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Today, HTC finally announced their profits for the month of July, and they’re not looking so hot. As expected (recently they announced they were pulling out of South Korean and Brazilian markets) HTC’s revenue fell 45% when compared to this same time last year, no doubt due to weakening consumer demand for their flagship One series devices. Last year, HTC hit NT$45.11 billion for the month of July, while this year, they managed to only take in NT$25 billion.
Again, these numbers were expected after the launch of rival Samsung’s Galaxy S3 and is only expected to worsen once the rumored next iPhone drops in September. Remember, even though HTC announced they would be focusing their efforts on releasing as few device variants as possible, they still managed to spread themselves thin with 3 flagship devices. Samsung on the other hand managed to focus on 1 flagship — the Galaxy S3 — and essentially launched the exact same phone across all carriers here in the US (and abroad).
Even though HTC dealt with criticisms from their older devices head-on when launching the One series to critical acclaim, it was only AT&T customers who were given dibs on their flagship One X. I can’t help but wonder if HTC worked on getting the One X out to as many carriers as possible, if their numbers would look a little more like Samsung’s. What do you guys think? Hypothetically if the One X was available on your carrier, would you opt for the Galaxy S3 or the One X?
[Reuters]
With the One series not having sd cards I quickly lost interest, I’m due for an upgrade in December so I’ll see what if anything HTC has new to offer that’s new by then, otherwise Samsung here I come.
I really think they underestimated how many people would not buy the phone if didn’t have removable storage and/or a removable battery. It was definitely the deal breaker for me. Especially since the One S was only 16 gig.
people really need to stop thinking, the rooting heavy user qualms are similar to the general consumer’s. Most people never buy an sd card or multiple batteries.
If we’re talking about “average consumers” then I would say that Samsung is simply a bigger company with a much larger advertising budget.
Samsung has out-spent HTC, and this resonates with casual shoppers.
For example, Samsung is the “official smartphone partner of the US Olympic team,” (that’s the verbiage used on samsung.com), and they hired David Beckham as a spokesman. HTC can’t compete with that level of visibility.
At this point I think of HTC as an underground/enthusiast brand akin to Huawei, ZTE, Pantech, etc.
Even if you don’t root. Being able to swap out a year old battery for a fresh one is a great option.
Options are hardly ever bad things.
Don’t get my wrong, everyone has a right to be upset about it n not buy it because of that, i’m just saying as far as world wide sales go, the lack of those two features really isnt a deal breaker for the majority of the general consumers. Its a small percentage of users (much like
the percentage of rooters to non rooters) who didn’t buy HTC solely for those reasons. I think reputation, based on the performance of previous devices, is what hurt them the most. Mix that with the world wide praise of the Galaxy S series and you have a recipe for a not so good year.
Options aren’t bad things. But put it in perspective here. Is the lack of that option the cause of such a massive drop in sales? I think not.
Cell phones have had micro sd card slots for years, before smartphones got popular. I would say the majority of the non tech savy crowd that I know that owns a device that has a micro sd card, has a card in there that they bought. Not just the one that came with it.
Well I have different experiences. I dont know anyone who bought a new sd card outside of those who are familiar with rooting. When i bring up the idea they are shocked they can do that.
The 16Gb iPhone, iirc, is the highest selling iPhone, by a large margin. No way to increase that. Most people don’t care.
people that do not care buy iphones (a lot). HTC owners care, I will never buy a phone without a removable battery, sd expansion slot and unlock unfriendly while a have other options with those features
For the people that care, you have the 32GB and the 64GB iPhones. For the One S, that’s the end of the road. If you’re going to lock people into one storage capacity, you should at least offer more than one option.
I’m really glad Samsung put removable storage in the SGSIII and still offered different capacities.
Wouldn’t argue with that. It’s better to have than to not. I’m just saying that’s not the cause of the massive sales drop.
when dealing with the iPhone, it’s a different animal. Generally speaking, people that want an iPhone don’t care about removable batteries, sd cards and what have you. I’m not saying that’s the case for all but there isn’t a choice when it comes to the iPhone. You either get an iPhone or you don’t. With Android there is a choice and it’s pretty obvious that consumers spoke with their wallet.
I’ve read (but haven’t verified, outside of the EVO) that HTC phones can’t be used as a hotspot without paying extra. Even FoxFi won’t work.
Can anyone confirm/deny this? If it’s true, it would prevent me from ever buying any HTC, as I haven’t had that problem on any Motorola phones.
I use my thunderbolt as a hot spot a lot, and I don’t pay for it
I have used my TBolt and Rezound as well with no payment to the big guys.
I can confirm it’s wrong. My MT3G, N1, Sensation all work fine without a monthly fee.
Thanks!
Hmmm, I can’t think of any phone without a removable battery or SD card slot that sold tons of phones…
Yes, but there is a large group of people who think like I do who don’t want an iPhone because of the restrictiveness. Android didn’t just take over the majority of the mobile market share for no reason.
i considered the HTC One and SGIII but nah… the galaxy Nexus is at the end of its life, so that can only mean that the next nexus is in the works… can’t wait for the rumors to begin!
I’ll tell you why…it’s because they locked their bootloaders, used cheap hardware (especially screens). The HOX isn’t too bad..but they were cheap on the memory and it killed multitasking. They solution was “oh well, deal with it”….I for one, will never buy HTC again
If the one x was available on Verizon at the same time as it was on at&t, I would be typing this on a one x instead of a galaxy s iii.
Non removable battery, and non expandable memory on their one x. Problem solved.
Seconded. GS3 has both of these and they’re selling like hotcakes.
