Pre-order sales of HTC Corp’s (宏達電) flagship U Ultra model with a sapphire crystal cover began in Taiwan yesterday, the local handset maker said.
The crystal-covered 5.7-inch U Ultra has a storage capacity of 128GB and is available in blue, black, white and pink, HTC said.
The pre-order sales campaign runs through Tuesday next week, when shipments are to begin, the company added.
HTC unveiled its newest model in January in Taiwan. The handset entered international markets, such as Hong Kong, Europe, the Middle East and China, last month.
The crystal version costs NT$28,900, HTC said.
The smartphone brand is working exclusively with Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電) to market the new handset.
Pre-orders can be made through HTC’s online shop and authorized vendors, the smartphone brand said, adding that until April 15, buyers of the U Ultra will receive a gift worth about NT$3,000 with each purchase.
The U series, which has replaced the HTC One series as the firm’s flagship line, has several drawcard features, including an artificial intelligence function and an aluminum look for a refined finish, the company said.
The high-end smart phone is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor and 64GB or 128GB storage options, a 12-megapixel UltraPixel rear camera, a 16-megapixel front-facing camera and a 3,000mAh battery.
It has a USB Type-C slot in place of a headphone jack.
In addition to the U Ultra, foreign technology Web sites have reported that HTC is expected to introduce a new high-end model next month, which would be equipped with a sense touch function and is likely to run the Snapdragon 821 with 4GB or 6GB of RAM.
In addition, the upcoming flagship model has been designed to support mobile virtual reality, the Web sites said.
Another rumor circulating in the market is that HTC plans to roll out two new Pixel 2 models for Google coded “walleye” and “muskie” that are to be equipped with the latest Android 8.0 operating system on a contract manufacturing basis.
After the U Ultra model sales announcement, HTC shares yesterday rose 1.32 percent to close at NT$76.5 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange.
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