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HTC One (M9) release date, news, specs and rumors [updated: invites sent out for MWC 2015 launch]

Friday 16 January 2015

The HTC One (M8) was one of the best Android smartphones ever made. What can we expect from its 2015 successor, the HTC One (M9)? It may be months away but rumours are already beginning to swirl. Here's everything we know about the HTC One (M9), and we'll continue to update this article as more details come to light. Update: HTC has sent out invitations to a press event just before MWC 2015, called Utopia in Progress. See below for more.
htc one M9
Could the HTC One M9 look like this? We hope so. / © Fabrizio D'Onofrio
The HTC One (M8) topped many tech sites’ best-smartphones polls, but it’s been out for several months now - and as we all know, smartphone years are like dog years, so a month-old smartphone might as well be made of wood and powered by steam. You can be sure that HTC is working on the successor, which we’d expect to be called the HTC One (M9). So what will it be like, and when can you get your hands on it?

HTC One (M9): release date

Update: ''Utopia in Progress'' is the mysterious title for an HTC event to be held March 1st, just before MWC 2015 kicks off. There's not much more to go on, other than the tag line ''join us to see what's next'' which could mean almost anything, but we're pegging this one as the HTC One (M9) 0r maybe the HTC Hima (if that is even a different device).
AndroidPIT HTC invite MWC 2015
Is this the invitation to the HTC One (M9) launch at MWC 2015? © HTC
HTC has traditionally announced the One flagships at independent events: the HTC One (M7) was announced on February 19th, 2013 and the HTC One (M8) on March 25th, 2014. So we're expecting much the same this year: a March announcement with market availability at the same time.

HTC One (M9): price

The HTC One (M9) price won’t be confirmed for some time, but we don’t imagine that it will be much more expensive than the M8. That handset was £529 SIM free or 650 USD with the usual array of special offers on two-year contracts. We're expecting the HTC One (M9) price to be between 600 - 700 USD.
HTC one M9 4
This one's just a concept, but it's awfully pretty. / © empro Gadgets

HTC One (M9): specifications

The latest leak, courtesy of Chinese site mydrivers.com, claims that the HTC One (M9) will come with a 5.5-inch QHD display, Snapdragon 805 processor, 3 GB RAM, 3,500 mAh battery, 16 MP camera (with OIS) and 64 and 128 GB internal memory options.
A couple of things are interesting to note here: firstly, it looks like HTC is abandoning the "ultra-pixel" camera approach of the HTC One (M8). The "4 MP" label attached to the M8 may have, perhaps unfairly, hurt its sales, and HTC looked to address this with its recent HTC One (E8), which was basically the same device with an improved camera.
The second thing that should be pointed out is that this is a very similar set of specs to that of theGalaxy Note 4, a device which will probably be half a year old by time the HTC One (M9) arrives. The Note 4 is a spectacular device, currently sitting atop our best Android smartphone 2014 list, so will HTC be able to compete with the Galaxy Note 4, which may have even received a price drop by time the One (M9) arrives? Only time will tell.  

HTC One (M9) versus HTC One (M8) Prime

You’re probably wondering, what happened to the HTC One (M8) Prime anyway? After a flurry of activity earlier this year, it’s all gone rather quiet. We think that’s because the HTC One (M9) is the smartphone formerly known as the HTC One (M8) Prime: rather than bring out a point update, HTC wants to go the whole hog and introduce a whole new generation of the HTC One. It’ll be interesting to see whether the specifications get tweaked as a result of the longer lead time, which gives HTC time to use newer technologies, better batteries and perhaps improved camera sensors too.
What do you think? What would you like to see in the HTC One (M9)?

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