THE HTC WINDOWS PHONE 8X Was supposed to be
the model that would bring Windows Phone 8 to the masses, but after testing it,
our overall feeling is, "meh.” The HTC 8X is fairly average in size, but it’s
thinner around the edges, giving the impression that it’s more svelte than it
actually is. It also has a polycarbonate shell that makes it feel like a
premium device, and its unibody design feels solid at the expense of a memory
slot and replaceable battery.
The front of the HTC 8X is taken up by a
4.3-inch HD display that includes a front-facing wide-angle lens and three keys
at the bottom for back, search, and menu. The display is easily as sharp as
Apple’s Retina display, and the top of the HTC 8X features just a 3.5mm
headphone jack and the lock button. The left-hand side of the HTC 8X is bare,
while the bottom holds a Micro USB port. The volume rocker is on the right and
below it is a camera shutter button. The rear of the 8X displays the Beats Audio
logo, and there is another camera with LED light and a fast f/2.0 lens.
HTC
Windows Phone 8X
As far as the Windows 8 OS goes, there’s
one word that springs to mind, and that’s “elegance.” If you haven’t used a
Windows mobile product since the clunky old era, you’ll think we’re joking, but
we’re not. We love Windows Phone 8, even more than the desktop OS in some ways.
Those tiles that are annoying on the desktop are front and center on the 8X
home screen, and each tile represents a program that updates with live
information. For example, your mail live tile will show an envelope when you
have new email, a number will appear for unread messages, and also for missed
calls and texts. The calendar tile displays appointments and updates as they
change, but will only show one calendar from one service at a time, which is
one of our biggest gripes about the phone.
At least it suffers no lag which just goes
to show that you can get away with a dual-core rather than a quad-core
processor. We’ll also go so far as to say that we think the contacts
implementation on Windows Phone is the best out there, bar none. Here’s why:
Rather than simply being an app, it’s a fundamental part of the WP8 OS that
runs through it like a vein. When you go into the People section, you’re
greeted with tabs that you can swipe through that show social media updates,
who you’ve spoken with recently, and a tab called Together, which allows you to
create a little group of contacts for a group chat and file sharing, but only
with other W8 users.
First
off the HTC 8X hardware and industrial design is really quite phenomenal.
Probably the biggest disappointment with
the 8X is that the app store is so deficient, and though it will likely grow
over time, consumers have very little patience; nobody wants to buy a phone
just to be able to use some cool apps in six months or a year. They want them
now, and Microsoft can’t compete with Google and Apple on this front at this
time. We also were disappointed by the battery life, which after a day of moderate
usage was almost always dipping into the single digits by the time we were
heading home.
Overall, we love the OS and the handset
design, but the phone has too many drawbacks to be "the one" Windows
8 phone at the moment. Perhaps that distinction will fall to the upcoming Nokia
Lumia 920.
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Specifications
§ OS:
Windows Phone 8
§ Processor:
Dual-core Qualcomm SA 1.5GHz
§ Display:
1280x720
§ Capacity:
16GB
§ Cameras:
2.1 MP front, 8MP rear
§ Video:
1080p
§ Connectivity:
Bluetooth 3.1, 802.11 b/g/n, HSDPA, LTE
§ Battery:
1,800mAh
§ Dimensions:
5.21x2.61x0.40
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