Ongoing supply chain problems take the blame
It’s been a long time since HTC’s last flagship entry. The company was among the biggest names in Android phones a few years back, but we have not seen a proper flagship since 2018, when the most recent was the HTC U12 + (and then the HTC Exodus 1 blockchain phone, but we do not speak about it). Recently, we heard about a possible comeback to the flagship area, with a new metavers-focused device on the way to release sometime this year. Now, some new comments from HTC make it sound like we might be waiting a little longer.
HTC Taiwan has responded to comments on Facebook asking about its upcoming lineup (via WinFuture), and apparently the company’s original plans are suffering some setbacks. For one reason, ongoing pandemic supply chain problems are to blame. While the comment we’re looking at here does not refer directly to the metaverse flagship, its broader focus on the entire HTC upcoming lineup (probably including some more forgettable lower-end models) suggests that this phone is among those affected.
We still do not have any real details yet on how this phone will look or work, but we should probably expect a higher price and a lot of AR features when it is out. Although HTC has not completely fallen out of the smartphone market, the company’s strategy over the last few years has seen the company release obscure midrange phones that are mostly for sale in Taiwan. The company may be hoping that this metaverse phone could help change things (maybe take advantage of the famous Vive branding), but we have a lot to find out first before we have any real sense of whether this could be a brave new direction, or just another flop.
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