The phone arrives with some super high-quality headphones (always a bonus for me, I still miss the old days when “Beats” headphones could be found in a HTC box) and brings back the “Evo” name we saw previously on the HTC Evo 4G many years ago.
The all aluminium shell and unibody chassis measures in at 153.92 x 77.22 x 8.13mm and it weighs 170g. There’s an impressive Quad HD 5.5″ 2560 x 1440 pixel screen up front with a 534ppi, although HTC have gone with Super LCD instead of AMOLED. It weighs in at 170g, with a USB-C socket on the bottom and is powered by that Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 quad-core chipset (the one that had the “thermal” issues). This particular chip would be found in leading premium handsets from last year.
Along with WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS and all the usual goodness; there’s also 3GB of RAM and either 32 or 64GB storage with a microSD card slot for more. HTC have included a front fingerprint sensor, a 3200mAh quick-charge battery and it all runs on the very latest Android 7.0 Nougat with some HTC Sense tweaks including Blinkfeed and HTC Themes, although the OS still shows through and feels nice and vanilla.
It’s at this point that we usually tell you which networks have lined up to take the HTC 10 evo, but there’s none in the press release and, at the moment, it looks like you’ll only be able to buy it from HTC.com.
HTC were previously making a big noise about their BoomSound HiFi system, which pairs the bottom speaker with the earpiece for stereo sound. Here on the HTC 10 evo it’s just the bottom speaker, which isn’t terrible, but we always loved the HTC BoomSound tech. HTC have instead given you some hi-res audio headphones with a USB-C plug on the end. The HTC 10 Evo delivers an auto-tuning system called “adaptive audio” which only works with these special headphones and – after running a quick test – it’ll set the audio levels and create a personal profile for your ears. You can alter this as you move around to help reduce exterior noise. All great, but if you have some expensive headphones you already want to use, you’re going to be in a world of adapter-ville.
Camera-wise, and around back there’s a 16 megapixel f/2.0 shooter with optical image stabilisation and phase detection autofocus. It’ll deliver RAW image capture, 4K video recording and comes equipped with a dual-tone flash. The “Pro” option gives you a stack of options, including a long exposure, macro and night mode. Meanwhile, up front, an 8 megapixel selfie shooter (with “selfie flash”) will let you share snaps of yourself or do video calling.
Get the full press release below. No news on release dates, but as mentioned before it’ll be exclusively available on the HTC website. Gunmetal and Glacier Silver are your colour choices.
Sculpted by Light, Illuminated by Sound:
HTC 10 evo ushers in the next evolution in smartphones
Never miss a beat with HTC BoomSoundTM Adaptive Audio,
the world’s first USB Type-C dual adaptive earphones where sound is tailored to you
TAIPEI – Nov. 22, 2016 – Pulse-pounding audio that adapts to the unique structure of your own ears. Eye-popping, all-metal design that glistens in light as much as in water. This is a smartphone unlike any you have seen before. HTC Corporation, a leading innovator in mobile and virtual reality technology, today announced the HTC 10 evo, a dramatic evolution of HTC’s renowned sculpted-by-light style that introduces the world’s first USB Type-C dual adaptive earphones that tailor sound to your ears’ unique hearing abilities for a truly illuminating audio experience. The HTC 10 evo also features an all-metal unibody that is water, splash, and dust resistant1.
Think what music tuned to your ears would sound like. The HTC 10 evo takes audio to an unprecedented new level with HTC BoomSound™ Adaptive Audio, which almost instantly adapts your audio to sound levels around you, keeping you in the zone of the music and sound you’re enjoying. Pushing the multimedia experience even further, the HTC 10 evo has a big, 5.5-inch display to show stunning visuals for vivid gaming, movies, and more. And of course it’s an HTC, so you know the design is gorgeous, further advancing the renowned HTC design legacy pioneered by HTC 10 with more precise contours that catch light beautifully.
Adaptive Audio tuned to you
Imagine relaxing in the quiet of your home, enjoying some quality time by yourself to listen to a favorite new album. You plug your HTC BoomSound Adaptive Audio earphones into your HTC 10 evo and the sound adapts to your unique ear structure and the quiet home environment. Later that day, you’re taking the train into the city to visit a friend, and with a few taps HTC BoomSound Adaptive Audio adjusts to the noisier environment. This tuning process happens quickly and easily, and once it’s done you’ll experience music and movies with notes, nuances and tones that sound clearer than you believed possible. It even includes Hi-Res audio for spectacularly realistic 24-bit sound making you feel like you’re right there in the movie theater, nightclub, or concert hall.