Is that really the reason though? Everyone is opting for the S3 because of this???
Yes. Even my grandmother.
I don’t think so Chris… I dunno really. It doesn’t make a lot of sense personally.
Doubt it, non of my normal friends care about removable battery and sd card. The reason why they are seeing such a big fall are caused by the short term business plan they had before. Release a lot of phones to get a lot of customer to buy a htc phone, but it give a very inconsistency experience, since they couldn’t make all of them good, and actually support them well. The problem then arise when people need to buy a new phone, they aren’t going to buy HTC again, since they got treated badly.
HTC dig their own grave, it is gonna take a long time to fix the damage HTC did to their own brand.
I couldn’t say for sure, but for me it’s an easy choice there. Outside of those two issues they’re both badass devices.
I chose the nexus despite not having removable storage.
I like the removable battery, and lack of buttons.
Look at the front of that phone….. Everything else just looks dated.
same here…32g GN. That’s plenty and with Google Play you don’t need all your media local on the device. I maintain a Google and iTunes environment at home for multiple devices and Gplay is far easier to keep current across all devices.
Did have to go 3800mAh Seidio Batt though…even the 2100 was killing me:( it lasts all say and then some.
With cloud storage, you may not need to keep media local, but with tiered data plans, you will.
Yes, everyone IS opting for the S3 because the ONE series lacks a removable battery and microSD slot.
I even know non-technical people who were in the market for a new phone and even these non-technical people somehow knew not to buy an Android phone without a removable battery and microSD slot.
People aren’t stupid and the only company that can get away with it is Apple. But you can’t even compare Apple to Android, Samsung or HTC.
-Apple makes their own rules.
-Apple doesn’t listen to carriers.
-Apple makes iOS updates available immediately and doesn’t allow the carrier to play the 8 month carrier testing game.
-Apple never reduces the price of their phones. The iPhone you buy today will be the exact same price until the next iPhone is released; no penny amazon deals.
-Apple publicly and almost immediately addresses issues with their products and works hard to resolve them. They don’t stay quiet and leave customers in the dark like Android manufacturers do. I’m still waiting for Samsung to admit the original Galaxy S had major GPS defects.
I’m not trying to defend Apple or say that Apple is better, I’m just trying to justify why Apple has a cult like following and why Apple can get away with making their own rules and doing things their way. Simply put, Apple is a well made solid product backed by excellent customer service.
HTC is not Apple, and their biggest mistake with the One series was their failed attempt to create an Apple/iPhone like experience.
First off, IOS updates and Android updates are quite different. Android updates add stability, UI and performance improvements mostly. IOS updates add features that should have been there in the first place.
Secondly, Apple has had their fair share of issues which took them a while to acknowledge and resolve (not all have been resolved btw). For example the famous antenna attenuation issue, yellow screens, proximity sensor problems, crashing menus on IOS etc. So no, they aren’t the best when it comes to taking care of the customers. It’s just that their ignorant user base gobble up everything they are fed regardless.
1) Antenna issue was publicly addressed with a press conference by Steve Jobs himself. Anyone who wasn’t happy with the phone could return the phone for a full refund, and the refund window was extended. Or they could get a free bumper. When have you ever seen a CEO of a tech company hold a press conference to address a problem with a product? Usually problems are just swept under the rug.
2) Yellow screens were Immediately addressed as being an artifact of the manufacturing process. Basically the phones were so brand new, the residue from manufacturing had not yet evaporated away. Again, apple said anyone who didn’t want to wait for the residue to go away on it’s own could exchange the phone or return the phone and even extended the exchange window.
3) Proximity sensor problems, I’m not aware of.
4) crashes and other iOS problems are almost immediately resolved with updates, sometimes within a matter of days. For iPhone 4S iOS battery issues, Apple released a series of updates within weeks of each other.
5) Many iOS updates do include security updates. You’re confusing major iOS updates (iOS 5 to iOS6) with incremental updates that are released to address minor problems and security. Apparently you are not aware that iOS gets incremental updates.
To touch on point 5. iOS devices are always up-to-date. When iOS 5 was released, both iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 immediately received the update along with the new iPhone 4S. My point being, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S are all up-to-date when it comes to security and privacy on the device. In contrast, almost all Android devices, with the exception of the HSPA+ Nexus, are often left in the dust on old versions of Android that have security holes.
I own an Android device and have persuaded many people to purchase Android. However, I’m not jaded or blinded by fanboy mentality or devotion to a tech company. I like to be subjective when it comes to tech, and I believe my comments about both Android and iOS/iPhone are true.
1. A refund window of 30 days doesn’t really address the issue. Those who’s phones were older were left stuck with a crappy case. Sorry that’s not really addressing the issue – that’s a band aid. BTW there was a class action lawsuit that Apple settled in which they offered $15 or a free case.
2.Again there’s an exchange window – many people fell outside that window so no that’s definitely NOT addressing the problem. BTW I just checked the official Apple community forums on their site and yellow screens are still a big issue it seems. In fact it’s still an issue for many after a year so that whole glue thing is more than likely a bunch of BS.
3.You need to do some research then.
4. Not really, crashes have occurred well after major release date. Check the Apple forums for IOS5 crash.
5. I’ve had many Android devices (2 droids, a tab and now a Verizon Galaxy Nexus) and they’ve all had multiple security udpates. Generally, serious security vulnerabilities are addressed. Also Google has the ability to pull roque apps from phones. True, bug fixes can be slow on some carriers but that’s mostly their fault. The Verizon Galaxy Nexus has gotten several incremental updates ready. Although…. I didn’t buy a Nexus device to wait on the Carrier – I’m already on Jelly Bean.
