Small phones are so yesterday when you can do so much more on a big screen today, when Steve Jobs once said nobody wants to buy a phone that is larger than 4-inches, a lot of us took that into our hearts but now, the trend has changed, people want larger displays because it means so much more useful to have a phone that is smart. Enter the Desire 816, HTC’s second largest Android handset to date after the flagship HTC One Max, the design resembles the lower end Desire 610 a lot and it seems like the iPhone 6 Plus got the design from it.
HTC Desire 816 Video Review
Unmistakably a HTC design; a design that looks good
Similar to the Desire 610 that we’ve reviewed previously, the Desire 816 uses the same glossy plastic back and rough sides. Because this is a huge device, HTC has placed the power button on the left of the device, which makes it very accessible for left handed users. Besides, you can’t miss the iconic Boomsound speakers on the device, the speaker grille is simple yet stylish in some ways that doesn’t make the phone too serious looking, which makes it an extremely fun device to have and kind of shows your personality depending on what color you choose from Blue, White and Red.
Our experience with the Desire 610 hasn’t let us down with it’s modest specs, and the Desire 816 has some upgraded hardware from its lower end sibling while having some welcoming updated specs sheet.
HTC Desire 816 Hardware Specifications
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 Quad Core 1.6GHz
RAM/ROM: 2GB/8GB (expandable via MicroSD)
Display: 5.5″ HD (1280×720) IPS Display
Camera: 13MP BSI f/2.2 Autofocus (Main), 5MP FSI Front Camera
Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 LE
Features: HTC Sense 6, HTC Blinkfeed, HTC Zoe
Networks: LTE 2600/HSPA+ 42 Mbps
Battery: 2600mAh
Good software experience, could be better for a huge screen
The Desire 816 has a beautiful huge display that everybody will fall in love with despite possessing only a mere 720p HD resolution, the touch display is pretty responsive and precise which you won’t have any issues using it at all, it is one of the best touch screen that we’ve used in the mid-range smartphone segment.
As usual, HTC Sense 6 runs on the Desire 816 with Android 4.4 KitKat powering the phone, usual goodies such as HTC’s Blinkfeed news reading section is there and you will be simply awed by the snappy and consistent user experience throughout the phone’s default apps.
Despite being really functional, HTC Sense doesn’t offer any goodies for a huge display for the Desire 816, unlike some other competitors that are already offering multitasking split window or floating widgets, HTC simply left its Sense software as it should be, which makes it really meaningless to consider the phone if you want to do more with it.
We understand that this is a mid-range device but really, we expected more from the software experience given HTC’s expertise on creating beautiful user experiences.
Camera
Forget about having HTC’s Ultrapixel camera onboard, but hey, it is a 13 Megapixel camera this time so you aren’t getting a pretty decent camera onboard. Of course, we aren’t saying the more megapixels the better but seriously, the 13 Megapixel camera is simply kick ass at taking pictures in good lighting while low light photography is considerably acceptable for a mid-range device, the phone also takes Full HD resolution videos so there isn’t much compromises in the camera experience. The phone’s front facing camera is pretty much meant for selfies, which demonstrates a wide viewing angle and shoots well at 5 Megapixel resolution in good lighting conditions, definitely a great plus for a mid-range smartphone. Check out the camera samples down below.
HTC Desire 816 Video Recording Sample
Benchmarks, Battery Life and Network Quality
The phone performs reliably in most situations, apps ran snappily and you certainly won’t see any sluggishness thanks to an ample 2GB RAM and the trustworthy Snapdragon 400 Quad-Core processor, benchmark scores simply doesn’t do justice for theDesire 816 but you may want to treat it as a reference.
HTC has impressed us again with the Desire 816’s battery, with some heavy amount of texting, web surfing and music streaming, the phone lasted us one great working day – Yes, we actually didn’t expect this much considering that the phone has a super huge display and less than 3000mAh of power.
The Desire 816 supports LTE network and it works well on Maxis LTE networks here with great LTE speeds, call quality is also exceptionally good which always HTC’s strength here, there’s fortunately no dropped calls as well.
A great product, software needs some improvement
HTC has been doing a great job for the Desire smartphone line ups, particularly with the Desire 816, it has a beautiful display, great cameras, awesome battery life and fantastic multimedia capabilities, you can’t find such a great combination of goodies on a mid-range smartphone.
Despite of that, HTC seriously needs to have Sense updated for huge displays, which we can’t find much added usability on it given that the company hasn’t had enough huge screen phones on its portfolio. Of course, we are definitely spoilt with what the Big S have on its phablets.
Verdict
It’s a huge device with a superb user experience, you’ll feel in love with the Desire 816 as if it is the flagship of mid-range Androidsmartphones.
The Good
+ Great and beautiful HD display
+ Fast and responsive
+ Simple, stylish and sturdy build quality
+ As always, BoomSound speakers
+ Best in class cameras for a mid-range smartphone
+ Respectable battery life
The Not so Good
– Price could be cheaper
– HTC Sense could be further enhanced for huge displays
– Right handed users won’t like the power button location
– Limited internal memory
We rate the HTC Desire 816 at 4 out of 5 stars.
