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Hands On With the HTC One X

HTC’s new One series smartphones are an impressive trio, ranging from the entry level One V all the way up to the Quad-Core flagship One X, with the excellent One S in between.

Two of the three models in HTC’s latest One series of smartphones have just landed in the UK – the One X and One S – and we’ve gotten our hands on the daddy of the family today at the Gadget Show Live.

Just in case you’ve missed any of our previous blogs on the One X, or have somehow managed to miss one of the many adverts that have recently been taking over our TV screens, we’ll fill you in on what the phone is all about. It packs the latest smartphone tech in just about every area, with a gorgeous 4.7-inch Super AMOLED screen, a powerful Nvidia Tegra 3 Quad-Core processor, the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS and NFC wireless connectivity.

Although it’s the biggest phone in the range it doesn’t feel too big or hefty in the hand, but we’d say it’s at the upper limit in terms of size and comfort – those with smaller hands might find it to be a bit of a challenge to hold for extended periods of time. We’ve compared it to the giant 5.3-inch Samsung Galaxy Note in our gallery as a comparison tool, which is a pretty good guide.

The Android heavy-hitter feels pretty light for it’s size too, and feels sturdy despite its mostly plastic construction. At 130g it’s only a few grams lighter than the iPhone 4S, but it feels deceptively lighter thanks to the materials used and a thin form factor. The One X is slim at 8.9mm thick, but it’s not in the same league as its stablemate, the HTC One S (7.8mm), and Motorola’s RAZR (7.1mm).

When you first pick up the One X the first thing that will hit you is the 4.7-inch screen. HTC has used one of the best screen panels around for its new top-of-the-range device, and it shows. The screen has a 720p HD resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, with a high pixel density of 312 ppi (pixels per inch), which makes the picture quality crystal clear, with individual pixels almost invisible to the naked eye.

Flicking through the numerous homescreens and app menus is slick and fast, as is loading up, exiting and resuming applications of all types. HTC has overhauled its Sense user interface to compliment Android 4.0 and has thankfully taken away some of the unnecessary elements that made it a little too much to handle on previous phones. We were particularly impressed with the new multitasking screen, where apps are displayed as cards, with the user able to flick through them, and flick a card upwards or downwards to exit it. It’s very reminiscent of HP and Palm’s WebOS, but it’s still neat.

The HTC One X is out in the UK now and available to buy SIM-Free for around £490, and on contract with all 5 major UK networks, with the phone coming free on 24 month contracts from £30.

Let us know your thoughts on our comments below or via our @Gadget_Helpline Twitter page or Official Facebook group.