After all the rumours, HTC has finally announced its newest flagship smartphone, the HTC U11 Plus, and while it’s not likely to come to Canada, we’re going to talk about it anyway.
If you’ve been keeping track of the onslaught of leaks, you may notice the U11 Plus specs match up with what’s been widely rumoured.
HTC U11 Life
HTC U11
HTC U11 Plus
Display
5.5-inch LCD display, 1080 x 1920 pixels
5.5-inch Super LCD5 display, 1440 x 2560 pixels, 16:9 aspect ratio
6.0-inch, Super LCD6 display, 2880 x 1440 pixel resolution
Processor
Snapdragon 630
Snapdragon 835
Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 835
RAM
3GB/4GB
4GB of RAM
4GB, 6GB
Storage
32GB/64GB
64GB, 128GB (expandable up to 256GB)
64GB, 128GB (expandable)
Dimensions (in.)
149.09 x 72.9 x 8.1mm
153.9 x 75.9 x 7.9mm
158.5 x 74.9 x 8.5mm
Weight
142g
169g
188g
Rear Facing Camera
16-megapixel (f/2.0, 4K recording, AF)
12-megapixel (f/1.7, OIS, AF) dual-LED flash
12-megapixel (OIS, AF, 1/2.3" sensor size)
Front Facing Camera
16-megapixel (f/2.0)
16-megapixel (f/2.0)
8-Megapixel (f/2.0)
OS
Android 7.1 Nougat
Android 7.1
Android 8.0 Oreo
Battery
2600mAh (non-removable)
3,000mAh
3920mAh
Network Connectivity
GSM / HSPA / LTE/ Band 66
GSM / HSPA / LTE
GSM / HSPA / LTE
Sensors
Fingerprint sensor, Barometer, Three-axis gyro, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor
Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Edge Sensor, Sensor Hub, Motion G-senor, Compass sensor, Ambient light Sensor
Fingerprint sensor, Barometer, Three-axis gyro, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor
SIM Type
Nano SIM
Nano SIM,
Nano SIM
Launch Date
November 2, 2017
May 16, 2017
November 2, 2017
Misc
Colours: Sapphire Blue, Brilliant Black | Bluetooth 5.0, IP67 certified, Edge Sensor
Colour: Brilliant Black, Sapphire Blue, Amazing Silver, Solar Red | Edge Sensor, IP67 water/dust resistant, USB Type-C, HTC Ultra Pixel 3 with 1.4μm pixel
Colours: Translucent, Amazing Silver, Brilliant Black| Bluetooth 5.0, IP68 water/dust resistant, Edge Sense
Display
HTC U11 Life
5.5-inch LCD display, 1080 x 1920 pixels
HTC U11
5.5-inch Super LCD5 display, 1440 x 2560 pixels, 16:9 aspect ratio
HTC U11 Plus
6.0-inch, Super LCD6 display, 2880 x 1440 pixel resolution
Processor
HTC U11 Life
Snapdragon 630
HTC U11
Snapdragon 835
HTC U11 Plus
Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 835
RAM
HTC U11 Life
3GB/4GB
HTC U11
4GB of RAM
HTC U11 Plus
4GB, 6GB
Storage
HTC U11 Life
32GB/64GB
HTC U11
64GB, 128GB (expandable up to 256GB)
HTC U11 Plus
64GB, 128GB (expandable)
Dimensions (in.)
HTC U11 Life
149.09 x 72.9 x 8.1mm
HTC U11
153.9 x 75.9 x 7.9mm
HTC U11 Plus
158.5 x 74.9 x 8.5mm
Weight
HTC U11 Life
142g
HTC U11
169g
HTC U11 Plus
188g
Rear Facing Camera
HTC U11 Life
16-megapixel (f/2.0, 4K recording, AF)
HTC U11
12-megapixel (f/1.7, OIS, AF) dual-LED flash
HTC U11 Plus
12-megapixel (OIS, AF, 1/2.3" sensor size)
Front Facing Camera
HTC U11 Life
16-megapixel (f/2.0)
HTC U11
16-megapixel (f/2.0)
HTC U11 Plus
8-Megapixel (f/2.0)
OS
HTC U11 Life
Android 7.1 Nougat
HTC U11
Android 7.1
HTC U11 Plus
Android 8.0 Oreo
Battery
HTC U11 Life
2600mAh (non-removable)
HTC U11
3,000mAh
HTC U11 Plus
3920mAh
Network Connectivity
HTC U11 Life
GSM / HSPA / LTE/ Band 66
HTC U11
GSM / HSPA / LTE
HTC U11 Plus
GSM / HSPA / LTE
Sensors
HTC U11 Life
Fingerprint sensor, Barometer, Three-axis gyro, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor
HTC U11
Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Edge Sensor, Sensor Hub, Motion G-senor, Compass sensor, Ambient light Sensor
HTC U11 Plus
Fingerprint sensor, Barometer, Three-axis gyro, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor
SIM Type
HTC U11 Life
Nano SIM
HTC U11
Nano SIM,
HTC U11 Plus
Nano SIM
Launch Date
HTC U11 Life
November 2, 2017
HTC U11
May 16, 2017
HTC U11 Plus
November 2, 2017
Misc
HTC U11 Life
Colours: Sapphire Blue, Brilliant Black | Bluetooth 5.0, IP67 certified, Edge Sensor
HTC U11
Colour: Brilliant Black, Sapphire Blue, Amazing Silver, Solar Red | Edge Sensor, IP67 water/dust resistant, USB Type-C, HTC Ultra Pixel 3 with 1.4μm pixel
HTC U11 Plus
Colours: Translucent, Amazing Silver, Brilliant Black| Bluetooth 5.0, IP68 water/dust resistant, Edge Sense
The U11 Plus features a 6-inch LCD5 display with 2880 x 1440 pixel resolution and 18:9 aspect ratio. The top and bottom bezels of the U11 Plus are larger than what’s seen on the Samsung Galaxy lineup but are still quite small, especially when compared with the standard U11.
Additionally, the U11 Plus features a Snapdragon 835 chipset, Adreno 540 GPU, 4/6GB of RAM and 64/128GB of storage, running on a 3,920mAh battery.
The HTC U11 Plus also makes up for parts where the HTC U11 fell short. The Plus has an IP68 water and dust resistance certification, while the U11 has a certification of IP67. Moreover, the U11 Plus utilizes Bluetooth 5.0 whereas the U11 uses Bluetooth 4.2.
The U11 Plus launches with Android 8.0 Oreo and has the HTC Sense skin running overtop. Like the standard HTC U11, the Plus features Edge Sense functionality which allows users to input commands with a squeeze. The handset comes installed with in-app commands, such as zooming in on the Maps app.
The U11 Plus also utilizes a new app rotary wheel allowing the user to squeeze to pull up a lot more apps like Google Chrome, the Settings app and the camera app.
Speaking of the camera, the device features a 12-megapixel rear camera shooter with a f/1.7 aperture and OIS, while the selfie shooter is an 8-megapixel sensor with an f/2.0 aperture.
The impressively spec’d and well-designed device comes in black, silver and translucent, though the translucent model isn’t available as of yet.
As mentioned earlier, HTC did not mention any intention of the Plus leaving Europe and Asia, however we’ve reached out to the company just to verify. In England, where the device is first being sold, the 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage variant is being sold at £699 ($1179.04 CAD.)
While the HTC U11 Plus may never come to Canada the other device that HTC announced last night, the HTC U11 Life, is already available in Canada.