From BlinkFeed to Ultrapixels: What the HTC One is offering

HTC launched its new smartphone, the HTC One yesterday in New York. With this particular smartphone HTC hasn’t gone for raw specs. Rather it has focused on a new User Interface and other features.

Here’s a quick look at what’s new in the device:

BlinkFeed: While HTC One runs Android 4.2, it’s comes with HTC’s new Sense user interface as well. As this TechCrunch post argues, this seems to be HTC’s tacit acknowledgement that a fight over who can build the best Android hardware isn’t one it can win against Samsung.

BlinkFeed is the user live tile user interface that is on the HTC One. These are very similar to Windows Phone 8 tiles and work like an aggregator for all your news and social media content including videos and photos. This effectively means that HTC has put its own mark on the home screen of the smartphone and so it won’t be like a stock Jelly Bean device.

The Ultrapixels : The smartphone has a 4 megapixel camera and before you think that this is too little hold on. HTC is actually using an UltraPixel Camera in which the pixels are larger in size on the sensor. So while the camera resolution might be 4 megapixel, the size of each pixel is much, much larger.

The camera is aided by a new dedicated ImageChip and a newer sensor. According to HTC, Ultrapixels will let users will be able to quickly shoot true-to-life images with the best colours, even in low light conditions. For more details on this you can check out this post by Gizmodo .

Sense Voice: With this, HTC is promising users voice clarity even while talking in the midst of a large crowd. The smartphone has dual built-in microphones that detect loud ambient noise and will then dynamically boost the in-call voice to compensate.

A built-in remote: The HTC One also comes with Sense TV, which will let users select TV channels, access program guides, adjust audio, etc with their smartphone. HTC is in discussion with cable operators in different countries, and hopes to offer a more interactive package for consumers, according to analysts who attended a conference with HTC.

The screen resolution: The HTC One has a 4.7 inch screen with with a 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution. That’s about 468 pixels per inch (ppi). HTC One clearly wins the screen wars and knocks out Apple’s iPhone 5 which has a screen resolution of 326 ppi.

The question is if Samsung will outdo this with the Galaxy S IV.

Design: The new design is all aluminum and the smartphone has a unibody chassis with chamfered edges. It comes in both white and black, and a rounded rectangle look. It does look too much like a bigger iPhone.