After a series of leaks, the HTC Desire EYE has now been officially announced. The HTC Desire EYE features a 5.2-inch 1080p IPS LCD display, BoomSound stereo speakers on the front, 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, microSD card slot, and 4G LTE connectivity. Just like the HTC Butterfly 2, the Desire EYE is IP57 certified so that it doesn't experience a breakdown even when used under water as it is a water and dust resistant device.
The real attraction of the device though, are its 13-megapixel cameras with dual-LED flash and 1080p video recording on the front as well as back. HTC has always been at the forefront in understanding the selfie-crazy world. The primary camera on the Desire EYE comes with an F/2.0 28mm wide-angle lens while the secondary front-facing camera uses a 20mm wide-angle autofocus lens. Both the cameras come with their own dedicated microphones for richer audio recording.
The device runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat with HTC Sense UI 6.0. HTC has also announced the HTC EYE Experience app which offers users a way to make use of the HTC Desire EYE. The Split Camera mode offers users an option to click images in a 50/50 percent mode from the front as well as the rear camera. The Crop-Me-In mode clicks a single photo with the user photoshopped on to the image. The HTC Desire EYE comes in three attractive dual-tone colour variants; Red, Blue, and White. According to HTC, the Desire EYE can last till 20 hours of talk-time on 3G networks, thanks to a 2,400 mAh battery.
HTC Desire EYE Specifications
- 5.2-inch IPS LCD display, Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) resolution, 424 ppi, BoomSound dual stereo speakers
- Android 4.4.2 KitKat operating system with HTC Sense 6.0 UI
- 2.3GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor, Adreno 330 GPU, and 2GB of RAM
- 16GB of internal storage space and a microSD card slot (up to 128GB), 50GB free (for 2 years) cloud storage through Google Drive
- 13-megapixel primary camera, F/2.0 28mm autofocus lens, dual-LED flash, 1080p video recording
- 13-megapixel secondary camera, F/2.2 20mm autofocus lens, dual-LED flash, 1080p video recording
- 4G LTE (TD-LTE 2300MHz Band 40), 42Mbps HSDPA+ 3G, dual-band Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, and DLNA
- Bluetooth v4.0 LE, A2DP, Apt-X, NFC, microUSB v2.0 port, and 3.5mm headphone jack
- Accelerometer, gyroscope, ambient light sensor, proximity sensor, compass, and GLONASS A-GPS
- 2,400 mAh battery, 151.7 x 73.8 x 8.5 mm, 154 grams, IP57 certification for water and dust resistance
- Colours: Blue, Red, and White
The HTC Desire EYE competes with its own brothers, the HTC One M8, the HTC One E8, and the HTC Butterfly 2. Devices like the Sony Xperia C3 and the Gionee Elife E7 are its competitors from other smartphone brands. Even though the Desire series of smartphones have been mid-range devices but the Desire EYE looks like a high-end device, especially due to its Snapdragon 801 processor. When HTC Desire EYE becomes available, it would be the best offering from HTC yet. HTC hasn't announced its price or availability for the Indian market yet, but the device has been listed for €529 in France (Rs. 41,150). This price is higher than that of the HTC One M8 pricing in India.
HTC has also announced a new action camera, the HTC RE Camera, which acts like a glorified camera accessory to smartphones. It likes a periscope and is equipped with a 1/2.3-inch 16MP camera sensor which can record Full HD 1080p videos at 30 fps as well as slow-motion HD 720p videos at 120 fps. It is equipped with a microSD card slot and a microUSB v2.0 port for charging and data transfer. HTC claims that the RE Camera's 820 mAh battery can last up to 1200 image clicks or 1 hour and 40 minutes of video recording after a full charge. The Re Camera connects with smartphones using Bluetooth and competes with standalone action cameras likes the GoPro Hero as well as camera accessories like the Sony DSC-QX10 and the Sony DSC-QX100.
