I'm planning on getting the Galaxy Note II, though it looks like the HTC One X+ has a few points of similarity with it (e.g. similarly clocked, quad-A9 cores, LTE support).
I was always tempted by the HTC One X's IPS LCD screen (since I don't like AMOLED's unevenness/inconsistency and battery draw), but I've heard and maybe even observed first hand that the SenseUI implementation is noticeably laggier than stock Android and even TouchWiz. Also, the SenseUI has always been praised as better looking that TouchWiz, but I always found it to be a little bit oversized for my liking.
Are any of these points about SenseUI true? And has Sense 4+ changed this?
Another thing I've always wondered about: are the LTE basebands used in the Galaxy Note II and HTC One X+ made on the 28nm process (like the iPhone 5's LTE)? I think the LTE baseband for the Exynos 4412 is off-chip, but should I expect that it's also manufactured on Samsung's 32nm HKMG process? In any case, should we expect it to be much better than previous gen LTE's (e.g. S II LTE, aka AT&T Skyrocket) and similar in power draw to the iPhone 5's LTE baseband? (Whew, those were a lot of questions)
The One X+ with 4.1 felt considerably smoother than I'm used to on my One X (8960), not sure how much of that is just 4.1 versus Sense 4 being brought under control. I've always felt that the T3 One X with Sense 4 was slower at redrawing certain elements for some reason.
MDM9x15 is 28nm and inside iPhone 5, One X+, etc. MDM9x00 is 45nm and inside SGS2 LTE / Skyrocket, etc
I wonder why these OEM and/or OS are not providing toggle buttons to easily support changes between 2g/3g/4g speeds. I know a lot of people are preferring 4g/LTE speed. But I'm on 2g most of the time, it saves tons of battery and it's sufficient enough for me to text with whatsapp and email. I do not watch youtube or netflix o the go.
The Samsung Galaxy SII HD LTE (i757) from Bell (similar to the Skyrocket on AT&T) includes a separate toggle buttons for LTE, 4G/HSPA, and 3G. It's on the same page as the wireless toggle.
Very handy, as we don't have LTE in our city as yet (scheduled for sometime in 2013), so there's no point in running the radio at all.
The 16 GB of storage was crippling for the US market but if this comes over in 32 and 64, it would probably be the best phone on the market. Screen should still be #1 and in practice, the camera (software) should (still) beat the Galaxy S III.
Any word on release date in US, Europe, or anywhere else? (I realize we still don't even know the LTE bands...)
Disagree. The GS3 has a bigger screen, 2GB RAM, and from what I've seen I prefer Touchwiz to Sense.
Plus the One-X has some weird crippled multitasking going on I understand.
Screens are a matter of taste imo, the true blacks of SAMOLED are pretty nice. Whatever the case, my GS3 screen is absolutely gorgeous and the whole pentile thing is overblown.
Also HTC seems to have quality control problems compared to Samsung. I also just read a youtube comment that Tegra 3 is junk and that the audio DAC in Tegra 3 is crap too (I wouldn't know anything about this personally LOL)
I bet performance isn't better, if not worse, than Krait as well.
If you're going to leave out the microSD slot, at least give the device 64GB minimum. They've done that, and so I think this is a pretty nice device now.
Sprint's EVO 4G LTE already had a larger battery (same as the One X+), not to mention 16GB PLUS a microSD slot with which you can easily add 32GB or even 64GB for $20-50... I think it'd be pointless for them to update it. They just need to get the Jelly Bean update out.
Brian, What are the differences between MDM9215 and MDM9615? What could be the reasons for HTC to use MDM9215 in X+ when Apple is using MDM9615 in iPhone 5?
As far as I understand from just observing Qualcomm and it's products, it's only CDMA support that differs here. It's not a CDMA-phone so. From the product table it's also suppose to support Rel 9 DC-HSPA+ though, but I don't get why it should be any different there, though that would be DC-HSDPA plus MIMO. Which I guess most products wouldn't support. CDMA is the normal difference between x6xx and x2xx variants any way. CDMA and price is the only real thing I can think of. MDM9625 would have been interesting if it were around already. Those might support with WRT1605 up to 7 LTE-bands too.
Do we have LTE in India? Only provider for LTE in India is Airtel. However, they are not advertising as an Voice + Data service. And from what I could glean, it is restricted to their 4G USB Modems.
...sticking with Tegra is a bit odd. The upcoming Optimus G, Xiaomi phone 2 both look great, and should be a good deal more powerful than this HTC phone. Here's to hoping next year Nvidia either starts building great SoC or gets less design wins.
