The gorgeous Flame Red HTC U12+ is coming to the US

If the one thing holding you back from buying the HTC U12+ is the color, rejoice: the striking Flame Red U12+ is now up for order in North America. Revealed alongside the Android smartphone back in May, the distinctive red finish has until now only been available in international markets.

HTC did drop some heavy hints at the time that it was considering bringing the Flame Red version to the US and Canada, though it had no timescale for that. Instead, it arrived in black and blue only.

That was a shame, as the Flame Red U12+ is undoubtedly the most visually interesting of the finishes. While it may not have the translucent detailing of the blue model, it's definitely brighter. Though red in name, it actually shifts between gold, amber, and other hues depending on the angle you're holding it at.

Otherwise you're looking at the same smartphone as we've seen before. That means a 6-inch display and Qualcomm's Snapdragon 845 chipset, along with 6 GB of RAM and up to 128 GB of storage. Twin cameras are on the front and back, with full sensor phase detection autofocus paired with laser autofocus for faster AF locks.

On the back, there's a 2x optical zoom, while front and back each use their two cameras for a faux-bokeh portrait mode. HTC throws in the latest version of BoomSound – using the earpiece and the bottom speaker for stereo – along with its USonic USB-C headphones that support active noise cancellation.

The most controversial part of the U12+, however, has to be Edge Sense 2. HTC first used its squeeze-sensitive system – which uses pressure sensors to react to how firmly you're holding the phone – last year, turning it into a shortcut trigger for things like the camera. For 2018, though, all of the U12+'s side buttons are virtual. Although there are physical keys protruding from the edge of the smartphone, they don't actually move.

Instead, Edge Sense 2 is designed to recognize when you're pressing them, and activate them accordingly. Early over-sensitive keys did give some pause, however, and HTC eventually released a firmware update to address the complaints.

The Flame Red HTC U12+ is available for preorder now, only HTC direct. It's priced at $799, and will ship in September.