HTC is showing off its One X9 at the 2016 edition of MWC in Barcelona, which is more about its looks than sheer outright performance. The Android phone isn’t exactly fresh off the lab as well, having been in existence in China since December.
However, the HTC One X9 could be ready for a market splash in more regions around the world post an outing in the Barcelona event, which unfortunately seems to exclude the US, as of now.
Among the regions where the One X9 is likely to hit markets include North Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the rest of Asia.
Coming to its looks, the One X9 does look gorgeous which owes it to what HTC refers to as the ‘metalmorphic’ design theme. That stands for the smooth curved metal finish while drawing on the natural beauty surrounding us.
HTC’s One X9 also includes the front facing dual BoomSound speakers which should appeal to the music buffs among us. The rear of the device too deserves special mention, thanks to the brushed metal build but with a soft and glossy feel to it.
As for its specs, the One X9 is built around a MediaTek Helio X10 chip along with a 3 GB RAM.
Onboard storage stands at 32 GB, it being further expandable to up to 2 TB via microSD cards. The One X9 also boasts of the Sensor Hub that ensures the device’s sensors remain active without draining the battery.
A 13-megapixel rear sensor with OIS should appeal the shutterbugs. The One X9 runs the latest Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Pricing details aren’t available as yet though it seems to be mid-range stuff at best.
Meanwhile, HTC also took to the MWC event to announce the availability of its Vive virtual reality headset.
Priced quite reasonably at $799 – it was being pegged at a higher $1,000 plus range – while pre-orders for the headset start February 29. Deliveries slated to begin in April.
HTC said they had made several enhancements to the headset which includes better smartphone feature integration. This will allow the user to get along with several of smartphone functionalities such as answering phone calls, viewing text messages or calendar reminders without having to remove the headset or stopping play.
The Vive connects to a PC via a cable with the minimum spec for compatibility with the headset being an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 or an AMD Radeon R9 290 graphics card. HTC also stated there will be bundle offers comprising of PCs developed in association with PC and graphics card makers though those aren’t available just yet.
The Vive headset which right now enjoys compatibility with Android and iOS includes a pair of wireless controllers, twin Vive base stations, a Vive Link Box, along with a pair of Vive ear buds as part of the bundle.
Two VR games – Job Simulator: The 2050 Archives and Fantastic Contraption too will be included in the deal but for a limited time.
