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HTC Teases Its Next Flagship Smartphone. Too Bad, the Photo Shows Parts of an iPhone 6. (anandtech.com)

Posted by msmash on from the you-had-one-job dept.

HTC has begun to ramp up marketing campaign for its next major smartphone release, teasing that they will be making a proper announcement on May 23rd. From a report: In an email sent to the press this morning and posted on their website, HTC posted a photo of neatly laid out phone components, with the text "Coming Soon... A phone that is more than the sum of its specs." The photo and the announcement give a May 23rd date for more details. AnandTech has added an update to the story, (Via DaringFireball ): As pointed out by a reader, these aren't new components. Or even components of an HTC phone. Rather they're a disassembled iPhone 6...

58 comments

  1. Too bad by 110010001000 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yeah, it's too bad to have your marketing campaign splashed around the web and talked about.

    1. Re:Too bad by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it's too bad to have your marketing campaign splashed around the web and talked about.

      True, normally that's a good thing, but when the first association people have of it is "iPhone clone", maybe... not so much.

      Doubly so when it hits the press and everyone associates the ad with iPhones instead

      "HTC's newest smartphone has launched, but there's just one problem - it's an iPhone! Photos of HTC's newest smartphone, instead of showing the phone itself, showed an iPhone instead..."

    2. Re:Too bad by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

      Normal people don't think like that.

    3. Re: Too bad by Z00L00K · · Score: 2

      I used to have HTC phones, but when I discovered that they suffer from two major flaws I left them.
      The flaws are that they are filled with bloatware and that the battery essentially can't be replaced because it's wrapped in the phone so badly that you damage stuff if you try to replace it.

      Now I use a CAT S60 instead.

      --
      If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
    4. Re:Too bad by Peter+P+Peters · · Score: 1

      Too bad? Someone actually thought that would make a good headline? Slashdot is trash...

  2. LG is gay by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well at least they’re being honest about being an iPhone ripoff maker unlike companies like LG with that stupid, unnecessary notch.

    1. Re:LG is gay by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      like you are stupid unnecessary person, you android fanboy

    2. Re: LG is gay by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hey, I just got you your soy milk. Here

    3. Re:LG is gay by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why would I use Android? I’m not poor.

    4. Re: LG is gay by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Lol top troll

    5. Re: LG is gay by Z00L00K · · Score: 2

      Give me a phone that runs VMS instead.

      --
      If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
  3. Incompetence by jpaine619 · · Score: 2

    Jesus Christ... the level of incompetence is amazing. Are these ad companies so clueless that they don't think some nerd is going to notice this?

    I'm gonna give HTC the benefit of the doubt and assume that they had nothing to do with this. I suspect they gave some company a contract to run their ads and do the promotion. But, this level of idiocy should immediately result in the cancellation of that contract and a ban on any future contracts.

    Although, it does occur to me that maybe HTC did hand them some hardware to take photos of... Be interesting to see how this plays out. I'm sure Apple will capitalize on it.

    1. Re:Incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Are these ad companies so clueless that they don't think some nerd is going to notice this?

      Yes.

    2. Re:Incompetence by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

      Yeah, the ad company should be fired for making people notice advertisements.

    3. Re:Incompetence by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

      > Be interesting to see how this plays out. I'm sure Apple will capitalize on it.

      I can already see the tag llines:

      "Apple phones: good enough to be used by the competition for their marketing"

    4. Re:Incompetence by Desler · · Score: 2

      You actually think the ad company cared about what nerds would think? You’re serious?

    5. Re:Incompetence by SlaveToTheGrind · · Score: 1

      Are these ad companies so clueless that they don't think some nerd is going to notice this?

      They probably were assuming such a nerd would also be able to parse the clear implication that an iPhone is merely the sum of its specs.

    6. Re:Incompetence by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      I think the marketing people were like. “Cool looking stock photo!”
      Normally for HTC there isn’t the rabid fans who will interpret every pixel in an add to find deep meaning.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    7. Re: Incompetence by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 1

      Possibly they are aiming for that demgoraphic who think that recent Apple products have gone to shit. Just like I could think that an early 201x year Macbook Pro would be a sweet machine for Windows 7, I could think that an iPhone 6 running a fresh version of Android could be pretty nice.

    8. Re: Incompetence by lucm · · Score: 0

      an iPhone 6 running a fresh version of Android could be pretty nice.

      Indeed. A device that has a bad camera, no storage expansion and a battery that tends to bend and crack the case, and a software ecosystem that allows malware and useless apps ridden with cryptomining ads. The best of both world.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
    9. Re:Incompetence by jpaine619 · · Score: 1

      One would hope, since it's a nerd that would notice and then tell everyone.. Clearly that is what has happened here...

    10. Re:Incompetence by jpaine619 · · Score: 1

      You clearly don't get it.......

