Sprint promises pumped-up sound for a fresh HTC One M8

[MUSIC] Does Sprint need another version of the HTC One MA flagship in its lineup? Apparently the carrier thinks so. Alongside the standard version of the One M8, Spring also now sells the HTC One M8 Harmon Kardon edition. So what's the same? Well, essentially you get the same lovely all aluminum design, super fast processor and slick HTC Sense UI. You also get Android Kit Kat in all it's Google-licious glory. That includes the Google Now advanced search and all that good stuff. Also here is HTC's dual lens camera, which also lets you refocus the image after you take it, so you can basically get this cool light to reflect. So what's different from the standard HTC 1M8? Well, first of all, it costs $299,99 with a two year contract. That's $30 more than the regular 1M8 that Sprint also sells. That includes, though, a pair of Harmon Kardon AE premium air buds with, on their own, cost $80. Instead of the brushed metal hairline finish of the gray M8, they Harmon Kardan edition has a smooth matte black back and funky rose gold accents above and below the screen. There's also special audio technology from Harmon Kardan. Also part of the bundle, is up to six months of Spotify's music service for free. It sounds pretty good so far. But like anything in life, there are catches here. You only qualify for six months of free Spotify if you sign up for Sprint's Framily Plan service. You can only get three months, for free if you sign up with a standard Sprint plan. The issue becomes moot anyway, since. After July 10th of 2014, the offer is over. What's really annoying too is that the phone beats you over the head every chance you get with pushes for Sprint's Music Plus music store. Pretty much every home screen on the default wallpaper, has some kind of ploy for this so it's, it's really annoying. Worst, the Harmon Kardan clarify and live stage processing don't really improve music audio, they merely shuffle around equalizer settings and just kind of make the music sound a little bit different. Unless you really want a better pair of ear buds at a lower price, all this makes the HC One M8 Harmon Kardan edition hard to recommend over the standard HTC One M8 on Sprint. I'm Brian Bennett for CNet and this has been a first look at the HTC One M8 Harman Kardon Edition. [MUSIC]