HTC has launched the Butterfly smartphone in India. We got a short window of opportunity at the event to play with the device. Here is what we feel about the latest flagship smartphone from HTC.
The Butterfly has landed. We are not visualizing some romantic landscape, but talking about the HTC Butterfly. This is the latest smartphone from HTC to be launched in India, and is without doubt their next flagship phone.
Looking at the specifications sheet, this phone will be anything but as docile as a pretty butterfly. As one reader pointed out, the HTC Butterfly should have been called The HTC Hulk instead! We have to agree!
1. One look at the HTC Butterfly, and you know that this device is trying its best to feel premium. The unit that we checked out was the black one, with a red frame around it. It is a very slim phone, pretty much on the lines of the One X. But, it feels even slimmer than it actually is because of the flat design – more like a slab of Dairy Milk chocolate.
2. This is a big screen phone, but is a very manageable form factor. The Butterfly’s slim form factor, and the thin bezel on the left and right of the screen, contribute significantly towards that. It is pretty much expected that the Butterfly is more compact than the Galaxy Note II, primarily because the Samsung phablet has a 5.5-inch display. The Butterfly, with a 5-inch display does offer a largely similar experience, but that little difference makes it easier to hold, pocket and use.
3. The Butterfly’s back has the same rubberized finish that we had seen on the HTC Windows Phone 8X earlier. It helps immensely in gripping the phone, and will have an advantage over the predecessors, the One series of phones which came with the plain polycarbonate body. We believe there will be multiple colour combinations available, while the one we checked out on black and red was rather classy. Below the display is the three touch key layout of Return, Home and tasks. The home key will double up as the Google Search and Google Now key. The Galaxy Note II has a non-rubberized finish on the back, which makes it slightly slippery and prone to being earthbound if you are not careful.
4. HTC Sense has been completely updated with this version. The shell looks very different from the Sense that we saw on the One series of smartphone, but the range of widgets remains pretty much the same. We would like to experience the Sense UI under detailed usage to see how good it is.
5. In the little time that we spent with the Butterfly, the display did stand out considerably. While we could not pit it against any phone to compare the difference, text certainly seemed a lot sharper to read, and the SLCD3 was definitely handling red and orange colours better than the SLCD2.
6. The Butterfly has a 2020mAh battery, while the Note II has a 3100mAh one. While this looks fairly significant on the specification sheet, we will reserve out judgment till we actually test the Butterfly under our standard testing procedures.
The HTC Butterfly is powered by a Qualcomm S4 Pro 1.5GHz quad-core processor and is paired with 2GB of RAM. The phone comes preloaded with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, and an upgraded Sense UI experience than what has been seen in smartphones till now. But the real unique selling point for this phone could be the 5-inch Super LCD3 Full HD display, a first for smartphones.
The Butterfly comes with 16GB internal storage, and a memory expansion slot. The rear camera on the Butterfly is an 8MP one, with a BSI lens, while the front one is a 2.1MP clicker with an ultra-wide angle lens. Not to forget, the Beats Audio capabilities, along with a dedicated amplifier for the built-in speakers, are a part of the Butterfly package as well.
HTC Butterfly will be available at a MOP (Best Buy) of Rs. 45,990/- and MRP of Rs. 49,900/- from January 2013. In terms of the price, the Butterfly is up against the Apple iPhone 5, and in terms of the device genre, up against the Samsung Galaxy Note II.
We will put the HTC Butterfly through extensive testing soon, and see how it compares to both its closest rivals. In the meantime, you can check out some pictures of the device.
 The SLCD3 display has a Full HD resolution, and Gorilla Glass 2. You can notice the reflective nature of the display, but that isn’t hampering the text readability. |
 One thing is certain about the new display type – text is very sharp and easy to read, even when the font size may be small. |
 The back has the immensely loved rubberized finish, like the one seen on the 8X. Very helpful in gripping the big phone. |
 The volume rocker is given the integrated design for both keys, with a metallic look. |
 A dash of shiny metal and a line of red colour around the earpiece area add a unique touch to the otherwise dark look. |
 This is similarly slim to the One X, but the flat design makes this feel slimmer still. |
 This is the HTC Butterfly, top down. |
 Beats Audio, it is still here. |
 The redone Sense UI immediately catches your attention. Widget range remains largely the same. |
 The phone reconfirms the specifications. For the doubters out there. |
 The App drawer looks prety much the same as on the One series of smartphones. |
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