HTC One (2014) aka M8 Update: Expected Specifications and Launch Date Details

Last year, Taiwanese smartphone maker garnered a lot of praise for its flagship phone HTC One. Now the company is all set to launch the successor next month (March) with several upgrades in terms of size and internal hardware.

To help to get a better perspective on the forthcoming HTC One successor, we have sifted through multiple reports to round-off the probable features that are likely to make the cut.

Display and Design:

One of the notable features of 2013 HTC One was its zero-gap uni-body metallic cover. Many tech critics and fans had heaped praises on the device for its curvaceous body and looks like HTC will keep the same aesthetic look for its successor. However, the new device is likely to come with minor design tweaks to fine tune and accommodate bigger display and finger print scanner on the back.

American business publication, Bloomberg in talks with a company insider has said that HTC One successor will have a 5.0-inch plus display (less than the 5.9-inch HTC One Max).

Even the recently leaked HTC One (2014) snapshot posted by the Chinese retailer, ePrice corroborate with the Bloomberg report.

Rumors are rife that the new HTC phone would boast of a full HD display with pixel density of 440 plus ppi (pixels per inch).

Many HTC fans might be disheartened to know that Galaxy S5, which is slated debut this month would boast of QHD (aka 2K) 2560x1440 resolution screen having 560 ppi, but fret not; truth to be told, for a normal eye it's difficult to gauge difference beyond full HD display resolution.

There is another disadvantage of having QHD screen is that it is power hungry, leading to fast drainage of battery. So HTC One (2014) users will not miss out on any advantage.  

Processor, RAM and Storage Capacity:

According to trusted tipster, @evleaks HTC One is expected to ship with Snapdragon MSM8974 (800 series) processor, but he has some apprehension that this specification may change.

Evleaks' concern is understandable considering the fact that most of the rival marquee phones that are slated to debut this year are said to come with advanced 64-bit architecture based chipsets, so there are chances HTC may use the recently announced super-fast 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 series processor.

HTC new phone is pegged to pack at least 2GB RAM and come in 32GB/64GB storage variants.

Camera:

Though 2013 HTC One model boasted of being the industry's first smartphone to feature an innovative UltraPixel camera, it did not live up to the expectations of tech critics. The smartphone's camera fell short against rivals like Nokia Lumia 1020, Galaxy S4 and Xperia Z1.

Now, rumor has it that HTC will be using enhanced version of the ultra-pixel camera (probably increase in resolution and wider lens aperture).

It will boast twin lens sensors having better focus and increase depth of field to snap good quality photos, reported Bloomberg.

Mobile Operating System:

Since HTC One (2014) is a flagship smartphone, it is all but certain to run on the new Android KitKat OS (most likely to come with the latest v4.4.2).

Besides the new KitKat OS, the HTC phone will also come integrated with the new version of custom HTC UI Sense v6.0.

Key features of KitKat OS include smarter caller ID, more organized message grouping Hangouts (now all text-SMS, audio and video chat will now be under one roof), quick access to settings, wireless printing (select HP printers), Quickoffice word document app, Bluetooth MAP (Message Access Profile) and many more.

[Also read: Brief description of key features of Android KitKat OS]

Special Feature:

The company has already launched a HTC One Max with Finger-print sensor, so it won't be surprise if the HTC One successor comes with the same biometric technology.

Even the recent snapshots of the alleged HTC One (2014) twirling in the internet have shown a small hole on the rear-side, atop the main camera module, leading many to believe that the free space might be saved for the finger-print sensor.

What will be the HTC One Successor's retail name?

So far we have heard multiple monikers like HTC One Two, HTC One 2, HTC One+, HTC One (2014). Now, a new scoop from the prolific tipster @evleaks says that upcoming phone would be dubbed as 'The All New One' and would come in three variants - gold, silver and grey. 

The name looks a little weird for a smartphone, but we just can't dismiss the fact that 'evleaks' has a good track record in accurately predicting the un-released phones.  

Launch details:

With rivals Samsung and Nokia all set to make huge announcement at the MWC (Mobile World Congress) 2014, HTC seems to have decided to skip the Barcelona event and decided to host a private launch event of HTC One successor next month.

HTC on Tuesday confirmed that the company would hold simultaneous events at London and New York City on 25 March.

UK arm of company tweeted an image titled- 'Save The Date 25 03 14' with a tag - 'The best is about to get better'.

Rival Samsung is also set to launch the new flagship phone Galaxy S5 at the Unpacked 5 event in Barcelona on February 24.

Rumoured specifications of HTC One (2014) aka HTC One Two: