HTC One Google Play Edition review:

Key features

• Stock Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2
• 4.7" 16M-color 1080p Super LCD3 display with 469ppi pixel density; Gorilla Glass 2
• 32 GB built-in storage; 2GB of RAM
• 4 MP autofocus "UltraPixel" camera with 1/3'' sensor; 2µm pixel size; LED flash; OIS
• 2.1 MP front-facing camera with 1080p video recording
• Qualcomm APQ8064T Snapdragon 600 SoC with four 1.7 GHz Krait 300 cores; Adreno 320 GPU
• Quad-band GSM; Quad-band HSDPA; LTE support
• Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac with DLNA and Wi-Fi Direct; Bluetooth 4.0; NFC
• GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS support
• 2300 mAh battery

Main disadvantages

• Only a few of the HTC Sense enhancements are present
• Underwhelming 4MP ultra-pixel camera
• Camera app offers only basic settings
• Available only in the United States with no subsidies for $599
• 32GB version available only, single silver color scheme

Considering the HTC One has been selling for a few months now, the main highlight of the Google Play Edition is the presence of stock Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. The unmodified OS, coupled with the One's powerful hardware and sleek design are bound to offer an experience straight from the dreams of Android purists.

Of course, plenty of people will argue that the HTC One Google Play Edition is an exercise in wasting precious cash. With the latest version of HTC Sense sporting functionality which closely resembles that of a Swiss army knife, it is not easy to make a case for spending six hundred dollars and the applicable taxes on an unsubsidized HTC One which comes with less functionality out of the box.