HTC One M8: The Android GOAT, 10 Years On!

It's March 2014, and you're PUMPED. Why? Because you've just picked up maybe your first or second smartphone ever, and THIS phone is something special. You've followed leaks of this new hotness for months, and now it's finally time to unbox your very own HTC One M8.
I was right there with many of you ten years ago, setting up my shiny new M8 in March of that year. It's hard to overstate how big a deal HTC, and its flagship phone, was at that time. And so ten years on from its debut, it's time to tell the story of the last great HTC smartphone.
0:00 Intro
0:30 HTC One backstory
3:09 Iconic hardware
6:36 Sense-able software in 3 flavors
8:43 Zoes and Ultrapixels
10:35 Android 14 on HTC One M8
12:04 HTC One epilogue
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[@AlexRubio]

I miss HTC😢

[@Andesu]

Sameeeee

[@SectorfiveYT]

They still make phones.

[@AdityaSingh-gb2lk]

Buy a pixel...

[@SectorfiveYT]

@@AdityaSingh-gb2lk Xiaomi is better.

[@AlexRubio]

@@AdityaSingh-gb2lk nah, I have a few Samsung and OnePlus. I hate pixel has horrible CPU

[@TechKingdom35]

IMO, M7 was the GOAT, but the M8 was also a great phone. Sad what happened to HTC

[@eamonob84]

I still think the M7 is the best designed phone of all time.

[@Onepunchmeme1]

Team M7 here.

[@Farmfield]

M7, for sure. I'd buy that now, if scaled up to (at least) 6" and with modern hardware. What a phone. ❤

[@SParkAtomix]

M7 had so many build quality issues around the top white antenna area. M8 was essentially the design perfected, so I think it’s still the better one

[@alejandromorazan3420]

Thats what happens when you copy crapple

[@BIG1TOWER]

one of the best looking phones ever

[@crls_roger]

It's sure is

[@elix_]

Not even one of the best looking but one of the best feeling too! In germany we call it Handschmeichler :D

[@bobnotbobff]

Banging audio

[@MaxMiller94]

My friend in college had access to the engineering department's laser engraver, so we tattooed my M8 with a few extra designs. I'll never throw it out.

[@pymarcos4125]

pls share some pics of it

[@jeffreymichael540]

HTC M8 and Nexus 4 were optimization king. Every app remained on memory even after 2 OS updates.

[@ObscEst]

I miss the first Nexus

[@shanemitchellspencer]

So good. Back ion the day when Android was unique.

[@Salpeteroxid]

​​@@shanemitchellspencer Android has always been unique, it definitely doesn't look like Windows Phone and it's very different from IOS. Android is definitely the most unique linux dist.

[@NoelKunz]

Indeed, a good generation for Android. Enjoyable times!

[@andrewcocos]

@@ObscEst I miss my LG Optimus G.

[@javierstrive3356]

Man I Miss This Gaming Back Then HTC & Sony ERA

[@6thHokageJuan]

Sony is still making pretty great phones the problem being that none of the US carriers wanna pick it up for monthly contracts only full price...

[@tomrachellesfirstdance7843]

I miss HTC thought they had a great thing going and sense was brilliant. I used to love when I unlocked my desire if you had the weather app you would get sunshine show or raindows and a windscreen wiper which wiped away the rain. That feature never got old and would love to have it again.

[@GerOnimO_44]

Took me back a decade 😅

[@GuyananV]

We need an HTC comeback

[@wesley293]

this phone was awesome! It looked so premium, with many people having plastic rectangles as phones, M8 really was a step ahead

[@SammyM00782]

I loved the M7 and M8 so much, I refused to throw them away.

[@ibj3]

Me too i sold my m7 to buy the m8 and it just died on me a few weeks ago after so many years.

[@Powertampa]

I still use mine daily I'm actually writing this comment from one. It has all the Hallmarks that I think a good phone should have from front facing speakers a good screen decent size not too big and solid construction. Those are the things that actually matter in a phone in my opinion. The only thing that I'm missing is perhaps waterproofing.

[@ShotByHawkDown]

I Had the M7 And M8 Greatest phone i ever had in my life them rooting/switching ROMS days was the best

[@peterming]

Still have a red HTC One M8 in my drawer. Physically, the look still can compete with the best of today’s flagship. Add the color red which no other brand is willing to do now. ❤❤❤❤

[@priyojitdeb1891]

Phones used to be so minimalistic back then

[@timothyxxxpaul]

Not software wise tho lol

[@new1412]

​@@timothyxxxpaulwell, tbh, android at that time barely has any features or apps 😅. I used to have the Nexus 7 and while it's what made me prefer pure android over any others to this day I kinda understand why back then people would preferred those heavily customized UI over the pure android.

