HTC says small screen 2K phones are coming whether we need them or not

Although having overlooked a QHD display for its latest flagship phone, HTC has suggested 2K screens will soon be an ever-present smartphone feature.

While the 5-inch HTC One M9 has retained the same 1080p, Full HD panel as last year, the manufacturer has claimed we will soon be seeing handsets as small as 4-inches running 2K displays, even if we can’t tell the difference.

“As technology evolves and 2K screens become as cheap as 1080p screens, you’ll see it on every size,” Graham Wheeler, HTC’s Director of Commercialisation Product Management said speaking exclusively with TrustedReviews.

Talking at a recent product briefing, he added: “Even though on 4-inch and 5-inch screens it’s not perceptible to the human eye, it will still happen.”

Despite making the prediction, Wheeler wouldn’t be drawn on a timeframe for these advancements. However, given 2K screens are currently exclusive to wallet-busting flagship phones, we would be surprised it this happened before the turn of the decade.

What’s more likely in the short term is the rise of 2K phablets, with the larger displays offering discernable visual benefits from the jump to QHD.

Hinting that this is the way HTC expects its eventual foray into the realms of 2K to go, Wheeler offered hints of future movements while defending the M9’s 1080p screen.

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“If you’re going to a much larger screen you’ll seen some pixels,” he stated. “We just want a working device that works perfectly and for this device we thought that a 1080p screen was the best choice.”

He added: “It’s not to say we’ll not do a 2K screen for sure, because we’ll review that for every device. For the M9 it makes sense to have that beautiful display from the M8 and use it again.

“Why do something that doesn’t give an impact but maybe affects other areas of the device?”