It's more like a late cycle refresh. Tegra 3 has been around since late last year. Disappointingly, the latest iteration still seems to be made with 40nm technology and still based on Cortex A9 core design. I'll stay tuned for more details but nothing seems to have improved but the clock speed. Nvidia seems to have lost a step in the core redesign department by going for extra cores first. Qualcomm has had 28 nm next gen based processors for months now and with integrated baseband on SOC to boot. Nvidia has 28 nm next gen based processors coming out next year but they need to figure out how they can integrate the baseband on the SOC.
iPhone 5 > HTC, we know iPhone fans will buy the newest darling.
Samsung S3>HTC
Tegra 3 is really an awful crude design. It's like the old days when ATI constantly kick Nvidia's GeForce in the rear. Graphic performance weaker than the Mali400 in the Samsung Exynos and way slower than the new iPhone A6.
No MicroSD card and removeable battery is the biggest joke here. You can't beat Apple by trying to be like them.
It looks like HTC is hedging their bets on Windows 8 Phone with the 8X.
While I agree with your view that the strategy of trying to beat Apple by being like them is a bad idea, I'd have to disagree that this is entirely true here. The One X and One X+ are offering an Apple-like design / form-factor with the Android OS.
So, I'd say it's more of an offering for people who'd prefer Android over iOS but don't want a phone that falls apart every time you drop it and that feels like a cheap POS.
Removable batteries and SD cards are over-rated. Just give me a good battery and a good amount of NAND built in for a decent price (along with all the other specs we'll all want) and I'm happy.
All devices, from laptops to tablets to phones will ultimately morph to this form-factor because they will need to continue to miniturise. People are not going to be buying laptops, tablets or phones with the criteria in mind that they can be taken apart. That's an old way of thinking and it will go the way of the dodo. People have already started to accept gadgets with non-user replaceable parts because they look better, feel better , and are more durable.
We'll see how many GS3's are still around in three years. I can assure you that there are still plenty of iPhone 3GS's around because when they get launched by a two year old, they don't break.
I agree! Wholeheartedly. Couldn't have said it better myself (so I won't attempt to). Let me add, though, that the Nexus 4 ALSO has a non-removable battery, and no Micro SD card, and only a FRACTION of the onboard storage (and no LTE: The killer). So the One X+ looks more attractive to me than the Nexus 4 (though both have great physical design). Perhaps this is a trend we're going to start seeing more of? Sealed cases? Don't get me wrong: I don't LOVE the idea of sealing the backs of these devices, but if you're gonna do it, at least do it RIGHT, and it looks like HTC has in this case. At least they put enough storage onboard (and put in a large enough battery) to future-proof it in some way (certainly more so than the Nexus 4, it seems. At least from a hardware perspective). I think the One X+ is a great product (with the exception of maybe its camera, and the curious multitasking approach, which limits you to 8 open applications at a time) and SHOULD gain more traction than the original One X, but I think HTC suffers from less-than-stellar marketing. This phone seems to have slipped in under the radar of most folks as it is. What HTC (and specifically this phone) needs is a good marketing campaign, which is something Samsung got right, and is now enjoying tremendous success from. I hope HTC can do something similar. They could produce the best phone in the world, but if its not in the general public's face, they're not going to know about it. I went into an AT&T store the other day, to have a play with this phone, and the SALES STAFF didn't know anything about it! Folks who read these forums & articles seem to know about it, but the average person just seems to know about the iPhone & the Galaxy S III. "Marketing, Marketing, Marketing!" is all I say. HTC makes great devices. Now the world just needs to be made aware of their existence.
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
28 Comments
Back to Article
aBg_rOnGak - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
compared to other new phones.....better if Note II is included...Paulman - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
I'm planning on getting the Galaxy Note II, though it looks like the HTC One X+ has a few points of similarity with it (e.g. similarly clocked, quad-A9 cores, LTE support).I was always tempted by the HTC One X's IPS LCD screen (since I don't like AMOLED's unevenness/inconsistency and battery draw), but I've heard and maybe even observed first hand that the SenseUI implementation is noticeably laggier than stock Android and even TouchWiz. Also, the SenseUI has always been praised as better looking that TouchWiz, but I always found it to be a little bit oversized for my liking.
Are any of these points about SenseUI true? And has Sense 4+ changed this?