As for IOS being up to date and more secure. I can buy it’s up to date, and that’s relative because Android is still ahead in overall features and capabilities. However, I cannot buy it’s more secure. Apple’s security track record in general has been dismal. Yes they have a better vetting system when it comes to the App Store but that does not mean their OSs are bullet proof. Hackers have proven them wrong one too many times.
Because of local jailbreaks that take months to develop? Are you being serious?
I actually liked that press conference Apple and Steve Jobs. They redirected all their negative press right back on to the consumer.
They extended the return period and they ended the conference with: This is OUR phone, we’re not forcing you to buy it. If you’re not happy, don’t buy it.
You were doing well, and then you went way too far…
iOS devices aren’t always up-to-date… that’s just a myth they’ve created about themselves. First off, the original iPhone only has iOS 3.1… it hasn’t been up to date in nearly 3 years, and it lacks a lot of necessary hardware (no 3G radio, no GPS…) — so it was rightfully abandoned. The iPhone 3G only has iOS 4.2 and hasn’t been up to date in just about 2 years… to their credit, they supported those devices in excess of 2 years each.
But here’s the kicker now with the 3GS, 4, and 4S, iPod Touch, original iPad, iPad 2, and the “new” iPad… the updates that are coming out aren’t full-featured on each device. Numerically, they may be the “same”… but functionally, they aren’t even close. The 3GS, essentially the same thing as an iPod Touch and original iPad (iPad being faster) got all the features from iOS 3, 4 and 5… and will get iOS 6, though not fully-featured… yet neither the Touch or original iPad will… despite being essentially identical devices. The iPhone 4 will also get very limited support on iOS 6… so now the newer device will essentially get less support than the predecessor… 3 full versions instead of 2. This is exactly what happens on Android… except there’s more manufacturers, more devices, and way more users that are getting boned so the volume of the outcry is louder.
If all we’re considering when comparing the 3 most recent apple phones and their updates is security and privacy patches, as you’ve mentioned… then Android does this as well… they just don’t try to convince you that you’ve got the latest and greatest and call it Android 4.0/4.1 when they do it. If functionally, the device is still only doing the 2.3 features, then it stays at 2.3 instead of calling it 4.0/4.1 without any of the new features. Droid X, Droid 2… they both received updates earlier this year — as an example — to patch security.
Two things your phone doesn’t have is two selling ponts for your competitor’s phone, so that could help drive people to Samsung. Multi-carrier release is a big factor. I’m a dyed-in-the-wool HTC guy and the S3 certainly tempted me but the One X is just a great piece of hardware. Of course, I’ve only played with it in an AT&T store since I’m a T-Mobile customer. No SD card and integral battery are weird choices but 16gb is more than my current phone’s combined memory (w/8gb SD) and that’s been plenty. I’ll definitely get the X when it comes to T-Mob but it doesn’t look good for HTC. Bottom line: if people can’t buy your phone, your sales go down.
Exactly! Why should folks wait to see if and when HTC will release a phone for their carrier when a competitor swoops in with a phone that’s arguably just as good? The One X could’ve had the market to itself for a whole month. Instead we get the One X+ rumourware while the GS3 is ready and available. Most folks aren’t going to play “wait see”; they will buy the best phone out when their upgrade is available. As for me, I’ll be getting a GS3 and likely a GNote (to be swiftly rooted with JB AOSP installed). I can only buy what is available for sale.
I wouldn’t even think about buying a phone that didn’t have a removable battery and sd card slot, but I don’t think that’s why they’re struggling to sell these devices. Just ask people whether they’ve ever heard of the HTC One X, then ask them if they’ve heard of a Samsung Galaxy. It’s all about the marketing clout.
I can only speak for myself, but that’s why I went with the S3. If the One S had 32 gig internal I may have pulled the trigger, but the 16 gig (12 usable with all the bloatware) just wasn’t going to cut it.
not at all. That’s only an issue with the hardcore android forum user. Most people really don’t care, or even know their current phones have sd cards.
The 1% of people that care about those things didn’t hurt their sales too much. You can’t judge from an enthusiast blog where a much higher percentage do care.
i would totally get the one x over the s3, no doubt. i like how sense is becoming less of a bloat on the OS.
HTC just seemed boring… I considered greeting the Evo LTE but I decided to go pure google with GNex
Battery Life. Even if the newer phones get decent battery life, HTC has a reputation for poor battery life that will take a while to go away. Everyone I see with an HTC phone has one of those HUGE batteries on it. The Thunderbolt was a bad move for HTC.
Yeah you’re right, I have a huge “camel hump” extended battery on my Thunderbolt.
HTC has definitely addressed these issues in the One S and X. Both have great battery life.
That may be the case but if I signed a 2-year contract to get the One X I
would be worried about battery life over the long haul.
Batteries
degrade over time, and the One X has only a 1,800 mAh battery. While
the battery might be great for 90 days I wonder how battery performance
will be after, say, 9 months.
There’s no way to replace it if there is trouble.
The
only phone with a sealed battery that I would consider is the Razr
Maxx, which has a gigantic 3,300 mAh battery. That’s even bigger than
the extended battery (2,750 mAh) I bought for the Thunderbolt.
I understand. I’ve worried about that as well. Then I realized I’ve rarely kept a phone longer than a year and the ones I have (G1), I never needed to replace the battery.
Yeah but think about it from this standpoint. You’re faced between a galaxy s3 and an One X. They both have very similar specs, yet the s3 has a removable battery and a micro sd card. Which devices are sales people more likely to sell, which device wins out on the features list, and which device is the tech crowd more likely to recommend.