Also in a first for HTC, the HTC 10 evo includes USB Type-C adaptive earphones right in the box2 so you can enjoy spectacular adaptive sound from day one. The earphones feature rumbling bass and pitch-perfect treble in a beautiful, style design that fits in at the gym, on the street, or wherever you go.
“I’ve been a huge fan of music all my life, and the HTC 10 evo has the most awesome sound I’ve ever experienced in a smartphone,” said Guy Chriqui, member of HTC’s Elevate community of smartphone enthusiasts. “The capabilities of the HTC BoomSound Adaptive Audio earphones are unbelievable in how they match the sound to my ears. I’ve never heard anything like it before!”
Your all-terrain smartphone
With such amazing audio on your smartphone, you’ll want to take it everywhere – but is it safe to do so? Fortunately, the HTC 10 evo’s full metal unibody is water, splash, and dust resistant with an IP57 rating, so you can rest easy that it will withstand dunks or spills. It has further been subjected to a multitude of grueling drop, bend, scratch, submersion, climate, and corrosion tests, which means you’ll enjoy exceptional build quality and style that you can take almost anywhere from hiking to mountain biking, no matter what the weather – sun, rain or snow.
Adding to the HTC 10 evo’s rugged build is a big 5.5” display covered by Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5. A new glass solution that helps your phone resist life’s inevitable knocks and tumbles. So now dropping your phone while taking selfies doesn’t automatically mean a smashed screen3. And while Gorilla Glass 5 is tougher than ever, it doesn’t compromise optical clarity or touch sensitivity. Giving you the ultimate combination of drop protection and performance.
Sharper shots in a snap
Whether you’re in town or out hiking, incredible moments can happen when you least expect them, so the HTC 10 evo’s 16MP camera has OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) that reduces camera shake to capture sharp photographs on the go in almost any environment, even in low light. With quick camera launch time and an ultra-fast autofocus of up to 0.3s with Phase Detection Auto Focus, you’ll be sure to capture the perfect shot every time.
The HTC 10 evo features Pro mode to give you pro-like control over your photography. Besides the advanced options you’d expect, such as RAW capture, RAW enhancement and manual control over almost every setting on the camera, you now also get the ability to take photos with long exposure times for perfectly mastering the motion of light in your photography.
You’ll get seriously awesome selfies with the HTC 10 evo, too. Featuring an 8MP front camera with Auto HDR, your selfies will show vivid detail to bring out not just your smile but also the environment behind you. A super-wide panorama mode lets you capture your whole family with room to spare, and an integrated screen flash ensures the shot looks great even at night or in dimly lit indoors.
Power, convenience, and customization
Running the latest Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, the HTC 10 evo offers all the powerful features you would expect from the latest flagship smartphone, including split-screen view, quicker multitasking, new security settings, and much more.
The HTC 10 evo’s built-in fingerprint sensor lets you unlock your phone at the touch of your finger – in as little as 0.2 seconds. Your fingerprint can also be the key to easily unlock apps locked by the App Lock function in Boost+. Even better, Boost+ also keeps your phone in top condition by cleaning up junk files and dynamically allocating resources like phone memory as required, ensuring your phone is running smoothly with maximum battery life.
HTC Freestyle Layout frees you from an on-screen grid and lets you make your phone as unique as you are. Drag icons, stickers and widgets anywhere. Layer them, overlap them, group them and more. You can even link stickers to apps, and get rid of on-screen icons entirely. The home screen is yours to use your way.
Powers users can rejoice that all these features are powered by a big 3,200mAh battery, enough for up to a day or more use on a single charge. And if you need to recharge quickly, the HTC 10 evo features Qualcomm® Quick Charge™ technology, so you can charge your phone fast. Load up on photos, videos, movies, and games with the HTC 10 evo’s 3GB RAM and either 32GB or 64GB storage space5, expandable with optional SD cards for up to 2TB of space so your storage needs are covered now and far into the future.
The HTC 10 evo will be available in the UK exclusively on htc.com in Gunmetal and Glacier Silver. On-shelf availability and pricing will be announced in due course. Please see htc.com for detailed specifications and more information.