  4. HTC and VIA husband and wife combo... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The CEOs of both were husband and wife. I don't know if they still are, but there was some either rumors or documented collusion/corruption going on, in addition to mismanagement at both companies leading to losses.

    So it wouldn't surprise me if HTC did this themselves, rather than a subcompany. Or are doing damage control for not having a product designed by just using stock photos of other disassembled electronics until theirs are ready. Alternative is this could've been like the prototype cars, and they were throwing out pictures of iPhone 6 tech so people couldn't attempt to infer anything about their designs before an official release announcement.

  5. Doesn't look exciting by Presence+Eternal · · Score: 2

    The incredible was my first smartphone. Changed my life. Pity HTCs general lack of oled has stopped me from becoming a repeat customer. I'm currently in the process of moving from an Iphone x to a v30; the U12 expected specs are not tempting for my usage profile.

    1. Re:Doesn't look exciting by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      Well you don’t show the trend of being a loyal customer. If you are are willing to drop a $1k phone in under 6 months. Ok I can get the iPhone X may not be for you. But normal people will stick with it for a while to at least get its money worth.
      If the iPhone X was your first iPhone you probably should had done more research on the trade offs going to Apple.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    2. Re:Doesn't look exciting by Xenx · · Score: 1

      I bought an iPhone X, knowing what I was getting into. But, there are things about using a device that you won't know just from reading. The iPhone X is a great device and if it wasn't for a few minor "issues" it would be the phone for me. It had solid performance and better battery life. It gets timely updates. However, when the screen is off it is militant about preventing background activity in apps. I prefer to allow more at a cost to the battery. Carplay UI and app options aren't as good as android auto, at least for my preferences.

      It wouldn't be surprising at all to see someone try going from Android to Apple and decide it isn't for them. As for going back to Android, I took only a small hit selling off my iPhone. The money after fees was enough to buy the replacement outright. No real concern of getting my money's worth.

    3. Re:Doesn't look exciting by Presence+Eternal · · Score: 1

      3 months. I'll sell it and lose about 200. Although I could look at it as gaining 400 back when I swap to a used V30.

      It was my second iphone. They've got some nice features. A nice long update cycle. They're willing to tell carriers to go hang themselves as far as bloatware goes. The 3d touch is superlative for editing text and is in every way superior to the android spacebar swipe method.

      But the x has a useless 'home bar' ui element that you can't disable. It breaks my immersion every day in so many ways, most especially if I want to read for a few hours in a quiet room. Tap the screen to turn the page, bright white bar at the bottom of the screen. Every. Single. Page. Turn. It would have been nearly impossible for me to research that. Maybe they'll fix it, but I will not bank on it. I could've lived with the iphone's inferior dial based number entry, walled garden, and lack of true widgets, but I won't put up with the damn thing ruining something I spend twenty hours a week doing.

    4. Re:Doesn't look exciting by lucm · · Score: 1

      I won't put up with the damn thing ruining something I spend twenty hours a week doing.

      If you read that much you should really consider a Kindle. It's so easy on the eye it's like reading a printout, even in the dark with the backlit screen.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
    5. Re:Doesn't look exciting by Presence+Eternal · · Score: 1

      I've had four kindles and even a sony ereader way back when they were in the ebook game. I liked them very much, especially Kindle 3. I was very angry with myself when I knocked it off a shelf.

      But the kindle app in 'black mode' on an oled screen is like vanilla ice cream for my eyes. It's just plain better, with smoother transitions, perfect blacks, wonderful contrast, and laser sharp lettering. It's also much better at displaying graphics, for displaying the store, and for popping over to some other task I have to do and then back to reading.

      I'll always have fond memories of my kindle though.

    6. Re:Doesn't look exciting by Presence+Eternal · · Score: 1

      By the way, the kindles are not back lit. They actually diffuse the light across the surface of the e-ink screen. That's actually why they're so easy on the eyes in the dark, it's as if just the kindle was illuminated by a lamp.

  6. Is that not the point? by Pfhorrest · · Score: 2, Interesting

    They are comparing themselves to their competition. "Not just the sum of its parts", and then showing the parts of an iPhone. The message I get from that is "not just an iPhone"; implicitly, "...but something better". How is this a gaffe at all?

    --
    -Forrest Cameranesi, Geek of all Trades
    "I am Sam. Sam I am. I do not like trolls, flames, or spam."
    1. Re:Is that not the point? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I doubt it will be better...

      I never not had an HTC fall apart within a year. I was a huge fan of their phones during CE, but after the third phone death I had enough.

    2. Re:Is that not the point? by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      I never had a phone that fell apart after a year.
      The phone I hated the most was a Motorola flip phone back in 2002 where the connector to the power charger just got corroded and didn’t work after 2 years.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    3. Re: Is that not the point? by Brockmire · · Score: 0

      What the fuck are you doing to your phones that none of them survive a year? You're obviously the problem.

