Hardware
The HTC One Max is the
biggest in the family of the One and One Mini, it is wide at 82.5 mm, compared
to the One at 68 mm and One Mini at 63.2 mm. It is also very tall at 164.5 mm,
compared to the One at 137 mm and One Mini at 132 mm. The 5.9 inch 1080p LCD
display looks great with its 373 ppi.
HTC knows how to make high quality displays and it’s nice to see such a
beautiful screen on the HTC One Max. The side bezel is similar in size to the
HTC One, but seems smaller because some is taken up by the white plastic frame.
The
One Max has front facing stereo speakers, like the others in the One line, and
sound even louder than HTC One. You won't find Beats Audio branding or
utilities in the settings on the One Max.
HTC
also moved the power button from the top down to the right side below the
volume button. The IR port and headphone jack are found on the top. The micro USB
port is on the bottom. The left side houses the latch for the back cover.
Speaking
of the back cover, it takes up nearly all of the back and covers the micro SD
card slot and SIM card slot. Unfortunately, the back cover takes away from the
fit and finish of the One Max. Even when fully closed and latched, the upper
right corner protrudes out from the back and gives the One Max a cheap feel.
This is the same problem I saw during the HTC meeting last month so I don't
think it is a rare manufacturing issue.
You
will find the fingerprint scanner on the back, positioned in the center below
the camera lens. Unlike the iPhone 5s where you just rest your finger on the
home button, you have to swipe your finger down the scanner to activate the
functions. You can program up to three fingers that can be used to unlock your
phone and also launch an application at the same time. You first need to turn
on your phone and then use the fingerprint scanner.
The
scanner is not used for purchases or other applications, so it has very limited
functionality, the HTC included the same camera as found on the HTC One and it
takes decent shots in low light conditions and outside. The camera lacks depth
and detail, but works well for many situations. I do like the dual camera
support and other software improvements so now we just need to see improvements
to the camera lens.
Software
The
HTC One Max launches with Android 4.3 and Sense 5.5 with an Android 4.4 update
likely to come in early 2014. The Sense 5.5 update significantly improves
BlinkFeed with Google+ support, offline article viewing, and more. You will
also find an updated Gallery that includes improvements in Highlight Videos
with better content control, more themes, and ability to add your own music to
a Highlight Video.
Like
on the HTC One and One Mini, the One Max comes loaded with some enhanced HTC
apps. These include email, calendar, Car mode, and TV remote control
application.
HTC
also includes an application called Scribble that is designed to allow you to
draw and sketch on your HTC One Max. You can choose from one of 15 templates
and then use the utility, similar in functionality to the HTC Notes program, to
create custom notes. You can then share the note or print it from the One Max.
Usage and experiences
The
HTC One performs like the HTC One, thanks to the same Snapdragon 600 quad-core
processor and 2GB of RAM. The camera takes the same quality photos, except for
the lack of optical image stabilization, and lacks detail in photos. The camera
works great for low light photos and in many other situations, but other
smartphone cameras have gotten much better since the One was released and I was
hoping to see HTC launch an ultra-pixel camera with 8 megapixels.
The
HTC One Max is HUGE and makes the Note 3, HTC One, and Moto X look small. The
Apple iPhone 5s looks tiny when placed side-by-side or on top of the HTC One
Max. I understand HTC wants to compete with Samsung, LG, and Nokia when it
comes to large phones, but the rest of those large phones have better internal
specs or unique features (S Pen for example). The One Max is just a bigger One
and One Mini with no real need for such a monstrous display in a phone.
It
is definitely a device for the media consumer, but if that is your main usage
for such a device then go get a better and much less expensive Nexus 7 tablet
or maybe even an iPad mini.
Pros and Cons
To
summarize my experiences with the HTC One Max, here are my pros and cons.
Pros
·
Fantastic 5.9 inch 1080p display
·
Long battery life thanks to 3,300 mAh
battery
·
microSD expansion slot
·
High quality front facing stereo
speakers
·
Power button on right side
Cons
·
Long, wide, and heavy phone
·
Poorly designed back cover
·
Limited use fingerprint scanner
The competition
Other
large screen phones, greater than 5 inches, include the Galaxy Note 3, upcoming
Nokia Lumia 1520, Sony Xperia Z Ultra, LG G2, and maybe even the Google Nexus
5. All of these phones offer something better than the HTC One Max and all are
smaller too.
Specifications
·
Android 4.3 OS and Sense 5.5
·
Snapdragon 600 quad-core 1.7 GHz
processor
·
2GB RAM and 32GB flash storage (8 GB
consumed by Other, likely HTC Sense bits)
·
microSD card expansion capability
·
5.9 inch 1080p resolution display at
373 ppi
·
Ultrapixel rear camera
·
2.1 megapixel front facing camera
·
Fingerprint sensor on the back
·
3,300 mAh non-removable battery
·
802.11 a/ac/b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth
4.0 with aptX
·
Dimensions of 164.5 x 82.5 x 10.29 mm
and 217 grams (7.65 ounces)
The
HTC One Max is huge and nearly doubles the weight of the iPhone 5s. It really
looks ridiculous in your hand and unfortunately the build quality stinks thanks
to the back cover that doesn't even latch securely in place.
The
specifications were great for early 2013, but to compete today HTC needs to
improve what is provided in the HTC One Max.
Conclusion
From
my point of view if HTC would have had the people working on the HTC One Max
focused on the HTC One II or HTC Two, whatever the successor to the HTC One
will be called, in time to launch that device before the holiday season. To
make the One Max a killer device, it needed to launch with a Snapdragon 800,
3GB RAM, sealed back like the HTC One with a microSD card slot placed nicely in
the side, OIS, and a larger ultra pixel camera. If these were design elements
of the HTC One Max, then I would seriously consider picking one up for the
media experience.
