HTC has announced the latest phone in its Desire range, the HTC Desire Eye. The new phone has almost the same specs as the excellent HTC One (M8) but there's one big difference – selfies. The front and rear facing cameras are almost identical, with HTC saying the Desire Eye is ideal for people obsessed with snapping pictures of their own faces. We got some hands-on time with the phone ahead of its launch.
The HTC Desire Eye will come in two versions: red and white or blue and white. The handset has a polycarbonate case and is IPX7 waterproof, effectively meaning you can dunk it in water for 30 minutes up to depths of one metre. Unlike some other waterproof phones the Desire Eye doesn't have caps or covers on its ports with HTC protecting them against shorting. The colourful design won't be to everyone's taste but the phone was comfortable to hold and looked sleek and thin.
The Desire Eye has similar specs to the HTC One (M8) including a Snapdragon 801 processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal memory and an extra 128GB through microSD. The HTC One (M8) was the fastest phone we'd ever tested when it launched and the Desire Eye felt similarly zippy and quick. The 5.2in full HD screen was bright and crisp and the size means it isn't too unwieldy. On the inside there's a 2400mAh battery, with HTC claiming 20 hours of 3G talk time.
Boom sound also makes another appearance, so you can annoy people on the bus or listen to Kylie Minogue in the shower at deafening volumes. There are dual front-facing stereo speakers with built-in amplifiers and three microphones to cancel out background noise when making phone calls.
HTC was very keen to point out that the phone's main selling point was its 'selfie' camera. Both the front and rear cameras on the Desire Eye are almost identical, which is great news for narcissists. On the back there's a 13MP camera (BSI sensor, f/2.0, 28mm lens, wide angle with HDR) that can record video in 1080p and a dual LED flash.
The front facing camera is also 13MP (autofocus with zoom, BSI sensor, f/2.2, 22mm lens, wide angle, HDR) that also records video at 1080p and has a dual LED flash. The camera also responds to voice commands so you can say 'cheese' or 'action' to kick it into action.
There's a beauty mode for making your face look less hideous and an option to take simultaneous pictures and videos using the front and rear facing cameras. That means you could take a snap of a stunning view and a snap of your gawping face and get both in high-quality glory.
You can also superimpose a cut-out of yourself into photos taken with the rear camera. A new 'face fusion' option lets you see the lovechild of two different people by taking two snaps and pulling a slider back and forth. A new version of HTC Zoe (1.0 beta) is also in testing and will launch soon.
Having the same camera on the front and back isn't an awful feature. The strange Duo Camera on the HTC One (M8) worked well and some people will certainly be attracted to the Desire Eye's high-quality front camera. An LED flash on the front will ensure night-time vanity shots are better lit as well.
Most of the camera features found on the HTC Desire Eye will soon arrive on other HTC phones. The HTC One (M7), HTC One (M8), HTC One E8, HTC One mini, HTC One mini 2, HTC One max, HTC Desire 816, HTC Desire 820 and HTC Butterfly 2 will all be upgraded "in the coming months". HTC said that not all these handsets would get all the new features from the Desire Eye.
The HTC Desire Eye will cost less than the HTC One (M8), but HTC stopped short of announcing its exact price. The phone will sit at the top of HTC's Desire range, which itself is a more wallet-friendly line than the premium HTC One range. The company also didn't have a firm release date, although said it would be available in the UK in early November from the HTC website, Three and Carphone Warehouse.
We'll have more details and a full review of the HTC Desire Eye soon.
