HTC is tanking

[jihe]

The fact that you went from a iPhone to a crippled old blackberry and seem to think that outdated pos is somehow better than a Android device makes your opinions on mobile devices pretty irrelevant.

I went from a HTC desire to Nokia E5. Longer battery life and keyboard make a much more usable device. Android and IOS are flashier sure, but I can do everything I need on the Nokia and it runs 3 times longer.

 

[lopri]

While sifting through morning news stories,

Rather Than Just Watch Samsung’s Show, HTC Gets in on the Act

The Taiwanese phonemaker dispatched a street team to pass out snacks and hot cocoa while demoing the HTC phone as folks gathered for Samsung’s big event.

“For us its a good opportunity to let people compare real-time,” HTC President Jason Mackenzie said in an interview. “We have the best smartphone in the world right now and we want to seize the opportunity to get it into as many hands as possible.”

To that end, HTC also passed out coupons offering $100 to those that trade in their phone for the new One.

Not sure what to make out of this. In a sense it's funny but I don't think those folks on the street were out there to have fun..

 

[Puddle Jumper]

Android is overhyped, for emailing and texting my BB shits all over Android. It might not have a 5 inch 1080p screen, but as a phone it's great. When you say the BB's crippled I'm confused, it does everything I need it to do, and better than iOS or Android. The fact I can't customize every pixel and it doesn't have Angry Birds and Hanging With Friends isn't a big deal to me

*shrug*

Aren't you the one who bought hundreds of dollars of apps for iOS and Android and proclaimed Android's inferiority due to app aesthetics? And now you are saying a device that is barely a smartphone with next to no apps to speak of much less pretty ones is better than Android?

Does that phone even support Exchange Activesync without using BES?

 

[QueBert]

Aren't you the one who bought hundreds of dollars of apps for iOS and Android and proclaimed Android's inferiority due to app aesthetics? And now you are saying a device that is barely a smartphone with next to no apps to speak of much less pretty ones is better than Android?

Does that phone even support Exchange Activesync without using BES?

I have an iPod Touch 5th generation for apps, and I I have a Bold 9900 to use as a phone. For a PHONE the BB is hands down the best, I love iOS apps but I wasn't happy with the iPhone as a phone. Since 99% of the apps I used weren't at all phone related imho having 2 device made the most sense.

I can't answer the Exchange question as I never use anything but a PC for emailing.

 

[badb0y]

I am not a fan of the physical design but internally this thing is a monster and they managed to make it smaller. Not to mention Samsung is getting fancy with the software too.

/impressed.

 

[lopri]

I did quite a bit of reading tonight, and as much as I admire HTC's effort, I don't know if the One is a winner. The camera is really a big question mark, and regardless of its outstanding sound system, I have a feeling that people will value camera more than speakers on smart phones.

Personally, taking S4 out of the equation, and even taking out my beloved Nexus 4 of the equation, my preference goes to Xperia Z instead of HTC One. I forgot whether Xeperia Z sported Snapdragon 400 or 600, but ignoring the performance delta that may or may not be felt in real life, I think I will like more Xperia's design + waterproof-ness + SD card slot + 13 MP camera over other strengths of the One.

I know many are currently debating over S4 and the One, but Sony, Motorola, LG are still here to stay as well.

 

[ImDonly1]

I did quite a bit of reading tonight, and as much as I admire HTC's effort, I don't know if the One is a winner. The camera is really a big question mark, and regardless of its outstanding sound system, I have a feeling that people will value camera more than speakers on smart phones.

Personally, taking S4 out of the equation, and even taking out my beloved Nexus 4 of the equation, my preference goes to Xperia Z instead of HTC One. I forgot whether Xeperia Z sported Snapdragon 400 or 600, but ignoring the performance delta that may or may not be felt in real life, I think I will like more Xperia's design + waterproof-ness + SD card slot + 13 MP camera over other strengths of the One.

I know many are currently debating over S4 and the One, but Sony, Motorola, LG are still here to stay as well.

Many are saying the screen on the Z is awful (viewing angles are not so good) or at least there was a thread on XDA about people complaining about it. Not sure how accurate that is though. I do like the Xperia Z and its waterproof feature.
Check when he moves the phone sideways as here
http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/20/sony-xperia-z-review/

Also the Xperia Z uses the S4 Pro. The HTC One uses the S 600.

 

[krumme]

What will happen with the One is, that after some time of usage, some people will start having difficulties running it for a day. The battery is already on the border of beeing to small. Then they are stuck with a non-replacable battery.

And it will be just another story of bad battery life to HTC history, and problems in general. The One will then add to the erosion of HTC brand, and the tanking will continue.

HTC is going to die, be eaten by Samsung, a little Sony that have the camera tech, but most for the cheap Chinese comming big time here 2013/2014.

 

[krumme]

Each time Samsung brings a new top model, their entire portifolio is strengthened very much compared to Apple, because they started so late.

