At last week's launch event in New York City, HTC and Verizon said
they had created the ultimate "droid". So does the HTC DNA live up to
that bold claim? Previously known as the HTC Butterfly J which was exclusive to
Japan, it received critical acclaim for its specifications but as the rest of
the world was not able to get their hands on this device, it was hard to tell
if it was a game changer or not. The Droid DNA is basically the exact same
device as the Butterfly J but with a different name. This device might not have
any real nucleotides (that I know of), but that doesn’t make it any less of a
superphone.
Product Specifications
·
1.5
GHz Quad-Core Snapdragon S4 with 2GB RAM
·
Adreno
320 GPU
·
8MP
rear camera with 1080p HD video recording; 2.1MP front camera with an 88 degree
viewing angle
·
5-inch
Super LCD 3, 1920 x 1080p full HD,
Gorilla Glass 2
·
Weight:
140g
·
Dimensions:
140 x 70.5 x 9.73mm
·
16GB
Internal Storage
Design
Critics have been calling this phone’s design as “Muscle car like”
and “Ferrari inspired” due to its gorgeous red highlighting on the sides, the
earpiece grille along with the power button and the three capacitive buttons
below the screen. The black matte polycarbonate back has tapered edges which
make this rather thin device feel even thinner than its footprint and
compliment the phone’s beauty. Though the matte black finish combined with the red
accents looks sleek and stylish but this theme has been used countless times
and we’ve grown accustomed to it. Additionally, the matte polycarbonate back,
though stylish in its regard, is very susceptible to attracting dust, smudges
and fingerprints.
No doubt the phone's design looks sleek |
This is an expertly crafted device with thought given into every
aspect which makes me wonder why HTC decided to put the power/lock button on
the top-middle of this 5.5-inch tall device which is tough to feel as it is almost
in line with the phone’s body. Though it’s not a deal breaker for most people
but this might get annoying over time as the phone has to be shifted in the
palm to access the power button by making a ridiculous claw shape out of your
hand. HTC’s designers should realise by now that the power button belongs on
the side of a phone that is 4.3-inches or bigger. Motorola, Samsung and LG have
figured it out, it’s about time HTC got on board.
My complaints with the DNA’s design don’t end with the power
button. In a device that screams luxury, it is beyond me why HTC thought adding
a cheap-feeling plastic flap to cover the micro-USB port was a good idea. This flimsy
little flap has the power to frustrate even the best of HTC fans considering
this beast of a device will need to be charged at least once a day for which
you will have to fight your way through this fiddly strap to reach the micro-USB
port. This idea has never worked for a phone (Palm Pre and Nokia N79, for
instance) yet still HTC deliberately decided to jump into that pit. Fortunately,
there is an expensive workaround to this annoyance which will be discussed in
the hardware section.
The Droid DNA also opts for 3 capacitive buttons (back, home and
multi-tasking) instead of using the stock android onscreen nav buttons. That is
not much of a disadvantage as it is a preference.
The annoyingly situated power button |
Under the Hood (Hardware)
This is the part where the device really shines and the star of
the show is none other than the jaw-dropping 5-inch 1080p HD screen that boasts
a whopping 440ppi (pixel-per-inch) density. It is truly one of a kind for this
Super LCD 3 contains a staggering number of 2 billion pixels, which is
approximately 1 billion more than the Samsung Galaxy S3’s and LG Optimus G’s
983040 pixels. The difference between the screens of these three smartphones is
not stark and is hard to spot with the naked eye, but the difference is a bit
clearer when text is zoomed-in to insane levels. Moreover, the screen is
unambiguously brighter than the LG Optimus G’s 720p display.
This additional number of pixels is a double-edged sword in itself
as the GPU and CPU have to work twice as hard to render double the amount of
pixels as compared to the LG Optimus G, for both these devices have the exact
same 1.5GHz quad-core S4 CPU and Adreno 320 GPU. The app load times on both
these smartphones are almost identical with HTC’s Droid DNA coming out on top
in some cases, but the Droid DNA suffers from occasional lag while operating
the UI.
The stunning 1080p screen in full action |
In an interesting twist, the Droid DNA has two notification
lights, one at the top-right of the earpiece grille and another on the back of
the device, to the left of the camera lens. You will find this to be a useful
addition if you tend to put your phone facing down a lot. The top of the DNA is
where the micro-SIM tray resides which can be accessed by a small pin, provided
with the phone.
The phone’s rear 8MP camera provides good quality pictures in
well-lit environments but the colour and sharpness of the images fade away in
low light conditions. It is capable of shooting 1080p videos and taking
pictures at the same time thanks to its ImageSense chip. The 2.1MP front facing
camera is able to record videos at 720p and has an exceptionally wide 88 degree
field of view, so that you don’t dislocate your shoulder while trying to fit
yourself in the picture. Though the image quality is not as great as the Nokia
Lumia 920 or the iPhone 5 under low light conditions, it should be able to
satisfy most users.
