HTC Butterfly Unboxing: Screen is so good you can lick it!

Time to let the butterfly out of the cage! (whut lol)

HTC Butteryfly Unboxed!

The HTC Butterfly was announced late last year and it made quite a buzz due to the quality of the display and the specifications. It was one of the first 1080p 5-inch screens and it paved the way for the HTC One which was announced February of this year. Widget City asked us if we were open to doing a review on a loaner unit and we were happy to oblige seeing as we were curious as to what the HTC Butterfly had to offer, especially since the HTC One was already unveiled. As usual let’s kick things off with our unboxing and initial impressions!

HTC Butterfly Spec Sheet

1.5GHz Quad-core CPU Krait, QUalcomm APQ8064 Snapdragon Chip Set
2GB RAM
16GB Internal Storage, expandable up to 32GB via microSD Card
5.0-inches Super LCD3 capacitive touchscreen, Corning Gorilla Glass 2
1080×1920 pixels, 441 pixels per inch
8.0-megapixels rear-facing camera with autofocus, LED flash, simultaneous HD video and image
Can record 1080p@30fps video
2.1-megapixels front-facing camera
WiFi a/b/g/n, WiFi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC
3G, HSPA+, LTE, GPS with AGPS Support and GLONASS
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
2020mAh Battery

What’s in the box?

The HTC Butterfly came in a standard printed carton box. Usual product photo and specifications at the front and back. When we opened the box we were greeted by the striking and rather imposing figure of the HTC Butterfly. It was the first time that we felt that the phone was the one staring at us and not the other way around, hehe.

HTC Butterfly with the plastic cover/screen protector

As expected the device had some sort of body-tight plastic cover to protect it while on transport. We set aside the phone first though to check out what else was in the box. We removed the top layer and found all the accessories and extras at the bottom covered in plastic pouches. Nothing out of the ordinary. We found the USB to microUSB cable, wall charger, manuals, Pin to unlock microSIM card tray, and earphones.

Okay with that out of the way let’s get into our initial impressions of the phone!

The HTC Butterfly is graceful as it is powerful

If there’s one thing you’ll immediately notice about the HTC Butterfly it’s the form factor. Usually devices at 5-inches spread the size equally via the width and height. The HTC Butterfly leans towards the height making it a bit long but noticeably thinner. This makes it actually much more comfortable to hold in one hand. The curved back and edges also help in cushioning the device on your palm so that it doesn’t bite into your flesh.

Medyo... mahaba. Hehe. — Medyo… mahaba. Hehe.

Another striking feature is the display quality! HTC used a Super LCD 3 screen for this one and it does not disappoint! Images, text, and videos jump out in full detail and color. The 1080p resolution truly shines with the HTC Butterfly and we have to give major props to HTC for this.

As for the ports, buttons, and controls, the’re all in their usual places at the sides and at the top. By the way, one thing we can’t get is the silver strip on the top of the screen. We’re not sure if it’s purely aesthetic or if it’s related to the antennae system. Looks good though, lol.

Don’t let the “Butterfly” name make you think that this phone is just all looks and no brains. This smartphone packs pretty high end specifications including a powerful quad-core processor from Qualcomm and a generous serving of 2GB RAM. The HTC Butterfly can definitely step up to the plate in terms of what’s under the hood even against the latest flagship devices announced by other brands.

Buttery smooth HTC Sense UX

The roaring specs combined with the optimization of Google’s Project Butter results into a smooth and fluid Android experience. Transitions and animations were lag free even if we bombarded it with apps on the home screen and a complicated live wallpaper. The games we ran also all ran well: NBA 2k13, Dead Trigger, Shadow Gun, Wild Blood, and Grand Theft Auto. In short when it comes to performance the HTC Butterfly will be able to handle almost anything you throw at it.

The only thing stopping this from being a smash hit?

In all honesty whatever complaint we have with the HTC Butterfly will be mostly nitpicking. It’s an epic device but there is one major roadblock stopping it from being the best HTC offering. Yep, you guessed it… the newly announced HTC One, lol. We’ll probably do a comparison once the HTC One comes to the PH. If you can’t wait for the One though then you might want to just get this one.

The HTC Butterfly is available already from Widget City for Php29,400.