HTC Windows Phone 8S

The Windows Phone 8S by HTC was announced by HTC Corporation on September 19, 2012 and released on December 7, 2012 in Canada.[2][3] It is a cheaper, lower-end version of the Windows Phone 8X by HTC. Despite its availability in Canada, HTC announced that the 8S will not be sold in the United States because the company plans to focus instead on the 8X, which is considered its signature phone on the Windows operating system.[4][5]

Windows Phone 8S by HTC
ManufacturerHTC Corporation
Compatible networksGSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
HSPA 900/2100
First releasedDecember 7, 2012 (Canada)
RelatedWindows Phone 8X by HTC
TypeSmartphone
Form factorSlate
Dimensions120.5 x 63 x 10.28 mm
Mass113 g
Operating systemWindows Phone 8
System on chipQualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8627
CPU1.0 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Krait
GPUQualcomm Adreno 305
Memory4 GB internal flash (1.1 GB available)[1]
512 MB RAM
Removable storageMicroSD (up to 32GB)
Battery1700 mAh Li-ion battery
Data inputsMulti-touch capacitive touchscreen, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor
Display4" S-LCD
800 x 480 px (WVGA)
Rear camera5 Megapixels, 720p video recording
Front cameraNone
ConnectivityBluetooth 3.1+EDR

Because of the limited memory available on this phone, certain applications and features will not be able to run.[6]

Availability

In Canada, the HTC 8S was first available released for Virgin Mobile Canada on December 7, 2012.[3] HTC plans to make the 8S available at Koodo Mobile, Mobilicity and Wind Mobile in 2013.[7]

Reception

One week after launching the device, Virgin Mobile Canada reported that the phone has been "flying off the shelves". At that time, the Mobile Syrup blog stated that the 8S was "the best deal on a no-contract phone at the moment" [8] The blog also praised the device's size and design, and claimed that the phone "makes a number of compromises […] but it’s still able to perform […] well".

Ewan Spence from All About Windows Phone wrote: "While there are clear use cases for the 8S (and I can think of a few people in my family that would get by easily with the 8S) it feels like a missed opportunity. It's going to fall seriously short with anyone who is looking to really push the Windows Phone 8 platform."[9]

OS updates

The HTC Windows Phone 8S has received the Windows Phone 8.1 update, but has not been updated officially further to Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 (however, the latest 8.1 updates can be obtained via Microsoft's "Preview for Developers" app), despite its relatively better counterpart, the Windows Phone 8X, having received this latest update.[10][11] As such, it has become highly unlikely that there will an update to Windows 10 Mobile for the 8S.

See also

References
  1. Spence, Ewan. "Why Did HTC Cripple The HTC 8S Budget Windows Phone?".
  2. "Windows Phone 8S by HTC hands-on: a bright Windows phone that holds promise (video)".
  3. Hardy, Ian (December 7, 2012). "Virgin launches the HTC Windows Phone 8S". Mobile Syrup. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  4. "HTC confirms the Windows Phone 8S will not be coming to the US".
  5. "HTC 8S sold out at Virgin Mobile, "has been flying off the shelves" - MobileSyrup". 14 December 2012.
  6. "Here are the Windows Phone 8 hardware requirements".
  7. "Smartphones". HTC. January 22, 2013. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  8. Hardy, Ian (December 7, 2012). "Virgin launches the HTC Windows Phone 8S". Mobile Syrup. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
  9. "HTC Windows Phone 8S".
  10. Devine, Richard (6 August 2014). "HTC 8S apparently won't be seeing Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1". Windows Central. Mobile Nations. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
  11. Taylor, April (August 6, 2014). "HTC 8S will never get Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1 (GDR 1)". Retrieved August 7, 2014.
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