Not all of us have the money, or a stipend from a phone blog, to replace our phones every six months. :/
this was the killer for me…stated above. it wasn’t so much the battery “life” but the constant reboot issues and drop in charge from reboot to reboot. They just weren’t stable at least not on 2.x anyway.
Because they make crappy devices, lock bootloaders and completely ignore what the community has to say about their products and therefore are incapable of improving.
Locked bootloader requiring voiding of warranty to unlock, no battery swap, no sd card slot, and their flaws with such devices as the amaze and sensation.
What flaws? Google them, you’ll see.
Wow, I predicted this last month and everyone downvoted me. They should just go all windows and get out of the android game…they clearly don’t get it.
Slow a*s*s on Updating their devices and Abandon Updates that have been scheduled
I knew people wont buy cuz there is no remove battery and sd card…Samsung Galaxy S3 is winner!!
I’m sad to see how many people think this is the reason. Do people really think that all android users are tech enthusiasts that buy spare batteries and SD cards?
Yeah but think of how many people buy a device based on what a tech enthusiast says.
A much smaller amount than a lot of us want to think. It’s usually the guy behind the counter.
And you don’t think they’ll use a removable battery and micro sd card as a selling point and reason to go for the galaxy s3 over a htc one series device?
Nope, they are much more likely to show them things the average consumer cares about, like apps, cameras, speed, etc. Go into a phone store. See what they try and sell you on if you don’t act like you already know what you want.
Everyone knows when their battery life sucks, bottom line. I mean I love my OG Evo but I’ve been dealing w/ its miserable battery life for over 2 years. Custom ROMs & kernels help but can only do so much. I refuse to go through that again for another 2 years. I was on the train a few weeks ago milking my battery while the guy in front of me was toying with his Razor Maxx non-stop as I looked longingly on. Not with my next phone!
Everyone knows if their battery sucks, yes. But so few people outside of us know their phones brand, know if their brand has a streak, or know if other brands are better. Not the best argument. Vastly overestimating how much a consumer cares to know about their phone.
Although one user commented that sense is less bloat I beg to differ. I have an OG Evo running Remics, which is a GSIII port. I grew sick of the heavy, clunky, not as easily customizable Sense Interface. HTC just keeps rehashing the same interface with a few changes here and there. they even went so far as to drop the evo lte with the same basic design on everything. The guts of the phone are different but the rest is boring. Also, it is really no fun trying to customize the interface when so many aspects of the UI look different. I do wish the GSIII had the same contour design as the one x.
I currently have an HTC phone reaching 2 years in December… I won’t be buying another, my reasons are, in order:
– HTC Sense sucks, my previous Motorola Droid was much more usable, I struggle with HTC’s address book and crap and it offers no improvements I can find. Not only that, my phone has never been updated to ICS/JB.
– No removable battery.. my phone, before rooting it with the power hungry Sense, had a battery life of about 4 hour talk time. My battery would be dead by 4pm latest, usually by noon. Rooting and install CM7 (which I never needed to do on my Motorola phones) improved it by probably 2 hours, but I still needed to buy the extended battery. If I can’t get an extended battery and replacable batteries, phone is a no go (after a year, all batteries start slowly losing there life). Same problem my previous iPhone had, it was always dead when I needed it… I’m a heavy user and the iPhone can’t handle that, and I know the HTC One copied the iPhone on that regard.- No microSD card anymore
Assuming Verizon gets the next Nexus series phone, that will be what I buy…
Just my opinion, but I wouldn’t count on vzw getting another Nexus.
Why are you surprised that your phone didnt get to ics or jb, its about two years old since you bought it, there aren’t any phones that old that were updated to 4.0
Their phones look ugly. Even Huawei phones look better….
Whenever I had to deal with an HTC the first noticeable thing that seemed really annoying was Sense. After 2.2 there was hardly a need for it. Getting rid of that crap is your first step out of the hole HTC.
Although I have found HTC hardware to be consistently very good, and I have been eligible for upgrading for a while, I will not likely ever purchase a phone that does not have the Nexus label. Waiting for two months for Verizon/HTC to provide the ICE upgrade for the Thunderbolt has discouraged any interest I had in the HTC One’s, and given me the stamina to wait for the next Nexus phone to come to market.
i think HTC lost it’s direction… they dun seem to really know what customers want.
if i have to choose between OneX or S3, anytime it’ll be S3. i can see more value in S3 (features, functions vs price) over OneX.
but i still hope to see HTC really bounce back. it’s sad that a ‘purely phone company’ like HTC is losing out to a ‘hardware factory’ like Samsung.
@HTC throw in 4.5″ screen (please use a good screen technology) with FullHD resolution, 2GB RAM, 32GB internal memory, external memory slot on the outside, removable battery, etc and still match s3 price, i’m sure your share market will go up again.
but software plays a role too… have an integrated system, please… :D
I think you nailed it on the head…they lost their direction. Its like they said they wanted to go with fewer models, but they can’t quite commit to that…and we all know about the non removable battery and no sd card, but I honestly think that really only matters to us, anyway.
I don’t know, if they could get their stuff together, I think they could get back to the top of the game, but right now its like they can’t stop themselves from thinking they know best, and/or focusing themselves. I personally hope they improve, I still think they can be great.
The One X has a better screen than the S3, and it’s not close. I look at both every day. The problem is marketing.
