HTC Perfume to offer QHD AMOLED display, laser-assisted 12 UltraPixel camera

HTC is preparing its most advanced smartphone ever, VentureBeat has learned, keen on recapturing lost market share after stumbling with successive annual flagships that underwhelmed the marketplace. Details of the upcoming handset, codenamed Perfume and widely believed to be sold at retail as the One M10, were shared by a person who was granted hands-on time with a prototype.

Powered by Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow and skinned with HTC’s Sense 8.0 UI, the 5.1-inch Perfume was tipped as the company’s first global release to offer a 1440 x 2560 QHD display — which looked to be of the AMOLED variety, according to the person who saw it. Additionally, it will also be HTC’s first widely distributed flagship device to offer a fingerprint scanner, embedded in a Samsung Galaxy-like home button.

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Internally, the phone was said to run Qualcomm’s latest top-of-the-line silicon, the Snapdragon 820 system-on-a-chip with Adreno 530 graphics. In terms of memory, VentureBeat was told that it had 4GB of RAM and 23GB of free internal storage (supplemented by a microSD slot) — which implies 32GB total, minus operating system and other preloaded software.

Externally, the device’s appearance may still be subject to change, according to the person who used it. Therefore they were unwilling to comment in depth about its aesthetics.

Imaging is perhaps the one area in which reviewers have traditionally been the most critical of HTC’s best efforts each year. After experimenting with a so-called four UltraPixel resolution camera in 2014’s One M8 and swinging back to a more traditional 20-megapixel sensor in its One M9 successor, HTC has apparently decided to give its homegrown technology another shot.

Perfume features a rear-facing camera with 12-UltraPixel resolution and laser-assisted autofocus. Both the front-facing (whose sensor resolution was not specified) and rear-facing lenses offer optical image stabilization.

One important omission, sure to disappoint regular HTC customers, is the absence of a branded Boomsound audio experience. Other than the lack of front-facing stereo speakers, though, no details were shared on the quality of sound offered.

HTC will not be showing Perfume at next month’s Mobile World Congress, to the best of the source’s knowledge, instead opting for a bespoke launch at a later date. Neither pricing details nor a concrete release schedule are currently known — although the person who spent time with the phone seemed very enthusiastic about its likely market reception.