It was in May this year that the company first spoke about its Exodus 1 smartphone, and naturally, it intrigued many. Although initially it was said that Exodus 1 would facilitate Bitcoin trading while allowing users to own their identities, that is not what is actually happening. HTC may be touting Exodus 1 as its blockchain phone, but actually the company has only added security for keeping cryptocurrency safe by partitioning off a part of it. But then, if you are into Bitcoin trading you would rather have a wallet that is protected from Android than one that isn’t.

HTC has also added a recovery mechanism to the device in case the user loses his phone or misplace key information. The user will have to make some friends install a key management app beforehand. Using its secret sharing algorithm, the company will share the information with the user’s friends. However, the user will have piece this information together. Various third party developers will also be able to make their own key apps and wallets for HTC’s blockchain phone. Coming to the specifications of the smartphone, it features a 6-inch HD+ display that has an aspect ratio of 18:9. HTC Exodus 1 mobile is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor clubbed with 6GB RAM and has 128GB of storage onboard. The Android Oreo based smartphone comes with 3,500mAh battery and has IP68 rating, which makes it dust and water resistant.

On the cameras front, there is a dual rear camera setup with 16MP+16MP sensors and 8MP dual selfie cameras. Customers would have to pay for HTC Exodus 1 using cryptocurrency and it will cost them 0.15 BTC or 4.78 ETH. After conversion, that becomes over $960 and Rs 70,405, however, that of course keeps changing as the value of cryptocurrency keeps varying. As of now, the smartphone will be available in 34 countries including US, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, the UK, and other parts of Europe. We don’t know yet if it will be launched in India, as government has been strict with cryptocurrency usage. But we weren’t surprised when we got to know that the phone will not be launched in China because the country has banned cryptocurrency trading.

For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

HTC s blockchain phone is up for pre orders and you can only buy it in cryptocurrency - 46HTC s blockchain phone is up for pre orders and you can only buy it in cryptocurrency - 62HTC s blockchain phone is up for pre orders and you can only buy it in cryptocurrency - 68HTC s blockchain phone is up for pre orders and you can only buy it in cryptocurrency - 94