    4. Re:Is that not the point? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They are comparing themselves to their competition. "Not just the sum of its parts", and then showing the parts of an iPhone. The message I get from that is "not just an iPhone"; implicitly, "...but something better". How is this a gaffe at all?

      Why not just say the actual quote this is obviously playing on?
      "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts." - Aristotle

      "A phone that is more than the sum of its specs."
      Specs. Android phone is more than sum of it's specs.... I mean were they not competing on specs this whole time?

      iPhones don't compete on specs, any Android fan will tell you. I mean, an easier argument to make is an iPhone is greater than the sum of it's specs... because RDF or better software, etc.

    5. Re:Is that not the point? by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      How is this a gaffe at all?

      Because people everywhere are now talking abou.... ooooooooooohhhhhhhhh.

    6. Re:Is that not the point? by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      I never not had an HTC fall apart within a year.

      My sister's current HTC is the only one that has survived* for longer than 9 months.

      *This post is about my sister, not about her phones.

    7. Re:Is that not the point? by samwichse · · Score: 1

      Mixed in there are some parts that are most definitely NOT iPhone 6... like when has Apple ever made an iPhone you could stick a microSD card in (or dual SIM)? The tray holds one.

      There are two iphone camera modules present (iPhone 6 is a single camera?) but there are also two smaller camera modules in the picture that definitely don't belong in an iPhone. What?

      In fact, there seem to be a lot of parts from 2x iPhones in there now that I look. And some other bits tossed in?

  7. Large Display? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I used to have an HTC One Max with a 5.9" screen. I've tried several "large" phones since then, including my current Pixel XL with a 5.5" screen. I never would have thought it, but that half-inch is sorely missed. It seems like a 3 inch difference when using both phones. I don't want a shitty small screen marketed as a large screen. I want a damn phablet again.

    Dealbreakers: Screen smaller than 5.8", no SD Card, no headphone jack, locked bootloader.

  8. So they're saying by future+assassin · · Score: 1

    they'll dismantle/destroy/interrupt the iPhone market with their new Phone.
    ???
    Profit!

    --
    by TheSpoom (715771) Uncaring Linux user here. I have nothing to add to this but please continue. *munches popcorn*
    1. Re:So they're saying by Desler · · Score: 1

      Until you realize it’s HTC and then you prepare for disappointment and being let down.

    2. Re: So they're saying by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I was thinking that they were actively targeting disillusioned Apple users by saying something along the lines of "when this is released you'll want to smash your iPhone in bits and buy this instead"

    3. Re: So they're saying by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why would they choose HTC? In that case, the phone will fall apart for them without having to smash it.

    4. Re:So they're saying by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      I think that are saying. We liked the look of this stock image.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    5. Re:So they're saying by Xenx · · Score: 2

      There is nothing inherently bad about HTC phones. They're as up to spec and as well built as the competition. There is some give and take on specific features, but overall on par. The only real problem is that they just don't have the exposure they used to.

  9. What are you smoking? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They removed all marks that identified the parts as Apple components and then slapped "HTC" on the picture. How is average consumer supposed to "implicitly" know that's an iPhone? Also, why would a company that makes Android phones be trying to imply that their product is "not just an iPhone?". Of course it's not. It's also "not just a Peterbuilt truck".

  10. Re: HTCs new phone has iPhone parts? by Bing+Tsher+E · · Score: 2

    If somebody was refurbishing iPhone 6's and putting current Android on them for an attractive price, it could be a good seller. I would consider getting one.

    But I have NetBSD running on a Mac SE/30 (one of Apple's best products ever)

  11. Re: HTCs new phone has iPhone parts? by lucm · · Score: 1

    If somebody was refurbishing iPhone 6's and putting current Android on them for an attractive price, it could be a good seller.

    It could become a thing for neo-hipsters (those who pour their starbucks latte in mcdonalds cup).

    --
    lucm, indeed.
  12. Re: APK...is he a child molester? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ha, that shows how ignorant you are, unlike useless idiots APK also molests goats, old people, and slow running melons.

    APK

    P.S. => You idiots didn't even know melons can run, unlike APK

  13. Misunderstanding by Gabest · · Score: 1

    They found an old stock of iPhone 6 parts and used it to create a new phone!

  14. Non-story by LocalH · · Score: 1

    We're glad people are studying our teaser so closely. The fact people have noticed parts from different phone models is exactly right – they represent the jumble of parts (specs) that our competitors inelegantly cram into their phones, while the space in the middle outlining HTC's next phone represents 'a phone that is more than the sum of its specs.'

    To be clear, none of the parts illustrated in the teaser came from the phone we're announcing May 23rd; people will have to tune in to htc.com that day to find out more

    --
    FC Closer