When you visually inspect HTC Windows Phone 8X, you will have no doubt that this is a great smartphone. Its popularity and positive reviews increase confidence and, undoubtedly, predict a promising future for Microsoft mobile products. The gadget has great computing power, LTE speed and a high-quality camera, which allows it to look brilliantly against competitors.
However, the HTC PM23200 Windows Phone 8X is not without its drawbacks. His camera still does not have as many useful options as other top-end smartphones (for example, Nokia Lumia 920). Missing or underdeveloped mobile OS applications from Microsoft can also turn some users away. When it comes to the tough battle between popular phones — whether on Windows, Android, or iOS — even the smallest details can make a difference when choosing and buying.
Appearance and design
The HTC Windows Phone 8X has a slim body, sleek front panel and square, non-rounded corners. In turn, the screen offers a large black frame. The phone is available in several colors - black, red, bright yellow and deep blue.
The smartphone is comfortably held in hands thanks to the soft-touch finish and the slightly curved shape of the back panel. It fits easily in your pocket and does not take up too much space.
The HTC PM23200 Windows Phone 8X has the following dimensions: 13 cm high, 6.5 cm wide, 2.6 inches wide and 1 cm thick. Its weight is 150 grams, which also cannot be called a high rate.
Screen features
The tile interface, website content and photos look great on the 4.3-inch Super LCD 2 display with an HD resolution of 1,280x720 pixels (342 PPI). One small drawback of the screen is that if you press hard on its edge, you will see a flash of light.
Under the display are three capacitive control buttons - “Back”, Home and the Bing search tool. If you press and hold the Start button, you can also launch the Tellme voice action application. The same movement applies to the back button - with its help, a transition to the taskbar and various switches are provided.
Above the display is the front 2-megapixel camera. On the back, you'll see an 8-megapixel lens and LED flash. The left side of the smartphone does not contain any elements, but there is a power button and a 3.5 headset jack on top. The volume control and the camera control key are on the right side of the device.
A micro-USB charger connector is present at the bottom. Since HTC Windows Phone 8X is a one-piece device, you will need to use a small “contact” tool to open the SIM tray, and the built-in battery is not removable.
OS and applications
HTC developers use Windows Phone 8 with such enthusiasm that they even added the name of the OS from Microsoft to the name of their smartphone.
At the same time, Microsoft keeps its OS quite closed, so there are still not too many application options and settings that can be applied. However, HTC Windows Phone 8X, the characteristics of which speak for themselves, has added its own version of the screen interface, which displays the HTC weather widget adapted to Windows. The developers have also added their own shade to thematic colors and offer some of their own applications in the dedicated Stor section.
Audio and sound
Beats Audio is HTC's leading offering that has advanced audio settings options - they work when you plug in your headphones.
Camera
In good light, the backlit rear camera in HTC Windows Phone 8X shoots very well, creating a high-quality image in detail, with great color accuracy and clear edges. In other cases, the device may produce images that appear blurry for no apparent reason.
Of course, lighting plays a crucial role, and careful focusing can help eliminate user errors, but the touch focus is not very convenient to use. Another circumstance that should not be forgotten - according to the technical description, the HTC Windows Phone 8X smartphone has an 8-megapixel camera, but in fact it has 6 megapixels. In other words, it can be used to take good photos that can be shared with friends or shared on social networks, but it is unlikely to achieve high-quality shooting. In addition, under dim lighting, the images are rather dull.
HTC Windows Phone 8X - camera specifications
What additional options does the camera have? There are four special effects (sepia and grayscale), resolution options that span 8 megapixels in VGA resolution and white balance presets . You can set the exposure, saturation, contrast and sharpness. You also have the ability to control ISO settings.
The 2-megapixel 8x front camera cannot be called very powerful, however this device as a whole is not used to create high-quality images. The photos are not bad, the color balance on the faces is fairly accurate.
Also, 8x allows you to shoot good 1080p HD video at a speed of 30 frames per second. The volume of the videos is rather rather big, but they are viewed smoothly and clearly, without sharp transitions. If you shoot a video in motion, some blur may be displayed relative to the focal point.
As with photography, when creating a video, a whole range of effects is available, a choice of resolution and white balance options, plus there are adjustments for contrast, saturation and sharpness.
Interior architecture
The HTC Windows Phone 8X has a 1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 dual-core processor, which is one of the fastest at the moment (regardless of the number of cores).
In everyday use, the battery life is quite long (provided by a 1,800mAh lithium-ion battery). However, with continuous viewing of the video, the device can work only about 6.4 hours. It is also worth noting that in HTC Windows Phone 8X the firmware is very high quality. The device has 1 GB of RAM.
Call quality
According to users of HTC Windows Phone 8X (which reviews are justified), in a city the call quality is very good. Communication is uninterrupted, the conversation is conducted without noise or interruptions. The voice of the subscriber sounds distinctly and quite naturally.
HTC Windows Phone 8X - reviews and comparison with the Nokia Lumia 920
Many users noted a considerable similarity of the gadget with the Nokia Lumia 920. If we talk about the price, features and software additional services in general, the cheaper Nokia Lumia 920 ($ 99) is ahead of this device in all directions. The 8X camera is not entirely functional, the device has much less storage space and does not have wireless charging included .
However, the 8X is a good premium Windows Phone phone equipped with its own INTS. In addition, it has a much more attractive design that makes it easy to carry it in the pockets of clothes and comfortable to hold in your hand. According to user reviews, the 8X is more compact and lightweight compared to the Lumia 920, and its soft-touch coating makes it much more pleasant to use.
Thus, the phone’s designs differ very much, while many other specifications are very similar: LTE, 8-megapixel camera, identical processor and large HD screen.
The excellent hardware of the HTC Windows Phone 8X makes Microsoft additional advertising, as now this platform is gradually becoming the focus of attention of users. HTC developers have tried to carefully improve the hardware properties of the 8X, providing excellent screen quality, a fast processor and a fair amount of internal memory. A mediocre camera can be attributed to disadvantages, but not for every user it is of great importance.
Ultimately, the phone’s functionality is determined by the capabilities of the OS installed on it, as a result, you get a new and convenient version of Windows Phone 8. The operating system looks fast and high-quality to use, but the absence of some important applications at the start will not look very good for a number of users . However, we can safely say that over time, the choice of programs and other services will become much more diverse, because more and more people prefer Windows Phone.
Making the final conclusions, it is necessary to analyze all the properties of the phone in the aggregate - its speed, easy handling, bright screen colors and dimensions. A device costing about $ 500 will pleasantly surprise most users.
Positive features
Attractive design and small size, easy to use design. The smartphone has a small weight - only 150 grams. In addition, HTC Windows Phone 8X offers a powerful processor, LTE speed and excellent call quality.
disadvantages
The 8-megapixel camera of this phone does not create very high-quality photos, the sensor buttons are too bright, and the OS lacks some key applications.
Final Verdict:
With high-quality and powerful specifications and a striking design, the HTC Windows Phone 8X c620e, which is generally positive, will be an excellent choice for those who prefer mobile devices based on the Windows platform.