If you want an HTC One smartphone which should you choose between the One S and One SV? We find out in our head-to-head comparison
We find out which is better between HTC's new One SV and its existing One S model.
Form
HTC One S - 130.9x65x7.8mm, 119g
HTC One SV - 128x66.9x9.2mm, 122g
Overall HTC's One range makes up a pretty attractive set of devices, the design ethos present throughout is consistently appealing to the eye.
Primarily it consists of carefully contoured unibody shells made from premium grade matte finish materials, with curved corners and displays which perch raised up just slightly from the front of the phone.
All of the above is certainly true of the One S, which looks very clean and modern. It's also unique within the One range being made from a high-grade ceramic rather than an equally high-grade, though very different feeling polycarbonate found on the One X.
One of the only gripes we have with the One S's external build is that the colour choices don't really do the design justice. With other HTC One models you've usually got an option for a white coloured variant which really helps the contrasting black front panel pop out and looks very sleek indeed.
With the One S though there's only black and a metallic bluish-grey colour.
Aside from this the One S is remarkably thin and lightweight at only 7.8mm thick and 119g.
By comparison the One SV isn't quite such a rich phone in terms of materials and design. It doesn't have a unibody and instead sports a removable back panel which is thin and flimsy but fits very well to the chassis with no flex or give when secured in place.
It's made from plastic but isn't as high- grade as the One X's polycarbonate, however, the exterior matte finish gives just as nice a feel to the phone in the hand.
A fairly minor gripe is the silver bezel surround on the outer edge, which has a cheap look and feel.
The One SV is a good deal heftier than the One S at its thickest points, which is either end of the handset where it measures 9.2mm. It tapers to a thinner section in the middle and creates a slight (almost imperceptible in profile) curvature to sit comfortably in the hand.
Fortunately little has been gained in terms of weight as it's still only 122g. The shape is more rounded than the One S and while not as refined as that model it still retains an appealing aesthetic.
However, on both appearance and build quality we have to pick the One S as our preference.
Winner - HTC One S
Display
Both handsets have 4.3-inch displays but the technology used is quite different. The One SV has an SLCD2 touchscreen with an 800x480 pixel resolution at 217 pixels-per-inch (ppi).
Meanwhile the One S uses Super AMOLED with a higher 960x540 pixel resolution at 256ppi.
This makes things tricky, because generally speaking LCD (and in particular SLCD2) will be brighter and a wee bit sharper than an equivalent AMOLED, but the One S's Super AMOLED at a higher pixel density is actually very sharp, bright and colourful and, being AMOLED, has excellent contrast and black depth.
However, the One SV's display is clearer and bolder than its lower pixel density would imply.
Both are very impressive displays which punch above their weight.
Winner - Draw
Storage
The HTC One SV has 8GB of onboard storage and a microSD slot for cards up to 32GB.
Sadly, the One S has no card capability, but it does have 16GB of built-in storage.
This is a bit of a balancing act depending on whether you prefer more built-in storage than anything else or the flexibility of cards along with a higher storage total. It's a personal choice.
Winner - Draw
by via Know Your Mobile
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