First announced for release in Japan by Japanese carrier KDDI as the HTC J Butterfly (HTL21), the J Butterfly was released in Japan on 9 December 2012 as the successor to the HTC J.

In the United States, the Butterfly was released as the HTC Droid DNA as a Verizon exclusive, supporting wireless charging.

In June 2013, the Butterfly was succeeded by the HTC Butterfly S. It is the second smartphone in the world to be announced with a 1080p display, after Oppo's Find 5,[6] and the first phone to be released with one.

[3] The Butterfly is water resistant with an IP rating of X5 and has a 5-inch "Super LCD 3" display with full HD resolution (1920x1080 pixels).

The Motorola Droid RAZR MAXX HD (HD has 720p display) at 312ppi, the iPhone 5's "Retina display", 326 ppi, and the Nokia Lumia 920, 332 ppi.