The GSIII was released in america alot earlier than the GSII was, that said the One X and the Evo 4g LTE are amazing devices. I personally own the new evo and would not even consider trading it for a GSIII (I have used both). Sense 4.0 is gorgeous compared to Touchwiz and I get amazing battery life (18-24 hours on a single charge with moderate to heavy use). I’ve had no issue with unlocking the bootloader and rooting as others have said. If you can follow simple directions it can be done pretty easily. Honestly I think people write off HTC before even considering them.
I used to like HTC quite a bit, so I bought a Thunderbolt and then a
Flyer tablet. Both devices are good… but also have nagging issues
that become very annoying after a while. It’s especially frustrating because the hardware on both is very good, especially the durable kickstand on the Thunderbolt.
However,
the Thunderbolt was buggy with reboots and security vulnerabilities
caused by Sense. It would lose LTE connectivity often. All this is
working well now but it took months for HTC to create patches to fix
these issues.
With the Flyer HTC made the weird decision to
charge $70 for a stylus (I ended up finding a 3rd party stylus for $10).
Another bizarre choice was the way HTC partitioned drives on the
tablet. For whatever reason HTC thought it was a good idea to make a
“virtual SD card” that is recognized by Android… and thus any real SD
card put into the slot is invisible. So when I added a 16GB card to the
tablet it only shows ~3GB. Even worse, none of this is documented in
the help files, I just had to figure this out on my own. You’re left wondering how it’s possible to be running out of space after you’ve added a huge card…
So it’s a
shame. HTC makes near-perfect hardware but makes extremely
questionable decisions with software. If HTC makes another Nexus device I
would definitely buy it but I think I’m done with Sense.
definitely HOX over GS3, GNex or anything else out right now. I like the HOX display better and HOX’s aesthetics. Battery life on the at&t HOX is excellent so don’t care about non-removable power pack. Memory is also sufficient for my needs (I keep all of my content in the cloud). Hope HTC doesn’t disappear – I want more choices – not less.
If it were on sprint, I would have it instead of my gnex. HTC needed to release on all carriers
It’s because of HBOOT 1.5! Damn you HTC!!!
Instead of getting distracted with diversions like Beats Audio and camera technology, HTC should fix their fundamental problems: battery life, Sense, & storage options.
I still have the first HTC Dinc and have no interest in another HTC or any other vendor that skins the OS. Sick of waiting for updates that are too slow or never come. HTC wants to get back in the game add a bigger battery and start releasing some models with stock Android. Why doe’s Google have to be the only one releasing stock phone?
I completely agree with this. I wish more nexus devices were high end devices though. The galaxy nexus for example wasn’t really impressive spec wise when it came out. BUT, seeing how cheap you can get one off contract, it’s highly enticing.
I already have the One X. I love it, but then again, I’m on AT&T and was able to get one easily.
Well, they gimped the USA version with just 16gb of non expandable memory, and it wasn’t available for T-Mobile(yet).so the s3 was a no brainer for me.now if the rumored one x+ had been out….i would have bought that instead.
Here are the reasons why HTC sales are down
Sense- there is no need for it anymore. All is does is hog memory and battery life and slow the phone down. The BS of sense 4 being much smaller was a lie. Sense RUU are bigger than ever. Get rid of Sense.
Battery life – HTC is synonymous with poor battery life. This needed to be addressed and they chose to ignore it.
Non removable battery- this is a kiss of death when you are known to make phones with poor battery life
No SD slot – people still want this
Slow or nonexistent OS updates- this is where they dropped the ball. They used to be the best at updating software, but they have become the worst of all major handset OEM only lg is worse.
I think it’s too little too late for HTC because they have shown they don’t care with the public wants.
They will be joining RIM in a year or two
Every single point on your list comes from someone who doesn’t really that most people don’t visit sites like Phandroid before buying a phone. Most people don’t know HTC’s history. Most people could not care less about batteries and SD cards. Most people don’t know that they are behind on updates, and most people don’t care about sense vs stock. HTC wants to sell to most people.
Honestly I keep going back to ssense 4 from aosp and cm9 it has a lot more things integrated than cm9. I don’t like to have a bunch of 3rd party apps to do everything, I like integration and thats one thing htc has done right.
I still don’t understand why no sd card or removal battery is such a dealbreaker for everyone.
And they are no where as close to dying as RIM, thats ridiculous
Battery life on the One X is great. Not sure what you’re talking about with “they chose to ignore it.” Read the review on Anandtech.
Perhaps your perception is common, though, which could be a big deal.
I’d consider HTC not opposed to them. I like the sense ui. ATT didn’t offer a good HTC phone at the time of purchase. So I got the skyrocket. Got upgrade march and wife has one June 2013. I’ll see what happens then.
Verizon didn’t have any good HTC phones. the one s and one x were great but just couldn’t build up a reputation like Samsung phones which have their flagship phone availae on all carriers
lack of UPDATES!!!! most new phones are on 4.0.4 and no update in sight for evo 4g lte. that and the ugly menu bar, multitasking etc. FIX IT!!!! these are problems that shouldn’t exist. i gave you one more chance HTC and you’re making me regret it
HTC is the kid who peed in his pants because it was cold, but now the warm of the pee is gone, and it is now much colder than it was before. The one series is the right move, but it is gonna take a lot of time to get the pee smell out of those pants, and it looks like they plan on peeing in their pants again, if the rumors show to be true about them doing even more phones in the next quarter. :S
Exclusitivity was the issue in my opinion. Doesn’t mean they would’ve done better than Samsung. But it definitely would’ve helped to have the One-x/s on more carriers.
