HTC One M7

From the Novus Vault: HTC One M7

For nearly two decades, Novus Labs has been constructing an extensive interoperability library and collecting remarkable devices. This week we revisit the HTC One M7 — a standout smartphone that set a new bar for premium design.

Announced in February 2013 and released that spring, the HTC One M7 wrapped an aluminum unibody around a 4.7-inch 1080p display and front-facing stereo speakers. It was widely recognized as one of the best-designed Android flagships of its generation — and it still feels remarkable in the hand today.

Highlights

• Premium aluminum unibody construction — acclaimed Android industrial design
• Front-facing stereo speakers ("BoomSound") for enhanced audio
• Beats Audio partnership with software equalizer and HDR recording
• "UltraPixel" camera with larger sensor pixels for better low-light
• IR blaster for universal remote control
• BlinkFeed home screen content hub

Key Specifications

• 4.7-inch Super LCD 3 display (1920 × 1080)
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor
• Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean) with HTC Sense
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/ac/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0
• 137.4 × 68.2 × 9.3 mm, 143 g
• Announced February 19, 2013 · Released late March–April 2013

Significance

The HTC One M7 established a new high-water mark for premium Android hardware and mobile audio. Its aluminum unibody construction was years ahead of much of the competition, and the front-facing BoomSound speakers pushed the industry to take phone audio seriously.

Still recognized as one of the standout flagships of 2013, the M7 shaped the industrial design language that premium Android phones have followed for the decade since.