[Rumor] HTC's Devices in 2H2013: T6, Butterfly S, Desire 600 & 200 & One Mini

[dgstorm]

Looking to build upon their success with the HTC One, and move past the colossal failure of the HTC First, HTC is planning to introduce a smattering of new devices in the second half of this year. According to a report at DigiTimes we will see a new version of the Butterfly called the Butterfly S. There will also be a couple of new versions of the Desire, known as the Desire 600 and Desire 200. Finally, HTC will introduce a new flagship phablet into the mix with the internal codename T6 (which we reported previously). They will also apparently be following Samsung's branding practices by offering an HTC One Mini. Here's a quote from DigiTimes,

HTC plans to launch a number of new smartphones starting June, including the dual-SIM Desire 600, the HTC Butterfly S and the HTC One mini (codenamed M4), as well as the Desire 200 for the entry-level segment, according to industry sources.

HTC is also developing a large-size phone, codenamed T6, which is expected to come with a 5.9-inch full HD display, and powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core 2.3GHz CPU, the sources indicated.

The HTC One mini will come with a dual-core CPU and a 4.3-inch display with a resolution of 720p running on Android 4.2, said the sources, adding that the HTC One mini is likely to enter volume production in July.

The HTC One mini and the T6 both will adopt metal chassis, with Taiwan-based Catcher Technology as the primary supplier, while China-based BYD will serve as the secondary supplier, the sources revealed.

Obviously at first this looks like they are up to their old playbook again by spamming to many devices to market, but if you analyze further you can easily surmise that not all of these devices will go to the same markets. Also, many of them target different demographics. For example, the Butterfly S will likely only show up in Japan and maybe Taiwan, and the Desire 600 and 200 are likely targeting the mid-range and budget-friendly crowd respectively. More than likely the U.S. will see some version of the HTC One Mini, and perhaps the T6 as well since it actually targets the phablet fans. Perhaps HTC might be able to get things together by focusing on just a few select high quality players like this. We will have to wait and see.

Source: DigiTimes

 

[johnomaz]

"Hey guys, we made a successful phone...lets make 5 more/different in the next 6 months." RIP HTC, you just can't leave that tactic alone, can you?

 

[kodiak799]

I just don't get how these guys continue to think you need different phones to target different segments and need to refresh the brand every few months. Apple and Sammie have both proven you make "one" phone and just discount older models.

How can anyone think the other strategy is still viable? They get killed on production scale and R&D - this is why they aren't making money.