HTC Desire 616 vs Huawei Honor 3C: Which one is a smart buy?

HTC and Huawei, both the handset makers have launched Desire 616 and Honor 3C respectively.

Desiring too much?

Recently, when I was asked to review the HTC Desire 616, the only reaction was: "Do they desire to launch a phone every other week?"

The latest from the Taiwanese phone maker is here to strengthen its position in the budget segment.

With several other Desire range devices already in the segment, buyers might get confused as to which HTC gadget to get.

Desire 616 has been launched to compete with sub Rs 20,000 octa-core devices.

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Display

Desire 616 has a 5-inch display with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels.

This translates into a pixel density of 294 pixels per inch.

The display is sharp and the colour reproduction is fairly crisp, but they do not look as natural as some of their counterparts offer.

You don't get Corning Gorilla Glass protection, so, you need to be a bit careful while handling the device.

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Design

From the looks of it, the Desire 616 looks to its metal-clad sibling One M7.

It is built from polycarbonate plastic and it feels like a mid-range device.

It tips the scales at 150 g, and there is not much to write home about the looks of the device.

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Processor and performance

The Desire 616 runs a 1.4 GHz Octa Core MT6592 processor.

It offers a snappy level of performance but its counterparts have the same heart ticking at 1.7 GHz/2GHz.

The device has 1GB RAM for multitasking, but the performance would have been better with 1.5GB/2GB RAM. There are slight lags in the regular usage.

It runs on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean in a day and age when a majority of new smartphones run on Android 4.4 KitKat.

Camera

At the rear of the device is an 8MP camera coupled with a LED flash.

It performs decently but you need to have stable hands to take the right images. It will record videos in a 1080p resolution for you.

The secondary camera is a 2MP one. The Desire 616, on the whole, gives you an average imaging experience.

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Battery and storage

The phone employs a 2,000 mAh battery. It lasts a bit less than a day considering the octa-core processor and a 5-inch screen.

Verdict

At Rs 16,990, the device appears slightly overpriced considering the specification.

With the likes of the Asus Zenfone range and the Xiaomi Mi3, I feel it is going to be a tough ride for the gadget in an already crowded market.

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Honor hope for Huawei  

Huawei, the Chinese company, while adding two more units to its Ascend series of smartphones has also unveiled the Honor 3C.

Blessed with a vibrant screen and captivating user interface, the Honor 3C is priced in the mid-range segment.

Build and design

At 140 g, the Honor 3C is light. The finishing is decent but not eye-catching.

The front of the device sports the three capacitive function keys, front camera and a neatly designed earpiece - which performed well while making calls. The two physical keys are on the right.

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Display

One of the highlight features is the phone's 5-inch (12.7 cm) HD LTPS display.

The screen has a resolution of 1280X720. LTPS or low temperature poly-silicon throws in more colour to the display.

This makes it apt for use under sunlight.

Camera

The cameras were a tad disappointing.

They could have been much better. Honor 3C comes with a 5-megapixel (MP) front-facing camera.

It has a beauty-level mode that helps the user get the perfect pose.

The device is being pitched as a brilliant smartphone for clicking selfies, but, sadly, the output from the front cam was average.

The 8MP Sony BSI rear camera fared better, although the colours seemed a bit washed out.

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Strong core and functioning

The Honor 3C is fast. It runs on a MTK 1.3 quad core processor, backed by 2GB RAM.

Its user interface, Emotion 2.0 Light, uses bright colours and vibrant transitions to make the interface more attractive.

The interface gels smoothly with Android 4.2.

Conclusion

Priced at Rs 14,999, the Honor 3C is focussing on the mid-range segment. Being dubbed as a great device to click selfies (including panaromic selfies) could work in its favour. 

There are a few more things that could hinder the user experience at times.

The key and text pad is crowded. There are too many numbers and symbols on one key.

Despite an excellent screen, the video-watching experience could be hampered by phone's average loudspeaker.  

Running on a longish and sleek 2,300 mAh battery, the Honor 3C will easily last a day, and sometimes more, even while using dual microSIMs.

We wouldn't call the Honor 3C a sure-shot buy, but if you are looking for a new and affordable option in this price range, then the Honor 3C would be a decent buy.