HTC Corp is bringing the new Desire 530 smartphone to the United States. The device comes with Android 6.0. It will be available on July 13 at T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless, for $6.67 per month under a two-year contract.
The 5-inch device comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 quad-core processor. It can be acquired in solid Blue Lagoon, Stratus White and Sprinkle White Colors. Verizon would also offer the phone but has not released pricing details yet.
The HTC’s mid-range smartphone includes a technology called Auto Selfie and Voice Selfie. The latter allows users to take pictures with the 5-megapixel front camera without touching any button. Camera content can be directly exported to Google Photos.
The 8-megapixel rear camera is powered by a built-in back-illuminated sensor, to perform under low light conditions. Other camera features include “Burst Shot” and “Sweep Panorama,” to take sport and landscape photographs respectively.
HTC added its BoomSound technology in the Desire 530 and an amplified headphone jack. It increases volume and bass without affecting sound quality, said the company in a press release issued on Thursday.
As most entry-level devices, the Desire 530 comes with 1.5 GB RAM and 16 GB of internal storage, which can be expanded with a microSD. The U.S. edition of the Desire 530 can be personalized with a paint effect on the polycarbonate shell called Micro Splash. The Taiwanese company said every phone with this feature would be unique.
“At HTC we want to bring people the most progressive devices with features customers love. The new HTC Desire 530 is the most unique Desire available – combining our micro splash finish with impressive audio and high-quality cameras, all at an incredible price,” said HTC.
Other features include 4G LTE capability, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, and photo editor. HTC.com will sell an unlocked version of the Desire 530 by the end of July for $179, although it can only be acquired in Sprinkle White color.
Related News: HTC Vive is now available in 24 countries
The Taiwanese company led by Cher Wang said on Wednesday that HTC Vive is now available in 24 countries. The high-end Virtual Reality (VR) headset can be acquired through vive.com. The device can also be purchased in Microsoft Stores and GameStop.
Dan O’Brien, vice president of Virtual Reality (VR) at HTC, said people have been interested in the Vive since pre-orders started in early April. On that month, the company announced a delay in shipments due to “processing issues.”
The HTC Vive comes as the main rival of the Oculus Rift, with a price of $799. The latter is cheaper, while the first includes two motion-sensing controllers and “Lighthouse” bay station beacons for a better body tracking.
Tech site Road to VR said on Tuesday that HTC had sold an estimated 100,000 Vive headsets. The device would have collected nearly $80 million in sales. HTC shares slightly increased 1.66 percent on Thursday in Taiwan.
Source: HTC Press Release