Having my hTC One X and I never felt a second of regret! To me, TouchWiz is a lot more laggy and less intuitive where sense UI just does a much better job, not to mention the design for One X is much more gorgeous than S3 imo. S3 just does better job on marketing it!! (look at flooded commercial from Samsung on Olympic channels). I think Marketing is where hTC should really improve themselves on.
Battery life on the ONE is a tremendous improvement over hTC HD2 I owed before.
Overall, the only negative part I could think of for the One X is that it’s lacking an SD card.
Sense, non replaceable battery, no SD card slot, 3 strikes and you’re out
HTC…. Now Hear This…… Make your BATTERIES REMOVABLE……. dumbass…. add microSD card slot……. dumbass….. know what your customers want in a smart phone…… they don’t want a dumb phone….. dumdass.
It would help if they’d do like Samsung and get rid of the special carrier exclusive versions like the droid incredible and evolte. If all carries had a one x that was called a one x and looked like a one x, they might have done better
I was back and forth on the One X and SGS3 for a while and finally decided that the overall feature set – including expandable memory, and 2 GB of RAM – of the S3 was too much to say no to. In the end, I really wanted to end up with the One X but am extremely happy with my SGS3. I do hope HTC can find a groove again, though, because I loved my OG Desire and wouldn’t hesitate to jump back to an HTC device, if they gave me a more compelling reason in lieu of the competition.
I had a DInc and Tbolt back to back and while I loved the phones they suffered from horrible reboot issues and the batteries would not hold charge. They couldn’t even read the voltage properly. You would pull the battery and after replacing it dropped by 15%!
I know many complain about SENSE, but I liked it. I have a GN now and it has not suffered any of the issues HTC phones did. I think Sammy just makes better phones all around.
They started building phones for the casual user instead of for the niche power user. They aren’t setup for this change.
Samsung is quietly annihilating them on four fronts. The Galaxy Note appeals to power users who want a large display. The Nexus appeals to power users who want stock android and are early adopters plus its offered cheaply unlocked. The Galaxy SIII (SII) standard line goes head to head against their flagship phone and edges it out slightly, but is offered by all the carriers. Then they offer a cheap phone based on their last generation for the casual user that’s often free.
HTC has only really succeeded in getting out their cheap casual user phone out to most carriers and that’s their lowest margin device. It’s not a shocker that their profit is down dramatically.
Before the iPhone, Samsung was eeking out large runs of flip phones that cost the carriers $75-140. HTC was eeking out small niche runs of $400-500 phones. Samsung is used to not making very much on a phone, so they offered low prices to all the carriers on their smart phones and carriers love them cause they are cheap. HTC is going after the bigger market casual user at margins they simply aren’t setup for or ready to compete against. As their niche market became mainstream, they made a lot of money for a time, but then quickly got decimated by mainstream players.
If Verizon had something like the one x but with a removable battery and memory then I might of. But this gs3 is great!
I really loved the One X and all its stylings. I just wish they hadn’t uglified it with the Sprint version.
But I still wouldn’t have bought it even if Sprint had the standard white One X. Why? Because I am now addicted to Nexus devices and am waiting for the next awesome Nexus phone. UPDATES MATTER!
Ok…have to have a two year contract–I have Verizon. Don’t know who is a fault, but takes way too long to get upgrades to new operating system. My next phone that I purchase, I will be looking at this issue and making my decision on phone and service provider to see who is putting their consumers first. This should be automatic, and will decide who woo get and keep my business.
Samsung did a great job doing a simultaneous multi carrier worldwide release.. HTC has it’s work cut out for it though against Samsung and it’s behemoth like production capacity and economies of scale… competing (directly) against Samsung is no easy task in the mobile world..
I would have seriously considered it if the One X came to Verizon as I prefer HTC products. But seeing as how the GS3 went unopposed, I went with it and I love it. Samsung has a beast on their hands. HTC dropped the ball with not releasing it to all carriers.
I can see why they went with non-removable batteries. Battery life – is-AWESOME!!!
I ended up trading it for a Note and wish do dear Jebus i hadn’t. Biggest mistake ever……. Storage is fine, I’ve dealt with it on the Nexus.
It’s simple really: you won’t make sales if people can’t buy your products. Notice all the initial furor regarding the One X hopefully working on T-Mobile. If that phone was available on T-Mobile I would buy it today, especially the 32mb version. Sorry, we only got the One S, and not the most attractive version. Sprint gets the only version with an SD slot. Poor Verizon just gets a shrunken-down poor-man’s One S. HTC doesn’t get it: it’s the flagship phones that build your brand! They basically sacrificed Verizon and T-Mobile to Samsung, as the GS3 is the only top-flight phone on either carrier. Hell, half of T-Mobile’s offerings are Samsungs. I’d much rather have HTC’s build quality, but if i can’t buy it then i have to look elsewhere. They could at least have pentaband radios so folks could unlock and use a la the Galaxy Note, but no…..they lost 2 phone sales in my household!
For me the newly announced pace of outing new phones has hold me back to buy the One X. In the past years HTC would release a new flagship phone almost every month ;) and now I feel like I have to wait for the ‘next thing’, because if I buy a One X now, I’ll have an outdated phone (in my eyes) when the new one comes.
Next to that I would really like a Nexus-type of phone because of the quick updates from Google
They do make great phones, but they made the mistake apple made but don’t have the fan-base to make that same mistake. They allowed design to triumph over user experience. Yes, the One X and S are thin, they look great, have great specs, but they left out two important things. The microsd card is important to a lot of people, and if you insist on using a design with a sealed in battery, at least make the battery huge. A One X with the specs as is but add a 2800 mAh battery and microsd card slot would do fantastic when going up against an S3 or an iPhone. Nobody would care that it was a tiny bit thicker to accommodate the battery.
