The HTC One A9: Rocking The Boat In More Ways Than One

HTC’s fresh new HTC One A9 will come unlocked for a very reasonable price. It will also come with a very welcome feature for those who want their HTC phones updated to the most current software versions available. The unlocked HTC One A9’s will be given software updates “within two weeks” after Google Nexus phones get theirs. A perfect arrangement for those who like living on the bleeding edge.

The unit’s release came with a few speed bumps, however, as some tech blogs noted that the phone model awfully looks like an iPhone clone. As for Android Central, they plead with the potential HTC One A9 buyer: “Please don't pay £470 for an HTC One A9.” They reason that while the model comes with decent specs in the U.S. market, the U.K. users will be getting a raw deal: The HTC One A9 in the U.K. will come with 2 GB RAM and 16 GB of internal storage, at a price of $725 for the unlocked version. The HTC One A9 in the U.S. will come with 3 GB RAM and 32 GB of internal storage, at only $399. Android Central’s Alex Dobie, who wrote the article, does maintain that “It's a great mid-level phone.” If you get it within the U.S. market, that is.

That aside, here are the specs for the U.S.-market HTC One A9, at $399 for its unlocked price:

Processor/Chipset: 1.5 GHz octa-core A53 Cortex, Qualcomm MSM8952 Snapdragon 617 chipset

RAM: 3 GB

GPU: Adreno 405

OS: Android 6.0 Marshmallow

Internal Storage: 32 GB

Connectivity: GSM, HSPA, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac

Expandable Storage: micro-SD card with support for up to 2 TB in storage space

Display: 5-inch AMOLED display with a maximum resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels and a ~441 ppi pixel density; protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 4

Cameras: Primary: 13 MP with a maximum output of 4128 x 3096 pixels, autofocus, dual-LED (dual tone) flash, optical image stabilization; Secondary: 4 MP

Battery: 2150 mAh non-removable Li-Ion battery with Quick Charge 2.0 support. It will be compatible with Quick Charge 3.0 via a future software upgrade.

Goodies: Take note of the micro-SD card capacity. Yes, it is up to 2 Terabytes.

Color Options: Carbon Gray, Opal Silver, Topaz Gold, Deep Garnet

The unit is mid-range in most aspects, with the octa-core processor topping out at 1.5 GHz in speed. However, note that the HTC One A9 can support micro-SD cards up to 2 TB, yes, TERAbytes, in disk space.

At $399 for an unlocked version in the U.S. market, the HTC One A9 is, indeed, a very reasonable buy. As for the U.K. market, however, hopefully HTC makes modifications in its offering.

***

The HTC One A9’s product page: https://www.htc.com/us/smartphones/htc-one-a9/buy-b/

Android Central’s report on the HTC One A9’s UK market specs and price disparity: https://www.androidcentral.com/please-dont-pay-470-htc-one-a9