HTC 10 gets Australian release on May 3

HTC's latest flagship smartphone, the HTC 10, will see an Australian release on May 3 at an asking price of AUD$1,099. Both Harvey Norman and JB Hi-Fi will be selling the smartphone outright, and Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and Virgin will all offer the smartphone on a 24 month contract.

The HTC 10 deviates from the mould set by its predecessors, offering a revitalised aluminium unibody design and a bigger 5.2-inch Quad HD screen. Stereo BoomSound speakers are still play, but have been reconfigured to allow for a higher screen-to-body ration.

In terms of specifications, the HTC 10 packs a Snapdragon 820 quad-core processor, 32GB of expandable storage, 4GB of RAM, front-facing fingerprint reader, and a 3,000mAh battery that is recharged via a USB Type-C connector. Both the phone's 12MP rear camera and 5MP front-facing camera feature optical stabilisation.

Telstra's full range of plans has yet to be confirmed, but it will offer the HTC 10 for on its AUD$95 per month with unlimited talk and text, 6GB of data, and AUD$2 per month handset repayment fee. This brings the total monthly cost to AUD$97.

Optus' HTC 10 plans start at AUD$67 per month, constituting the telco's AUD$40 per month plan and a AUD$27 handset repayment fee. This gets customers 1GB of data, and unlimited talk and text. Going up to AUD$79 per month takes data inclusions to 3GB.

Vodafone's HTC 10 plans start at AUD$75 per month, including an AUD$35 handset repayment fee. This comes with unlimited talk and text, and 500MB of data. On the telco's AUD$85 per month option, the handset repayment fee drops to AUD$5 per month, and data jumps to 9GB. The AUD$85 option also gets customers six months of free access to a choice of Spotify, Stan, or the Syndey Morning Herald.

Virgin's HTC 10 plans start at AUD$59 per month, with AUD$300 of talk and text, and 300 MB of data. This option includes an AUD$30 plan and AUD$29 of monthly handset repayment fees. At AUD$85 per month, inclusions are bumped to unlimited talk and text, 8GB of data, and a bonus 6GB of data per month for the first three months, for new customers (not available to customers swapping from Optus).

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