[@Archontasil]

Today's phone are even more minimalist No charger No sd card slot No replacable battery Thanks apple!

[@DavidNgo86]

@@timothyxxxpaul but that made each OEM stand out from each other.

[@aleksandersats9577]

@@Archontasil You forgot about the headphone jack

[@g0ral]

Im missing metal phones 😢 now is glass everywhere.

[@Juanguar]

It’s a requirement for wireless charging Can’t have it with metal back

[@Bruce_Black]

Most Phones are large now, it'll be heavier and conduct heat and degrades battery life

[@Retronyx]

@@Juanguar then make a cut out for the wireless charging and blend in the metal and plastic together

[@AzureRT456]

Plastic better

[@SuperHacker0007]

@@Juanguar Yeah, but they put the shitty glass or shiny cheap looking plastic on phones that don't even have wireless charging...

[@TIPh0enix]

This is one of those pieces of technology that will be remembered for a long, long time to come. Similar to the Apple IIs and Commodore 64s of yesteryear. I distinctly remember this being my dream phone and my dad finally agreeing to get one for me for Christmas, only to realise that here in Australia the original had been replaced by a much weaker version called the M8S. What started as me getting my dream phone at the time ended up being one of the most frustrating experiences as a young tech enthusiast. It was slow, buggy and the camera unit was straight up abysmal in comparison to the original M8. The design of it still made me the coolest kid in class so I didn't complain too much 🤣

[@bardknight]

I owned the M7, but to this day that is still one of my favorite phones of all time. The build quality was incredible, the stereo forward facing speakers sounded amazing for the time and its Android skin was refined compared to every other phone at the time.

[@JustinBeeperr]

Loved the M7-M8. The one that really wowed me was the LG G3. Revolutionary at that time, especially the screen quality.

[@inkdaddy66]

I remember the g3 as a badass piece of hardware. The ui was nice too. It's amazing how tech has evolved

[@inkdaddy66]

I remember the g3 as a badass piece of hardware. The ui was nice too. It's amazing how tech has evolved

[@thanosalmighty7353]

I owned all them at that time. good times

[@elsenorvananas]

I was a phone repair technician back then and I hated the HTC, they were impossible to tear appart. I always prefered samsung and even the iPhones were not so terrible to disassemble yet.

[@shafiqshah3]

G3 with the leather casing was amazing but UI was quiet shit tbh

[@1soheb]

Need more of this retro series

[@xMel21x]

I still have it and still feels like a tank. I wish they make it back with updated specs and trends

[@smokeyarcade]

I absolutely LOVED this phone! easily my favorite phone I ever used at the time. I miss HTC and would love for a comeback with a modern revision of this phone!

[@jamesbrooks7683]

I have so much nostalgia for this phone! The Boomsound, the premium build, the heft... It was such a game changer. That being said, with the curves on the back going over the edge, this thing was so slippery

[@nickb5891]

Such a great phone. The quality of the speakers was superb!

[@AkshayDhargave]

HTC One M8 is my Roman Empire. I think about this device almost every day. It's the perfect phone, the size, the design, the software, it has it all.

[@RazeenMujarrab]

This was such a nostalgic throwback. Thanks for this great video!!

[@planetminecraft411]

This phone is an absolute legend! Super cool video!

[@LeandroFTW]

I miss this phone and the dot view case!

[@phillxor]

I killed the hinge on those dot view cases so quickly. So cool though!

[@LeandroFTW]

@@phillxor I forgot about that!

[@yumenolala]

HTC fan here. I have my Sensation XE and M8. The good old days.

[@prans4u2000]

The only phone I've owned that I've actually LOVED. To the point of feeling empty even after a "direct upgrade". This phone gave me a solid 4 years. Superb little piece of modern engineering.

[@Juhsentuh]

My favorite and one of the first experiences with Android. My actual first was the HTC One M7 😂 I still have the M8 in my phone collection and it still powers on.. GREAT PHONE!

[@jess_o]

M7 and M8 where the best phones I ever had!

[@tahasaglam6138]

0:12 A wild Peter Chou appears 3:05 Apple uses M9 in their promo pictures, not M8

[@dimancor2925]

M9 still has the same design language.

[@tahasaglam6138]

@@dimancor2925 Language is generally same yes, but button placement is different for example

[@megadeth8592]

​@@tahasaglam6138congrats you found maybe the only difference in design.

