The HTC One S (codenamed Ville) is a premium smartphone designed and manufactured by
HTC
HTC Corporation ( zh, t=宏達國際電子股份有限公司, s=宏达国际电子股份有限公司, p=Hóngdá Guójì Diànzǐ Gǔfèn Yǒuxiàn Gōngsī, first=t) or High Tech Computer Corporation, (literally ''Hongda International Electron ...
as part of the
HTC One series
HTC One is a series of Android and Windows Phone smartphones designed and manufactured by HTC. All products in the One series were designed to be touchscreen-based and slate-sized, and to initially run the Android mobile operating system ( And ...
which has
Beats Audio
Beats Electronics LLC (also known as Beats by Dr. Dre, or simply Beats by Dre) is an American consumer audio products manufacturer headquartered in Culver City, California. The company was founded by music producer Dr. Dre and record company exec ...
and runs the
Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich" mobile
operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...
with
HTC Sense
HTC Sense is a software suite developed by HTC, used primarily on the company's Android-based devices. Serving as a successor to HTC's TouchFLO 3D software for Windows Mobile, Sense modifies many aspects of the Android user experience, incorpo ...
. Announced by HTC on 26 February 2012, the HTC One S was scheduled for official release on 2 April 2012.
The first phones were sold on March 30. In the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, the One S is carried by
T-Mobile
T-Mobile is the brand name used by some of the mobile communications subsidiaries of the German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom AG in the Czech Republic (T-Mobile Czech Republic), Poland (T-Mobile Polska), the United States (T-Mobile ...
and
Solavei
Solavei was a social commerce network offering contract-free mobile service in the United States. The company was known for its use of incentivized referral plans and social network advertising program. In addition to its mobile phone services ...
.
Slotted between the low-end
HTC One V
The HTC One V is a smartphone designed and manufactured by HTC as part of the '' HTC One'' series which runs Android 4.0.3 with an HTC Sense 4.0 overlay. This phone is constructed from an aluminum unibody. Its design resembles the HTC Legend re ...
and the high-end
HTC One X
The HTC One X is a touchscreen-based, slate-sized smartphone designed and manufactured by HTC. It was released running Android 4.0.3, (upgradeable to 4.2.2) with the HTC Sense 4.0 skin (later upgradeable to 5.0). The One X is powered by the NVID ...
in the
HTC One lineup, the One S's specs and positioning are close to that of the flagship One X. The One S and One X sold in North America share the same dual-core processor, though the One S lacks
LTE. The One S has an aluminum body and a 4.3-inch 960x 540 pixel (qHD) Super AMOLED display with
PenTile matrix PenTile matrix is a family of patented subpixel matrix schemes used in electronic device displays. PenTile is a trademark of Samsung. PenTile matrices are used in AMOLED and LCD displays.
These subpixel layouts are specifically designed to opera ...
with a pixel density of 256 pixels per inch, compared to the One X's polycarbonate body and a 1,280x720
pixel
In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a raster image, or the smallest point in an all points addressable display device.
In most digital display devices, pixels are the smal ...
(
RGB matrix)
Super LCD 2 display with a pixel density of 312 pixels per inch.
The One S's use of a PenTile display makes it more energy efficient and thinner than equivalent LCD screens, giving it better battery life than the One X. While their rear-facing cameras use identical 8-megapixel sensors, for the front-facing camera the One S has a VGA cam and video capture fixed at 640 x 480 resolution compared to the One X's 1.3-megapixel sensor with 720p HD video capture. In North America, the One S and One X are usually not sold by the same carrier, for instance T-Mobile and Telus offer the One S, while AT&T and Rogers sell the One X. An update to Sense 5 and Android 4.2.2 was announced and later cancelled. The reason HTC gave was that since there are two distinct versions of this phone with two different SoCs and since Qualcomm ended support for it, they said it would be expensive to make the update and as to not confuse people, they canceled it.
Features
Hardware
The One S is at its thinnest point.
The phone uses an aluminum unibody shell, with two finishes available - a black
micro arc oxidized finish, and a light-blue to dark-blue gradient anodized finish (currently the only finish available through T-Mobile USA).
