Specs for HTC's mysterious M7 handset see daylight

Though M7 has a spy-like ring to it, the term actually refers to a rumored HTC smartphone that has proved to be equally enigmatic.

But today provided the first break in the case – specs for the upcoming smartphone leaked onto the web.

The M7 (likely a codename) is supposed to be the successor to HTC's popular One X handsets. Though it won't be as technologically innovative as the One X, the new device is reported to have some industry firsts built in.

The Taiwanese manufacture has had a few disappointing quarters and some bad financial news, so a phone that carries on the success of the One X series might be just what the doctor ordered.

Sharper looking

The M7 is said to feature a full HD 4.7-inch screen with a pixel density of 468 ppi. If true, that would make the new HTC handset about 40 percent sharper than the current iPhone 5.

The new SoLux display is supposed to be visibly better than the previous Super LCD2 display in terms of viewing angles, outdoor visibility and color accuracy.

Along with being quite a bit sharper, the M7 should run faster than the One X thanks to the new smartphone's 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor.

The new device will pack 2GB of RAM, come with 32GB of internal flash storage and have a 2300mAH battery. But there doesn't seem to be any way to expand the storage memory at the moment, one flaw it may share with the One X+.

The M7 is also expected to ship with Jelly Bean.

Lights, camera, Android

The phone should feature some goodies for pocket photographers.

The rear camera has a 13MP image sensor and a f/2.0 lens. The front camera packs a 2MP lens, and both are supposed to take 1080p video.

The new image sensor (called "Cinesensor") has a few other tricks, such as super slow-motion and video HDR.

Along with all those visual upgrades, the M7 is said to come with some enhanced sound abilities. The speaker is designed by Beats, the Dr. Dre-branded sound technology. And "Clear Words" tech should make phone conversations easier to hear.

As for voice calls, the device should not only be LTE connected, but also offer a next-gen Wi-Fi 802.11ac connection that is rumored to be three times faster than the current 802.11n WLAN wireless tech.

Unfortunately, the launch date and pricing of the M7 didn't hit the fan along with the technical specs, but the first we heard of the phone was that it could launch in early 2013, potentially at CES or the Mobile World Congress.