HTC One mini 2 vs HTC One (M8)

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Introduction

Hesitation, it’s not something we’ll be seeing much from HTC this year, seeing that they’re aiming for a more aggressive approach this year. In comparison to last year, HTC isn’t wasting any time at all in bringing to market its line of prized smartphones. In fact, they were quick to launch the HTC One M8 before most of the competition, but in doing so, they’re fully aware that diversity is essential in giving consumers choice. Not surprisingly, that’s where the HTC One mini 2 comes to mind, as it launches in a relatively close time frame to HTC’s flagship. Having two options available, the question that remains is which of the two to side with.

Design

Okay, the difference between these two isn’t all that shocking. Quite simply, it’s a matter of size preference, so those who don’t like the larger size of HTC’s flagship will appreciate the more form-fitting nature of the HTC One mini 2. Employing the same design language, there isn’t any shortage with their premium constructions – so there’s no compromise to their beautiful, awe-inspiring looks. We definitely like the two equally, but as we’ve mentioned already, it ultimately boils down to size preference.

Besides the obvious size disparity, the other notable differences are mostly cosmetic – like the placement of their 3.5mm headset jacks and power buttons. However, it should be noted that the HTC One mini 2 lacks an IR blaster – reducing its functionality over its esteemed sibling. At the same time, we have different cameras in two with them, which we’ll expand on more later. Aside from that, they both feature dual front-firing speakers with HTC BoomSound, microSD slots, nanoSIM slots, and 5-megapixel wide-angle front cameras.

Front view 

5.41 x 2.56 x 0.42 inches
137.43 x 65.04 x 10.6
4.83 oz (137 g)

HTC One mini 2

5.76 x 2.78 x 0.37 inches
146.36 x 70.6 x 9.35
5.64 oz (160 g)

HTC One (M8)

Display

Bearing that “mini” name, the HTC One mini 2 packs along a smaller 4.5-inch 720p display – where as its beefier sized sibling bears a mightier 5-inch 1080p one. Naturally, the HTC One M8’s display is sharper and crisper looking, but details are still plentiful with the HTC One mini 2’s display.

Interestingly enough, they employ Super-LCD 3 technology, so it’s not surprising to us that they deliver nearly the same potent brightness output – allowing us to make out their screens with the sun present. Looking at them straight on, colors have a punchy tone to them, but it seems as though the One M8’s display has the better viewing angles. Overall, they nearly match one another in many areas, but to our eyes, the One M8’s screen still proves to have the charm to catch our attention.

Display measurements and quality

• Screen measurements

	MAXIMUM BRIGHTNESS(nits)HIGHER IS BETTER	MINIMUM BRIGHTNESS(nits)LOWER IS BETTER	CONTRASTHIGHER IS BETTER	COLOR TEMPERATURE(Kelvins)	GAMMA	DELTA E RGBCMYLOWER IS BETTER	DELTA E GRAYSCALELOWER IS BETTER
HTC ONE (M8)	490 (Good)	16 (Poor)	1:1362 (Excellent)	7182 (Good)	2.11	4.33 (Average)	4.82 (Average)
HTC ONE MINI 2	489 (Good)	16 (Poor)	1:1409 (Excellent)	8639 (Poor)	2.19	6.1 (Average)	7.32 (Average

Interface and Functionality

Out of the box, they’re running the most up-to-date customized Android experience from HTC – Sense 6.0 on top of Android 4.4.2 KitKat. Therefore, we’re presented with the same fantastic and modern looking interface that proves to be a cut above most others. In addition, we’re given access to the same social networking aggregation service of HTC BlinkFeed from the homescreen. However, the HTC One M8 benefits by having the various Motion Launch gestures that provides us with the quick peek/access functionality that isn’t present with its pint-sized sibling.

Running the same Sense 6.0 interface, their various organizer apps look and function identically to one another. Of course, things are supplemented thanks to the usefulness we get from Google Now.

The HTC One mini 2 gets treated to the HTC Sense 6.0 UI

Even though there isn’t any issue typing stuff up with the on-screen keyboard of the HTC One M8, those who prefer one-handed operation will find the keyboard of the HTC One mini 2 to be more agreeable – partly because our thumb is able to encompass the layout more easily.

UI of the HTC One (M8)

Processor and Memory

Despite being out spec’d, the HTC One mini 2’s quad-core 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chip with 1GB of RAM is able to carry out basic tasks with the same responsiveness we see from the One M8’s more prized quad-core 2.3GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC with 2GB. For the more demanding users, or those who intend to play today’s 3D games, the HTC One M8 is more equipped to handle the rigorous operations without any hitch to its performance.

Blessing both smartphones with an ample 16GB of storage, it’s nice that HTC outfitted them also with microSD slots to give us more flexibility.

PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS

QUADRANT HIGHER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)19139 HTC One mini 29844
ANTUTU HIGHER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)31075 HTC One mini 217433
VELLAMO METAL HIGHER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)1171 HTC One mini 2567
VELLAMO HTML 5 HIGHER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)1673 HTC One mini 21174
SUNSPIDER LOWER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)693.1 HTC One mini 21285.2
BASEMARK OS II HIGHER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)1071 HTC One mini 25.3
GFXBENCH MANHATTAN ON-SCREEN HIGHER IS BETTER	HTC One (M8)11 HTC One mini 23.9

Camera

Hardcore shutterbugs will gravitate to the HTC One M8 more, simply for the fact that it offers additional shooting modes that aren’t present with the HTC One mini2 – they include the dual camera, 360 pan, and Zoe modes. Nevertheless, they deliver the same set of manual controls.

What’s surprising between the two is the extreme differences with their cameras. As we’re all aware now, the HTC One M8 is unique for its 4-megapixel ‘Ultrapixel” camera, which is accompanied by an unsuspecting secondary rear camera that measures depth information. In contrast, the HTC One mini 2 goes in the complete opposite direction with its 13-megapixel camera.

The biggest weakness of the HTC One M8’s camera, as we know, is its inability to capture a lot of fine detail. Fortunately, that’s been addressed with the HTC One mini 2, seeing that it absolutely captures the details we were desperately hoping to find with HTC’s flagship. Naturally, we gain the flexibility of cropping our photos, but despite that, we continue to like the quality put out my HTC’s flagship. In particular, it performs a whole lot better under lower lighting situations – while its various Duo Effects give our photos that professional touch.

CAMERA SPEED

	TAKING A PIC (sec)LOWER IS BETTER	TAKING AN HDR PIC(sec)LOWER IS BETTER	CAMSPEED SCOREHIGHER IS BETTER	CAMSPEED SCORE WITH FLASHHIGHER IS BETTER
HTC ONE (M8)	2.3	No data	444	363
HTC ONE MINI 2	6	No data	308	253

Call Quality

Thanks to their powerful earpieces and speakerphones, we have no problems whatsoever trying to make out voices in noisy environments. However, we find the call quality of the HTC One M8 to be better, since voices have a clearer tone to them.

Battery

After exposing the two to our battery benchmark test, we have a clear winner in which of them has the stronger endurance. Stuffed with the larger 2600 mAh battery, the HTC One M8 eclipses its sibling by producing an astounding 7 hours of juice on our test. In contrast, the HTC One mini 2’s 2100 mAh battery churns out close to 6.5 hours.

BATTERY LIFE

We measure battery life by running a custom web-script, designed to replicate the power consumption of typical real-life usage.

NAME	TIME HIGHER IS BETTER

HTC ONE (M8)	7h 12 min (Excellent)
HTC ONE MINI 2	6h 23 min (Good)

VIEW ALL

CHARGING TIME

NAME	MINUTES LOWER IS BETTER

HTC ONE MINI 2	123
HTC ONE (M8)	207

Xperia Z2 Tablet heading to Verizon according to @evleaks

Leak artist @evleaks is claiming that the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet will be landing on Verizon in the United States. We have already seenpress images showing a Verizon-branded Xperia Z2, but so far nothing official has come out from that. Either way, it looks like Sony is trying to forge a relationship with Verizon and this may be one of the first Sony Xperia products arriving on Verizon for a long time (the last being the Xperia PLAY). 

LG G3 and LG Isai FL are two different models says the Korean manufacturer

With the LG Isai FL now official, having been introduced Thursday by KDDI, many have taken a long look at the handset, thinking that it might give away clues about the upcoming LG G3. The Isai FL is a sequel to last year's Isai, which did share some design cues and specs with the LG G2. But on Friday morning, the Korean based manufacturer made it clear that the Isai FL is a different model altogether than its upcoming flagship.

Certainly the specs of the LG Isai FL would seem to resemble some of what we expect for the LG G3. The former features a 5.5 inch screenwith resolution of 1440 x 2560. A quad-core Snapdragon 801 MSM8975-AC is under the hood with 2GB of RAM inside. Back and front snappers come in at 13.2MP and 1.2MP respectively. It is all powered by a 3000mAh cell with Android 4.4.2 pre-installed. The device features WiMAX 2 + LTE-A connectivity, and includes LG's Knock Code and a new UI called Isai Motion. The phone also will survive a submersion in up to 3.2 feet of water for as long as 30 minutes. LG worked with Japanese carrier KDDI on the device, which means it probably will be exclusive to the mobile operator, like the original Isai was.

Some of the specs match what we are expecting for the LG G3, such as the size and resolution of the screen. The battery size and water proofing also could match what we will see on the new flagship model. But the LG G3 should come with 3GB of RAM along with a 16MP rear-facing camera and a 2.1MP front-facing camera. In addition, there are some differences in the design of both the LG G3 and the LG Isai FL, which you can see from the pictures below, showing the rear volume controls on the Isai FL.

While many have been thinking that the LG Isai FL is a Japanese version of the LG G3, apparently this is not the case. And the fact that LG is making a point of having this known, could mean that the Korean manufacturer has some very exciting specs and features to show off for the LG G3.

The LG Isai FL is not a Japanese version of the LG G3 according to the manufacturer