Review: HTC Desire 828 Will Satisfy Your Basic Desires

HTC has launched the latest addition to the Desire line-up – 828. It can give you the best multimedia experience

Manav Sinha
Tech News
Updated:
The HTC Desire 828. (Photo: <b>The Quint</b>)
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The HTC Desire 828. (Photo: The Quint)
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The HTC Desire 828 was launched by the Taiwanese tech giant in India recently. This mid-range phone adds to the HTC’s Desire portfolio in India.

We had a chance to try it out and it looks promising.

The phone has a beautiful design. (Photo: The Quint)

When you look at the phone, it looks beautiful and well built. The matte finish on the back along with the chrome ring around the camera lens give it a premium feel and finish.

But is it worth your money?

Key Specifications: HTC Desire 828

  • Display: 5.5 inch, Full HD Display (1080p)
  • Operating System: HTC Sense 7 UI, Android 5.1 Lollipop
  • Processor: Octa-Core
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Storage: 16 GB, Expandable to 2TB via memory card
  • Rear Camera: 13MP Camera with Optical Image Stabilisation
  • Front Camera: HTC UltraPixel with f2.0 apperture
  • Battery: 2800 mAh
  • Price: Rs 19,990

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What’s Good?

The cameras are one of the best features of the Desire 828. It has a 13 megapixel main camera which has BIS, auto-focus and Optical Image Stabilisation – a first in the HTC Desire series. On the front you get the HTC UltraPixel Camera with f2.0 aperture, which means low light photos come out quite good as well.

The HTC Desire 828 has a 13 Megapixel camera on the back. (Phot: The Quint)

Both cameras can shoot videos in Full HD (1080p). The next most impressive thing about this phone has to be the front facing dual speakers.

They are front facing, which means the sound waves are thrown on your face and not bounced. Second, HTC BoomSound and Dolby Speakers work together to give you an amazing audio experience.

Photo taken by the rear camera of the HTC Desire 828. (Photo: The Quint)

The coloured-strip surrounding the phone makes the 7.9 mm thick phone appear slimmer, and the flat back panel makes the phone easy to hold. The phone supports 4G LTE and storage can be expanded to 2 TB.

The design of this phone is certainly impressive. Fire up that screen and the story gets even more interesting.

The phone is slim, light-weight and feels good to hold. (Photo: The Quint)

The screen is a 5.5 inch full HD (1080p) display with nice viewing angles. The phone runs HTC Sense 7 UI on top of Android 5.1 Lollipop, which is non-intrusive.

The phone has dual front-facing speakers which sound fantastic. (Photo: The Quint)

The phone has 16 GB of internal storage, and weighs in at 148 gm. It’s powered by an Octa-Core Processor which clocks 1.5 GHz. It does get warm, but the overall multitasking experience on the phone is smooth. You get 2GB RAM on the phone and that’s more than sufficient.

The non-removable 2800 mAh battery will last you a day, which most modern day smartphones do.

What’s Bad?

One of the most inconvenient things about the HTC Desire 828 is the lack of texture to the power key button. It can be difficult to find, by sliding your finger on the side. But to be fair, the phone does support double tap to wake up the screen.

It can be difficult to differentiate between the power button and volume rockers. (Photo: The Quint)

The phone’s hardware can easily perform everyday tasks, but begins to give in when you throw graphics-intensive games like FIFA 15, Marvel Future Fight or Need For Speed. Lags and frame drops are observed, making it not the best choice for gamers.

This is how Need For Speed: No Limits looked like on the HTC Desire 828. (Photo: The Quint)

Why Buy It?

The Phone Is One Of The Best Multimedia Phones In The Market. (Photo: The Quint)

The phone looks great, feels great and gets the work done.

It does tend to warm up a little bit with extensive use, but does not overheat. It might not be for heavy gamers, but definitely meets the expectations from a multimedia experience point of view.

The HTC Desire 828 faces tough competition from the likes of the Moto X Play, OnePlus X, Xiaomi Mi4 and even the OnePlus One at its pricing of Rs 19,990 but we’re glad that HTC has tried acting to market sentiments, instead of placing its own priorities.

(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)

Published: 25 Nov 2015,08:02 PM IST

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