Over the past couple weeks, the rumor mill had been buzzing like crazy over the launch of an HTC smartphone with pressure-sensitive edges. And it seems the speculations are proving to be true as HTC has not only confirmed the squeezable nature of the smartphone, it has also dropped the launch date as well. The HTC U is coming in hot on May 16, a definite and better challenger to recently launched flagships.
Squeeze for the Brilliant U. 05.16.2017 https://t.co/89OuHXbBlt pic.twitter.com/jLaeFD2wMW
— HTC (@htc) April 20, 2017
HTC has released only a 5-second teaser for its upcoming flagship device, with the tagline ‘Squeeze for the Brilliant U’ on Twitter. The same reaffirms the squeezable (or pressure-sensitive) nature of the outer frame of the smartphone, which was described in a report by renowned leakster Evan Blass, or @evleaks, on VentureBeat.
This feature is not expected to be a gimmick, instead the ideology behind this design seems to the simplification of interaction with our screens. HTC is embedding sensors into the sides of the smartphone to provide users access to swipe gestures and controls at the tip of their fingers — literally. You’ll be able to squeeze either side of your smartphone to activate the app menu — which you yourself assigned, scroll through them and tap on the frame to open the selected app. Sounds fun, right!?
Remember the HTC Ocean? (https://t.co/q5ghm3vQ8Z) pic.twitter.com/GtpqowETjM
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) January 8, 2017
As for the specifications, the HTC U is expected to feature a 5.5-inch WQHD display with screen resolution 2560 x 1440 pixels. Since we’re approaching the middle of the year, Samsung will no longer be hogging as many Snapdragon 835 chips as it had been doing till date to meet its formidable demand. Thus, it will be powered by the latest and greatest by Qualcomm. This will most likely be coupled with 4GB of RAM and 64GB or 128GB of internal storage — expandable via microSD card. It will run on Android Nougat 7.1 with the Sense Touch UI on top.
Though Samsung has wooed consumers with its almost bezel-less curved-screen Galaxy S8 lineup, this squeezable smartphone could work wonders for HTC. The Taiwanese brand has been suffering over the past couple of years, with both of its flagship devices — last year’s HTC 10 and this year’s U Ultra not performing up to mark. But, integrating a technology that was once considered just another concept could attract many eyeballs — convert them into buyers.
So, mark your calendars right away! HTC is dropping this innovative smartphone on May 16. The launch event, as expected, will be live streamed at 2:00 am EDT/ 11:00 pm PDT (previous day) / 11:30 am IST.