With s2+, S3 and S4 they have good products all the way to the top. The S2 screen is still bad compared to the ip4, but next year when S5 hits, and S3 gets the midrange competing against 4s at a lower price, their portifolio of big screens will be way above Apple. And we will see S3 mini approaching low end.

I think for next year we will see some 3.7-4 inch good quality Samsung phones. There is a market for it, but obviously the market for bigger phones is far larger and needs to be catered for first. But when that market is saturated, be sure Samsung will cover all niches.

 

[shortylickens]

Each time Samsung brings a new top model, their entire portifolio is strengthened very much compared to Apple, because they started so late.

With s2+, S3 and S4 they have good products all the way to the top. The S2 screen is still bad compared to the ip4, but next year when S5 hits, and S3 gets the midrange competing against 4s at a lower price, their portifolio of big screens will be way above Apple. And we will see S3 mini approaching low end.

I think for next year we will see some 3.7-4 inch good quality Samsung phones. There is a market for it, but obviously the market for bigger phones is far larger and needs to be catered for first. But when that market is saturated, be sure Samsung will cover all niches.

Yeah, the RAZR M seems quite popular too. The public obviously wants more convenience over more power. A small phone with good battery life is a dream for many people.

As for myself: I dont know how I'm gonna move down from a Note 2.

 

[dagamer34]

What will happen with the One is, that after some time of usage, some people will start having difficulties running it for a day. The battery is already on the border of beeing to small. Then they are stuck with a non-replacable battery.

And it will be just another story of bad battery life to HTC history, and problems in general. The One will then add to the erosion of HTC brand, and the tanking will continue.

HTC is going to die, be eaten by Samsung, a little Sony that have the camera tech, but most for the cheap Chinese comming big time here 2013/2014.

2300mAh is small now? Talk about moving goalposts! 😵

 

[lopri]

Introducing the HTC One Developer Edition

Edit: It'd have been nicer had they offered 16 GB or 32 GB versions for $200 less.

 

[WelshBloke]

Introducing the HTC One Developer Edition

Edit: It'd have been nicer had they offered 16 GB or 32 GB versions for $200 less.

What could be better than the HTC One; an all-metal phone with 64GB of memory and a 1080p Full HD screen? How about the same phone shipped SIM and bootloader unlocked?

Selling that as the standard? How is this a good thing? hats how phones should be sold in the first place, or at least make it very easy to achieve.

 

[ChronoReverse]

Yes but we know it can't happen any time soon. It's a good thing that this is available at all. It means it's actually getting better. Show demand for it and perhaps one day it will be standard.

 

[WelshBloke]

Yes but we know it can't happen any time soon. It's a good thing that this is available at all. It means it's actually getting better. Show demand for it and perhaps one day it will be standard.

What do you mean?

Phones bought from manufacturers have always been SIM unlocked and usually bootloader unlocked (its only a couple of manufacturers that do lock their bootloaders).

 

[ponyo]

The problem I have with developer edition phone is who's going to bother developing custom rom or kernel on a phone where most of users can't use or benefit from because their devices are not developer edition and therefore locked. It doesn't make sense for the developer to waste time modding something which only a few will benefit from.

 

[ponyo]

2300mAh is small now? Talk about moving goalposts! 😵

Goalpost is always moving in the mobile space. It's up to the company to anticipate how far it will move and go beyond with their flagship product. 2300mah is small for sealed when your primary competitor has 2600mah in removable form.

 

[Bateluer]

Goalpost is always moving in the mobile space. It's up to the company to anticipate how far it will move and go beyond with their flagship product. 2300mah is small for sealed when your primary competitor has 2600mah in removable form.

Especially when that 2300mah battery phone is 9mm thick vs the 8mm thick for the 2600mah removable one.


BTW, Droid Life tweeted this morning that HTC USA confirmed the One will not be coming to Verizon. 🙁

 

[PingviN]

Especially when that 2300mah battery phone is 9mm thick vs the 8mm thick for the 2600mah removable one.


BTW, Droid Life tweeted this morning that HTC USA confirmed the One will not be coming to Verizon. 🙁

9mm at it's thickest point. If you measure total volume, is the One larger?

 

[scaramoosh]

No one I know cares about HTC, all just buy Samsung now, they make better Smart Phones and the whole metal vs plastic thing, no normal person cares, most people put it in a case anyways. The only person left who is my close friend, got fed up with another bad HTC camera and wants a micro SD so is now buying the GS4.

Personally myself, I'm only sold on the GS4 if it has Exynos with 4G, though I've been using a Nokia lately and I really like it, so I might wait a few months to see if they announce anything, before buying a GS4.

The GS4 just offers everything and tbh plastic is superior to metal for a phone. If it was about conducting electricity or heat, then I'd say yes, use metal lol. Tbh just buy a new back cover if you hate the default one.

Don't get why no one is speaking about the poor mic placement on the HTC One, on the back? Please.. rookie mistake right there.

