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The rise and fall of HTC
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Just a few short years ago, HTC was the king of Android, and the only credible rival to Apple’s smartphone crown. Today however, as the One M8 flagship enters officialdom, the company’s future is far from certain. In the latest episode of Adventures in Tech, we chart the rise — and fall — of HTC.
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After years of producing brand-free devices for other companies to slap their logos on, HTC eventually stepped into the limelight, making history when it crafted the very first Android phone in the T-Mobile G1. Hit play now to hear how HTC shocked the smartphone world, with smart design and cleverly-tweaked Sense software that — at first — was actually an improvement on the nascent Android.
Check out the sleek, metal HTC One M8 (photos)
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In October, HTC confirmed it was losing money for the first time since going public, over a decade ago. Today the company is in serious trouble.
“It’s impossible to overstate the extent of Samsung’s scale advantage relative to manufacturers such as HTC,” Geoff Blaber of CCS Insight told CNET. “It gives them huge advantages in component sourcing, marketing, bill of materials and most importantly, profit in an increasingly low margin business.”
Despite continually making great products, like the HTC One , the company has struggled to take on the likes of Apple and Samsung. “HTC arguably launched the best product of 2013 but got completely outmuscled by Apple and Samsung,” Blaber commended.
With Apple and Samsung dominating the smartphone world, HTC has hinted it will switch focus to mid-range mobiles, in a bid to get back in the money-making game.
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