HTC U23 Pro review
Clean Android 13 OS
The HTC U23 Pro runs Android 13 out of the box. The ROM in question looks very clean and minimalistic, but we can't shake the feeling that there is just something "retro" about its styling.
Perhaps it has something to do with the square window prompts that the OS generates by default; perhaps it is the touch response sounds enabled by default, or maybe it's the fact that the out-of-box system navigation choice are the old-school Android buttons.
Navigation • Touch sounds
Other than that, however, most UX elements are basically stock AOSP, which some will surely appreciate. This includes things like rounded notification corners and large, oval, quick toggles.
There are weird design choices scattered all over the place. Nothing major, but still odd little details.
General UI
The settings menu is pretty standard as well, so much so that there aren't even any special "advanced features" submenus or anything of the sort. One thing that stands out is the extra large fontsize by default.
Settings menu
There are some hidden "extra" features here and there, like inside the Accessibility menu. But nothing really that special.
Accessibility settings
A dark mode is available called "Dark theme", which includes scheduling options. But again, nothing too special.
Dark mode
There is very limited gesture support available in the OS.
Gestures
Always-on display is nowhere to be found, though, and it is far from the only "core" feature omission.
At least HTC's software runs fast and smooth, and there is very little in the way of bloat. You basically get the Google apps pack preinstalled and not even in its complete state. For example, there is no file manager out of the box.
And there is a folder full of pre-installed HTC apps called "VIVERSE". Among the included apps is a crypto wallet and a few VR-related and device-companion apps.
VIVEVERSE apps
We aren't exactly sure how much sense it makes to push some of these apps to all users, particularly the hardware companion ones, but we wouldn't exactly consider the inclusion egregious bloat. Plus, all of these apps can easily be uninstalled.
Performance and benchmarks
The HTC U23 Pro is based on a Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 chipset. It is a pretty modern chip, dating from Q2 2022, with a great set of additional features and connectivity options. It is a quintessentially mid-range chip from Qualcomm that is rocking an octa-core CPU setup, consisting of one prime Cortex-A710 core, clocked at up to 2.4 GHz, three Gold Cortex-A710 cores, clocked at up to 2.36 GHz and four Silver Cortex-A510 ones, working at up to 1.8 GHz.
These are paired with an Adreno 644 GPU, working at 433 Mhz, an internal X62 5G/LTE cellular modem and a FastConnect 6700 chip that provides 2x2 Wi-Fi 6 (ax) and Bluetooth 5.2. The U23 Pro comes with 256GB of expandable storage and either 8GB or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM. Our test unit is the higher-tier 12GB/256GB one.
Let's kick things off with some CPU testing and GeekBench. We can see that the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 inside the HTC U23 Pro is performing as expected and in line with other devices with the same chip. So, HTC is making the most out of the hardware, which is great to see.
Geekbench 5
- Multi-core
- Single-core
Poco F5 Pro
Motorola Edge 40
Pixel 7a
OnePlus Nord 3
Galaxy S21 FE 5G
HTC U23 Pro
Xiaomi 13 Lite
GeekBench 6
- Multi-core
- Single-core
Poco F5
Pixel 7a
Motorola Edge 40
vivo V27 Pro
OnePlus Nord 3
HTC U23 Pro
Motorola Razr 40
In terms of relative performance, the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 is about as powerful as the popular Snapdragon 778G in the CPU department and the original Google Tensor chip. However, it easily outperforms popular MediaTek chips, like the Dimensity 1080 and Samsung's Exynos 1380, as seen inside the Galaxy A54. The Dimensity 8200, 8020 and 9200 all have the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 beat, and so does the new Google Tensor G2 chip.
AnTuTu is a much more compound benchmark with graphics tests and tests for memory and storage. AnTuTu seems to be a bit less favorable towards the U23 Pro, though its results still fall in line well with other Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 devices, which is great to see.
AnTuTu
- v9
- v10
Poco F5 Pro
Motorola Edge 40
vivo V27
Realme 11 Pro+
Realme 11 Pro
HTC U23 Pro
Xiaomi 13 Lite
Again, you can expect performance in the same ballpark as something like a Dimensity 7050 device or one based on the Snapdragon 778G.
The Adreno 644 GPU is not particularly powerful. You are not getting a graphics powerhouse here by any stretch of the imagination. Still, it has the Snapdragon 778G beat in terms of raw performance, as well as the Exynos 1380 and the Dimensity 1080 and 7050 (which is basically the same chip).
GFXBench (onscreen)
- Aztek ES 3.1 High
- Aztek Vulkan High
- Car Chase ES 3.1
- Manhattan ES 3.1
- Manhattan ES 3.0
Pixel 7a
Poco F5 Pro
Galaxy S21 FE 5G
Motorola Edge 40
vivo V27
HTC U23 Pro
Xiaomi 13 Lite
GFXBench (offscreen)
- Aztek ES 3.1 High 1440p
- Aztek Vulkan High 1440p
- Car Chase ES 3.1 1080p
- Manhattan ES 3.1 1080p
- Manhattan ES 3.0 1080p
Poco F5 Pro
Google Pixel 6a
Galaxy S21 FE 5G
Motorola Edge 40
vivo V27
HTC U23 Pro
Xiaomi 13 Lite
There is enough graphical performance here to tackle casual gaming and even some older bigger titles. 3Dmark paints pretty much the same overall performance picture.
3DMark (offscreen 1440p)
- Wild Life Vulkan 1.1
- Wild Life Extreme
Poco F5 Pro
Google Pixel 6a
Galaxy S21 FE 5G
Motorola Edge 40
vivo V27
HTC U23 Pro
Xiaomi 13 Lite
Unfortunately, the HTC U23 Pro doesn't handle prolonged workloads particularly well in terms of thermal management. While the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 is not particularly hot or power-hungry, and the phone's surface never gets more than slightly warm under load, the chip still thermal-throttles very aggressively.
Thermal throttling
The chipset loses a large chunk of its effective performance after a fairly short sustained load and worse still does so very abruptly, which could result in stutters in game.
Overall, while not a chart-topper, the HTC U23 Pro is far from strapped for performance. Its light and clean OS runs smoothly and responsively, and the phone chews through daily tasks easily. However, we have concerns regarding its aggressive thermal-throttling behavior and would not recommend the U23 Pro as a gaming machine, even for that reason alone.
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