Human Mobile Devices (HMD) has brought its new mid-tier flagship Skyline to Australia. The company has designed the phone to be relatively easy to repair by the customer themselves when the need arises, rather than needing them to rely on retailers, third-parties or the manufacturer to do so.
For example, if you happen to shatter the 6.5-inch screen of the HMD Skyline – which HMD says has a resolution of 2,400 by 1,080 pixels, and a a 144Hz adaptive refresh rate, as well as a peak brightness of 1,000 nits – you can pop it off and replace using miniature tools from iFixit kits.
Similarly, bent charging ports (the phone features a USB-C 2.0 port), scratched back covers and batteries that need to be replaced, can all be done by the phone owner themselves.
Along the right side of the phone, there are volume controls and a power button with a built-in fingerprint sensor. Along the left side of the phone’s frame, is a customizable button. The default, a press-and-hold gesture mutes the phone, while pressing it twice turns on the flashlight.
The phone has a Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 processor with 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage. Storage can be bumped up to 512GB by way of a MicroSD card. The Skyline supports 5G, Wi-fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2
It features a 50MP selfie camera that comes with autofocus and eye-tracking. The phone also has a in-built ‘selfie gesture’ tech, which means that users can activate the camera when they make one of four specific hand gestures, including a thumbs-up or two-hands heart sign.
The phone offers a 108MP Hybrid OIS triple rear camera. Portrait mode allows for 50mm shots in bokeh effect and close-ups are supported by the x4 zoom function. Scenery and group shots can be captured using its 0.5 ultra-wide mode and there’s AI Capture Fusion too to add detail to zoomed images.
HMD Skyline says that its 4,600mAh battery can operate without recharging for up to 48 hours, and the device is Qi2-certified too.
Later this month, HMD says it will add a new digital Detox Mode to the phone. The bespoke app allows users to tailor their detox to their needs, and spend time away from their smartphone when they need to.
“The HMD Skyline empowers the humans behind the phone, with an impressive triple camera to capture memories, a unique digital detox mode to encourage people to live in the moment and fix-it-yourself repairability that has never been easier. It’s all about creating a fashionable way to have a healthy relationship with your smartphone,” said Brenden Folitarik, HMD GM of Australia and Oceania.
The HMD Skyline is priced at A$899 and is available from August 28 at retailers including JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman, among others.
