The 24K gold HTC One: A smartphone fit for a king
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}HTC's One was arguably one of the most beautiful smartphones to make its debut in 2013. But the all-aluminum handset has nothing on its gold sibling.
Valued at $2,500, the 24 carat gold-plated HTC One looks like the kind of smartphone King Midas would strut around with. But you can't just pick up this smartphone at your local carrier's store. This bad boy is only available as part of the smartphone maker's HTC in NYC contest.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}To enter, users have to just snap a picture of anything they think is beautiful and tweet it with the hashtag "HTCinNYC" and "US." If the photo is accepted by HTC, you'll be entered into a drawing for one of two gold HTC Ones. Beyond its luxurious exterior, the gold HTC One is just like any other One. You get a 4.7-inch 1080p display, quad-core processor and 32GB of RAM, not to mention HTC's wonderful front-mounted BoomSound speakers. There's no difference in software either. It's the exact same Android operating system with HTC's Sense overlay.
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Of course, as much as you'll likely want to show off the ostentatious handset, it's probably best to keep it wrapped in a case, as 24kt. gold is easily scratched. And the last thing you'll want to do is scar this beauty.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The HTC One isn't the first handset to get the gold treatment. Third-party companies have been wrapping smartphones in precious metals and jewels for quite some time. The iPhone 5s, which is already available with a gold paint job, has been covered in everything from real gold to crystals.
If you find gold to be too gaudy, you might want to check out Vertu's Android handset. Priced at $11,901, the Vertu is one of the most expensive smartphones in the world, thanks to its titanium chassis, leather accents and 3.7-inch sapphire display.