The one s is a nicer phone anyway. Better size and amoled screen.
HTC Sense is slow, HTC support their handsets not long enough. Plus sensor problems in HTC Hero and Legend. I would say these are major issues.
One x obviously. HTC phones are rock solid. Samsung mobile needs a lot of work.. havent trusted them since the brick of Samsung instincts. If the one x was on Verizon I would own it, for sure. Happy rezound owner here.
I had the OG Evo, and still do, and I COULDN’T STAND THE BUiLD QUALITY OF THAT PHONE. The battery door didn’t fit correctly (seriously, that’s just f’in retarded), light bleeding along the edges and the notification light felt like it was going to induce a seizure with no way of turning it off.
I get the Galaxy S II and the phone has NO issues, at least for me. Still made of plastic but feels lighter, better screen with no light bleeding, no random crashes while using navigation, battery door ACTUALLY fits correctly, notification light that doesn’t feel like it’s going to send me into a Grand mal seizure among other things.
So the EVO LTE and the S III come out, with very similar specs might I add but the EVO LTE is first an htc and second has non-removable battery and Sense with borked multitasking. There really isn’t even a decision for me to make, htc helped make it for me.
Htc phones do not look expensive. I want my phone to look good if I am spending over $600. One X white model starts looking dull after two months of usage. For the first time, I bought myself a white Galaxy Note and could not be happier. It makes chicks curious too.
I disagree that the reason the HOX didnt sell well is because HTC didnt include a micro SD card slot and a removable battery. I think the reason it didnt sell great is because they didnt put a big enough battery in and they didnt offer enough internal storage. The Moto Razr Maxx sold great on Verizon with its sealed in battery. But guess what? That battery was 3300 MAH instead of 1800. HTC even said that their users prefer a thin profile to battery life. This moronic statement sums up HTC’s struggles perfectly. The ATT version came with only 9.7 GB of usable storage. This is a pathetic for a flagship device. Either HTC didnt have the clout to insist their device was without compromise or they actually thought it would be enough. Either way, they were wrong.
If they had put it on all carriers and had just one model like Samsung did then yea.
Too small of battery, even if battery life is good. Lack of microSD and removable battery were a deal killer for me. But also the fact that they are sticking with the LCD screens and not resolving the light bleed issues on the edges of the screens. I had to look long and hard at the HTC phones vs my SGS2 and I ended up opting for the lower res but brighter and blacker black AMOLED screen over the LCD.
If they are going to stick with LCDs, they need to improve their LCD technology. It has been pretty much the same since the first EVO other than increasing resolution a bit. But light bleed still remains a major issue.
I also agree with many others were, HTC earned a reputation in 2009-2011 of having phones with terrible battery life and also putting out a lot of really bad Windows Mobile phones. I know some people in my family bought Motorola phones instead of superior HTC phones just because their last HTC Windows Mobile phone was such a piece of crap. They are willing to give a Taiwanese company a try, but certainly not twice. I tried to convince them that Android was very different than Windows Mobile, which worked, but they still won’t by HTC. They are on their 3rd Motorola Android phone now and still won’t even consider HTC after previous experiences.
If the One x was released on Verizon I would have bought it, or even the One S. but the Dinc 4g is not a One phone. dumb move.
I know many an IPhone owner that the battery is a big complaint because they are stuck with carrying around a power brick that hangs off their phone. Storage is less of a complaint for IPhone owners, they just kick themselves for not having the foresight to get one with larger storage. I think HTC would have done better of there were 16/32/64g options on all carriers, and a removable battery. Personally I prefer to have both an SD Card and removable battery, but that didn’t stop me from getting a GNex. HTC also needs to look at the public PR damage that is being done with the their bootloaders, and the partial unlock that some of their devices can have if they are unlockable at all. The fanatic is the one the non technical people often go to when finding out about new phones and if they are worth it.
Has anyone considered marketing? Samsung has some pretty decent commercials airing on big shows. Do not underestimate the reach of clever marketing.
HTC’s sense is very very bad.You can take a wildfire and a one x and they both would have similar looking “HTC SENSE” skin.i had to choose between the one x and s3,i chose the s3 because sense doesnt at all feel like android.Touchwiz was much better,it was closer to the stock android experience.There is only a change in features (like the iphones and ipads) but the interface still remains the same on HTC(a 4 icon dock and and 4×4 grid like in iDevices)
stock android is DEFINETLY better than HTC’s SENSE.except for the icons pretty much everything else is closer to the stock android experience in the S3.Thats why i chose the s3 instead of onex.removable storage is a option that i warmly welcome in an android phone(after using an iphone with limited storage for 2 years).camera sticks out the body on the one x.
On the surface everyone screams non-removable battery and no MicroSD Card Slot. I hate to say it though, this is simply negligible arguments because people hate to stray from the normal operation they are used to.
Propblem #1: Example: My wife lost her S2, through insurance our only option was the One S. The wife and I discussed all the pros and cons of the HTC over the Samsung. In the end (as if I had a choice) we got the one S.
The HTC is a very different feel and experience for me. It is too customized and different from Vanilla Android. Though I use Samsungs’ TouchWiz and custom roms, HTCs Sence feels weird. My Android lineup from the beginning has been Motorola Cliq, Galaxy S1, Galaxy S3. My personal experience was the transition between these 3 was smooth, comfortable and easy.
