[Rumor] HTC One Component Shortage Will Last Through April

[dgstorm]

Despite excellent preorders and excellent response internationally, the HTC One could end up missing sales targets, but not because no one wants the device, but instead because supply shortages for the OEM are expected to continue though April. Here's a quote with some of the details,

The continued stock shortages are leading many to suspect that the HTC One will miss its first quarter sales targets. Investment services firm Macquarie Securities has lowered its shipping forecasts for the HTC One to between 1 million and 1.5 million units, down from 1.5 million to 2 million units, which is a pretty substantial drop.

Macquarie Securities is also expecting HTC’s consolidated sales between January and March to only reach NT$48 billion (New Taiwan dollars). That might sound like a lot of money, but to put this in perspective HTC gave an initial sales target of NT$50 billion-NT$60 billion for the first quarter back in February.

JP Morgan Chase has also echoed these expectations, forecasting HTC’s total revenue to come in at NT$45 billion for the first quarter and further sales problems in the second quarter if the component shortages cannot be resolved by late April.

It's a shame the flagship phone which has been winning rave reviews across the web may see stunted success because it is a bit too complex to build. This is bad news at the worst time for HTC, and is especially so for their president Peter Chou because he promised to resign if the HTC One flops. It's possible things could get smoothed out a bit later in the year, but could it be too little too late for the once great Android smartphone maker?

One other advantage the phone has going for it is the price of its closest competition. The new SGS4 is expected to debut for $250 on contract at most, if not all, carriers. With the HTC One sitting at $200, and a possible price decrease to $175-150 when the SGS4 finally launches, its high quality build and great looks could sway a few customers if they can work out these parts supply problems.

Source: AndroidAuthority