The HTC One (M8) Review
by Anand Lal Shimpi & Joshua Ho on March 26, 2014 7:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- HTC
- Mobile
- HTC One
Snapdragon 801 Performance
The M8 is the first smartphone we’ve tested to use Qualcomm’s newly announced Snapdragon 801 SoC. At a high level the 801 is a frequency bump enabled by a 28nm HPm process push, giving it a tangible increase in performance (and potential decrease in power consumption) compared to the outgoing Snapdragon 800. The table below compares the 801 variants to the Snapdragon 800:
| Snapdragon 800/801 Breakdown | ||||||||||
| SoC Version | Model | Max CPU Frequency | Max GPU Frequency | ISP | eMMC | DSDA | Memory IF | |||
| MSM8974VV | v2 | S800 | 2.2GHz | 450MHz | 320MHz | 4.5 | N | 800MHz | ||
| MSM8974AA | v2 | S800 | 2.3GHz | 450MHz | 320MHz | 4.5 | N | 800MHz | ||
| MSM8974AB | v2 | S800 | 2.3GHz | 550MHz | 320MHz | 4.5 | N | 933MHz | ||
| MSM8974AA | v3 | S801 | 2.3GHz | 450MHz | 320MHz | 5.0 | Y | 800MHz | ||
| MSM8974AB | v3 | S801 | 2.3GHz | 578MHz | 465MHz | 5.0 | Y | 933MHz | ||
| MSM8974AC | v3 | S801 | 2.5GHz | 578MHz | 465MHz | 5.0 | Y | 933MHz | ||
In most parts of the world the M8 will ship with a 2.3GHz Snapdragon 801. In Asia/China however we’ll see the 2.5GHz MSM8974AC v3 SKU instead.
Compared to the outgoing Snapdragon 800, peak CPU performance shouldn’t increase all that much. What we may see however is an improvement in power efficiency thanks to the improved 28nm HPm process.
It’s really the GPU that will see the largest increase in performance. With a maximum speed of 578MHz and paired with faster LPDDR3-1866 memory, we should see up to a 30% increase in GPU bound performance over Snapdragon 800 designs.
- Physics
| Snapdragon 801 vs 800 vs 600 | |||||||
| HTC One (M8) - Snapdragon 801 | Google Nexus 5 - Snapdragon 800 | HTC One (M7) - Snapdragon 600 | 801 vs 800 | 801 vs 600 | |||
| SunSpider 1.0.2 | 772.8 ms | 686.9 ms | 1234.8 ms | -12% | +37% | ||
| Kraken Benchmark 1.1 | 6745.2 ms | 7245.9 ms | 12166.5 ms | +7.4% | +45% | ||
| Google Octane v2 | 4316 | 3726 | 3103 | +16% | +39% | ||
| WebXPRT Overall | 373 | 392 | 244 | -5% | +53% | ||
| AndEBench - Native | 17430 | 17480 | 12381 | -1% | +41% | ||
| 3DMark 1.1 Ultimate | 19631 | 17529 | 10519 | +12% | +87% | ||
| 3DMark 1.1 Ultimate - Physics | 50.5 | 51 | 33.1 | -1% | +53% | ||
| Basemark X 1.1 - HQ | 12194 | 11275 | 4807 | +8.1% | +154% | ||
| GFXBench 3.0 - Manhattan Onscreen | 11.1 fps | 9.3 fps | 5.1 fps | +19% | +118% | ||
| GFXBench 3.0 - Manhattan Offscreen | 10.4 fps | 8.7 fps | 4.4 fps | +20% | +136% | ||
| GFXBench 3.0 - T-Rex HD Onscreen | 29.9 fps | 24.3 fps | 12.6 fps | +23% | +137% | ||
| GFXBench 3.0 - T-Rex HD Offscreen | 27.9 fps | 22.9 fps | 12.6 fps | +22% | +121% | ||
CPU Performance
GPU Performance
NAND Performance
The One is available in either 16GB or 32GB configurations, there are no higher capacity versions offered. There is now a micro SD card slot on the right side of the device, just above the volume rocker.
Despite using a Snapdragon 801 SoC, the internal storage is still an eMMC 4.5 solution.
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cgramer - Thursday, April 3, 2014 - link
Could you post a photo of the new One in its included case (and a photo of the included case by itself)? You mentioned it in the "what's in the box" section, but I'd love to see it. :) Thanks!cgramer - Thursday, April 3, 2014 - link
Never mind, I hadn't checked the gallery yet. D'oh!Jodiuh - Monday, April 7, 2014 - link
I want to print this out on all 60 pages or whatever and take it to the pool w/ some green tea and have my AT time, but I'm afraid I will ruin something if I read about it before experiencing it. Maybe I'll just look @ the pictures? :Dthekeelo_g - Thursday, April 10, 2014 - link
I'm curious which carrier model was tested. I've checked out a couple unboxing videos in anticipation of picking either this or the GS5 up tomorrow, and I'm not seeing the case or headphones mentioned in this review with the T-Mobile variant. Are they exclusive to getting the phone directly from HTC? If so, that's garbage.purerice - Saturday, April 12, 2014 - link
So I am rather behind the times in reading this article but it is a hoot to see 20 pages of comments virtually obsessed with... not the screen quality, not the performance, not the interface, not the feel, not the size, not the battery life, nor anything else... but the STEEEENKIN KAMERRRRAAAAAThe review is great and I enjoyed the various shades of Anand as well as the detail here.
I haven't been in the smartphone market for a while, but these types of reviews keep me in the loop for when I will be in the market. As such I appreciate them, even if most comments are single-minded.
elotrolado - Saturday, April 12, 2014 - link
This phone looks great. However, it is simply too large and heavy for optimal ergonomic utilization in my hands and comfortable pocketability for my pants (I have average male hands and don't wear skinny jeans). Shrink it to the phone and screen dimensions of the Moto X (perfect!), slightly improve the camera and keep everything else and it will be, by far, the best phone for most people.petar_b - Friday, April 18, 2014 - link
One reason I won't buy this phone again - is camera. When I zoom-in and crop photo to see desired subject better - I see pixels - I don't like it. Samsung galaxy doesn't have this problem. Regarding water proof tests - is it like rain proof or it's really water proof, or it can take photos in the sea...eagle_eye - Tuesday, April 22, 2014 - link
Could you please write a review on the Sony Xperia Z2? Thanks.mchart - Thursday, April 24, 2014 - link
FYI, I bought this at T-Mobile yesterday and their version of the phone does not come with earbuds or a case.Also, mine appears to have a slight bend in the ring near the screen where the SIM card goes. I bent it back to straight a little, but there is still a gap.
This is my first Android phone and it was the phone that compelled me to switch from the iPhone. That being said.. I'm missing a few things about the iPhone, and it's frustrating as all hell trying to figure out a new OS.
WiredTech - Friday, May 23, 2014 - link
I have the M8 and several others. Folks the M8 build makes the iPhone 5S a bit jealous. The camera is weak. Didn't stop me from buying it as I have other options and I love *everything* else about the M8.As so many like to point out, the camera isn't just about megapixels. The iPhone 5S has 8 and is very good. The Lumia 1520/Icon down-sample a 19MP image to 5 megapixels and the images are great (at only 5).
Are the M8's 4 megapixel images good? Not compared to my other devices mentioned above. I think there is no dynamic range and lots of CA.