HTC has earned my trust over the years, here's why
The title statement tells a lot about Taiwanese company that once was the biggest smartphone manufacturer, but got into vast problems finance wise. Their market share dropped and is now lingering on just around three percent of the global smartphone market share. But that wasn't the case in 2011, when HTC held 10.7 percent of all smartphone sales mostly because of their incredible devices like Desire, Evo, Hero, the legendary HD 2, and Tatoo, a model that opened the gates of Android for me. I still remember; it was late 2009 and my Sony Ericsson W950i, the phone that served me for almost two years, finally died. It was completely destroyed, its body no longer could stay in one piece and one fall sent the screen into oblivion. During that time I was a hardcore Symbian fan, iOS just didn't appeal to me, and Windows Mobile looked dated, even after HTC managed to make a small revolution with Touch Diamond and later with HD2, morphing Windows Mobile from an ugly duck to an attractive prince capable of tackling the iPhone and its (at that time) new and shiny iOS. W950i was gone, and a new smartphone had to be picked. I planned on getting another Symbian device, even though I knew Symbian started to get behind iOS, with its decisions to keep the OS touch unfriendly and to not release an app store that could keep all apps and games in one place. Sony Ericsson and Nokia were the biggest smartphone manufacturers that still made Symbian devices, with only Nokia still completely believing in the OS, even if N97 proved to be an excellent device with powerful hardware but weak software, the main reason for its flop on the global market. But, ever since I discovered Symbian with Nokia 6600 (I was fifteen at the time and Nokia 6600 was my first smartphone) I was enchanted, and never planned on switching to another platform. But since I had to first gather money for a new device after my W950i died, there was enough time to read about iOS and a new kid in the block, Android. Android debuted along with HTC Dream less than a year ago and was still in its early stages. It piqued my interest during 2009, back then it was still (very) rough on the edges but nevertheless it was appealing, bringing lots of novelties, and it was the only mobile OS along with iOS built for the pure touchscreen experience. Windows Mobile was also there, but only HTC managed to build a UI that relied solely on touch. During that time HTC released Tatoo, the first Android for the masses, with its affordable price and the thing with replaceable covers that should make Android interesting to younger folks. I didn't care much about swappable covers, but its affordable price meant that I could enter Android waters without shelling out chunks of money for an expensive ticket. Still remember the day I got it; It was brand new and shiny, and Android was something completely different from Symbian. Touchscreen UI, Android Market containing all apps in one place, so many different features, a large screen (yeah, it was just a 2.8-inch sporting QVGA resolution, but it was magnificent to look at), and a 3.5 mm audio jack! I knew back then that Android will become my mobile OS number one. And the little thing from HTC was incredible, even though there were not many apps supporting its humble QVGA resolution, and even though it never moved from Android 1.6 Donut. The build quality was supreme, the thing fell down dozens of times, and except a few scratches, it worked perfectly. The battery was awesome, and I still cherish its phenomenal design. Although I held HTC smartphones before (Diamond left a strong impression on me, except its Windows Mobile OS), I never believed that someone could match Nokia's build quality. Back then, HTC Desire was a dream of many, including me, but its price was too steep for a college kid. I was happy with my HTC Tatoo, but after a year or so another HTC model, Wildfire fell in my hands. It had a phenomenal optical trackpad, first seen on Desire, and (again) excellent build quality. Although the phone wasn't a powerhouse, it just further sealed my trust in HTC; I know all of my future phones will be made by HTC. Aside from build quality, excellent battery life and their ultimate reliability (HTC makes the longest lasting phones, you'll rarely see their phones get broken, except if you manage to shatter the screen), HTC built the best Android UI. Sense UI was one of the best things about my HTC Tatoo, all other UI coatings looked like an unfinished design mess. Touchwiz was childish; Xperia UI had that corporate look like it was designed for managers. The more recent UI solutions like the one from LG, or the mess called EMUI made by Huawei can't even compare to Sense. Sense was, and still is, the best Android UI I've seen till date. It's just perfect; there aren't unnecessary changes, no over the top design solutions, all additions have a purpose, you won't find piles of functions you never use. Wildfire served me for two straight years, and during that time the phone worked perfect, I even rooted it and put the new Android version (Think it was Gingerbread); at the end, I sold it with the phone working like on the first day. The new choice was HTC One V, my first metal phone. I was stunned with its big and bright screen and its incredibly tough-looking aluminum body. It fell on the concrete, on ceramic tiles, on asphalt, on brick surfaces, on everything, but aside from a couple of scratches, it was undamaged. I continued using it for more than two years, and the phone never betrayed me, not a single time. Now, I have a HTC One M8, bought it used at the beginning of 2016. The battery is still perfect, it lasts me for a day and a half without problems. The phone works like a clock, and the latest Sense UI is still the best Android UI around, no doubt about it. The build quality is top notch; its aluminum body is bliss to hold. I had four HTC smartphones, never faced with any malfunction, hardware or software related, never had to change the battery, never faced with a dead charger, never had shattered screen although all four dropped like hell. Build quality, fantastic UI, reliability, excellent battery life, and the fact that I never faced any kind of malfunction, earned HTC a lifetime worth pile of trust from me. Although the company slowly declines, it still makes the best phones around, but its marketing division really needs to wake up and start, you know, doing their job. HTC makes smartphones, and as long as they continue to do so, I'll buy their smartphones. Trust is something you earn very hard and lose very easy, but HTC never managed to lose a single gram of my trust, and that's saying something.
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