An innovative case for your HTC One M8, with one major flaw
HTC's got a pretty intriguing phone in the new HTC One M8 — be sure to read our review — and it's got a pretty intriguing case (opens in new tab) to go along with it. The Dot View case does a few things at once. First and foremost, it protects your phone in that folio style that everyone seems to be doing these days. And it does so while still allowing information to come through, and while allowing you to interact with your phone, but in a much different way.
A magnet on the front cover of the case (it's hidden behind the HTC logo) enables the case mode. And once the phone recognizes what's going on, it'll flash the time and weather on the display — and it looks like a series of dots shining through — when you hit the power button or double-tap on the front. Very cool. Adjust the volume with the flap closed, and you'll see that, too. Get a phone call? You'll see who's calling, and you can swipe up or down to accept or reject the call. Or, just hold the phone up to your ear — with the case still closed — to take the call. Swipe to launch voice dialing, too. Pretty cool stuff.
It works by displaying what looks like 8-bit images on your screen. But with the cover closed, all you see is dots. Very cool stuff. HTC has also released the Dot View app into Google Play (opens in new tab), so it can update this functionality without requiring a complete system update.
In July 2014, HTC updated the Dot View app to include theming, which lets you add a wallpaper to the Dot View experience. You can choose from one of the 18 included images, or use your own. HTC also added some more functionality to phone calls and notifications.
The case itself is a sort of soft-touch rubber, and it feels decent enough. We've found typing to be a little tough when you flip the cover around to the back, however, since it's flat, but the back of the phone is curved. Then there's the issue of price: $49.99 isn't cheap, even for cool dots.
The Dot View case is initially available in gray but will later come in Warm Black, Imperial Blue, Orange Popsicle, Atlantis and Baton Rouge. You can order a Dots View case directly from HTC{.nofollow}, and it's available now from ShopAndroid.com (opens in new tab).
For the Dots View Case and more HTC One (M8) cases and accessories (opens in new tab), keep it locked to ShopAndroid.com (opens in new tab).