[@axella03]

HTC M8 was my first Android phone, great-sounding from dual front stereo speakers, refocusing photo after shooting and aluminum body ect. Really good user experience, and I still missed it.

[@treeekevo9447]

Legendary tech piece

[@Gltokensp06]

Umm the HTC HD2 would like to have a word with you...that phone literally had everything except for iOS ported to it. All the Android roms, Windows XP, Windows 7, Linux, and support in XDA was insane for YEARS

[@RahulGupta_Grahul]

Nice video, it brings back the memories. I do wish if you could have bought a new M8 piece for comparison but I do understand that it would have become considerably expensive now.

[@davedumond9268]

I loved my M8, still have it. Thanks for reminding me how good it was.

[@cristisun184]

HTC was the only smartphone company that was able to impress me with every flagship that they've made excluding the M9.HTC U12 was an excellent device!I miss LG and Nokia but I miss HTC more.

[@Extra6621]

Nokia is still making phones

[@RootSystemHash]

@@Extra6621Yes they still call it “Nokia”.

[@harishbista7525]

@@RootSystemHashMay be we will get flagship Nokia from HMD now, as they already confirmed 17 new models will be launched under Nokia as they are going for budget-midrange phones with their HMD tag.

[@RootSystemHash]

@@harishbista7525 Hopefully. But I greatly doubt those would be real flagships other than the Nokia tag and top specs. What I mean is that it could lack the software refinement and features we get from brands like Samsung and Sony. When they went under they sold most of their intellectual properties to Microsoft except the most significant network related IPs. So, they aren’t in a good position to make real flagships with any real value. They’d basically be a One Plus with a Nokia tag and a more premium price.

[@swarupbanerjee1951]

Sony Xperia, Htc, Nokia,LG, Motorola, When we had so many good options to pick

[@ZeroCtr1]

nexus 5 is legit contender too

[@tonymarenno9568]

That's my favorite phone of all time🙂👍

[@_cohen]

I had this one and loved the entirety of it. Such a great build & design

[@8xfayk]

Back then, I also got the HTC M8. It's the best Android phone I've ever had, alongside my still current Mate20 Pro. Dual speakers, metal body, and an innovative low megapixel camera that surprisingly captured great images with just 4MP. The UI was super sleek and ahead of its time, easily five years ahead back then.

[@deependuajish]

This is how you know you made a great device. 10 years down the line people still want "that" phone. I think the original Moto G and Moto X series had the same magic too.

[@littlebigmarc]

I prefer the M7. Was my favorite phone

[@HonestWatchReviewsHWR]

I miss HTC so much, they were my favourite brand. My first Android phone was the HTC Hero. I also had the Desire, Sensation and Sensation XE as well.

[@kerronwalker1589]

My friend had the M7 I had the HTC eye and thought we were living in the future. I actually really loved these phones it was the only time I ever switched away from the main Samsung or apple for a phone and I would gladly do it again if they brought about that creativity that they had then. The M8 and M7 if they remade it with a bigger screen and kept the speakers would be probably the best thing to come out of android since 2017.

[@younghits4284]

Like if you’re still using M8 in 2024.

[@___David__]

The M7 was a better phone. Better size and no useless micro-pixel or whatever was that tiny camera above the main camera whose results were garbage. However, the absolute King of 2014 was the Xperia Z3 Compact, the pinnacle of Xperia phones to this day and back when Sony took the 3rd place in Europe as the biggest OEM, finally overtaking Nokia after they left the market forever.

[@SweBeach2023]

The desirability of the Z3 Compact lasted for years and they still hold a fair value for such an old phone.

[@wrong2h8]

I still think about the M8 here and there. Absolutely loved that phone. The Sunshine Root S-Off was the best day

[@joshcastrooficial]

What an amazing phone this was. Of all the android phones I've had, this is one of my favorites. Miss HTC

[@b_nnett]

First or second smartphone in 2014? Do you not know your target audience at all?

[@TradieTrev]

My first smart phone was a HP iPAQ HW910 well before android or ios was a thing.

[@DavidNgo86]

Lol

[@jarvy7393]

I had an M8 Harman/Kardon edition. I loved that phone! It is easily one of my top five favorites that I've used.

[@demounit]

i had an M8 when it came out and immediately flashed the Google Play Edition software on it. I loved this phone so much. I still have it and use it as a universal remote control for my CRT TV.

[@techzonetzuk]

What a throw back I remember wanting this device so badly and ended up getting a one plus one !

