Today, we’re testing the HTC U Play – a smaller and more affordable variant of the U series. HTC has never been very price conscious of its premium smartphones. So if we have used the word affordable then it is related to U Ultra. Rs 39,990 is a great price, especially when you can pay a slightly higher price and buy Samsung’s amazing Galaxy S7 (Review).
Does U Play just look beautiful or does it also show strength in performance? Let us know.
HTC U Play design and build
Personally, we have not been fans of big screen smartphones. We liked the HTC U Play with its 5.2-inch display for everyday use.
Talking about design and beauty, HTC has introduced another great smartphone. The smartphone looks amazing from every angle but keeping it clean is also a difficult task. Although the phone is easy to use with one hand, holding the phone seems like a challenge due to its slippery rear. We received a black variant for review but this phone is also available in Sapphire Blue, Snow and White and Make-up Powder Pink color variants on HTC India’s online store.
The 5.2 inch Super LCD display in the phone comes with Gorilla Glass protection and it comes with a Full HD resolution. The density of the screen is 428 PPI. The brightness is bright and the viewing angles are also very good. Colors remain well saturated without any blurring. The color temperature can be adjusted as per your need in the Settings app. While the display is sharp, we noticed a difference in color when we shook the phone slightly. There is a notification LED above the screen and backlit Android navigation buttons are provided near the home button. The fingerprint sensor is integrated in the home button itself.
The HTC U Play is a slim device with a thickness of 7.99 mm and weighs just 145 grams. The metal edges of the phone provide good grip. We feel that the power and volume buttons could have been placed in a better location for easy access.
The phone has a USB Type-C port and mono speaker grill at the bottom. A hybrid SIM slot is provided at the top. The phone’s storage can be expanded up to 2 TB via microSD card. The rear camera in the phone is slightly protruding outwards but not too much. Like U Ultra, this phone has a 3.5 mm headphone socket.
Overall, the U Play is easier to operate than the U Ultra while still being equally premium. In the retail box, you will get a Type-C cable, a plastic case, a 10-watt power adapter, a SIM ejector tool, a microfiber cloth, and a Usonic headset.
HTC U Play Specifications and Features
HTC U Play has an octa-core MediaTek Helio P10 processor. The phone has 4 GB RAM and 64 GB storage. We don’t expect a MediaTek chipset in a flagship level product and this is not a flagship level processor. So we’re a little surprised by HTC’s use of this processor. Let us tell you that Moto M, priced at Rs 16,000, also has a fast Helio P15 processor. But still this processor is fine for everyday activities. In benchmarks, we got figures 10-15 percent lower than the Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 of similar capacity.
Talking about other specifications, this phone has features like 4.2, dual-band Wi-Fi AC, NFC, USB-OTG, GPS and GLONASS for connectivity. The phone does not have FM radio. Apart from this, 4G VoLTE support is also available. There is also a gyroscope and a magnetic sensor.
The U Play runs on Android Marshmallow, which is a big ask. Especially considering its larger variant, which runs on Android Nougat. Apart from this, there is also a watered down version of HTC’s Sense UI which was seen in last year’s HTC 10. In the phone, HTC has replaced many of its own apps with Google’s app suite. For example, Gallery is provided from the Photos app while Play Music is provided for audio.
The first swipe right on the homescreen accesses HTC’s BlinkFeed news reader. And it comes with many other apps pre-installed such as Underarmour Record, Themes and News Republic. HTC has given a new UI Assistant to make its U series different. When we first set up the HTC U Play, we didn’t get any prompts to use this feature. And until we got the app, we couldn’t be sure whether this feature was on the phone or not.
htc u play performance
Due to clean software and large RAM, the performance of the phone remains excellent. Multitasking is very good in U Play and we never faced any problem while doing normal tasks on the phone and running social apps. We could also play games well on the phone. However, there was a slight problem during some selected graphics games.
The upper part of the rear gets hot during the use of camera and charging of the phone. But during normal use there was no problem of heat. The call quality from the phone is good and the sound from the earpiece is also good in noisy places. The fingerprint sensor also works well and identifies fingers quickly.
Media playback is not too bad, as the phone faced no problems playing Full HD videos. High-bitrate files also played well on the phone. Due to the processor in the phone, 4K video cannot be played. The loudspeaker is fine for alerts but not the best for media files. U Play comes with a Type-C Usonic headset, about whose performance you can read in detail by going to the performance section of HTC U Ultra.
The overall performance of both cameras is good, although we would have liked to have a video feature like slow-motion. The 16-megapixel rear camera comes with PDAF and Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and aperture F/2.0 and captures photos with good detail even in low light. Auto HDR mode helps enhance detailing in backlit scenes. The wide aperture provides good depth-of-field in close-up shots. The second shooting mode is the Zoe camera – which can take pictures and record a three-second video. Apart from this, there is also panorama and pro mode. In low light, landscape photos lack detail but close-up shots are better.
The quality of video recorded is good, but the phone does not have the option of 4K video recording. U Play has a 16-megapixel fixed focus front camera which is equipped with aperture F/2.0. Selfies from the phone look good and in Selfie Panorama mode, a group photo can be taken with multiple people. The front camera also records video up to 1080 pixels, and has a screen flash, timer.
HTC has given a 2500 mAh battery in U Play. But in our HD video loop test, the battery lasted only 8 hours and 44 minutes. During normal usage, we were able to make the phone last for a whole day, which is not bad. The 10 watt adapter that comes with the phone does not support fast charging. The phone has HTC’s Extreme Power Saving Mode, which turns off background connectivity features and allows basic features like calling and messaging.
our decision
The HTC is a good looking device with a great build and overall performance. This phone has a good display, great capable cameras and long battery life. This phone is available for purchase. We did not get any information about the time of receiving Android Nougat update in the phone, but this update is expected to be received soon.
Talking about the shortcomings of the phone, its high price and a budget processor reduce its rating. With a price tag of Rs 39,990, it’s hard to recommend the HTC U Play as a buy. For a little more than this price, you can go for a flagship smartphone like the Samsung Galaxy S7 or alternatives like the Moto Z (Review).