The upcoming HTC U, previously known as the HTC Ocean, is rumored to arrive with a 3000 mAh battery. Given that the HTC U was previously speculated to come with a high resolution 5.5-inch QHD display and plenty of sensors to enable a new touch-sensitive frame feature this year, the 3000 mAh battery seems rather small. After Twitter user @LlabTooFeR leaked the battery capacity, responses have been largely negative with users concerned about battery life on a device with a high resolution screen and plenty of sensors to drive. For comparison, the LG V20, which comes with a 5.7-inch QHD display, ships with a user-replaceable 3,200 mAh battery and Samsung’s 5.5-inch Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a sealed 3,600 mAh battery.
Even though the high resolution display and the sensors embedded into the frame of the HTC U maybe some of the most taxing factors on battery life, the HTC U is also speculated to come with Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 835 processor — the same chipset that debuted today on Samsung’s Galaxy S8 phones. The CPU uses a 10 nm architecture, which is said to be more efficient than Qualcomm’s previous chip designs, and could help extend the phone’s battery use before it requires a recharge. Other specs rumored for the HTC U include a 12-megapixel camera on the rear, a 16-megapixel front-facing selfie camera, microSD expansion and either 64 GB or 128 GB of internal memory. The handset is expected to debut in April. This will be HTC’s third handset in the U series, following the arrival of the HTC U Ultra and HTC U Play.
What makes the HTC U unique is that it comes with sensors around the frame of the device, allowing users to tap, swipe or squeeze the sides of the phone to control certain functions. Concept of the touch-sensitive controls were shown in a leaked video late last year, and the final design could result in a cleaner device, as it could eliminate the need for dedicated volume control buttons. Instead of having to press buttons for controlling the volume, you could swipe up, for example, to increase the sound output. HTC is believed to be calling this experience Sense Touch. The HTC U will compete against the Samsung Galaxy S8 and LG G6 in the premium space when it launches, though how it holds up remains to be seen as it’s still early in the year and all the phones will have to have gone on sale first.