HTC One A9 hands-on: First look

Introduction

HTC is attempting a course-correction and the HTC One A9 is the phone to set it on its new path. Or rather its old path - HTC was synonymous with "premium Android" back in the day, but lost its way the last couple of generations.

The A9 may be a throwback to the days of the HTC Legend - a premium mid-ranger with a metal-clad body and an AMOLED screen, a handset designed with equal measures of form and function.

Like other premium design phones from HTC, the One A9 focuses on the trinity of Design, Camera and Audio. Here's the elevator pitch to get you started.

HTC One A9 at a glance:

• Body: Aluminum unibody, 7.3mm thick
• Screen: 5" AMOLED with 1080p resolution (441ppi); Gorilla Glass 4
• Camera: 13MP with OIS and RAW mode and Hyperlapse; 1080p video; sapphire lens cover
• Selfie camera: 4MP UltraPixel; 1080p video
• Audio: 24-bit, 192kHz supported by Hi-Fi DAC; dedicated headphone amp with Dolby Audio
• Security: Fingerprint sensor
• Power: Snapdragon 617 (octa-core Cortex-A53, Adreno 405); 2GB/3GB of RAM
• Storage: 16GB/32GB built-in; microSD card slot
• OS: Android 6.0 Marshmallow with Sense
• Battery: 2,150mAh; up to Quick Charge 3.0 support
• Misc: Android Pay, Google Now on Tap; optional Dot View II flip cover

You may have fond memories of the Legend or of HTC's last attempt at an AMOLED screen paired to a metal unibody, the HTC One S. We doubt any One S users are still holding out for an upgrade, but now they have a chance to relive the premium mid-range experience that phone offered.

HTC's camera game has improved over the years. The One A9 has optical image stabilization and a relatively wide aperture, f/2.0 plus software tricks to provide pro-looking content with ease. No 4K video is a bummer though.

As with OIS, the company adopted fingerprint readers a few years ago with the One Max only to drop them later. The technology has been enjoying a comeback recently and the A9 is the second HTC smartphone to feature a reader under the screen after the HTC One M9+.

The audio experience is also subject to the great feature shuffle. We weren't very sad to see Beats go, especially now that HTC offers dedicated amps for high-quality headphones and hardware support for the best lossless audio. We do object over losing the front-facing stereo speakers though.

HTC is keen to point out that the A9 design is an evolution of previous One phones and if you look at the back of the HTC One the family resemblance is indeed clear. The front is a bigger break from the norm though. Even with pure-blooded lineage, the HTC One A9's exterior will be compared to the iPhone, that's for sure.