Another thing I've always wondered about: are the LTE basebands used in the Galaxy Note II and HTC One X+ made on the 28nm process (like the iPhone 5's LTE)? I think the LTE baseband for the Exynos 4412 is off-chip, but should I expect that it's also manufactured on Samsung's 32nm HKMG process? In any case, should we expect it to be much better than previous gen LTE's (e.g. S II LTE, aka AT&T Skyrocket) and similar in power draw to the iPhone 5's LTE baseband? (Whew, those were a lot of questions)
Brian Klug - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
The One X+ with 4.1 felt considerably smoother than I'm used to on my One X (8960), not sure how much of that is just 4.1 versus Sense 4 being brought under control. I've always felt that the T3 One X with Sense 4 was slower at redrawing certain elements for some reason.MDM9x15 is 28nm and inside iPhone 5, One X+, etc.
MDM9x00 is 45nm and inside SGS2 LTE / Skyrocket, etc
-Brian
amdwilliam1985 - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
glad they're improving on the LTE chips.I wonder why these OEM and/or OS are not providing toggle buttons to easily support changes between 2g/3g/4g speeds. I know a lot of people are preferring 4g/LTE speed. But I'm on 2g most of the time, it saves tons of battery and it's sufficient enough for me to text with whatsapp and email. I do not watch youtube or netflix o the go.
phoenix_rizzen - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
The Samsung Galaxy SII HD LTE (i757) from Bell (similar to the Skyrocket on AT&T) includes a separate toggle buttons for LTE, 4G/HSPA, and 3G. It's on the same page as the wireless toggle.Very handy, as we don't have LTE in our city as yet (scheduled for sometime in 2013), so there's no point in running the radio at all.
Impulses - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
My HTC EVO 4G LTE lets you easily switch from CDMA/LTE to CDMA only...neothe0ne - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
The 16 GB of storage was crippling for the US market but if this comes over in 32 and 64, it would probably be the best phone on the market. Screen should still be #1 and in practice, the camera (software) should (still) beat the Galaxy S III.Any word on release date in US, Europe, or anywhere else? (I realize we still don't even know the LTE bands...)
bill4 - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
Disagree. The GS3 has a bigger screen, 2GB RAM, and from what I've seen I prefer Touchwiz to Sense.Plus the One-X has some weird crippled multitasking going on I understand.
Screens are a matter of taste imo, the true blacks of SAMOLED are pretty nice. Whatever the case, my GS3 screen is absolutely gorgeous and the whole pentile thing is overblown.
Also HTC seems to have quality control problems compared to Samsung. I also just read a youtube comment that Tegra 3 is junk and that the audio DAC in Tegra 3 is crap too (I wouldn't know anything about this personally LOL)
I bet performance isn't better, if not worse, than Krait as well.
Plus you get removable SD slot, battery.
anyways, super happy GS3 owner here.
jamyryals - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
You read a YouTube comment? Holy cow, A+ source right there.Spunjji - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
Hahaha, +1 to thatpiroroadkill - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
If you're going to leave out the microSD slot, at least give the device 64GB minimum. They've done that, and so I think this is a pretty nice device now.BPB - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
Will Sprint be updating their version of this phone?Impulses - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
Sprint's EVO 4G LTE already had a larger battery (same as the One X+), not to mention 16GB PLUS a microSD slot with which you can easily add 32GB or even 64GB for $20-50... I think it'd be pointless for them to update it. They just need to get the Jelly Bean update out.krazyfrog - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
Your article mentions a 27% jump in performance whereas the website you linked to mentions 67%. Please confirm which one is correct.newbietech - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
Brian,What are the differences between MDM9215 and MDM9615?
What could be the reasons for HTC to use MDM9215 in X+ when Apple is using MDM9615 in iPhone 5?
newbietech - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
MDM9215 seems to have most of MDM9615 except for EVDO.http://www.qualcomm.com/media/documents/files/gobi...
Penti - Wednesday, October 3, 2012 - link
As far as I understand from just observing Qualcomm and it's products, it's only CDMA support that differs here. It's not a CDMA-phone so. From the product table it's also suppose to support Rel 9 DC-HSPA+ though, but I don't get why it should be any different there, though that would be DC-HSDPA plus MIMO. Which I guess most products wouldn't support. CDMA is the normal difference between x6xx and x2xx variants any way. CDMA and price is the only real thing I can think of. MDM9625 would have been interesting if it were around already. Those might support with WRT1605 up to 7 LTE-bands too.hemanthj - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
if i buy this model from USA and use in India, does the LTE work here in india or only 3 will work?Peanutsrevenge - Wednesday, October 3, 2012 - link
You'll need to wait and see what bands this phone supports and check if your carrier uses the same bands.If your carrier is using bands not supported by the phone, then no, it won't work.
