Tag: desire 816

HTC Desire 816 Vs 616 : Which One Is More Desirable?

HTC has come up with two amazing phones recently; Desire 816 and 616. Though, these two devices belong in different price brackets, they are actually very similar in terms of of design and other specifications. The Desire 816 came out some time back, priced at Rs 25,000, where as the Desire 616 is awaited and is priced at Rs. 17,000.

The Innards

The Desire 816 runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 quad-core chipset which runs on at 1.6 GHz. Where as the Desire 616 runs a Mediatek MT6592 processor which is on Octa-core at 1.4 GHz. Now, whether you consider Snapdragon stronger or not, we personally feel that Octa-core chipset is slightly more powerful at 1.4 Ghz than the 1.6 GHz Snapdragon 400 in Desire 816. That means Desire 616 will give a slightly better performance than the Desire 816.

Display

The 5.5 inch Desire 816 has a 1280X720 pixel resolution which is same as the Desire 616 which fashions a 5-inch screen. This means, the 5.0 inch 616 has a better resolution and higher pixel per inch ratio, thereby giving it a better display in comparison to the Desire 816.

Operating System

Now, this is the category where Desire 816 easily wins. The 816 sports Android 4.4 out of the box, also the device has HTC sense as well as HTC BlinkFeed, which come fully loaded to the device. Although, you do get BlinkFeed and HTC Sense 5.5 with the 616, but it is not a full version and the device runs on Android 4.3 JellyBean. So, the 616 doesn’t possess latest version softwares and there is no schedule for any update either.

Camera

As far as the imaging is concerned the Desire 816 wins with its 13 MP camera at the rear and a 5 MP on the front. Both the rear and the front camera are capable of shooting 1080p videos. It fashions an f/2.2 aperture lens with various additional features for the HTC Sense camera. Whereas in the 616 only the 8MP rear camera supports 1080p video capturing, the 2MP front camera shoots at 720p only and also you don’t get those fancy camera features.

Battery

Desire 816 sports a pretty impressive battery at 2,600 mAh where as the 616 gets a 2000 mAh battery. We have experienced that 816 has a phenomenal battery life while 616 lags behind in this segment.

Memory and RAM

Desire 816 holds a much larger internal storage than 616 i.e. 8 gigabytes against 616’s 4 gigabytes. Both devices support microSD cards with 616 supporting expansion of only 32 GB while the 816 being capable of expanding to 128 GB of additional memory. Also Desire 816 gets 1.5 GB of RAM whereas you get only 1 GB RAM with Desire 616.

Design

In terms of design, Desire 816 looks impressive with its matte plus gloss finished body, which looks amazing. Overall the device feels sturdy . You don’t get a removable back panel which some people may not like, but the aesthetics as well as the shiny steel barrel around the camera steals the show.

The Desire 616 is slightly thicker and has an overall plastic shell (even the buttons are plastic). It’s back panel is removable. The plastic body makes it look less impressive when compared to the 816. But still the 616 is a really good looking device, in fact one of the best looking ones in it’s price bracket.

Summary

Overall, both the devices are the hottest selling commodities in their respective categories and there is good reason for that. They are fantastic in terms of build quality, software and obviously the support you get from the HTC. 616 gives you an octa-core processor at the price in which other devices provide you with dual core where as 816 brings out a large screen and fantastic built quality t0 the Rs. 25,000 segment. You do have several good alternatives in both these categories such Nexus 5 and also LG G2in 25k price bracket while you can get various handsets from the likes of Gionee, Micromax and others in the 17k segment. But with this purchase, you get amazing customer support from HTC. The company has proved that they have well built phones and have great service and support in India, which very crucial in today’s market place.

