Upcoming HTC One X9 – A Flagship or a Mid-Range Phone?

December 30, 2015 HTC News

It can be said that one of HTC's 2015 flagship, the HTC One M9 (released on March 2015), was never really critically well-received. It didn't sell in big numbers, and it wasn't really much celebrated, compared to the G4 and the Galaxy S6 line.

HTC One X9

In a bid to reclaim its position in the smartphone market, HTC released a much cheaper sort-of-flagship: the One A9. It is a smartphone running Marshmallow that bears a striking resemblance to the iPhone, which led some to dub it as the “Android iPhone”. People, however, frowned upon some of the A9's specs, especially the non-removable 2150mAh battery. 

We are nearing the end of 2015, a not so good year for HTC, and the company is yet to release a phone that just might rejuvenate its seemingly dwindling popularity. However, there are speculations of an upcoming HTC smartphone, the One X9, that is expected to be released before the end of this year, or in early 2016 (most likely). 

Numerous early rumors of the One X9 sounded like the phone is of flagship status, with reports of having a Snapdragon 820 SoC, 1440p screen, 4GB RAM, options for 128GB onboard storage, 23mp camera rivaling Sony's Z5, and 3,500mAh battery. Following the rumors, it can be said that HTC is truly on its way back to competing with other companies high-end devices.

However, leaks from reliable sources have surfaced just recently, claiming that all the rumors of the flagship phone is almost entirely wrong. Tweets of @LlabTooFer and Evan Blass (@evleaks) rejected the idea of X9's high-end specs, as rumors claimed. 

The tweets from @LlabTooFer claimed that X9 will not be having either a 3 or 4GB RAM, no 1440p screen, no 32-128GB ROM, no 23mp camera (but with 4UP front cam), and with a battery that's lower than 3,500mAh. In addition, he states that it will be released by Q1 of 2016.

These reports are supported by those from Evan Blass, claiming that the One X9 (which is said to carry E56 as model number) will have a 5.5” FHD display, a Mediatek SoC,  with a memory of just 2GB RAM/16GB ROM, 13MP camera/4UP front cam, and a 3,000mAh.

Following the specs given by these two reliable leaksters, it is highly concluded that the next HTC is not a flagship, but a mid-range phone. The specs might disappoint HTC fans who were waiting for a more powerful HTC flagship, but for a mid-range phone, the One X9 specs are considerable.