HTC states that the micro arc oxidized finish makes the body five times stronger than the bare aluminium and the iPhone's stainless steel, although some users claim that the finish chips easily. The phone has a power/lock button and a 3.5 mm headphone jack at the top, a volume rocker on the upper right side, and a
MHL/
Micro USB
The initial versions of the USB standard specified connectors that were easy to use and that would have acceptable life spans; revisions of the standard added smaller connectors useful for compact portable devices. Higher-speed development of t ...
port on the upper left. Three capacitive buttons (back, home, and task switcher) are located on the front of the phone, below the display. There are two speakers, one on the front (serving as the earpiece) and one on the back. A two-color (amber and green)
notification LED
A Notification LED is a small RGB or monochrome LED light usually present on the front-facing screen bezel (display side) of smartphones and feature phones whose purpose is to blink or pulse to notify the phone user of missed calls, incoming SMS ...
sits under the earpiece grille. The top piece of plastic on the back is removable and is where the phone accepts a
micro-SIM
A typical SIM card (mini-SIM with micro-SIM cutout)
A GSM mobile phone
file:Simkarte NFC SecureElement.jpg, T-Mobile nano-SIM card with NFC capabilities in the SIM tray of an iPhone 6s
file:Tf sim both sides.png, A TracFone Wireless SIM card ha ...
card.
Display
The One S's
Super AMOLED
AMOLED (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode, ) is a type of OLED display device technology. OLED describes a specific type of thin-film-display technology in which organic compounds form the electroluminescent material, and active matrix ...
display measures diagonally, with a resolution of 960×540 pixels (
qHD
The graphics display resolution is the width and height dimension of an electronic visual display device, measured in pixels. This information is used for electronic devices such as a computer monitor. Certain combinations of width and height a ...
resolution) and pixel density of 256ppi, and is protected by a sheet of
Corning Gorilla Glass
Gorilla Glass is a brand of chemically strengthened glass developed and manufactured by Corning, now in its seventh generation. Designed to be thin, light and damage-resistant, the glass gains its surface strength, ability to contain flaws, and c ...
. The display uses a
PenTile PenTile matrix is a family of patented subpixel matrix schemes used in electronic device displays. PenTile is a trademark of Samsung. PenTile matrices are used in AMOLED and LCD displays.
These subpixel layouts are specifically designed to opera ...
RGBG subpixel arrangement.
Cameras
The main camera has an eight
megapixel
In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a raster image, or the smallest point in an all points addressable display device.
In most digital display devices, pixels are the smal ...
,
backside-illuminated sensor, an f/2.0 autofocus lens, and a single LED flash with five brightness levels. The camera can also record 1080p video at 30
frames per second
A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent.
Frame and FRAME may also refer to:
Physical objects
In building construction
*Framing (con ...
. The camera uses a special image processing chip, the ImageChip, which HTC claims enhances image quality and allows for faster start-up and focus times (0.7 and 0.2 seconds respectively). HTC's custom camera software, ImageSense, includes multiple modes, including
HDR, panorama, and
burst modes, and also allows still photos to be taken while recording video. The One S also includes a front-facing camera with VGA resolution.
Processor and memory
One version of the One S uses a
Qualcomm
Qualcomm () is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, and incorporated in Delaware. It creates semiconductors, software, and services related to wireless technology. It owns patents critical to the 5G, 4 ...
Snapdragon
''Antirrhinum'' is a genus of plants commonly known as dragon flowers, snapdragons and dog flower because of the flowers' fancied resemblance to the face of a dragon that opens and closes its mouth when laterally squeezed. They are native to r ...
S4 Plus MSM8960 SoC (
system on chip
A system on a chip or system-on-chip (SoC ; pl. ''SoCs'' ) is an integrated circuit that integrates most or all components of a computer or other electronic system. These components almost always include a central processing unit (CPU), memory ...
),
which includes a 1.5 GHz dual-core
Krait
''Bungarus'' is a genus of venomous elapid snakes, the kraits ("krait" is pronounced , rhyming with "kite"), found in South and Southeast Asia. The genus ''Bungarus'' has 16 species.
Distribution
Kraits are found in tropical Asia, from near Ira ...