The DNA supports wireless charging out of the box which makes it worth
investing in a wireless charging pad (for instance the Nokia Fatboy pillow or
the Energizer pad) so you can avoid accessing the annoying plastic flap every day.
While on the subject of battery, the DNA features a 2020mAh battery that almost
provides enough juice to last a full day with minimum to moderate use, but it
gets to dangerously low levels on moderate to high use. It might be clever to
invest in a portable charger, for the battery is not removable and simply
swapping the battery with a charged one is not an option.
The Droid DNA also takes advantage of NFC which is good news for
people who like sharing content by simply touching the back of the phones. This
feature will probably get more popular in the near future as more stores start
accepting payments via NFC and as NFC tags get cheaper and readily available.
An MHL adaptor can be used to connect the phone to an HDTV but sadly, USB OTG
(On-the-go) is not officially supported.
Playing HD games on this phone will be quite the experience |
The idea of avoiding a microSD slot is nothing new for HTC (the
HTC One X+ is guilty of the same thing) and they yet again repeated the same
with the DNA. Considering the fact that this phone boasts a 1080p screen and
has 16GB of internal storage (only 11GB of which is available), users won’t be
able to store their collection of HD videos to watch on this incredible screen
or even install a collection of HD android games, for they take up a lot of
space as well, and not to mention most of your music library might not be able
to fit either. I found the idea of shunning the microSD slot quite confusing,
since the Butterfly J (the Droid DNA’s Japanese counterpart) does allow expandable
storage.
Software
The Droid DNA sports android 4.1 jelly bean out of the box with
the latest version of HTC’s Sense 4+ User Interface. Sense 4+ is very similar
to Sense 4, and should look familiar to anyone who has used any HTC phone
released this year. The most significant change however, is the new gallery which now has the option to let you view pictures by listing them as different events. Whether you like the Sense UI or not is completely up to
your personal preference, but for the most part, Sense 4+ is very resource
heavy and will usually be the biggest factor in draining the phone’s battery.
Additionally, the UI suffers from occasional lag and graphical hiccups and
might end up feeling a bit cumbersome to use for some users. Moreover, the
Droid DNA is filled with pre-loaded unnecessary apps which cannot be removed.
One thing to note about the software is that the DNA is entirely
phone-based. This means that it has no added tablet-like functionality (like the
Galaxy Note 2) and is by no means a replacement to a tablet, or even a phablet
(phone-tablet hybrid). Therefore, the DNA falls into the smartphone category
despite its larger display.
Wrap-up
The DNA’s Full HD screen is probably the best display your eyes
have feasted upon so far, but the killer Super LCD 3 alone might not be the
motivation required to convince potential customers to buy this phone. This is
due to that fact that switching from a 720p display to a 1080p screen does not
feel like as huge a change as jumping from qHD to 720p. In any case, the DNA’s
display is to die for, the svelte design of the phone minimizes its footprint,
and it features one of the fastest processors in smartphones to date. But once
the initial impressions are surpassed, the cracks really begin to show. Unfortunately,
a great display alone cannot make up for this phone’s problems.
The dedicated 2.5V built-in amplifier doesn't do much apart from boosting the overall volume and bass a bit and is not under any circumstance equal to or even close to a real portable amplifier.
Ultimately, the phone might have ended up being a bit
underwhelming, but after seeing the potential of the DNA, the future of
smartphones has got me really excited. We can only hope HTC addresses these
issues before launching the UK version of the DNA, promptly named HTC DLX or
Deluxe.
Final Summation!
The Good
-
Screen
is best in class, at any angle, in any light
-
A
beautiful, thin and light design
-
Features
android 4.1 jelly bean out of the box
-
The
wide angle front camera is a welcome addition
-
One
of the fastest processors available in any smartphone
The Bad
-
Less
than average battery life
-
Limited
internal storage; no option for external storage
-
Occasional
performance hiccups
-
Sense
4+ is very resource heavy and has lag issues
-
Some
annoying design features
So does Verizon’s new flagship device, the HTC Droid DNA,
deserve the money out of a student’s wallet? That depends. If you want to have
the best display the smartphone universe has to offer and enough money to pay
200$ for the phone along with a 2 year contract, then it’s a straight forward
decision. But if you’re an android power user looking for an upgrade, I’d
suggest you double check your options before hitting the Checkout button.
After all the amazing smartphones that came out this year, which one will you be buying or recommending to your friends/family this Christmas? Comment below, let me know.
thanks for sharing..徵信.
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