14 DAY TRIAL // HTC unveiled the U Ultra premium smartphone in January, during CES 2017, when the company revealed that a variant with Sapphire Glass would arrive later this year. It appears that said variant was just announced during an event in Taiwan.
A few days ago, HTC teased a poster for an event held today in Taiwan and it was believed that the company’s upcoming HTC 11 premium phone or a dual-SIM variant of Desire 650 could be announced. Instead, HTC introduced the U Ultra with Sapphire Glass.
Sapphire Glass is made out of crystallizing aluminum oxide, produced at high temperatures and pressures. The material is used in a number of devices, including the Apple Watch, and it’s a bit more expensive than Gorilla Glass, although the purpose is the same, to make phones and various devices more resistant to scratches and falls.
The model will launch in Taiwan on March 28
The high-end U Ultra with Sapphire Glass and 128GB of internal storage will be available in Taiwan next week for the price of $945 (€880), much higher than the price tag on the standard U Ultra with Gorilla Glass 5 and 64GB, which sells for $780 (€730).
It’s worth mentioning that the U Ultra with Sapphire Glass and 128GB of memory will be limited to Taiwan, which means that it won’t arrive in other regions. HTC initially said this high-end model would be available for pre-order in February, but it seems that the company decided to postpone the launch to later this month. Customers who pre-order the phone before March 28 will get a free leather case, power bank, and key ring.
Aside from the screen coating and internal memory, this variant has the same specs as the U Ultra which was introduced in January. It features 4GB of RAM, a 64-bit quad-core Snapdragon 821 platform and a 5.7-inch Quad HD display, but it lacks waterproof features.