HTC has struggled for the last year or two to stay relevant. Its flagship phone, the One M line, is a perfectly excellent Android device that will make anyone happy. But in a crowded market dominated by Samsung and challenged by Google, “just as good as the competition” doesn’t cut it. You need a standout feature, something that will make consumers choose your black rectangle rather than the competition’s.
So when HTC was rumored to be making a mid-level smartphone with crazy battery life, my ears perked up. Battery life is one of the most common complaints for users, so pair a big battery with a good-enough Android device, and you’d have a winner. The problem is, HTC isn’t releasing it in the US.
HTC just made the One X10 official. It’s a 5.5-inch phone with a 1080p display, mid-range MediaTek processor, and oh yes, a 4,000mAh battery. That’s substantially bigger than the battery in any other 5.5-inch Android phone, and paired with a reasonably power-efficient screen and processor, should be enough for a genuine two-day battery life.
The rest of the specs are good enough for almost anyone: 3GB RAM, 32GB of storage, microSD slot, dual SIM trays, 16-megapixel f2.0 camera, and a fingerprint sensor round the back. The display isn’t as bezel-free as the Galaxy S8 or LG G6, but with the fingerprint sensor round the back and no home button, it looks sleek enough.
Sadly, Android Central reports that it’s only being released in Russia, with a retail price around $350. If that came stateside and was retailed through a carrier, I’d bet that it would become the most popular mid-range device at speed. If nothing else, it would be a good interim phone for anyone holding off for the iPhone 8 or Galaxy Note 8.