On the flip side I use my buddies Rezound and the Wifeys’ One S and it feels odd to say the least. I know its Android, but it doesnt quite feel right. Something isnt there. There isnt any real substance to it for me. Personally, on this account, I think HTC tries too hard on the interface and front setup.
Other personal gripes about the One S
-Power button on top
-Charging port on side
-LED Notification light though cool looking and small, is too hard to see
-Screen looks odd, washed out or not as vivid as Id like
#2: HTC suffers what Motorola has suffered in the past. They release great phones either a little too late or right before something bigger and better comes around. The problem with not being able to have the HTC One X on Tmobile for example is stupid. Now we will get he HTC One X+ makes people wanting more and more from HTC. Meanwhile Samsung is consistently releasing one high end version of the Galaxy S line over and over. Samsung is turning into Apple in the sense that the new phone people want before its released.
Short version: HTC needs a game changer. By the time they release a “good enough” phone, someone else releases a phone that makes the HTC version appear out dated. HTC has been feeling outdated for the past year, they cant quite get ahead long enough to enjoy the benefits of it!
Just my .02
You’re right to say the One X needs to be on more carriers, but marketing is also to blame. The One X is the crown jewel for one major reason, and it’s a reason that every review I’ve seen has stated: it has the best screen on any smartphone. The One S is qHD and amoled, and, while it’s good, it doesn’t blow everything else away like the One X does. The One X is also a powerhouse of a phone, competitive spec for spec (except for RAM) with the S3.
How is it marketed, though? Like a feature phone. Look! The One X has Beats! Look! The One X can take pictures while it’s taking video! The average consumer has no idea that the One X is arguably the best phone on the market. Even without touting specs, Samsung has done a great job of making the S3 feel like it’s setting a high watermark (the next BIG thing, etc.), while HTC has allowed the One X, which beat the S3 to market on AT&T and Sprint (although the Sprint version is different, which is confusing), to feel like an also-ran.
I own the S3 on Verizon, my wife owns the One X on AT&T, and I’m the one that’s envious. HTC isn’t even trying to make the argument.
… is it really so hard to offer additional 32gb/64gb models for the One S/X
… is it really so hard to add a microSD-Slot on a ONE X+
Samsung has simply done a better job marketing and hyping their phone.
And Sprint does have the One X, it’s the EVO 4G LTE except it’s better with a card slot and kickstand. However, HTC not getting the One X on Verizon is a Bad Thing. I for one carry a GS3 for work that would have definitely been a One X if it had been available. The One X’s screen is far superior.
The card slot and non-removable battery were bad calls but I don’t think that accounts for sales differences. But I would add that if they had simply included those two items, it would be the superior phone in pretty much every way.
HTC’s flagship phone on Verizon is the Rezound… Released in November and finally gets ICS in early August. Need I say more, if you are stuck with a phone for 2 years you want timely updates. You should not have to root your phone to get the latest and greatest IMO
I wanted a HTC one x but they don’t have it for Verizon ….so I had to get an s3 …I like the s3 but the One X looks and feels much better
(sorry this turned out so long, but the launch of the One X was a frustrating thing for me)
I can only speak for myself, obviously, but the lack of removable storage was the deal breaker for me. I will leave, and have left, carriers for a phone. In my area, they all (w/exception of Sprint) have good coverage and data speeds, so that helps. I was really excited about the OneX, but I will not buy a phone w/out removable storage. Do I NEED it? No. I WANT it because I can offload all media so if/when I reset my phone, I still have that stuff. I don’t like cloud storage for multiple reasons (not the least of which is capped data plans).
I’m somewhere between casual consumer and tech dork. I have only ever rooted a Nook I had. I don’t have a desire to root & ROM my phones due to there ALWAYS being some sort of instability/non-working feature, etc. (also based on my experience w/having CM on my Nook). I don’t knock it, it’s just not for me. I keep up w/the Android sites, rooting methods, etc. just in case, but just haven’t wanted to go further.
As a casual consumer type, I simply don’t buy phones w/out the removable storage. I don’t hate iPhones (or other Apple products for that matter), but I can say, for me, the lack of removable storage is the sole reason I’ve never tried an iPhone for myself.
Sorry HTC, but you can make a ridiculously capable, great looking phone all day long, but just like Apple products, I for one won’t buy them without AT LEAST removable storage (I can probably get buy w/out removable battery, but the rest of the phone would have to be pretty darn compelling).
I think it also hurt that the different variants of the One series phones were/are SO different. NONE of the variants (in the US anyway), had everything I believe consumers like me want. ALL of them PUT TOGETHER do, but they stripped one thing or another out of each of the variants, leading me to believe the COULD HAVE made the product to suit someone like me, but chose not to. I’m not their market for any of the devices they released (i.e. MY money is not what they were after, so I had to spend it somewhere else…you’re welcome Samsung)
Because HTC doesn’t listen.
And I’d pick the GS3 and throw a launcher on it. No sd card slot, no removable battery = no deal.
Big Red has a lot to do with HTC’s lack of profits… They killed their Grandfathered Unlimited Data Plan right when the G3 was being released without an HTC High End alternative to buy which generated lots of pre-orders for the G3 for those eligible for an upgrade (4G). Being an original HTC Dinc owner the choice was G3 or the HTC Rezound (Bought for $60). Really wanted the One X (Removeable Battery / SD Card of course), but it was / is no where on the Verizon radar – Opportunity Lost!!
By limiting the features of the HTC One (i.e. Non-removable battery, non-expandable memory, etc), people like me would be considering other brands that offer these features. It’s just too bad because if HTC hasn’t omitted these features, I wouldn’t be looking at other phones.