Phone	HTC Desire 816	HTC Desire 616
Display	5.5 inches720x1280 pixels	5.0 inches720x1280 pixels
Memory	8GB	4GB
Ram	1.5GB	1GB
Camera	13MP rear5MP front	8MP rear2MP front
OS	Andriod 4.4 KitKat	Android 4.3 Jelly Bean
Processor	1.6 Ghz Quad-coreQualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset	1.4 GHz Octa-coreMediatek MT6592 processor
Battery	2,600 mAh Non-removable	2000 mAh removable
Price	Rs. 25,000(approx)	Rs. 17,000(approx)

July 22, 2014

The Android War : Gionee S5.5 Vs HTC Desire 816 Vs Sony Xperia M2 Vs Micromax Canvas Gold

Android market has come up with some of the best devices this season. The flagship Android segment has always been on war, and these four are in their most bloody mood. HTC Desire 816, Micromax Canvas Gold, Gionee S5.5 and Sony Xperia M2 are the front runner in the INR 20-25,000 category.

The international brands Sony and HTC have been challenged quite effectively by the domestic contenders Micromax and Gionee. Let’s have a quick blow by blow of where each phone bests its opponents.

Phone	Gionee S5.5	HTC Desire 816	Sony Xperia M2	Micromax Canvas Gold
Price	INR 21,500	INR 23,990	INR 19,300	INR 21,799
Operating System	Android (4.2)	Android (4.4)	Android (4.3)	Android(4.4.2)
Display	5 inches Screen Type: Super AMOLED Capacitive Touch Screen Details: 16M Colors Screen: 1920 X 1080	5.5 inches Screen Type: Super LCD2 Capacitive Touch Screen Details: 16M Colors Screen: 1280 X 720	4.8 inches Screen Type: TFT capacitive touchscreen Details: 16M Colors Screen: 960 X 540	5.50 inches Screen type Capacitive Resolution 1080×1920 pixels
Camera	13 MPTouch Focus, Face & Smile Detection	13 MP Geo-Tagging, Touch Focus, Face Detection, Simultaneous HD Video and Image Recording, HDR	8 MP Geo-Tagging, Touch Focus, Face and Smile Detection, Image Stabilization, HDR, Panorama	16 MP Architecture, Electronic Image Stabilization, Cheese, Burst, Face Beauty Mode, Live Photo Mode, Auto Gesture Mode, HDR Mode
CPU	1.7 GHz MediaTek MT6592, Octa-Core	1.6 GHz Qualcomm MSM8928 Snapdragon 400, Cortex-A7, Quad Core	1.2 GHz Qualcomm MSM8226-0 Snapdragon 400, Cortex-A7, Quad Core	2 GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6592T processor
RAM	2 GB	1.5 GB	1GB	2GB
Internal Storage	16 GB	8 GB	8 GB	32GB
Battery	2300 mAh, Non-Removable, Lithium-Ion	2600 mAh, Non-Removable, Lithium-Ion	Polymer 2300 mAh, Non-Removable, Lithium-Ion	Li-Polymer 2300 mAh, Removable, Lithium-Ion

All phones are the best their manufactures offer in this price category. Gionee certainly gets an extra point for its ultra slim S5.5, but Desire 816’s build quality steals the show. The new Micromax Gold offers a 16MP camera with a wide range of features it doesn’t have much competition against the 13MP in S5.5 and Desire 816; and the 8MP in Xepria M2. Also, the Micromax Gold champagne-colored body makes it a great looker, with 32 GB of internal storage and 2 GB RAM. In the end, the efficiency of the device is based on the needs of the user.

June 23, 2014

#LetsTalkShop with HTC India head Faisal Siddiqui

This week in Lets Talk Shop we speak to HTC India country head Faisal Siddiqui. The man has been heading HTC in India for many a years and offers a bit of understanding on how they run shop in India.

The three most important products for HTC this year are the HTC One M8, the HTC Desire 816 and the Desire 210, with the desire 210 being the most unique product from HTC as it is the first HTC phone to have been launched under the Rs. 10,000 price bracket.

Faisal promises that the build quality and HTC lineage follows through even in the Desire 210 while most of the top end features including blink feed, quick OTA updates etc will also be seen in this entry level handset.

The Desire 816 will be getting more colors including a “fuchsia pink” apart from the white, black and orange available presently. He claims that people now like color options when buying smartphones and HTC wants to provide that option.

