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HTC thinks its upcoming phone will give rivals the squeeze with new interaction feature

The Taiwanese firm will reveal its new flagship phone on Tuesday, expected to feature “squeezable” interaction.
The Taiwanese firm will reveal its new flagship phone on Tuesday, expected to feature “squeezable” interaction. The Taiwanese firm will reveal its new flagship phone on Tuesday, expected to feature “squeezable” interaction.

HTC’s new flagship smartphone is expected to feature technology that enables users to squeeze it as a form of interaction.

Reports claim the new phone – said to be named the HTC U – will contain sensors that enable users to take photos and launch apps just by squeezing the device.

The Taiwanese smartphone giant is holding a live event on Tuesday where the new flagship device is expected to be revealed.

Improvements to the camera and battery life are also likely to be discussed during the unveiling.

In the run-up to the event, the tech giant has frequently mentioned its new device’s “squeezable” ability in marketing campaigns, but the full extent of the technology is still not known.

The company has said it plans to introduce “a new way to interact with your smartphone” as part of the launch and has teased the squeezing method in videos on its Twitter account.A mainstream smartphone featuring a squeezable interaction has not been attempted previously. Since its One M8 smartphone picked up multiple phone of the year awards in 2014, HTC has struggled to maintain and replicate that success.

htc one
htc one
(Lauren Hurley/PA)

The manufacturer has come under increased pressure from Samsung and Apple, as well as emerging Chinese firms such as OnePlus and Huawei. HTC remains a popular manufacturer on the Android platform but the tech firm has enjoyed more notable success in the last year with the launch of its virtual reality headset Vive.