HTC One M9+ Release: New Smartphone Features 2K Display And Fingerprint Sensor

There’s a new HTC One M9 hitting the market. The HTC One M9+ is bigger and has a sharper display but will likely have limited availability. HTC announced the HTC One M9 variant Wednesday. At first glance, the M9+ and the M9 seem almost identical, but there are a few distinguishing features on the newer smartphone.

First, the HTC One M9+ includes a fingerprint sensor, located within a home button on the device’s front. The original M9 has no sensor and no such home button. It features a power button located only on its right side below the volume keys.

This isn’t the first time HTC has put a fingerprint sensor on one of its devices. The HTC One M8 Max, which launched last year after the original M8 also featured a sensor, located on its back. The intent was that users could unlock the device with their fingerprint while holding the M8 Max naturally; however, the sensor placement turned out to be awkward.

With a 5.2-inch display, the HTC One M9+ is slightly larger than the original M9, which features a 5-inch screen, but this new smartphone blows its counterpart out of the water with a 2K (2048 × 1536) resolution display. The original M9 features a Full HD (1920 × 1080) resolution display, which has disappointed many pundits.

Another new feature is a MediaTek MT6795T Octa-core chip that powers the HTC One M9+. The quality of MediaTek’s chips is decent and they are cost-effective, which could mean the M9+ may not see a significant jump in price. The original M9 features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 chip, which is considered one of the top mobile processors on the market.

Otherwise, the HTC One M9+ has all of the features seen on the original M9, including 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage, a 20-megapixel rear camera and 4-megapixel “UltraPixel” front camera, a 2,840mAh battery and LTE capability.

There is no word on how much the HTC One M9+ will cost or where it will be available, but the device is expected to launch in China. The HTC One M9 became available online on March 27 and will be available in stores April 10.