HTC has always been strong headed about staying away from tablets, and in the past they have remained focused with their smartphones. However, unlike previous meetings, Faisal was keen on not comment on the Tablet agenda for the company , which could mean that HTC may finally be planning tablets or that the new Nexus 8 being made by HTC rumors may be true after all.

HTC is strongly focused on building an experience in India, whether its their concept stores or their service centers. Including basic infrastructure, like Air conditioning, drinking water and a systematic approach HTC feels they can break down the long list of issues that go on with providing service in India.

As far as functioning goes, Faisal does feel that there are some major issues in running shop in India, but getting past them is what makes the challenge interesting.

If you ever want to head/run your own company, Faisal’s advice:

[quote text_size=”small” author=”Faisal Siddiqui” author_title=”HTC India”]

Always hire the right people, if you have the right team, reaching your objective is that much simpler.

[/quote]

June 10, 2014
HTC Desire 816 Review
The HTC Desire 816 is the newest entrant from HTC in their so called Mid Range product lineup of Android based Smartphone devices. The Desire 816 has Dual Sim Capabilities and supports CDMA networks alongside the GSM networks.

The HTC Desire is a good mix of looks, brain and brawn, but does it tackle a market well versed with hardware at a price point of a Nexus smartphone. Lets find out!

Overview

The HTC Desire 816 is the prettiest looking Desire we have seen yet, and it manages to do that in a an ironic rugged fashion. The phone musters up the strength to take on the likes of great phones like the Nexus 5, Moto X and Sony Xperia T2 in this price segment offering something extra.

Design, Hardware and Build

HTC has managed to hit the nail on the head when it comes to design in the past couple of years, with the One series of phones coming out stunning, one after the other. The Desire 816 is one phone that is completely inspired by the One M8 however keeping costs low, it brings a new material to the users. The design is very unique, blending a matte plastic edge with a glossy plastic back gives the phone two independent looks. The Front keeps the plastic chin and the head at a minimal, the front mostly has glass.

As far as hardware goes the Desire 816 also has a great mix of that. Running the insides is a Qualcomm MSM8928 Snapdragon 400 at 1.6 GHz on Quad Cores along with an Adreno 305 GPU. For memory we have 8 GB of Storage, 1.5 GB RAM and expandability of upto 128 GB via microSD card. Optics shave enhanced quite a lot and you will see impressive results from the 13 MP main camera and 5 MP front camera both capable of impressive 1080p, impressive because its quite accurate with respect to color and white balance.

Powering it all is a 2600 mAh battery pack, the front has a 5.5 inch Super LCD 2 display with a 1280 x 720 p resolution and 267 pip. However the display is actually better than it sounds on paper. All of this works in tandem with Android 4.4.2 kitkat OTB with HTC Sense 6.0, which has some new unique things to offer up. Finally the Desire 816 in India is a Dual Sim device with One 3G Sim card slot and one GSM aka no data slot.

Make no mistake the phone is “unapologetically plastic”, however the build quality is superb and does not feel cheap or flimsy at all. In fact, the “slab-ish” feel that you get from the moment you pick up the phone is pleasantly reassuring. The phone is presently available in three colors – Grey , White and Orange.

Display and Multimedia.

The HTC Desire 816 has a brilliant display, that looks great from the moment you first hold the device in your hand. The 5.5 inch Super LCD 2 display offers excellent brightness and great wide viewing angles. Almost every time you turn on the display you get a slight smirk on your face as to how beautifully HTC manages color and how good this screen looks. For the geek squad the 720p screen may not be a let down, it’s actually better than almost every other 720p display we have seen.

Movies and videos play perfectly on the Desire 816, with no lag whatsoever, even while high bitrate movies are difficult to view, they work exceptionally well on the 816. Multimedia playback is a good mix of visuals and audio experience, the Boomsound speakers contribute to the latter. The new speaks have large cavities and the sound almost competes with the likes of the new M8, which by itself says a lot. Their new audio engine also does an equally good job as the beats engine did, when the company still made phones with Beats audio.