CPU and an Adreno 225 GPU, as well as an integrated
HSPA+
Evolved High Speed Packet Access, HSPA+, HSPA (Plus) or HSPAP, is a technical standard for wireless broadband telecommunication. It is the second phase of HSPA which has been introduced in 3GPP release 7 and being further improved in later 3GPP ...
modem,
GPS
The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...
/
GLONASS
GLONASS (russian: ГЛОНАСС, label=none, ; rus, links=no, Глобальная навигационная спутниковая система, r=Global'naya Navigatsionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema, t=Global Navigation Satellite System) is ...
module,
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio wave ...
b/g/n radio, Bluetooth, and FM radio. The One S also features a standard array of sensors, including an accelerometer, proximity sensor, and ambient light sensor. The phone provides 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of built-in storage; however, the phone lacks a
microSD
Secure Digital, officially abbreviated as SD, is a proprietary non-volatile flash memory card format developed by the SD Association (SDA) for use in portable devices.
The standard was introduced in August 1999 by joint efforts between SanDis ...
slot for additional storage.
In certain markets, such as Taiwan, India, and some European (usually Eastern European) markets, the One S uses the older Snapdragon S3 MSM8260 SoC, with a 1.7 GHz dual-core Scorpion CPU and Adreno 220 GPU. In some markets, both devices are available, notably the UK. The change is speculated to be caused by a shortage of Snapdragon S4 chips. The two versions have slightly different packaging, the S4 is model Z520e/Z520m and states "Processor: Dual Core, 1.5GHz"/"CPU Speed 1.5 GHz, dual core, whereas the S3 is model Z560e and states "Processor: Dual Core". This model is codenamed "VilleC2", and is known as the One S C2.
Battery
The One S is powered by an integrated (non-user-replaceable) 1,650 mAh battery. HTC claims up to 10.5 hours of talk time and up to 13.2 days of stand-by time.
The internal battery is accessible when the phone is opened up by removing top and bottom snap on covers, 6 screws, snap on metal body frame, and small patch of adhesive holding down the battery to the circuit board.
Software
Like other HTC
Android devices, the
HTC Sense
HTC Sense is a software suite developed by HTC, used primarily on the company's Android-based devices. Serving as a successor to HTC's TouchFLO 3D software for Windows Mobile, Sense modifies many aspects of the Android user experience, incorpo ...
interface is present on top of the base Android system. The One S was launched with Android 4.0.3 "Ice Cream Sandwich", which was later upgraded to 4.0.4 in some markets. HTC announced a 4.1 "Jelly Bean" update. A FAQ was created in November for people questioning Jelly Bean on their HTC Device. HTC claimed that the update would be released by Q1 2013 at the latest, but in July 2013, the company announced that they will discontinue updates to the HTC One S.
As of September 2014, CyanogenMod 11 (Android 4.4 KitKat) is being developed for HTC One S and is very stable. As of November 2014, the One S has a completely functional and stable CyanogenMod 12. The One S C2 has a mostly stable CM 11 build thanks to bilal_liberty and SultanXDA on XDA with Android 5.0 possibly in the works
Campaign to continue software support
On July 3, 2013, a petition was created by XDA member ''DylRicho'' (although cited as ''Dylan Richards'' on the petition page) to campaign against HTC's recent decision to axe the device from further updates. Within 24 hours of being live, it received over 1,100 signatures. As of July 5, 2013, it has over 3,450 supporters, and eventually got over 11,000 signatures. The petition has met widespread coverage over various news websites as it continues to gain supporters. In the petition, Richards states that the One S "is still one of the best phones on the market, on par with the dual-core and quad-core
Samsung Galaxy S III
The Samsung Galaxy S III (or Galaxy S3) is an Android smartphone designed, developed, and marketed by Samsung Electronics. Launched in 2012, it had sold more than 80 million units overall, making it the most sold phone in the S series. I ...
phones and HTC's own
One X." He also went on to talk about the company's update release schedule, saying "the HTC customer service and upgrade service are absolutely dreadful." Furthermore, Richards pointed out that various videos had gone live on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
, showing the One S running Android 4.2.2 and HTC Sense 5.0 with "no performance loss from the upgrade." He even went as far as to say that "HTC needs to get its priorities in the correct place."
More recently, a Facebook page and group have been made for the situation. The petition page has been updated to notify all supporters that HTC had responded to the petition when a following user decided to contact the company.
