By 
For the past year or two, HTC has been pumping out new smartphones almost as quickly as those crazy Duggars have been popping out children. That’s not to say that other Android manufacturers aren’t guilty of the same (looking at you, Moto), but HTC is among the first to finally say enough is enough. The company’s UK CEO Phil Roberson acknowledges a link between the quantity of devices produced and the quality of those devices. The majority of HTC’s releases last year were perfectly acceptable, if not among the best in their class, but when a product lineup becomes so crowded it becomes harder recognize the gems and differentiate them from the pack. So in 2012, look for things to change slightly. Roberson wants to refocus on efforts on producing great hardware rather than simply blanketing the landscape in an endless sea of indistinguishable unibody handsets. We’ve already caught wind of a few devices we expect to see at Mobile World Congress, and we’re sure to get a better idea of how things may play out once that event rolls around. For one, tablets don’t seem to be a priority for 2012, an understandable change in direction after HTC couldn’t seem to crack the market last year. I’ve always been a staunch believer in quality over quantity, and so salute HTC for putting an end to the madness. In the meantime I have a pitch for a new TLC show: 19 Phone and Counting. Chew on that for a minute.
[MobileMagazine via Engadget]
Every company should have a phone every quarter! 4 high end phones though.
Every company should have a phone every quarter! 4 high end phones though.
I think Samsung has the right idea with releasing one flagship a year, altough they do release way too many lower-end devices. A second high-end device during the year like they did with the note and maybe a refresh to their flagship (like the GS2 HD) is more than enough. Release too many devices and people just don’t know what to get anymore… plus it’s a lot easier to follow-up on updates with fewer devices.
How about put ALL focus on hardware and ditch Sense altogether. Not that I’m going to buy a non-Nexus phone anyway, but at least getting rid of Sense will keep people from wondering why their HTC phones are slow and buggy.
“Fewer” new handsets, not “less” new handsets.
I was going to say the same thing! You count how many handsets come to market, you don’t measure them!
In any case, this is great news. I have always liked HTC phones but I was beginning to wonder if I needed to make a switch with my next upgrade later this year. I can now look forward to HTC’s new phones and hope to find a top notch phone of my liking. :)
I love the Rezound for VZW. Top of the line specs and great phone overall. I keep learning new things about this phone all the time, like it is a world phone but VZW doesn’t advertise it as one. If they didn’t release so many phones at the same time as this one, I think it would have sold much better.
Maybe they will be making just as many new models, but the ones they make will be smaller, or not as good… ;)
I really think you need to use a different comparison than the Duggars. That is almost offensive.
It’s not offensive, but it is inaccurate, since HTC was pumpin’ ’em out faster than one only every 9 months.
(Also, I admit, I double-checked the author when I saw the Duggars joke, expecting to see Chris Chavez, but, nope… :)
I like this blog, but they seriously need to hire an editor.
ACES FULL,you are correct!Not to be nit-picking KEVIN,CHRIS,& QUENTIN,but,this sort of thing slips through constantly.
I am acquainted w/someone here at A/F w/a degree in ENGLISH,who is also a writer & photographer,w/an interest in all things tech. & she’s currently searching for a job.
PHANDROID NEWS could definitely use a woman’s touch,so,how about it? Any opportunities available?
Easy! Have her go here and apply.
http://neverstill.com/hiring-tech-bloggers
Sounds like google it to these people a few things or two. It’s about time they stop putting out a new phone like every second .
Really? HTC is the first company to address the fact that they’re saturating the market by releasing too many phones?
http://www.tmonews.com/2012/01/motorola-ceo-tells-media-his-company-wants-to-make-less-phones/
Oh. Right.
Even on their own blog…
http://phandroid.com/2012/01/11/motorolas-jha-we-want-to-make-fewer-android-devices-carriers-dont-want-seven-stock-android-devices-on-their-shelves/
oops, it posted twice
HTC may not be the first to say it, since Motorola’s Sanjay Jha did say the same thing at CES, but it’s still really good news. I would rather have a smaller choice of
high quality phones then a large choice of low quality/crap phones.
Also, fewer models should makes it easier to push out new OS versions in a timely manner (At least I can dream it will).
@theReder If your reading comprehension wasn’t your shoe size you would realize the article clearly states that HTC is among the first to commit to developing fewer handsets.
The word “among” was not present when I posted. Now it is.
People say “no no diversity/selection is good, its just the advancement of technology blah blah”
Wrong, not to this extent. We are seeing companies holding back features and great things on their so called “flagship” phones just so that they can release something .01% better in a month. This is not technology simply advancing at a rapid pace, it is technology being held back for sheer greed’s sake.
End result, the phones we buy are not what they should be at the time they are sold to us. Companies are obviously not selling us their best effort when they pump them out like baby duggars, and we shouldnt be settling. Good on htc and moto for working on it.
Old news. Pretty sure all the usual chuckle head outlets reported this a month ago..
http://androidandme.com/2011/12/devices/htc-to-focus-less-on-quantity-more-on-quality-in-2012/
I’m glad that’s all I personally buy so it’ll be a good change.
I agree about the quality of Kevin’s writing but he can’t be arsed to proof read anything and Rob Jackson who owns the site doesn’t seem to care.
im never going back to htc.
F yeah. My Evo 4G use to randomly stop producing ANY sound. Kinda important when it’s my only alarm clock. Only a complete phone reset would fix it and sometimes I can make instant noodles waiting for boot up.
It’s also a virgin phone unmolested by root so I definitely didn’t muck up its software. Got so damn laggy was a pain to use. Maybe a Nexus HTC for 2013 would even make me consider giving them a chance again.
Julian, why?
The only complaint I have about the EVO 4G is the charging port issue.
Almost 2 years later, and we still got a fix or 2 a few days back when they removed the carrier iq or whatever thing.
I want a kick ass EVO 2..
HTC is not that bad. They released 2 phones for Sprint. One high end and one low end. For ATT they released 1 android phone. On Verizon there was 2, one high end and low end. Then for T-mobile they went a little crazy with the amaze and sensation. (Yes I know about all the European phones they released but we are in the US)….no company is not guilty. Samsung released like 3 phones for ATT in the past couple months. Just saying.
They had more than that. They had the Inspire, Thunderbolt, Rezound, Rhyme, Amaze, Sensation, Vivid, Incredible.. not to mention the worst phone I’ve ever come across the ‘messaging’ phone the Freestyle. There were more too.
I’d prefer they use the same name and phone for all carriers just with obviously different 4G tech inside so that all of the accessories will be the same. This is something that Apple does well in that the iPhone 4 and 4S are similar enough to use the same accessories. Not a crippling issue, but it’d be nice is all.
True, the article has been changed.
True, the article has been changed.
I hope they making a few phones
…i like HTC
I hope they making a few phones
…i like HTC
Still rocking my day one HTC DROID Incredible… little guy is still a beast! I know there is a Galaxy Nexus in my future… just not ready to jump on it.
I’m good with my yearly Nexus. Just the right amount of phone. I may even go two years with the same phone. For me, that is just craziness. (Of course it took several HTC phones, lots of Samsung phones, some ugly Moto Blur, a few thousand bucks etc, and then finally using ICS for me to come to that conclusion)