Camera

The cameras on the HTC Desire 816 are not far from impressive, with excellent color reproduction, no banding in images, and excellent video capture. Both cameras capture video at Full HD 1080p resolution and the video is smooth and jitter free.

The camera works well in all kinds of lighting, although in extreme dark environments the Desire 816’s flash may not hold up to the mark. The camera is fast at focusing, and delivers mostly sharp results.

While taking a different approach from their One series of phones HTC has actually added a big sensor in this one , a 13 MP snapper will satiate the most needs.

The new Camera features in Sense 6.0 including ZOE is available on the HTC Desire 816, however you won’t see the UFocus option from the HTC One M8 because its hardware dependent. Although HTC could have gone the Sony and Samsung Route and used “Selective Focus” softwares.

Phone and Battery

While the Desire 816 uses 2 SIM cards, like most lower end phones it has only one slot for a 3G sim card. Both sim cards need to be Nano Sims to fit in this bad boy, which might have been a movement decision vs a design or need decision on such a large device.

The Phone call network strength is very good, and data connectivity is strong funnily in places where phones usually end up in “E” (edge) mode, the Desire 816 hangs on to the one last bar of “H” (3G/HSDPA), which by all means to us is very impressive. The Desire 816 also supports CDMA which is a fantastic thing, and makes the Desire 816 the best dual sim CDMA phone in this price bracket.

Battery life is phenomenal, you will easily bump one day of use and go into the next without worries. This is probably the only phone we have seen in the past that offers up this kind of battery life. However this is respective of usage, and may vary.

Talk Time : 6-7 Hours

Music and Multimedia : 9-10 hours

Internet : 7-8 Hours

Android and UI

Android KitKat along-with Sense 6.0 is a fantastic combination, just as we saw on the HTC One M8. HTC is now also promising quick updates to their handsets and we have seen updates roll out and almost all of their handsets released in the past few years are running KitKat. This means that we can rest easy when hoping for updates to the latest version of Android.

The Blinkfeed UI has become more and more acceptable and according to HTC over 79% of HTC owners are actively using Blinkfeed. The new Blinkfeed interface lets you add custom lists and sources as per your needs.

The Interface is infact, very customizable and intuitive and HTC offers a lot of sounds and wallpapers etc, to keep you busy for a very long time (incase you choose to use them.)

Performance and Gaming

The Desire 816 is a crack performer, no lag whatsoever, even when storage runs out. RAM is managed exceptionally well and fluidity of the ecosystem is constant. Muti-tasking works just the way it was designed, and while you could be easily switching b/w apps, they are actually put in a hibernate mode allowing the continued smooth performance.

All games are compatible and work well, the storage remains a limitation, and most games cannot be transferred to the SD card, which is slightly disappointing. You get approx 4+ GB free and although move to SD works in most cases, some games like GTA SA cannot be transferred and end up using 2.5 GB /4 available.

Conclusion

Honestly, HTC had us at the first look of the phone back then at MWC, but now with that gorgeous display, impressive build, fluid UI and impressive optics and multimedia, the Desire 816 is becoming more and more worthy of the “best title”, already winning the Best Dual Sim phone with CDMA in the under 30,000 category.

The HTC Desire 816 may be a tad large for some but it fits comfortably, and is an excellent phone with solid network strength. What you get for the price is a well rounded phone, with many features that will satisfy mostly all demographics.

If you are in the market for a phone that does CDMA as well, the 816 becomes the obvious choice, however despite there being many phones in this price bracket. The Desire 816 offers possibly the most satisfying experience.

Best Price

[tw-column width=”one-half”]

GOOD THINGS
- Well Built and Snappy
- Well Responsive
- Excellent Design and Looks
- Great Cameras
- Android KitKat and Updates
- Sense 6.0
- CDMA and 3G GSM Capable
[/tw-column]

[tw-column width=”one-half” position=”last”]

BAD THINGS
- Internal Memory Low
- Nano SIM Slot could have been Micro
- None, really!
[/tw-column]
June 4, 2014