Apple's iPhone 6 and HTC's One M8 are perhaps two of the top-of-the-line high-end smartphones in the market today. With the holiday season fast approaching, for sure many are already pondering on which handset would be better choice as daily driver for the coming months. Without further ado we bring you the battle of these two premium phones in terms of specs, build, features and more.
Since Apple has already entered the realm of large-screen smartphones, it is not surprising that it is pitted against many high-end handsets out there. However, nothing comes as close in terms of premium metallic build as the HTC smartphones. And the Taiwanese manufacturer's new One M8 appears to be the best match to go head-to-head against Apple's iPhone 6.
Based on physical appearance, the iPhone 6 and the One M8 sport pure metallic bodies. Though the latter is noticeably longer and wider than the former, the iPhone 6 is way thinner with its ridiculously thin width of 6.9 mm, which is 27 percent smaller than the One M8's. Since the Apple smartphone is smaller, it is very understandable why it's lighter as well. Nevertheless, since both phones come with the same uncompromised and premium build quality, we think it's safe to say that it's a tie for this round.
Moving on to display, the HTC One M8 comes with 5-inch display while Apple's iPhone 6 has a significantly larger 4.7-inch display compared to the ones found in its predecessors. Screen resolution for the two is commendable, but it's quite obvious that this round goes to One M8's 1920 x 1080 resolution that packs in 441 pixels per inch, as opposed to iPhone 6's less impressive 1334 x 750 resolution with 326 pixels per inch. For Apple fans who want superb display quality though, there is still iPhone 6's bigger brother, the iPhone 6 Plus, which comes with a 1080p screen.
In terms of camera technology, these two handsets are not really the leading devices out there. The iPhone 6 comes with an 8-megapixel rear-facing iSight camera with LED flash while the HTC One M8 has a 4-megapixel camera with dual-LED flash. Nonetheless, it is still note-worthy that both cameras can record 1080p resolution videos.
When it comes to software, the iPhone 6 is expected to run on Apple's latest software upgrade, the iOS 8. In contrast, the HTC One M8 is running the Android 4.4 KitKat upgrade and not the latest one - Android L - that is set to be released this fall season. As per usual, Apple's App Store continues to take the lead with its vast galaxy of applications, but Google's Android Play Store is surely trailing behind. Hence, we are giving this round to both devices since having either of them is a win-win situation.
For storage, the iPhone 6 relies mainly on internal memory since Apple is still far away from incorporating microSD slots into its smartphones. The iPhone 6 comes in three variants: 16GB, 64GB and 128GB. On the other hand, the HTC One M8 comes with only two variants - 16GB and 32GB - but the good thing about this handset is it allows users to augments its internal storage through the microSD card slot. Yet as far as internal storage goes, the iPhone 6 has the upper hand once we move past the 16GB base tier.
Of course, battery life is still one of the top deal breakers in the smartphone market today. Good thing, these two smartphones come with decent batteries. While the HTC One M8 comes with a 2,600mAh battery, the battery size of the iPhone 6 is still a big mystery. However, Apple promises that the non-removable Li-Ion battery can last up to 14 hours talk time or up to 250 hours on stand-by. The One M8's battery on the other hand is reportedly enough to last up to 20 hours of talk time and 495 hours on stand-by. Plus, the extreme power saving mode of the HTC device can undeniably stretch its longevity to the maximum.
