HTC expands mid-range portfolio with Desire 816

BARCELONA, SPAIN: HTC has unveiled the first model in its ambitious 2014 mid-range portfolio. The HTC Desire 816 distils elements of the internationally-acclaimed design DNA of HTC's flagship HTC One family, with a vibrant, modern colour palate and quality materials that give the HTC Desire range its own familiar, yet distinctive flavour.

Demonstrating HTC's obsessive focus on incredible design, both inside and out, the HTC Desire 816 packs an advanced feature set that makes it one of the best value smartphones ever introduced by HTC.

"The HTC Desire 816 marks the beginning of an exciting new era for the mid-tier," said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC. "Incomparably beautiful to look at and hold with the technology and software to match, the HTC Desire 816 challenges everything that people expect from lower cost smartphones. It is bringing genuine choice to the category by delivering stunning design and high-end performance at unbelievable value."

The first edition of the new-look HTC Desire family comes fully loaded with HTC's iconic dual-frontal speakers and HTC BoomSound for incredible audio quality, while HTC BlinkFeed keeps users up-to-date with the latest news and social updates on the spacious 5.5 inch screen.

Two powerful cameras make the HTC Desire 816 ideal for photography lovers. A 13MP rear-facing camera complete with HTC Zoe and automatic highlight videos, as well as a 5MP front-facing camera, make it the perfect device for capturing both the perfect selfie and stunning landscapes in amazing quality.

Powered by a quad-core, 1.6 GHz processor and offering 4G LTE connectivity, the new HTC Desire model offers world-class speed and power and is fully-equipped to keep pace with the most active lifestyles, whether browsing, gaming or switching between multiple apps.

The new HTC Desire 816 will be available in China, running HTC Sense 5.5, from March and will be upgraded to the latest version of HTC Sense via an OTA update upon global retail availability in April.