HTC One update to fix Ultrapixel purple picture problem

Purple rain, purple rain: the HTC One's Ultrapixel camera is reportedly set for a software update to fix a purple tint plaguing phone fans.

Italian blog HDBlog claims to have an email from HTC acknowledging the problem can occur if your HTC One's camera is faced with a "limited combination of conditions", a statement that HTC has confirmed to me today.

"We've recently received isolated reports of a purple hue appearing on images taken with the HTC One. After investigating the reports internally, we're planning a software update that will improve the colour contrasts in low light conditions," says HTC. "As we work to improve this aspect of the user experience, we would like to thank our customers for their patience."

The purple tint is reported to affect pictures taken in darker conditions. To see if your phone is affected, place the camera down on a table and see if the screen goes black, or clouds over with a purple or reddish tint. 

The HTC One packs an unusual camera for a modern phone: the sensor captures just 4-megapixels. Known as an Ultrapixel camera, the snapper is supposed to give better image quality despite recording lower resolution pictures than its contemporaries.

Purple is the favourite colour of broken cameras: roughly a year ago, Apple tried to brush off claims of a purple tint to pictures taken by the newly-arrived iPhone 5.

Speaking of which, we pitted the HTC One against the iPhone 5 in camera combat to see how the Ultrapixel snapper shaped up against its rival.

Have you had any problems with your HTC One? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or see us bathing in the purple rain on our Facebook wall.