Dingbatt: I have been an HTC fan for a long time. However the M8 camera may not be good enough if that is a key factor for you.
Luckily these days, the best phones available in NZ are very close to the best available in the world. Gone are the days when the only way to get a decent one was to parallel import. I like to be able to physically hold and use a handset to see how it feels and whether it will fit in my pocket. 5 inch screens with a super slim bezel is about the limit for me. Bigger than that and you may as well carry a tablet in a satchel.
Try an S5, an M8, a G3, a Z2. And watch some reviews of them, particularly the way they are skinned.
None of these for are perfect, but I also believe you can't go too far wrong with them either.

• used to the layout and Touchwiz interface.
• I like the physical button at bottom of scree mores so than on screen as it uses up useable screen
• Extrnal SD storage, yep know I can save to cloud or get 64gb versions but I like having the choice.
• Changeable battery for convenience of never getting caught short especially when cycling and using gps functions the batteries will drain quickly
• The S5 camera is very good compared to the S4 and after having used AOSP I really like the Samsung camera software. The previous Galaxy models weren't good in low light now the S5 is better.
• Previous Galaxy models weren't good in sunlight the S5 is way better.
• I use custom Roms so , so called, bloatware isn't an issue to me.
• I like the plastic casing after seeing what happened to my S4 after being dropped on concrete apart from some dents it was/is fine and its very light.