HTC ONE XL REVIEW

Charlotte
Former EE Community Manager

Hey all,

 

I was delivered a belated Christmas present in the form of the HTC One XL earlier today, which got me very excited indeed (I’m trying to ignore the part where I have to give it back…). Being a keen photographer - in the sense that I like taking photos rather than being any good at it – I’ve really been looking forward to seeing what the One XL camera had to offer. And I certainly wasn’t disappointed…

 

But before I get into that, first things first - the design…I love it.  I really do. From the shiny 4.7inch display, to the soft matte back, to the large iconic camera – it just works, and the end result is an extremely good-looking phone. The buttons are seamlessly hidden in the curved edging of the phone, giving the handset an overall sleek, but soft finish.

 

Put it this way, I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen holding this little fella.

 

Here are a few snaps so you can get an idea of what I’m talking about.

 

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The display is bright and vibrant, which is intensified by the fact that there is a lot of it. If size is your thing, then you won’t be disappointed with this screen.

 

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As for the what’s going on behind the scenes, we have the Qualcomm dual-core snapdragon processor, 32GB of storage with an extra 25GB of free Dropbox space, all powered by the Android 4.0 with HTC Sense.

 

The added HTC touch means that the phone snaps in to action in no time at all, ensuring a hassle-free navigation and browsing experience. The speediness of the phone is especially handy when you want to take a quick action photo, meaning you’ll never miss the opportunity to capture a moment.

 

And I’m talking big moments, like trying to snap a duck before he swims away…

 

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Poetic.

 

And that obviously couldn’t be done without the camera, which in my opinion, is the highlight of this Android phone.

 

On the back, there is an 8-megapixel auto focus camera with LED flash and BSI sensor for better capture in low light. On the front, there is a more modest 1.3 megapixel camera, but as most of the action comes from the back camera, this isn’t really a problem.

 

I love the HTC One XL camera and that’s mainly due to the fact that they’ve really gone to town with it’s feature, making sure you always get the best photo possible.

 

For a start, you’ve got continuous shot, which allows you to choose your favourite picture from a photo stream and a HDR setting, which meshes together the best elements of three shots to make an ultimate picture.  There’s also group shot, which chooses the best picture of every individual person from a series of photos, meaning no more eyes-half-closed shots (this is usually me in a group, so hallejuah is all I can say). And if that wasn’t enough, they’ve also thrown in the ability to take photos whilst recording a video – how darn clever.

 

There’s also some built-in instagram-type effects, which make a nice addition.

 

I’ll stop gushing about this camera now, except to add that it does trump the others I’ve tested so far.

 

Here's a quick video from our friends at Recombu showing the main features of the phone:

 

 

Overall, I like how this phone looks, how easy it is to use and especially how great the camera is. For me, this a top-class Android phone – made even better when paired with 4GEE speeds, of course.

 

So as always, I would recommend trying it out for size (if you haven’t already done so), and do let us know what you think. For more details on the phone or for a full list of specs click here.

 

Or if you are already the proud owner of a HTC One XL, why not let the community know why they should own one too, by adding your comments below.

 

 

Charlotte.