Skip to main content

HTC launches Desire 820 with selfie snappers in mind

IFA 2024
This story is part of our coverage of IFA Berlin 2024

Unveiled at IFA in Berlin on Thursday, HTC’s new Desire 820 smartphone comes with a solid set of specs at what should be an affordable price when the mid-range device hits stores in the next couple of months.

Successor to the Desire 816, the plastic-body Android handset comes with a 5.5-inch 1280 x 720 display, and a 13-megapixel rear camera with an f/2.2 lens. On the front, in a clear bid to grab the attention of selfie fans (HTC describes the phone as “setting a new standard for selfies”), there’s a front shooter with a whopping great 8-megapixel sensor.

Recommended Videos

Under the hood you’ll find 16GB of storage, 2GB of RAM, and Qualcomm’s octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor with 64-bit support, which will bring better all-round performance once Google releases Android L, the latest version of its mobile operating system.

HTC BoomSound speakers and a microSD card slot (up to 128GB) are also part of the package. At 7.74mm, it’s slim, too, and tips the scales at a respectable 155g, and, as with the Desire 816, the updated handset will launch in a range of bold colors – both glossy and matte.

Related: Turn your selfie into an emoji with this new iPhone app

But it’s the Desire 820’s camera capabilities that HTC seems keen to tout most of all in its release bumph for the phone. For example, with this handset, you can “merge your features with a friend’s or celebrity’s for a modern mashup,” an offering that until now you probably didn’t know you didn’t want.

There’s also a Live Makeup feature that lets you “preview the image you just took and set the desired level of skin smoothing before taking the photo” – perfect for grandma and grandpa, by the sounds of it.

There’s Photo Booth, too, where you can capture a burst of shots, meaning that for group shots you should be able to grab at least one photo where everyone’s got their eyes open.

As we said at the start, HTC hasn’t offered pricing details yet, or an exact launch date, but promises it’ll be available “later this fall, with availability varying by country and region.”

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Nothing Phone 3 will be a true flagship and that means iPhone money
Nothing Phone 3a

The Nothing Phone 3 is set to launch this summer. Now, we have some indication of its price, and yes, it will cost you.

Android Authority explains that CEO Carl Pei has confirmed that the Nothing Phone 3 will be the company’s “first true flagship smartphone.” As such, it will have a flagship price: approximately 800 pounds or nearly $1,000. The Nothing Phone 2 was priced at between $599 and $799, which would be a significant increase.

Read more
This Android update could stop your phone being stolen
Android 16 logo on Google Pixel 6a standing on a table.

Google wants to make Android phones more secure from thieves and this new update may do exactly that.

Google has announced that it is working to offer enhanced factory reset protections on Android phones from later this year.

Read more
Apple Maps will now help you dine at the finest with a side of golfing
Details of a Michelin star food outlet in Apple Maps.

If you’ve ever felt like dining at only the crème de la crème of food establishments in your neighborhood, Apple Maps just built the right system for you. And to go with it, if you’re in the mood for some calorie burnout through golf, the service got you covered on that front, too.

Apple has inked a deal with MICHELIN Guide and The Infatuation that will let users find and get insights about Michelin-starred restaurants on the mapping and navigation platform. “Users can now view and search for MICHELIN-starred, Green Star, and Bib Gourmand restaurants — along with MICHELIN Key hotels — starting in the U.S,” says the company.

Read more