The updated message includes an email response from an HTC official, whereby they acknowledge the frustrations of One S users, and that the company understands perfectly. A final decision has not yet been made as to whether the handset will receive updates or not, with HTC urging concerned users to follow its Facebook and Twitter pages for news on the situation. The representative also noted that One S users should keep calm and be patient until further news is available.
As of January 18, 2014, a semi-official ROM (sources taken from the HTC One XL update ROM, direct from HTC) is available for
Snapdragon S4
This is a list of Qualcomm Snapdragon systems on chips (SoC) made by Qualcomm for use in smartphones, tablets, laptops, 2-in-1 PCs, smartwatches, and smartbooks devices.
Before Snapdragon
SoC made by Qualcomm before it was renamed to Sna ...
model variants via XDA Developers that includes Android 4.2.2 and HTC Sense 5, essentially bringing across exactly the same features that the HTC One X was provided by HTC, including BlinkFeed and new camera features (excluding HTC Zoe, which has specific hardware requirements which are only available for the 2013 HTC One series).
Variants
HTC J
The HTC J is a Japanese smartphone with many of the same specifications as the One S, but has a larger 1810 mAh battery, microSD slot, and runs on
WiMAX
Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) is a family of wireless broadband communication standards based on the IEEE 802.16 set of standards, which provide physical layer (PHY) and media access control (MAC) options.
The WiMAX ...
. Its unibody is also waterproof.
HTC One SC
The HTC One SC is a variant of HTC One S that support both
CDMA2000
CDMA2000 (also known as C2K or IMT Multi‑Carrier (IMT‑MC)) is a family of 3G mobile technology standards for sending voice, data, and signaling data between mobile phones and cell sites. It is developed by 3GPP2 as a backwards-compatible ...
and GSM networks simultaneously. it is currently available only in
Mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
, and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
. It also has a variant that supports TD-SCDMA (HTC ONE ST) and a variant that support WCDMA (HTC ONE SU).Their hardwares are almost all the same. They all have 4.3 inch screen, 1 GB RAM, 4 GB ROM, 5 megapixel, and Android 4.0.
Special Edition
The One S Special Edition is a variant of the One S available only in
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
The scheduled release date for the UK and USA was March 2013. The Special Edition includes larger internal storage (64 GB, compared to 16 GB previously) and a white body; in all other respects it is identical to the standard Snapdragon S4-powered One S.
Availability
In the United States,
T-Mobile
T-Mobile is the brand name used by some of the mobile communications subsidiaries of the German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom AG in the Czech Republic (T-Mobile Czech Republic), Poland (T-Mobile Polska), the United States (T-Mobile ...
is the exclusive carrier of the HTC One S.
In
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
,
Videotron Mobile indicated that the HTC One S is "coming soon".
Mobilicity
Data and Audio-Visual Enterprises Wireless, d/b/a Mobilicity, was a Canadian mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) owned by Rogers Communications. Its name was a portmanteau of the words "mobility" and "simplicity". Mobilicity was one of several ...
added the device to its lineup on September 7, 2012 at a price of $499.99 when activated at the time of purchase.
Wind Mobile
Freedom Mobile Inc. is a Canadian wireless telecommunications provider owned by Shaw Communications. It has 6% market share of Canada, mostly in urban areas of Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta. Freedom Mobile is the fourth-largest wirele ...
started selling the One S on September 11, 2012. , the phone is also available through
Virgin Mobile
Virgin Mobile is a wireless communications brand used by seven independent brand-licensees worldwide. Virgin Mobile branded wireless communications services are available in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Colombia, Chile, Kuwait, Saudi Ara ...
at a price of $399.99.
Rogers Wireless has also sold this device and it is also in the current Fido smartphone lineup.
See also
*
HTC One series
HTC One is a series of Android and Windows Phone smartphones designed and manufactured by HTC. All products in the One series were designed to be touchscreen-based and slate-sized, and to initially run the Android mobile operating system ( And ...
References
External links
Official HTC One S page
{{HTC Android devices, phones=yes, tablets=yes, smart=yes
One S
Android (operating system) devices
Smartphones
Mobile phones introduced in 2012
Discontinued smartphones