It seems as if the war for 2017’s most anticipated android smartphone is on. On one hand Samsung is releasing its much speculated Galaxy S8 with a cluster of features; while on the other HTC, its rival, is gearing up for competition with a new phone in its U Flagship series, according to Evan Blass of VentureBeat. Nokia is also a part of the race to reign the market; with launching its new smartphones, the Nokia 3, Nokia 5, and Nokia 6 along with an updated Nokia 3310, just recently.

HTC U Ultra
Just in January, HTC launched two smartphones in its U flagship line-up, namely the HTC U Ultra and the HTC U Play; after which the new one might hit the stores with the name HTC U; also known by its codename – Ocean. Notably, HTC U’s predecessor, HTC U Ultra was a disaster; and an article on Forbes also mentioned that the company gets everything wrong with the Ultra phone. Infact, the Taiwan company’s 2016 model, HTC 10 also did not get rave reviews. HTC is now taking a step ahead in design and specs for an impressive comeback.

HTC U Play
Speaking of HTC U Specs, here are some of the rumored ones –
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip
- Android Nougat 7.1 with Sense 9
- Touch-sensitive frame
- 5-inched WQHD display (2560*1440)
- 64GB or 128GB internal storage
- IMX362 rear camera (12 megapixel)
- IMX351 front camera (16 megapixel)
HTC U: The New Flagship Model in U Series
The most anticipated feature of HTC U is its touch-sensitive frame, better known as ‘Edge Sense’; that allows you to control your smartphone with different gestures, like swiping, pinching or squeezing, as VentureBeat reports. Typically, HTC U is also packed with Snapdragon’s high-end 835 chip; just like Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus models. But the Edge Sense is an intriguing feature which may stand-out to give Samsung’s Galaxy S8 a fierce competition.
HTC U’s Sense 9 interface has the ability to make Android seem a bit different; but the catch is that it has chances of being liked or hated by users. HTC will be placing updated versions of Sony’s camera sensors in this new flagship model; with a 12 megapixel rear camera, and a 16 megapixel front camera.
As far as the pricing is concerned, the rumor mill has not disclosed any price yet; but as it is said to be in competition with the Galaxy S8, you can expect the price to be around the same range of Samsung’s Galaxy S8.
Concept-Based Device Turns Real

An HTC Smartphone
As of now, these are the most convincing speculations doing the rumor rounds, until the Gadget company officially announces its flagship phone. Reportedly, during September, in 2016; a video of HTC’s new concept-based design had been doing the rounds. It is now sure that HTC has turned this concept-device into a much anticipated masterpiece. While the HTC U Ultra and U Play were released in January this year; Evan reports that HTC might unveil its HTC U during mid or late April; with a global release in May.
In the meantime, we can only wait for the official release of HTC U to get to the conclusion whether HTC can change the users’ perception for itself; and if it really has the potential to give a tough competition to the Samsung Galaxy S8.