Jessica Dolcourt/CNET

BARCELONA, Spain--I don't tend to take much stock in promises of zero shutter lag; I've seen too many examples of hold-ups where there shouldn't be were all claims true.

So when I got the HTC One phones in my hand for some short and sweet camera tinkering, I was pretty surprised to see the camera capture and store the shot in--yes, really--the blink of an eye.

What's more, I'm so conditioned to pressing and lingering on an onscreen control that leaving my trigger finger in place a beat too long produced not one shot, but five.

Now before you suggest that I was in burst mode, let me tell you that I checked to make sure all automatic settings were on (they were). In fact, burst mode, which usually takes five shots in rapid succession, seems to be absent in HTC's Sense 4.0 interface for Ice Cream Sandwich, or at least on these phones. And why not, when there's no need? Simply leave your finger on the onscreen control for 10 seconds, and you'll have about 10 stills.

We'll have to wait and see how HTC's other camera claims do in some intense testing we have planned, but so far that shutter speed promise looks like it will hold.