HTC U12+ Launch Expected at May 23 Event

HTC has scheduled a launch event on May 23 and all signs point towards the unveiling of the HTC U12+ smartphone. The company has not revealed details of the upcoming handset, but the HTC U12+ has been surfacing in rumours for a long time now, as has the HTC U12. The former is expected to be the Taiwanese phone manufacturer's flagship offering for 2018, the smartphone was expected to be unveiled in May. A successor to the HTC U11 series, the new smartphone manufacturer may skip the U12 variant to directly launch with the U12+ branding.

The company made the annoucement of a new smartphone's launch via Twitter on Thursday. In the tweet, HTC posted a picture that revealed the date of launch alongside the caption, "Coming Soon. A phone that is more than the sum of its specs." The tagline essentially hints at the company's efforts to distinguish itself in ways other than the race to launch handsets with latest hardware components. In the image, an exploded view of the components takes up the background, though it does not reveal any information about the smartphone.

Coming to the expected specifications, the design renders and case images of the HTC U12+ had already surfaced to highlight a dual rear camera setup and a thin-bezel, 18:9 display. The smartphone is also rumoured to come with two 8-megapixel sensors on the front and two 12-megapixel sensors at the back. It is reported to have a 5.99-inch LCD panel with a QHD+ resolution, Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC, 6GB RAM, 64GB/ 128GB inbuilt storage, and a 3420mAh battery.

Interestingly, it is also possible that HTC may launch the U12 variant as well. Though some recent reports state that the company could ditch the U12 and launch the U12+ only, the former has also been spotted online. It is expected to run Android Oreo and sport a 6-inch Super WQHD LCD panel along with a "Frame less Display" design. It is unclear whether the smartphone is powered by the top-notch Snapdragon 845 SoC as the listing shows LTE Cat.12 support not the Cat.18 and Cat.13 for downloads and uploads. Another leak around case renders had suggested that the HTC U12+ will sport a horizontal dual camera setup, an LED flash, a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, and HTC branding on the back.

Notably, the specification details of HTC U12+ should be taken with a pinch of salt, as there has been no official confirmation from the company. However, we may not have to wait for long to see what HTC is cooking up for 2018. It is interesting to see HTC still persisting with its smartphone lineup, especially after Google acquired a major chunk of the former's mobile engineering division.