 

[lopri]

Many are saying the screen on the Z is awful (viewing angles are not so good) or at least there was a thread on XDA about people complaining about it. Not sure how accurate that is though. I do like the Xperia Z and its waterproof feature.
Check when he moves the phone sideways as here
http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/20/sony-xperia-z-review/

Also the Xperia Z uses the S4 Pro. The HTC One uses the S 600.

If we were to put the S4 (1.9 GHz + DDR3) and the One (1.7 GHz + DDR2) in the same league, then the Xperia Z (1.5 GHz + DDR2) wouldn't be too far behind? Granted I did not pay much attention to the Xperia Z - I was more interested in its tablet cousin - but in a few videos I watched on Youtube it looked gorgeous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3XjdJgFz7Q

Edit: Yah viewing angle is pretty bad, I see that. But we're talking about a 5" screen.

 

[QueBert]

No one I know cares about HTC, all just buy Samsung now, they make better Smart Phones and the whole metal vs plastic thing, no normal person cares, most people put it in a case anyways. The only person left who is my close friend, got fed up with another bad HTC camera and wants a micro SD so is now buying the GS4.

Personally myself, I'm only sold on the GS4 if it has Exynos with 4G, though I've been using a Nokia lately and I really like it, so I might wait a few months to see if they announce anything, before buying a GS4.

The GS4 just offers everything and tbh plastic is superior to metal for a phone. If it was about conducting electricity or heat, then I'd say yes, use metal lol. Tbh just buy a new back cover if you hate the default one.

Don't get why no one is speaking about the poor mic placement on the HTC One, on the back? Please.. rookie mistake right there.

If Samsung were to released the GS4 in both plastic and metal versions. And offer them at the same price point, the metal would sell better I bet. Hell I bet they could even charge more for the metal and still sell a ton of them. Unibody aluminum phones just feel better in your hands. It's not that the average person doesn't care, it's they want a Galaxy because of the marketing and Samsung name. The same holds true for laptops, I doubt anyone goes "I'll only buy a laptop if it's made of plastic!" But, there are people who won't buy a phone/laptop unless it's unibody or at least non plastic.

 

[ImDonly1]

If we were to put the S4 (1.9 GHz + DDR3) and the One (1.7 GHz + DDR2) in the same league, then the Xperia Z (1.5 GHz + DDR2) wouldn't be too far behind? Granted I did not pay much attention to the Xperia Z - I was more interested in its tablet cousin - but in a few videos I watched on Youtube it looked gorgeous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3XjdJgFz7Q

Edit: Yah viewing angle is pretty bad, I see that. But we're talking about a 5" screen.

Well closest thing I saw to a comparison between a S4 Pro and S 600 was on this review
http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/12/htc-one-review/

Look at the benchmarks it compares the HTC One to the DNA. The One is S 600 and the DNA is S4 Pro. I assume the Xperia Z would be similar to the DNA in benchmarks. Not sure on the clock speeds or RAM on either or if they are the same.

 

[scaramoosh]

If Samsung were to released the GS4 in both plastic and metal versions. And offer them at the same price point, the metal would sell better I bet. Hell I bet they could even charge more for the metal and still sell a ton of them. Unibody aluminum phones just feel better in your hands. It's not that the average person doesn't care, it's they want a Galaxy because of the marketing and Samsung name. The same holds true for laptops, I doubt anyone goes "I'll only buy a laptop if it's made of plastic!" But, there are people who won't buy a phone/laptop unless it's unibody or at least non plastic.

People like the idea of metal, though when they come to use it they hate it and wrap it up in a plastic case.... just get the plastic one, no need for a case then.

 

[krumme]

If Samsung were to released the GS4 in both plastic and metal versions. And offer them at the same price point, the metal would sell better I bet. Hell I bet they could even charge more for the metal and still sell a ton of them. Unibody aluminum phones just feel better in your hands. It's not that the average person doesn't care, it's they want a Galaxy because of the marketing and Samsung name. The same holds true for laptops, I doubt anyone goes "I'll only buy a laptop if it's made of plastic!" But, there are people who won't buy a phone/laptop unless it's unibody or at least non plastic.

Samsung have some, if not the, best production technology and competences in the world. They can use it to make products nobody can, because they master both the key technologies and the integration of them. They are really good at working with both plastic and aluminium. We know the plastic phone have functional benefits like cost, antenna, robustness, weight, size. It gives the customer a light, slim, robust phone.

But i think the reason Samsung still keeps the low cost plastic material, is that it enables them to sell their phone for up to 2 years - while the phone becomes radically cheaper, and still do it with good margins because the raw material cost and production cost is low from day 1. If you have more years instead of fx. only 1 year, you can write off development and production equipment for a far longer time. The importance of that can not be understated. Samsung can then invest the money in more hardware and software technology and brand development.

Right now it looks like this strategy is working. Right now Samsung have a 130g, 5" 1080 oled in a slim case, with functionality nobody else offers. No one is near that. They are simply using their brute size to grind througt all aspects of getting business at the mobile market.

Notice the progress they have done in 2-3 years. What did apple do at the same period? There is a reason everyone is scared about this elephant.