[@OnTheRocks71]

My One M7 is still sitting in a drawer. It was pretty revolutionary at the time. They stuffed all the components into a milled aluminum body, and to get around the side effect of decreased cell reception, they added cutouts in the frame, something you still see on phones today. Dual front facing speakers, a luxury we barely have today with phones using a bottom firing and top front mounted speaker. Instead of adding more mexapixels to the camera, they used a sensor with lower resolution but larger photosites to increase low light sensitivity; low light imaging performance was going to become of great importance shortly after. It had a 1080p display, which was larger and higher resolution than what Apple was offering with the iPhone 5 at the time. HTC was absolutely on top of their game and creating the best hardware in the Android space.

[@Alias_Anybody]

I vividly remember doing some research for my next phone at that time, and half of the tech world was wetting their pants for this beauty. Out of my price range though, but the Moto G 2014 I ultimately got does share some DNA, probably also inspired by the M7.

[@dualnon6643]

Used to have the htc 1 m7. Loved that phone. Only Android I’ve ever owned, iPhones ever since. But I absolutely adored my htc one

[@coscorrodrift]

Nice review btw, i liked the information of what happened with the people there, tracking where they went. I liked HTC's early days, the Dream was my dream phone lol , and i remember the Desires being quite dope. Friend of mine flexed on us by having two of them lol

[@diondavis6547]

I loved this phone and kept it years after on my coffee table as a TV and home theather remote.

[@BackToWar100]

Xiaomi was the last one who had the IR blaster but now Oppo and Vivo brought it back on the top models.

[@SplosionMovies]

My friend got one on release and kept it for like 4 years, total powerhouses and beautiful too

[@spookypug4050]

Man i loved HTC, Desire was my first TC phone then i got the M8. It was probably the phone i loved the most and the sound was ahead of its time. I loved it and hope a phone with a similar build comes out!

[@freddy5046]

That's transition got my subscription!!!

[@Techlore1]

I had all 3 of the m7-M9. One of my favorite things about this line was the Car Dock and the Car mode. This became a staple for years for me to find phones with a good native car dock and mode. Sadly the last phone with a native car dock mode was the Moto Z line ending in the Z4

[@thedumbnicname]

HTC was my favorite phones! I had the mytouch, m7 and m8. In fact, they are in their boxes in my closet. The build quality was top notch, I miss them

[@user-qy8ql6lj6b]

Loved this video, you should really do one on the Lumia

[@chaseseal1151]

I had an M8 and loved it so freaking much. I miss HTC

[@suyonoliu5388]

I remember this phone. Always loved that HTC Sense UI

[@x24b3]

This was such an impressive video. Wow. Subbed

[@NehemYah810]

I miss these days so much. I was using a galaxy note 3 at the time but this phone was so tempting.

[@cameronsamuels9139]

Mom had this phone back in the day and she loved it and it made me jealous lol. Wanna pick one up one day to have as memorabilia

[@NRMgamingHD]

When HTC was on top of the Android Chain. Good old days.

[@kentstark3104]

i had this phone... i loved it! i miss it, i wish they made an updated version of this... :(

[@AnointedFlow]

Still have my M7 and M8 and they still look brand new. Loved that design.

[@stkiswr]

I owned one when it came out. What a great device. Still one of my favorite phones that I have owned

[@tomcooney183]

I just remember loving this phone, especially the speakers, I think it wasnt until about 2020 at least before I had another flagship with close to comparable speakers

[@garrettcooper8183]

Still have my old M8 with twist… I actually have the windows phone version (of course I regret this now as it can’t do hardly anything) love getting it out to hold it from time to time because it feels so nice!

[@aymaanchowdhury81]

Absolutely no one talks about how good the Xperia series were back in those days. I was using an Xperia z2, and it was one of the best phones of all time in my opinion.

[@daviddunmore7076]

I've still got my old HTC One M9, it's used as a music player, camera and replacement remote for a portable stereo ( I miss the IR Blaster on newer phones)

[@abe4985]

I still remember failing to buy this phone in Toronto bcos HTC did not launch it in Canada. A friend got it from US and it looked simply amazing. In the end, I bought Iphone 6 and got hooked on Apple since then.

[@airypotty]

I have an S23 HTC wannabe. I'm using sense home ported by XDA legend ckpv and everything works except blink feed and themes. Weather videos and weather app with precise location still works perfectly on android 14. Even the home widget which is location based for home, out or work apps . Clock and weather widget still sitting proudly on top with HTC Quietly Brilliant black wallpaper and icons.❤😊

[@bradleymadrid2877]

I somehow completely forgot about owning this phone. I now remember loving it as a freshman in high school. Really glad to see this honestly unlocked some memories for me.

