HTC One X9: Looks sturdy, works great

The phone is likely to face stiff competition but the power-packed device is sure to garner attention

If there is one smartphone brand that has always been in the limelight for its looks, undoubtedly it is HTC. And the company has lived up to the benchmark it has set over the years with the launch of its new One X9. Available for Rs 25,990, the smartphone has the premium look to woo the audience along with the power-packed performance it delivers.

The latest launch from the Taiwan-based smartphone maker will take on the likes of the Xiaomi Mi 5, Google Nexus 5X, Moto X Style and Coolpad Max, which are priced under Rs 28,000. The price is a little on the higher side, but then, good things don't come cheap, do they?

The phone comes with a 5.5-inch liquid crystal display (LCD) along with a screen resolution of 1,920x1,080 pixels. The screen is coated with scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass. To top it all, the phone has the ability to customise the display option. This includes the ability to manually adjust the colour tint of the display. Now your eyes wont hurt in the dark.

It weighs only 175 g despite having an all-metal exterior which also adds to the sturdiness of the phone. One very trivial yet important quality that the phone boasts of is the amazing grip quality it has because of its oblique edges and a non-slippery back cover.

But, the One X9 is expected to get some tenacious competition, especially from the Mi5 which is also priced lower. Head on, the Mi 5 comes with a fingerprint sensor, USB type-C port, and integrates the Qulacomm Quick Charging 3.0 technology for faster charging - features that give it an edge over its rival.

However, the One X9 also brings a lot on the table with a bigger screen and support for a mammoth 200 GB of expandable memory. It boasts of a 3,000 mAh non-removable battery that runs for more than a day on full charge.

The phone runs on Android Marshmallow coupled with the latest version of Sense UI. The user interface (UI) looks neat with all the trademark HTC features such as the news and social media aggregator Blinkfeed and video editor tool Zoe. It also has an app drawer that lets you rearrange apps, hide apps you do not wish to see, and change the grid structure too.

Powered by a MediaTek Helio X10 octa-core processor, and 3GB of RAM, the processor lives up to its expectations in a rather more expensive price segment. Whether you want to engage in multitasking or bring out the gamer in you, the phone makes it a hassle-free experience. It has a 13-megapixel (MP) rear camera with dual LED flashes and a 5MP front camera, both of which function pretty decently.

Amid stiff competition, it would be interesting to see how many of you actually bet your money on it.