If they match, you're a good'un.
allajunaki - Friday, October 5, 2012 - link
Do we have LTE in India?Only provider for LTE in India is Airtel. However, they are not advertising as an Voice + Data service. And from what I could glean, it is restricted to their 4G USB Modems.
tuxRoller - Tuesday, October 2, 2012 - link
...sticking with Tegra is a bit odd.The upcoming Optimus G, Xiaomi phone 2 both look great, and should be a good deal more powerful than this HTC phone.
Here's to hoping next year Nvidia either starts building great SoC or gets less design wins.
MartinT - Wednesday, October 3, 2012 - link
Not odd at all, this is a regular mid-cycle refresh with drop-in replacement parts that improve the product with likely minimal design effort.newbietech - Saturday, October 6, 2012 - link
It's more like a late cycle refresh. Tegra 3 has been around since late last year. Disappointingly, the latest iteration still seems to be made with 40nm technology and still based on Cortex A9 core design. I'll stay tuned for more details but nothing seems to have improved but the clock speed.Nvidia seems to have lost a step in the core redesign department by going for extra cores first. Qualcomm has had 28 nm next gen based processors for months now and with integrated baseband on SOC to boot.
Nvidia has 28 nm next gen based processors coming out next year but they need to figure out how they can integrate the baseband on the SOC.
halcyon - Thursday, October 4, 2012 - link
Does Nvidia Tegra 3 AP37 have dual channel memory?vision33r - Tuesday, October 9, 2012 - link
iPhone 5 > HTC, we know iPhone fans will buy the newest darling.Samsung S3>HTC
Tegra 3 is really an awful crude design. It's like the old days when ATI constantly kick Nvidia's GeForce in the rear. Graphic performance weaker than the Mali400 in the Samsung Exynos and way slower than the new iPhone A6.
No MicroSD card and removeable battery is the biggest joke here. You can't beat Apple by trying to be like them.
phillyry - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
It may not help, that's tru.It looks like HTC is hedging their bets on Windows 8 Phone with the 8X.
While I agree with your view that the strategy of trying to beat Apple by being like them is a bad idea, I'd have to disagree that this is entirely true here. The One X and One X+ are offering an Apple-like design / form-factor with the Android OS.
So, I'd say it's more of an offering for people who'd prefer Android over iOS but don't want a phone that falls apart every time you drop it and that feels like a cheap POS.
Removable batteries and SD cards are over-rated. Just give me a good battery and a good amount of NAND built in for a decent price (along with all the other specs we'll all want) and I'm happy.
All devices, from laptops to tablets to phones will ultimately morph to this form-factor because they will need to continue to miniturise. People are not going to be buying laptops, tablets or phones with the criteria in mind that they can be taken apart. That's an old way of thinking and it will go the way of the dodo. People have already started to accept gadgets with non-user replaceable parts because they look better, feel better , and are more durable.
We'll see how many GS3's are still around in three years. I can assure you that there are still plenty of iPhone 3GS's around because when they get launched by a two year old, they don't break.
EricHope - Friday, November 23, 2012 - link
I agree! Wholeheartedly. Couldn't have said it better myself (so I won't attempt to). Let me add, though, that the Nexus 4 ALSO has a non-removable battery, and no Micro SD card, and only a FRACTION of the onboard storage (and no LTE: The killer). So the One X+ looks more attractive to me than the Nexus 4 (though both have great physical design). Perhaps this is a trend we're going to start seeing more of? Sealed cases? Don't get me wrong: I don't LOVE the idea of sealing the backs of these devices, but if you're gonna do it, at least do it RIGHT, and it looks like HTC has in this case. At least they put enough storage onboard (and put in a large enough battery) to future-proof it in some way (certainly more so than the Nexus 4, it seems. At least from a hardware perspective). I think the One X+ is a great product (with the exception of maybe its camera, and the curious multitasking approach, which limits you to 8 open applications at a time) and SHOULD gain more traction than the original One X, but I think HTC suffers from less-than-stellar marketing. This phone seems to have slipped in under the radar of most folks as it is. What HTC (and specifically this phone) needs is a good marketing campaign, which is something Samsung got right, and is now enjoying tremendous success from. I hope HTC can do something similar. They could produce the best phone in the world, but if its not in the general public's face, they're not going to know about it. I went into an AT&T store the other day, to have a play with this phone, and the SALES STAFF didn't know anything about it! Folks who read these forums & articles seem to know about it, but the average person just seems to know about the iPhone & the Galaxy S III. "Marketing, Marketing, Marketing!" is all I say. HTC makes great devices. Now the world just needs to be made aware of their existence.EricHope - Friday, November 23, 2012 - link
Just saw a pretty slick ad for this phone:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOOVCnAcRiQ
So it looks like they ARE marketing it. I'm happy to see that. Hopefully, the world will now discover this excellent phone.