As disappointments go, this could be one of the biggest (literally) of 2012, as word has it, the HTC Deluxe might not be coming to Europe.
Following some official press imagery which appeared on HTC Germany’s Facebook page, a member from the HTC team then posted a statement (in German) refuting claims that the 5-inch handset would be winging its way to Europe. The HTC Deluxe or Deluxe DLX as it’s also been called was anticipated to be the European version of the HTC Droid DNA (USA) and the HTC J Butterfly (Japan), although this latest claim may put a stop to that idea.
There is of course the possibility that this particular HTC representative is simply trying to throw fans off the scent, with plans for a European rollout of the Deluxe still on the cards, but perhaps under a different name. We may have to wait a little longer to hear anything concrete from HTC’s British arm on the Deluxe’s existence, so long as it’s before the new year kicks in.
November 26, 2012
Evleaks continues to be a treasure trove of unannounced mobile hardware as the first official image of what looks to be a device called the ‘HTC Deluxe’ now features, anticipated to be a global version of the Droid DNA which recently arrived on Verizon in the US.
Just yesterday the Evleaks Twitter feed spat out an image along with the heading, ‘HTC Deluxe, global edition’. This handset looks identical to the Droid DNA which launched on US carrier, Verizon at a dedicated press event in New York earlier this week. That handset in turn was a variant of the HTC J Butterfly which broke cover last month in Japan.
The killer feature that all three of these models accommodate is a Full HD (1920×1080) display. We’ve yet to see such a high resolution display arrive on a device from a mainstream manufacturer such as this and the handset’s 5-inch screen totes an unprecedented 440ppi density, not to mention the fact that it trumps the HTC One X’s stunning LCD 2 technology by opting for an LCD 3 panel too.
Assuming specs from the Droid DNA remain relatively unchanged in the HTC Deluxe, the handset will also feature the increasingly popular 1.5Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core processor which features in the LG Optimus G and the Nexus 4, along with 2GB of RAM. There’s also expected to be an 8-megapixel camera capable of shooting FUll HD video on the back and a 2.1-megapixel camera on the front, both featuring wide angle lenses. Of course with all this demanding hardware, the Deluxe will also feature a 2020mAh battery alongside the same Qi wireless charging that Nokia’s new Windows Phone 8 handsets adhere to.
There’s also said to be 16GB of internal memory with no SD card slot for expansion, LTE (although not confirmed for the Deluxe), NFC and being an HTC, Beats Audio software and hardware tweaks. The HTC Deluxe will come running Android Jelly Bean with the same version of the company’s overlay found on the HTC One X+; HTC Sense 4+.
We’ll keep our ears to the ground on this one as an official launch date is not yet known.
November 16, 2012
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