, creating a 3D effect, applying various shapes to an image, and so on. This seems to me a less interesting solution. But in terms of the quality of “dual focus” implementation, the smartphones are close and both are far from ideal.

But what pleases is the quality of regular shooting. The One M9's camera fared poorly, finishing last in our comparison. The One M9+ does much better.

Opinion

The HTC One M9 turned out to be a very controversial flagship; compared to it, the One M9+ looks better. At a comparable price (we're talking about the price of the M9 in Europe and the M9+ in China), the latter is clearly preferable. The camera is better, there is a Duo camera for different effects, the screen is noticeably better quality, and a fingerprint scanner has appeared.

But when compared with competitors, there are still disadvantages. The body is still large and heavy, the design is a bit outdated, the battery is weak, and the MediaTek platform is still associated with cheaper smartphones. But nevertheless, the device has potential. If the HTC One M9+ appears in Russia and Europe to replace the unsuccessful M9 (we hope so), and at an adequate price, then why not? At least for me, the flagships LG G4 and Sony Xperia Z3+ also turned out to be controversial.

Pros of HTC One M9 Plus

• Full metal body
• Dual camera with interesting effects
• Good quality in the dark and front camera
• High-quality Quad HD screen
• Fingerprint scanner
• Excellent stereo speakers and headphone sound

Cons of HTC One M9 Plus

• Heavy and thick body, large screen frames
• Small battery capacity and average operating time
• No optical stabilization in the camera
• No wireless or fast charging
• Price higher than competitors

Hello my dear readers. We continue to introduce you to the flagships of 2015. Today we’ll introduce you to the flagship from HTC. Surprisingly, as of June 2015, it is relatively inexpensive, considering that HTC has always stood out in the market by slightly overpricing its smartphones. Our model can be found in stores for only 33,000 rubles. For Sony comparisons Z3+ and Samsung s6 Edge sold for 47,000 rubles. The difference, as they say, is obvious. Well, okay, enough talking about prices, let's talk about the smartphone itself.

I would like to start with the screen. In terms of characteristics and numbers, it is certainly not top-end. Its resolution is not 4k, but Full HD, but you know, there is no big difference with top-end displays. The screen is good quality, very high quality. Made using Super LCD 3 (IPS) technology, and its diagonal is 5 inches. With this diagonal, the result is 441 pixels per inch, which is very good. The screen is covered with protective glass Gorilla Glass 4, it is possible to operate it with gloves. In general, I liked the display.
HTC One M9: smartphone review

Latest installed on HTC One M9 Android version 5.

When turned on for the first time, the smartphone even received a small update. There is no doubt that he will continue to receive them, because there is no limit to perfection. But for many, HTC products are perfection. What will the new generation shell of Sence 7 please us with?

Firstly, it is widely developed gesture control. For example, your smartphone will be unlocked if you swipe your finger across the screen from bottom to top, or double tap. There is a gesture responsible for instantly turning on the camera. See how it all works in our video review, the link to it will be at the bottom of the article.

Secondly, sets of shortcuts have appeared, that is, depending on the situation, the shortcuts that you will need at home, or at work, etc. are displayed on the desktop.

It is possible to select a set of icons, change color scheme. In short, the shell opens up enormous opportunities for personalization and, as a rule, you don’t want to leave it for another.

The smartphone works with one Sim card nano format. All data networks that exist today are supported, plus there is a radio receiver and modules GPS navigation, GLONASS.

The smartphone looks very stylish. There is no big difference with its predecessors; the company did not want to leave the corporate design, for which, it seems, its director was fired. Well, let's see how this will affect the design of future models. In short, the One M9 is typical HTC smartphone. At the top is an IR port that turns your smartphone into a TV remote control; on the right is a scattering of buttons (2 volume buttons and a power button) and a SIM card tray. On the other side is a memory card tray. At the bottom there is a connector for headphones and for a PC (charging). The sound in the headphones is very powerful and clear, but a little “digital”, of course you can’t call it bad, I’m even sure that many will like it. The weight of the smartphone is 157 grams, which makes it a weighty device in every sense. The body is made of metal, so it is slippery. But everything looks very beautiful.

The kit includes a clip for the SIM card tray, fairly good headphones, and a charging cable.

This handsome guy works for the latest processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 810, 64 bit, 4 cores x 2.0 GHz + 4 cores x 1.5 GHz. Adreno 430 graphics module and as much as 3 GB of RAM. What can I say, of course, all this abundance and number of cores is often simply marketing ploy. Therefore, it always makes sense to check the device in action. Therefore, look at the results of the performance tests:

Bonsai Benchmark 59 fps, Antutu 47000 points.

What can I say, decent performance! The power reserve is enough for more than one year, however, due to the fact that the case is metal, and metal has a fairly high thermal conductivity (hello physics lovers), the HTC One M9 heats up noticeably under load. Even stronger than the flagship from Samsung, which we really criticized for this matter. What can you do, you have to come to terms with it. The smartphone does not burn your hands, but it does heat up.

The smartphone has 32 GB of memory, but as many as 11 of them are occupied by the system and the proprietary shell. Whether 21 GB is enough for you or not, we don’t know, but if there are those who don’t have enough, then this news will make you happy, microSD cards The smartphone will support up to 2 TB! However, there are no such things in nature yet, so it’s hard to say how HTC engineers checked this. However, the fact remains.

We have reached the most interesting point - autonomy. The battery here is non-removable - 2840 mAh. This is relatively little, but when playing video at maximum brightness it gives you a full 6 hours and 20 minutes. With normal use there is nothing new, the smartphone is enough for a day. The problem of autonomy has not yet been resolved, we are waiting for new flagships. When will the day come when an A-brand announces a standby time of up to two months and thereby disrupts the market? In the meantime, there are only energy saving modes that make life a little easier. There are two of them, normal and maximum energy saving.

Now let's talk about cameras. There are two of them here, not three like last year, and that’s right. The front one is 4 Ultra pixels, and the rear one is 20 MP. Again marketing. The picture quality is not bad, but a little worse than that of competitors and not much different from last year's flagship One m8. I said it boldly, right? Look at examples of photographs and draw your own conclusions. The device is capable of recording popular videos in 3840*2160 format. The camera is very smart and has a huge number of settings. There is now support for pictures in RAW format, which is good, because thanks to this, you can pull out and improve an almost “dead” picture on your computer.

So, selfie on HTC One M9:

Click on the photo, it will open in full size!!! Loaded in natural size.

Let's compare with other Android flagships!

Samsung Galaxy s6.