[@chimualor5888]

I remember saving up my first few paychecks for this phone, and loved it!

[@arranmorton6120]

One of the best phones I ever had, was the last android I had for about 8-9 years, now deep in the samsung ecosystem years later and loving it 👏

[@HondaRider190]

My first smartphone was the HTC Thunderbolt, which was also the first phone with 4gLTE. Was such a great phone, and a great company.

[@novak_sm]

I had an HTC One M7, one gen behind the One M8 and had only one camera. But man, I LOVED IT! The screen was amazing -- 4K on a 4.8" screen (!_, performance was terrific, and the speakers were amazing (contrary to how they sound today, which is expected of a decade old phone), it was lovely all around. Only problem was it overheated easily, but I still loved it. And I miss it :(

[@parsley0120]

I had the One M8 and loved it! It’s at the bottom of the lake in my area now, it flew off the boat when we were out boating about 10 years ago. :/

[@russellcook8075]

This was one of my favorite phones ever, I recently got my hands on a brand new one that was sealed and played around with it, I can say that the speakers on my unit sound considerably better and very close to my 15 pro, also mine doesn’t seem to have the screen ghosting issue mentioned eathier!

[@kyuss1984]

I had every flagship HTC from the Hero to the M10. The M8 came with a mini subwoofer/phone stand (which I still have somewhere) called htc boombass.

[@nickyang1143]

I used one a few yrs ago for a couple months Worked just fine, with great speakers

[@matthoadley1990]

Man, I was lucky enough to own this gem. It definitely broke my budget but is still absolutely one of my favorite phones!!!

[@ericharrison619]

I have a wall display dedicated to the best of HTC...The M8 is the only version that I had to have one in each color. Legendary device that still feels amazing in the hand.

[@kreesdqban]

It's probably my favorite and the best phone I've ever had. Those front-facing speakers were game-changing, and that fast charging was mind-blowing at the time.

[@jaseettridge4802]

Used loads of phones, I still maintain htc sense is still the best os. Those tiles on the Home Screen were wonderful.

[@Pokeonrocks5]

I had this phone for about a year in 2014, and it was awesome and beautifully designed! Unfortunately, bugs with the software, like the stock messaging app crashing every 15 seconds make it very hard to use. I eventually switched back to iPhone with the iPhone 7, and never looked back! It helped that all my family had iPhones, and that the Apple eco system was starting to take off. Still, I’ll never forget this phone. What a beautiful design!

[@apparentlynot1stLeonchubbs]

Got mine used a year later.. but I was STILL rocking a great phone even then 👌💪 Trim down those side bezels/toss in some newer guts, lemme use gestures and I'd rock that form factor in 2024 ~chef's kiss~

[@x24b3]

I had this phone back in the day. Was obsessed with it

[@smeejaytee]

I miss this phone i worked on xda i worked on sound mods a system boost mod and i helped with themes for sense, those were happy days

[@bjohnmasters]

Loved the original Windows version of the phone that XDA helped me mod to run Android...used it for years. Went through several batteries, and then gave it to a nephew who abused for several years before finally breaking the screen. What a tank but lite and just the right size.

[@dvdtech]

My favorite phone of all time, and I didn't even liked the camera, but I loved the design, performance and UI were really good, lots of custom roms too... It was my fourth smartphone, second from HTC (had the HTC magic, Galaxy SII and Xperia Z previously) After M8 and I only had the OnePlus 3T and after 3T I've been using only Samsung Note/S series, but only because of the lack of options. If HTC was still doing flagship phones I would certainly be using one of their phones right now.

[@Joey_Hernandez]

I was part of t mobile when this was released, and HTC had a promotion for Half off this phone, I got it and it was one my my most memorable phones ever.

[@dannysmith713]

I miss HTC. Owned the HTC HD2 and the HTC Sensation 4G. They were great handsets. HD2 had android 2.1 running via the SD Card.

[@6thHokageJuan]

The HTC Sensation 4G running the super custom Viper Rom was amazing...i wish they continued making that rom

[@dannysmith713]

@6thHokageJuan I was running a custom ROM on my Sensation, sold it to my friends dad, it finally died and I sold him my Galaxy S7. Then it died. Phones got so good I stopped rooting and running custom ROMS

[@6thHokageJuan]

@@dannysmith713 the one thing that would stop me from rooting is if they added TWRP custom recovery to stock android phones....

[@robsawalker]

HTC One M7 is my favourite phone ever, and I doubt a phone will replace that now. It was so groundbreaking in so many ways, phones can't really compete with that now.

[@SidneyKupers]

Had one -- loved it.